Do you remember in school when you were taking Algebra or another subject that you thought was pointless? Do you remember what you would say to the teacher, or at least to yourself? We would always say, “why am I learning this, I will never need it.” Of course, as we go through life, we find out that we needed that information a lot more than we ever thought we would. At times, it made me wish I would have listened to my teachers a little more. Paul in Romans 15 encourages the Romans to learn from the examples of the Old Testament saints and from him. He wanted them to learn from them for a specific reason. Romans 15:4 says, “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.”

There are many reasons that God made sure to have people record His Word, and through His power He has preserved it even to our generation. One of those reasons is so that we could learn from the examples of the people in the Bible, whether they were good examples or bad examples. One thing that I think is really important for us to understand is that everything in the Bible is important. God didn’t just put frivolous details in there. Every story reveals something about Him. We can learn from every story, because we are just like those who lived those stories. We are prone to fear, pride, forgetfulness, idolatry, love, faithfulness, and we all need God’s grace, mercy, and forgiveness. Above all, we need to be redeemed by God. Paul was telling the Romans to learn from what they read in what we call the Old Testament. By doing so, they could learn how to live through adversity, but also see how to live in the hope that comes from God. Reading the Scriptures can encourage us to keep going when the road gets tough. I see a few lessons for us in this text.

1. Read the Bible. If you want to know God, you have to read the Bible. Only the Bible reveals the person, character, will, and work of God. Be intentional about reading the Bible each day. It’s not about how much you read, it is about the fact that you do read it, and you ask God to speak to you through it and to grow your faith. I recommend smaller portions of Scripture, because it is easier to meditate on them, and apply them in smaller portions instead of trying to read three to four chapters a day.
2. Write down your story. One thing that I think that has been lost in our present technological generation is the art of journaling. You don’t have to do it with pen and paper, but you really should write down what you read, and what God is saying to you. How is He calling you to respond to Him? One feature that I like on Facebook is the memories feature. From time to time a memory from years gone by will pop up. When I see the picture or read what was written, it reminds me of what God was doing in my life at that time. We all like to believe that we won’t forget, but we forget. I am so thankful for Replicate Ministries and their Replicate journal. It truly is a great way for me to write down what God is saying, and how I am feeling led to respond. Then, I can go back and see if I am obeying what God is speaking to me about or if I need to confess of my sin of disobedience.
3. Share your story. If you have been saved, you have a story. People need to hear it! If God has brought you through a particularly difficult time, people need to hear that as well. They need to hear about God’s faithfulness, especially when we felt weak and maybe a little hopeless. I’m always amazed at who God puts in my path to talk with. It is generally people who are going through something that God has already brought me through. When I am willing to share what god has done, it allows Him to use me to point others to Him. A great benefit of journaling through your reading is that your journals are something you can pass down to your kids or other people. Then, they will be able to read what God was doing in your life, and you might be surprised at how God uses that to draw their hearts to Him or help them through whatever they are experiencing. Just remember, what you are going through right now isn’t just for you, it is for someone else as well. You may not be able to share it right now, but one day God will give you that opportunity, and it just might change someone’s life.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Some call it coincidence, some call it luck; I call it the sovereign hand of God! For five days a week for the last 10+ months, we have been blogging through the Bible. Now as the calendar reads the first week of November, and we are still trying to get through this election season, we just so happen to be studying through the book of Romans. Not just any part of Romans mind you, but specifically the part where Paul talks about a Christians responsibilities as it pertains to their government. I couldn’t plan this if I tried, but God sure did. Therefore, I think it is important that we read through this and understand Paul’s instructions to us. Before we get to the verse, I want to give a little background. Remember, Paul wrote out Christian doctrine in Romans 1-11. Then, in Romans 12, he started writing out how we live it out practically. He told the Romans and us in Romans 12 that we are to “not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” What does that look like practically? It means that we love those whom God loves. It means that we call sin what it is. It means we live a life of repentance, that is running from sin and running towards God. That was all in Romans 12. Now, as we turn the page, Paul starts to write about Christians and their government. It is worth reminding ourselves that the early church did not live in a democratic republic like the United States of America has. They did not hold elections every few years. The Romans citizens didn’t get to participate in the governing process. The church had no concept of religious freedom. Truthfully, Christians were looked down on. They were persecuted, and many of them were martyred. While we as Christians talk about how our government is becoming openly hostile towards us, that was the norm for the early church. I imagine they would have enjoyed the freedoms that we enjoy right now, and they would probably laugh at all of our complaining in light of what they experienced. Yet, in spite of all of this, the New Testament is crystal clear that Christians are to obey the government. Why? Paul answers that question in Romans 13:1, “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.”

Christians are to submit to and obey the government, because it has been ordained by God. Therefore, in this sense, yes, God did ordain Donald Trump to be the 45th President of the United States of America. Just as God ordained the previous 44 Presidents. Is it time for a 46th President or will we hold at 45 for four more years? I honestly have no idea, but God does, and that is the point. God is the One who is in control over all human events. Paul goes on in Romans 13 to say that if you resist the government, you are resisting God. He also says that God has given the government the right to execute justice over those they govern. The two principles that should guide our voting are seeking to good for all people, and candidates who will establish and uphold justice. Paul also says in Romans 13 that if you obey the government, you don’t have to fear the government. Again, remember, Paul is not writing from a place of religious freedom. He knew the corruption of human government. He would ultimately lose his life due to corrupt politicians. We don’t have to fear as long as we obey, because God sees our obedience, and God has a plan for our life. It is ultimately God that we should be seeking to please, because we will all stand before Him one day. On that day, we will give an account for our life, and God will judge rightfully. One day, justice will be served for all.

Therefore, don’t lose sight of eternity by focusing on this election. Whatever God has ordained will be what happens. No matter what happens, it will be for God’s glory and His children’s good, even if that means persecution on the church. Regardless of the outcome of the election, we as Christians know who is in control, and how this ultimately ends. While we await Jesus’ return, we still must love God, love others, and make disciples of all nations. We can do those things regardless of who is in the White House, so let’s get busy doing them while we wait.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

When a pastor starts talking about theology, a lot of Christians yawn. Others want to argue that theology isn’t important, what we need to do is just love Jesus they say. While I understand not everyone is a theology nerd like me, I think we need to understand the importance of theology. You wouldn’t want to be hired for a job, and told to get it done but never be trained on how to get it done. Can you imagine how frustrated you would be if you asked how you are supposed to do it, and someone said, oh don’t worry about the process, we just care about results? I will admit, sometimes the teacher of theology can be boring. For what it is worth, I believe it is sinful to teach the Word of God and its many glorious truths in a boring way. The apostle Paul has spent the first 11 chapters of Romans writing out his theology for the Roman Christians. Paul wrote it out, because he wanted to come to Rome, be received by them, and get support from them so that he could travel on to Spain. We see this throughout the book, but especially in the end of Romans. I like to think of Romans as Paul writing a missionary support letter. But that is another topic for another post. What happens in Romans 12 is Paul flips from theology to practical application of that theology. As one of my professors put it one time, “orthodoxy always precedes orthopraxy.” Right beliefs flow into right living. Paul opens up Romans 12 by telling us not to be conformed to the world. Then, Paul starts to write what that looks like. He begins in Romans 12:9 by writing, “Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.”

Paul says that not being conformed to the world has three specific actions. He begins by calling the Romans to love without hypocrisy. Jesus would say it this way, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Mt. 22:39). James would say that we are to not show favoritism (James 2:1-4). However, it is put, the command is the same, we are to love God and love others. Regardless of whether they love us back, we are to love them. We are to desire good for them, and we are to do good to them. It is important that we remember that “we wrestle not against flesh and blood” (Eph. 6:12). We will not see eye to eye on every issue with every person. However, we must remember that we dislike their position, not the person. I believe that is timely advice given we are just coming through another bitter and divisive election season. I don’t have to like a candidate’s political position, but I am commanded to love that person, because God loves them. As I was teaching this past Sunday, the Holy Spirit placed a thought in my head that I got to share. Every sin and every struggle reveals a love problem. If I am giving into temptation, then I am loving my sin more than I love the Savior. If I fuss and fight with people, I love to be right more than I love them as a person. Every martial, familial, job, etc. problem comes down to a love problem. Therefore, the answer is, we need to learn to love God more, because the more I love God, the more I will love those He loves.

The second and third commands here go together. I am to “abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.” The word “abhor” is a very strong word. It means to have a horror for or to detest strongly. Think of something that you absolutely hate or despise. We are to feel about evil even more strongly than that. Here in lies the problem, we keep sin around like a pet. We give it “cute” little nicknames to downplay its seriousness. The result is our conscience becomes numb to sins effects, and soon we don’t even feel the pull of conviction by the Holy Spirit. This is why we must regularly expose our hearts and lives to the Word of God. The Bible always accurately diagnoses our condition, but it also points us to the remedy, who is Jesus. The third command here is to “cling to what is good.” Be bonded to, desire it, and love it. This is what Paul is getting at for us. In a very real way, Paul is talking about repentance. Repentance is when we turn from our sin (evil), and turn to Jesus in faith (good). This isn’t a one-time thing, it is an every day decision we must make.

To love without hypocrisy is to be consistent in your life. Does your walk match your talk? Are you living a life of repentance? Are you running from Jesus or to Jesus? As Jesus said in Matthew 7, “by their fruits you shall know them.” Are you producing good fruit or bad fruit?

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Two things that are essential if you are going to be married, a parent, a good boss, or a good employee are grace and patience. I won’t speak for anyone else, but sometimes I seem to lack both of those. Those are just two reminders of how much I need God’s grace every single day. Praise God that He never runs low on grace or patience. This doesn’t mean that we can take them for granted, because one day they will no longer be available because God’s grace will have stopped and His judgment will have come. The Bible is full of evidences of this. We can see it in Genesis, when God put up with man’s sin for a while, but then He sent the flood. We also see it in the nation of Israel as they continued to rebel and reject God, until He sent them into captivity. Of course the greatest evidence of God putting a limit on grace and patience is the cross. At the cross, God poured out His wrath against sin. Yet, even in God’s judgment we can see mercy. He poured His wrath out on Jesus, instead of us, the ones who truly deserve His wrath. In Romans 10, Paul is going to demonstrate both God’s grace and His patience. Romans 10:20-21 says, “But Isaiah is very bold and says: ‘I was found by those who did not seek Me; I was made manifest to those who did not ask for Me.” But to Israel He says, ‘All day long I have stretched out My hands to a disobedient and contrary people.'”

We see God’s grace in sending the Gospel not just to the Jews, but also to the Gentiles. That is what is meant by God being found by those who did not seek Him. The Gentiles didn’t have the Law, they didn’t know they were supposed to seek God. Yet, God in His grace revealed this to them, and by His grace He saved all those who trusted in Him by faith. We see God’s patience with Israel, as God has patiently put up with their rebellion and rejection of Him. Israel had a distinct advantage over the Gentiles in that God sent prophets to Israel, and He met directly with them over the course of their history. Yet, they continued to trust in themselves. While we may think this is about Israel, it really is a study in human history. I believe we are seeing some in the church follow in the footsteps of Israel. They are trusting in what they do to save them, instead of trusting in the Gospel to save them. I have said many times, an addict realizes that their life is messed up and that they need help. However, sometimes those who go to church every week don’t see their sin and their need. This is why it is so important that we ask God to keep us humble, to search our hearts, and to reveal our sin to us. It is possible that we can become so deceived by our own sinfulness, that we believe we are saved when in fact we are not.

The other lesson for us in this text is how we should treat one another. As a Christian, we are called to imitate Jesus. The way He treats us is the way we are called to treat other people. Among other things, this means that we need to give grace to people and be patient with them. We need to be patient because every Christian is in a different place in their walk with God. Some are newer Christians, and some have never been taught what it means to follow Jesus. We need to remember where God found us, and how He has been patient in growing us in our walk with Him. Then, we need to give that same grace and patience to others. We need to be patient with those who are unsaved, because they don’t know better. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 2:14, “But the natural man does not receive the things of God, because they are spiritually discerned.” Whatever we know about God, it has been given to us by the Spirit of God. Therefore, we need to give grace and be patient, and pray that God would open their heart to the Gospel that they might be saved. In a world that is severely lacking in grace and patience, let’s be different. Let’s not just tell people what they should do, let’s show it to them, and watch God make all the difference in there world and in their lives.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

I don’t know about you, but growing up I loved the merry-go round. It was always so much fun. However, now that I am older, the merry-go round and I don’t get along. Of course, the merry-go round represents not only fun for kids, but also a painful truth at times. You can go as fast as you want, for as long as you want; however, in the end you will get off at the same place you got on. The treadmill is the adult version of the merry-go round. It’s one thing if you are on a merry-go round for fun. However, it represents a lot of our life at times doesn’t it? We try to make changes, and we will do well for a while, but it seems like we always fall back into the same ruts as before. The apostle Paul wants to let you know how you can get off that merry-go round of frustration. Romans 7:24-25 says, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God–through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.”

Earlier in Romans 7, Paul talked about how the things he should do, he didn’t do. But the things he shouldn’t do, he did those things. He sums it up in the opening of verse 24, “O wretched man that I am!” I can just hear the screams of frustration in his words, can’t you? However, Paul knew where his victory came from. It came from Jesus Christ! Paul is talking about the futility of trying to be good enough or do enough good for God to save you. Paul is saying that it is impossible. We might do well for a time, but in the end, if Jesus hasn’t saved us then we will fall right back into the same routine. However, through Jesus, we can have victory over the power of sin in our life. Through His blood, we already have victory over the penalty of sin. Jesus took our penalty on the cross. As we are saved, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us, and He does the work of changing us as Paul talks about in Romans 8. Paul is telling us, you can get off that merry-go round of frustration. Simply, submit your life to the power of God, and allow Him to work in you, and to change you. If we depend on ourselves, we will end up doing what feels good, and what we want to do. However, if we submit ourselves to God every day, He will continue the process of changing us, and giving us victory. As I heard in a song one time, we don’t fight for victory, we fight from victory. The victory has already been given to us. Therefore, it’s not about trying harder, it’s about submitting and surrendering more. May God help you to experience this victory as you surrender and submit to Him daily.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

One thing that is lacking in our world, and that many people are longing for is peace. We are getting closer to Christmas, a time in which you hear the phrase, “Peace on earth” a lot. That is truly an amazing statement, that I’m convinced many who use it don’t understand the implications of the phrase. Before I dive into that, let me ask you, do you have peace in your life right now? Listen to what Paul wrote in Romans 5:1, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

The word “therefore” is a connector word. It connects what is about to be said with what was previously said. In Romans 4, Paul was talking about how we are saved by grace through faith. He used Abraham as the example. Because of that, we can have peace with God through Jesus. The word “justified” there is very important. It means just-as-if-I-never-sinned, and as though I have always perfectly obeyed. It’s not just that through Jesus’ blood my sins have been removed. It is that Jesus’ righteousness, His right standing with God based on His perfect obedience, was also give to us the moment we surrendered our heart and life to Jesus in faith. God the Father sees the perfect obedience of Jesus in place of our fallen sinfulness. That is amazing! Why did we need Jesus’ righteousness? Because on our own, we are fallen sinners, who are the enemy of God. Since there is no way that you or I could be saved by our own works, we had a problem. God’s holiness demands payment for sin. Only a perfect sacrifice is acceptable. And since we are not perfect, our lives and our works would never be acceptable to satisfy God’s wrath against sin. Therefore, God sent His Son to take our place, the wrath we deserved. By His death, Jesus satisfied God the Father’s righteous anger against our sin. Therefore, Jesus secured not only our salvation, but also guaranteed our peace. When we talk about “Peace on earth” around Christmas time, it has such a deep meaning. It means that the One who came to offer us peace with God had come to earth. God Himself, stepped out of the glory of heaven, and came to this earth to make peace possible. This is exactly what Paul is getting at when he writes what he did in Romans 5:1.

So, let me double back to my opening question, do you have peace in your life right now? Peace isn’t talking about calm in your life. It isn’t a stress-free, worry-free existence. True peace comes from God, and is having a relationship with Him based on His grace through faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. True peace is the knowledge that no matter what happens to me today, tomorrow, or any other day after, because I am saved, I know it will all be fine. Do you have that peace? If not, I would love to tell you how you can have it. Reach out to me at pastorjustin@westlakebaptist.org. True peace can only be found in a Person. That Person is Jesus.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Have you ever worked for a boss who expected you to get your job done, but then never gave you the tools to get the job done? That’s incredibly frustrating isn’t it? Then on top of it, a lot of times, the boss would get mad because the job wasn’t done. Praise God that God isn’t like that! Paul brings up something in Romans 3 that is incredibly interesting. He brings up how God is both just in punishing sinners for their rejection of Jesus, but God is also the justifier. Romans 3:26 says, “To demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

The most often mentioned attribute of God in the Bible is that God is holy. To be holy means to be morally pure, perfect. This is why man’s sin is so offensive to God. In His holiness, God demands justice for man’s rebellion. However, the Bible is very clear that salvation is not by works but rather by grace. At first glance, this would set up one of those frustrating scenarios I talked about in the beginning. God is pointing out a problem, but there appears to be no solution. However, there is a solution. The solution is Jesus’ sacrificial, substitutionary death on the cross. Since we are saved by grace through faith, it means that we can be justified through the blood of Jesus. This is how God is both just and the justifier. He is just in demanding and expecting payment for sin. He is the justifier in that He sent Jesus to satisfy His wrath against our sins. God isn’t asking us to work our way to Him, because He knows that would be impossible because He is holy and we are not. Yet, He has made a way for us to come to Him, and it is through faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus. God has not only pointed out the problem, man’s sin, but He has also provided the remedy for it, Jesus. But what does this mean for you and I?

It reminds us that the only way to be saved is through faith in Jesus. It also reminds us that there is grace, mercy, and forgiveness for our sins. We are not hopeless or helpless. It also means that we must remember that these truths apply to others as equally as they apply to us. This is why God’s example through the life of Jesus is our standard when it comes to love, grace, mercy, and forgiveness. We are to love, extend grace, give mercy, and grant forgiveness to others, the same as God has given them to us. It means we give these things because someone asks us to, but because we are going to give these things as freely as we have received them. God being both just and the justifier is also important because it reminds us just how much God hates sin. We cannot use God’s grace as a license to sin. Instead, we must run to His grace when we fall into sin. Let me end by asking this, how are you doing at following God’s example of showing love, extending grace, showing mercy, and granting forgiveness to others right now? If that statement hurt, allow it to remind you of your need for daily, transforming grace. Then, go out and give it to others in the same measure you have received it from God.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

I’m guessing we all know a person who says one thing, but then does another. We know how frustrating that is, and how it erodes trust. However, have we ever been guilty of it? My guess is, we have all been guilty at least once in our life. I would say, we are most often guilty as parents. Therefore, Paul’s words to the Romans are just as important to churches as it is to us as parents. Paul writes in Romans 2:1-2, “Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things.”

Paul is beginning to make his theological case that we are all sinners who are guilty before God. He says here that there are those who are condemning others while doing the same things. Paul is calling these people hypocrites. It is the same charge that Jesus leveled at the Pharisees in Matthew 23. They were telling people to do the right things, while doing the very sins they were judging the people for. Yet, notice what he says in verse 2, God is going to judge according to the truth. It reminds me of the saying I have heard before, “You can fool some people all the time, and you can fool all people some of the time; however, you won’t fool God any of the time.” And since God is the One who will judge us, He is the One we should be the most concerned about. There is no fooling God. He not only knows what we say and what we do, but God also knows the very thoughts of our heart and mind. Therefore, we must live the example that we preach. So often, people are more concerned with their reputation instead of their character. However, it is our character that is the “real” us. Your reputation is what people think of you. Your character is who you are when no one else is around. For us as parents, it becomes very important that we act the same at home with our spouse and family as we do at the church. Our spouse and family are our first disciples, and we will reproduce what we are. If this causes a knot to rise up in your stomach, just know that there is grace for your failures. None of us are perfect. I have had to go back and apologize on more than one occasion either at church or in my home. I praise God for His grace, because without it, I would be hopeless and helpless. Don’t read this blog as a message of condemnation, but rather of hope; the hope offered to us in the cross and by the grace of God. Our sin should never cause us to run away from God. Instead, it should cause us to run to God. Do you need to run to God today? The good news is, He is easy to find! Don’t delay, run to Him now, and experience His forgiving and transforming grace. Then, pray and ask for His help for you to learn and to grow from your sin, and watch what the all-powerful God can do.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Parenting is hard! That’s not a groundbreaking statement, just an honest one. There are many aspects of parenting that are tough, but I think one of the toughest is when you have to do something that you know is right but that is going to upset your child. It’s called parenting, and so it is necessary. But that doesn’t mean that you have to like it. Marriage is hard. Again, this isn’t a groundbreaking or earth-shattering statement. Love is easy when the person you love, loves you back. However, true love displays itself not just in the easy times, but in the most difficult times. When I sit down with couples for pre-marital counseling, one of the things that I go over with them the most happens to be the vows they are going to recite on their wedding day. I don’t go over them to get the wording down. Rather, I stress to them the one-sidedness of what they are saying. Marriage is a covenant relationship. The very nature of a covenant is that it is one-sided. It is a contract that is two-sided. On your wedding day, you profess to love, honor, cherish in good times and bad times. Nowhere in the vows do you say that you will do those things as long as the other person deserves it, or gives it in return to you. You are declaring what you are going to do in any and all circumstances. Of course the basis for this covenant agreement is that it was first displayed to us by Jesus on the cross. It is further seen in the relationship between Jesus and His church. This is why Paul uses the example of Jesus and the church as the picture of what marriage is supposed to be like in Ephesians 5. In 2 Corinthians, Paul displays this covenant love for the Corinthians, not in good times, but in difficult times. Paul is confused, because he had been displaying love for the Corinthians in person and in his letters, but the Corinthians were turning on him. Instead, they were willing to listen to false teachers who were using the Corinthians for their own gain. This broke Paul’s heart, and he was hopeful that God would correct it. Yet, Paul expressed his love for the Corinthians in spite of how they were treating him. We see it in 2 Corinthians 12:15, “And I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I am loved.”

I don’t know about you, but I can hear the pain in Paul’s words right there. The false teachers were using the Corinthians, and essentially getting wealthy off of them. Yet, Paul never asked for a penny from them. He gave of his time and his abilities for the glory of God and the good of the Corinthians. He did all of this because he loved God and he loved them. He wasn’t complaining. In fact, he essentially says he would do it all over again, even if he knew it would turn out the same way. Paul’s love for the Corinthians wasn’t because of their love for him or what they could provide for him. He loved them, because God loved them and because he loved God. The truly painful part was that the more he showed his love, the less he felt love in return. It’s the parent who disciplines their child, who receives a tongue lashing from their child. That parent says, “I’m doing this for your own good”, who stays strong in front of the child, but then goes to their room and cries because their heart is broken over having to discipline the child they love. It is the parent who continues to love and sacrifice for their child, even as their child says mean and hurtful things to them. It’s the husband or wife who continues to love and sacrifice for their spouse, even though their spouse doesn’t reciprocate that love.

What enabled Paul to love like this, what enables a parent or a spouse to love like this, is God in us. The human instinct when we get hurt is to lash out or to run away. We try to talk ourselves out of ever loving again, because we don’t want to get hurt again. Yet, the most biblical thing we can do is often the hardest thing to do. In the moment where someone is loving us the least is when we need to show them love the most. That goes against everything that comes natural to us. Yet, if we want to show true love, we will deny our self, and demonstrate the love that God has shown to us. Jesus’ example for us is what need to learn from and imitate. But to do it, it takes dependence on Jesus, and strength from Jesus to do it. Praise God, He will give it to us, if we ask Him for it.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin

Many people in America are going through an identity crisis right now. I have written on this a few times recently. Whether it is they want to fit in, or they simply want people to like them. I say this as someone who struggles at times with trying to be a people-pleaser. Christians will be quick to say, you just have to let go and let God. For the record, I agree with that. However, it can be tough at times. The Corinthians knew all too well about people-pleasing. They were also infested with people who were in it just for themselves. The apostle Paul addresses this in 2 Corinthians 10:7-8 when he writes, “But he who glories, let him glory in the Lord. For not he who commends himself is approved, but whom the Lord commends.”

In another letter, Paul wrote to Christians asking them, what do you have that you were not given? That is such a powerful question. If we are honest, everything we have is given to us. Someone took a chance on us and hired us to give us a job. As a result of our work and the agreement, they pay us. We then use that money to go out and buy things. We didn’t create ourselves, someone gave us life. I could go on and on, but I’m sure you get the point. We have no reason to glory of ourselves. We have no reason to commend ourselves. Everything we have and everything we are comes from God. Here is the problem though, we know that mentally, but we live as though it all depends on us. We are quick to pray about a lot of things, but when God answers, how quick are we to thank Him? If we are going to brag on anyone, it needs to be the Lord. Not only should we boast about the Lord, but we should also seek His approval in everything we do. The praise of man is a fickle thing. If you don’t believe me, go ask some athletes or coaches. When you win, they love you. When you lose, you are the dumbest, worst player or coach there ever was. It doesn’t just happen in athletics, it happens in almost every walk of life. My question to myself and to you is this, if we know how fleeting the approval of man can be, why do we long for it so much? Why do we do everything we can to get it, and then continue to strive so hard to keep it? I would submit to all of us, that our life would be a lot less stressful if we simply strived for God’s approval. If we were men and women of prayer, before a crisis hit, during the crisis, and after the crisis. And our prayer would simply be a request for God to give us His wisdom, and to help us live for Him. That doesn’t mean that everyone will like you. If doesn’t mean that everyone will agree with your decisions. But it does mean that you are more likely to be in the will of God, and pleasing the One we will all stand before one day and give an account to. I want to leave you with this thought, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Mt. 10:28). If I was going to have to pick who to live for and gain the approval of, I would suggest you live for the One who will ultimately judge you in the end, and that is not man, it is God.

By His grace and for His glory,

Pastor Justin