Numbers 10:9
When you go to war in your land against the enemy who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, and you will be remembered before the Lord your God, and you will be saved from your enemies.
Everything in the Bible has its purpose. Colors, names, even precious metals have a special meanings; they are placed in the Bible to give us a greater revelation of Jesus Christ. God’s commandments, His laws, His festivals, and His feasts were all given to expose who we are: sinful; and who Jesus is, was, and is to come: perfect. Reading the Bible for spiritual growth hinges on this one fact: it’s all about Jesus!
In Numbers 10, God gives a command to Moses: make two silver trumpets. God then goes on to tell Moses how to make them, what to make them out of, who can use them, and how to use them. Make them out of hammered silver. They can only be used by the priests, the sons of Aaron. Use them to call the congregation together, to call just the leaders together, to announce a move, and to arm the troops for battle. Use them to announce your feasts and your gladness. Sound them over your sacrifices.
What’s the big deal with these trumpets? They are made out of hammered silver!
In the Bible, silver speaks of redemption (Numbers 18:16). It’s safe to say that these two trumpets being silver isn’t a coincidence, but rather the perfect planning of God to conceal something about Jesus in the old laws.
These two trumpets speak of Jesus’ finished work. They are used to call people together, to worship, to fight, and to celebrate. They are used for every occasion. But more than their use is their form. They are made of hammered silver. God is specific for a reason. It would have been easy for them to melt the silver down and pour it into a mold, but that wouldn’t work for God. No, these trumpets had to fully represent the finished work of Christ. They weren’t just used to make sound; their appearance was important.
You see, Jesus was hammered for our redemption. He was beaten, bruised, and literally hammered onto a cross. Why did God want these trumpets? So that we would know how to use Jesus’ finished work!
Just as the trumpets were used and sounded in all occasions, we are called to use Jesus, to sound off about His finished work in all occasions. When we gather as a congregation or in a small leadership meeting: sound the redemptive finished work of Jesus Christ. When we’re preparing to move: sound the redemptive finished work of Jesus Christ. When we’re having a party, a celebration, a worship occasion, or just a happy day: sound the redemptive finished work of Jesus Christ. When the enemy comes and you’re prepared for battle: SOUND THE REDEMPTIVE FINISHED WORK OF JESUS CHRIST, and you will be saved!
It’s not about our works or deeds; it’s never been about our works or deeds. It’s all about Jesus’ finished work. It’s about redemption, salvation, and the blessings of Abraham through the finished work of Jesus Christ. Simply put: it’s all about Jesus!
Friday, August 31, 2012
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Final answer?
Philippians 4:8
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
What are these things? This is an important question to ask and fortunately for us, Paul gives the answer to it in the very next verse, “...the things which you learned, received, heard, and saw in me...” That really doesn’t completely answer the question for us, though. In order to answer the question, in order to understand what these “things” are, we must look to Paul’s life and find out what he taught, gave, spoke, and demonstrated.
First of all, Paul taught grace, and the grace he taught was a radical grace. He taught the grace of Jesus Christ in such a way that he was constantly being accused of authorizing sin. Paul taught that where sin abounds, grace is super-abounding (Romans 5:20). Paul taught that attempted justification and righteousness by the works of the law makes the work of Christ ineffectual in our lives (Galatians 5:4). Paul taught the forgiveness of sins and the over-abundance of God’s grace in the life of the believer.
Second, what did Paul give? Paul gave, through his teaching, the confident expectation of good and eternal salvation that every believer longs to hear about. Paul imparted hope to those who listened to his teaching. He gave the believer the confidence to stand upright in the finished work of Jesus Christ. He gave the believer the knowledge of who Jesus is and how great a Savior He really is. Paul gave hope.
Third, Paul spoke words of affirmation. Paul began all of his writings with words like, “Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul spoke forth blessings and edification to the people.
Finally, Paul demonstrated the love of Christ to those he ministered to. Paul suffered at the hands of his adversaries, yet continued to proclaim the grace and forgiveness of His Lord, Jesus Christ. Paul went out of his way to bring the message of salvation to people who didn’t want to hear it, even when they hated him for it. Paul ministered the gospel of grace to everyone he encountered and continually proclaimed the finished work of Jesus Christ.
Though this may seem to be all about Paul, let me assure you it isn’t. The truth is that all that Paul did was about Christ. He taught Christ’s grace; he gave Christ’s hope; he spoke Christ’s blessings; he demonstrated Christ-like love. Paul was a minister of Jesus Christ to the people.
These “things” that Paul is telling the Philippian church to meditate on, the things that he’s telling us to meditate on, they’re not his works; they are the works of Jesus Christ. Whatever is good, praiseworthy, lovely and pure, just and noble, meditate on it. That “it” is Jesus Christ. He is praiseworthy. He is altogether lovely and pure. He is just and noble. Christ is good; meditate on Him. Focus your thoughts and the utterances of your mouth on Jesus Christ. It’s not a call to focus on your right doing or good works, but rather a reminder to focus on Jesus’ right doing and His finished work. If there’s one thing I’ve found in reading the Bible it’s this: the answer to the question is always Jesus!
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
What are these things? This is an important question to ask and fortunately for us, Paul gives the answer to it in the very next verse, “...the things which you learned, received, heard, and saw in me...” That really doesn’t completely answer the question for us, though. In order to answer the question, in order to understand what these “things” are, we must look to Paul’s life and find out what he taught, gave, spoke, and demonstrated.
First of all, Paul taught grace, and the grace he taught was a radical grace. He taught the grace of Jesus Christ in such a way that he was constantly being accused of authorizing sin. Paul taught that where sin abounds, grace is super-abounding (Romans 5:20). Paul taught that attempted justification and righteousness by the works of the law makes the work of Christ ineffectual in our lives (Galatians 5:4). Paul taught the forgiveness of sins and the over-abundance of God’s grace in the life of the believer.
Second, what did Paul give? Paul gave, through his teaching, the confident expectation of good and eternal salvation that every believer longs to hear about. Paul imparted hope to those who listened to his teaching. He gave the believer the confidence to stand upright in the finished work of Jesus Christ. He gave the believer the knowledge of who Jesus is and how great a Savior He really is. Paul gave hope.
Third, Paul spoke words of affirmation. Paul began all of his writings with words like, “Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.” Paul spoke forth blessings and edification to the people.
Finally, Paul demonstrated the love of Christ to those he ministered to. Paul suffered at the hands of his adversaries, yet continued to proclaim the grace and forgiveness of His Lord, Jesus Christ. Paul went out of his way to bring the message of salvation to people who didn’t want to hear it, even when they hated him for it. Paul ministered the gospel of grace to everyone he encountered and continually proclaimed the finished work of Jesus Christ.
Though this may seem to be all about Paul, let me assure you it isn’t. The truth is that all that Paul did was about Christ. He taught Christ’s grace; he gave Christ’s hope; he spoke Christ’s blessings; he demonstrated Christ-like love. Paul was a minister of Jesus Christ to the people.
These “things” that Paul is telling the Philippian church to meditate on, the things that he’s telling us to meditate on, they’re not his works; they are the works of Jesus Christ. Whatever is good, praiseworthy, lovely and pure, just and noble, meditate on it. That “it” is Jesus Christ. He is praiseworthy. He is altogether lovely and pure. He is just and noble. Christ is good; meditate on Him. Focus your thoughts and the utterances of your mouth on Jesus Christ. It’s not a call to focus on your right doing or good works, but rather a reminder to focus on Jesus’ right doing and His finished work. If there’s one thing I’ve found in reading the Bible it’s this: the answer to the question is always Jesus!
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Remember when...?
Exodus 20:2
I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
I’ve been reading Exodus and Leviticus lately. One thing that I’ve been noticing is that God continually reminds His people of what He’s done for them. God actually prefaced the Ten Commandments by proclaiming who He is and what He’d done for His people. So, I’m thinking this must be pretty important to God.
The first time the children of Israel are told to remember that God has brought them out of bondage by His strength and by His mighty hand is right after the first Passover. It was Moses who told the people to remember what God had just done for them and to keep His feast as a memorial (Exodus 13:3).
From this point on the people were continually reminded of what God did for them. When they complained about their situation, they were reminded by their leaders, Moses and Aaron, that God delivered them. The response to their whining was a reminder of who God is and how He saved them. Even more than just a verbal reminder would be a fresh physical revelation to the people of God’s unending favor for them. Water from rocks, bread from heaven, quail for meat: all of these things were reminders to the people of God’s great love for them. They were living under God’s covenant of grace by faith; they were living under a covenant that God had made with Abraham.
Something happened to the people: they forgot that it was God who did all of these things for them. And in Exodus 19 they made the biggest mistake of all time. The people boastfully told God that they were well able to do whatever He could tell them to do. They declared that they were well able to accomplish any task set before them by God (Exodus 19:3-8).
They said this to God right after Moses reminded them of what God had done for them. They replied to God in such a way as to imply that they were the ones who delivered themselves from Egypt.
God immediately changed His tone. He commanded the people to get away. He referred to Himself, and the mountain He was on, as holy. Death was the penalty for coming too close. God decided to give rules since the people were “well able” to do what He said, since they were “well able” to accomplish all that He had already done for them.
Right before God gave His commandments, His laws, and His regulations for how to live a right life, He declared once again what He had done for His people. From this point on, in His laws, God continually adds tag lines that declare Him to be God and declare His work and how He brought the people out of Egypt.
What’s the point of all of this? God wants us to continually focus on what He’s done and is doing for us. God loves to take care of His family. It’s when we think that we’re able to do it on our own that bad things begin to happen. God’s greatest desire is for us to focus on Him, His grace, His work, and allow Him to provide for us, protect us, and save us. This is God’s nature.
Today we have Jesus and His finished work on the cross to focus on. It was on the cross that He suffered for our redemption. It was on the cross that He freed us from the burden of living into a law that God knew we could never obey. It is Christ that God wants us to focus on, not our abilities (or perceived abilities) to be good people and do the right thing.
Christ fully met the requirements of the law. It is by His perfection that we’re released from the curse and given the ability to be called sons and daughters of God. It is by His blood we are forgiven, by His stripes we are healed, and by His grace that we are abundantly supplied for every good work (both spiritually and physically).
Our job now is this: remind ourselves and remind each other every chance we get of what Jesus has done to deliver us. Our job now is to rest in His finished work and enjoy the favor that we have in Christ.
I’ve been reading Exodus and Leviticus lately. One thing that I’ve been noticing is that God continually reminds His people of what He’s done for them. God actually prefaced the Ten Commandments by proclaiming who He is and what He’d done for His people. So, I’m thinking this must be pretty important to God.
The first time the children of Israel are told to remember that God has brought them out of bondage by His strength and by His mighty hand is right after the first Passover. It was Moses who told the people to remember what God had just done for them and to keep His feast as a memorial (Exodus 13:3).
From this point on the people were continually reminded of what God did for them. When they complained about their situation, they were reminded by their leaders, Moses and Aaron, that God delivered them. The response to their whining was a reminder of who God is and how He saved them. Even more than just a verbal reminder would be a fresh physical revelation to the people of God’s unending favor for them. Water from rocks, bread from heaven, quail for meat: all of these things were reminders to the people of God’s great love for them. They were living under God’s covenant of grace by faith; they were living under a covenant that God had made with Abraham.
Something happened to the people: they forgot that it was God who did all of these things for them. And in Exodus 19 they made the biggest mistake of all time. The people boastfully told God that they were well able to do whatever He could tell them to do. They declared that they were well able to accomplish any task set before them by God (Exodus 19:3-8).
They said this to God right after Moses reminded them of what God had done for them. They replied to God in such a way as to imply that they were the ones who delivered themselves from Egypt.
God immediately changed His tone. He commanded the people to get away. He referred to Himself, and the mountain He was on, as holy. Death was the penalty for coming too close. God decided to give rules since the people were “well able” to do what He said, since they were “well able” to accomplish all that He had already done for them.
Right before God gave His commandments, His laws, and His regulations for how to live a right life, He declared once again what He had done for His people. From this point on, in His laws, God continually adds tag lines that declare Him to be God and declare His work and how He brought the people out of Egypt.
What’s the point of all of this? God wants us to continually focus on what He’s done and is doing for us. God loves to take care of His family. It’s when we think that we’re able to do it on our own that bad things begin to happen. God’s greatest desire is for us to focus on Him, His grace, His work, and allow Him to provide for us, protect us, and save us. This is God’s nature.
Today we have Jesus and His finished work on the cross to focus on. It was on the cross that He suffered for our redemption. It was on the cross that He freed us from the burden of living into a law that God knew we could never obey. It is Christ that God wants us to focus on, not our abilities (or perceived abilities) to be good people and do the right thing.
Christ fully met the requirements of the law. It is by His perfection that we’re released from the curse and given the ability to be called sons and daughters of God. It is by His blood we are forgiven, by His stripes we are healed, and by His grace that we are abundantly supplied for every good work (both spiritually and physically).
Our job now is this: remind ourselves and remind each other every chance we get of what Jesus has done to deliver us. Our job now is to rest in His finished work and enjoy the favor that we have in Christ.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Man's way vs. God's way
Proverbs 14:12
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.
In a world full of rules and regulations, how does a person determine which way is the best way? Which set of rules is the best set of rules to follow? Which set of rules will give me life; which set of rules leads to certain death?
Christian religion will have you believe that following God’s laws will give you life and that a failure to follow His laws will lead to death. If this is true, God’s purpose for giving the law would have had to have been to justify mankind. But that’s not correct; that’s not why He gave the law. The Bible is clear: the law was given so that sin would increase (Romans 5:20); it was given to show mankind their need for a Savior (Galatians 3:24).
Laws, whether God’s or man’s, are always open to interpretation. God’s laws have been interpreted over the years a number of different ways. Christian churches have been arguing against each other about the interpretation of God’s laws for years. One church says the Bible says, “X” while another denomination says the Bible says, “Y”. Either one could be right or wrong. Which one do you follow?
I’m not saying that God’s laws are wrong in any way, shape, or form. I’m not saying that they are invalid in any way. I’m not saying that they don’t give us some pretty firm guidelines for living. What I am saying is that laws are not the way that leads to life. In fact, they lead to death. Reading the Bible will show you this fact. Anyone who violates any one of God’s laws is guilty of them all and the penalty is always death.
What seems right to man, following rules to be justified and knowing how to determine good and evil, is a way to certain death. You can trace this Proverb all the way back to the fall of Adam in the garden. What seemed right to him and Eve was actually a way to certain death.
Knowledge of good and evil brings about death. But this is man’s way. If we can know what is right we’ll be able to tell others how to live right. To quote Dr. Phil, “How’s that working out for ya?”
No, the truth is that the law, our way, is the way to certain death. But God’s Way, that is, Jesus Christ, is the Way to abundant life. Looking to Jesus isn’t man’s way, it’s God’s way. When God judges you today, He looks to Jesus for your righteousness. He looks to Jesus for your redemption. He looks to Jesus for your salvation.
Man’s way is to know good and evil; our way leads to death. God’s way is to know Jesus; only His way leads to life. Let’s not take the way that seems right; let’s take the way that is right. Let’s take the Way, the Truth, and the Life; let’s take Jesus!
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.
In a world full of rules and regulations, how does a person determine which way is the best way? Which set of rules is the best set of rules to follow? Which set of rules will give me life; which set of rules leads to certain death?
Christian religion will have you believe that following God’s laws will give you life and that a failure to follow His laws will lead to death. If this is true, God’s purpose for giving the law would have had to have been to justify mankind. But that’s not correct; that’s not why He gave the law. The Bible is clear: the law was given so that sin would increase (Romans 5:20); it was given to show mankind their need for a Savior (Galatians 3:24).
Laws, whether God’s or man’s, are always open to interpretation. God’s laws have been interpreted over the years a number of different ways. Christian churches have been arguing against each other about the interpretation of God’s laws for years. One church says the Bible says, “X” while another denomination says the Bible says, “Y”. Either one could be right or wrong. Which one do you follow?
I’m not saying that God’s laws are wrong in any way, shape, or form. I’m not saying that they are invalid in any way. I’m not saying that they don’t give us some pretty firm guidelines for living. What I am saying is that laws are not the way that leads to life. In fact, they lead to death. Reading the Bible will show you this fact. Anyone who violates any one of God’s laws is guilty of them all and the penalty is always death.
What seems right to man, following rules to be justified and knowing how to determine good and evil, is a way to certain death. You can trace this Proverb all the way back to the fall of Adam in the garden. What seemed right to him and Eve was actually a way to certain death.
Knowledge of good and evil brings about death. But this is man’s way. If we can know what is right we’ll be able to tell others how to live right. To quote Dr. Phil, “How’s that working out for ya?”
No, the truth is that the law, our way, is the way to certain death. But God’s Way, that is, Jesus Christ, is the Way to abundant life. Looking to Jesus isn’t man’s way, it’s God’s way. When God judges you today, He looks to Jesus for your righteousness. He looks to Jesus for your redemption. He looks to Jesus for your salvation.
Man’s way is to know good and evil; our way leads to death. God’s way is to know Jesus; only His way leads to life. Let’s not take the way that seems right; let’s take the way that is right. Let’s take the Way, the Truth, and the Life; let’s take Jesus!
Friday, August 10, 2012
Spiritual warfare
2 Corinthians 10:4-5
For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.
Often times when we speak of or hear teaching about spiritual warfare, it’s with the mindset that we are to bring our thoughts and actions under control. Rather than putting the control in Christ’s hands, we are taught to take control; we are taught to make our thoughts obey what the Bible says.
While the intentions are good, the outcome is always the same: failure. God didn’t give us rules and regulations so that we could obey them and fight spiritual battles through our obedience. God gave us rules and regulations to show us exactly the opposite; He gave us those things to show us that we are in desperate need of a Savior to fight our battles for us.
Pride, arrogance, and boastful self-reliance are what got us the list, the big ten; it’s what got us the Law. When we read the Bible, or are taught passages from the Bible that are geared around our obedience, our abilities, and our self-control, we’re not going to be able to stand strong in spiritual battles. We’ll fail because we’re relying on our obedience; we’re relying on our ability to obey.
The scripture has been read accurately but interpreted inaccurately. Instead of focusing our thoughts on Christ’s obedience, we’ve been taught to focus on Adam’s disobedience! This is counterproductive and it gives the Devil a foothold.
Paul instructed the Corinthian church to bring their thoughts into captivity to the obedience of Christ. He wasn’t telling them to focus on their obedience; he was telling the church to focus on Christ’s obedience. When your thoughts are captivated by the perfection of Jesus’ obedience and His perfect fulfillment of all of God’s Laws, the Devil has no ground from which to fight. He is unable to attack you based on your obedience because you’re resting in Christ’s obedience.
When you have a bad thought (and you will) bring it into the captivity of Christ’s obedience, not Adam’s disobedience. Remind yourself that Christ did not have that thought, and you are justified, forgiven, saved, and blessed by His thoughts, not yours. You are not judged based on the thoughts in your mind. Instead, you are judged based on the thoughts in your Saviors mind. All of His thoughts are “HOLINESS TO THE LORD” (Exodus 28:36). Rest in the confidence of Christ’s obedience and stand victorious in every spiritual battle!
Often times when we speak of or hear teaching about spiritual warfare, it’s with the mindset that we are to bring our thoughts and actions under control. Rather than putting the control in Christ’s hands, we are taught to take control; we are taught to make our thoughts obey what the Bible says.
While the intentions are good, the outcome is always the same: failure. God didn’t give us rules and regulations so that we could obey them and fight spiritual battles through our obedience. God gave us rules and regulations to show us exactly the opposite; He gave us those things to show us that we are in desperate need of a Savior to fight our battles for us.
Pride, arrogance, and boastful self-reliance are what got us the list, the big ten; it’s what got us the Law. When we read the Bible, or are taught passages from the Bible that are geared around our obedience, our abilities, and our self-control, we’re not going to be able to stand strong in spiritual battles. We’ll fail because we’re relying on our obedience; we’re relying on our ability to obey.
The scripture has been read accurately but interpreted inaccurately. Instead of focusing our thoughts on Christ’s obedience, we’ve been taught to focus on Adam’s disobedience! This is counterproductive and it gives the Devil a foothold.
Paul instructed the Corinthian church to bring their thoughts into captivity to the obedience of Christ. He wasn’t telling them to focus on their obedience; he was telling the church to focus on Christ’s obedience. When your thoughts are captivated by the perfection of Jesus’ obedience and His perfect fulfillment of all of God’s Laws, the Devil has no ground from which to fight. He is unable to attack you based on your obedience because you’re resting in Christ’s obedience.
When you have a bad thought (and you will) bring it into the captivity of Christ’s obedience, not Adam’s disobedience. Remind yourself that Christ did not have that thought, and you are justified, forgiven, saved, and blessed by His thoughts, not yours. You are not judged based on the thoughts in your mind. Instead, you are judged based on the thoughts in your Saviors mind. All of His thoughts are “HOLINESS TO THE LORD” (Exodus 28:36). Rest in the confidence of Christ’s obedience and stand victorious in every spiritual battle!
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Abundance of the heart?
Luke 6:45
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Have you ever said something negative? Have you ever said a “bad” word? My guess is that you have; I know I have. But were those things spoken out of your heart or were they spoken out of your anger or your frustration?
We all get caught up in the heat of the moment. It’s when things are spiraling out of control that we find ourselves saying the worst things. When work is busy and everyone wants or needs something from you RIGHT NOW, that’s when we typically blow it and lose our cool.
Maybe that’s not you. Maybe you’re the person who keeps a level head at work and then comes home only to explode at your son because he left a Lego on the floor. Or maybe you hold back all day and then let the verbal flood out on your spouse.
Whichever you are, know this: these moments of explosive, verbal diarrhea are not from the abundance of your heart. They are from the overstimulation of your mind and they are a human reaction to stress. You’re normal!
So what then, if this isn’t about those moments in time, is this verse speaking about? Well, let’s find out. As Christians we want Christ in our hearts. Christ is God, and, being God, He knows that we’re going to speak harsh words to each other from time to time. He knows that we’re explosive in anger and that we speak from the emotion, not the heart in those cases. Moments of losing your cool don’t mean that Christ is no longer there. It’s what you speak of on a regular basis, not out of stress and pressure, that shows what’s in your heart.
Ask yourself this question: Do I speak of the finished work of Jesus Christ and His abundance of grace or do I speak of rules and regulations dictating how to be a better person? This is the test to find out what is in your heart.
Christ wants to be the center of your normal thoughts and conversations. He doesn’t want you talking about rules that dictate how to live; He doesn’t want you talking about work that still needs to be done. No, Christ wants us talking about His finished work. He wants us to speak, from the good treasure (Jesus) that’s in our hearts and tell the world of His glory, His grace, His forgiveness, His perfection, His righteousness, and His abundance of love!
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Have you ever said something negative? Have you ever said a “bad” word? My guess is that you have; I know I have. But were those things spoken out of your heart or were they spoken out of your anger or your frustration?
We all get caught up in the heat of the moment. It’s when things are spiraling out of control that we find ourselves saying the worst things. When work is busy and everyone wants or needs something from you RIGHT NOW, that’s when we typically blow it and lose our cool.
Maybe that’s not you. Maybe you’re the person who keeps a level head at work and then comes home only to explode at your son because he left a Lego on the floor. Or maybe you hold back all day and then let the verbal flood out on your spouse.
Whichever you are, know this: these moments of explosive, verbal diarrhea are not from the abundance of your heart. They are from the overstimulation of your mind and they are a human reaction to stress. You’re normal!
So what then, if this isn’t about those moments in time, is this verse speaking about? Well, let’s find out. As Christians we want Christ in our hearts. Christ is God, and, being God, He knows that we’re going to speak harsh words to each other from time to time. He knows that we’re explosive in anger and that we speak from the emotion, not the heart in those cases. Moments of losing your cool don’t mean that Christ is no longer there. It’s what you speak of on a regular basis, not out of stress and pressure, that shows what’s in your heart.
Ask yourself this question: Do I speak of the finished work of Jesus Christ and His abundance of grace or do I speak of rules and regulations dictating how to be a better person? This is the test to find out what is in your heart.
Christ wants to be the center of your normal thoughts and conversations. He doesn’t want you talking about rules that dictate how to live; He doesn’t want you talking about work that still needs to be done. No, Christ wants us talking about His finished work. He wants us to speak, from the good treasure (Jesus) that’s in our hearts and tell the world of His glory, His grace, His forgiveness, His perfection, His righteousness, and His abundance of love!
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