The Only Way Forward

Every once in a while, you are given some instructions that are hard to swallow, but you know it is the right thing. As a child, your parents told you to do your chores. You hated it, but it taught you work ethic. At your job, your boss tells you to complete a project that…

Avoid This at All Costs

The courts are full of lawsuits between business partners over breach of contract and other issues that could’ve been avoided at the beginning if Christians would’ve heeded this advice from the beginning, “don’t be bound with unbelievers.” Whether in business or relationships, that principle rings true. When you are in a partnership with an unbeliever, it is like combining light with darkness. Avoid this at all costs.

‭‭2 CORINTHIANS‬ ‭6:14

“Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?”

To be bound with someone is akin to two people being tied together by a rope. You’re stuck and can’t get out. When you enter into a contract with an unbeliever, you ask for all kinds of problems because you don’t have the same value system. I’ve seen wives in tears as a husband they love defiantly opposes Biblical values, and I’ve seen wealthy people in business lose much of their wealth in legal battles trying to get out of a business partnership. Avoid this at all costs.

You Can’t Ask for a Better Trade

When I was young, I collected Baseball cards. By the time I was twelve, I had amassed quite a collection. I met an older gentleman who wanted to trade with me. Trading cards with my friends was pretty standard, but I thought it was odd that he sought me out. I tentatively agreed. When we met, he went through all of my cards and picked out the ten or so cards. He then proposed a trade. Those ten cards for a whole stack of his. He kept saying, “Can’t ask for a better trade.” I turned him down because the ten or so cards he wanted of mine were ten times more valuable than his.

‭‭2 CORINTHIANS‬ ‭5:21

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Jesus makes a trade that you can’t refuse. All of your sin for all of his righteousness. Your worst for His best, and it doesn’t cost you a thing. You can’t ask for a better trade. God made His Son Jesus, who had never sinned, to take all of ours upon himself on the cross. In exchange, you get everything right with Jesus. This shows you how amazing the grace of Jesus is and how much God loved the World.

One Thing Every Believer Needs

It’s a pretty well-known fact that men do not like to ask for directions. They prefer to figure things out themselves and don’t want to look dumb by admitting they are lost. The same can be true of Christians. They like to figure things out and consider it a weakness when they ask God for help. Today, Paul shows us one thing every believer needs to navigate life and ensure that we don’t get lost.

‭‭2 CORINTHIANS‬ ‭5:6-7

So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight.

When Paul talks about “being at home in the body,” he is referring to us living on the earth. While we are alive here we are away from the Lord. Until this body passes away, we will be physically separated from Jesus. To live here on earth, we need to walk by faith and not by what we see. We have to trust God’s Word and rely upon the leading of the Holy Spirit until we are in the physical presence of Jesus Christ.

I’m Dying Here

In the movie “As Good As It Gets,” Jack Nicholson says, “I’m dying here.” It is in response to a waitress who won’t give in to his attitude and is forcing him to act human. Jack didn’t want to change, but he couldn’t go forward if he didn’t. To him, it felt like he was dying inside. As a Christian, you are constantly dying to your old self, and you may feel like saying what Jack said, “I’m dying here.”

‭‭2 CORINTHIANS‬ ‭4:11

“For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”

Paul was constantly dealing with new believers who didn’t want to change once they gave their life to Jesus Christ. They often complained to him how difficult it was to follow Jesus, and Paul would give one of his famous quotes like this in 2 Corinthians. You are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake so the His life can be evident in you. That means a lot of change that will take you out of your comfort zone.

Refined Like Silver

Any precious metal like silver or gold has to go through a refining process once it is mined. For silver, it has to be put in the fire to remove all of the dross. The silversmith sticks the silver still ensconced within rocks into a fire. The silver will melt, and it becomes easy to remove the rocks. From there, the silversmith will turn the heat up and put the silver back into the furnace. Once the silver gets to the point of boiling, the silversmith will pull it out. On top of the silver will be a layer of film called “crud.” He will remove all of the crud until he can see the reflection of his face in the silver. Today, the Psalmist uses this process to tell us that we are refined like silver.

‭‭PSALMS‬ ‭66:10

“For You have tried us, O God; You have refined us as silver is refined.”

Much like silver, God puts us through a refining process. Bible scholars call it sanctification. It is the process of removing the remnants of the world and transforming us into the image of Jesus Christ. When God sees something in our lives that needs to be changed, He will turn up the heat. The Israelites were used to feeling the heat of being refined.

What is Filling Your Heart?

My heart is filled with wonderful memories of celebrating our Savior’s birth as a child and now with my children during the holiday season. What’s is great about the season is that we can set aside the issues for a short period of time and just focus on the good that Jesus brings us. What is filling your heart? Is it filled with good?

‭‭LUKE‬ ‭6:45‬

“The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.”

A person is good because of what is in his heart. If they are pouring the goodness of God in then, that is what is going to come out. Our mouth is only capable of pronouncing what is in our hearts. So, to be the good person you think you are, you need to fill it with the right things. This is more than positive thoughts. It is reading, listening, and watching that which is going to produce good.

Be Careful of Those Flattering Words

After preaching, some of the best compliments I have received from those who have slept through the message. I kid you not. I get these glowing words on how great the sermon was from somebody who napped through most of it. I guess it is a gift because I have received a ton of those compliments. Jesus tells you to Be careful of those flattering words that people throw at you.

‭‭LUKE‬ ‭6:26

“Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.”

Jesus continues his discussion on how to react when people talk about you. Here He hits the issue of flattery and compliments. In the Old Testament, people spoke well of the false prophets because they always gave a message of health and prosperity. They didn’t like the real prophets because their messages were calling the idol-worshipping Jews to repent and return to God. Jesus tells the crowd to beware of when all men speak well of you. If that is happening, then you probably aren’t doing anything.

When a Curse is a Blessing

Being liked by others seems to become an obsession for a majority of people. They don’t want do or say anything that will offend people or cause them to speak poorly so people often won’t stand firm in their faith or speak the truth in love for fear of being ostracized. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shows you when a curse is a blessing. In God’s eyes, if you are insulted for the sake of Jesus, you will be blessed.

‭‭LUKE‬ ‭6:22‬

“Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man.”

This is part of the Sermon on the Mount that Luke captures. Luke’s version is not as in-depth as Matthew’s but he gives us some good nuggets. Here we see Jesus telling his listeners that they are blessed with people hate you for His names sake. If you are cursed at, ostracized, and scorned then you are in good company. Jesus went through all of that survived, so can you. The key is to make sure that it happening because of your faith and service in Jesus Christ and not because you are a royal jerk.

Transformed Into His Image

If you have children, there is a good chance that one of them looks identical to you. It’s unavoidable because genetics are strong. Even if they don’t look like you, they will mimic a lot of your personality. Some of this is learned, but most of it is inherent. Did you know that you are becoming more like Jesus? You are being transformed into His image.

‭‭2 CORINTHIANS‬ ‭3:18

“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.”

Paul is inviting every believer to a unique intimacy with the Lord. It is available to everyone with an unveiled face. How is the veil taken away? When you turn to the Lord and give your life to Him. Then the veil is taken away, and you are one with Jesus. With the veil gone, we can behold His glory, and the process of being transformed begins. You start to look less like your old self and more like Jesus. The change starts on the inside and moves its way out.