Children of God

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children."Gal 4:4-5

Children are an awesome blessing. They can be a lot of work, though. In our attempts to bring them up in the way they should be going doesn't always work the way that we planned.

We have a Father in heaven. We have been adopted as His own children; redeemed by His only begotten Son to be His children. I have often wondered what God, my Father, thought when I really did stuff that were not in His plans. Does he get as frustrated as I do when the children I care for are straying? I am sure that He is not all that pleased when we do things to our and our neighbors detriment; when we do not love as He loves us. As children of God we try to please Him even as our own children try to please us. We all fall short. We don't always do what we ought to be doing. We don't and our children don't. But, we keep on loving even as our heavenly Father loves us.

All who believe are the children of God. May He help us to follow in His Way.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Galatians 5:1-12 Law or Grace?

Galatians 5:1-12 NIV
Abandon your life to the grace of God! There are so many laws and traditions, I find it virtually impossible to keep to the traditions and letters of the law that are set forth by humankind. Can anyone know them all? Can anyone abide by them all? We have barely entered the season of Lent (it is the day after Ash Wednesday) and I find myself unable to sleep at 3 a.m. begging God for His mercy and grace; for without Him I would surely be lost.

The church on earth, in Paul's time, spent a lot of time worrying about the law of circumcision; whether gentiles should be circumcised or not. Paul said no. Others said yes. Paul insisted that keeping this law would not justify one person. His claim was that if we are trying to be justified by the law then we are alienating ourselves from Christ. The only justification that we have is Jesus the Christ. He died on that cross so that we might be justified in our Father's eyes. The law had to be satisfied. He satisfied it for us.

Mistakes will be made; sins will be compounded, laws will be broken. Much time will be spent worrying about it and trying to justify our own actions. If we continue to attempt to be justified by our own good works in keeping the law (which none of us ever have) we have fallen away from grace. We must abandon our lives to God's mercy and grace! We must trust Him! Our help is found only in Him. Give thanks and praise that your sins are forgiven for "the Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him;  we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets." Dan 9:9-10

God's Peace - Pr. J

Galatians 4:8-31 Bound or Free?

Galatians 4:8-31 NIV
We know that through Christ we are free men and women. We know that we are children of God and have been freed from bondage to those who by nature are not gods. Yet, something within us keeps driving us back into bondage to serve those false gods. Some of them might seem innocent enough. We are not always even aware when we have become obsessed with them; after all, we live in a world where false gods tend to take center stage. They are harmless in themselves, until they become something or someone that we cannot do without. Our lives become centered around these things. When we cannot do without something or some activity then, dear friends, know that you have sold yourself back into bondage to this false god. You are giving your time, your money, your life, to serve this false god.

We are children and heirs of the living God. Jesus freed us from bondage with his blood. Take hold of that freedom and turn away from all that would return you to bondage.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Galatians 2 Christ Lives In Me

Galatians 2 NIV
Remembering the poor is a good thing. But, sometimes we can get so wrapped up in doing good, those things that our traditions dictate, that we forget that we are not justified by our good works and go about acting like they amount to something that could be credited to us. Paul had to confront Peter about this. Although Peter accepted and even approved Paul's ministry to the gentiles, Peter kept himself  apart from the gentiles. He was saying grace... but, living by the laws of the his tradition.

Paul reminds us that righteousness cannot be gained through the law. It is by the grace of God that we are found righteous. It is by the grace of God that we are saved. We earn none of it. We deserve none of it. And.. if good works are done through us let us remember these words of Paul. "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." (Gal 2:20)

So when we start thinking that we are accomplishing much, let us remember that it is not we who accomplish these things. Thanks be to God for the abiding presence of Christ!

God's Peace - Pr. J

Galatians 1:11-24 We Believe? Really?

Galatians 1:11-24
Paul has warned us to beware of those who preach another gospel and today we hear him reassuring us that he received the gospel from Jesus Christ by revelation. He did not receive it from humans who might have predisposed biases to teach one way or another but from Jesus, himself. After three years of preaching the gospel; he then went to meet Peter and James (the Lord's brother).

What an amazing revelation that was. The one who had been persecuting those who believed was now preaching the faith and preaching in such a manner that others were turning and praising God because of his witness. This revelation of Jesus changed Paul's life forever. It changed the lives of many who heard Paul witness to Jesus.

You and I have heard the witness. We have received the Holy Spirit. Yet, how alive and active is our faith? When was the last time that our witness actually helped in any way to bring someone to profess Christ as their savior?

Do we truly believe? What is it that we actually believe? Have we turned and received another gospel? Lord, help us in our unbelief. Help us to believe!

God's Peace - Pr. J

Galatians 1:1-10 Other Gospels

Galatians 1:1-10 NIV
There are not many paths to the Kingdom of God. There is only one path. There is only one way. Jesus is the way. Do not listen to those who confuse and confound the world by telling us that there are many ways.

Already, in Paul's day, there were those who were teaching another gospel. They preach to please the masses. They preach to lift themselves up so that they might be adored and followed by men. They may sound like they are preaching Jesus; but, they are perverting the gospel to please the people rather than God. Do not listen to them. Do not follow them. (And, definitely do not preach another gospel yourself!)

There is only one gospel. Jesus Christ gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

You have no idea where those other gospels; those other paths, might lead. Follow Jesus on the path that leads to the eternal Kingdom.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Ezra 8 - You Are Free!

Well, here's a puzzle this morning:  Who wrote the book of Ezra?  I realized as I was reading the chapter this morning that the author is now speaking in the first person rather than the third.  I have always assumed it was Ezra who wrote it, but if he wrote it, the transition from third to first person is kind of confusing to me.  I know that if this were being discussed in the Bible Study on Wednesday mornings, we'd have a great time trying to figure it out.  But, in the end, does it really matter?  It is a great story - history well worth reading.

As I read the first section of the chapter with the list of fathers and their children who left captivity together, I wondered how many Christian parents today desired that their children would be able to live without bondage to the false gods of this world and live freely in Christ. 

May God help all whom we love to understand, to see, that Christ freed them from sin, death, and the power of the devil, to live life in him and to live it abundantly. 

"Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage."  Gal 5:1 NIV