Influences

Each month, our church family is memorizing scripture together.  

These are the memory verses for April...

"How blessed is the man 

who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked.

Nor stand in the path of sinners,

Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!

But his delight is in the law of the LORD,

And in His law he meditates day and night."

Psalm 1:1-2

From this psalm we learn that it is important to God who and what we let influence us, what we take joy in, and what we think about.  The Lord is telling us that He wants us to spend time in His Word - to let His Word be a source of delight.  When we let the Word influence us, it produces blessing and joy.  The Word is where we are to go to receive counsel, not from those whose lives are characterized by unrighteousness - who even scoff at the Word and what God loves.  Delight for the Word grows as we spend time in it - reading it and thinking about it.  There we find and meet with Jesus, who loves what is right and pure.  Thinking about Jesus, His character, His love, His plan, His promises - produces great joy.  When our lives and thoughts are continually oriented around the Word, we will be greatly blessed, we will be joy-filled, we will be wisdom-filled.  Don't you want to be around someone like that?

Truths From Romans 9

• God holds all of our story, because it's His story…
• We can totally believe and submit to predestination and the doctrine of election…
• The context of the first eight chapters show us this is about our salvation, and not just Israel...
• Paul had agonizing grief over Israel because of their unbelief - who had all the blessings and privileges of being Israelites…
• The glory of Almighty God lived in the midst of Israel...God's presence dwelt among them.  Sadly, God's glory departed from them for their lack of faith...they watched God's glory depart…
• They were given the Law, the heart of God, to live changed lives and be a light to the world…
• They had the privilege of tending God's dwelling place…
• Jesus chose to come down and be Israeli…
• Paul didn't feel anger, his heart ached and had compassion for Israel…
• Israel's faith failed, but God's Word didn't fail because of this…
• Israel was chosen as a vessel.  Individuals are chosen for salvation.
• Being a Hebrew does not make you a child of the promise…
• A specific child was chosen before the foundation of the world to fulfill God's promise…
• By law and culture it was the oldest child...God is countercultural…
• Esau had no interest in the spiritual caring of his family, which was the first child's position…
• The child of the promise was a deceiver and liar…
• We are guilty sometimes of manipulating God's will by our sin, to help God out…
• God's love is selective. He cherished Israel protecting her time and time again. God hated Edom. He had no relationship with Edom. He wiped them out.  God has stayed faithful to Israel. He continues in relationship with Israel, loving them, blessing them, even with their unbelief, because He chose them. Because He loves them, He protected Israel.  He didn't protect Egypt - He sent the plagues and drowned the Egyptian army in the Red Sea.
• Mercy is not required of God. What is required of God is justice for our sin. God is free to show mercy, but not required to…
• All of us start in a hostile disposition against God.  We must take ownership of our sin. God is merciful to His chosen.  God's mercy is to drag us to Himself.
• God is the potter.  We are all clay in His hands.  The clay is a bad lump. As the potter, God has the right to take some of it and make something beautiful out of it (His love, mercy, grace) and leave the rest to be destroyed (His wrath).
• A complete picture of God includes His wrath as well as His love. Sin reveals the power of God. Sin is a backdrop for the glory of God in the form of His powerful wrath.
• Sin also reveals the patience of God. He is withholding His wrath as people blaspheme His name throughout the earth, while He is bringing His elect to salvation.
• In His choosing, God's character is revealed.
• Romans 9 is hard to understand. We have to study this. Studying the hard things enlarges our view of God.
• As we struggle with understanding, it's ok to ask the Lord to not look at our struggling as rebellion...

An Illustration - 

• There were one hundred murderers...all deserved death, but three were pardoned. We get angry thinking that they too should have gotten the death penalty. The truth drawn is that believers are the three when we should be in the ninety-seven. We should have gotten death. We deserved it. We twist things when we are angry at God and think its unfair that some are not shown mercy. Fairness is that we all should die. The correct perspective is that we all deserved death. Human judges don't have the right to pardon.  Only God has the right to pardon, but He doesn't give a free ticket. He still brings justice, and He puts it on His Son.  God showed mercy, and, paid the price.
• We all naturally run away from God. God reserves the right to mercifully drag some of us to Him. Spend your life not being angry at God, but being filled with gratitude!

Proverbs 3:3,4

"Do not let kindness and truth leave you;

Bind them around your neck,

Write them on the tablet of your heart.

So you will find favor and good repute

In the sight of God and man."

The virtues of mercy and truth 

that come from God are to become

part of us-outwardly in our behavior

for all to see as an adornment

of spiritual beauty,

and inwardly as the subject of our meditation.

Such inward and outward mercy and truth

is evidence of New Covenant salvation.

John MacArthur

What Saturates Your Mind?

"These things I have spoken to you,

so that in Me you may have peace.

In the world you have tribulation,

but take courage;

I have overcome the world."

John 16:33  

The news is full of bad news, but I love God's Word - it reveals to us what is reality.  It reveals to us why things are the way they are - why bad things happen, and what is going to happen to evil someday.  It tells us the past, explains the present, and reveals the future.  It’s the voice of Jesus, revealing to us His plan and His character, and both are good and wonderful.   

Because of who God is and His revealed plan, we have nothing fearful that should control our hearts and minds. When we are faced with that which looks dangerous and powerful and threatening, that which could harm us or take our life, it is human to experience an initial fear rising up in our hearts.  And because we live in a sin-encrusted world, we do experience unexpected harm, and we know others and have loved ones who have experienced harm.   

But, we know from God's Word that He is bigger and stronger and greater than all our fears and what can and does harm us.  We know from God’s Word that He causes all things to conform us into the likeness of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:28) and all things include that which brings fear and harm.   

Once we experience this initial human reaction of fear, which is not sinful, we are called to set our minds on the sovereignty and character and plan and promises of God.  We know what rules our hearts by what fills and saturates our minds. Fear is never to rule our hearts.  We know that much worse is coming for believers all over the world before Jesus returns, gathers us into His protecting, loving care, puts an end to evil during His day of wrath, and begins His physical rule and reign here on earth (Mt. 24), but when we have the Word of Christ saturating our minds, the wonderful voice of Jesus which tells us God's character and goodness and promises and plans, it leaves fear no room to live and dwell there.  

“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive 

power 

and riches 

and wisdom 

and might 

and honor 

and glory 

and blessing.”

And every created thing which is in heaven 

and on the earth 

and under the earth 

and on the sea, 

and all things in them, 

I heard saying,

“To Him who sits on the throne, 

and to the Lamb, 

be blessing and honor and glory and dominion 

forever and ever.”

Revelation 5:12,13

*In context...these words of worship will be said when Jesus opens the title deed to the earth...

What Child is This?

Coram Deo Church

Jesus, Our King

Sermon Notes - 12.7.2014

Luke 1:26-38

• Christmas - the special time of year we celebrate the Incarnation...God with us, to save His people from their sins

"He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; 

and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 

and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, 

and His kingdom will have no end."

Luke 1:32,33

"There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,

On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From then on and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this."  

Isaiah 9:7

• As King, Jesus has all authority, power, and rule
• A Baby King, threatens a king - Herod
• The cross is the point of the manger
• Jesus was pursuing the cross from the moment He took His first breath
• The right, just, fair penalty for sin is death
• It doesn't matter if we don't feel like a sinner, we are one

"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, 

but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

Mark 10:45

• Jesus served us, by being a ransom for us - Jesus in our place
• Jesus can rule forever, because He is forever

"She will bear a Son; 

and you shall call His name Jesus, 

for He will save His people from their sins.”

Matthew 1:21

• "Jesus" means - God is salvation
• If Jesus is the King, we are His servants.  If King Jesus loves us enough to die for us, His plans are good for us.  He can be trusted, in all our circumstances

A Bridal Shower Devotional for Melanie

Hi, Mel, wish I could be there but I was very honored when Aunt Karin offered me the privilege of writing a devotional for your shower and grateful for Auntie Annie being willing to be my mouthpiece.  Greetings also, to all who are there with you.

When I was in Mammoth this summer with the family, it was so much fun to receive your call that Ryan had proposed.  Marriage is God’s gift to us of a life-long, best friend.  We all erupted into cheers of joy, because we love you and Ryan and are so excited for you to be entering into this union with such a great guy. 

I’m going to pass along some wisdom nuggets which I have been so blessed to receive, four things that you can put into practice, Melanie, for the years that God gives you together, that bring honor to Jesus Christ, from which flows a life of blessing and joy.

1)   Be Ryan’s biggest FAN. 

In other words, be Ryan’s greatest cheerleader.   Let him know often how much you love him and appreciate him and the things he does for you.  This sets a protection on your marriage and will guard against a husband going elsewhere for affirmation.  God has created husbands in such a way that they thrive on significance, and wives, thrive on security.  If you are affirming Ryan often, he will only come to you for it, and he will desire only to love and serve you, and be your protector.  You will then experience that security which God has set into your heart.

2)   FOLLOW Ryan.

Marriages work the best when one leads, and the other follows.  God has designed marriage so that the husbands are to lead.  When you are following and supporting Ryan, his significance will go through the roof.  The Lord has given us wives wisdom for helping our husbands.  If we see them headed down a path we know is not good, we can and should lovingly speak into it.  But in the end, let Ryan lead you.  This will call for trusting the Lord.  Ryan will not lead perfectly and you will not follow perfectly, because we are not perfect.  We are broken.  Mistakes will be made, but let following Ryan and coming under his leadership be what characterizes your marriage.  Following God’s design always produces blessing in our lives.

3)   Live with a spirit of FORGIVENESS

I want you to picture a field of beautiful flowers.  You are in it, running towards Ryan, and he is running towards you. There’s a gentle breeze.  The aroma from the flowers is sweet.  You almost reach Ryan’s outstretched arms but right before it happens…you both land in a huge...cowpie, and now that cowpie is everywhere.  Yeah, it’s pretty gross, and very messy.  This is the reality of life, isn’t it?  Because we live in a broken world, because we are broken image bearers of the One who made us, sin happens.  We fall short of God’s perfect righteousness, which leaves our love broken and faulty, and we land in cowpies.  We sin and hurt people and others sin and hurt us. We don’t love each other perfectly.  I have a great definition of love for you.  It’s easy to remember – it’s just three words.  You before me.  Love is putting the other person first.  It’s sacrificing what we need and want, for the good and need of the other.  It’s how Jesus loved us, to redeem us, and repair our brokenness.  We are to love this way, too, but, we become selfish and want our way first.  You are going to say things and do things that hurt Ryan, and Ryan is going to do and say things that bring you pain.  When this happens, be quick to forgive.  Quick readiness to forgive comes from that wonderful knowledge and experience that we have been forgiven by Jesus Christ.   

Forgiveness has three parts, or is a three-part contract:

1.     I will not hold the sin against the offender. 

Conditional love only sends a marriage down a rocky path.

2.     I will not talk to others about it.

Our propensity is to go to others and vent.  Instead of covering the sin against us with the blanket of love and forgiveness, we commit the sin of gossip, and sometimes slander.  We know we have forgiven if we absorb the hurt and don’t go to someone else with it.

3.     I will not bring up the offense to myself again.

True forgiveness doesn’t rehash the sin and hurt.  We don’t marinade in the pain.  All this does is plant a seed of bitterness.  We put it off.  It’s gone.  When we feel it coming back, we tell ourselves, “Nope.  Not going there.”

This is the way God forgives.  This is our model for forgiveness.  You will need to forgive the same hurt, more than once and you will need forgiveness, over and over again.  Ultimately, all our sin is against God.  Our debt is to Him for it.  But the good news is that God’s inexhaustible bank of grace and forgiveness is freely given to us, because Jesus stepped into our place and paid the price for our sin, so we could experience God’s forgiveness and so that we might offer it generously and liberally to others as it's so generously and liberally offered and given to us.  There are no enduring relationships without forgiveness.  Your relationship with Ryan will thrive, if you live with a spirit of forgiveness. 

4)   FINISH Ryan.

Uncle Tim and I hadn’t been married for very long.   At the time, Aunt Sheryl lived close to us.  Her in-laws had come for a visit and we had everyone over for dinner.  Uncle Tim and Uncle Skip’s dad were so kind and did the dishes afterwards so the rest of us could sit and visit.  A little while later I went into the kitchen and saw that the stove was still messy.  I had made spaghetti or something like messy that.  Instead of thanking Uncle Tim for doing the dishes and then quietly cleaning up the mess on the stove, I let Uncle Tim know he’d missed that part of the clean-up –  it was truly a genuine significance killing moment.  But Uncle Tim is a gem of a husband, and he’s always been quick to forgive my failures and hurts against him.  Ryan is going to leave some things undone, unfinished.  You as a wife can love him and help him by quietly finishing him.  If he leaves his dirty clothes on the bathroom floor, smile and thank the Lord that you have him.  Quietly pick them up and put them in the hamper for him.  We take away our husband’s significance when we voice our criticism to them over something so small and petty.   Guard and protect your marriage too, by not criticizing Ryan’s faults to others.   Work out the big things with Ryan.  Quietly, absorb his little idiosyncrasies with gratitude, rejoicing that you have been given such a great, life-long, best friend, by God. 

Fan Ryan.

Follow Ryan.

Forgive Ryan.

Finish Ryan.

Live your life in such a way that no other human relationship compares in importance to the one you will have with Ryan.

Love you, Mel.  May the Lord bless you and Ryan with many, many wonderful years together.