Life This Side of Heaven

“He was ‘deader than a doornail.’” Have you ever heard that expression? Paul says something similar in Ephesians to describe our condition before being saved. It’s important to know this or nothing else that follows, of Paul’s description of God’s forgiveness and grace, can be understood or appreciated.

In John’s Gospel, and following the wonderfully soothing words of John 3:16, Jesus goes on to note that not everyone’s thrilled about this Good News. But you and I, who are blessed to walk in the light of Christ's love each day, have a tremendous opportunity to reflect His love in this sin-darkened world. Find out more at https://life-this-side-of-heaven.pinecast.co

There are those today, who don’t know Jesus, and having not heard the Good News proclaimed correctly, mistakenly assume He has come to judge us.  But our Savior’s first coming was to carry out a rescue mission. And through faith, we rejoice in this rescue right now – this very day. We also have a remarkable opportunity to share it.

When it comes to a description of God’s love for us, it’s hard to imagine a verse more familiar than the one Jesus Himself provided here in John 3:16.  It answers the question, “How does God love me?” And in it, Jesus reminds us of an important event in history and points us to the manner in which God has shown us His incredible love.

Is that really the remedy? I’m sure many of the Israelites must have asked Moses that question when He described for them the remedy God provided for their snake bites. Folks may also ask that same question when they hear today God's remedy for our sin. Find out more at https://life-this-side-of-heaven.pinecast.co

You can almost imagine His enemies shaking their heads in astonishment, and maybe evening stifling laughter, when Jesus announced, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” Given enough time any building can be rebuilt. It’s just a building. However, what Jesus announced was something which could only be accomplished by God.

Shocking, isn’t it! Now, you may think that I’m referring to the image of our Savior cracking a whip in the Temple courts, driving off animals, tossing tables and scattering coins. But what’s really shocking in this narrative is what precipitated the event in the first place. Take a closer look at what shocked our Savior.

Jealousy has often been described as a vice, a character flaw, a failing – a dangerous personality trait that needs to be overcome. It’s not a compliment when this term is used to describe someone else. So, it’s not surprising that we may scratch our heads and wonder why God would use this term – to describe Himself!

While human wisdom doesn’t lead us to God, it’s humbling to know that God is the One who leads us to Himself through the message of the cross.  

In 1 Corinthians, Paul tells us that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. Since you and I rejoice in this message as good news, it may leave us shaking our head and wondering why they would think that. The apostle draws our attention to the source, to Scripture, to hear how God Himself brings a person from seeing the cross as foolishness to faith.

Surveys often point out how few of the Ten Commandments most people remember. However, the problem isn’t simply that we don’t know them as we should. We're not always sure what they mean or how we should use them. But God said something very important which set the context for everything the commands which followed.

It may be difficult to imagine being embarrassed by Jesus. Or is it? It's one thing to think of Jesus in His glory, thump our chest and say, "I'm with Him." But what about a Savior who hung on a cross?

When suffering comes our way it may feel like getting something in the mail that we didn’t order.  So, when suffering came you would think that the apostle Paul would be upset about. Instead, you can almost see the smile on his face as he tells us it’s a reason to rejoice. But before we step back and wonder if the apostle is crazy, he makes the reason for this joy clear. It comes with some handy s...

Do you like your passport photo? It seems like not many people do. In Genesis, we hear how God gave Abraham and Sarah a brand new names and a whole new identity. It was part of the covenant, the promise, that God made to Abraham. Through faith, the Savior who was born from Abraham and Sarah's line and has set us free from sin, reveals how He now sees you and me. And it's a great picture!

Over the centuries, a lot of people the world considers smart, have made a terrible investment blunders. However, instead of simply losing money, many have lost something much more precious. As Jesus turns our attention to the cross, we see that nothing can compare with the incredible investment God has made in us.

The phrase “on the same page” is often used to describe being in agreement on what should be done or how it should be done. There was a time when Peter found himself not on the same page with Jesus. And there are times when, like Peter, you and I may not be on the same page with Him either. We may find ourselves looking wrong place for indications of God's favor and evidence of Jesus' at work in o...

Following Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness, Luke records a chilling but useful verse. He notes, “When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left Him until an opportune time.”  A number of those times show up in Scripture. One of them took place on the day Peter rebuked Jesus and did not want to see Him go to the cross.

Immediately after Adam’s fall into sin, God promised that He would send a Savior. In all those centuries that past, God repeated that promise. He never renegade on it. He never announced, “Well, that was then, this is now and things change.” James could testify how God made good on those promises in sending us His Son.

Usually when someone says you have a “selective memory,” they’re doing it in a critical or sarcastic manner. It’s not usually said as a compliment. It often refers to the ability to remember some facts while forgetting others, especially when they’re inconvenient.  However, here in Psalm 25, David isn’t accusing God of having a selective memory.  He’s counting on it.

Do you know how many stars there are in the night sky? Have you ever tried to guess how many grains of sand are on the beach? Here's the vivid image God used in the promise that He made to him. However, what makes this promise so amazing, is not simply the inconceivably large number of Abraham’s descendants – the man who once thought he would have none – but also who would be among that line.

The idea of sacrifice is difficult to comprehend in our culture. The popular practice of giving up something for Lent, like chips or chocolate, may simply fit with our winter diet plan … a second chance at that New Year’s resolution that that crumbled somewhere in the past few weeks. But what God commanded Abraham was a sacrifice of truly incomprehensible proportion.

There’s a big difference between “testing” and “temptation.” Both terms are used in Scripture. On the surface, both may appear the same. However, one seeks to strengthen while the other seeks to sabotage.

In all three of the Gospels, it’s noted that the very first thing took place after Jesus’ Baptism was this appointment with the devil where He was tempted in the desert. In one sentence, Mark describes an event to which Matthew and Luke devote much more detail. So Mark’s account may seem a little disappointing at first. However, the outcome is linked to the very next verse.

If I was with Peter, James and John, and saw Jesus transfigured on the mountain, I would be practically jumping out of my skin. I would want to tell everyone! So why would Jesus not allow the disciples to tell the others about what this until after the resurrection?

When the glorious events of the Transfiguration were ended, the disciples looked around. Gone was the cloud, gone were Moses and Elijah. Mark tells us that, suddenly, standing there before them was ... just Jesus. During this season of Lent, and like the disciples, our attention is drawn to the only one who could accomplish the work of our salvation – just Jesus.