Faith Joy & Coffee

The Word Says:
“Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.”

Verse Thoughts:
Human nature is enmity against God, and it rejects God’s law. The result is continual warfare with God and between men. No one who breaks God’s law as a way of life can have peace, at least not the kind of peace God gives. Jesus says in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.”

The world can produce a level of tranquility from time to time, but it is not the peace of God. When a person sins, it seems as though there is a feeling, a natural fear, that wells up. Even before the sin occurs, one invariably seeks to make sure no one else sees it happen. This does not display a mind at peace. Immediately following a sin, the fear of exposure arises, and the sinner begins justifying, at least to himself, why he has done such a thing. If caught, he justifies himself as Adam and Eve did before God.

In simple terms, God is showing us the consequences of breaking His laws. If one were at peace with God, he would have no need to hide himself. With a clear conscience, he need not lie, justifying and shifting the blame on to others. No one who breaks God’s laws can have peace. However, one who loves God’s law will not only keep the peace he already has but will add to it as its fruit and reward.

Psalm 119:165 promises another wonderful benefit: Nothing causes those who love God’s law to stumble. “To stumble” indicates faltering along the path to the Kingdom of God or even to fall completely away from God. This provides great encouragement and assurance regarding security with God, meaning that we will not be turned aside by the difficulties along the way.

Instead of fear of exposure and a guilty conscience, we will be assured because God’s Word says so, as 1 John 3:18-19 confirms: “My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.” What a confident life we can live by following God’s way!

The Word Says:
“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.”

Verse Thoughts:
Timothy was entrusted, by Paul, to be pastor of the church at Ephesus, but being the leader of a Christian community in the first century under Roman rule was no easy task, and Paul’s letter to this ‘son in the faith’ contained personal encouragement, many warnings, and a lot of wise instruction on how to deal with a myriad of theological and practical issues that Timothy was likely to meet as he shepherded the little flock of believers in their spiritual journey through life.

The Christian life is a difficult struggle that contains many problematic pitfalls, which Paul describes as a good fight: “Fight the good fight of faith,” were his reassuring words to Timothy, “take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

It is not a fight against God but a joining with Him against our common enemy. It is a spiritual struggle whereby we stand firm in the truth of God’s Word and battle against the world, the flesh, the devil, and our own self-will. Fighting the good fight of faith is not so much hostile combat against a physical enemy, but rising to the challenges of our Christian life or confidently taking hold of the eternal life that is ours in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Each enemy is harmful to the soul and detrimental to our spiritual growth and so each must be earnestly resisted with fortitude and determination. Praise God that this is not an evil fight but a good fight, for the battle has already been won by Christ’s victory on the Cross and we are to face all the challenges of life by maintaining an unfaltering faith in Him – trusting in His sufficiency to bring us through victoriously.

We are to fight the good fight of faith by seizing hold of every opportunity, trusting His all-sufficient grace to bring us through by faith, rather than wilting at the enormity of a problem or caving in to the temptation that faces us.

When we fight the fight of faith, we are trusting Him in all things and in so doing we are taking hold of eternal life. Eternal life is not only about living forever in the life to come but is about living a victorious life in the here and now. It is about growing in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus, and developing a precious intimacy with Him as we abide securely in His love.

Timothy had already proved himself to be a soldier of Christ. He had been willingly drafted into the army of God by Paul, but this godly young man had also answered the call on his life, like Isaiah, who cried out, “Here am I, send me.” This verse tells us that Timothy was called by the Lord and chosen to carry out this important ministry, and it concludes with a reminder of Timothy’s personal confession of his faith – in the presence of many witnesses.

While Timothy appears to have been a quiet, unassuming young man, he was nonetheless a stalwart in the faith for he gave a bold and beautiful testimony before many witnesses. And Paul wanted to remind Timothy that the cause of Christ was worth fighting for and that his young friend and fellow labourer in the gospel needed to keep pressing forward for the prize of the high call he had in Christ Jesus. Every one of us needs to realise that we are to keep on keeping on to the very end… so that with Paul and Timothy, we may lay hold of that for all that Christ Jesus intends for each of His children.

Like Paul and the other disciples, Timothy followed the same path that the Lord Jesus took. He trod the way of the Cross. Christ went the self-same way before us, and He patiently endured the Cross, despised the shame, and walked in humble submission to the will of His Heavenly Father. And like Him, our life is to be a testimony to His faithfulness – for it is as we run the race that is set before us, with patient endurance and a determination to do all to the glory of God, that we will also fight the good fight of faith and take hold of the eternal life to which we are all called – so that with Timothy and a great cloud of saints, we too may ensure a good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

The Word Says:
“Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him: because that for this thing the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto.”

Verse Thoughts:
The whole idea of giving is an interesting one, isn’t it?  I mean, God is all powerful and stuff, so if he really wanted to, he could have divided everything perfectly evenly, and arranged things even now so that we all get an even share.  Instead, with this as with all other things, he allows us to choose. Thus, some people get more and some people get less.  Not necessarily only through their own choices, although of course that plays into it, but because of the choices of so many other people.

We are all participants in our society and the way that it handles poverty.  And what we have chosen unfortunately results in a lot of poverty for people who can’t choose otherwise.  Children are the largest example, but there are many other examples of people who can’t escape the circumstances of their lives because they never have a path to something better. Perhaps because of limited opportunities for education, for employment, or just because of health problems for themselves or someone in the family that has put them well past the point where they can afford anything at all.

God asks us to correct this imbalance through giving to and helping each other.  It’s a giant thing to ask up there with perfection, which he also asks, and pray always, which always seems like we need to do it a little more. He asks us to build Zion, to be Zion people, and one of the significant aspects of Zion is that there is no poor among them.  It says right here that “the poor shall never cease out of the land,” so Zion is another eternal quest.

Eternal quests though, at least with God, aren’t ones that are actually impossible.  They just seem that way because they always remain out of reach while we’re learning so that we keep learning and striving for them, but the realization of all of the possibilities and perfection is baked into God’s plan.  It will happen.  It just kind of depends on us how long it will take.  How long will it take us to learn as a society, as humanity, to take care of each other?  

Today, let’s consider the commandment to give.  It is both a request and a commandment, like so many other things.  A request because God always allows us our free agency, and a commandment, if we choose to accept and acknowledge God’s authority over us and we want to be part of what he offers.  Then we have to do as he asks, in order to find our way to becoming the people that he promises us that we can be.  There are some pretty fantastic blessings attached to it as well.  Being blessed in all our works and all that we put our hands to? That is pretty sweet. Maybe even if we are a little poor, we should give to those who are a lot poor so we can tap into some of those blessings.  And as we give, let’s also consider the idea of giving, and what it is teaching us, why God chooses to make the world better through our generosity to our fellow man.  And as we learn the lessons that God has to teach us in that area, let’s spread them, and use our new blessings to bless others in a never-ending cycle that will eventually lead all of us to Zion.

The Word Says:
“That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous.”

Verse Thoughts:
There are only two kinds of men – good men and bad men. These two groups live very differently: their lifestyles and principles are opposed to each other. Noble parents love their children, so they teach them wisdom to choose the way and paths of righteous men.

Good and righteous men live godly lives of virtue and integrity. Bad and wicked men live foolish lives of vanity and deceit. Only wise men see this difference between men; only wise men understand the choices that lead to the noble and successful lives of good men.

This chapter has two purposes – to teach you how to get wisdom and understanding and the great reward of getting them. When a man obtains wisdom, knowledge, discretion, and understanding, he will be saved from dangerous men and women, who walk in the ways and paths of wickedness. It is from this evil lifestyle of worldly men and women that King Solomon sought to save his son.

The definition of good and bad is not by culture, interpretation, or preference. The glorious Creator settled such simple things in the Bible. It plainly defines what is good and acceptable, and what is bad and despicable. There is no neutral lifestyle. You are living either a good or bad life, and you will either be rewarded or punished for it.

The Bible not only defines good and bad; it also gives examples of good and bad men. It compares wise men and fools, virtuous women and odious women, saints and sinners. The contrast is clearly seen between Abel and Cain, Abraham and Lot, David and Saul, Abigail and Michal, Peter and Judas, Paul and Demas. You should know these well.

Good men sin, but they do not wallow in their sin. They may fall seven times, but they will get up; the wicked fall and stay there. David and Peter sinned terribly, but they repented and showed an overall character far exceeding other men. Saul and Judas sinned grievously, and kept right on sinning. Their path was final and total destruction.

This proverb gives you a choice. Will you choose the popular way to live, the road to destruction? The vast majority of men live that way, and it is easy, because you can do whatever you like. The other option is the strait and narrow way that leads to life. Only a few live that way, and it is hard, because it is the life of self-denial for God, Jesus Christ, and heaven. One thing is sure – you make a choice today and every day.

Wisdom is the key opening the door to the way of good men and the path of righteous men. It is offered freely in the Scriptures, and especially in this book of Proverbs. If it enters your heart and is pleasant to your soul, you will be able to see and follow the lives of the great men and women before you, Jesus Christ being the greatest example of all.

What will you do? Will you trust the world to tell you how you ought to live? Or will you trust the Bible, which tells you to live the opposite of the way the world lives? May God bless you with conviction and zeal today to choose to live His way.

The Word Says:
“But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.”

Verse Thoughts:
The grace of God spills over the pages of Peter’s epistles like so many sparkling jewels, and in the final words of his letter, we are encouraged to grow in the grace of God that has been so freely bestowed on all who believe in His free gift of salvation. We are to dig our roots down deep into the depths of His Word, and we are to reach out into the farthest extremities of His grace, which are higher than the heavens above and deeper than the ocean depths.

But the apostle Peter also makes it clear that our spiritual growth and our progress in the Christian life must be a continuous maturing in grace and an ever-increasing knowledge and understanding of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Growing in God’s grace is not the accumulation of facts and information about the Lord Jesus, but a day by day transformation of our life, as we become increasingly like Him in disposition and character. This only happens to the one that is walking in spirit and truth and is submitted to the guidance of the Holy Spirit – Who by grace is conforming us day by day into His lovely likeness as we die to self and live for Christ.

Spiritual growth is an ongoing process of becoming more like the lovely Lord Jesus. As more grace is added to the grace we have already received, the more we mature in the faith and change into the beautiful image and likeness of the Lord Jesus. Just as we need physical exercise and nourishing food for our bodies to grow and develop, so also we need spiritual exercise to mature in the faith. We need the milk and meat of the Word to become strong in the Lord and carry out the work that God has prepared for us to do.

Firstly, we are instructed to grow and expand our trust in God. We are to mature and ripen our precious faith, and we are to stand on His promises and believe His Word. We are to develop and flourish in our dependence upon the Lord as day by day, the Holy Spirit works within, to direct, govern, lead and chasten us, and to conform us into the image and likeness of His dear Son.

As we die to self, live for Him, and do His perfect will, He begins to remove every trace of prideful-self and vanity’s fleshliness. As we walk in spirit and truth and submit to the Spirit’s leading, we discover that we will grow in every facet of grace and virtue, faith and love, holiness and understanding, wisdom and obedience – but there’s more!

We are also to grow “in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This must be the pinnacle of God’s grace, that we increase in our knowing HIM. Intimately knowing Christ is what the aged Paul sought with every fibre of His being in His final days of life, “that I may KNOW Christ.” And we are to take hold of the eternal life to which we have been called. We are to pursue, with a passion, the intimate and personal relationship to which we have privileged access, as we confess our faults to our Father and keep our eyes on our God and Saviour Jesus Christ – our all in all. 

Access to the same grace of God and intimate knowledge of Christ is also what Peter, in the closing days of his life, is urging all who have a saving faith in Christ to strive for earnestly, in this closing verse of his second epistle, “but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”

We cannot grow in grace apart from the Lord Jesus Christ, for without Him we will remain spiritually stunted in our Christian life. Without Him we can do nothing. However, we are promised that we can do ALL things through Christ, Who gives us the strength, for He is able and His grace is sufficient. So let us take this verse, at the end of Peter’s epistle, our focus and goal – to, “grow in the grace and in a knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”  And may we, “give HIM the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”

Christ should be the centre and circumference of our worship and praise, for all the things that He has done for us during our brief sojourn on earth. Should we not delight to worship Him in this world and rejoice that in the world to come we will show forth the immeasurable riches of His grace, in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

May we ALL grow in grace and in a knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ… for by grace we are saved through faith, by grace we are to live our lives through faith, and one day by God’s grace we will pass into His wonderful presence, when we shall see Him as He is and we will be like Him and live with Him into the eternities of eternity.

The Word Says:
“He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.”

Verse Thoughts:
We tend to focus on either God’s love or his justice, but both are important.

The more deeply we love the more offended we’re with injustice because it becomes personal. Someone we care about is being mistreated. Daily we read reports of injustice in our communities. People we’re acquainted with are abused physically, mentally, emotionally or sexually. We want perpetrators held to account and brought to justice. The Psalmist often called on God to act on behalf of the oppressed and bring justice. Yet God’s compassion delays his justice.

When we read the Old Testament, we see countless times God gave people opportunities to repent. Joshua’s conquest was God’s judgement on the Amorites and Canaanites. For 400 years, God gave them time to change their ways. They were a greedy and oppressive people who practised child sacrifice. But God’s patience is meaningless if he never executes judgement. It would mean he’s waiting for no reason. The difficulty comes when God is so patient it’s mistaken for indulgence. We begin to think that because God doesn’t act immediately that he won’t act at all.

Later, the Israelites were taken out of the land because of their evil ways. This was after God had sent many prophets to call his people back to righteousness, and threatened them with judgement if they didn’t repent. Eventually, when his people didn’t respond, he sent them into exile.

Currently, we live in a time of God’s grace and favour, but it won’t last forever. One day God will again enact his judgement which we read about in the book of Revelation.

In our enthusiasm for God’s love, let’s not forget his justice.

The Word Says:
“For if ye turn again unto the LORD, your brethren and your children shall find compassion before them that lead them captive, so that they shall come again into this land: for the LORD your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away his face from you, if ye return unto him.”

Verse Thoughts:

Walking away from something good is an easy thing to do. There are times when something looks better and so people choose to change directions and follow the new thing.

In the process of choosing the new direction, sometimes people make a mistake. Afterwards they realize that they chose the wrong direction and in the process hurt someone else. With people this can often be detrimental. When a person is hurt badly, they often write off the person and do not want the person back.

Fear keeps many people from returning. They feel if they return they will be rejected or punished harshly and not accepted.

As Hezekiah was leading the nation back to God, he chose to reinstate the Passover celebration. He told all the people to return to God, because He was gracious and compassionate. God would not reject them, but would accept them back, regardless of what they had done.

Many people have followed God at one point in their life. They then made some mistakes and fell into some sin. At that point they walk away from God, feeling as though they can no longer serve Him. They choose to not go back out of pride and fear of God.

They realize what they did was wrong and feel as though God cannot forgive them and will not accept them back. They do not want to be rejected, so they stay away.

However God is a loving and compassionate God. He is waiting for every person to turn to Him, even if it is again for the tenth time or more. He is willing to forgive and move on.

You may have made some mistakes in your life and walked away or drifted away from God. Drop the pride and return to God. He is waiting for your return with wide open arms of love and forgiveness.

There is nothing you can do or have done to stop God from loving you. He will always run to you when you run towards Him. Unlike the world, He will quickly forgive and restore you.

If you have walked away, quickly return today and be accepted.

The Word Says:
“Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:”

Verse Thoughts:
We easily feel criticised and rejected. Our natural reaction is to do the same back. That, however, solves nothing and only drives a further wedge between us. When we are hurt or when we think someone is acting wrongly we don’t try to hang on to the other, but we hit out with attack, ridicule or self justification.

The above passage comes at the end of a section that deals with divisions in the church between strong and weak, between Jew and Gentile, between weak and strong in both groups. To show the Romans that each should not try to please them­selves he pointed to the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ went to the cross to bear the reproaches made against God. They too had to learn to live in the same way. In looking at Christ’s actions as explained by Scripture they could learn to live in hope through the patience and encourage­ment so gained.

In that context we read this small prayer and exhortation. The prayer is directed to the God of endurance and encouragement. Again the apostle focuses on the same qualities, but now he looks to God to provide those qualities to those who are being criticised. They need to stand firm, to make sacrifices for the good of each other. For that they will need endurance or patience and encour­agement or comfort as these terms can also be translated.

These qualities are not simply for the good of those criticised. They are for the good of the whole. We should not think this is an exercise in self-improvement, but an exercise in unity building. By restricting their freedom they will be able to live in harmony with each other and that is of great value.

That harmony, however, is in accord with Christ Jesus. It is not simply harmony for harmony’s sake, for that could be harmony or unity in evil. This harmony or unity which Paul prays for has a standard – Christ Jesus who did not please Himself, but God. The Lord’s intention was to create one new man from Jew and Gentile. This would create many tensions and misunderstandings and the only way that it could work was by everyone, to say it colloqui­ally, ‘pulling their heads in’. Only if the brothers and sisters would live to please their neighbour would the unity God sought be achieved.

There was a purpose for that unity. It was not an end in itself, but the end was the united praise and glory of God. They had to become one in mind and mouth so that in true unity they could praise and glorify the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul writes it this way, probably to make us recall the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He humbled Himself to take on human nature and to die on the cross. That was God’s gift to mankind. He was given to unite people from every tribe and nation into one people of God to the praise of His glory and grace. Paul wanted the church in Rome to work towards that in one Spirit.

He, therefore, finishes with an exhortation – receive each other for the glory of God and he gives a reason, because Christ also received us for that purpose. We were sinners and unclean, but Christ received us through faith in Him for the glory of God. Therefore we should receive each other as well for we have all been cleansed in Christ’s blood, so that we can do what we were created and united for – the glory of God. That is the purpose of our lives, not only individually, but also as congregations and as churches. The unity we have in Christ must come to expression to the glory of God. Where we bicker and fight often about non-essential things we do not worship God with one mind and one mouth. The praise of God is fragmented and soured. God is glorified by unity which is according to Christ Jesus, that has Him as its standard and measure. Then our praise of God is acceptable to Him. Let us strive to achieve that goal with joy and patience.

The Word Says:
“Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”

Verse Thoughts:
Timothy was a young man who came to faith through the ministry of Paul. He often referred to him as his ‘son in the Lord’ and Timothy seemed to be an inoffensive young person who was gentle and peaceable. There is even some suggestion that he may have had some bodily weakness or physical ailment.

However, young Timothy was obviously robust in the faith and of such a spiritual stature, that he not only accompanied Paul on his missionary journeys and acted as Paul’s scribe for some of his church epistles, but represented him in the city of Corinth and was sufficiently doctrinally sound to be entrusted as a competent evangelist. Paul relied on him to present the good news of the gospel of grace to certain church fellowships, in spirit and in truth, and his letters to Timothy confirm this fact.

Paul’s letters to Timothy, together with his epistle to Titus, were different from his letters of instruction and encouragement to the congregations of the various Christian churches. Not only were his communications to them among the last things that Paul wrote before his death in Rome, but they contained important instruction for the pastoral ministries in which Timothy and Titus were engaged.

The burden of Paul’s heart was to ensure that good men were correctly taught, sound in doctrine, and well prepared to carry forward the pure truth of the gospel of grace, after his death. His pastoral letters often contained very personal information and instruction for these young ministers, together with some intimate, fatherly counsel for each man’s distinctive needs.

Here we read a highly personal directive to Timothy: “Let no one look down on your youthfulness,” was Paul’s emphatic instruction to his young protégé, “but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe.”

Although we are unable to control the attitude of others towards ourselves, Paul helped to equip Timothy to deal with this situation in a most biblical manner. None of us can prevent another person from despising us or expressing contempt towards us, but we are to be responsible for the way that we react to any negative attitude others may show towards us. 

In every area of life, we are to demonstrate the same, spiritual maturity in the way we live, the words we speak, the things we do, and the way we react to others in these difficult and challenging times. Our behaviour, attitude, actions, and motives should be pure and holy… and should demonstrate the godly wisdom that only comes from above.

May we seek to display the same godly characteristics of Timothy and like him, have a teachable spirit that seeks to honour the Lord in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity, and may we show ourselves to be a godly example of those who believe.