Don't be afraid

Why are we so afraid?

Yet as Christians, that is often how we act.

We are afraid.

Afraid to talk about God.

Afraid to talk about sin.

Afraid to talk about creation.

Afraid to tell atheists that they know there's a God.

Afraid to talk about other false religions.

Afraid to confront the world.

Afraid, afraid, afraid.

But what are we afraid of?
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Deuteronomy 32.31 - "Their rock is not as our Rock; our enemies are by themselves."
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As Christians, we tend to take a defensive position against the world.

We treat them as if they have the high ground and that we have to just hang on to whatever we can, as if we're the ones playing with the weaker hand.

But the truth is it is the world that is in a desperate and sad situation.

And they are certainly not to be feared.

Why not?

Because they are alone.

And we are not.

We have the Rock.

But the rock they are trusting in is not real.

So why is it that we are the ones on the defensive? Why are we the ones acting afraid? Unsure? Embarrassed?

It is the world that has a sad, made-up faith. They are the ones trusting in things that are not real, in fairy tales of self, and rejecting the Rock who made them, believing in a dumb rock that they've turned into their god.

The world isn't to feared. It is to be pitied. And its lies are to be rebuked and defeated.

Next time you look at the world, see them for what they are -

ALONE.

Love God and get to work.

Christian, get. to. WORK.

As Christians, we understand that we are not saved because of who we are or what we have done. Salvation is a work of grace alone…

Titus 3:5 - "He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy"

But how does the Bible tell us we are to respond to grace?

By getting to work.

Sometimes we are so afraid of making it seem like salvation is about our works that we as Christians are almost afraid of talking about good works at all.

But God's not afraid of talking about the good works that should be in the life of the believer.

In truth, grace and good works are not enemies, but, when understood rightly, go hand in hand.

Look at how God tells us we should respond to being saved by grace...

Titus 3:8 - "The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works."

Titus 3:14 - "And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works"

We are not saved by works, but we are saved to work.

And we should devote ourselves to good works.

Good works should be what we set before our eyes every day. The life of faith is a life devoted to good works.

If we believe, that belief motivates us to live for God.

Those who truly believe they've been saved by grace don't sit around contemplating their own navel.

Nor is the righteous response to sit around contemplating Jesus' navel.

That's not pious. That's lazy.

Those who truly believe set before them good works.

They set the Bible before them as a standard that they are now free to keep, rules that they now joyfully enslave themselves to.

They fill their life with good works not in order to be saved but, rather, because they have been saved.

Real faith is a faith that works.

As Calvin said, "We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone."

So today Christian, you know what you should be doing, how you're supposed to live, God has not hidden from you what to do....so do it.

Love God and get to work.

When the best strategy is NOT fighting...

Are you tired of losing the battle against temptation?

Do you feel like every time that temptation comes it wins? That you just never seem able to win the battle?

What if there was a way to avoid some of the battles to begin with?

Matthew 26:41 - "Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Part of our problem in the fight against sin isn't how we fight, but that we're fighting a battle we didn't need to get into.

We talk a lot about how to fight sin, but we don't talk often about how to avoid the fight in the first place. If you find your flesh is weak for the battle, then be on the lookout so that you can avoid the battle altogether.

Jesus tells his disciples to watch and pray so that they don't fall into temptation.

We know our enemies. We know the sins that seem to ensnare us more easily than the others.

So keep a lookout. Watch for them to stick up their nasty, tempting heads. Listen for their dreaded footsteps so that you can run before they even get there.

And pray. Speak the truth to yourself about the fight before the fight ever happens.

Do you hear the whisper of a common temptation? Flood out his voice with prayer. Do you feel a battle coming in your heart? Wet the wood of temptation with the waters of prayer.

In the battle, we can be so distracted that we listen to lies. Lies about who we are. Lies about others. Lies about what we must do.

So pray the truth before the battle starts. Be building walls of truth around your heart so that the enemy can't even find a foothold for temptation.

Sometimes, we lose because we're fighting a battle we didn't have to fight. We're facing a temptation that we could have avoided.

How do we avoid temptation before it comes?

Watch and pray.

Tired of losing the battle against temptation?

Watch and pray.

Are you disappointed by how weak your flesh is?

Watch and pray.

Sometimes, the best way to win against sin is to skip the fight altogether.

Taking Sin Seriously

We don't take sin serious enough.

Christians are known for what they think about sin.

And Jesus tells us that sin is a serious business.

And we must hold firm to what God says about right and wrong rather than bend to the will of our cultural caesars.

But I think the world has it wrong.

The problem for us as Christians is not that we’re serious about sin but that we’re not serious enough.

But maybe not in the way we often think...

Matthew 18:8-9
“And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.”

Christians don’t take sin seriously enough, because we don’t take our own sin serious enough.

We've got axes ready to deal with the world's sin, but we seem to be pacifists when it comes to our own.

Christians who take sin seriously begin by taking their own sin seriously. They hold the microscope to their own life first.

Now, the answer isn't to start being soft on the world's sin, but to start being hard on our own. Let us be known as extremists in how we handle ourselves.

Imagine if the world knew how big sin was by how Christians dealt with their own personal sin.

We need to be known as being too radical...with ourselves.

Imagine the testimony that would be if the world knew we believed our own message.

What if the world could see us hacking away at our own struggles, doing whatever we had to to run from sin?

What if they could see that our calls to repent always began in front of a mirror?

What if the world saw us giving up whatever we had to as we pursued righteousness?

How much punch would that add to our public calls?

We must cry out against sin, but it's easy to call out sins in others, to rage against the evil of a fallen world. You don’t have to have a high view of sin and holiness to do that.

Want to be someone who takes sin seriously?

When is the last time you examined your own life with scalpel in hand?

The Wrong Treasure

What if you found hidden treasure?

I remember as a boy thinking that if I just dug in certain spots I might unearth some hidden chest full of riches.

Now what if I told you that in Christ we have found the greatest treasure this world has to offer?

That’s what the kingdom of God is like.

Matthew 13:44-46 -
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

God’s kingdom is a treasure, a pearl of great price.

If we found earthly treasure, we would sell everything in order to acquire it. How much more should we be willing to give up everything for a treasure that is eternal?

The gospel will cost you everything you have, but in the end you gain more than you can imagine.

But as Christians, we often reverse this story.

We sell God’s kingdom in pursuit of the world’s riches. We sacrifice time in the word or the blessing of church or family worship in pursuit of things the world tells us are important for our lives.

We’re like little Esau’s selling the great inheritance of the kingdom for this world’s soup of the day.

Nothing this world has to offer can compare with the joy found in life in God’s kingdom.

Christian, you are rich, richer than this world’s greatest billionaire, and you possess a treasure that you get to enjoy for all of eternity.

The world thinks the Christian life is a burden, a sacrifice, but it is actually the greatest of riches.

Are you selling everything in pursuit of God's riches or have you been giving up the treasures of the kingdom in exchange for this world’s fools gold?