Rejoicing for People We Don't Like

I am studying the book of Jonah again, but this time God has me focused on a different principle. Rejoicing for my enemies. Jonah 4 is about God rebuking Jonah for not wanting Nineveh to be saved. If you’ve got a little time right now, grab your Bible (physical, electronic, memorized). Read Jonah 4.

It’s easy to empathize with Jonah because we don’t want our enemies to enjoy the goodness of God either. I am not judging you, but I am telling the truth about myself. The blessings of the Lord, His compassion, His mercy and His grace are all mine. The people who reject God, reject me, reject my beliefs, and reject the statutes of God are my enemies. Why should those people benefit from the benevolent character of MY God?

Well, friends, it just isn’t about what we think. Every human being on this planet is a child of the Most High God, whether they choose to acknowledge Him or not. God is sovereign over all of His creation, He makes the sun to shine on the good and the evil, and He sends the rain on the just and unjust (Matthew 5:45). Every time God spares the life of one of His enemies, He has given them another chance to get right with Him. We should rejoice in the opportunity He has provided for them.

He does not want anyone to perish, so why do we? Before you get all self-righteous on me, think about the people groups you believe are going straight to hell. Now, thank God that He spared you because you should be going straight to hell, too.

Freedom to Obey

Romans 8:2 (NASB) For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

For those of us who are in Christ Jesus, we no longer have to abide by (or try to abide by) the letter of the Old Testament law. This does not mean that we are free to sin, but that we are free from being condemned to death because of our sin. We can now go boldly before God’s throne, covered in the blood of Jesus Christ, and ask for forgiveness.

We also are not exempt from the consequences of our sins. Forgiven or not, if we murder someone, we have to go to prison. The principles of sowing and reaping carry from the Old Testament into the New Covenant. If you sow foolishness, that’s what you’ve got coming. Salvation is not some magic license to do whatever you want. For those who love God, obedience is a natural byproduct of that love.

I am so grateful for the freedom that Christ has purchased for me with His perfect sacrifice. I want to please Him with my every breath. Of course, I make mistakes (and some of those are more intentional than others), and I need the Holy Spirit’s help every moment. The beauty of salvation is that we are continually growing, developing, and becoming more like Jesus Christ every day, if we choose to.

O What Love!

John 3:16 (NASB) For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

Sometimes we just need a reminder of what God sacrificed to reconcile us to Himself. He gave EVERYTHING He had to redeem us from eternal death. He gave His son; the son gave his life. There is no greater love than this. At our very best, we deserve eternal damnation. Mercy pitied us, and grace overlooked our many faults.

All of our past, present, and future transgressions were whipped into Jesus’ flesh when He was beaten and crucified. When I think about it, I can’t help but ask why. Why would He give Himself up for people who hated Him? He knew that we (humans) were going to mock, reject, and kill Him, and yet He came anyway! There was no other way for us to be redeemed. Blood had to be shed, but animal blood only offered temporary pardon. There was only one way to have permanent remission of sins.

Jesus Christ had to die. His blood had to be shed. He was the perfect, blameless Lamb of God, and the only sacrifice acceptable to God forever. FOREVER. FOREVER. FOREVER. It’s done, finished, complete. It will never have to be done again. It was the perfect plan for the perfect sacrifice made by a perfect God for very imperfect people. I am amazed that He would think so highly of someone as messed up as me. I am beyond grateful for His unfailing love, aren’t you?

Love Each Other Together

1 John 4:20 (NASB) If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.

It seems so simple, yet we have a problem loving our brothers and sisters in Christ. Anyone who doesn’t agree with us or doesn’t do things the way we do is shunned, ridiculed, and ostracized. Denominational barriers have us confused on the true purpose of our lives. We are to be the salt of the earth, beacons of light in the darkness. Jesus Christ died for the whole world, and we need to be on a mission for the whole world.

The body of Christ (Christians) could be so much more effective if we weren’t fighting among ourselves over doctrine and traditions. I’m pretty sure that we agree that Jesus Christ gave us the commission to go into the entire world, teaching and baptizing. We need to step back from our traditions long enough to see the dying world and evangelize it. The plan of salvation is not as complicated as some of our faith groups would have people believe. Romans 10:9 says to confess and believe.

I am not advocating throwing in with religions that don’t believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God. I am advocating throwing away barriers that don’t have a basis in obedience to God. Men have created a bunch of rules that God has not, and then hold people to those standards that they have created. We have too much work to do to get hung up on human traditions. Let’s go into the entire world TOGETHER, and show them God’s love.

Jesus Paid It All

Jesus paid it all; all to him I owe.

Sin had left a crimson stain;

He washed it white as snow.

Jesus Christ finished it on the cross. There is nothing else that we can do to earn our salvation. There is no laundry list of requirements for Christ to receive you. You just have to believe in Him, and make Him Lord of your life. His sacrifice allows you the privilege to come before a Holy God. If not for the blood of Christ, we would be banished from the presence of God forever.

God loved us just that much. He gave up His only son to reconcile us to Himself. Who does that? And furthermore, what kind of ingrate refuses that kind of love? We owe Him everything. He chose the nails; He chose the cross. He chose US. Even though we disappoint Him over and over again, He keeps choosing us. He keeps redeeming us. He keeps interceding for us. He insists on making us clean before the Father.

We have nothing to offer Him in return except ourselves. We can surrender our lives in allegiance to Him, but we have no way to repay the debt we owe. In the contemporary version of “Jesus Paid It All,” there is a refrain that goes: “Oh, praise the One who paid my debt, and raised this life up from the dead.” We were deader than dead, and yet Jesus Christ raised us to life in Him. There are no words that we can use to describe our deliverance from the grave. We were stained, and He cleansed us completely. There isn’t even the slightest residue of the stain remaining. He washed it white as snow. 

Trust in His Word!

Isaiah 55:11 (NASB)

So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;
It will not return to Me empty,
Without accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

If God said it, then it has to happen. Whatever God has spoken over me is never a maybe, but always a SHALL. How often do we forfeit the peace that should be ours by not trusting that what God says is true? There are so many promises in the Word of God for us to hold on to. There is something in the Bible for every situation and for every circumstance. God Himself has declared that His Word will accomplish what He sent it to do. God cannot lie; we can rely on His Word.

What God knows about me is more certain than what anyone else thinks about me. What God has spoken concerning me is as sure as the sun rising in the east. Even if I don’t see it today, I can trust that it’s on the way. I am confident that God will complete the work He has begun in me. I may not have the time, skill, or resources to do it on my own, but that’s just how the Father works. If you could do it on your own, you might not want to give Him the glory for it.

Heaven and earth will pass away, but God’s Word is eternal. Speaking to your mountain in faith will move it. Imagine how much more you can do if you speak to your mountain in faith with God’s own words! Consider how much more powerful your prayers can be if you pray God’s words back to Him. He told us that they can’t return to Him empty. We can also honor God with our obedience to His Word. If He can but speak creation into existence, surely His Word is enough to sustain us throughout this life.

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. ~Psalm 119:105

Be Better and Do Better

Luke 12:2-3 (NASB) But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed upon the housetops.

Don’t worry; God sees it all. Be very careful that who you are in public is who you are in private. When the cloak of darkness starts to lift, you don’t want to be caught with your proverbial pants down. Hypocrisy is distasteful and will hinder your witness for the Lord.

Over the years I have seen “popular” people come and go. Scandals have dethroned many figures in authority. Dark deeds coming to light have ousted people from coveted leadership roles. The principle of reaping what you have sown is tried and it’s true. In the book of Esther, Haman has gallows constructed that he ends up hanging from. Plotting and scheming against people in closed and private meetings will not protect you. God is omnipresent, and some of the very people you are plotting with already have plans to get rid of you.

You can also rest assured that all the garbage being said about you in the shadows will be revealed, right along with the deceitful acts against you. Psalm 37 tells us not to worry about wicked people for they will be cut off and wither. We can’t focus on what other people are doing to us, or what we can do in retaliation. We have to live according to what we know is right according to God’s Word. Do all you can to clean up whatever needs cleaning, so that you can proclaim that you aren’t what or who you USED to be. Let your dirt be in the past, not in your present. With the aid of the Holy Spirit, you can be better and do better.