MaxLucado.com: Seeing You
Why does God love you so much?
For the same reason the artist loves his paintings. You are His idea!
Ephesians 2:10 confirms that we are “God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”
In the movie Hook, Peter Pan had become old and looked nothing like the Peter the lost boys knew. In the midst of the boys shouting that this was NOT Peter, one of the smallest boys pulled him down to his level. He places his hands on Peter’s face, moved the skin around and reshaped his face. The boy looked into Peter’s eyes and said, “There you are, Peter!”
Shh. Listen. Do you hear?
God is saying the same words to you. There you are! There you are!
He’s seeing you and loving the you he sees.
From Fearless
Galatians 3
New International Version (NIV)
Faith or Works of the Law
3 You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 2 I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? 3 Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?[a] 4 Have you experienced[b] so much in vain—if it really was in vain? 5 So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? 6 So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”[c]
7 Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. 8 Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”[d] 9 So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”[e] 11 Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because “the righteous will live by faith.”[f] 12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, it says, “The person who does these things will live by them.”[g] 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.”[h] 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
The Law and the Promise
15 Brothers and sisters, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. 16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,”[i] meaning one person, who is Christ. 17 What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. 18 For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.
19 Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator. 20 A mediator, however, implies more than one party; but God is one.
21 Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. 22 But Scripture has locked up everything under the control of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.
Children of God
23 Before the coming of this faith,[j] we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed. 24 So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. 25 Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.
26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Read: Matthew 5:43-48
Love Your Enemies
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers,[a] what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Changing Enemies Into Friends
July 26, 2012 — by Dennis Fisher
But I say to you, love your enemies . . . do good to those who hate you. —Matthew 5:44
During the US Civil War, hatred became entrenched between the North and South. In one instance, President Abraham Lincoln was criticized for speaking of benevolent treatment for the Southern rebels. The critic reminded Lincoln that there was a war going on, the Confederates were the enemy, and they should be destroyed. But Lincoln wisely responded, “I destroy my enemies when I make them my friends.”
Lincoln’s comment is insightful. In many ways it reflects Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount: “I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:44-45).
We will encounter difficult people in our lives—some on whom we will need to set limits. But to give in to the temptation to undermine or hurt them in any way is not God’s way. Instead, we should pray for them, show consideration, look out for their best interests, and emphasize the positive. This may result in changing an enemy into a friend.
Not everyone will respond positively to us, but we can pray and plan for a more harmonious relationship. What difficult person can you start befriending?
Lord, some people in my life are difficult to love.
I am tempted not even to try to care. But You showed
love to me even when I was Your enemy. Please direct
me into ways to love with Your power and grace.
It’s hard to hate someone when you’re doing something good for him.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
July 26, 2012
The Way to Purity
Those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart . . . . For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man . . . —Matthew 15:18-20
Initially we trust in our ignorance, calling it innocence, and next we trust our innocence, calling it purity. Then when we hear these strong statements from our Lord, we shrink back, saying, “But I never felt any of those awful things in my heart.” We resent what He reveals. Either Jesus Christ is the supreme authority on the human heart, or He is not worth paying any attention to. Am I prepared to trust the penetration of His Word into my heart, or would I prefer to trust my own “innocent ignorance”? If I will take an honest look at myself, becoming fully aware of my so-called innocence and putting it to the test, I am very likely to have a rude awakening that what Jesus Christ said is true, and I will be appalled at the possibilities of the evil and the wrong within me. But as long as I remain under the false security of my own “innocence,” I am living in a fool’s paradise. If I have never been an openly rude and abusive person, the only reason is my own cowardice coupled with the sense of protection I receive from living a civilized life. But when I am open and completely exposed before God, I find that Jesus Christ is right in His diagnosis of me.
The only thing that truly provides protection is the redemption of Jesus Christ. If I will simply hand myself over to Him, I will never have to experience the terrible possibilities that lie within my heart. Purity is something far too deep for me to arrive at naturally. But when the Holy Spirit comes into me, He brings into the center of my personal life the very Spirit that was exhibited in the life of Jesus Christ, namely, the Holy Spirit, which is absolute unblemished purity.
A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Your Work and Your Worth - #6664
Thursday, July 26, 2012
It starts when you're very little. People lean over to you and they say, "What are you going to be when you grow up?" Now, have you ever heard a little child say, "Well, I'm going to be generous, and healthy, and helpful, and uh... Godly?" No, the answer is always an occupation. You go to school to get ready for that occupation; you talk about your grades when somebody asks how you're doing. Who are you? You go to college and get your job. Then you retire, and now who am I? I'm not working any more. Uh... What are you going to be when you grow up?
I had a young woman who has an excellent legal career tell me not too long ago, "Ron, I drive home in my beautiful car with my nice fat paycheck and I say, 'And what's it all for?'" You know, there's a devastating lie that cripples millions of us, and that leaves us disillusioned, burned out, or terribly deceived.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your Work and Your Worth."
Well, our word for today from the Word of God is about our work and it's in Ecclesiastes 2. I'll begin reading with verse 10. Solomon is reflecting on his working life and he says, "I denied myself nothing my eyes desired. I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor." Okay, he says, "Okay, I got some good things; I was able to do some nice things because of what I earned from working, yet he says, "When I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had totally achieved, everything was meaningless...a chasing after the wind. Nothing was gained."
Like that young woman said, "What's it all for?" Then in verse 21 he says, "A man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless. What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief, even at night his mind does not rest. This, too, is meaningless."
Solomon had achieved all his career objectives, but he discovered this startling truth: A person's work is not his worth. Now, our society lies to us about that. We believe we are what we do. Executives are sent on retreats sometimes for self-discovery. And I'm told that in their small groups the first night they're asked to answer this question, "Who am I?" without mentioning their company, their career, or their position. They don't know what to say! Take away what I do and I don't know who I am.
There are people who are neglecting God, family, health, and other people because they think their worth is their work. Well, in God's economy, unemployed people are just as valuable as employed people. No job can give you real worth. You are a created masterpiece. Actually, work and the sweat of our brow is part of the curse of the fall.
Your worth is in your identity in Jesus Christ. Listen to these great words from Colossians 2:10, "You are complete in Him." You got Jesus; you've got all you were ever meant to be. Once you're free from the bondage of having to prove your worth, guess what? You get better in your work.
It's time to dig down deep into where our identity was supposed to be; being God's workmanship, the Bible says; paid for by the blood of God's Son, who thought you were worth dying for. Maybe your whole life has been running on a gerbil wheel, trying to be somebody, trying to be accepted, trying to get some sense of being worth something. And you find the One you were made by, made for, and who died for you, you know you are somebody.
Maybe this is your time to discover where your worth really comes from. Open up to Jesus Christ and say, "Jesus, you died for me. I'm Yours." We'd love to help you know how to begin that relationship and end this endless search for worth at His feet. Go to our website. It's YoursForLife.net.
And realize that when you've got Jesus, you are complete in Him.