True Love

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person--though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die--but God shows His love for us in that WHILE WE WERE STILL SINNERS, Christ died for us.-Romans 5:6-8

Here's the real issue. When we came to Christ, all of us had something in common. We were royally, incredibly, undeniably, unequivocally SCREWED UP! We had no shot at thriving in this life without Him. And if you're reading this, and you don't know Jesus, then listen to me. YOU HAVE NO SHOT AT THIS LIFE WITHOUT CHRIST! Oh sure. You might do well for a while. You might be successful. You might make gobs and gobs of money. You might be well liked...but you'll never be satisfied. There will always be something missing. There will always be this part of you that knows that there is something else. There's something more. There's something...missing. You may not know it now. In fact, you may think I'm an idiot, and truly believe that I have no idea what I'm talking about. That's fine. I used to think that way about people like me. I used to think that people who really sold out to Jesus were coocoo for coco puffs! I used to think they'd gone off the deep end. I used to think they were a bunch of bible thumping nut jobs, who had nothing better to do that waste their time on this "deity" named Jesus. I grew up in a home that was influenced very much by the church. My father was a pastor. I was forced to go to church as a child. As Lecrae would say, I was a drug baby. My parents drug me to church. I hated going to church from the age of about 10-15. I didn't get it. I didn't understand what it was all about. As much as my parents tried to explain who Christ was, I didn't really care until I had a real encounter with Him.

So look, yes. I grew up in the church. I grew up in a Christian household. I "knew" who Jesus was. But I did not care about Him. I didn't give a rip about who He was, or what He did, or how it applied to my life. Because it was MY life after all, right? Right?!? It's MY life, and I can do whatever I want to with it. That's what my mindset was up until about age 16 or 17. Jesus is cool and all. And I know the bible is good, or whatever...but does it really apply to me? Does it really mean anything to me?

Well, I found out in a real way, that Jesus was and is more than cool. I found out the bible is way more than good. And it does apply, and it does mean a lot...to me. Personally. Individually. As myself. Not as a guy who is a part of a greater whole. (The church.) But an individual dude, who had no clue what he was doing in life, and had no idea what I wanted out of this world. Jesus wasn't on the cross sacrificing Himself to save ONLY me, but He was on the cross sacrificing Himself with me on His mind. And you on His mind. And your mom. And your dad. And your uncle. And everyone else. Everyone. No really. Everyone. Even the people that we deem the lowest of the low in society. Guys like Jerry Sandusky. Guys like Timothy McVey. Guys like Osama Bin Laden. Everyone. All of us. Ever.

And it was a once for all sacrifice. Once. For. All. What exactly does that mean? Once for all? Simply put...Jesus died ONE TIME. For ALL SIN. From the beginning of time (Adam and Eve in the garden), all the way until the very last person will be born.  This includes, but is not limited to, the fall in the garden, the lie you told your parents when you said you were going out with your friends to the mall, but really ended up going to your boyfriend/girlfriends house, that time you looked at porn on your smart phone, your mom's affair, your dad's alcoholism, the abortion rate in America and across the globe, and any other vile, disgusting things you can think of. Jesus died, because of, and to do away with, all of it.

One of my favorite verses in the bible is in Hebrews 8. The writer is actually quoting Jeremiah 31:34, but here is what Hebrews 8:12 says. "For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more." When we read that, we think, "OH! That means that God forgets things!" WRONG! Sorry. I'm really excited right now. As my friend Justin would say, "Watch this." The Hebrew word referenced that says "remember" isn't speaking about forgetting or bringing to remembrance. It's like this, say I have an accident where my finger gets severed off. If we pack it on ice, and can get to the surgeon quick enough, my finger can be reattached. It can be...re-membered, to my body. So what God is saying in this verse is not that He forgets our sins. What He is saying, is that He chooses not to associate OUR SINS with WHO WE ARE! When we come into a relationship with the Father through the Son, He only cares about Jesus' sacrifice. So basically...our sins don't count. He doesn't attach the sin to our character any more. Here's another way to look at it. In the old testament, when you would bring a sacrifice in to the priest to cover your sins for another year, the priest didn't ever look at you. The priest wasn't worried with what you looked like. He didn't care whether you were 6'6" with ripped arms and washboard abs. He didn't care if you were 5'3" and weighed 245 pounds and were slightly balding. He didn't care if you could have been a swimsuit model. The only thing that the priest looked at was your sacrifice.He inspected the quality of your sacrifice. If your sacrifice was deemed worthy, then so were you. For a year. Then you had to come back again. Next year. And the next. And the next. And the next. And the...well you get the picture. Listen. When you come to God and you present the sacrifice of Christ, and His blood as your offering...you are deemed worthy. Not for a day. Not for a week. Not for a month, a year, a decade, or whatever. For eternity.

So here's where it gets kind of awkward for me. We as Christians sometimes forget the fact that we used to be screwed up. Some of us, quite frequently, forget that Jesus had to save us out of some pretty messed up stuff. And then we get to the point where we think that we are better than sinners. Sometimes I forget that I still screw up. And then God let's me in on something. If it weren't for Him, I would have never realized that I needed a savior. I would have never realized that I needed saving even. Some people don't know Him yet. Some people don't love Him yet. But He loves them. Exactly as they are. He loves them. Where they are at. He loves deeply, every single person on this earth. How can He do that? Well...because He knows them as who they could be, not as who they are. The scriptures actually speak of heaven rejoicing more over one lost person coming to Christ than they do for the 99 who are already a part of the fold.

Christ's love was manifest in a great way on the cross. The passage at the beginning of this blog speaks and attests to that. Seldom will someone die for a righteous person. Very rarely will you find someone who will die for someone who is actually deemed "good" in the minds of men. His love was shown to us in this...that WHILE WE WERE YET SINNERS, Christ died on the cross for us. While I was still in my dirt, He died for me. In fact, BECAUSE I was in my dirt, He died. It was MY sinfulness, and MY pride of life, and MY selfishness that nailed my savior to the cross. He HAD TO die so that I could truly live. He could not redeem humanity any other way. We are in our nature sinful. We don't have to be taught to sin. It comes natural to us. Jesus broke the mold. He lived a blameless life. He lived a sinless life. He lived a perfect life. And He was nailed to a cross because of MY transgressions. Some of you may be thinking, "Well He died for my stuff too." And you are correct. But until you really get to the point where you understand that it was for you, all of it, then it won't take root. It wasn't until I really understood that it was MY stuff that got my Jesus murdered, that I truly realized what grace meant. Unmerited favor. Undeserved love. I don't want justice. If I were given justice then I would be destined to hell. Mercy is not getting what I do deserve. Mercy is good. But, it isn't grace. Grace gives me what I don't deserve. Grace gives me His love. Unbridled. Uncontained. Unconditioned. You know what God's love is like? Imagine loving someone so much, that it hurt. And realizing that even if they NEVER showed you the same love, you will still love them. You wouldn't stop loving them because they stopped loving you. That's God's love for you. And it was poured out for us, on the cross, while we were yet sinners. While we had no shot. Jesus gave everything He had, so that we could be something new. A new creation. A spiritual creation. Living His life, and loving our lives.

So if you don't know Him. If you feel like you've gone too far, realize this. Every one of us who claim Christ as our savior has been in a place where we thought we were too far gone. But, His love was showed in the fact that while we were still in that place, He died and laid down His life for us. It's never too late, and it's never too early to turn to Christ. He died. He rose. He lives. And He loves you, right where you're at. But He doesn't want to leave you there. He wants you to come along for the ride of your life. He will take you as you are, but He will completely transform you into something new. His love is enough. His life is enough. Will you take His invitation? The choice is yours, and yours alone.

Don't Worry Be Happy!

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.-Philippians 4:6-7

I'm writing this blog during one of the most trying seasons I've ever gone through. I won't go into exact details of what's been happening, but it has been very frustrating, disappointing, and heavy. Circumstances are in place in my life right now, that I can't see past, and the devil has been doing his best to use them against me, and I have been doing my best to just allow him to do what he wants. 

Last week I was just reading through scriptures, just really trying to see what God was up to, why everything seemed like it was going haywire, and God took me to Philippians chapter 4. Particularly verses 6 and 7. Have you ever been anxious about something? There have been some circumstances in my life when I have really been anxious about something. Right now is one of them. Jesus tells us, "Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."-Matthew 6:34

When we worry about things, it usually is because of future ramifications of some sort. Even when we worry about what we did yesterday, or what happened yesterday, it's usually in relation to what tomorrow will bring from that decision. So our problem usually is the fact that things that are coming in the future are scary. Such is the case with me right now. There are things that I don't understand about the future. There are things that are going on in my life right now, that are giving me opportunity to fear the future. But Jesus tells us that God already knows what we need. So why worry? 

I believe that one of satan's greatest tactics is to get us to worry. Worry about finances. Worry about the future. Worry about relationships. Worry about jobs. Worry, worry, worry. And the word of God is telling us, "Be anxious for nothing." Don't sweat it! He knows the thoughts that He thinks towards you. And He knows the plans He has for you. To prosper you, and give you a hope, and a future! This is why we don't have to worry. We can trust the fact that God is a good father and that He has our backs. While it may not look like it right now, I'm sure that in a few months I will look back on the situations and circumstances that are happening in my life and say, "Wow. That's what I was so worried about?"

Now let's look at some more of this verse. "...but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." So, Paul gives us an idea of what kind of prayers will produce peace in our lives. The next verse talks about the peace of God that surpasses all understanding coming and guarding our hearts and minds in Christ. When we go to the Lord with our prayers, the best way to catch the heart of the father is to come in with a thankful heart. Now I do not believe that Paul was telling the church in Philippi that they needed to thank God FOR all things, rather to thank God IN all things. Most of you are aware that my father was diagnosed with cancer last November. Now, why would I go to God and say, "Thank you so much for giving my father cancer! You're such a swell guy!" That would be ludicrous! However, I did go to God many times and thank Him for being the healer, and for being with my family through all of it. I never had a doubt in my mind that God was going to take care of dad, and He did. Dad is now cancer free and has finished all of his treatments! Praise God! 

Sometimes bad stuff happens. In fact, Jesus promises it. "I have said these things to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."-John 16:33 We WILL have tribulation. James tells us to count it all joy when we encounter trials of various kinds, because the testing of our faith produces patience. And that will in effect produce wholeness in our lives. We know these things, yet we get upset when they happen. Jesus tells us that we will have tribulation, and when it shows up we act like we've never heard this before. We seem to think that everyone else can deal with trials and struggles, but we should be immune to it because Jesus doesn't want us in anything unpleasant. Sometimes we have to face unpleasant circumstances so we can learn something from them. And if we don't learn anything, it can just start the cycle right over again. I firmly believe that God wants us to have a thankful heart as we encounter all things. Be they good, or be they bad, God wants us to learn how to thank Him IN all things. 

In the middle of Philippians 4, Paul tells the church that he had learned in whatever situation he found himself in to be content. He knew what it was like to struggle. To be brought low, to be brought high. Facing plenty, hunger, abundance and need. Then he says something that we quote all the time, but use out of context. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." This verse is speaking directly to being able to stay content in whatever situation we find ourselves in. The way that we do that is to stay thankful. 

"Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." Philippians 4:8

When we stay thankful and pray prayers of thanksgiving to our God, then He can bring His peace in to cover us. And once we get to thank, then we can start to allow Him to renew our mind as Romans 12 talks about. As we think on these good things, it will remind us to thank Him, then it is a reciprocal thing. Thank Him for who He is, and what He's doing, and as you do that then you can start thinking on the goodness of God and His praiseworthiness, and when you hit that point then you are thankful again. And pretty soon. you will find yourself at peace with life, and content with whatever circumstance you are in. 

I'm just learning this principle. I was so caught up in my circumstances and my trials and tribulations, that I lost sight of who God really is. And in doing so, I lost sight of who I really am. I am a son of the most high. I am a child of the King of kings. He owns everything, and He is a generous father. No matter what you're going through today, take time out to thank Him for who He is. Take time to allow Him to transform your mind. Allow Him to turn you into a thankful person. He loves you more than you could ever know, and He desperately wants you to know of His love! I pray that this has blessed you as much as it has me by writing it. I love you all. Have a great week. And remember, stay thankful.