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I often do an exercise with my church. This is an exercise that a professor gave to a class that I attended many years ago. He had us to go through the first chapter of Ephesians and pick out all of the character traits that believers can claim, characteristics that we may claim as our identity in Christ. This exercise has so encouraged me and my church. In fact, when I find myself down and depressed I will still (literally) take out a piece of paper and re-read the chapter and write down all of the things that I am positionally in Christ.

“It’s not what we do that determines what we are, but who we are that determines what we do.” If I am how Paul describes believers in Ephesians 1 (and the rest of the Bible) then I truly am one of the richest men in the world. God is my Father, and literally all the power that heaven can do is now placed within me. As a matter of fact, Paul states that the same power that raised Christ from the dead, lives within me (Romans 8:11). Though I was once dead in my trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1), I had nothing to offer God, and my destination was death and hell. He has come to my rescue, through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, I am now alive in Him.

When I was dead in sin, I was a slave to sin (Romans 6:20). I was unable to please God. My love was mixed with selfishness, and hopelessness and despair was my future. However, being alive in Christ brings a new direction in my life not only spiritually, but physically as well. It would be enough if God only helped me spiritually, but God also conquerors my appetite for sin physically as well. His living Spirit within me breaks chains in my life that were previously indestructible.

Thankfully, according to John 10, Jesus says that now I am in His hand, and His hand is in the hand of the Father and now no one will ever be able to pull from me the life that I now enjoy in Christ. I am now His forever. May my life now reflect in works on the outside what God’s life means to me on the inside.

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” Matthew 6:7

Jesus tells the story of a man who owed an amount of money to the king that he would literally never be able to repay (Matthew 18). The king had compassion on this man though and forgave the man the massive debt. Free and clear of the debt this man walked out and found someone who owed him just a few dollars and without mercy had the man thrown in jail.

The king found out about the actions of this man and was absolutely astonished. How could someone who had been forgiven of so much treat someone else who owed so little in such a way. Though the man may have been forgiven of a sum he would never be able to repay, his inability to show mercy to others caused the king to have him thrown in prison.

You may be thinking to yourself, how could someone who had been forgiven of so much treat someone else in this way. If you are a believer in Christ; you have been forgiven of an amount you could never repay, and yet, how many times do we lack mercy toward others? We look down on others we see in sin. We turn our heads when we see others in need. We have been forgiven of a massive debt and yet fail to forgive others who have wronged us.

My brother and sisters in Christ may we love just as Christ has loved us. May those of us who have experienced the mercy of the King go and do likewise. Do not be caught by Him as one who judges and looks down on others. As Paul wrote, “For the grace of God I am what I am.” (1 Corinthians 15:10)

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” Matthew 5:6

Superman is one of my favorite superheroes. I know this is a controversial subject. Some people like Batman or the Green Lantern, but when they come to their senses they always realize that Superman is the greatest. One of qualities that strikes me as heroic is Superman has the ability to take the world and throw it into the Sun if he wanted to, but thankfully, he doesn’t. All of that power and yet he continues to do good.

Meekness is a powerful trait. You have the power to do whatever you want, but you decide, for the greater good, to withhold your ability. You don’t have to sacrifice your time or money, but you do so for a friend in need. You sacrifice time for your church or organization to help others. Many times people associate meekness to weakness, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. Anyone can be selfish, but it takes true strength to put selfishness aside for others.

The ultimate display of meekness is found in Jesus. He is the Creator of the Universe. He is God in the flesh with the ability to call all the angels of heaven for his bidding. Yet, He trades it all for a frail body and in obedience, He dies the death of a criminal by hanging on a cross. Meekness is truly beautiful when it is seen in others, but in the mirror, meekness is very difficult to produce.

However, those who can master the discipline of meekness can truly be a reflection of Jesus is in this world. What are ways you can display meekness at work or, even more difficult, show meekness at home?

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Matthew 5:4

I remember years ago a pastor told the youth group, “You can tell a lot about a person by the books they read, the company they keep, and the jokes they laugh at.” Does it bother you when TV shows make fun of Jesus? What about tasteless jokes, do they upset you?

What if we saw these jokes as God sees them? What if we saw these jokes as blasphemous and sinful? You may be asking, “Aren’t you being a little oversensitive, can’t you have just a little fun?” What if you saw these sinful jokes as the nails that put Jesus on the cross?

Not too long ago I met a women whose son committed suicide. He ended His life with a gun. Today this mother doesn’t talk about guns, she doesn’t own a gun, and the “funniest” joke about a gun would utterly offend her. Any time she sees a gun she associates it with the death of her son.

What would happen if we saw sin in the same way as that mother sees guns? Blessed are those who mourn because they realize the true nature of their sinful condition. They understand the grave nature of their sin. They realize it is sin that causes separation and death. It seems appropriate now to mourn over sin.

However, those who mourn will be comforted! Jesus truly has paid the great price, the debt we could have never been able to pay on our own. Yes our sin has left us in poverty, but God’s grace gives us reason to have comfort.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for there’s is the Kingdom of Heaven.” Matthew 5:3

Something hard for me to grasp at times is an understanding that everything, and I mean everything down to the red cent looking at me from the floor, is given to me by God. He could have made me a rich man, but He didn’t. If being rich is a curse, then oh God curse me with such an imposition. Being poor is not typically seen as a blessing, certainly not in our culture.

Leave it to Jesus to once again put our understanding, and our culture, on the flipside. “Blessed are the poor.” I looked up poor and in this context found it means, “one who is abjectly and completely poverty-stricken, one who is absolutely destitute.” Though Jesus is not asking for all of us to be poor, living on the street, He is saying Blessed is the one who realizes that spiritually, we are completely destitute. In ourselves we have nothing to offer God.

Only when someone comes to the understanding that they are spiritually bankrupt and hit “rock bottom” (so to speak) do they begin to look up. We don’t typically try to fix what isn’t broken. Pride typically gets in the way, and causes us to believe we are something when we clearly aren’t. This condition is normally easy to spot in others, very difficult to see in the mirror.

For those who recognize they are spiritually impoverished there is hope, you are blessed! And for those of us who to turn to Jesus, “there’s is the Kingdom of God.”

Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before His presence with singing.

Know ye that the LORD He is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and bless His name.

For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to all generations.  Psalms 100.

It was recently brought to my attention about the power of praise. Jonah was swallowed by a fish, but it wasn’t until he began to praise and give thanks that the fish released Him to dry ground. Daniel was in a lion’s den, but when He gave thanks the mouths of the lions were shut. You think this is a coincidence. Jesus Himself, “who for the JOY that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and is now set down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:2)

Praise and thanksgiving may be the most unnatural thing to do when we are our darkest time, but it is where God does some of His greatest work in our life. Are you hurting? Are you lost in life and have no idea what is next? Are you facing persecution from sinful people? Then praise and give thanks to God, for He is good. His mercy endures forever. He will rescue you, you are not forgotten by Him.

“As the deer thirsts for water, so my soul thirsts for you.” Psalms 42:1

When my daughter was around 3 or 4 years old  she had a game, a simple game, a game of chase. I would run around the house and she would run with all of her might. Every now and then I would slow down, pretend to trip, and give her just enough time to tackle me. She would laugh and have the greatest time. Now, you should know that I am actually quicker than her, and if I didn’t want her to, I could outrun a 3 year old. I’m not that old…yet.

In your life I wonder if you have had a time when you chased after God. You wanted more of Him. You wanted His blessings, and you weren’t willing to stop praying and begging until He blessed you. You were chasing after God. Just so you know, God is much faster than you are. If He didn’t want you to catch Him, you wouldn’t. However, every now and then He slows down, reveals Himself in a beautiful way and you are never the same again.

When I was growing up I remembered seeing a lot of those kind of people in my life. My Dad and I spent the night at a pastor’s house when I was younger. Every morning, (including the time we spent there) he got up early in the morning. He would take the 3 couch cushions (he claimed it was representative of the Trinity) and prayed as though God was literally in the room with him. I won’t (and can’t) forget it. This pastor knew how to “catch” God.

May we “thirsts for righteousness”. May we want more of Him. May we not stop until we have received His blessings. May we be willing to sacrifice. On top of that, may others (especially our children) see it in us. It would be a great gift and a wonderful testimony to give to them.

I believe Jesus died on the cross…

According to the Bible, the death of Jesus was different then any other death. In His death, the sin of the entire world past and present was placed upon His shoulders. Beaten practically beyond recognition, He felt the need to tell His mother, He was her son. He was beaten by Roman guards with a whip on a post where many didn’t survive. David in the book of Psalms foretells that He would be able to see His own bones (Psalms 22:17). For 6 hours He hung on a cross and ultimately, He died.

I believe that He was buried…

When it was clear that Jesus had died, Joseph of Arimathea went to the man who had sentenced Jesus to death, Pilate and asked for His body. Men who were crucified in such a manner were rarely given a proper burial. Jesus was treated much differently. He was brought down from the cross and placed in a tomb reserved for the rich. Pilate ordered that soldiers be placed in front of the tomb. For the disciples the next 3 days must have been the longest time ever. I imagine the tears and cries were more than anyone of them could have ever imagined.

I believe Jesus rose from the dead!

Early Sunday morning something truly unbelievable happened! Women came to the tomb to find the stone rolled away. Looking inside the body is not there. Interestingly enough they didn’t assume He had risen from the dead. After a visit from an angel the go back and tell the disciples. Peter and John run to the tomb to find the same scene, Jesus is gone! Later Jesus appears to them. He is alive and He isn’t bleeding. He isn’t suffering. He isn’t hurting, He is alive and in a glorified body.

Many people wonder why Christians believe that water could be turned to wine. Why do people believe a man could walk on water. Why do we seek to live a different life that reflects Him. Why give our lives away? The answer is that Jesus is alive! His resurrection verifies that everything He said and did was from God. I believe in Hell because Jesus taught it existed and He rose from the dead. I believe the world needs a Savior because Jesus said so, and He rose from the dead. May you meet the risen Lord today, and may He change your life.

“My son, keep my words, and treasure my commands within you. Keep my commands and live, and my law as the apple of your eye.” Proverbs 7:1,2

Even before my son was born (3 months ago) I began writing a devotional for him. It is a journal that is centered around on what I would tell myself if I could go back in time and warn myself of the pitfalls that were coming. I want my son to learn from the mistakes that I made. As parents don’t we all want our children to have a better life then we had, and avoid the pain of bad decisions? I know that simply writing a journal is not going to keep him from making mistakes. What I do want to do for him is to open all of the “doors” this life has and let him know where each one of them will lead.

Jesus does the same thing for us. He opens up every “door” that the world has to offer and shows us the pain that would be associated with each decision. The Bible gives us story after story of people and the decisions they made. David committed the sin of adultery and his life was forever changed for the worse. Joseph (of the Old Testament) chose to serve God and He found favor.

Ultimately, Jesus says that He is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” (John 14:6) If you agreed earlier that we want the best for our children, and Jesus is the way that will lead to the best life, then the answer is clear, point your children to Jesus. There will be no greater gift you could give. For those who trust in Him, He will give “joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory.” (1 Peter 1:8)

Romans 5:6 “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.”

We are all sinners. For some people this is a revelation that requires for them to be sitting to accept, but harsh reality at the end of the day is that we must admit we have sinned against a Righteous God. The “reward” for sin is death, for a Just God cannot allow sin to go unpunished. This certainly puts God in a tough position in that He has His creation whom He dearly loves and yet they have chosen sin over Him. There are two options. On one hand, He could certainly destroy the entire world, sending all of us to an eternal punishment and this would be the act of a Just God. Or he could “lower the bar of holiness,” turn His head, and through His love allow entrance into heaven anyway.

Thankfully, He didn’t do either. God’s answer is so much better. Instead, we have the cross. On the cross we have a picture of the wrath of God poured out on Jesus as he takes the full punishment of sin upon Himself on our behalf. At the very same time, the cross is a picture of the absolute love God has for His Creation. He didn’t sentence us all to death and He didn’t “lower the Bar” instead, He sent His Son to die for our sins and we inherit His righteousness. It reminds me of an old hymn.

Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed me white as snow.