Putting Our Trust in God:

I believe that many people are missing out on experiencing God, because they are not putting their entire trust in God.  They say things like I feel God is calling me to do more in the church but I do not have the time, I don’t have the ability to speak in front of others.  The problem is that we do not truly believe that God is all knowing and wants the best for us.  He isn’t going to call us to go and do something that we are going to fall flat on or face.  Richard Blackaby puts it this way,  “By nature God is omniscient, or all-knowing. He is not limited by the dimension of time—He knows the past, present, and future. He created all things, so nothing is outside of His knowledge. Whenever God expresses Himself to you, therefore, His directions are always right. When God gives you a directive, you can be sure He has already considered every factor. You will never do God's bidding only to discover that God was somehow mistaken. You can have absolute confidence that when God tells you to do something, it is the right course of action.”

We must be careful to make sure that we are going in the direction that God wants us to, it is easy for us to get an idea then be carried away with it in the excitement of the moment.  Once we have a thought we should then go ahead and pray about it and talk it over with some trusted Godly Friends.  Let us look at Gideon who wanted to make sure that he was doing what God wanted.  “Then Gideon said to God, “If you are truly going to use me to rescue Israel as you promised,  prove it to me in this way. I will put some wool on the threshing floor tonight. If the fleece is wet with dew in the morning but the ground is dry, then I will know that you are going to help me rescue Israel as you promised.” And it happened just that way. When Gideon got up the next morning, he squeezed the fleece and wrung out a whole bowlful of water.  Then Gideon said to God, “Please don’t be angry with me, but let me make one more request. This time let the fleece remain dry while the ground around it is wet with dew.” So that night God did as Gideon asked. The fleece was dry in the morning, but the ground was covered with dew.”( Judges 6:36-40)

Once we have centered our lives around God and not this world then we are going to put our trust in God and see Him do things we never thought possible.  Let us look at the Disciples these twelve men who were just twelve everyday people, yet in Matthew 10:1 we read this, “Then Jesus^ summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness.”  God is the creator of all that living and dead who give, He says follow me and I can do great things in you and through you.  He gives us a warning with that as well, if you read the remainder of chapter Matthew ten.  But He tells us Follow me, trust me and be changed forever.  But it starts with us trusting in God.  We have to trust that when God calls us He is going to provide.  “When we announce what we think we can't do in response to God's initiative, we are actually saying more about our faith in God than we are about our own abilities. The fact is, either we believe God is all-powerful or we don't. When you declare it's impossible for you to do what God told you to do, you show your doubts about how powerful God really is. It is one thing to believe in God's power, it is quite another to live your life in obedient response to an all-powerful God.” (Richard Blackaby)

Blackaby, Richard (2008-09-01). Experiencing God (p. 16). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Blackaby, Richard (2008-09-01). Experiencing God (p. 16). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

God’s Nature is His Love: Part Two

The commandants God gave us is for our own good, when asked which is the greatest of the commandments Christ told them, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.  A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. All the other commandments and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”  When we love God we are putting our trust and faith in God.  God did not make up these rules to make your life hard but He gave them so you could live life to the fullest.  He tells you, you can have a great marriage and children that love and respect you, but do not cheat on your spouse or lust after others.  Why did He say this? Because He knows that if you go and cheat on or lust after others, it is going to cause problems for your marriage.  But if you first love God, and worship Him, then that love is going to overflow into you marriage and then into other parts of your life.  God wants us to have a life of abundant life, John 10:10 tells us this, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”  God’s commandments are given to us for our own good.  So we can live a richer and deeper life with God. 

In his book Experiencing God Richard Blackaby explains God’s commands.  “God's commands are designed to guide you to the best He has to offer. You will struggle to obey Him, however, if you do not trust Him. You will not trust Him if you do not love Him. And you will not love Him unless you know Him. But if you come to know Him as He reveals Himself to you, you will love Him, trust Him, and obey Him. The Bible is crystal clear at this point: if you love God, you will obey Him! If you do not obey Him, you do not really love Him, regardless of what you may claim (see John 14:24).”  Christ tells us if we love Him we are to follow Him and obey, but God’s love is so deep for us that He has given us help.  John 14:23-26 Christ says this; ““All those who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and live with them. ²⁴ Anyone who doesn’t love me will not do what I say. And remember, my words are not my own. This message is from the Father who sent me. ²⁵ I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. ²⁶ But when the Father sends the Counselor as my representative—and by the Counselor I mean the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I myself have told you.”

The writer of Hebrews tells us this; “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us.  We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish. He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterward. Now he is seated in the place of highest honor beside God’s throne in heaven. Think about all he endured when sinful people did such terrible things to him, so that you don’t become weary and give up.”(Heb 12:1-4)

A.W. Tozer wrote, “The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One. Many ordinary treasures may be denied him, or if he is allowed to have them, the enjoyment of them will be so tempered that they will never be necessary to his happiness. Or if he must see them go, one after one, he will scarcely feel a sense of loss, for having the Source of all things he has in One all satisfaction, all pleasure, all delight. Whatever he may lose he has actually lost nothing, for he now has it all in One, and he has it purely, legitimately and forever.”

Blackaby, Richard (2008-09-01). Experiencing God (p. 16). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition

Tozer, A.W.; Tozer, Aidan; Tozer, Aidan Wilson (2011-01-31). The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer (p. 20). Christian Miracle Foundation Press. Kindle Edition.

God’s Nature is His Love: Part One

God’s nature is Love, many times people think of God and they think of Him being a God that only judges, and tells people what they can and cannot.  But God’s true nature is Love.  We have all had parents, at some point in our lives we felt that they only created rules and told us what we can and cannot do.  But for most parents it is in their nature to love and protect their children.  It is through Gods love that we come to know Him, if He didn’t love us would He take the time to discipline us?  Hebrews 12:6, for the Lord disciplines those whom he loves.”  Think about this if your parents just let you do whatever you wanted and never corrected you is that love?  The answer is no, without correction, without discipline we learn nothing.  We would grow up to become adults thinking that we can do whatever we want without any consequences.   God instead has one given us His word letting us know what is going to happen if we do not accept His love and adoption into His family, along with warnings,  Second and most importantly He sent us His Son.  John 3:16-17 tells us; “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.  God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.”

If we want to experience God in the fullest we must come to the understanding of God’s love for us.  1^st John 3:16 tells us, “We know what real love is because Christ gave up his life for us. And so we also ought to give up our lives for our Christian brothers and sisters.”  How do we know that God loves us because He gave us His Son.  We can go around and grumble about how others around us mock us, or tell us that God is only for fools.  But we know the truth, the truth is Christ died on a cross for our sins to set us free, to give us true peace no matter what we are going through.  We must put our trust in God and know that His nature is going to heal us from the inside out.  You may say but if I accept this Love that God offers don’t I have to give up a bunch stuff?  Don’t I have start doing knew things like coming to church, giving of tithe? What about the things I may have to give up, things that I like?  All this is true, you may have to do knew things, and may have to give up things.  All these things are going to be easier than you think when you come to God and give your whole heart to God. 

If God is a God of Love then why all the commandments and rules I mean after all if you love something don’t you set it free and let it do whatever it wants.  As an owner of two dogs that I care for and do believe that if I were to set them free outside they would come back home,  that is if they don’t get hit by a car first.  So every time I take them for a run or out front I leash them up, not because I don’t care for them.  No quite the opposite because I do care for them, they may not understand that, but I knowing better than they do, understand it.  We have to come to realize that God knows everything, He understands what happens when we do not follow His rules.  Listen to what He tells the Israelites here in Deuteronomy 10:12-16; “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? He requires you to fear him, to live according to his will, to love and worship him with all your heart and soul,  and to obey the Lord’s commands and laws that I am giving you today for your own good.  The highest heavens and the earth and everything in it all belong to the Lord your God.  Yet the Lord chose your ancestors as the objects of his love. And he chose you, their descendants, above every other nation, as is evident today. Therefore, cleanse your sinful hearts and stop being stubborn.”

God Wants Me to Know Him:

The other day at work my co-worker was asking me why my middle was Andrew, I answered I have no idea.   She said it’s not the name of one your relatives or someone important to your parents?  She went on to explain who she was named after, this reminded that many people name their children after someone in the family or to honor someone.  It used to be that the name of someone held great meaning.  Let us look at Jabaz who we find in 1^st Chronicles 4:9, “There was a man named Jabez who was more distinguished than any of his brothers. His mother named him Jabez because his birth had been so painful.”  Think about that for a second, every time he told someone his name they would say, oh you caused your mom a lot of pain.  The same goes for God, He has many different names, each one tells us something about Him. We read throughout the entire bible all the names of God.  Think about the time Moses meet with God in the Desert, He asked God who should I say sent me? God told Moses tell them “I AM sent you.”(found in Exodus chapter 3).  J. Vernon McGee tells us this about the name “I AM,” “There is undoubtedly more included in the name “I AM” than has ever been brought out, but there are several things of primary importance that should be considered. The name “I AM” is a tetragram, or a word of four letters. We translate it JEHOVAH. It has also been translated as YAHWEH. How do you pronounce it? It became a sacred name, a holy name, to the children of Israel to such an extent they actually forgot how to pronounce it. To avoid profaning His name, they did not use it. Which name then, is correct? Is it Jehovah or Yahweh? No one knows. But “I AM” is God’s name.  In Genesis God is Creator. He is Elohim, the mighty God, the self-existing One; I AM WHO I AM. This is the God who is sending Moses to deliver the children of Israel.  Psalm 135:13 says, “Thy name, O Lord, endureth for ever; and thy memorial, O Lord, throughout all generations.” The name “Lord” in this verse can be translated “I AM WHO I AM.” It is important to see that this name speaks of the fact that GOD IS.”^[1]

God, has many names and I could try to go through them all but I don’t want to write a whole book.  But with each name of God it reveals a part of His nature; God wants us to know Him.  He’s not just up in Heaven trying to hide from us.  He’s letting us know how much He loves us, when we need  more strength, we go to God who shows and tells us I AM a almighty God.  Need His comfort, He tells I AM the great Comforter.  God shows Himself to us through His names.  I thank Richard Blackaby explains it best; “Whenever God reveals His nature in a new way, it is always for a purpose. He created you for a love relationship with Him. When He encounters you, He is allowing you to know Him by experience. Encounters with God are always an expression of God's love for you. Jesus said: “The one who has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me. And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father. I also will love him and will reveal Myself to him” (John 14:21). If you have a love relationship with God, you will experience Him actively working in and through your life. For instance, you could not truly know God as the “Comforter in sorrow” unless you experienced His compassion during a time of grief or sadness. The various names of God found in Scripture can become a call to worship for you. The psalmist said: “Happy are the people who know the joyful shout; LORD, they walk in the light of Your presence. They rejoice in Your name all day long, and they are exalted by Your righteousness” (Ps. 89:15-16). Acknowledging God's name amounts to recognizing who God is. Calling on His name indicates we are seeking His presence. To praise His name is to exalt Him. God's name is majestic and worthy of our praise.”

Blackaby, Richard (2008-09-01). Experiencing God (p. 7). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

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^[1]McGee, J. V. 1997, c1981. Thru the Bible commentary. Based on the Thru the Bible radio program. (electronic ed.). Thomas Nelson: Nashville

Is God Really Wanting Me to Experience His Love

I believe that God is seeking for each of us too come and experience His Love, I don’t say this lightly.  I truly believe that it is His desire for all mankind to be saved, do not misunderstand what I am saying here.  I am not saying that we are all going to heaven, sin separates us from God that is why Christ came to be the sacrifice on the cross so that we may accept God’s love and the indwelling of His Holy Spirit.  You may be saying, that is easy to say, but what about somebody that has sinned liked me?  Let us take a look at three different people who Christ went to and talked to, one He invited to come and be one of His disciples.  In Mark chapter two verses 13-17 we read about Christ calling Matthew to come and to fellow Him.  You may be saying what’s the problem with that? He was a tax collector seems like a good job, but that’s where you are wrong.  Tax collectors were considered traitors to their own countryman, they made money by overcharging people.  The Jews considered them to be worse than scum.  We see that Christ came and asked Matthew to be one of followers, another odd thing for that time period.  A Rabbi never asked anyone to come to them, instead the students came to them and had to impress them.  Yet we see Christ seeking out Matthew, someone who was a great disgrace to his parents and country.  Christ did not care about his past or the sins he had committed, but cared about what God could do through Matthew.

Then in John chapter four verses 1-41, we see Christ traveling through Samaria which is something the Jews did not do.  The Jews felt they were better than the Samaritans, for the Samaritans were Jews who had married the gentiles.  This was looked downed upon by all Jews in Israel, they would never cut through Samaria, instead they would take the roads that went around Samaria.   Christ had a purpose to go through Samaria He was going to meet with a woman, when the day started out she had no idea that she was going to experience God’s grace that day.  Once again she is an outcast someone the town looked down upon, but that did not matter to Christ.  He met her at the well and talked to her, He told her all about God’s grace and she came to follow Christ, it is through her that the whole town came to experience Christ.  We read in verses 39-42, “Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!”  When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay at their village. So he stayed for two days,  long enough for many of them to hear his message and believe.  Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe because we have heard him ourselves, not just because of what you told us. He is indeed the Savior of the world.”

Then we have the story of Zacchaeus, found in Luke chapter nineteen verses 1-10.  Like Matthew he also collected taxes, we are told that he was the chief tax collector.  He was wanting to see Christ, but do to his shortness he had to climb a tree to see Him.  Christ had planned on seeing him that day, only he didn’t know that until Christ told him, “When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! For I must be a guest in your home today.”(vs5)  You see Zacchaeus had no clue that God would want to seek him out to change his life and save him from his sins.  Many people today are walking around with no clue that God is seeking them out trying to get their attention and to let them know how much He loves them.  Maybe that is somewhat of our fault in the church we have failed at letting people know how much God loves them, just like the crowd that was mad because Christ was visiting with Zacchaeus, “But the crowds were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.”(vs7)  But Christ came into the house this notorious sinner, and the experience changed Zacchaeus forever.  “Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have overcharged people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”  Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a son of Abraham.  And I, the Son of Man, have come to seek and save those like him who are lost.”(vvs8-10)

I want you also to notice something here that only one out of the two people we have talked about was called to actually go and follow Christ in the sense that he was to be a part of the twelve.  Not everyone Christ called to come to Him, had to leave their home and go where He went.  The woman at the well stayed in her home, and witnessed to those around her, Zecchaeus did the same.  God is wanting all of us to come to Him so that we may experience His love, and go to those around us and show them the same forgiveness and love that He has shown us.  In Luke 6:37-38 Christ tells us to be merciful and forgiving.  For let us remember God is seeking for all mankind to be saved, Luke fifteen verses 1-17 says; “Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach.  This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such despicable people—even eating with them!  So Jesus used this illustration:  “If you had one hundred sheep, and one of them strayed away and was lost in the wilderness, wouldn’t you leave the ninety-nine others to go and search for the lost one until you found it?  And then you would joyfully carry it home on your shoulders.  When you arrived, you would call together your friends and neighbors to rejoice with you because your lost sheep was found.  In the same way, heaven will be happier over one lost sinner who returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!”