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Romans 5:10-11

The Joys of Reconciliation!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
February 13, 2025

We have been given the Ministry of Reconciliation. I’m sure you, as you read this, are aware of past or even present relationships that need to be reconciled. Some of us even live under the constant pain of a relationship that will never be reconciled because of the hardness of the heart of someone who will not, or maybe cannot, forgive. There are even those who have harmed us deeply and will not acknowledge that hurt or repent from their action and, therefore, remain alienated. These are the relationships that break our hearts and cause us to lose sleep at night. Paul warns the Romans about this problem and acknowledges that living in peace with all people is not often possible. He tells the Romans, “As far as it is in your power, live at peace with all people” (see Romans 12:18).

The message of Paul to unbelievers is that God loves people and has sent his Son into the world to reconcile them to himself. One of the saddest stories in English literature is the one of the relationship of Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806–61) to her father. He so strongly disapproved of her marriage to Robert Frost (1812–89) that he disowned her. Elizabeth wrote many love letters to her father, asking for reconciliation. He never once replied. After ten years of letter writing, Elizabeth received two packages from her father in the mail. She opened them hopefully. To her dismay and heartbreak, the packages contained all of her letters to him, the unbroken seals indicating that not one of them had ever been opened or read! Today, those love letters are among the most beautiful in classical English literature. Had her father opened and read only a few of them, reconciliation might have been effected. The incarnation and cross of Jesus Christ is God’s love letter of reconciliation to the human race. Paul’s lesson is clearly expressed elsewhere when he wrote, “We beg you, on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God” (2 Cor. 5:20). It is pure misery to be alienated from a loved one.

Hopefully, you will also remember times when reconciliation was established with an alienated friend or relative. It’s a time of great joy and peace. This is what Paul was referring to in the book of Romans when he talked about our reconciliation in Chapter 5. In verses 10 and 11, he says, “We are reconciled,” but goes on to say, “More than that…” What he means by “more” is what comes in connection with reconciliation. The “more” he is referring to is: “More than that, we also rejoice through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” The joy of reconciliation is joy in God. John Piper argues that it’s not only “the removal of enmity” that’s effected by reconciliation; “it’s the arrival of joy.” That’s dramatically illustrated for us in the story of the prodigal son. Luke tells us that the father said, “We had to celebrate this happy day. For your brother was dead and has come back to life! He was lost, but now he is found!” Luke 15:32

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Hosea 6:6

Love is the Greatest!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
February 12, 2025

When we talk about worship, we don’t want to neglect the fact that it always involves our offerings. The offerings we make to God, however, are not offerings of obligation but offerings of love. Our gifts and sacrifices are expressions of our deep love and “worth-ship” of God. With Valentine’s Day coming up, I know I better give my wife a gift. But she doesn’t want my gifts that are motivated out of “ought, must, or should.” She wants my gifts motivated by my love. Gifts given in order to get some specific benefit or to prevent some kind of negative consequences are not the kind of gifts that are really pleasing to my wife, nor to God. She doesn’t want chocolate, flowers, candy, or teddy bears. She wants my love. That’s exactly what God says to us regarding our worship. Hosea 6:6 reads, “I don’t want your sacrifices—I want your love; I don’t want your offerings—I want you to know me.”

This passage in Hosea was one of Jesus’ favorite passages. He quoted it several times. He frequently challenged the professing religious people of his day to reexamine their motives. They insisted on ritualistic, formalized religious expressions as the fulfillment of the covenantal relationship between God and people. Jesus sent them away by quoting Hosea 6:6 saying, “go and learn what this means, I want your love, not your offerings.” I remember the old Tom Jones song from the 1960s; The lyrics went something like this: I awakened this morning, I was filled with despair. All my dreams turned to ashes, and now they are gone. And I looked at my life. It was barren and bare. Without Love, I had nothing at all. Without Love, I had nothing. Without Love, I had nothing at all. I had conquered the world. But what then did I have? Without Love, I had nothing at all.”

We can do all kinds of good service. We can give all kinds of good things, but it all amounts to nothing apart from the only acceptable motivation, Love. That’s what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13. He wrote, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned but have not love, I gain nothing.” It’s not about the gift or the sacrifice. It’s about the motive. What I say doesn’t matter without love. What I do doesn’t matter without love. What I believe doesn’t matter without love. According to the Apostle Paul, the three most important things are faith, hope, and love. And the greatest of these three things is love. Love is the essential ingredient of worship

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Matthew 4:10

Worship is a Must!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
February 11, 2025

In the Gospel of John, we are given three essentials. They are the “musts” of his Gospel. The first must is in Chapter 3 when he was speaking to Nicodemus. He said, “You MUST be born again.” A meaningful, satisfying relationship with God begins with the new birth. A time of spiritual renewal during which we place our confidence not in the flesh but in God and what He accomplished for us on the cross of Calvary.  I want to insist that this is the basis for the monergistic view of salvation. Jesus does it all. We just accept it as a free gift by faith. Jesus paid it all. Most religions hold a synergistic view, arguing that we must contribute something to the salvation experience. That’s not salvation by faith alone. The second must is in verse 3:14, Jesus Himself said, “as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness so the son of Man MUST be lifted up.” Jesus is the center of our confidence. It’s all about Him. The charge of born-again believers is to always lift up Jesus.  When we contribute to our own salvation, we take some credit, and all of it belongs to Jesus. The third must come in Chapter 4 when Jesus was talking to the woman at the well and said, “But the hour is coming, and is now here when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him MUST worship in spirit and truth.”

The “must” of worship is in spirit, not in the Holy Spirit. The definite article is missing in Greek. It was time, Jesus said that as a result of His death and resurrection, the place of worship is no longer a physical temple, but rather it would be in man’s spirit. I believe we are Trinitarian beings just like God. We have a body, a soul, and a spirit. Worship must take part in man’s inner parts, his core of existence, that is, his spirit. Many people consider themselves to have worshipped because they’ve been to the right place at the right time. In Jesus’ day, the right place was Jerusalem for the Jews and Samaria for the Samaritans. We often are confused as well and think that the right place is in a church building. If we have occupied a seat, have sung a song, or have listened to a sermon, then we have worshipped. Hopefully, those things are aids to our worship, but they are not worship in and of themselves. Our soul life or feelings are not the true source of worship either. The soul is often referred to as the seat of our emotions. Emotions can be stirred by true worship. Tears may swell up in our eyes, and joy might flood our hearts, but unfortunately, it is possible for these things to happen without true worship.

True worship only occurs when our spirit attunes to God, for God Himself is spirit. William Barclay has written on this point, “The true, the genuine worship is when man, through his spirit, attains to friendship and intimacy with God. True and genuine worship is not to come to a certain place; it is not to go through a certain ritual or liturgy; it is not even bringing certain gifts. True worship is when the spirit, the immortal and invisible part of man, speaks to and meets with God, who is immortal and invisible.” This cannot be done if we hold on to any credit for our salvation. True worship can only happen when we attribute everything to Jesus. Satan would have us believe we contribute something. We do not! Matthew uses the word “only” to explain that truth when Jesus has to confront Satan. He said, ““Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the LORD your God and serve only him.’” Matthew 4:10

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John 4:24

Worship in Truth!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
February 10, 2025

Jesus told the woman at the well that worship in “spirit” was essential. But he also said it was to be “in truth.” What does it mean to worship “in truth.” I think there are several components to the answer to that question that come to my mind. There are probably many more. But first, it means that when we approach God and draw near to Him, we must do it honestly and wholeheartedly. In Matthew 15, Jesus spoke about the wrong kind of worshippers whom he said, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. … They worship me in vain.” It’s easy to pretend to worship as we look around at others with us or evaluate everything that is going on rather than honestly opening our lives to Him. That surely can’t be worship “in truth.”

Second, to worship “in truth,” we must do it on the basis of the biblical revelation. In the passage I quoted above, when Jesus told about those whose worship was “in vain,” he went on to explain further that vain worship involved substituting rules taught by man (Matthew 15:8f). Jesus said in John 17:17 that God’s Word “is truth.” So, if we are to worship in “truth,” it must be in accord with Scripture. During the spiritual revival of the Reformation, the altars in many churches were replaced with pulpits. It was to reestablish the prominence of God’s Word in “worship.” The Pulpit became the symbol of the centrality of the Bible. John Calvin carried this idea to physical extremes. The pulpits were placed so that every line of the architecture would carry the gaze of the worshiper to the Book that alone contains the way of salvation and the principles for a God-honoring life. A physical pulpit was not in Jesus’ mind, but the centrality of the Scriptures certainly was, as is clear from His words, “God’s Word is Truth.” Thus, if we are to worship in truth, the Scriptures must be central to our experience.

I would also offer a third observation. To worship in truth is to worship God “Christocentrically.” He made it clear that no one can “come to the Father” except through Him (John 14:6). If worship is man’s attempt to draw near to God, to be “true,” it must come through Jesus. I remember the Tabernacle of the Old Testament, where all worship took place. From its construction, the approach to God is illustrated. The altar, which is the sacrifice for sin, is the first step. Thus, the cross, the sacrifice that paid for all our sins, is the first step in approaching God. Then comes the laver, which is a picture of cleansing. The incense represents our prayers. Behind it all stretches out the great veil dividing the Holy place from the Holy of Holies. This was the veil that was torn in half when Jesus died on the cross. This is where the blood of the sacrifice made atonement for our sins and opens the way for all to enter to receive the great mercy of God revealed through Christ by his death on the cross for our sins. There is no other way to draw near to God. There is no other way to worship God in “truth.” John tells us that Jesus said, “I am the truth…” John 14:6

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Isaiah 62:2

A New Name!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
February 9, 2025

In Colorado, there is a town named “No Name.” I was wondering what it might be like to live without a name. For a believer, we not only have a name, we have a new name! Everything belongs to God. I belong to God. You belong to God. My three grandsons belong to God. One of them had something he wanted to say to me. That’s what he said. “I’ve got something to say to you, Papa.” He had the most serious look on his face, I said “what is it Zeke?” with as straight a face as I could manage. He said, “Just because something has somebody’s name on it doesn’t mean it belongs to them.” I don’t know where he came up with that idea, but I suspect he’s been taking things that belong to his big brother and has been arguing that he has the right to do that. I tried to teach him that when you see something with someone’s name on it, you can be pretty sure that it does belong to them. I advised him to leave those things alone. You and I, all of us, have God’s name on us. Through our faith in Christ, we get a new name! It’s our new identity. We’ve been born again into a new family, adopted, and changed our name. We now belong to Christ. That’s exactly what “Christian” really means.

As those who belong to God, we’ve moved into a new home. The Psalmist puts it in various terms, but I like it when he sings about God being our “dwelling place.” We read in Psalm 91:9-11, “Because you have made the LORD your dwelling place—the Most High, who is my refuge—no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” Belonging to God guarantees His protection. Since I have God’s name on me, no one else better mess around with me. God has a whole army of angels, The Heavenly Host, who are ready to go to war for me!

Max Lucado expresses this truth beautifully. He writes, “It would be enough if God just cleansed your name, but he does more. He gives you his name. It would be enough if God just set you free, but he does more. He takes you home … God adopted you simply because he wanted to. You were in his goodwill and pleasure. Knowing full well the trouble you would be and the price he would pay, he signed his name next to yours, changed your name to his, and took you home. Your Abba adopted you and became your father.” Isaiah wrote, “And you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of the LORD will give.” Isaiah 62:2

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Isaiah 43:1-2

God says, “You’re Mine!”

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
February 8, 2025

When I did my search on “belong” in the bible, I found that we belong to God, to Christ, to the Church, and to each other. Today, I looked more closely at what it means to belong to God. In the culture we live in, we will shout, “I don’t belong to anyone.” As a song in the 60’s said, “You don’t own me, I’m not just one of your toys.” Of course, there’s some significant truth in this idea: we don’t “belong” to anyone in the sense of ownership. All men are created equal and have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I read that somewhere. But we do belong to God, even in the sense of ownership. The Psalmist sang about it a lot. You might be familiar with Psalm 100. We used to sing it a lot at our Church 30 years ago. It says, “Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.”

This is a theme throughout the Bible. Ezekiel 18:4 says, “Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine…” Paul acknowledges the truth of God’s ownership of his life also. In Acts 27, he says, “For this very night there stood before me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship…” To understand what it means to belong to God is to get a grasp on Paul’s quote in this passage.

In that quote from Paul, you might remember that he’s the only calm passenger on a ship that is on its way to Rome. It encountered a terrible storm, and the crew and the officers struggled with how to save the ship and tried all they could to keep from losing it. Then they gave up with the thought of saving the ship and desperately only wanted to save their own lives. Paul, cool and collected, put them all at peace and explained that they would all be safe and that they should just trust in his God. He knew he “belonged” to God and that God had a purpose and a plan for His life. He was safe and secure no matter what storms of life may assault him because he knew that he belonged to God as a precious possession. God would not let anything happen to him. Isaiah 43:1-2 explains the true significance of what it means for us to belong to God. It reads, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.” I think Paul understood what it meant to belong to God. God says, “Anyone who harms you harms my most precious possession.” Zechariah 2:8

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1 Corinthians 3:21

Jesus says, “You’re Mine!”

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
February 7, 2025

Robert Ingersoll, an atheistic philosopher of a previous generation, said that believers were like “a songless bird in a cage.” I’m afraid that many unbelieving people today still have that same impression of Christians. But I’d argue that if the truth be known, that phrase would much better describe a non-believer. The story would be that God made us all. We belong to God. God commissioned us to have dominion over the entire world and to enjoy life to its fullest. But we traded that dominion and freedom when we ate of the apple from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. We thus became slaves to sin. It was then that we were enslaved in the cage of sin. Jesus put it this way: “Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.” (John 8:34). We sold ourselves. But Christ bought us back. He paid the penalty (price) for our sin and redeemed us. The word “redeem” in the Greek text means to “buy back.”

Dr. A. J. Gordon was the pastor of a church in Boston many years ago. One day, he met a little boy out in front of the church. The boy was carrying a rusty bird cage in his hands, and several little birds were fluttering around at the bottom of the cage as if they knew they were going to be destroyed. Dr. Gordon said, “Son, where did you get those birds?” The boy answered, “I trapped them out in the field.” “What are you going to do with them?” the preacher asked. “I’m going to take them home, play with them, and have some fun with them.” “What will you do with them when you get through playing with them?” Dr. Gordon asked. “Oh,” said the boy, “I guess I’ll just feed them to an old cat we have around the house.” Then Dr. Gordon asked the boy how much he would take for the birds, and the boy answered, “Mister, you don’t want these birds. They’re just little old field birds who can’t sing very well.”

Dr. Gordon said, “I’ll give you two dollars for the cage and the birds.” “All right,” said the boy, “It’s a deal, but you’re making a bad bargain.” The exchange was made, and the boy went whistling down the street, happy because he had two dollars in his pocket. Dr. Gordon took the cage out behind his church and opened the door of the cage and the birds flew out and went soaring away into the blue, singing as they went. The next Sunday Dr. Gordon took the empty bird cage to the pulpit to use it in illustrating his sermon. Then he said, “That little boy said that the birds could not sing very well, but when I released them from the cage, they went singing away into the blue, and it seems that they were singing, “Redeemed, redeemed, redeemed.” So it is with the believer in Jesus. We’ve been purchased, and we belong to him. He can do whatever he wishes with us. What does he do? He opens the cage and sets us free! Paul told the Corinthians, “And you belong to Christ…” 1 Corinthians 3:21

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Ephesians 2:19-20

The Church says, “You’re Mine!”

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
February 6, 2025

We belong to God. We belong to Christ by redemption, and we belong to the Church, which is the family of God. 1st Timothy 3:15 says, “The family of God is the church of the living God. It is the pillar and foundation of the truth.” Paul tells the Ephesian believers that they are not Jewish, they are not gentiles, they are not strangers to one another any longer, but they are “citizens together with God’s holy people.” He then says to them, “You belong to God’s family.” (Ephesians 2:19-20). Interestingly, the New Testament language regarding entrance into God’s family uses two key phrases. We are born into God’s family by faith. Jesus told Nicodemus that he had to be “born again” to enter into God’s family. It also speaks to us about being adopted. We are not part of God’s family until we come to faith in God’s Son, Jesus, at which time we become brothers and sisters in one big happy family of God’s redeemed children.

It’s not enough for a Christian to believe. Every believer must also be a “belonger.” It is through belonging in a family that we grow up. We learn to relate to one another, forgive one another, understand one another, serve one another, and care for one another. It requires good, healthy nourishment for us to grow up spiritually strong and mature in God’s family. God’s Word is our food. Jeremiah says, “Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name…” That means he’s in God’s family. Job said, “I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.” Jesus also said that His food was to do the will of the Father (John 4). God’s Word, the Bible, is often referred to as food. God’s Word is bread (Matt. 4:4), milk (1 Pet. 2:2), meat (Heb. 5:12–14; 1 Cor. 3:1–2), and honey (Ps. 119:103). As we meditate on God’s Word, the truth is “digested” inwardly, and we receive strength ( Josh. 1:6–9). When we are babes, we receive the Word from others who have “digested” it for us (1 Thess. 2:7–8), but as we grow spiritually, we learn to feed ourselves and enjoy the full diet of the Word. We can enjoy the “meat” as well as the “milk.”

I wanted my sons to eat right. I try hard to get my grandsons to eat healthy food, drink their milk, and eat their vegetables and meat. But too often, they only want Mountain Dew and candy! (So do I!) But God, being the good father that He is (Perfect!), wants what’s best for us. As members of God’s family, He wants us to grow up and learn how to live with each other in the way that pleases Him and brings the most happiness in life. Remember what Paul said, “You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family.” Ephesians 2:19

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