Are You in Earnest?

"Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen" (Ephesians 3:20-21)

Most of us are more familiar with these words of the Apostle Paul in their role as a "benediction" spoken at the conclusion of a service of worship. Yet the fact remains that what we discover here is actually one of the greatest single promises of God ever made to us as His children! In order to understand how that is true, however, we need to consider closely a statement also made by the apostle earlier in this same letter.

"In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation - having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory" (1:13-14)

Pay close attention to the term "pledge of our inheritance." In the King James translation the word used instead of "pledge" is "earnest," an old English word (ernest) meaning concretely money that is paid in advance to seal a contract and more abstractly a token of that which is to come, a promise or assurance. It is the second of these meanings that should really grab our attention.

In the original language of the New Testament, the Koine Greek word used by the apostle was arrabon or "earnest-money." The picture from the beginning was clearly intended to be that of something given as a "down-payment" or pledge of something even greater to come. In fact, it has been noted that a related Greek word, arrabona, referred to what we know as an "engagement ring," itself certainly a great promise of things to come!

Can you see how the Spirit of God within the believer fills this role of God's pledge to each of us, beloved? That is what makes Paul's words in his benediction in 3:20-21 so glorious! That power which has the ability to work within us and through us in performing things for the kingdom of God which are more far-reaching than the wildest that we could ever hope or imagine - that power which we know personally as the Holy Spirit is but God's "down-payment" of things to come! Indeed, as Paul went on to say: "To Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen."

Are you "in earnest" about your Christian walk, beloved? God is! And the pledge of His desire for you is the indwelling Holy Spirit. And if the Spirit of God is His "down-payment," then imagine what we must have in store for us as children of the Most High God, bought by the blood of Jesus Christ and saved by God's all-sufficient grace. Hallelujah and hallelujah!

Ron

He Heard That!

"And they came to Capernaum; and when He was in the house, He began to question them, 'What were you discussing on the way?' But they kept silent, for on the way they had discussed with one another which of them was the greatest" (Mark 9:33-34)

Some of the most frightening words that I ever had occasion to hear, beloved, took place whenever my mother would say of some words I had hastily uttered under my breath, "I heard that, young man!' I never ceased to be amazed at how she could hear things that to me no normal human being should be able to hear. I soon concluded that it had to be a very special ability which God gives to mothers!

Imagine, then, the surprise of the disciples when a conversation which they had held on the way to Capernaum was suddenly brought up in their presence by Jesus. They clearly had no idea that He had any knowledge of what they had discussed among themselves! Furthermore, they were embarrassed that what they had been discussing with each other had been so ego-centric and worldly. Very simply, they had been talking about which one of them should be honored as greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And so off-base was their subject matter that it led at last to Jesus giving to them a discourse on what true spiritual greatness is - that of becoming a genuine servant.

All of us no doubt recall words that we have spoken or even thoughts that we have pondered, the memory of which later brought a sense of shame and embarrassment to our hearts. I know that it is certainly true of me! So why do we allow such thoughts to cross our minds or such words to cross our lips? Do we really think that He doesn't hear us, that He isn't aware of our thoughts and attitudes? Just reading this passage in John Mark's narrative has served to strengthen my own resolve, beloved, to guard my thoughts and my words carefully, not so much to avoid "getting into trouble" with Jesus, but more because I want my thoughts and words and actions to honor His wonderful name.

I am just as amazed today at the memory of my mother's uncanny ability to hear my whispered words, beloved, as I was when she was with us. But I am even more amazed at my Lord's personal knowledge of me as His child. And I am thankful that He loves me in spite of words and thoughts that I should neither speak nor ponder. And such knowledge inspires me to seek to make my thoughts and words and deeds something for which I am never ashamed to have Him see and know. It is a comfort to know that Jesus knows me that well and that, knowing me, He loves me anyway!

Ron

Influence That Is a One-Way Street

"Therefore, thus says the Lord, 'If you return, then I will restore you - before Me you will stand; and if you extract the precious from the worthless, you will become My spokesman. They for their part may turn to you, but as for you, you must not turn to them'" (Jeremiah 15:19)

Jeremiah was having a rough time of it as God's prophet, beloved! It seemed to him that Jehovah was being unduly long-suffering with His people and for himself, he had lost the fire of his calling. He had suffered great abuse at the hands of those to whom he took the word of the Lord and he was weary with the effort. What was joyful to him at the first had become a burden. In this glorious invitation from the heart of God to His servant, we discover a wondrous promise for ourselves today.

First of all, Jeremiah was urged to "return" to the Lord in his role as God's spokesman to His chosen people. Before God he would once again "stand" and receive the word from Him that His people needed so desperately to hear. Where else can we find a word for the people whom we would reach today, beloved, but from the heart of the One who loves them and sacrificed His only begotten Son for our sins?

Then, Jeremiah needed to "extract the precious from the worthless." What a tremendous need in our own lives daily! What foolish believer is there who would claim never to have imagined "worthless" thoughts or to have impulsively uttered "worthless" words? Whenever we do so, as Jeremiah had done here in his anger, we need to separate out the "precious" - our love for God and His unfailing grace in our lives - and let that be our motivation for faithful service. We deal with the "worthless" by repenting of it and casting it aside, never to pick it up again.

Finally, Jeremiah needed to see his labor in speaking for God as a "one-way street." He could not afford to allow those to whom he carried the word of the Lord to influence his thinking and his behavior. His was the role of being the influence and not of being influenced himself! That is precisely what Jesus meant when He said that we as believers are the "light of the world" and the "salt of the earth." It is we who must influence others with the truth of God's Word. And while serving God in this way, we must not allow our thinking and our behavior to become tainted by the attitudes and actions of the world around us.

Is your life in this world a "one-way street," beloved? Do you stand before God to receive His word for people and carry it faithfully to them? Is yours an influential lifestyle? Are you diligent to "extract the precious from the worthless" in presenting unto God a pure heart and unto people a steadfast example? Make your life today a "one-way street"!

Ron

A Cell Phone in My Pocket

"The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God" (Romans 8:16)

My children are very important to me, beloved, as are my grandchildren and, for that matter, my entire extended family! Bev and I are blessed by God to be a part of a wonderful family and they are such a vital part of our lives. Earlier today I was relaxing in my recliner when the thought occurred to me that I was not sure where my cell phone was. I reached down to my front pocket and, thankfully, there it was. My immediate thought was - "Good! Just in case one of the kids might call!"

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we as Christians were as interested in staying in tune with the Spirit of God as we are in keeping in touch with our family members? Naturally the one does not exclude the other, but should we not exert as much energy connecting with the Holy Spirit within us as we do staying in touch with loved ones from whom we may be separated by distance?

Clearly in the words of the Apostle Paul to the saints in Rome it is the desire of the Spirit of God to stay in touch with us! It is He who bears witness with our spirit, He who initiates the relationship and ever seeks to keep it strong. It is He who wants to keep us in the most intimate contact with our heavenly Father and it is He who will go to any length necessary to remind us of that need within our lives. And the good news is, beloved, you don't need a cell phone to stay in touch with Him! Nor do you need to send him a "friend request" on Face Book. He's right there within your spirit, ever longing to commune with you in the most glorious way possible.

So stay in touch with the kids and grandkids, by all means! But by all means as well, stay in touch with the Spirit of the living God. He has things to tell you and to show you that you absolutely won't believe!

Ron

Now As I Was Saying...

"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Oops! It seems that I recall just a couple of weeks ago wrapping up my devotional thoughts with the words - "But that's another subject for another day! Maybe next week..." Then the following week we were off spoiling our grandchildren rotten, so I ended up writing about the joys of being a grandpa. Thus, "maybe next week" never became a reality. Finishing the thought that I began two weeks ago, then, is the focus of this week's devotional!

First of all, let me suggest that you scroll down and re-read the entry for March 31st entitled "Sin Imputed or Sin Imparted?" When you have done that, then you will recall that God in His wondrous mercy "imputed" or charged to the account of the Lord Jesus Christ our very sinfulness. Though He did not become a sinner Himself, He did bear our guilt and shame vicariously to the cross of Calvary and paid the full price of God's holy justness, forever satisfying the demand of the Father's holiness.

But that was only one-half of the transaction, beloved, and the second half is not only the focus of this week's thoughts but is a truth most glorious! By imputing our sinfulness to the sinless Christ, God made it possible for us to have "imputed" or charged to our account the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Very simply, He did not deserve our guilt and shame, but received it anyway and bore the awful wrath of holy God in our place. Likewise, we did not deserve His righteousness and the approval of holy God, but received it anyway and became members of God's divine family.

Charles Wesley, prompted by the wonder of this divine transaction of pure grace, felt compelled to write of that wonder as it unfolded to his own heart and mind. We should all be able to identify fully as believers today with Wesley's amazement and loving response to God's grace as found in the following lyrics to a beloved hymn written in 1738. Here are the words of the 3rd stanza which describe beautifully the sacrifice made by the Son of God and also the impact of that sacrifice on the life of every true believer:

He left His Father's throne above - so free, so infinite His grace -
Emptied Himself of all but love, and bled for Adam's helpless race;
'Tis mercy all, immense and free, for O my God, it found out me!

As a result, beloved, you and I are forever free from the dread of sin and its eternal consequences. Wesley went on in the final stanza to describe for us the resulting "grace in which we stand" (Romans 5:2).

No condemnation now I dread; Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head, and clothed in righteousness divine;
Bold I approach the eternal throne, and claim the crown, through Christ my own.

As Wesley himself has put it, beloved - "'Tis mercy all!" To that we can only add "Amen and amen!"

Ron