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A Clean Slate!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
March 26, 2025

The phrase “clean slate” comes from the era of chalkboards. They were commonly made of slate, and what was on them could easily be erased so something new could be written. That’s what we celebrate at Easter. My favorite Easter verse in 1 Peter 1:3-5. It begins, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…” There are several parts to this passage, but this morning, I invite you to consider the first two parts: God’s great mercy and our new birth.

First, I like what Warren Wiersbe says about Grace and Mercy. He distinguishes between the two when he says, “Grace is what God gives me that I don’t deserve; mercy is what God doesn’t give me that I do deserve.” The thing that we all deserve is death as an eternal consequence of sin. But instead of eternal death, what we do deserve, He gives us “eternal life,” which we do not deserve. Peter shouts out, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!” It is an exclamation! Easter is our exclamation! David Jeremiah adds a little to the understanding of the difference between Grace and Mercy when he writes, “Mercy releases us from the penalty of our sin; grace gives us abundant blessings besides. And that is what God does for all who will accept His free gift of grace in Jesus Christ. Mercy cuts the bonds that bind us to our past; grace sends us into the future with resources for a better life. Mercy removes the filthy rags of our self-righteousness; grace clothes us with the white robes of the righteousness of Christ.”

The means by which God gives us this living hope is a new birth. Everyone is familiar with the phrase from Jesus to Nicodemus; “You must be born again.” It’s a new start: a fresh perspective. It’s a life lived in the glow of a new paradigm of reality, the reality that changes the way we understand the universe, time, and space, as well as ourselves and others. One writer told the story of a painter in Paris. The painter set up his easel, opened his paints, and started to paint a picture called “Life.” He noticed pigeons in the park, tulips blooming along the Champs-Elysees, and the bustle of people on the street. But he messed up his painting. His colors weren’t true, and his perspective was poor. Looking at his work with disfavor, he threw it away. He took another canvas and started “Life” all over again. Jesus allows us to do that through the new birth. Our old sins are buried in the deepest part of the sea, and we get a clean slate. Eugene Peterson’s interesting translation of the New Testament quotes Paul as saying, “Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 1:30 (The Message)

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Matthew 28:6, 1 Peter 1:3-5

Vivit! Vivit!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
March 25, 2025

My favorite Easter verse in 1 Peter 1:3-5. It begins, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…” Yesterday, I looked at two parts of this passage: God’s great mercy and our new birth. Today, consider the phrase “a living hope.” Some people spend the days of their lives moping around. Things haven’t turned out the way they had “hoped,” so they throw in the towel and give in to despair. Paul looked at the funerals of unbelievers and noticed that they were “lost and without hope in the world.” He told the believers in Thessalonica that he wanted to be sure that they understood that those who have died are simply sleeping for a time, and there will be a glorious reunion. That truth keeps the hopeful from the depths of despair. Without that hope, despair reigns supreme.

But the world is full of iron-willed individuals who find various ways to cope with life’s pains, heartbreaks, and setbacks. They trade what is eternal for what is temporal and fill their moments with pleasure, possessions, or positions of power or prestige. They live for the moment. They go for the gusto. “You only go around once in life,” the saying goes; you have to get it while you can. There are those who mope, those who cope, and then there are those who grope! They go through life seeking answers to life’s most profound questions: where did I come from? Where am I going? What am I here for? They experiment with every new fad that invades the culture: Transcendental meditation, Eastern Mysticism, Hinduism, Zen Buddhism, various forms of the occult, and some even grope through the horoscope section of the papers in search of purpose and meaning in life.

During one difficult period when things appeared especially bleak, the reformer Martin Luther was seen tracing two words on the table with his fingertip: “Vivit, vivit!” This is Latin for “He lives, He lives!” This truth brought Luther up from the dumps into a world filled with hope. Because Christ lives, we can live abundantly today. Jesus promised that he’d come to bring to us abundant life. But even more, we will live eternally tomorrow, a life in which the sins of our past have been forgiven, and in the glory of God’s Mercy and Grace, we will bask forever! So lift up your eyes, lift up your hearts, lift up your spirits, and focus your thoughts and hopes on the Lord of Life. Put a smile on your face and say, “Blessed be the God and Father of my Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to His abundant mercy, has begotten me again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead!”

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1 Peter 1:3-5, John 14:1-3

Putting on the Ritz!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
March 24, 2025

My favorite Easter passage is 1 Peter 1:3-5. It reads, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” The next phrase is what I’d like to focus on this morning. It goes on to say, “…to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading.” An inheritance is something we get for being connected to a family. By virtue of our being adopted into God’s family by being born again our names are written into His will. There are three great words that describe what this inheritance is like. First, it is incorruptible. This means it’s not subject to decay and growing old. It’s undefiled. That means it’s perfect, without blemish in every way. It won’t fade away; that means it’s permanent. The next part of the verse goes on to say that it is “reserved” for you. You can depend on it being there waiting for you when you get there. You have a place. Jesus once said, “I go to prepare a place for you.” He promised to take us to be with him in that place.

A man named Joe McCutchen preaches the gospel each Wednesday night at a homeless shelter in Atlanta. A drug addict named Willy began attending and responding to the message. Seeing his progress, the Shelter had Willy placed in a Christian rehab program in Tampa. Willie opened his heart to God’s Love expressed on the cross of Calvary, and he was born again through newfound faith in Jesus Christ and began to recover. Some months later, Willy called Joe. “Joe, when I got here, they asked me about my addictions, and they helped me through withdrawals. They talked to me about God. When they found out I used to be a master chef, they called around and got me a job at the Ritz-Carlton. In my rehab program, I learned that I should do everything with all my heart like I was doing it for God. Now I’m head chef at the Ritz-Carlton. I’d like to come back to the homeless shelter some Wednesday and give my testimony.” “That’d be great, Willy,” said Joe. “And while you’re here, Judy and I would like for you to stay with us. No need to pay for a room.” There was a pause on the line, and then Willy said, “That’s not necessary, Joe. When I come to Atlanta, there’s already a room waiting for me. I’ll be staying at the Ritz.”

You and I have a place reserved for us. It’s far grander, far more glorious, and far greater than the Ritz! I love the way the King James translators handled John 14:1-3. It reads, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” The Ritz might be the slums in comparison to what awaits us. Paul says, “In Him, we have obtained an inheritance…so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.” Ephesians 1:11-12

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1 Peter 1:3-5

Not Fade Away!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
March 23, 2025

According to 1 Peter 5:4, upon our arrival in heaven, the chief Shepherd will give to the undershepherds the “unfading crown of glory.” This phrase carries the idea that was illustrated by Moses’ “fading glory” when he returned from spending time with God on Mount Sinai. His face would shine brightly, but in time, the glow would wear off. Time always wears away the glow! I look at my old scrapbooks and see what 50 years have done to my appearance. At 15, I had a full head of hair and a youthful vigor, and now I have a shining bald spot. And what’s left is thinning out and turning grey. My hearing isn’t as good as it was then. The world around me has faded into such a fuzzy picture I need glasses to bring it all back into focus again. I’m not sure that I’ve ever glowed, but the “shine” of life gets dimmer with each passing year. In my favorite Easter verse, 1 Peter 1:3-5, our inheritance in heaven is described as being “imperishable, undefiled, and unfading.”

The Greek word for “unfading” is the word for amaranth. It’s from the same root word as the “unfading crown of Glory” in 1 Peter 5. Amaranth is the name of a particular flower. According to Robertson’s “Word Pictures in the New Testament,” this Greek verb is derived from the name of a particular flower “…so called because it never withers and revives if moistened with water, and so used as a symbol of immortality.” Milton also used the amaranth as the symbol of immortality in “Paradise Lost.” He suggests that the amaranth bloomed near the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden. Some flowers today are called “everlastings” because even when picked, they maintain their brilliant colors. The amaranth is one of those. It’s a beautiful, deep scarlet color.

Heaven is the place where nothing will fade, nothing will wear out, nothing will rot, and nothing will be destroyed. We have a home there! It’s waiting for us who have come to faith in Jesus and are trusting in His work of salvation accomplished on the cross. Our eternal home is so much different from our temporary residence in this world that Jesus emphasized the importance of living more for the coming reality than the present “fading away” reality. He tells us, “Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys” (Luke 12:33). As we look forward to eternal life it becomes easier to loosen our grip on our possessions and money and to share what we have and to give when we can and to serve others as much as we can while on temporary assignment. This brings treasures that will not wear out or, like the amaranth, fade away. When dowsed with the water of life, we are refreshed and renewed to new life.  The Apostle John writes, “He will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Revelation 7:17

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Psalm 145:8

My Work Ethic VS God’s Grace

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
March 22, 2025

My Dad grew up in the depression years. In 1933, when he was 19, he joined FDR’s Civilian Conservation Corps. A recent internet article says, “In his first 100 days in office, President Roosevelt approved several measures as part of his ‘New Deal,’ including the Emergency Conservation Work Act (ECW), better known as the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). With that action, he brought together the nation’s young men and the land in an effort to save them both. Roosevelt proposed to recruit thousands of unemployed young men, enlist them in a peacetime army, and send them to battle the erosion and destruction of the nation’s natural resources. The CCC, also known as Roosevelt’s Tree Army, was credited with renewing the nation’s decimated forests by planting an estimated three billion trees. This was crucial, especially in states affected by the Dust Bowl, where reforestation was necessary to break the wind, hold water in the soil, and hold the soil in place. So far-reaching was the CCC’s reforestation program that it was responsible for more than half the reforestation, public and private, accomplished in the nation’s history.

It was there that he learned all about the American work ethic. Sooner or later every one learns this very important lesson. We’ve summed it up in many American clichés: There’s no such thing as a free lunch, you get what you earn in life, you make your bed and you must sleep in it. The Bible’s version of this uses a farming metaphor: What you sow, you will reap. It’s sometimes called the Puritan work ethic because of early settlers in our land who had to tame a wilderness to make it livable. As Americans know that we only get what we are willing to work hard for. One of the highest values (at least of the former generations) has been sweat and hard work. My Dad lived by it, and I knew very early in life that the only way I’d ever win my father’s approval was through effort and hard work.

The only problem is that it has hindered my understanding of how God operates in the lives of His children. I’m still locked into the belief that He only values effort, sweat, and discipline. It’s only what I “DO” that pleases Him, or more often, it’s what I “DON’T DO” that displeases Him. Many of us are still driven by this work ethic in our efforts to gain God’s approval. But God doesn’t operate that way. We will never understand God until we understand Grace. The more we understand Grace, the more we understand God, and the more we’re going to be drawn to Him. The more we understand Grace, the more we’re going to love Him. Even the Old Testament Psalmist sang about this, “God is gracious and compassionate; slow to anger and rich in love.” Psalm 145:8

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Isaiah 30:18

Earning God’s Love!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
March 21, 2025

Dad taught me how to work hard, and I always pleased him when I did. I learned to relate to him in that way. But God doesn’t operate on the basis of our learned work ethic. God operates on the basis of Grace. There have been many attempts to define Grace. I’m not certain any of them fully captures what it’s all about. Grace is like a multi-faceted jewel. It’s cut to catch and disperse light in many different directions. As we turn it, we see its grandeur from different angles. In general, Grace is God’s love channeled to us wherever we are and whenever we need it. Some have called Grace “God’s love in action.” Others have said it’s “God giving me what I need, not what I deserve.” Someone else said that Grace is the face that God wears when he looks at my failures. All of them are good. As we turn the gem of God’s Grace, we see very many different aspects of it.

We often get Grace and Mercy confused because they are mentioned together in several Bible passages, and we tend to take them as synonymous. But there is a difference between them. Most of you already know that mercy is when God doesn’t give us what we deserve, i.e., punishment. But Grace is when God gives us something wonderful that we don’t deserve. Yet, when you realize that what we deserve is Hell, but God gives us Heaven, then you might begin to get a grip on the depth of God’s love and begin to understand Grace. It’s not just not being punished; it’s receiving the grand prize!

You know this. I know this! Right? What’s the point? We already know this! I must ask myself then, why is it that I more often live in the dark shadows of the work ethic instead of the shining light of God’s grace? Why do I still find my motivation in thinking that it’s what I do that pleases or displeases God? We know that we are saved entirely by Grace, yet we still insist on operating under the assumption we can earn more of God’s acceptance by trying to become perfect. If I could just be a better person, I’d feel better about myself, and so would God. The truth is God could not feel better about you and me than He does right now! The truth is most of us spend much of our lives thinking that Grace is something that we must earn. We may not think it, but we live as if God is some unpleasable parent frowning at our failures and smiling at our successes. We are saved by Grace, but we often live as if we’re saved by works, and our relationship with God is dependent on our works. I’m convinced that this is the greatest hindrance to a healthy relationship with God. He wants to love us unconditionally. But instead of simply accepting God’s love, we want to show him how good we can be! I think that might break his heart. The Old Testament prophet said, “The Lord longs to be gracious to you.” Isa. 30:18

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Acts 15:11, Ephesians 2:8-9

The Free Gift!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
March 20, 2025

I’ve seen many of those credit card commercials where the cost of particular items was listed, and then something very nebulous like “a happy home – priceless.” The writers of those commercials are not giving anything away and they are indeed good salesman. They are telling us that the way to have a happy home is to have the things preceding them with price tags on them and use their credit card to get them. That’s pretty creative advertising. I’ve had several people tell me indirectly and even directly, that I’d make a good salesman. I’m not sure whether that’s an insult or a compliment, but regardless, I don’t think of myself as a salesman. I’ve never considered myself as a salesman primarily because I have nothing to sell. There is no price tag whatsoever on what God offers us, and I don’t want others to see any kind of price tag on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Salvation is absolutely free. I want to be a bearer of good news – “The Good News: Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures and rose again on the third day…” Truly, this is the only thing that’s perfectly “priceless.”

It can’t be bought with cash, checks, or credit cards. Money can’t buy it. All the good works in the world can’t earn it, and there is absolutely nothing in the world we can do to deserve it. You can’t inherit it. You can’t win it in a popularity contest. It’s not an award that’s handed out at a banquet. God does not barter with us! He will never bargain! If we’re going to do any business with God, it will be on His terms and on His terms alone. The best things in life aren’t things at all. The best things in life are indeed free, but the absolute best thing in life is absolutely free. Max Lucado put it this way: “He holds in His omnipotent hand the priceless, precious, eternal gift of salvation, and He bids you to take it without money and without price. The best things in life are free, are they not? The air we breathe is not sold by the cubic foot. The water which flows crystal clear from the mountain stream is free for the taking. Love is free, faith is free, and hope is free.”

It’s all a free gift! It’s all of Grace. One of our favorite hymns goes like this: Wonderful grace of Jesus, greater than all my sin; how shall my tongue describe it, where shall its praise begin? Taking away my burden, setting my spirit free, for the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me. Wonderful grace of Jesus, reaching to all the lost, by it, I have been pardoned, saved to the uttermost; chains have been torn asunder, giving me liberty, for the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me. Wonderful grace of Jesus, reaching the most defiled by its transforming power, making him God’s dear child, purchasing peace and heaven for all eternity—and the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me. Chorus: Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus, deeper than the mighty rolling sea; higher than the mountain, sparkling like a fountain, all-sufficient grace for even me; broader than the scope of my transgressions, greater far than all my sin and shame; O magnify the precious name of Jesus, praise His name! The book of Acts asks a relevant question, “Don’t you believe that all are saved the same way, by the free gift of the Lord Jesus?” Acts 15:11 (LB)

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2 Samuel 9:1, Revelation 3:20

That’s Grace!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
March 19, 2025

We often think of grace as something in the New Testament only. The Bible says, “The law came through Moses, but grace came through Jesus Christ.” But the Old Testament is filled with stories illustrating God’s grace. In 2 Samuel 9 there is a the beautiful little story of Mephibosheth. He was Jonathan’s son and the grandson of King Saul. Jonathan and David were best friends, but Saul tried to kill David to keep him from becoming the King. He chased him all over the countryside in several attempts to eliminate him. David never retaliated. David and Jonathan made a promise that if either of them died, they would take care of each other’s families. When Saul and Jonathan were both killed in battle, and David was made King, all of Saul’s relatives went into hiding, knowing that David would eliminate all the remnants of Saul’s dynasty.

One of them was Mephibosheth. He was a paraplegic and had no means of running and hiding. Some argue that when the family was fleeing from the enemy army, the nurse dropped him in the midst of the panic, and that’s when his legs were broken. He managed somehow to get away. Sometime later, David asked if there were any of Saul’s family left alive after the battles, and they told him that there was only this one little crippled boy. David sent for him. I think of what fear Mephibosheth must have had when he was summoned before the King. I’m sure he was convinced that he was to be executed with the rest of Saul’s family. But instead, David took him into his own household and cared for him for the rest of his life. He sat with David’s family at meals, and he became as if he were one of David’s own sons.

Being born into the human race, I, too, was an enemy of God. I, too, will be summoned one day by God to stand before Him. I am crippled and broken in many different ways; emotionally, spiritually, and willfully. But God comes to us in the person of His beloved Son and tells us that he’s going to bring us into His own family. He’s going to set a place for us at His own table, and He’s going to adopt us as one of his own children. Like the father of the prodigal son, He wraps his robes of righteousness around us, gives us the ring of family authority, sits us at His table, and has a festive celebration on our behalf. I expect judgment and condemnation, but through Jesus Christ, I receive Grace. Jesus said that He did not come to condemn the world but to save it. He was talking about me and you! We read this invitation in the last book of the Bible, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hears my voice, and open the door, I will come into him and will sup with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:20

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