Posted on

Don’t Waste Your Life

Click on the camera to view the full message

Have you considered how much time you waste in a day? In today’s passage, the apostle Peter reminds us that we are judged impartially by God, ransomed from futility, and set apart for God’s glory.

Judged Impartially

Peter writes in 1 Peter 1:17, “And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile.”

God judges everyone impartially; we do not because even in our very best intentions, we are still biased. 

God is merciful and forgiving, but He is also a loving disciplinarian who cannot permit His children to enjoy sin. God takes sin seriously; sin must be dealt with.

Our actions, righteous or sinful, lead to either blessings or correction from our Heavenly Father. 

The pain of being separated from our relationship with God is a natural consequence of our sin. God does not show partiality. 

God doesn’t grant people a pass to sin because they have done great exploits for the Kingdom of God. One cannot build up “credit” with God in order to offset some future or intended sin. 

Warren Wiersbe writes, “Years of obedience cannot purchase an hour of disobedience.”

The only reason we can even speak to God is because of what Jesus has done for us on the cross. All we must do to be set free from sin is look at the cross and the price He paid for us. Our Father judges impartially; our sin has been dealt with on the cross. We are covered in the righteousness of Christ. Thus, we live to please God in our lives, fearing the possibility of bringing disrepute to the name of the one who died for us. 

Our heavenly Father lovingly disciplines His children today and our works will be judged later at the judgment seat of Christ (see 2 Corinthians 5:10). 

Sadly, the global church seems to have worked so hard to make God relatable to the lost world that He has been remade in our image, reduced to a friendly grandfather who is always on call to give us whatever we want. But our God is a consuming fire (See Hebrews 12:29). He is completely holy and holds our very beings together. 

Ransomed from Futility

Peter continues in verse 18 to remind the readers that they were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from their forefathers. He reminds his readers and us today that someone paid the price of our freedom (see Romans 6:23). 

We were all sinners condemned to an eternity separated from God, but Romans 5:8 says that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Jesus purchased our freedom from futility.  Before we became followers of Jesus, we were slaves to a purposeless lifestyle that leads to death. 

Peter is writing to the Jews who were in exile in Babylon. He is writing to the children of Israel whose forefathers had been miraculously set free from Egypt under the leadership of Moses. 

They were set free for a purpose, and yet they rejected the call of God. By their disobedience, they rejected the call to the Promised Land. They rejected the plan that God had for their generation, and they wandered aimlessly in the wilderness until they all died. 

Are you wandering aimlessly in the wilderness of this world? Seeking pleasure and entertainment rather than the plan of God for your life?

If you are a follower of Jesus, you are free to live with a new life and purpose that God has planned for you. Do you know this freedom today?  

Do you know what you have been saved from? Do you know the freedom that comes from being washed by the blood of Jesus and filled with the Holy Spirit?

Set Apart for God’s Glory

In verse 20-21 we read, “He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”

Peter explains that the death and resurrection of Christ was not a sudden change of plans for God. God does not react to things in the world; He ordained that Jesus would suffer and die and be raised on the third day. This was God’s plan before the beginning of time. We cannot understand that, but God sees all human history and future at the same moment. Nothing is hidden from Him. 

From a human perspective, and from Peter’s perspective on the day Jesus was crucified, Jesus was cruelly murdered. It seemed like God the Father had made a mistake; the Savior was not supposed to die. But that was God’s plan all along. Peter may have remembered what Jesus had said in John 10:17-18, that he would lay down his own life and take it up again. 

Peter highlights this truth that Jesus was raised from the dead. This was the primary message of the early church. Jesus is alive, and he is interceding for us today at the Father’s right hand. Without the resurrection, we have no hope. We have nothing to live for in times of hardship and trial. But our Redeemer lives. 

When we meditate on all that Jesus has done for us, the incredible salvation gift that we have been given, it ought to affect our every decision. We should be compelled to live set apart lives for the glory of God. 

We have the call to be holy in 1 Peter 1:13-16; now we have the call to live a life of purpose. A call not to waste a moment. Jesus came to set us free; he was crucified, and his blood was the price for our redemption. He was raised from the dead, and now we have the privilege of living for him, to bring glory to his name and to live a life of purpose. 

Make It Count

The captain of the World Cup winning South African rugby team, Siya Kolisi, has a motto that he lives by: “Don’t count your days, but make your days count.”

We have been blessed with life and spiritual gifts by the Holy Spirit: how are we using what we have been given?

Are you using the days that God has given you for His purposes as one who has been judged impartially by God, ransomed from futility, and set free for the glory of God?

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10

Posted on

Why Worship?

Click on the camera to view the full message.

We have this misconception that worship is the time of our church gathering when we sing songs.

But worship is not just singing, we worship what we give value to.

We worship by the way we use our money, the way we work, the way we share the Gospel with others and even in the way we spend our free time. When we understand worship, we understand that we have the opportunity to worship God with every aspect of our lives.

Everyone worships, but not everyone worships the one true God.

In John 4, we read an account of a woman who had misplaced worship. Jesus was resting at a well in a town called Sychar and a Samaritan woman came to draw water. Jesus spoke first and asks the woman to give him some water.

The woman who came to the well had been searching for love, fulfillment, and purpose all her life and the only person who could fulfill all her desires was sitting right in front of her. She brings up the question of worship in verse 20 when she says to Jesus, “Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” One of the big issues of distinction between the Jews and the Samaritans was the question of the location of their worship. She soon discovers that Jesus was wanting to speak about worship all along, this is why he was waiting at the well for her. Jesus directs the conversation to a time when worship will no longer be about a physical location (see John 4:23-24).

Jesus is explaining that only those who receive the Holy Spirit can worship God the Father. It is only in the Spirit, by the Spirit and through the Spirit that we can truly worship God in a way that pleases Him. The issue is not that we need to learn how to worship or where to worship, rather we need to learn who to worship and only by the Holy Spirit are we able to worship God the Father.

By the definition of worship, we are all really good worshippers. In our sinful human nature, we are really good idolaters, we give value to things in our lives above God. We all are tempted with idols such as: security, peace, meaning in life, self-esteem, significance, or any good thing that we elevate to a level of importance above God in our lives.

“Our hearts are a perpetual idol factory.” John Calvin

The problem is misplaced worship, and the consequences are always tragic (see Jeremiah 2:13).

Jesus offered the Samaritan woman living water, she had been trying to satisfy her longings with marriage after failed marriage. At the core of all failed longings is misdirected worship. Worship of God is what we were made for. We will only find true fulfilment in life as we worship the one true God. That is a meaningful life, that is a life of worship. True worship is recognizing the sovereignty of God in all the aspects of my life.

“Worship is my active, all-of-life response to the worth of who He is and what He does.” Matt Heard

One of the most common misconceptions of worship is that it is a relatively passive event. But in the Bible, the Hebrew and the Greek words for worship involve physical activity involving all of life. Every single activity of my life becomes a way of acknowledging the creator God and His worth in my life, that is worship.

But we live in a world that worships false gods, we are living in an age that is described by David in Psalm 63:1. Are you in a dry and weary land? Or are you experiencing the living water that Jesus invited the Samaritan woman to in John 4:14?

This doesn’t mean that you will never experience pain or hardship (see John 16:33), but when you worship God with all your life, you will know peace, joy and complete fulfilment in the midst of your circumstances. You will be able to worship along with the prophet Habakkuk (See Habakkuk 3:17-18).

In the month of June, we are particularly reminded that the world around us does not worship the God we serve. As we see a month dedicated to the worship of self and immorality.

The world has a sin problem, but the real issue is that the world has a worship problem.  Sin is the result of misplaced worship. Thinking that something other than God will bring joy and peace. In Romans 1:28 we read that God will give people over to the objects of their worship.

We are not dealing with people who are confused or struggling with their identity, we are seeing the result of Satan’s demonic power being unleashed on the earth.

Satan has gone after the very root of God’s relationship with the earth. The pride month uses the rainbow, the rainbow is one of God’s original covenants, not just with the Jews or people but with all living creatures (See Genesis 9:12).

The pinnacle of God’s creation was man and woman created in His image, that was His original design, Satan is attacking that.

In Genesis 1:28 God’s original instruction to man and women was to be fruitful and multiply, something that is impossible with same sex relationships.

And then there is the original sin, Ezekiel 28:17 says that Satan’s original downfall was his pride over his beauty. He grew in pride and defied the one who created him.

Pride is at the very root of Satan’s power. Pride is ultimately worshipping ourselves, saying that we know better than God the Father, the one who created us.

So how do we respond?

Ephesians 6 doesn’t say, go and beat up sinners, it says in Ephesians 6:13 that we should simply stand firm. Stand firm, speak the truth in love and allow the Holy Spirit to do what only he can do.

If you have friends and loved ones caught in this deceptive lifestyle, love them enough to speak the truth to them. The Bible is very clear, they are on a pathway of destruction that leads to hell, because they are worshipping a false religion that may bring fleeting and deceptive pleasure for a moment. We must speak the truth, millions of souls are at stake.

Worship of the one true God is essential in the church.

Posted on

Talking about Sexual Immorality

To view the full message, click on the camera

When we talk about sexual immorality, it really boils down to do we believe that God is the designer and creator of all things. And as the designer, He designed our bodies perfectly. And then He gave us a manual, His word, to give us non-negotiables for how we are to function to avoid unnecessary pain.

As the world becomes more and more immoral, we see pain increasing. Marriages are breaking down and children are hurting. Pornography is affecting all spheres of society. The LGBTQ lifestyle is causing a dramatic increase in depression and suicide. Young children’s bodies are being mutilated in order to appease a lie – an identity that is not from the Designer.

The world is seeing the effects of a fatherless generation due to promiscuity and selfishness.

That is just some of the effects of not believing the designer and his manual.

The most common Greek word translated as “sexual immorality” is porneia (πορνεία). And it means, fornication, whoredom, adultery, and Idolatry. It means to surrender sexual purity.

Porneia defines any sexual activity outside of the boundaries of a biblical marriage.

Those claiming to be Christians who persist in immorality, cannot come into the presence of God (Psalm 24:3-4). We cannot possibly maintain a healthy intimacy with God when we are giving our souls, minds, and bodies to immorality.

In John 8 we read an account of Jesus teaching in the temple courts when the Pharisees barge in and interrupt the meeting by bringing a woman, that they had “caught” in adultery, right in front of Jesus for all to see. It is an obvious set-up, and they want to catch Jesus speaking contrary to the Law of Moses.

Jesus doesn’t respond to them; he simply begins writing in the dirt on the ground.

They keep pressing Jesus, wanting an answer to spring the trap, and then he finally stands up, the tension in the room rises and he says, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7b.And then he simply stooped down and began writing on the ground again. As the tension grew, their consciences began to be provoked and the older, perhaps wiser or more guilty men, began walking away.

Jesus was left with the woman and asks her, “where are your accusers?” To which she responds in verse 11, “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”

Jesus sets her free, relieving her of any condemnation and giving her lifegiving counsel, “leave your life of sin”. She leaves in freedom.

Notice the irony of the story.  The accusers leave one by one, convicted of their sin, but not realizing that the only one who could forgive them of their sins was standing right in front of them. The accusers left, still in bondage. But the woman who was the accused, walked away free.

When it comes to sexual immorality, we are all guilty. This is because sexual immorality, like all sins, begins in the mind, in the thought life (Matthew 5:27-28). Jesus raises the bar on the perfect design he created for sexual intimacy between a husband and a wife.

We know that the one who casts doubt on the perfect design of God, is also the one who’s only agenda is to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10).

Look at the fruit.

A high percentage of pre-marital sex results in abortion.

Homosexual activity cannot produce life, but rather a staggering escalation in depression and suicide.

People addicted to pornography isolate, and retreat from community, and slowly die from the inside.

Sexual immorality destroys lives, families, and generations.

The problem that we face in the 21st century is that we are so desensitized to immorality that we tolerate sinful behavior, and even embrace it as a bad habit or a minor struggle.

Paul writing about unrepentant sinners, who are practicing sinful lifestyles, their sin will lead to eternal separation from God 1 Corinthians 6:9-10.

So how do we respond as the church, believing what God’s word says regarding sin.

There is a very dangerous message that is being taught in churches and by evangelists all around the world, “God loves you just as you are…”

And when people hear that, they hear that there are no conditions to being a Christian, “I can continue to live in rebellion towards God, I don’t have to leave my sinful lifestyle. I don’t have to repent of my sin, I must just accept Jesus into my life.”

The Bible is clear that God hates the unrepentant sinner who has chosen a lifestyle of rejection of God and His Word (Psalm 5:4-5, Proverbs 6:16-19, James 4:4).

 R.C. Sproul said, “God doesn’t send the sin to hell, he sends the sinner to hell.

It is extremely dangerous to neglect repentance in our presentation of the Gospel. We simply don’t have a right view of the holiness of God.

True joy and peace are only found in Jesus, as we follow him in walking in purity. God desires purity and holiness from us, not for His benefit, but because it is for our good. Sadly, as the church, frequently we are the scribes and the pharisees, pointing fingers at other people’s sin, while at the same time being enslaved to private sins.

Today, you can walk in freedom. Don’t continue to live a lifestyle that leads to death.

Do you trust the designer? Do you trust His operations manual?

Posted on

Good News for Sinners

Click on the Camera to view the full message

The following is for sinners. And that means that this message is for everyone.

John made it clear in the previous chapter, that if we are born of God, we are children of God, and that practicing righteousness, provides evidence that we are saved.

Dictionaries define righteousness as “behavior that is morally justifiable or right.”

The Bible’s standard of human righteousness is God’s own perfection in every attribute, every attitude, every behavior, and every word. The Bible describes the character of God and gives us the plumbline by which he measures human righteousness.

The apostle John is addressing people in the first century church, but it is the same people that we have also today in our churches all over the world. People who think they are Christians, but really, they are not born again. This is a shock tactic of John, that should make us all take a hard look at our lives.

The number one problem in the world today is sin. And only God can rescue us and solve this problem. In verse 4 we read that sin is breaking God’s law. Sin is a defiant rejection of God’s rightful rule over your life.

Daniel Akin wrote, “Sin is nothing less than personal treason against the Sovereign of the universe.”

Because the problem with sin is so great, a great rescue was needed. That great rescue was in the form of the sinless lamb of God (John 1:29). Jesus is the only one who never sinned (1 John 3:5 and 2 Corinthians 5:21).

John continues his logic in verse 6, “No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.”

As we abide in Christ, it is illogical and impossible to live in a consistent lifestyle of sin. If you continually practice sin, you haven’t encountered Jesus, let alone know him, or abide in him.

This does not mean Christians live in sinless perfection. The verb tenses in verse 6 and 9 point to an ongoing practice of willful rebellion against God with no remorse or desire for reconciliation.

If you are knowingly sinning and it doesn’t bother you, you have no relationship with Jesus, and you are not saved.

When we become followers of Jesus, we are born again, we take on a new nature. Sin no longer has control over us, and we are free from its enslaving power.  

As followers of Jesus, we are not without sin, but it is not our daily practice and as the Holy Spirit brings conviction, we repent of our sin and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can gain victory in that area of our lives. This is the process of sanctification.

We are in a titanic battle until the day Jesus calls us home or he returns (Hebrews 12:4).

John wrote this letter to challenge false teachers who were saying that it is possible to be a follower of Jesus and still be practicing sin. We have the same false teaching today and it is sending people to hell. There is a false Gospel that says, “God is love, He is full of grace and no matter what you do, He will never send you to hell, keep on sinning allowing the grace of God to bless you.”

This is a lie from Satan himself and it has infiltrated the church, convincing people that simply raising your hand or going forward in a meeting is enough to be saved, and you can live however you please (1 John 3:7). We should be concerned that people are being deceived about the seriousness of sin.

We need to be clear that we aren’t righteous because we do good things, we are righteous because we are in Christ. He is our righteousness. Abiding in Christ, with Jesus as Lord, we are positionally right with God and experientially we live that position out in acts of righteousness (Galatians 2:20).

Verse 8 explains the reason why Jesus came to the earth, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”

The devil means the accuser, and he has been lying, and destroying lives since the garden of Eden.

The Son of God came invading enemy territory and defeated Satan.

“God’s infiltration of rebel planet earth, was a search and destroy mission.” John Piper

Jesus destroyed Satan’s schemes on the cross and the empty tomb is proof of his victory over death and ours too.

To be saved we need to have a life altering conversion encounter (2 Corinthians 5:17).

John points out three clear distinguishing marks of conversion.

  • We have experienced the new birth.  

What does it mean to be born again? It is a miraculous work of God’s grace. There is a change of heart as we are convicted of sin, and we respond in repentance before God. We are transformed from the inside by the Holy Spirit. Every conversion is a radical conversion, moving from darkness into light.

When that happens, we get God’s seed abiding in us (1 John 3:9). God fills us and deposits His presence in us, abiding in us. We can only abide in Christ as God’s Spirit first abides in us. We will try in vain to overcome sin in our lives. We cannot do what only the creator of the universe can do.

  • God’s children don’t practice sin.

As followers of Jesus, we will not be able to make a practice of sinning. We don’t have to live in constant defeat (1 John 4:4). Are you living from your identity?

  • God’s children will love one another (1 John 3:10).

There are two very simple and fundamental tests for identifying a Christian:

A: Do you do what is right?

B: Do you love other believers?

True Christians are to love one another, not because we are forced to love each other, but because we love the spirit of Christ in each other.

When we despise other believers and gossip about them, we are living as an unbeliever, and we are serving the purposes of the devil.

“By a carpenter mankind was made, and only by that Carpenter can mankind be remade.” Desiderius Erasmus.

Have you been remade? Have you truly been born again?

Posted on

Do Not Love the World.

Click on the Camera to View the full message video.

1 John 4 teaches that God is love, but the Bible also teaches that there are some things that God hates and so should we (See Psalm 5:5-6, Proverbs 6:16-19, Revelation 2:6).

As we see in John 2, God hates the love of the world. When we become Christians, we no longer view this world as our home. Rather, we are looking forward to an eternal home with the Lord. If we truly believe this, then why would we give our time, energy, finances, and passions to temporary things that directly oppose God.

As we surrender, God not only takes us into His kingdom, but He also brings us into His family. John uses three terms to identify the people he is writing to in verses 12-14: Children, Fathers and Young Men.

The term children refers to new believers, the fathers are the mature believers who have been following the Lord for many years, and the young men are the maturing believers who are pursuing God with passion and fervor.

In verse 12, John addresses those newer believers and encourages them with the good news of their forgiven sins. Isn’t it great to know that our sins are forgiven?

Next, John addresses the spiritual fathers and mothers who have been walking with the Lord for many years. When we become Christians, we begin a journey that leads to a growing relationship with God our Father. John repeats this in verse 14 to emphasize the importance of growing in our knowledge of our Heavenly Father. We grow in this knowledge and relationship through life experiences, challenges, and trials.

Then John addresses the people who are growing in their passion and zeal for the things of God. These people are young in the faith, maturing, and fighting hard in spiritual warfare. They are strong because the word of God abides in them.

It is important to remember that we don’t overcome the attacks of Satan by our own hard work or efforts, we rest on the completed work of Jesus on the cross. Satan loves to tempt us and hurl accusations at us regarding our past, but our debt has been paid, in Christ there is no more condemnation (Romans 8:1).

These young warriors are abiding in the word of God and as a result they are strong in the face of temptation and trials.  

Sadly, many Christians never grow up and remain as children because they do not have the discipline to read, meditate, and feed on the Word of God.

In the following three verses John warns his readers about the “World”. What he is referring to is a worldview and a way of life that is led by Satan and his demons. Following the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes and the pride of possessions. This is a worldview that leaves God out of our thinking and decisions. Chasing after temporary things while ignoring eternal things.

These verses encourage us to reject anything that goes against God’s word and anything that we would value more than God. That would be an idol in our lives. Worldliness means living only to please our flesh and pursuing the desire of our eyes. This is a life pursuing temporal pleasure and will never satisfy.  

John highlights three things the world promises but cannot deliver:

1: The World Cannot Give You What You Need (1 John 2:15).

Everyone of us has a God given need to love and to be loved. But the object of our love needs to be in the right order for us to experience peace. If we choose to love the world, we are choosing to not love God and we will never be fulfilled.

2: The World Cannot Give You What It Promises (1 John 2:16).

This is one of the most important verses in the Bible. It identifies three weapons Satan uses to seduce men and women away from God. These same three weapons Satan used in the Garden of Eden to tempt Adam and Eve.

Genesis 3:6 says, “Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food [lust of the flesh] and delightful to look at [lust of the eyes], and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom [the pride of life].”

The same three weapons were used by Satan when he tempted Jesus in the wilderness in Luke 4. And today Satan still uses the same three weapons against the followers of Jesus. They are effective, because we don’t recognize them and resist them by the power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.

  • The desires (lust) of the flesh appeal to our appetites.

“Desires” means cravings, lust, or passion. The word desire is neutral, but the object of our desire is what determines whether such desires are good or bad. It is important to realize that we are not sinful because we sin. Instead, we sin because we are sinful.

  • The desire of the eyes appeals to our affections.

Our eyes, like our natural desire, are not evil (Proverbs 20:12), however, the eyes are windows to the soul by which sinful desires enter.  In 2 Samuel 11, David was led to adultery and murder because of what he allowed his eyes to see.

  • Pride in possessions appeals to our ambitions.

Pride is an unhealthy self-image, boasting and arrogance to impress others. The “Pride of possessions” or “pride of life” speaks of the person who glorifies himself rather than God.

If you think that you don’t fall into this category, just spend a few moments thinking about how much time and energy you spend trying to earn a few extra dollars or gain that next promotion or buy that nice car or phone. We are all prone to stumbling in this area as in the others because of our human nature.

But there is a better way to live, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you” 1 Peter 5:6.  

3: The World Cannot Give You What Will Last (1 John 2:17).

We have two opposing worlds to give our lives to, why would we give our lives to something that is temporary and an illusion. Why would we give our lives to the temporary deception of Satan’s world that leads only to death? The only life that produces eternal fruit, is a life that is committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and living to do the will of God.

One of the saddest stories in the Bible concerns a man by the name of Demas. In Colossians 4, we read that he is faithfully serving alongside Luke for the Gospel ministry. However much later in 2 Timothy 4:10, the Apostle Paul writes these tragic words, “Demas has deserted me, because he loved this present world.”

The history of Christianity is filled with people who have followed in the path of Demas. Don’t live for the temporal and lose out on the eternal.

What are you pursuing in life?

Posted on

Let God be True and Every Man a Liar

Click on the Camera to view the full message

The number one problem in the world today is that humanity has a sin problem, and it affects everyone. But not everyone agrees with this assertion.

Today, we don’t hear people call sin for what it is. Sin is labelled an error of judgment, a mistake, a bad decision, etc. In fact people go to great lengths to rationalize or hide their sin.

But we must understand this basic truth, to deny sin is to call God a liar and question His character. In this passage, John uses the word “sin” nine times, and two times he will use the word “darkness.” To think correctly about Jesus, we must think correctly about sin.

In verse 5 we are reminded that we have good news, and it is a message that the world needs. This message concerns Jesus Christ, “the Word of life”. When we meet Jesus as our savior, our assignment is to take this message to the whole world. According to the JoshuaProject.net there are 7,418 unreached people groups who are yet to hear the Gospel.

A key component of the Gospel message is to convey an understanding of the nature and character of God. This is a constant theme of John’s writing.For example, he teaches us that; God is light (1:5), God is love (4:8, 16), and God is true (5:20).

In 1 John the statement “God is light” means God has as His very nature and being the source of life. Martin Luther said, “There is no darkness in Him, not even the slightest”.

This is a message that we must passionately share with the world.

But our message must also include what God says about sin. The essence of sin is our attempting to take the place of God. We want to be in charge. And we want to provide our own definitions of what is right and wrong.

John is not interested in human opinions on the matter of sin. He uses three “if we say” statements to lead his readers to understand sin. He says we are prone to lie to others, lie to ourselves and ultimately call God a liar.

1: Do Not Lie to Others (1 John 1:6–7)

John writes in 1 John 1:6, “If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth”.

If we say we have fellowship with God, but are walking in spiritual darkness, we are lying. We say to others, “I know God,” but our beliefs and behavior contradict our words. We lie to others about who we are.

In contrast, verse 7 says that if we live our lives in the realm of light, as God is in the light, our fellowship with one another is authentic and the blood of Jesus, His Son, keeps on cleansing us from all sin.

2: Do Not Lie to Yourself (1 John 1:8–9)

 Verse 8 says, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”

Those who live in death and darkness do not just lie to others, and eventually they lie to themselves. They lose their moral compass, and their conscience is seared (1 Timothy 4:2).  

If we claim to be sinless, a declaration that we are free from the guilt and penalty of sin, we are deceived, and the truth is not in us.  The truth is a person, if we say we have no sin, we really have no relationship with Jesus.

John then follows up with one of the greatest verses in the Bible, verse 9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”.

John writes that there are two kinds of people

  • There are some who cover and conceal their sin. They are liars.
  • There are also confessors who acknowledge and admit their sin. They are forgiven.

John is not saying that we need to be perfectly sinless as that is impossible. We need an advocate who can forgive us.

3: Do Not Lie about God (1 John 1:10)

John makes the case that we can lie to others about our sin, we will then lie to ourselves and ultimately, we will actually call God a liar. Verse 10, “If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”

Moving on to 1 John 2 verses 1 and 2, the world must know what God says about Jesus.

Jesus Is Our Advocate (1 John 2:1)

John has made it clear that in this life we cannot be sinless. However, he does believe we can sin less because we are now in intimate fellowship with the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.

We all still sin, but we have the amazing promise of 1 John 1:9. In verse 1, John tells his readers to run to our savior, our advocate to the Father. This advocate is sinless, undefiled, and spotless in his nature and in all his actions. There is no one else like him.

The word “advocate” means helper, who comes alongside in a time of need. This helper is the cleanser of sin (1:7), the forgiver of sin (1:9), and the helper when we do sin.

We have this misconception that when we sin, Jesus turns away from us and leaves us because we have disappointed him. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus is drawn to us when we sin, he cares for us and knows that our sin leads to pain. He comes near to prevent us hurting ourselves further.

Jesus Is Our Atonement(1 John 2:2)

Jesus can be our advocate, because he has made propitiation, an atonement for our sins.

The word “propitiation” is a very important word that carries the idea of satisfaction. Jesus Christ, by His sacrifice on the cross, satisfied God’s holiness and turned away His righteous wrath from sinners.

The work of atonement accomplished by Christ on the cross is where God’s holiness and God’s love meet. (See Isaiah 53:10 and Philippians 2:9).

How do you stand before God today? Are you lying to those around you? Are you lying to yourself? Are you calling God a liar?

Jesus offers right standing before God, his forgiveness is instant and paid for.

Posted on

Sermon, Sunday January 23 2022 – ASK Part 2

Click on the camera to view the full message video

Before You Ask

James 4:1-10

When my son Joshua wants to ask me for something that he knows I might not want to give him, he uses a lot of strategy and downright emotional manipulation. He is a master of the ask. He prepares me for the question, softens me up and then when he thinks the moment is right, he makes his case.

Sometimes as children of God, we think we must prepare God for our ask. But I would propose rather that we need to prepare ourselves before we ask God for what we want.

God is not a mean vindictive father who withholds blessings until we get our act together. Matthew 7:11 says, “…how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

But, what does it mean to prepare ourselves to ask God? I am talking about the personal pursuit of holiness and purity that we are all called to as followers of Jesus.

James was dealing with conflict in the church as a result of the people embracing sinful lifestyles (see James 4:1). Some of the members of the church in Jerusalem were seeking pleasure by running after things which they thought would bring them joy. Things that were contrary to the perfect will of God.

God designed us to enjoy things and to find pleasure in things, so that is not wrong, but the driving desire for pleasure that is selfish is the problem. Looking to the world to satisfy what only God can, leads to dissatisfaction, pain, and broken lives. This is the result of a prayerless and selfish lifestyle.

The battle for holiness is fought in the mind. How healthy are the thoughts you entertain?

In verse 4, James exposes that as Christians, we have a singular allegiance, and that is to Christ alone. He calls our friendship with the world as spiritual adultery.

What are the affections of your heart? Do you find yourself thinking about; sexually immoral things, the accumulation of possessions, a certain addiction you entertain, how to manipulate people or situations for your own personal gain? Do you entertain sin by the movies you watch, the music you listen to or the places you go to?

Some may say that I am being old fashioned and that we need to stay away from challenging people’s moral decisions. But God’s requirement for holiness has never changed, and as James tells us, by accommodating these things, we are making ourselves enemies of God. You are making yourself the enemy of the one who gave His son for your salvation. It is time that we challenged each other in the area of purity.

We pray for revival, and historically a revival is a move of God that is characterized by repentance and people crying out to God for mercy as they were made aware their sins.

The question is, do we want this? Or are we comfortable and satisfied with weak and ineffectual Christian lives? We are no different to the world, we don’t take holiness seriously, we don’t take sin seriously. We fear man more than we fear God.

When we entertain sin in our lives and in the lives of the people around us, we are making ourselves the enemy of God. Sin is never personal; it affects all those around us. There are no private sins. When we entertain sin, we cheapen the grace of God, and we grieve the Holy Spirit.

But there is good news! As followers of Jesus filled with His spirit, when we fall and run after the pleasures that are contrary to the will of God for our lives, we are still greatly loved by our Heavenly Father. He is jealous for us, and He yearns for us to return to him.

When we sin, God does not stop loving us as that would be contrary to His nature. When we sin, God’s love for us is on full display. He reaches towards us to prevent us from hurting ourselves.

The root of all sin is pride, and that is where we need to start. We need to be humble and repent of our sins. Here is the amazingly good news of the Gospel, God offers us salvation freely and he offers his grace freely to grow in humility (James 4:6).

With humility as our starting point, we see a list of remedies for our sin in the following verses. James gives a prescription for our struggle with sin. It is only by the grace of God, but as we follow this prescription, we will know joy, peace, power, and freedom in our Christian lives.

The prescription is found in verses 7 -10, Submit yourself to God, resist the devil, draw near to God (meditating on His word and time in prayer and worship), cleanse your hands (repent of your sins), purify your heart (Psalm 51:10), mourn and weep, humble yourself.

Finally, we come to the closing phrase of verse 10, “and He will exalt you”

We must be careful; this is not an exalting in the way we would exalt a hero or a sports star. James means that after you have humbled yourself, repented and mourned over your sin, then He will lift you up. He will restore your identity. He will restore your standing before the throne of grace. Then you will live and thrive, living from your identity of who you are in Christ.

When we are not humble and in a right relationship with God, we are not going to ask for things that are on God’s heart, the things that are good for us.

Once we prepare our hearts and minds, once we humble ourselves and repent, only then will we know the perfect will of God and we will want what He wants.

What area of your life is God inviting you to deal with today?

Posted on

Sermon, Sunday October 3, 2021 – Worship

Click on the camera for the full message video

What if everything you treasured was suddenly taken away, what or who would you miss the most? Would you agree that what you value determines how you make most decisions?

The definition of worship is ascribing value to something. When we worship God, we are saying that we value Him above everything else (Romans 12:1). We are to present all that we are and all that we have to God. This is the worship God requires of us. Worship is way more than singing songs.

500 years ago, John Calvin stated that the human heart is an idol factory. Isn’t it true that even saved people have a tendency towards idolatry as we value other things above God?

When we do not value God, we value other things, football, cars, careers, houses, celebrities, relationships and many other things. When we give these things greater value than God, we worship them, and we suffer the consequences of giving our affections to temporary things.

In Romans 1:18, Paul writes that the wrath of God is being revealed against those who have chosen to ignore Him and pursue sin. This is not some future event; it is a present reality. In fact, we can see all around us in the state of the world that God is punishing sin. God is pouring out His wrath on people, who do not acknowledge Him as God. But in our weak understanding of the holiness of God, we protest and say, “that is unfair”.

Romans 1:19-20 explains that no-one has an excuse for not acknowledging God, as He constantly reveals Himself through the general revelation of creation (Psalm 19:1). Every person who has ever lived, knows that there is a God, and has an awareness of his majesty and transcendence.

The problem is that we live in a fallen world, and we are given to Satan’s lies over the truth. Idolatry is worshipping other things, replacing the truth with a counterfeit. Mankind is prone to distort the truth of God, reshaping Him into our own image.

Our post-modern world has created a god of our own preferences. We are a nation and a world of people who in essence worship ourselves rather than the one true God. This is the root of humanism. In order to ignore God, there needs to be suppression of the truth (Romans 1:18). A determined and intentional holding down of the truth for mankind to live in sin. Whenever we willfully sin, we have to suppress the Holy Spirit’s voice in our lives.

Mankind is guilty of suppressing the truth today so that they can live their lives without the demands of an all-holy God, and the result is suffering and destruction.

Calvin used the analogy of a blindfold when saying, “mankind chooses to put on a blindfold and then we stumble around cursing the darkness.”

Paul lists the results of idolatry in Romans 1:21-22. Mankind knows that there is a creator but has chosen not to thank or acknowledge Him. The result is a futility of thinking, an aimless existence running after temporary pleasures, leading to a foolish heart. You don’t have to look further than the evening news to see the truth of verse 22, “Claiming to be wise, they became fools”.

In contrast to this, true worship that honors and values God above all else leads to a heart filled with thanksgiving. Worshipping God gives us purpose for life as our hearts are softened to the perfect will of God for our lives.

The reality is that there is a very short step from idolatry towards immorality. If man has become his own god, then he determines what is good and he lives to please his own desires. Sadly, even in our church family, we don’t value God enough to gather and worship Him. The moment something else comes along that is more pressing, a sports game, homework, or the comfort of the pillow or the couch, we value that more than we value God. We prefer other things; we worship other things.

It is time that the church gets serious about where our allegiance lies as individuals and as the church. This is not a season for comfortable Christianity. We are in a war and the enemy wants to prevent us from gathering and encouraging one another.

In verse 24 onwards we see the results of living a life of idol worship. Three times we read, “God gave them up,” in verses 24, 26 and 28. Mankind has decided to ignore God and in turn God steps back and allows man to walk into sin and error.

This is one of the clearest passages in scripture that speaks to the sin of homosexuality. It seems that homosexuality and the rise of the LGBT movement seems to be more prevalent than ever before. Who would have thought that we would have a month of the year given over to the celebration of sin? However as we look back and see that over the last fifty years, the post-modern world has rejected God, and God has given the world over to sin.

In verse 28 we see that mankind’s abandonment to sin leads to a debased or a depraved mind.  Paul lists twenty-one specific sinful behaviors, all of which are commonplace in our communities. We tend to focus on the “bad” sins of murder and the like, but what about the sins of gossip, slander, and envy for example? Sadly, these are all prevalent in the church because we are not worshipping God as we ought to. We can never worship God in Spirit and in truth and gossip at the same time.

We don’t grasp the importance and the power of a worshipping church, and we don’t fully understand worship. Worship is not simply singing songs. There are many people who come to church every week but never worship.

When we realize that we are in a war and that the only way to win the battle is by true worship by truly giving honor to God, we will begin to worship. And worship always wins (see 2 Chronicles 20).

What are you struggling with today? Try valuing God above all things. Worship God.

Posted on

Sermon Sunday June 20 2021 – Are you a Follower or and Observer?

Click on the camera to view the full message video

Mountain top experiences part 9
Luke 23:21-49
Calvary is the mountain top encounter that all the others point to. This little hill just outside Jerusalem, is the peak on which all of human history pivots. During the Roman empire, this was the place where criminals were executed by the most inhumane method of crucifixion.

As we look at the various people who witnessed the death of Jesus, I want to challenge you by saying that on that day, Jesus had only one follower. There were many observers but only one follower. Looking at your life today, are you a follower or are you an observer?

As we read the account of the crucifixion, we subconsciously categorize people as guilty or innocent. The women were innocent, the soldiers were guilty, Pilate was confused and guilty, Simon of Cyrene was innocent, and the two criminals were both guilty, but one was saved.  

But the reality is that there was only one person innocent in the entire world, and that was Jesus. Luke does well to point this out in Luke 23 verses 22, 41 and 47.

Jesus was the only one who was sinless, and he died for all sinners (see Romans 3:22-23).

Everyone was impacted that day by the decisions they made and what they saw.

Pilate saw that Jesus was innocent and he tried to recuse himself (see Matthew 27:24).
He was a politician and a people pleaser. He did not have the character to stand by his convictions. But I wonder if I would have the courage to stand against the angry crowd on that day. He gave in to the pressure of the fear of man, and as a result he was guilty.

Simon of Cyrene was not involved in the crucifixion but was drawn in (Luke 23:26).He was a religious man from Libya who had travelled eight hundred miles to celebrate the Passover. Jesus was understandably exhausted and weakened by the beatings and interrogations, and could not carry the cross, so the crowd had this foreigner carry the cross.

There is a significant picture here, to carry your cross was a sign of guilt, it was perfectly ordained by God the Father that Jesus was not to carry his cross to the hill.I want to come back to Simon later in this article.

The rulers, soldiers and one of the criminals mocked Jesus. These religious leaders were the men who had studied the law and the prophets, the Old Testament, but they were blind to what they were doing. In verse 36, we read that the soldiers mocked him, getting drawn along by the crowd, they seemed to be enjoying the moment and teased Jesus. Even the dying criminal next to Jesus had energy left to mock and jeer at Jesus.

But then we come to the repentant criminal. His dialogue with Jesus is often used to explain the fact that we are saved by grace and not by works. There is nothing this criminal could do to earn his salvation, he simply asked Jesus to save him. But we can easily miss the tremendous faith that it took for him to ask Jesus to save him. He possibly had never seen Jesus before, we don’t know. But here in front of all the people, as he was dying, he declared that Jesus was the King of Kings. If you were drowning, would you ask a drowning man for help?

Here was a dying man, asking a dying man for help. A crazy idea, unless he really believed that Jesus was the son of God.

As Jesus died, we have a snapshot of a centurion. He was a hardened Roman soldier who had probably witnessed hundreds of crucifixions, but he had never seen anyone die like Jesus did. He knew that Jesus was innocent, and he gave glory to God.  He knew that he had just witnessed God in the flesh, and he was forever changed.

The people who were cheering the crucifixion were changed (Luke 23:48). They came to see a spectacle and to mock but left in fear and remorse. As they witnessed the spotless son of God dying, they became aware of their own sins and began grieving. How terrible and hopeless that must have felt for them.

Coming back to Simon, the man recruited to carry the cross. It is likely that what he saw that day, led him to be a Christian. In Mark 15:21 and Romans 16:13 we see that his sons were a part of the early church.

Carrying the cross changed Simon and, on that day, he was the only true follower of Jesus. He was walking out a prophetic picture of what it means to be a Christian. Jesus said in Matthew 16:24, Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

Before Simon met Jesus, he was a religious Jew, going about his devotion. But to come to know Jesus, he had to leave behind his plans and his religion. He had to die to his plans and his ideas of what he wanted to do, and then he had to take up the cross of Jesus. Do you see the picture?

Matthew 16:24 is often misinterpreted. People often talk about a “cross” as a burden to carry, something like a chronic sickness or a thankless job, and we say, “it is my cross to bear”

But this is not what Jesus meant. In the 1st century, to carry your cross, was to walk to your death. It was a cruel and humiliating form of capital punishment. It wasn’t a temporary inconvenience.

Today we celebrate the cross as a symbol of our salvation and the love of God, but when Jesus said these words, it would have sounded a whole lot different.
To take up your cross is to completely abandon our plans and goals and submitting to the perfect will of God. This is the first step in being a follower of Jesus (see Luke 14:27).

Are you a follower of Jesus? Have you seen that radical change in your life? Or are you still the master of your own plan.

I can assure you that the only way to live in peace and have eternal salvation, is to be a follower of Jesus and not an observer.

Posted on

Sermon, Sunday November 29, 2020 We are at War

Click on the Camera to View the Video of the full Message

December 7, 1941, September 11 2001, April 15 2013. These dates will always be remembered as days when America was attacked by a foreign enemy. Dates when the distant war was brought close to home. But for the majority of people living in America in 2020, war is something that is glamorized in the movies or watched on the news from distant lands. The horror and the pain of war is not a reality that we are familiar with, and that is something to be thankful for this week as we celebrate Thanksgiving.

However, as Christians, we need to be reminded that we are on the frontlines of a real war with a vicious enemy who does not adhere to conventional rules of engagement. I am talking about the spiritual warfare that we are engaged in daily, whether we realize it or not.

Our enemy is an ancient one. Ephesians 6:12 says, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”

Satan was the most beautiful and anointed of the angels (Ezekiel 28:11-19). But because of his pride, the root of all sin, he fell and was cast out by God (Isaiah 14:9-20). But Satan still has access to God, and he is the accuser (Revelation 12:10), the deceiver (2 Corinthians 11:3) and the destroyer (1 Peter 5:8–9). The enemy of our souls and the enemy of the church is powerful and real.

The Apostle Paul closed the letter to the Ephesians with an encouragement to stand firm against the enemy of our souls. He began the letter by teaching on our identity as children of God in chapters 1 to 3. Then he continues with instructions of how we are to live and walk in our new identity as followers of Jesus in chapters 4 to the first part of chapter 6. This final section is not simply a closing paragraph, but is rather the capstone of this incredible letter.

Many people claim to be Christians because they have gone through the motions of some religious tradition, but they are not aware of the spiritual forces of evil that surround us on a daily basis. The Bible is clear that as true children of God, we are in a war. We are in a daily battle of life and death. We are fighting for the lives of our children, our co-workers and our neighbors. We are at war against spiritual forces that have the primary objective of taking souls with them to hell.

But there is good news, this enemy is raging because he is already defeated. When Jesus died and rose again, the victory over Satan was accomplished (John 12:31 and John 16:11). The apostle Paul does not urge us to fight for victory, rather we are fighting from the victory that is already completed. Satan is described in the Bible as the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4). We live in a broken world, eagerly waiting for Jesus to come again and finally cast Satan and his demons into the eternal fire of Hell (Revelation 20:10). But until that time, we are called to stand firm.

The encouragement to stand firm is echoed through verses 11 to 14. The key to standing is found in verse 10, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.” We are standing not in our own strength, but in the strength of the all-powerful God of the universe. He is our strength, His is the victory (Romans 8:37).

The Apostle Paul was keenly aware of his dependency on the strength of God, he embraced his weakness because he realized that this was the key to victory (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

“If dependence is the objective, weakness becomes an advantage. Beware your strengths, not your weaknesses, because your strengths are those places you are most likely to forget God.” JD Greear

We are dependent on God for our salvation and for our daily strength to stand against the enemy. We do not fight for victory, rather we fight from victory.

The key to living the victorious Christian life is living from the first three chapters of Ephesians. If we are not sitting before Jesus in worship, knowing our identity and walking in that, we will never be able to stand against the attacks of the enemy. Only those who sit can stand.

Our spiritual warfare is defensive, standing firm on the ground that Jesus has already secured with his victory over sin and death. As we stand firm, we have been given a defensive armor as we will see in the following verses of Ephesians 6.

Satan primarily attacks believers through our thoughts and feelings. Our emotions and our will. As we sit at the feet of Jesus and know our true identity as children of God, we are able to stand firm against these attacks.

We need to have a paradigm shift in our approach to the attacks of the enemy of our souls. We frequently ask God to help us to defeat Satan in a certain area of our lives, but may I suggest a different way of praying. We need to pray, thanking God for the victory that Jesus has already won and ask Him for the strength to stand firm.

This requires faith. Praising God for the miracle of victory even before we experience it. When you feel oppressed and attacked by Satan and his demons, simply praise God for what He has done and thank Him for the victory. Allowing God then to bring about the experience of that reality.

What is our reality? Remember that we are seated with Christ in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). Our limited faith and weak flesh struggles to accept this reality and we somehow feel that we have to win battles that have already been won. We have been saved to declare the truth of our position, by being Christ’s ambassadors here in order to bring glory to God.

If only the modern church grasped the truth that we stand from a position of victory. The victory does not occur in the book of Revelation, it has already occurred in the resurrection of Jesus that we read about in the Gospels.