Be of Good Cheer

“And behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.” 

Matthew 9:1- KJV

What does a lost sinner see when they look at you?

Are you moping about, sad with a drawn face, constantly complaining? If so, why would a lost sinner look at you and think, gosh, it’s good to be a child of God! Why would they in turn want to take hold of the salvation Jesus offers?

Truth is, they wouldn’t.

As Christians, we need to keep in mind that our outer emotions and actions speak just as loud as our words when trying to bring the lost sinner to Christ.

We need to be shouting our good cheer from the roof tops; telling everyone we come in contact with of the amazing saving grace found in Jesus and the forgiveness that is offered for our sins by His shed blood.

We need to be giving praise; falling down on our knees in the worship of Jesus, the only one who can pronounce and provide forgiveness from our sins.

Sins which can paralyses us both spiritually and physically.

When the saved sinner sins, we cannot lose our salvation; but every moment of every day we need to be asking for forgiveness. And when our sins cause us to walk away from God, all we have to do is turn, repenting from that sin, and run back into God’s waiting arms.

“Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” Hebrews 9:12- KJV

“How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” Hebrews 9:14 KJV

Eternal redemption and eternal life is provided by Jesus’ perfect sacrifice and shed blood, fulfilled by the promissory note of the Holy Spirit, and proved by our faith.

 Like the faith possessed by the men who brought the man sick of the palsy to Jesus. But the most important thing we need to realize and keep in mind is that when our faith is in Jesus, our physical healing doesn’t matter when compared to the healing of our spirituality. Undergoing a physical healing won’t get you into heaven, but having a change in your spirituality will.

By healing the sick man and preforming miracles, Jesus was giving us physical proof that He is God and He has the power to offer and deliver our forgiveness.

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.”- Romans 8:28- KJV

With God, He can make bad things into good. He has the ultimate power to do what we need Him to do and for that, we should be of good cheer. 
We just have to trust Him and have faith in His will.

Christ In You

I'm not sure I should be posting this on social media, given I might start a backlash with unintended consequences. But as a Christian, I feel we should acknowledge when others do something right in a world that frowns on displays of Christian faith.

I'd like to give a public shout out to the entire staff working today at Whataburger. It's been a long time since I've eaten there, much less dined in, but today I had an awesome experience. From the time we walked in, the place was clean, the cashier and server polite and friendly as they took our order and brought it to us at our table. Any other day, this wonderful service might have gone unmentioned- chalked up to another meal at another fast food restaurant- until I heard what was playing on the radio as I sat there munching on my Double Meat Whataburger Jr. CHRISTIAN music! I listened with half an ear to the first song as it caught my attention, listened to the second- thought it sounded like Britt Nicole, Francesca Battistelli, or Barlow Girl,I wasn’t sure, but I WAS listening. To the third, and to the fourth, which by now, I knew it wasn’t a fluke. WOW!

As I sat there, floored, I knew I had to say something.

How could I possibly let an opportunity to acknowledge this business for being brave enough to praise God pass? If I myself wasn’t brave enough to speak of their courage, who would be?

Making sure I had my receipt before we left, we gathered our trash and as we were going out the door I let the cashier know how great the music was. But I didn’t stop there. As soon as I got home I called the Whataburger 800 number. I’m pretty sure I surprised the operator when I let him know I wasn’t calling to complain, but to compliment. To give praise to a business that wasn’t afraid to testify of God’s love and salvation by way of the soft sounds that drifted through the overhead speakers. I posted a brief snippet of my thanks on Twitter and now here on this blog.

Now, I don’t know the title of all the songs that were playing or the names of their singers, but I do know that the same song that was playing in the restaurant as I was leaving, was playing on 93.7 WDJC on my car when I cranked it- Jeremy Camp, Christ In Me.

“So come and empty me 

So that it's you I breathe

I want my life to be 

Only Christ in me 

So I will fix my eyes

'Cause you're my source of life 

I need the world to see

That it's Christ in me”

So tell me, in this day and age when prophecy is being fulfilled before our very eyes, when Christian faith and values are being persecuted at an astonishing rate, can others see Christ in you?

I could in Whataburger and its employees.

Was it a showy display of God’s power like Moses parting the Red Sea, a remarkable sermon like John the Baptist as he prepared the world for the Word made flesh, or a wondrous event like the disciples casting out demons, healing physical bodies, and raising people from the dead? No. It was a small and understated action that I doubt many even knew was taking place. But nonetheless, it was powerful, impactful, and it was amazing.

In the words of Martin Luther King, jr. “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way”

Today, Whataburger did a small thing in a great way!

What Really Matters

What Really Matters!

“And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazarath of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan. And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him: And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness. And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him. Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel. Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And Jesus said unto the, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. And straight away they forsook their nest, and followed him. And when he had gone a little further thence, he saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the ship mending their nets. And straightway he called them: and they left their father Zebedee in the ship with the hired servants, and went after him. ”-Mark 1:9-20 KJV

Going into 2017 we, as Christians, need to focus on what really matters. Throughout everyday life, we find ourselves so utterly consumed with focusing on the wrong things, that we turn a blind eye to what really matters.

We find ourselves forgetting in all the hustle and bustle of life that God is in control.

We fail to realize, that when we say, “I can’t do it’, what we’re really saying is, “God can’t do it!”

Because we are human, we tend to think of Jesus as all human. Jesus was all human, but he was also all God. By examining His time on Earth, we can determine what really matters in our life.

What Really Matters #1- Pleasing God- verses 9-11

For the past 30 years, Jesus had been living an everyday human life. He had been learning carpentry under Joseph’s tutelage until he was ready to begin his ministry, which John had been preparing the world for.  By being baptized by John, Jesus- a man without sin, was putting himself in our shoes, setting the example of how a sinner should repent and be cleansed of sin, taking in the Holy Spirit, so that they in turn can share the same with others. It is important to remember that God is always with us, but He gains immense pleasure from our ordinary human life when we turn our focus to Him.

What Really Matters #2- Avoiding Sin- verse 13

Jesus was all human. He experienced the same temptation to sin as we all do, yet he led a sinless life. It is not the temptation that is the sin, it is the giving in to temptation that is the sin. Satan tempted Jesus when he was alone, when he was away from God, and when he was at his most vulnerable. Why should we think that we are any different? Satan’s plan of attack has not changed. He will attack us when we too are alone, when we walk away from God, and when we are at our most vulnerable. To avoid this, we need to proactive. We need to be close to God, surround ourselves with good godly people, keep in his Word, and allow God full control of our life. When you say, ‘I can’t do it’, what you are really saying is, ‘God can’t do it!’

What Really Matters #3- Repenting and Believing the Gospel- verse 15

What really matters to God, is our salvation and belief in the gospel. The gospel is the birth, death, burial, and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. To obtain salvation, we need to admit that we are sinners- to realize that because of Adam’s sin, we are all doomed to Hell. For the wages of sin is death. We need to believe the gospel, that Jesus is the Son of God, who paid the price of your sin with his own blood and that it is His blood that washes those sins away. That he came to this earth as a baby, born of a virgin, grew as a man, died on Calvary’s cross, was buried in a borrowed tomb, and rose from the dead three days later, claiming victory over Satan and death. Then we need to confess the sins we have committed  and ask Jesus to come into our hearts and forgive us of them, to save us from the Hell we are destined to burn in, and repent- turning from our old life into a new one with Jesus as our personal Savior.

What Really Matters #4- Living as a Disciple- verses 16-20

In verses 16-20 we see another example set by Jesus, as he shows us how to live the life of a disciple. Once saved, we need to be willing to be of use to God. We need to be willing to go in whatever direction He has set before us. We need to have knowledge of the gospel, to show ourselves approved, when we are called to act or stand up for our beliefs. We need to be transformed by the power of God to tell others about Jesus and we need to spread the word of the Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20). Saving others from an eternity of burning in Hell.

Use 2017 to focus on what really matters. If we didn’t tell anyone about Jesus in 2016, it was a wasted year. If we don’t tell anyone about Jesus in 2017, that too will be a wasted year. Focus on what really matters. Don’t waste your year.