Romans 15:4 "For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."
13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 [a]Because narrow is the gate and [b]difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
Every child of God walks by “faith,” each and every step that we take reveals to God’s neighborhood, to all God’s neighbors, the visible measure of our “faith.”
Our Christianity is our most visible part and we must have the willingness to hear, a doubtless heart to believe, godly sorrow to repent, be unashamed to confess, the obedience to be baptized, the moral strength to endure till the end.
When we are willing to take up our cross and follow after Christ, we are taking the right steps on the straight and narrow path that leads to life everlasting.
At one time or another, I can practically guarantee that every Christian has heard another person tell them – (truth be told – this was my favorite line.)
“I do not need God, I do not need Jesus, I do not need church, I don’t really need anyone’s religion; I just try to be that good person and live by the Golden Rule.”
It’s not uncommon to hear people talk like this, usually they are trying to say “not interested” “go away” minimize God’s demand for how we should “live.”
As long as our visible “lifestyle” communicates to everyone around us, that we innately treat others as we want to be treated, God should accept us—right?
And usually this is enough to dissuade us from furthering the conversation.
We may never even start that conversation because we have assured ourselves beforehand that that is exactly the “automatic” response we will each receive.
The Question then becomes, If our Rabbi Jesus were to turn around in the exact moment we had that thought, looked us straight and narrowly into our eyes,
What would those soul piercing eyes immediately, not so subtly communicate?
Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Jesus calls upon you, to spread the gospel news, (1) So walk it, and talk it, a sermon in shoes. (2) Live it, and give it, a sermon in shoes. (3) Teach it, and preach it, a sermon in shoes. (4) Know it, and show it, a sermon in shoes. (Ruth Harms Calkin)
Rabbi Jesus most likely wore very simple sandals ….
So, without Rabbi Jesus ever using any words, can we hear his eyes tell us ….
“Do you know, Oh Christian, I am a sermon in very simple sandals ….?”
“Do you know, Oh Christian, I am a sermon in very simple sandals ….?”
“I am calling upon you, to spread the gospel news ….“
“(1) So I walk it, and talk it, a sermon in very simple sandals ….”
“(2) So I live it an give it, a sermon in very simple sandals ….”
“(3) So I teach it, and preach it, a sermon in very simple sandals ….”
“(4) Because I know it, therefore I show it, a sermon in very simple sandals ….”
Matthew 7:13-14 The Message
Being and Doing
13-14 “Don’t look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.
Have we ever stopped to consider how demanding Jesus’ words truly are?
How challenging is it to meet the needs of others with the same creativity, the same energy, the spontaneity, the same devotion that we want from others?
No wonder the man Rabbi Jesus describes this way of life as narrow and small.
The man Rabbi Jesus poignantly points out only a few are walking on this road.
When we are walking down any paved or gravel or well trod path through the middle of a forest – we will probably see signs everywhere along the way which sternly tell us to “stay on the path, protect our forests and protect our wildlife.”
We definitely want to see the forest through the trees so we walk the pathway which is before us, prepared by somebody before us that we might enjoy it all.
We want to keep the rest of the forest pristine for those who are coming after us, that they too may enjoy the enormous beauty God has placed before them.
We do not want to be the one person who ruins someone else’s experience.
We make every effort we can to stay on the pathway someone else prepared.
As tempting as it is to wander through forest glades, through flowing streams.
Christianity is like that …. staying on the moral and ethical path Jesus gave us by his giving up quite literally everything of “value” to him (Philippians 2:5-11).
Romans 5:6-8The Message
6-8 Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.
Despite all of the opposition he would receive, despite all the plots against his life, all the violence, humiliations he had to endure from both friend and foe, to walking out the straight and narrow pathway leading to a place called Golgotha.
To Communicate, for our “attentive(?)” listening ears the Immortal Words …
“Father, forgive them – for they know not what they do ….” Luke 23:33-35
“It is Finished….” John 19:28-30
After His resurrection … to receive the motivation of all motivations ….
John 21:15-17Amplified Bible
The Love Motivation
15 So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these [others do—with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I [a]love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My lambs.” 16 Again He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with a deep, personal affection for Me, as for a close friend]?” Peter was grieved that He asked him the third time, “Do you [really] [b]love Me [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend]?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know everything; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.
Are you and I willing to receive, to immerse ourselves into such a motivation, prepared to love, say, your overbearing employer with kindness and courtesy?
Are you and I willing to sacrificially meet the needs of your spouse, children, and neighbors even if your needs aren’t the ones which not about to be met?
Will you and I care for the least lovely persons around us without expecting anything in return?
Psalm 23:4-6Amplified Bible
4 Even though I walk through the [sunless] [a]valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort and console me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You have anointed and refreshed my head with [b]oil; My cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and mercy and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life, And I shall dwell forever [throughout all my days] in the house and in the presence of the Lord.
How about those who are truly difficult to love – like your own “enemies?”
Preparing a table before them ….
with the prospect of “anointing and refreshing their heads with oil ….
extending the invitation to God’s “goodness and mercy and unfailing love” which will absolutely follow them for all of the remaining days of their lives ….”
to dwell forever, throughout all their remaining days, in the house and in the presence of the Lord – who could, on confession, be their everlasting salvation.
When we are being transformed by the enormity of the love of Jesus, who is our Savior, we can definitely, but with difficulty, walk on this narrowed way of life.
Rabbi Jesus alone lived and loved this way….
Rabbi Jesus alone live and loved and died for us this way ….
Jesus walked the narrow way out his sealed tomb,
Peter, John and Mary Magdalene walked the narrow way down and through the narrow opening of the tomb – witnessed and testified to its eternal emptiness.
Jesus is Resurrected, Jesus is ALIVE!
He calls us to follow, the narrow path, serving not in our own strength but in his.
How will his love empower you to walk, love others with his kindness today?
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Son to us that we may come to know Your greater and ever more wiser and eternal ways, that through His teachings we may experience the only meaningful pathway to everlasting life, that in Christ Jesus, my Savior, I have been saved by grace and have an eternal inheritance kept for me in heaven. I pray that I may be disciplined enough to die daily to all that is of self and live every day of my life for Christ. Help me to choose to enter the narrow gate of disciplined, dedicated discipleship, which leads to an abundant life here on earth.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of [a]witnesses [who by faith have testified to the truth of God’s absolute faithfulness], stripping off every unnecessary weight and the sin which so easily and cleverly entangles us, let us run with endurance and active persistence the race that is set before us, 2 [looking away from all that will distract us and] focusing our eyes on Jesus, who is the Author and Perfecter of faith [the first incentive for our belief and the One who brings our faith to maturity], who for the joy [of accomplishing the goal] set before Him endured the cross, [b]disregarding the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God [revealing His deity, His authority, and the completion of His work].
3 Just consider and meditate on Him who endured from sinners such bitter hostility against Himself [consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
My parents did what they could to provide a “religious experience” for me.
The thing that they didn’t really do was provide a spiritual experience.
The religious experience that I had was a mixed one where I participated in some of the traditions of the Catholic Church, the Sunday School of the Church of the Brethren and finally Saturdays in the Synagogue and Hebrew School.
Most of the time, being as child like as I was I didn’t know why I did what I did; I just did it because a whole bunch of adults in authority over me had told me to.
The bulk of the participation was confined to Saturday mornings, and twice a week Hebrew School for which it was forbidden of me to speak about to friends.
It didn’t really matter what happened during the other other days.
There was my Bar Mitzvah in 1974 which mattered very deeply to me.
We celebrated The High Holidays of Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Passover and growing up celebrating the eight days of Chanukah over the one day of Xmas.
However, being that I was not “born” of the Jewish Faith, I was never really taught how to take the teachings of the “faith” and develop a set of spiritual principles that should have become my life’s value system as I grew older.
20/20 hindsight, I can say that I never really believed I matured spiritually.
It was mostly a collection of “disjointed” “disconnected” teachings from some a whole series very well educated, very well intentioned people – My Rabbi is someone who I remember with the utmost fondness for his great compassion.
But there was never really anything anybody taught me, book wise, experience wise, which gave me the necessary foundation to “seek God first and foremost.”
For most of my teenage years and well into my adulthood, God was virtually nothing to me, as my Father, as my Creator, my help in my troubles, my friend or my redeemer, prayer partner, sustainer, maintainer, or even my Savior.
I had little experience or knowledge of Jesus whose name was not mentioned in our household because a whole lot of people told me Jews did not believe in him.
No one ever “invited me” – Isaiah 55:1-3 – to turn to God and freedom in Him. So consequently, I learned overmuch how to turn to me and my survival skills.
Turning unto God for anything was simply the furthest thought from my mind.
I simply did not know how and there were precious few people I would listen to.
I always sensed that there was something inside me which kept me on a path of sound morals and ethics – knowing right from wrong, my personal convictions.
Something inside me which told me to weigh out the pro and con of my choices.
Though I would never dare to assign them to God or His Son or the Holy Spirit.
I guess that God was always somewhere in the very deepest recesses of my soul.
Just never allowed to get close enough to the forefront to be even minimally acknowledged or permitted any measure of relevance to my day to day living.
Hebrews 12:1-3Easy-to-Read Version
We Also Should Follow Jesus’ Example
12 We have all these great people around us as examples. Their lives tell us what faith means. So we, too, should run the race that is before us and never quit. We should remove from our lives anything that would slow us down and the sin that so often makes us fall. 2 We must never stop looking to Jesus. He is the leader of our faith, and he is the one who makes our faith complete. He suffered death on a cross. But he accepted the shame of the cross as if it were nothing because of the joy he could see waiting for him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God’s throne. 3 Think about Jesus. He patiently endured the angry insults that sinful people were shouting at him. Think about him so that you won’t get discouraged and stop trying.
There were no “great people” around me to show me the ways of the faithful.
There were no “great clouds of witnesses” lingering anywhere nearby or even in the heavens above – just rain clouds and thunder storms flooding my cellar.
I never knew to look for Jesus, at Jesus, towards Jesus – never heard his name.
Consequently, I never spent any measure of time thinking or believing on Jesus.
Over time, things changed …. I literally had to almost die to call out unto God.
I can say now people will usually turn to God for help when their foundations are shaking, only to learn that it is God, through Christ, who is shaking them.
Sometimes God needs to do things to us to get our attention.
The spiritually mature person does not have to turn to God when things get tough, because they believe God is standing right next to them.
They do not scream Oh God, when they are fearful of suddenly losing their life, they only have to “whisper” and they have the faith that He hears their words.
Why do some people have this ability to be at peace even in the face of greatest adversity, and tragedy?
By experience, I don’t believe spiritual maturity is something that just happens.
A person does not wake up one morning and find themselves with a renewed outlook on life.
It is definitely something that has to be cultivated from the bottom up.
The roots have to be developed and then a person will begin to see the flowers.
In my case I did not start this process until I was 40 years old.
From the time I was 14 years old I never could figure out what I believed in.
I believed there was a “God,” but I didn’t have a value system or a commitment to any one source helping me to connect, inspire, or uplift me on a regular basis.
Whenever a wave of life hit me I would reach into the chambers of my soul and discover there wasn’t anything I could use to help me deal with life’s problems.
I never made the connection between spiritual maturity and overall maturity as a person of faith.
A spiritually mature person knows how to take the spiritual dimension and apply the principles of their belief system to their life on a daily basis.
I have always enjoyed The Serenity Prayer.
“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
In order for me to accept things I could not change and to develop wisdom I needed to plug into a daily source to draw from and to gain daily inspiration.
With a discipline born from years, I found the daily reading of the scriptures helped me gain insights into the battles of life and offered answers to questions that I otherwise never would have been able to come up with on my own device.
Working to establish a discipline of reading, I would discover verses in scripture that I would meditate on and make them part of my prayer and thought life.
From such a discipline, God, through Christ and the Holy Spirit, has born much spiritual fruit with in me – as I daily read, study, pray and write these devotions.
The evangelist Martin Luther once said, “I have so much to do today, that I will have to spend two hours praying instead of one.”
Scripture reading and prayer and writing these devotions have become for me a necessary source of Jehovah God for me to draw energy from, to attain wisdom from, to get the daily emotional strength I need to prayerfully manage my day.
Many people gain energy and insights from other areas.
Inspirational literature, walks in the park, or even melodious music can inspire some.
A fundamental belief system that gives a person a path to follow and that can make them almost unflappable and have inner peace is very private and very different for each person – each of us needs to resolve to find God in Scripture.
There are core principles spiritually immature people need to work on to make them their own, which spiritually mature people have adopted as a part of life.
These essential principles are already resting deep inside the silent chambers of a person’s heart, placed by God, and I believe they are universal to everyone.
When the ground starts to quake a person who has a strong core understands the reason for the earth quake and has the confidence that there is a way out.
The Christian life is not a series of a few special performances; it is steady persistence for a lifetime.
Many of us can produce a burst of enthusiasm now and then.
That’s not particularly difficult.
The real challenge is to stay the course over the long haul—not a flash in the pan but steady, stable, and persevering in the essentials of maturing faith.
I believe that Reading, Studying, Praying, through the second half of Hebrews 12 presents us all with a “beginning” to-do list of sorts for the Christian life.
It’s not by any means any quick-fix, three-easy-steps-to-success kind of list, but it does offer us six important ways to walk in enduring Christian maturity.
Hebrews 12:12-13 Easy-to-Read Version
Be Careful How You Live
12 You have become weak, so make yourselves strong again. 13 Live in the right way so that you will be saved and your weakness will not cause you to be lost.
Keep Strong and Straight
Despondency is one of the great avenues of attack from the Evil One.
Our disconnections, our discouragements are his delight, and he can uses them to great effect, for Christians in daily living, even for those involved in ministry.
To serve Christ is not to walk around in blissful unawareness of life’s realities.
The Christian life involves serious struggle.
Therefore,
this call to step forward—in “the strength that God supplies” (1 Peter 4:11), as it were—must not only ring in our ears but quake and reverberate in our hearts.
Those who seek to follow Christ must be prepared to declare, I absolutely refuse to gratify the devil by staying downhearted.
He would love nothing more than to see our arms enfeebled, our quaking knees buckling under his devices, and our paths veering off the course of obedience.
Pursue Harmony and Holiness
Hebrews 12:14Easy-to-Read Version
14 Try to live in peace with everyone. And try to keep your lives free from sin. Anyone whose life is not holy will never see the Lord.
“Strive” is probably a more appropriate translation for the imperative here.
It communicates concentrated, vigorous effort.
The author is saying,
I want you to pursue this with the passion of a hound pursuing a fox.
And the fox we are to pursue is the twofold goal of harmony and holiness.
Maintaining peace requires serious striving.
Christ purchased peace, and “he himself is our peace” (Ephesians 2:14).
Discord is inevitable in our fractured age, even in the church—but this is no reason to ever consider giving up!
We strive to grow in harmony and to shed the burdens and sins that hold us back from it.
Jesus Himself told us, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35).
We won’t have perfect harmony before Christ returns, but in reliance on the Holy Spirit, we can each strive to be a small taste of heavenly community.
And how do we foster such harmony?
Well, holiness provides the steady framework, the fertile soil, for the harmony that we enjoy.
As we grow in holiness together from the shared wellspring of the Holy Spirit at work in our hearts, we will also grow in harmony with one another, with God.
Neither harmony nor holiness is an optional extra – they come from the work of Christ’s Spirit in us and within us thus are evidence we all really belong to Him.
Grow in God’s Grace Not in Humanity’s Bitterness
Hebrews 12:15Easy-to-Read Version
15 Be careful that no one fails to get God’s grace. Be careful that no one loses their faith and becomes like a bitter weed growing among you. Someone like that can ruin your whole group.
How can we miss the grace of God?
We may be surprised how easy it is to do so!
When the Scriptures are taught, when the sacraments of the Lord’s Supper and baptism are practiced, when the church fellowships together, it is still possible for us to sit around, wipe the dust off our bibles, sit with our fingers in our ears.
The phrases “bitter weed” “root of bitterness” in this verse draws its language from Deuteronomy 29, in which Moses warns Israel about their hearts:
“Beware lest there be among you a root bearing poisonous and bitter fruit” (verse 18).
This is someone “who, when he hears the words of this sworn covenant, blesses himself in his heart, saying, ‘I shall be safe, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart’” (v. 19, emphasis added).
James echoes this warning with the command to “be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22, emphasis added).
When we hear without really listening, then we end up having all the trappings of Christianity while worldliness is still rooted in our hearts.
Envy, bitterness, anger, rage, and despondency begin to make our souls numb, impervious to what God really wants for us.
We must pull these destructive weeds up by the root and instead let the grace of God fill our hearts so that we can be disciplined hearers and doers of His Word.
Reject Immorality and Godlessness
Hebrews 12:15-17Easy-to-Read Version
15 Be careful that no one fails to get God’s grace. Be careful that no one loses their faith and becomes like a bitter weed growing among you. Someone like that can ruin your whole group. 16 Be careful that no one commits sexual sin. And be careful that no one is like Esau and never thinks about God. As the oldest son, Esau would have inherited everything from his father. But he sold all that for a single meal. 17 You remember that after Esau did this, he wanted to get his father’s blessing. He wanted that blessing so much that he cried. But his father refused to give him the blessing, because Esau could find no way to change what he had done.
The original hearers of the Epistle to the Hebrews lived in an overwhelmingly pagan society—perhaps an not unlike our own, in which promiscuity outpaces modesty nearly everywhere they walked and talked and we, today, now look.
In such a sexually charged setting, it is imperative God’s people demonstrate how we are both set apart to God and set apart from sin.
As the apostle Paul commends, we must “flee from sexual immorality” (1 Corinthians 6:18).
How does Esau fit in?
His story serves as a parable of an outsized physical appetite.
In the heat of the moment, he exchanged his heritage and home for something quick and easy and potentially appealing and probably appetizing and cheap.
Like him, you can build your life for decades, throw it away in five minutes in a fit of unchecked lust—or rage, pride, or greed, or cheapened, for that matter.
We must not sell out to sin.
The tradeoff is simply never worth it, never going to be worth it, no matter what we self actualize, rationalize or temptation promises in the moment.
Discipline Yourselves to Listen Only to God
Hebrews 12:25-26Easy-to-Read Version
25 Be careful and don’t refuse to listen when God speaks. Those people refused to listen to him when he warned them on earth. And they did not escape. Now God is speaking from heaven. So now it will be worse for those who refuse to listen to him. 26 When he spoke before, his voice shook the earth. But now he has promised, “Once again I will shake the earth, but I will also shake heaven.”[a]
By reading, studying and praying through the OT, time and again, God sent prophets to warn His people—and all too often, the people refused to listen.
Their willful ignorance eventually resulted in 70 years of exile.
If God did that to people who refused His earthly prophets, then we surely should think twice before we refuse the word of His very Son from heaven.
Luke 16:19-31New Living Translation
Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus
19 Jesus said, “There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury. 20 At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus who was covered with sores. 21 As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man’s table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores.
22 “Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to sit beside Abraham at the heavenly banquet.[a] The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and he went to the place of the dead.[b] There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side.
24 “The rich man shouted, ‘Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.’
25 “But Abraham said to him, ‘Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides, there is a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.’
27 “Then the rich man said, ‘Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father’s home. 28 For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.’
29 “But Abraham said, ‘Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.’
30 “The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’
31 “But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”
From this Parable in Luke, we certainly can learn to point to specific steps of obedience for clarity’s sake, but generally speaking, we always return to this foundation of the faith: hearing what GOD says and putting it into practice.
It’s profoundly simple, and simply profound: do not dismiss God who speaks.
Worship God and God alone with Reverence and Awe
Hebrews 12:28-29Easy-to-Read Version
28 So we should be thankful because we have a kingdom that cannot be shaken. And because we are thankful, we should worship God in a way that will please him. We should do this with respect and fear, 29 because our God is like a fire that can destroy us.
The final essential of Hebrews 12 is to worship God acceptably and properly, “with reverence and awe.”
We ought to set aside superficial and trivial controversies about worship style to experience and declare the glory of God with His people.
And beyond our corporate gatherings, our very lives should be becoming a “living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship” (Romans 12:1).
Our God, a great and “consuming fire” (Deuteronomy 4:24), is absolutely worthy to have our entire lives devoted to Him.
To give our whole selves to God and practice these six essentials isn’t a responsibility to be carried out grudgingly.
It is our privilege and pleasure to live as God intends us to.
He has written the whole of His story, of His glory across time and space, and—wonder upon wonder!—all who confess Christ Jesus as Lord and will Savior find themselves an abundant, essential, critically important part of His master plan.
When we live and act in accord with what He sets forth and pursue obedience over a lifetime, He will use us to His Abundance to keep writing His story and to keep inviting and to keep drawing others into His kingdom on Earth.
Are these essentials our duty?
Sure they are.
They are also our delight as we “Coram Deo” live to display Christ’s greatness.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Lord of Power, Lord of my Life, sometimes I feel weak and crushed. I feel like I am trying to run a race with sprained or broken ankles. I do not know how I can go on like this. Please, make haste to bring strength to my legs so that despite the pain of this life, I can keep moving forward. Give me hope, wisdom and faith, keeping my eyes on the prize and looking forward to eternal life in Your heavenly kingdom.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
3 However, brothers and sisters, I could not talk to you as to spiritual people, but [only] as to [a]worldly people [dominated by human nature], mere infants [in the new life] in Christ! 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Even now you are still not ready. 3 You are still [b] worldly [controlled by ordinary impulses, the sinful capacity]. For as long as there is jealousy and strife and discord among you, are you not [c]unspiritual, and are you not walking like ordinary men [unchanged by faith]? 4 For when one of you says, “I am [a disciple] of Paul,” and another, “I am [a disciple] of Apollos,” are you not [proving yourselves unchanged, just] ordinary people?
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
The Bible describes new believers as feeding on “milk.”
We need to come to a point where we are no longer “spiritual babies” but mature into “spiritual adults.”
The most important reason is for our lives to reflect the nature of Jesus Christ.
Spiritual maturity is something that should be a priority for every Christian. It’s important in our lives for how we serve God, interact with other people, and take care of our families.
As we get into our topic, I invite you to take a moment to ask the Holy Spirit to open your understanding of His word and will. It is the Holy Spirit that reveals the word of God to us.
What Is Spiritual Maturity According to the Bible?
Many people claim to be Christians, but there is a difference between being a fan of Jesus and a follower of Jesus.
Our measure of spiritual maturity can define what side of the fence we are on.
To be a follower of Jesus is to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow him.
“Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’” (Mark 8:34).
The Gospel of Luke gives us an even more specific reference by saying we must do so on a daily basis.
23 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross daily [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me]. (Luke 9:23)
And the Gospel of Matthew adds statement to this discussion ….
48 You, therefore, will be perfect [growing into spiritual maturity both in mind and character, actively integrating godly values into your daily life], as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48
The Gospel of Matthew raises the standard even higher by telling us to what exacting measure we are expected to devote the entirety of our lives – Utterly!
Discipleship Is Costly
24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me].(Matthew 16:24)
Let’s take a moment to reflect on the past.
Do you remember where the Lord met you?
More than likely, he met you in your mess.
God is so good that he pushes beyond the barriers of the world’s rejection to meet his lost sheep wherever and whenever and why ever they may be there.
Here is one thing we must resolve to try harder to understand infinitely better.
Though God meets us in our mess and accepts us as we are, he does not want us to stay that way.
Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God (Hebrews 6:1).
God’s plan is for us to move beyond the elementary teachings and to grow more and more into the image of Jesus Christ.
This is what spiritual maturity is — for all our characteristics to be more like Jesus in every way.
Why Is Spiritual Maturity Important?
The Bible describes new believers as feeding on “milk.”
We need to come to a point where we are no longer “spiritual babies” but mature into “spiritual adults” (1 Corinthians 3:2).
We need to grow into eating “solid food” and not only feed ourselves but feed others as well.
The most important reason to mature would be for our lives to reflect the nature of Jesus Christ.
There are also many other reasons for maturing such as:
Being able to lead our families like Jesus
Disciple other believers
Being equipped for every good work
To see the kingdom of God
Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Jesus calls upon you, to spread the gospel news, (1) So walk it, and talk it, a sermon in shoes. (2) Live it, and give it, a sermon in shoes. (3) Teach it, and preach it, a sermon in shoes. (4) Know it, and show it, a sermon in shoes. (Ruth Harms Calkin)
What Else Does the Word of God Reveal?
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her (Ephesians 5:21-25).
Only a person who is constantly maturing, being constantly matured by God can effectively lead and serve the family in this way.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:16-20).
So that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:17).
To be equipped for every good work and make disciples, we need to have more knowledge of God’s Word, how to apply it and teach it.
This is something that an only come as a result of our growing in the Lord.
Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” (John 3:3).
Spiritual maturity is an expected result when we are born again.
Spiritual Maturity is ever so critically important for edifying the Kingdom of God because we are not called to remain the same sinful person we once were.
If we compare this scripture along with Mark 8:34 from earlier, we will see that in order for us to see the kingdom of God, we will need to do two things:
Be born again and carry our cross, utterly completely, daily and to follow Jesus.
What this combination does is lead us into a new Christ-centered life.
When you are born again, the Holy Spirit makes his dwelling in you and changes you to be more like Jesus.
It is a process known as regeneration.
The Holy Spirit is removing the residue of the world and sin and making you new in Christ.
Carrying our cross as the Word of God expects, to follow Jesus is putting away the whole of our old self with its host of sinful desires, to being obedient to him.
Spiritual maturity places greater and greater importance on our living holy.
It is important to maintain this lifestyle because Jesus says without being born again, we will not see the kingdom of God.
This is the beginning of spiritual maturity.
Our maturity is a reflection of our relationship with God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law (Galatians 5:22-23).
If we are not maturing in our relationship with God, we cannot bear fruit of the Spirit.
Our maturity also helps us grow in wisdom, knowledge, and understanding.
The wise in heart are called discerning, and gracious words promote instruction (Proverbs 16:21).
How to Achieve Spiritual Maturity
I want to leave you with steps you can take to mature spiritually.
These very steps will guarantee spiritual growth when diligently applied.
First, we must build a life of prayer and worship.
Intimacy is what God is looking for and this is how the Holy Spirit will fill you.
“Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always” (1 Chronicles 16:11).
We also must be reading our Bibles and applying it to our everyday lives.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it — not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do (James 1:22-25).
Last, we need to also congregate with a spirit-filled church family.
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another — and all the more as you see the Day approaching (Hebrews 10:24-25).
Growing spiritually requires growing in prayer, worship, and knowledge of the Bible.
Most importantly, to mature spiritually means to grow in faith and repentance.
I want to make it a point that spiritual maturity is a process.
The grace of the Lord Jesus allows us to grow in our faith and the more we do, the more we will look like Jesus.
Turn your eyes upon Jesus Look full in his wonderful face And the things of earth will grow strangely dim In the light of his glory and grace ….
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Jesus, Perfecter of my Faith, my only Savior, You have taught us through Your Apostle Paul that we should leave childish things behind us, and look to You to move forward to a greater understanding of spiritual matters. Part of maturity is learning when to do this, and acting upon the motivation to press forward. Help me to recognize when it is time for me to grow up. Allow me to take on new spiritual challenges, that I may be ever more refined through service to You and my neighbor. In Your precious name.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
3 However, brothers and sisters, I could not talk to you as to spiritual people, but [only] as to [a]worldly people [dominated by human nature], mere infants [in the new life] in Christ! 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Even now you are still not ready. 3 You are still [b]worldly [controlled by ordinary impulses, the sinful capacity]. For as long as there is jealousy and strife and discord among you, are you not [c]unspiritual, and are you not walking like ordinary men [unchanged by faith]? 4 For when one of you says, “I am [a disciple] of Paul,” and another, “I am [a disciple] of Apollos,” are you not [proving yourselves unchanged, just] ordinary people?
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
I remember very vividly those moments in my young life when Mama standing in front of me, her hands poised on her hips, her eyes glaring with hot coals of fire and saying in no nonsense tones, “Just what is the big idea, young man?”
Instinctively I definitely knew that my mother was not asking me an abstract question about any theory outside of her own regarding right versus wrong.
Her question was not a question at all—it was a thinly veiled, soul piercing, “wait until your father gets home” accusation.
Her words were easily translated to mean,
“Why are you doing what you are doing?”
She was challenging me to justify my behavior with a valid idea.
Obviously, I had none – and knew better than to even try and offer one.
Some years ago, several “friends” asked myself and a whole “likeminded” group of “interested Christian’s” – in all earnestness – essentially the exact same question with the same exact intensity and purpose of the stare.
It was just the beginning of the New Year ….
They asked, “What’s the big idea of the Christian life anyway?”
They were interested in the overarching, ultimate goal of the Christian life.
To answer his question,
In my lay person’s mind, several thoughts came to the forefront as I just “watched” this group of people espouse their individual thoughts and those of their friends and their Pastors.
I fell back onto the theologian’s prerogative and gave them a Latin term I had just encountered, but not yet began to understand, in my own personal studies.
I said, to myself and to “them” as I read the Facebook conversation unfold:
From my own “youthful” Christian experience, I commented back to them;
“The big idea of the Christian life is Coram Deo – Life in our Savior Christ Jesus.
Coram Deo captures the essence of the Christian life.”
It was not long before that group of “like-minded Christians” had me banned entirely from commenting or posting any further – clearly, I got someone mad.
Clearly, I got a whole bunch of somebodies mad, offended a whole lot of souls.
In all likelihood, I offended people with what they perceived as “my hypocrisy.”
Clearly they were not going to give me any chance of redemption, were not the least bit interested in offering me mercy or forgiveness so to God be the Glory!
Over the intervening years of independent study of the scriptures and also the writing of these devotions, and an abundantly fervent effort at my prayer life,
I have since learned more about “Coram Deo”
It is nowhere near a thorough understanding because it is such a broad term.
It will mean different things to different people based on their experiences.
If you are reading this and you have been academically trained, and educated through Seminary or Schools of Theology and also have your degrees and your ordinations in hand – you will obviously have a higher understanding than I do.
Please feel free to enlighten me further on my “understanding” of this matter if my own “uninformed” and “uneducated” efforts at explaining it here fall a bit short.
What I have “discovered” is briefly this ….
This phrase literally refers to something that takes place in the presence of, or before the face of, God.
To live Coram Deo is to live one’s entire life in the presence of God, under the authority of God, to the glory of God.
To live in the presence of God is to understand that whatever we are doing and wherever we are doing it, we are all acting under the all judging gaze of God.
God is omnipresent.
There is no place so remote, so invisible to the naked eye of human kind, that we can escape His penetrating gaze. (Psalm 139:1-13)
To be aware of the presence of God is also to be acutely aware of His complete sovereignty.
The uniform experience of the saints is to recognize that if God is God, then He is indeed sovereign.
When Saul was suddenly confronted by the full refulgent glory of the risen Christ on the road to Damascus, his immediate question, “Who Are You, Lord?”
He wasn’t the least bit sure who was suddenly speaking to him, but he knew that whomever it was, was abundantly and certainly far sovereign over him.
Our Living under divine sovereignty involves more than a reluctant submission to sheer sovereignty which is suddenly motivated out of a fear of punishment.
It involves recognizing that there is no higher goal than offering honor to God.
Our lives, in that very instant of being in the Presence of our Savior are to be, become living sacrifices, oblations offered in a spirit of adoration and gratitude.
To live all of life Coram Deo is to live a life of integrity.
It is a life of wholeness that finds its unity and coherency in the majesty of God.
A fragmented life is a life of disintegration.
It is marked by inconsistency, disharmony, division, divisiveness, disunity, confusion, conflict, contradiction, spiritual immaturity, hypocrisy and chaos.
The Christian who compartmentalizes his or her life into two sections of the religious and the nonreligious has failed to grasp the big idea.
The big idea is that either all of our life is religious or none of life is religious.
To divide life between the religious and the nonreligious is itself a sacrilege.
I believe this means that if a person fulfills his or her vocation as a steelmaker, attorney, or laborer or homemaker Coram Deo, then that person is acting every bit as religiously as a soul-winning evangelist who lives to fulfill his vocation.
It means that David was as religious when he obeyed God’s call to be a shepherd and Warrior as he was when he was anointed with the special grace of kingship.
It means that Jesus was every bit as religious when He worked in His father’s carpenter shop, ministered to people, as He was in the Garden of Gethsemane.
There is much truth in our making the statement that integrity and maturity is found where men and women try to live their lives in a pattern of consistency.
It is a pattern that functions the same basic way in church and out of church.
It is a life that is open before God.
It is a life in which all that is done is done as “unto the Lord.”
It is a life lived by principle, not personality or expediency; by humility before God, obedience to the covenant precepts of God not prideful, blatant defiance.
A life lived under the tutelage of conscience, imprisoned by the Word of God.
Coram Deo. . . before the face of God. That’s the big idea. Next to this idea our other goals and ambitions become mere trifles.
Life lived fully, completely, abundantly in the presence of Savior Jesus Christ!
We are each “Sermons in Our Shoes” ….
Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Jesus calls upon you, to spread the gospel news, (1) So walk it, and talk it, a sermon in shoes. (2) Live it, and give it, a sermon in shoes. (3) Teach it, and preach it, a sermon in shoes. (4) Know it, and show it, a sermon in shoes. (Ruth Harms Calkin)
A “Coram Deo” reminder courtesy of the Holy Spirit, that where ever a Christian walks, whenever he or she talks, is expected to share the Gospel news to others.
Whether it be by one’s actions, attitudes, or personal testimony,
Coram Deo – by their baptism, a Christian is always “A Sermon In Shoes.”
Again and again as it is necessary in our immaturity to repeat it It goes along with something American evangelist Dwight L. Moody (1837-1899) once said:
“The preaching that this world most needs most is the sermons in shoes that are walking and talking with Jesus Christ.”
Coram Deo . . . in the presence and under the max authority of Jehovah God ….
Coram Deo … looking square into His eyes and lived before the face of God.
That’s the big idea.
Next to this idea all of our other goals and ambitions become mere trifles.
So, from within your own life experiences what is your understanding of;
“Coram Deo ….”
Is it what you “thought it was?”
Is it where you believed it was?
Be it RESOLVED then, this is what needs to be addressed to make it RIGHT …
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
THE COVENANT PRAYER IN THE WESLEYAN TRADITION ….
“I am no longer my own, but thine. Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt. Put me to doing, put me to suffering. Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee, exalted for thee or brought low for thee. Let me be full, let me be empty. Let me have all things, let me have nothing. I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal. And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it. And the covenant which I have made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.”
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
23 Search me [thoroughly], O God, and know my heart; Test me and know my anxious thoughts; 24 And see if there is any wicked or hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis, Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
The Life We Now Live is Often A Reflection of the Thoughts We Have Thought, Are Now Thinking.
Yes! I know that statement sounds rather obvious.
But is it one for which we ever stop, take any quality time to think about?
Or does it seem to be too obvious that we take it far too much for granted?
Consider this …..
The Winds go whichever direction they go.
Why?
Who but a weatherman or an airplane pilot or a sailor or a ships captain ever really cares about the “whatever” directions of the speeds it blows or shifts.
The Winds are just “there” and we acknowledge them and move on without a second or third or fourth thought – shrug our shoulders and fly away to glory.
Unless, of course – you are about to be in the middle of a blizzard or a tornado or a hurricane and are about to have your whole life major league rearranged.
Like whitewater rapids rushing you downstream, your thoughts move your life in the direction of their strongest currents.
The thoughts you and I think, believe, hold onto, ruminate, obsess about and use to support your decisions determine your view of everything and everyone around you, up to and including yourself.
You and I probably don’t stop and think about the power your thoughts have over our lives—which only increases the power they have to determine your decisions and shape your actions, determine the shifting sands of our life.
Simply put, what you and I think determines what you and believe.
Every thought in our brain produces a neurochemical change in your mind.
And these thoughts shape your life.
Once our thoughts determine what you believe, these beliefs then determine how you and I behave.
In many ways, you become what you think about.
Therefore, the better you and I grasp the importance of our thoughts, the better equipped you and I will be to change our lives in powerful kingdom of God ways.
Drawing on what the Word of God tells us about the power of our thoughts as well as what we can learn from modern psychology, particularly an area called cognitive behavioral therapy, we have the ability to change lives for the better.
We can live according to the principles and promises God gives us and enjoy being all that he created us to be or live according to cultures shifting winds.
Otherwise, our thoughts will continue to sweep us away in dangerous currents of clever deception, wild misinformation, and lies from our enemy, the devil.
God told us this truth more than 1,500 years ago: “For as thinks in his heart, so he is” (Proverbs 23:7).
God knows better than we can ever know, what we focus on mentally affects every single aspect of our lives because He created us that way. Isaiah 55:7-9
But, still, God calls us out of our day to day thoughts, our day to day obsessions over ourselves, our families, our friends, our finances, our health situations.
God is always ever more aware of what it is our lives are being challenged by.
Despite whatever the magnitude of whatever it is we are challenged by, we are still summoned to go forth “in the midst of these things” to be God’s witnesses.
We are summoned away from the great winds of our thoughts which blow us about in every which direction, by our Baptism we are still “Sermons in Shoes.”
Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Jesus calls upon you, to spread the gospel news, (1) So walk it, and talk it, a sermon in shoes. (2) Live it, and give it, a sermon in shoes. (3) Teach it, and preach it, a sermon in shoes. (4) Know it, and show it, a sermon in shoes. (Ruth Harms Calkin)
Think of it, about and upon it and believe mightily upon it, “a sermon in shoes.”
Psalm 139:23-24English Standard Version
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts![a] 24 And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting![b]
If you will recall, these very familiar verses, of the context of this psalm is David expressing his thoughts of his confidence that the Lord who knows all, and who thinks of, knows him intimately, can vindicate him in the midst of his accusers.
God knows that David is without blame–at least in terms of the accusations fired against him.
In these closing thoughts from, David is baring his soul, very willing to have the sum total of his very deepest, most intimate thoughts laid bare before the Lord.
Not only is he confident that such an examination will demonstrate that he is innocent of the crimes ascribed to him, but that he may also be made aware of any sinful thoughts which remain unacknowledged, that need to be dealt with.
In other words, David not only sought complete vindication before men, but also a complete sanctification, a complete healing of his soul before his God.
Verse 23 is not so much David granting the Lord permission to search his heart–the Lord hardly needs, nor asks, nor demands, for such permission.
He knows our hearts whether we want Him to or not.
Rather, David declares himself completely willing and utterly welcoming of such an indescribable magnitude of scrutiny by his Creator.
So sure is he of his innocence, that he knows the Lord will find nothing to hold against him with regard to the matter at hand.
We do not know exactly what this matter is, but David’s words challenge us: are we so sure of the truthfulness and sincerity of our words and the magnitude of our own “wildly windy” thoughts, we too would welcome the Lord’s examination of them?
As we have repeatedly noted, the Lord already knows our hearts, our motives, our worry and anxious thoughts and the honesty (or lack thereof) of our speech.
Is the thought of this something that makes us uncomfortable, or at peace?
If by our thoughts we feel at all uncomfortable, then maybe we are harboring additional thoughts and hidden, covert, and discrete motives we shouldn’t.
David’s “disquieting thoughts” are those thoughts which cause him to be troubled, or anxious.
Again, the challenge is whether we are at peace with our thought life.
Psalm 19:11-14The Message
11-14 There’s more: God’s Word warns us of danger and directs us to hidden treasure. Otherwise how will we find our way? Or know when we play the fool? Clean the slate, God, so we can start the day fresh! Keep me from stupid sins, from thinking I can take over your work; Then I can start this day sun-washed, scrubbed clean of the grime of sin. These are the words in my mouth; these are what I chew on and pray. Accept them when I place them on the morning altar, O God, my Altar-Rock, God, Priest-of-My-Altar.
When the light of God’s truth is shone upon our lives, do we squirm and hide, become disquieted, or do we stand before our Savior Jesus with confidence?
Do we want to bare our thoughts, do we want our sin to be illuminated by our Heavenly Father, so He might lead us away from that path to the eternal path?
Or do we want to stay quiet, stay hidden within wild winds of culture, hide our sin away from everyone, and try to protect it from the Lord’s cleansing grace?
Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Jesus calls upon you, to spread the gospel news, (1) So walk it, and talk it, a sermon in shoes. (2) Live it, and give it, a sermon in shoes. (3) Teach it, and preach it, a sermon in shoes. (4) Know it, and show it, a sermon in shoes. (Ruth Harms Calkin)
Think of it, about and upon it and believe mightily upon it, “a sermon in shoes.”
As we make our resolutions before the Lord, we need to be seriously willing to let go of all that “barely” disquiets us–every sinful thought, desire, and motive.
Our chief desire is not only to have a blameless reputation before men, but more importantly, to have, to live, to walk, to talk, to teach and preach of a character whose #1 goal is that it glorifies God in its reflection of His goodness and purity.
This requires us exposing ourselves to His refining fire, allowing Him to search out the depths of our hearts and draw out of us the remaining sin in our lives.
It won’t be even minimally pleasant, but it’s necessary if we are to be sanctified and even minimally useful and minimally fruitful unto the Lord in His kingdom.
God does know us.
We cannot pretend we are something we are not with him.
He knows us — inside and out, through and through.
This should liberate us to share a remarkable degree of intimacy with him, but most of us will choose to run far from such a close relationship with our Father.
If our desire, however, is to become more like him, more Christ-like, the only certain way to be transformed is by “inviting” him in to look at our hearts, our motivations, our desires – take our prayerfully “fruit laden” resolutions to Him.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
O Lord my God, you are my shield and my strength. Help me to trust you with my decisions and my future. Let me lean on you with all my heart instead of relying on my own understanding. Give me clear guidance in my life Lord. As I submit myself and the magnitude of my thoughts to you, I know that you will direct my paths and I can have confidence that your direction is always the best way to go. Lord, bless me and keep me, make your face shine upon me. Turn your face towards me and give me my just portion of thy everlasting peace. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.
O God, I know you are the one who “searches hearts and minds.” for our disquieted and disquieting thoughts. Yet because of the grace you demonstrated in Jesus, I am confident that you love me and will cleanse me. My heart is sorry for the sin I have committed, but I am really trying to serve you in honor and purity. Please fill me with your Spirit to enable me to become more like Christ. In the name of Your Son I pray.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
15 “[a]I am the true Vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that continues to bear fruit, He [repeatedly] prunes, so that it will bear more fruit [even richer and finer fruit]. 3 You are already clean because of the word which I have given you [the teachings which I have discussed with you]. 4 Remain in Me, and I [will remain] in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself without remaining in the vine, neither can you [bear fruit, producing evidence of your faith] unless you remain in Me. 5 [b]I am the Vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him bears much fruit, for [otherwise] apart from Me [that is, cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown out like a [broken off] branch, and withers and dies; and they gather such branches and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. 7 If you remain in Me and My words remain in you [that is, if we are vitally united and My message lives in your heart], ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you. 8 My Father is glorified and honored by this, when you bear much fruit, and prove yourselves to be My [true] disciples.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
We are going to begin the New Year of 2023 by addressing the Resolutions I pray we made – the resolutions to Know God better, acknowledging our Savior more.
Maybe if God can catch us early enough in our zeal to plan out, think through, pray up, read up and study up, He can achieve a momentum in us to accomplish that which we said we covenanted to do – that others may know our Savior too.
Remember I wrote yesterday about the distinct possibility that we may be the only Gospel anybody reads or has any real chance of modeling their lives upon.
I also mentioned from our Baptism, of our being a “Sermon in Our Shoes.”
As a reminder, here are the Lyrics to that children’s song again ….
Again, when I was in Sunday School, I fondly remember singing one of my favorite choruses called, “A Sermon in Shoes.”
The lyrics went like this:
Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Jesus calls upon you, to spread the gospel news, (1) So walk it, and talk it, a sermon in shoes. (2) Live it, and give it, a sermon in shoes. (3) Teach it, and preach it, a sermon in shoes. (4) Know it, and show it, a sermon shoes. (Ruth Harms Calkin)
The song is a reminder that where ever a Christian walks, he or she is expected to share the Gospel news to others.
Whether it be by one’s actions, attitudes, or personal testimony, a Christian is always a sermon in shoes.
It goes along with something that American evangelist Dwight L. Moody (1837-1899) once said:
“The preaching that this world desperately needs the most is the sermons in shoes that are walking with their Savior Jesus Christ.”
Indeed, it’s only fitting we are a sermon in shoes if we are walking with Jesus.
Several passages in the Bible refer to God’s people Israel as a vine planted by God – perhaps the most familiar words of reminder are those from Psalm 80.
Complete Jewish Bible Version ….
80 (0) For the leader. Set to “Lilies.” A testimony. A psalm of Asaf:
2 (1) Shepherd of Isra’el, listen! You who lead Yosef like a flock, you whose throne is on the k’ruvim, shine out! 3 (2) Before Efrayim, Binyamin and M’nasheh, rouse your power; and come to save us. 4 (3) God, restore us! Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
5 (4) Adonai, God of armies, how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers? 6 (5) You have fed them tears as their bread and made them drink tears in abundance. 7 (6) You make our neighbors fight over us, and our enemies mock us. 8 (7) God of armies, restore us! Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
9 (8) You brought a vine out of Egypt, you expelled the nations and planted it, 10 (9) you cleared a space for it; then it took root firmly and filled the land. 11 (10) The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches; 12 (11) It put out branches as far as the sea and shoots to the [Euphrates] River.
13 (12) Why did you break down [the vineyard’s] wall, so that all passing by can pluck [its fruit]? 14 (13) The boar from the forest tears it apart; wild creatures from the fields feed on it.
15 (14) God of armies, please come back! Look from heaven, see, and tend this vine! 16 (15) Protect what your right hand planted, the son you made strong for yourself. 17 (16) It is burned by fire, it is cut down; they perish at your frown of rebuke. 18 (17) Help the man at your right hand, the son of man you made strong for yourself.
19 (18) Then we won’t turn away from you — if you revive us, we will call on your name. 20 (19) Adonai, God of armies, restore us! Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
The overall idea is that, before Jesus came, Jehovah God took this rag tag group of chosen people and made a home for them where they could grow healthy and prosperous in a relationship with him.
But despite all that God did for his people, they failed to thrive.
Time after time, they wandered away from God in their sin.
They worshiped the gods of other nations.
They strayed from the path that God had placed them on.
Now, from John’s narrative we read Jesus is switching up the imagery about the vine saying that, ultimately, He has come as the true vine to give people the new opportunity to grow in a relationship with God, the way God always intended.
Practically speaking, the church has understood that this happens through spiritual disciplines, such as reading and studying Scripture and spending time in prayer, worship, confession, and fellowship an service within community.
And these things are never about scoring points with God or trying to make up for our sin.
Instead, they are all about staying connected to the vine so that we can thrive.
When we draw near to Jesus, we are supported, nourished, and sustained and able to bear for Him a high quality fruit in our day to day relationship with him.
Recognizing The Fruit God Produces In Us
Jesus compared genuine believers to branches that are grafted into Him so that they bear His good fruit.
He therefore warned that without Him, we can do nothing.
In fact, any branch that is not grafted in will be thrown into the fire to be burned.
The question becomes, what sort of fruit was Jesus referring to and how do we recognize if we are bearing His good fruit?
John 15:5-8 English Standard Version
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
The Fruit of God in our Lives
The Bible gives us a good indication of the type of fruit that God produces in us.
Good fruit of God’s light — a life that produces what is good, right, and true | Ephesians 5:8-9 ESV For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true),
Good fruit of obeying God’s commandment — love for another | John 15:12,16-17 ESV “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you… go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another.
Good fruit of God’s wisdom — wisdom that is pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, merciful, impartial and sincere |James 3:17 ESV But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.
Good fruit of the Holy Spirit — the presence of the Holy Spirit who brings love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control | Galatians 5:22-23 ESV But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Good fruit of God’s discipline — holiness and righteousness that is peaceful and good | Hebrews 12:10-11 ESV For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Good fruit of knowing and conviction about God’s will — a life that is pleasing to God, filled with spiritual wisdom and understanding | Colossians 1:9-10 ESV … you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;
Good fruit of God’s righteousness — love, knowledge, and discernment that ensures our hearts remain pure and blameless before God |Philippians 1:9-11 ESV And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
Good fruit of becoming “slaves” of God’s righteousness, set free from the bondage of sin — sanctification and eternal life | Romans 6:22 ESV But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.
This good fruit is birthed from within us, through the Holy Spirit’s regeneration and renewal work in our hearts, minds, and souls.
Only God can make such fruit grow in us.
Titus 3:5-7 ESV he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
1 Corinthians 3:7 ESV So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.
On our part, we need to maintain an honest and pure heart that abides in, or remains grafted to, Jesus so we continue to be nourished and protected.
Luke 8:15 ESV As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.
Abiding in Jesus Christ
The act of grafting attaches a branch that has been carefully cut from a weak tree and fitted into a branch of another tree with strong, robust roots.
The grafted branch is held tightly in place for a period of time until it bonds with the tree and becomes one with it.
As it receives nourishment from its new roots and is pruned by an experienced gardener, it will bear an abundance of fruit, bursting with rich nutrients and flavor.
John 15:2 ESV … every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
The tree that receives the new grafted branch inevitably suffers momentary damage because it loses a healthy branch in order to receive the new one and shares its resources with it.
This is the act of abiding in Jesus — staying loyal to and holding on tightly to Him so that we are nourished by Him.
Jesus also paid a price for each one of us to be grafted in and He graciously shares His inheritance with us.
At the same time, He also corrects and shapes us to become more like Him.
Such pruning does not always feel pleasant but it always bears “the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”
Hebrews 12:10-11 ESV … he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
This is a picture of us becoming one with Jesus in our hearts, so that we come to heavily desire what Jesus desires and that is to do our Heavenly Father’s will.
John 6:38,40 ESV For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
Not all grafts, however, are successful.
The attempted union can be broken off or destroyed by bacteria or disease.
Un-diseased branches can sometimes be successfully re-attached if they remain tender, but calloused hardened branches can only be discarded.
Ephesians 4:18-19 ESV They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.
In the book of Romans, the apostle Paul gave us another picture of grafting.
He described Gentile (non-Jewish) believers as branches from a wild olive tree that now receive rich nourishment from God’s special olive tree.
Romans 11:17 NLT And you Gentiles, who were branches from a wild olive tree, have been grafted in. So now you also receive the blessing God has promised Abraham and his children, sharing in the rich nourishment from the root of God’s special olive tree.
Paul warned us to not be complacent about abiding in Jesus because God can decide to break us off, if our hearts stop trusting and obeying Him.
We will slowly wither and die off, even if we were once alive in Him and bore some fruit in the past.
It is therefore important that we regularly resolve to check, re-check, if our graft into Jesus is still alive and well or is in any danger of coming apart.
Romans 11:20-22 NLT Yes, but remember—those branches were broken off because they didn’t believe in Christ, and you are there because you do believe. So don’t think highly of yourself, but fear what could happen. For if God did not spare the original branches, he won’t spare you either… But if you stop trusting, you also will be cut off.
What Affects Our Graft into Jesus?
When our hearts are not fully grafted into Jesus’, we experience fruitlessness, immature fruit, and fruits for death.
This happens because we are still:
Satisfied only by our own desires | Jude 1:12,16 ESV … shepherds feeding only themselves; waterless clouds, swept along by winds; fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted; These people are grumblers and complainers, living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want.
Caught up with the cares of this world |Luke 8:14-15 ESV And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.
Seduced by worldly riches | Luke 8:14-15 ESV And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.
Intoxicated with the pleasures of life | Luke 8:14-15 ESV And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.
Led by sinful desires eg. revenge, hatred, judgment, condemnation etc. | Romans 7:5 ESV For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death.
These are the things which will inevitably cut us off, away from Savior Jesus.
Staying Grafted In ….
The good news is that we can ask God to search our hearts and convict us when we are in danger of diverging from His will and losing His nourishment.
This calls for tender humble hearts that are willing to re-bind to Jesus.
Psalm 139:23-24 ESV Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!
God will always welcome us as we:
Luke 9:23-24English Standard Version
Take Up Your Cross and [DAILY] Follow Jesus
23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
Become more resolved in our daily walk with our Lord and Savior Jesus to ….
Repent of our sins | Matthew 3:8 ESV Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.
Turn away from a life defined by this world | John 12:24-25 ESV Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
Grow in knowing and discerning God’s will for us | Philippians 1:9-11 ESV And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
Seek to live out God’s Word with the right understanding | Matthew 13:23 ESV As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”
God the Father is the perfect vinedresser and He will guide us continually, watering us when we feel dry and restoring our strength.
This is how we can recognize the Vine and Vine-Dresser, remain part of His well-watered, flourishing garden that bears numerous good and tasting fruits.
John 15:1 ESV “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.
Isaiah 58:1-11 ESV
True and False Fasting
58 “Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. 2 Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God. 3 ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’ Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,[a] and oppress all your workers. 4 Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. 5 Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed[b] go free, and to break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? 8 Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. 9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, 10 if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. 11 And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
Therefore, Oh Baptized Christian, in 2023, Let it Be it resolved ….
My God, My Savior, My Most Precious Holy Spirit ….
“Open mine eyes that I may see, visions of truth God hath for me ….”
“Place in my hands the wonderful key that shall unclasp and set me free….”
“Open mine eyes, Illumine me, Spirit Divine ….”
Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Do you know, Oh Christian, you’re a sermon in shoes? Jesus calls upon you, to spread the gospel news, (1) So walk it, and talk it, a sermon in shoes. (2) Live it, and give it, a sermon in shoes. (3) Teach it, and preach it, a sermon in shoes. (4) Know it, and show it, a sermon shoes. (Ruth Harms Calkin)
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
God of Grace, Creator of all life, plant us in the soil of your grace. Nurture us with the strength of Christ, the vine of everlasting life. Enlighten us with the wisdom of your Spirit, which flows through us today and all days. Abide in us, that we may abide in you and live in your love. In your holy name, we pray. Amen.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
7-9 I’ll make a list of God’s gracious dealings, all the things God has done that need praising, All the generous bounties of God, his great goodness to the family of Israel— Compassion lavished, love extravagant. He said, “Without question these are my people, children who would never betray me.” So he became their Savior. In all their troubles, he was troubled, too. He didn’t send someone else to help them. He did it himself, in person. Out of his own love and pity he redeemed them. He rescued them and carried them along for a long, long time.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
Celebrating God as God is Celebrating Us!
God’s Prophet Isaiah invites us to look back on a year of God’s grace drawing to a close and to look ahead to another year of God’s grace that is just beginning.
Celebrating What the Lord has Done for Us!
In the ancient calendar used by the Romans, from which our calendar was created, the name of each month had a meaning.
For example the month of February was so named because that was the time of the year for a feast called February.
Lupercalia was a pastoral festival of Ancient Rome observed annually on February 15 to purify the city, promoting health and fertility. Lupercalia was also known as dies Februatus, after the purification instruments called februa, the basis for the month named Februarius.
Some of the months were named for the false gods that the Romans worshiped. March was named after Mars, the god of war.
May was probably derived from the goddess Maia.
June was named after the goddess Juno.
The months July and August were named, respectively, after Julius Caesar and his successor, Caesar Augustus. September, October, November, and December were named for the numbers seven, eight, nine, and ten in the Latin language.
That was the order in which those months fell in the Roman calendar.
One month in the ancient Roman calendar that had an especially descriptive name was January.
The Latin word janua means a door or window from which a person may look both ways, in other words, in and out–forward and back.
Historians say that January is also derived from the name Janus, a common household god among the Romans.
He was often depicted facing in two directions.
Basically, he was looking forward and back.
As we stand at the doorway looking back on 2022, to the first month of January and a new year in 2023, we will naturally look back over the way we have come.
We also naturally look ahead to the new year and where we are going.
As we celebrate, prepare ourselves and our families, friends and neighbors later this New Year’s Eve, we have to look at the year just past, the year lying ahead.
May we through our Love of God, through our Love for Word of God share in the coming of the New Year – Celebrate the coming of tonight’s midnight plus One Minute, be moved with anticipation, with confident expectation, to greet, God!
Celebrating the Grace of God in our Lives!
I. Look back on it in appreciation
II. Look ahead to it with anticipation
Our biblical text comes from the end of Isaiah’s prophecy.
Isaiah had just described the miraculous changes the Messiah—the promised Savior, would bring to God’s people in the chapters previous to our text.
Here Isaiah went on to describe the effect His preaching would have on those in Israel who were faithful to God.
He introduces the final section of his prophecy by recalling all of God’s ancient mercies, the ceaseless acts of loving kindnesses bestowed upon His Children.
Isaiah 63:7-9Amplified Bible
God’s Ancient Mercies Recalled
7 I will tell of the loving kindnesses of the Lord, and the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, According to all that the Lord has done for us, And His great goodness toward the house of Israel, Which He has shown them according to His compassion And according to the abundance of His loving kindnesses. 8 For He said, “Be assured, they are My people, Sons who will not be faithless.” So He became their Savior [in all their distresses]. 9 In all their distress He was distressed, And the [a]angel of His presence saved them, In His love and in His compassion He redeemed them; And He lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.
To these ancient words, still ever true, we should all say, “Alleluia! Amen.”
It reminds us that throughout all of our days, the Lord has been kind to us.
Tonight, at midnight minus one minute we should all regale each other, tell of the abundance of his kindnesses, deeds, from 2022 which God is to be praised.
Tonight, at midnight plus one minute, we should all proclaim and claim and to hug all of God’s coming mercies and loving kindnesses, His grace in year 2023.
These ancient words from Isaiah’s prophecy reminds us to look back in appreciation of God’s grace in 2022 and to look ahead with anticipation and with confident expectation, for more of God’s miraculous grace in year 2023.
We don’t have to look very far back in the year that is ending to be reminded of God’s undeserved love.
In fact we really only have to look back one week.
A week ago tonight was Christmas Eve.
We were reminded, through the celebration of His Gospel, Christ was born to live the holy life we did not live, to die under the just punishment for our sins.
The clearest and most complete reminder of God’s kindness and love for us.
We rejoice, through the celebration of His Word, that we have had the privilege to once again celebrate his first birthday and speak about his great love for us.
But obviously our spiritual blessings for 2022 weren’t confined to Christmas.
For the last 52 Sundays our God has fed us with his Word when we gathered for praise and prayer and worship.
We followed Jesus to the cross, we shouted, “He is risen!”
We listened to the words and works of our Savior God.
In Bible study, and Sunday school, through the children’s ministries, and too, through our personal time in God’s Word we have found healing and hope.
We have felt God’s presence and been reassured of his love when we sinned.
As we celebrate God’s grace tonight, at midnight minus one minute, we look back in gratitude and appreciation of a whole year of enjoying the Word of God and all of the abundance of Father, Son, Holy Spirit, that it has brought to us.
In 2022 we also often received the pledge that we are forgiven children of God as we received the body and blood of Christ in the Lord’s Supper.
There Jesus invited us to eat and drink the proof that full payment for our sins has been made.
At His Passover table we were reminded that too we will eat and drink with him in the Kingdom of heaven.
Although we have many things to be thankful for this New Year’s Eve we are most thankful for those Means of Grace Jehovah God has given us–His Word and Sacraments.
The person speaking in our text from Isaiah acknowledged that the Lord had done many good things for his people.
The Lord had brought his people out of slavery in Egypt.
He gave them a land flowing with milk and honey.
He repeatedly defeated their enemies.
Through mighty miracles he had protected his people and prospered them.
He blessed their crops and their other sources of income.
He did all these things because of his compassion and love.
They were God’s people and enjoyed all the benefits of being God’s people..
This reminder of what God did for his people of old reminds us of what God does for his people today.
He still does great things for us.
Who of us can’t tell of the kindnesses of the Lord?
Take a moment to look back in appreciation for all that the Lord has done for us this past year.
Who of us can’t tell of the deeds for which God is to be praised?
Our Lord has given us abundant life, shelter, food, and clothing this past year.
We have enjoyed the blessings of family and friends and neighbors.
We have enjoyed God’s creation for another year.
The Lord provided us with blessings beyond belief, way more than we can use.
But someone might legitimately say not everything in 2001 was all that good.
What about the continued presence of covid19?
Someone might say, “I had troubles and problems from day one of 2022.”
“In fact this year was one of the worst I have ever had. I lost my job. I was sick. My wife and children too. I faced financial problems and other troubles. 2022 was not a good year at all, I really don’t see all that much God has done for me.”
Yes, we face the temptation to feel that way and have those kinds of thoughts.
But when Isaiah recorded these words from verses 7-9, he could have said something similar to that.
He and other believers faced persecution.
Their country was under the threat of foreign invasion.
Outwardly speaking, for him, things were very bad and seemed very uncertain.
Yet, Isaiah knew that no matter how bad things looked God was with him and his people, Isaiah knew that he could only see things from a human perspective.
If he could look at things from God’s perspective he would know that God was gravely concerned about him, doing everything possible for his eternal good.
If this Isaiah were to be reading these ancient words in 2022, from his ancient context and perspective, how might he now reflect back upon the grace of God?
Because of God’s grace great clouds of witnesses can look back at this year with real appreciation – no matter what has happened the Lord has been good to us.
We are reminded that even when things looked bad in 2022 God was with us.
Isaiah 63:9Amplified Bible
9 In all their distress He was distressed, And the [a]angel of His presence saved them, In His love and in His compassion He redeemed them; And He lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.
In verse 9 we are told, “In all their distress he too was distressed.”
God was distressed with us in our distress.
Through all the trials and troubles we faced in 2022 God was both empathetic and sympathetic to us.
It should always makes us feel better when someone knows what we are going through, when someone understands, when someone can relate to our stories.
Hebrews 4:14-16Amplified Bible
14 Inasmuch then as we [believers] have a great High Priest who has [already ascended and] passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession [of faith and cling tenaciously to our absolute trust in Him as Savior]. 15 For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize and understand our weaknesses and temptations, but One who has been tempted [knowing exactly how it feels to be human] in every respect as we are, yet without [committing any] sin. 16 Therefore let us [with privilege] approach the throne of grace [that is, the throne of God’s gracious favor] with confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find [His amazing] grace to help in time of need [an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment].
We have a great High Priest – Immanuel, God With Us, God Within Us – Jesus, who gives us anticipation of grace, everlasting expectation of faith, hope, love.
That is a reason to celebrate God’s grace. Our God felt the pain we felt. When we were shedding our tears of sorrow our God was watching us, caring about us.
Verse 9 of our text continues, “and the angel of his presence saved them.”
We may never know the full measure of all those ‘close calls’ we had last year.
We may never know how many disasters the Lord protected us from.
We may have repeatedly walked through the valley of the shadow of death and not even known it. But we do know the Lord’s presence saved us from disaster.
He sends his angels to protect us and he shelters us under his protecting hand.
Verse 9 concludes, “In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.”
Through everything God was there.
As we celebrate God’s grace this New Year’s Eve we look back with appreciation for God’s protection.
The Lord Jehovah said through Isaiah in 46:3-4,
“I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”
From our youth to our old age God promises to be with us.
From year to year God will sustain and help us.
Through good times and bad times the Lord carries us.
As we take those few precious moments to look back and reflect at another year of our faithful God’s protection and love, may we look back at it in appreciation.
46 1-3 God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need him. We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom, courageous in seastorm and earthquake, Before the rush and roar of oceans, the tremors that shift mountains.
Jacob-wrestling God fights for us, God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.
4-6 River fountains splash joy, cooling God’s city, this sacred haunt of the Most High. God lives here, the streets are safe, God at your service from crack of dawn. Godless nations rant and rave, kings and kingdoms threaten, but Earth does anything he says.
7 Jacob-wrestling God fights for us, God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.
8-10 Attention, all! See the marvels of God! He plants flowers and trees all over the earth, Bans war from pole to pole, breaks all the weapons across his knee. “Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me, your High God, above politics, above everything.”
11 Jacob-wrestling God fights for us, God-of-Angel-Armies protects us. (
With the utmost expectation and confidence, may we celebrate God’s grace!
What reason did God have for allowing troubles into our lives this past year?
He used all these things to draw us into a much closer relationship with Him.
To remind us that the Lord is our strength and our only way out of trouble.
He teaches us where to go for help.
He teaches us how to be strong and face the attacks of the devil and this world.
Our struggles in 2022 have made us stronger Christians.
Have we learned to rely on God more fully?
I fervently pray the answer to that question is an unequivocal Yes!
I fervently pray we can even look back on the bad things of this past year with appreciation for our God has been with us,. God has carried us and protected us.
II.
The other part of our New Year’s celebration is looking ahead.
We make resolutions.
We make plans.
We look forward to another year of God’s grace.
That gives us a great advantage over many who will celebrate New Year’s Eve tonight.
We go forward with God’s grace. We can look ahead to 2023 with anticipation.
What is the one thing we look forward to with anticipation in 2023?
It is God’s mercy and grace.
We know that we will definitely, decisively fail and fall many times.
We know that we will fall short of God’s perfect and holy will.
But we also know that our Lord’s mercy is new every day.
We know that our God will forgive us through the blood of his Son Jesus Christ.
No matter how badly we stumble next year our God will have mercy on us.
We have blown it many times this past year and will blow it again next year, but our God will continue to extend us His grace and will have mercy and forgive us.
Will we look ahead unto 2023 with anticipation of God’s grace and forgiveness?
Will we also confidently, expectantly, eagerly look forward to 2023 with joy, anticipation because of the blessing of God’s Word for another 52 Sundays?
Will we once again find renewed faith, renewed hope and comfort in the Word?
For another year will we be built up in our faith and find guidance for our life?
In 2023 will we see souls enter the kingdom of God through the sacrament of Baptism?
Will we grow in love for one another as we stand together before an altar and receive the body and blood of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ?
Will 2023 be a good year no matter what happens or how it happened because we have the one thing we need – the means by which God brings us his grace?
We have his Word and Sacraments.
Reality is, Truth is still that instead of looking ahead to 2023 with anticipation there are many of our neighbors who will look ahead with fear and trepidation.
What will the new year hold?
Will the economy be good or bad?
Will companies lay people off or will many be hiring?
Will taxes go up or down?
Will our investments go up or down?
What about covid19?
What about the ongoing scourge violence and senseless crime in our streets?
How wonderful it is for us to be confident that the no matter what happens God will be with us and care for us.
He promises to provide all that we need.
We may experience setbacks but the Lord will only do what is best for us.
And what about the potential problems we might face in 2023?
What if we lose a loved one or lose our job?
What if we ourselves get acutely sick?
What if our spouse or our children get acutely ill?
What if some physical or natural disaster strikes?
What if economic disaster strikes at our bank accounts?
Perhaps there will be another wave of the pandemic.
Again, I fervently we hear the ancient words of Isaiah from verse 9:
“In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.”
In any distress which might come flowing down our way in 2023, God will be with us – Jehovah will rescue us and carry us through even the worst of times.
So how does our knowledge of God’s grace and goodness for this new year affect our plans for 2023?
How do we look ahead with confident anticipation in a God pleasing way?
We put all our dreams and goals in the Lord’s hands.
We have to be careful how we look forward with anticipation.
We are given this New Year’s advice in James 4:13-15,
“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”
As we look forward to 2023 with anticipation, expectation we recognize it will only be by God’s grace and only according to God’s will that we make our plans.
That experience allows me to ‘stand before you’ this day and ‘preach’ this text from Isaiah 63:7-9 with confident expectation of its contemporary fulfillment.
In the good times and in the bad times God is with us.
As God’s children we tell of all the good things he has done for us.
In 2022 we have enjoyed his love, and grace, and blessing.
We have enjoyed his Word and Sacraments.
He has been with us through everything.
He has felt our pain and sorrow.
We look back in appreciation. We also look forward with anticipation.
We also look forward believing God will be with us again in that New Year.
He will provide us with what we need both physically and spiritually.
He will comfort us and share our pain and sorrow.
Today or tonight as we ring in the new year 2023, celebrate God!
Celebrate God’s grace.
Celebrate Grace that moves us to reflect back on God with appreciation.
Celebrate Grace that allows us to look forward to God with anticipation.
Celebrate Grace that allows us to look forward to God with confidence.
Celebrate Grace that allows us to look forward to God with expectation.
Celebrate God EVERYDAY as God Celebrates Us EVERYDAY! Amen.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 19 The Message
19 1-2 God’s glory is on tour in the skies, God-craft on exhibit across the horizon. Madame Day holds classes every morning, Professor Night lectures each evening.
3-4 Their words aren’t heard, their voices aren’t recorded, But their silence fills the earth: unspoken truth is spoken everywhere.
4-5 God makes a huge dome for the sun—a superdome! The morning sun’s a new husband leaping from his honeymoon bed, The daybreaking sun an athlete racing to the tape.
6 That’s how God’s Word vaults across the skies from sunrise to sunset, Melting ice, scorching deserts, warming hearts to faith.
7-9 The revelation of God is whole and pulls our lives together. The signposts of God are clear and point out the right road. The life-maps of God are right, showing the way to joy. The directions of God are plain and easy on the eyes. God’s reputation is twenty-four-carat gold, with a lifetime guarantee. The decisions of God are accurate down to the nth degree.
10 God’s Word is better than a diamond, better than a diamond set between emeralds. You’ll like it better than strawberries in spring, better than red, ripe strawberries.
11-14 There’s more: God’s Word warns us of danger and directs us to hidden treasure. Otherwise how will we find our way? Or know when we play the fool? Clean the slate, God, so we can start the day fresh! Keep me from stupid sins, from thinking I can take over your work; Then I can start this day sun-washed, scrubbed clean of the grime of sin. These are the words in my mouth; these are what I chew on and pray. Accept them when I place them on the morning altar, O God, my Altar-Rock, God, Priest-of-My-Altar.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
5 Trust in and rely confidently on the Lord with all your heart And do not rely on your own insight or understanding. 6 [a]In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him, And He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way]. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord [with reverent awe and obedience] and turn [entirely] away from evil. 8 It will be health to your body [your marrow, your nerves, your sinews, your muscles—all your inner parts] And refreshment (physical well-being) to your bones.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen
Proverbs is one of the most quoted books of the Bible.
Everyone seems to know or has heard those often-quoted words of wisdom and advice.
Did they really work for and during the times they were written for?
But would they really work in our most contemporary of internet times?
Can they be or are they still relevant and effective ?
Are they really wise words to live by as we close 2022 and enter into 2023?
Has anyone ever gotten any real success out of these sagacious verses written thousands of years ago?
Having Proverbs 3:6 During Hard Times
In the Bible, specifically in Proverbs, there is great wisdom concerning how to live a happy and peaceful and successful life – to be able to move through our failures and failings and arrive at a place where faith becomes first, foremost.
So much so one might find it unfathomable that people would not look forward to immersing their hearts and their souls and their lives into reading, studying, praying through, following, the wisdom this well-known Old Testament book.
Of course, not everyone reads Proverbs.
Consequentially, many never follow its prodding.
That is indeed a shame, for as we look at our world today.
Never has it been so necessary, so vital, to get to know the true powerhouse of Proverbs, what Go brings to our table of life and what miracles it has to offer.
God only knows, it is never merely individual humans who need advice and guidance; it is our families, neighbors, neighborhoods, church, entire world.
Today, let us reflect together about our spiritual journey: its beginning and destination, sharp turns, slowdowns, shutdowns, its challenges and blessings.
Today’s Scripture gives us a crucial piece of advice for every successful journey of faith.
Before we can start “driving,” we have to fully trust the Lord.
The Bible often calls the Lord our Shepherd.
In today’s terms, we could say God is our GPS.
God Positioning System ….
Trust in this GPS, and you and I will never get lost – just twisted around a bit!
The Lord warns us against thinking we are smart enough to figure out our own way. He tells us to turn to him in single every part of our life’s spiritual journey.
Acknowledge His GPS, He will make our path straight and will see us through.
As for me, there is one particular piece of advice from Proverbs that has carried me through countless challenges to my faith, through myriads of my failures.
When was the last time (do we remember the first time?) you an I ever noticed when we were on a good smooth road, and things were moving well, that a big bump or even a big pothole comes out of nowhere and messes up everything?
What if we arrived at a point on that “messed up” road where it felt like we were driving on cruise control at 65 mph driving from the eastern most to the most western point then from the most northern point to the most southern point of our country – and driving around in ceaseless circles – on the rims of our tires?
For a long time, I kept asking myself …. are all roads leading away from failure unto any success such ceaseless circles, is failure all I’m ever destined to know?
Is there any pathway which leads me away from such a dark, defeating cycle?
THE PATH TO WELLNESS ……
The grace of God is demonstrated by the fact that He has a plan and purpose for our lives that He wants to reveal to us.
It’s a pathway He’s designed specifically for each one of us, yet some of us may fail to consider this.
We find it too easy to move through life without giving God a second thought.
Instead of wondering whether our lives have counted for anything, we can all choose to believe that the Lord has the best plan for us, discover His path, and get on it as soon as possible.
If we don’t fully trust God, we will be reluctant to follow the path He’s chosen for us.
Even though He always leads us the right way, our fears or uncertainty could cause us to sidestep His commands and opt for following our own course.
Proverbs 3:5-8 tells us what’s required to follow the Lord, what the benefits will be.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil. 8 It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones.” Proverbs 3:5-8 NKJV
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding” (v. 5).
1. GOD COMMANDS US TO TRUST HIM
“Trust in the Lord” ProvERBS. 3:5a NKJV
Trust is a strong belief in someone’s integrity, ability, and character. This is the kind of confidence we are expected to have in the Lord. Then whatever He says or He also requires of us, we will prayerfully know with certainty that it is right.
If we lack that faith, lack that degree or measure of trust, we will not so innately or faithfully follow Him and will find ourselves living outside the will of God.
On the other hand, if we have spent some quantity and quality time, reading, studying, trusting, obeying Him, we can testify that He has never let us down.
Trusting God, is loving God in action. If we love God, we will trust Him.
“Loving God means keeping his commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.” 1 John 5:3 NLT
“In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And His commands are not burdensome.” I John 5:3 NIV
“Every person who believes that Jesus is, in fact, the Messiah, is God-born. If we love the One who conceives the child, we’ll surely love the child who was conceived. The reality test on whether or not we love God’s children is this: Do we love God? Do we keep his commands? The proof that we love God comes when we keep his commandments and they are not at all troublesome.” 1 John 5:1-3 The Message
2. THE BASIS FOR TRUST IN GOD IS HIS SOVEREIGNITY.
“Trust in the LORD” Proverbs 3:5b NKJV
LORD = YAHWEH. The One Who Is. The Absolute and Unchangeable One. The Existing, Ever-Living, Self-Consistent and Unchangeable God.
He is the divine Ruler over all things and all people at all times.
His sovereignty is His wisdom, power, and righteousness all wrapped into one.
The Lord’s purpose is always right and good even if it doesn’t look that way from our perspective.
God says: “From the beginning I revealed the end. From long ago I told you things that had not yet happened, saying, “My plan will stand, and I’ll do everything I intended to do.” Isaiah 46:10 GN
“From eternity to eternity I am God. No one can snatch anyone out of my hand. No one can undo what I have done.” Isaiah 43:13 NLT
“Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26 NIV
3. THE DEGREE TO WHICH WE ARE TO TRUST GOD IS WITH ALL OF OUR HEART.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart” Proverbs 3:5b NKJV
Instead of so easily and instinctively relying on our own knowledge, perception, or reasoning, we should P.U.S.H. (Pray Until Something Happens) ourselves to place our total trust in the Lord.
This requires more than just agreeing with Him. We can actually agree with God about many teachings in the Bible without actually trusting Him. Agreement means we believe something is right, but genuine faith responds to that belief with action—do what God says because we trust Him to guide us the right way.
Wholehearted trust also means we cannot pick and choose areas we entrust to Him while trying to keep other parts of our lives under our control. It’s unwise to rely on our own perception because it is so limited, but God’s understanding is complete and eternal. Even when we do not fully comprehend or like what’s happening, we can still fully rely on His loving wisdom and respond in trust.
“In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight” Proverbs 3:6 NKJV
4. IN EACH SITUATION, WE MUST FIRST ACKNOWLEDGE GOD
“In all your ways acknowledge Him” Proverbs 3:6a NKJV
To acknowledge someone is to recognize him. But when we acknowledge God, we are not merely admitting that He exists but confirming He is our Lord who has authority over us and the right to give us direction in every area of our lives.
In each choice or situation, each success, each failure, failing, we acknowledge His sovereignty over them by surrendering to His will and trusting Him fully.
5. “HE WILL MAKE YOUR PATHS STRAIGHT.” Proverbs 3:6b NKJV
When we follow the Lord’s guidance, He protects us from side roads and eliminates obstacles and confusion along the way.
In basic terms, the straight path is the one of obedience. We may slide, stumble and slip into a few ditches along the way or need redirection, but God repeatedly and faithfully brings us back when we confess our change of heart, to obey Him.
His path is not always going to be easy to travel upon, but His forever promise is it is always going to be the best. If we think we can do a better job of plotting our own course for happiness and prosperity, it may look good, but eventually we’ll suffer the wear and tear coming from taking unprotected detours on our rims.
His Master Class after Master Class, after instructing us on what to do, God then gives us a poignant warning for our disobedience and a blessing for obedience;
6. “Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil” Proverbs 3:7a NKJV
“Do you see a person wise in their own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for them.” Proverbs 26:12 NIV
Whenever we choose our own way instead of trusting the Lord, we are playing the fool because your life does not belong to you. There are 2 masters in life
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon” Matthew 6:24 NKJV
One day we are going to stand before God and give an account of how we lived.
If we’re wise, we’ll seek the Lord, listen to His directions, and trust Him. Since He cannot lie, we know that God will always keep His promises, and whatever He says is true.
7. “Fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.” Proverbs 3:7b NKJV
To reverently fear God is to recognize and honor Him as not only the sovereign Ruler of the universe, but as the Only Lord and Only Savior of our lives.
If we truly believe this, we’ll turn away from sin and seek to live in obedience to Him.
8. “It will be healing to your body and refreshment to your bones” Proverbs 3:8a NKJV
Every day we are faced with choices, and what we decide to do is based on whether we or not we believe God, that He has a plan for our lives and has chosen the best possible path for us, or we distrust Him, follow our own ways.
Whether we succeed or we fail, If we are willing to faithfully listen and trust Him, we will discover His faith-filled path leads to healing and refreshment.
Success or Failure, there will 100% be an underlying sense of peace, assurance, confidence, and satisfaction when we follow Him instead of going our own way.
Resolutions, Responses to Consider as we enter upon the New Year
Where do you find the most difficulty trusting God?
Why do you think it’s so hard to trust Him with this?
What promises in His Word could bring you assurance of His trustworthiness?
Does knowing God is sovereign over all the events in your life help you trust Him? Why or why not? Which of His other attributes motivate you to trust Him?
It’s easier to trust someone we know very well than someone we don’t. With this in mind, how well do you know the Lord?
Since the Scriptures are God’s self-revelation, what do you need to do to increase your trust in Him?
Sin has polluted our willingness to submit to the Lord.
The devil tempts us to implicitly trust our own way and intuition.
Our ever faithful God seeks to draw us to back to himself because he knows best.
By our Baptism in Jesus Christ, we are all constantly caught in a faith to failure back to faith tug-of-war, always leaning one way and then leaning the other.
There was a time when I thought I knew it all, but the one thing I did not know, would not acknowledge was God had a better way He was waiting to show me.
God’s Word taught me to more instinctively trust his GPS with the directions.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
God, Author of my Life,God of all understanding, you have promised to give wisdom to anyone who asks. Well, I am now asking and indeed, I am pleading and praying. As I walk through life, give me wisdom and understanding in every decision I make. Guide those uncertain thoughts and redirect my misguided steps. When I experience failure, uncertainty and confusion, may I lean on your limitless wisdom. May your divine Holy Spirit be at work in me like a lamp to my feet and a shield to my mind. Help me to think clearly and calmly. Help me to act with confidence and wisdom. Help me to glorify you in everything I do. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord, My Lord.
Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum
Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 