The Greatest

 

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (1 Corinthians 13:7)

Love endures all things because of being protected in God’s hands and walking each day with Him. We can endure and grow because God gives us strength, and He encourages and teaches us through all things when we listen to and heed Him.

Because of the love of God for and in us, and the personal knowledge of His love, we can believe in God’s strength, encouragement, and faithfulness and not be dissuaded or discouraged. Belief in God is a gift He gives.

Because of God’s love, we can hope. We rest in that hope that God is faithful, He loves us, and He protects us, so we can continue to have faith in Him—hope in Him.

Because of God’s love for and in us and His faithfulness to Himself and His promises to us, we can endure all things. We can bravely, calmly, and patiently persevere.

Notice each of these actions are doable because of Who God is, what He’s done, and what He’s taught us. We cannot bear up, believe, hope, or endure without Him. We wouldn’t have God or the gifts He gives us to be able to do these things without God.

Today and in the the rest of your tomorrows, live in and live out this love that only God gives. You will be assured, comforted, encouraged, protected, strengthened, and taught, so your faith and hope in God grows. Then you can bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things and, by that, testify about God with your life. You will know in your heart, mind, and spirit that Love never fails. Three will remain—faith, hope, and love. The greatest of these is love (directly from God to you).

Receive Power

 

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. (Acts 1:8)

This power Christians receive, about which Jesus spoke and Luke wrote, is nothing they can manufacture for themselves. Notice the verb “will receive.” The power comes from the Holy Spirit (God). God gives it freely to Christians. This power is part of God’s power and provides believers with the ability to do what God tells them. God gives the ability to do what He commands. This power is part of God’s ability; He can do anything and everything.

With the power of God in them given by God Himself, what was Jesus’ command to His followers? Jesus said Christians are to be witnesses. Witnesses see and hear what God does and says. Witnesses can attest to God's actions and words. Their statements—testimonies—give credence and more power (more punch) so people are more inclined towards believing about God and believing in Jesus.

In Acts 1:8, Luke recorded when Jesus said the Holy Spirit will give Christians the power and ability to serve Jesus by testifying about Him. God expects and empowers believers to hear, see, obey, and then tell other people about Jesus. He compels them by the Holy Spirit, who lives within them, to tell other people. As Christians grow closer to God, it becomes harder to disobey God—His conviction through the Holy Spirit and power within them—and their love for Jesus. Love for God (Father, Son, and Spirit) compels Christians to obey, act, and say what Gods commands, compels, and empowers them to do with His ability.

Understanding that the command, compulsion, and power to obey comes from God makes it easier for the believer to tell whom and go to wherever He leads easier. Love for God makes it easier each day to go further from our safe space, from family, and from friends. That love for God and from Him makes it possible to go far to be a witness about God and the gospel. It helps believers realize no matter where they are, God is already there and always with them. Going far away is easier when your love for God is greater than your love for yourself, your dreams and plans, your parents, siblings, grandparents, and your friends. When God is your everything, He becomes closer to you than these people and things; He becomes mother, father, brother, sister, and friend in your heart. A Christian does not leave these behind but finds that love for God fulfills the love you need.

This means going to your city (Jerusalem), your state (Judea), your country (elsewhere in your country, like Samaria), and the world are easier because of your love for God and His for you. Going and telling is easier because God empowers you with His ability. Witnessing about God is easier because no doubt exists in your mind that God compels and sends you. Obeying is easier because God’s love in you causes you to love the people you have not yet met. God’s love in you gives you immeasurable concern for their spiritual eternity and their lostness—lack of salvation and lack of relationship with God.

Christians’ love for God and people is immense due to their relationship with God and belief in Jesus, making sharing the gospel a necessity. You will stretch yourself so that all people listen to testimony about Jesus. Your relationship with God fulfills you completely, so you lack nothing - family, friends, home, power, purpose, hope, and future. God fulfills each of these needs; He becomes your everything.

What excuse do you allow to keep you from a greater relationship with God, a relationship that comes from obeying Him by being filled with His power and ability?

What excuse do you give for not witnessing about Jesus to people?

God wants to be everything you need. Do not let a human excuse keep you from the abundance of God and from God. Believe and bear witness about Jesus.

Bearing and Forgiving: The Example

 

“Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” (Colossians 3:13)

Bearing means to endure or tolerate a person and his or her actions, opinions, etc. It is a stance of not judging because of your respect for him or her as a creation of God, one loved by Him. Bearing comes from living out visibly and tangibly what God has put into you from His being and His indwelling Holy Spirit. Because we are “raised with Christ,” as Paul stated, we are enabled to bear with each person if we are willing to do that which God compels us. We can simplify this action and attitude of bearing with a slogan from the 1980s-2000s, “What would Jesus do”—WWJD.

Paul wrote we are to bear each other, our brothers and sisters in Christ—their various attitudes, actions, thoughts, words, etc. Still, he added to that. He specifically added that we are not only to bear but to “forgive any complaint.” Forgiveness is hard for any person, especially the unsaved. It should be easier for a Christian because he or she recognized and recognizes daily his or her own sins. Still though, without humility, forgiveness is hard to give. Without a willing heart, the forgiveness God puts within you will not be extended to others.

Bearing a person is easier to do. Sometimes we just grit our teeth and put up with a person (“grin and bear it”), probably while interacting very little with the person. Forgiving requires more of a person to be done. It requires humility, understanding, mercy, compassion, kindness, and acceptance of that person with whom you bear his or her opinions, actions, attitudes, etc. Forgiving is freely, willingly, and graciously extending favor, kindness, and pardon to a person who has harmed or offended you or someone else. 

Paul said forgiveness is a refusal to cast blame for “any complaint.” Forgiving is totally removing a harm from your memory of offenses, not harboring any grudges for later quarrels or arguments. Paul also recognized that forgiveness is a two-way street when he wrote, “against one another.” It takes at least two people for an offense to happen. The offense of one person by another may occur from interactions between those two people because of attitudes, words, or actions misunderstood or misstated. Therefore, forgiveness often needs to be extended by each person in the equation of offense and hurt. 

In considering offense and forgiveness, Paul summed up the ultimate example of forbearing and forgiving, in case anyone forgot and in hope they will remember it in the heat of the moment. Just as the word “bearing” should cause us to consider the ultimate reason to bear with another person and just as the word “forgiving” should cause us to think of the ultimate reason to forgive, Paul explicitly stated as reminder and prime example Jesus’ bearing with and forgiving of us, His followers. 

Even if you are so hurt or offended that you do not want to be with or think about the person by whom you took offense, remember, but for Jesus, you would not know or have freely received forgiveness. You would not have received salvation and the promise of eternal life. Your interactions with God read like a litany of charges of offense and rebellion against Him, but He extended and extends undue grace and forgiveness to you. He bears with and justifies you. God removes your sins from your name as far as the east is from the west. 

God did not have Paul write and teach that we are to do something impossible. He bore and forgave all your sins. God gave mercy and grace to you and pours into you the ability to be merciful and gracious toward other people. You can bear and forgive because of His love, of which you are the recipient and the channel to other people. 

So, be like God. By the love of God within yourself, bear with and forgive any complaint you have with one another. Are you willing? 

 

Are you forgiven and saved by Jesus? If not, now is the time to believe in Jesus, confess your sins, and receive His forgiveness.

God Renews, So

 

“Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.” 2 Corinthians 4:16 

Don’t lose heart, become spiritless, give up, and lose the will to go on. Yes, our physical bodies are aging and decaying. But, if we, individually, believe in Jesus, God will renew our inner self—heart, mind, and spirit—to be like Christ’s. We do not and cannot renew our inner selves.

God’s renewing our inner selves makes us more able to daily know what to do, say, and think. When we stay in tune with God daily, He renews us. He never grows tired or weary, like we mortals do. God continues to renew us, strengthen and embolden us, guide, and teach us. His never gives up on renewing us or calling the unsaved to turn to Him. God’s love, power, and patience are limitless. He is our strength, power, inspiration, teacher, guide, protector, and provider. We hold onto Him by continuing to pray, read and study the Bible, worship Him, and do what He says. 

There’s more. The “therefore” at the beginning of this verse leads us to consider what Paul wrote before verse 16. This “therefore” means that because of something or despite something…. we must remember God is renewing us, so we shouldn’t become spiritless, afraid, faint, or give up, unless God says to.

What happened before verse 16 that Paul wants us to remember? Verse seven tells us to remember we are mortal. As God’s servants and children, we will be… 

*hard-pressed, but not crushed

*Perplexed but not despairing

*Persecuted but not forsaken

*Struck down but not destroyed

Why? Because God is more powerful than anything that comes against us, and He renews us. He keeps His children from being crushed, despairing, forsaken, and destroyed. Only God can utterly destroy anything and anyone. 

Nothing anyone or spiritual being does can ever remove us from God’s hands. Our mortal flesh already is decaying, but God is renewing our inner self. He gave us the new inner self when we believed. Nothing and nobody can take it from us. 

Instead, though we are mortal, we gladly give our lives for Jesus’ sake to reveal Him to other people (verse 11). We do this so those people can see the life of Jesus through our words, actions, and attitudes, and believe in Him for themselves.

Therefore, don’t lose heart, faint, or grow weary because of the task, fatigue, numbers of people and their needs, or persecution that may come. Yes, your mortal body is decaying. Yet, God is renewing your inner self daily to be more like Jesus and be in closer communion with Him. 

“Those who wait upon the Lord will receive renewed strength and will Mount up with wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.” —Isaiah 40:31

Unity or Discord

 

“Now may the God, who gives endurance and who supplies encouragement, grant that you be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus,”

— Romans 15:5

 

My Interpretation of this verse after reading the Greek words is:

“Now May God, who gives you His strength to persevere and who inspires you, give each of you together the same mind, according to Christ Jesus, who made you one in mind (not discordant), with Him through the salvation He gave you.”

 

Notice that God gives His strength to persevere and His inspiration for how to be and live. 

 

Notice, also, Jesus gave the believers salvation and gave them the ability to be of the same mindset, not in opposition. 

 

What did Paul say the Roman Christians were to do? Choose to be of the same mind with other believers. Choose to seek and receive from God the strength to live in unity like Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit. Choose to live life as God divinely inspires. Choose to be united/harmonious with the other Christians.  Recognize the three main verbs—choose. 

 

Being in harmony with other people is a matter of your will. Will you choose to be like the Son, Father, and Spirit, to be unified? Will you accept and use the strength God offers His children? Will you choose to live your life as God inspires and guides you? 

 

Jesus chose to follow the will of the Godhead, of which He is a part. He gave up His human will of preservation of self. He chose to follow the divine will of offering Himself as the holy sacrifice needed to redeem people from their sins and the guilt of their sins. He gives believers the power over temptation with His strength.

 

Jesus chose to be united with God. Their love for humanity, though unlovely we are, led them to provide this sacrifice. Jesus willed for each of us to be united with God, to be in harmony with Him. 

 

Do you choose to be in harmony with God?

Will you choose to have the mind of Christ? 

Will you be united with God and other believers in mind and purpose?

 

Consider Philippians 2:5-11:

 

Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant and being born in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross. For this reason, also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name, which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

 

Will you choose unity with God or discordant chaos of life and mind?

 

Romans 15:6 gives us the reason we should be in unity. It says, “so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify and praise and honor the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (AMP).

 

You have a choice to make today.

Humility

 

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, so that in due time He may exalt you.”

— 1 Peter 5:6

 

God didn’t have Peter write this verse singly. It comes as part of a set. From verse one, Peter told the elders/leaders to be shepherds of God’s  flock. They were to submit to God’s leadership and not act as dictators to the people of the church. These leaders were not to be elders because of a desire to get wealth, possessions, or a position of power in a church or community. Instead, the they were to be an example of people wholly submitted to God.

 

Next, Peter told the younger people in the church to submit to God’s appointed church leaders, just as they submit to Him. Trust their elders and live just as they live. (This supposes the leaders submit daily to God.)

 

Peter then wrote, “All of you clothe yourselves in humility.” Don’t suppose you are greater than each other. You all submit to God. You all are saved in the same way, through Jesus’ sacrificial, atoning death. You/we have nothing about which to be arrogant. You can’t even save yourselves from your own desires. So be humble toward each other and God. Recognize God and who He is with your heart, soul, mind, and body—attitudes, thoughts, actions, and spirit.

 

God opposes the proud and shows them just who they really are compared to Him. But still, He is gracious and will save them. 

 

To tie this into a nice bundle, God, through Peter says, “Humble yourselves under God’s mighty hand, so in due time He will exalt you.” You are not mighty, especially compared to almighty God, so humble yourselves. Admit it in your heart, mind, spirit, and words, and submit to Him. Know, at the right time, you will reap the reward of your faithfulness and submission to God by receiving your heavenly reward—eternal life with Him. 

 

To finalize this thought, Peter wrote, don’t worry about who’s your leader, your status, your wealth, or your possessions. Why? Get rid of those worldly cares because God cares for and is taking care of you. 

 

So humble yourselves before God and submit to Him and His will. He takes care of you (vs. 7). God planned to care for you before you were created by having the plan in place to save you and give you an eternal relationship with Him. 

 

Our humility costs us far less than our salvation cost Jesus.

Absolute Goodness

 

“We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”

-Romans 8:28

 

We, who have responded to God’s call on our hearts and have believed in Jesus and have the promised hope of our future resurrection, know that God makes all things work together for good. That “good” is not what we know in and from this world. It is pure, undiluted goodness that comes from the character of God. 

 

We Christians know, because we have God’s gracious promise of salvation and resurrection, that God makes all things work together for the absolute good of His children, who He calls to Himself for His good and grand purpose—the purpose of salvation, telling others about the gospel of His love, and discipling them.

 

God’s goodness does not hinge upon what we do. Goodness, by definition, comes from God’s character. God is absolutely good and does only good. When people believe in Jesus for salvation, they receive God’s goodness expressing His love through salvation, which is redemption from the stain and guilt of their sin. Nothing in the world is good except what He has redeemed for Himself. 

 

God’s calling to us (His creation) is all about His plan and love. We are sinful people who are stuck in the mire of a fallen world. Without God’s calling us, we would be blind and deaf to Him. We would be without hope now and for eternity. Our hearts, minds, and spirits would despair and languish. We cannot and did not give ourselves ultimate hope because we cannot see beyond this day and moment what actually will be. But God can and does. 

 

So because we know God only does good and only His absolute purpose prevails, we can understand, know, trust, and hope with absolute certainty that as we daily walk with Him on this earth, He makes all things work together toward that good for His children, those who love Him and are called for His purpose of salvation and eternity with Him. We can know the truth of what Paul wrote further in Romans 8.

 

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

 

“For your sake we face death all day long;

    we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

 

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35-39, CSB)

 

Nothing stops God’s goodness or good plan.  Once you believe in Jesus, you are permanently part of His goodness and good plan. You are called His, not Satan’s. What’s your part in this plan as God’s called people? Have faith. Have hope. Grow in your faith. Tell other people about Jesus and God’s love. Help them grow closer to God and more like Christ.

 

Don’t lose hope. God works all things together for His purpose for the good of those who love Him and are called His. 

 

Are you called God’s child? What keeps you from His goodness and love?

Joy and Crown

 

 

“But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all. You too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me.” (Philippians 2:17-18)

 

“I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore, all who are mature, let’s have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that to you as well; however, let’s keep living by that same standard to which we have attained.” (Philippians 3:14-16)

 

“Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, whom I long to see, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved. Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!” (Philippians 4:1, 4)

 

Paul wrote to the Philippians of his love for them and his desire to see them. His love was so great that he longed for them to grow into the image of Christ for which he himself strived. 

 

Paul began by reminding them of the mind of Christ—absolute humility for the salvation of all people. He wrote challenging the people to have that same mind, to be humble and changed because of the salvation they received by and from Jesus. Should the Philippian Christians think this too great a sacrifice—such humbling of oneself—Paul put himself as an example of a person who was and had everything, giving it all up, and being considered nothing by the people who once considered him so great. Even this, Paul said, does not make him like Christ. He said he had not attained the prize for the goal toward which he ran. 

 

Paul gave the prime example of humility—Jesus— and then himself, as one striving to be like Him, so the Philippian believers would realize it is doable and a worthy task.This task is to what Christ calls each of His followers. “It’s the standard to which we (believers) attained” but whose goals are not yet reached.

 

After reminding the Philippian believers of the prime example and goal Christ gives and a human example (himself), he then expressed his love for them. He said he loved them and longed to see them. Paul said these believers were his joy and crown. He felt like a father who loved them and was proud of them. Paul followed that statement of his love for them with the challenge to keep following Jesus and look to the example he himself gave them. And even in the hardship that living a life of absolute humility, Paul taught them to rejoice in the Lord always.

 

Rejoice that Jesus saved you. Rejoice that you are called to follow Jesus’ example. Rejoice that Jesus considers you worthy to be His example to the world. Rejoice that you get to tell other people about Jesus. Rejoice that you have the privilege to suffer like Jesus because it shows your identification with Him. Rejoice because the way you live imitating Christ is considered so true to Him that people want to torment, trouble, and persecute you like other people did Him. Rejoice that you have fathers and mothers in the faith to be examples for you and pray for you. Rejoice that the strength, endurance, perseverance, and love you need for the task to which Jesus commanded His followers has already been given to you through His Holy Spirit living in you. 

 

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!” as Paul said in Philippians 4:4. “Let your gentle spirit be known to all people. The Lord is near.” (Philippians 4:5) You are beloved. Keep up the faith. Walk in Jesus’ strength and according to His humble ways so that anyone who hears or sees you will see and hear Jesus. Run for the crown all who run the good race receive from God. And rejoice always! “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.” (Phil.4:23)

 

Power-filled Command

 

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.””

— Acts 1:8

 

Never before have I been led to focus on the verbs of this verse. Let’s consider them together.

 

Jesus first said, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you.” He was talking to His chosen apostles while eating with them. Jesus told them not to leave Jerusalem until His Father had given them His promised gift (vs. 4). This gift is what Jesus spoke about in verse eight, His Holy Spirit. Receiving that gift was very important or Jesus wouldn’t have mentioned it. It was so important that Jesus emphasized it as a command that sounded like, “Don’t leave until you receive the gift.” Jesus had no doubt God would give it. He and the Father spoke continually. This was their plan from before time. Jesus emphatically told His chosen apostles, “You WILL receive power” and it WILL come from the Holy Spirit (a personage in the triune Godhead). Jesus’ Spirit would empower and embolden the apostles. Jesus gives each Christian this promise; His Spirit will come upon us when we believe in Him for salvation. Don’t run out in your own steam living life like you did before you believed in Jesus. You’re supposed to live in the power of the Spirit, who leads you to live out God’s plan for your life. 

 

What was the second part of verse eight? Jesus said, “You will be my witnesses.” Upon looking at this, it may seem Jesus was just foretelling the future of His apostles. But if you look at the Greek words we consider future tense, you will note it’s an indicative. Indicatives are a future telling that carries a command. Jesus looked at the men and told them, “You WILL be.” It’s like a parent telling a child, “You WILL clean up your mess.” Like the parent’s command told the future about the child’s obedience, Jesus’ telling the future about what the apostles will be doing carried a command that resulted in their obedience. 

 

Several things to note here. Jesus didn’t just tell them to go make disciples. He gave them His power, words, heart for people, boldness, and courage by giving them the Holy Spirit. God doesn’t tell His children to do something without giving them the ability, desire, and tools to do it. Another note: Christians, whether called to live changed and godly lives or to go minister somewhere to someone, MUST rely upon the Holy Spirit. Trying to live godly lives cannot be done by human strength or ability. We must intentionally and assertively seek and take hold of the Holy Spirit for His purpose, power, and way to live godly lives. God gives us the gift of His Spirit to give us His power to live for Him. We must accept and take hold of it. 

 

Jesus still foretells the future of our lives. When we believe in Him for salvation, we will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit from the Father. And we will be His witnesses by and through our lives so that the people around us see Him at work in our lives and want to know more. Some Christians will be called to go to other cities, provinces, districts, and countries to show and tell about the love of God to anyone who will listen. Going and sharing the gospel is an imperative by Jesus for which He provides the power, words, strength, and will.

 

Will you choose to obey Jesus’ command? Will you assertively take hold of the power the Spirit gives to live changed, godly lives? If not, what difference is your life now than before you believed in Jesus?

Live It Out

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

— Colossians 3:13

 

The command from Paul to “bear with” means to endure by living out the faith God works in you and do it with calmness and composure. It’s not the “grin and bear it” determination just to get through a meal with someone who irks you. This “bearing with” is more of being a loving presence of God to the person by your example of patience, faith, and forgiveness. God bore with sinful humanity out of love. He planned the perfect method of salvation for humanity before time began, before day and night existed. One who loves so much that He plans our salvation before our sin shows great love and that love shows itself in many ways, two of which are patience and forgiveness. This kind of bearing is the example from God and Jesus that Paul commanded the Colossian church and all Christians to show each other. Without this example of bearing, we Christians would have a hard time relating to people who grate on our nerves. So, be patient— endure with love—the person who irks you or is difficult.

 

Paul then commanded them to “forgive” any complaint. Forgiveness originally comes from God. It’s a grace—a favor—He gives to us. Forgiveness is one of His characteristics and its source is God. Believers can forgive because they have received the example of forgiveness from God for their sins. They can forgive because, with that gift of forgiveness received from Him, they forgive and live in harmony with other people. Forgiveness is part of growing closer to God and growing to be more like Jesus. It’s a gift the Spirit bestows to us. God extended down to us forgiveness freely. Nobody who has ever lived or will live can ever do enough good things to earn forgiveness from God. In the same manner, believers in Jesus are to extend forgiveness freely to other people. That person who irks you shouldn’t have to do anything to earn it. 

 

The second part of this command says to forgive without complaining. Paul used a Greek word here in this verse that means forgive without casting blame or fault. Freely forgive, whether or not they know they’ve offended or hurt you. Freely extend forgiveness by living out your faith in Jesus like He modeled to and for humanity. Never did Jesus tell His Father people were unworthy. Never did He complain when people distrusted, betrayed, hurt, or spewed lies about Him. Jesus knew His task to live as God with us in daily life and God for us at His crucifixion. He did this because of His love for humanity. Jesus forgave people with His life.

 

Live out your faith in Jesus with the patience and forgiveness He has shown to you and gives to you. Live this way among people who are easy to love and those who are difficult. Do it without casting fault or blame on them in your heart, mind, words, or actions. To emphasize these commands to Christians, Paul reminded them to forgive as the Lord has done for you. You forgive others as Jesus forgave and forgives you—seventy times seven—ceaselessly and perfectly. 

 

Take time to ask God who you have not loved and forgiven as He loves and has forgiven you. Seek God’s mind and heart about this person. Live out your faith with that person first by asking God to correct your thoughts and heart about him/her. Then, in the quiet of your spirit, forgive that person without seeking that person’s fault or confession. Now, go and be with him/her as you worship, live, and minister, living as Jesus did by loving and forgiving people. Forgive as often as necessary, for bitterness in your heart can cause your relationship with God to become distant. Forgive seventy times seven. 

 

Live out in your life what God has given and keeps giving you.

More

 

The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers. Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. (1 Peter 4:7-8 [NASB]) 

Peter, the apostle of Jesus, wrote his epistle of 1 Peter to the Christians in Asia minor. He told them how to live as believers in a sinful world that worshipped manmade idols and success. Peter encouraged these Christians to stand strong in their faith while their friends and neighbors continued to live for their own desires. He reminded them Jesus suffered, too, for staying moral and true to God’s purposes. They would experience trials and tribulations as He did.

In 1 Peter 4:7-8, Peter concisely repeated what he wrote in verses one through six. He reminded them the end of the world was coming soon. For the Jews, it was imminent. The Romans destroyed the temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD. For Christians, when Jesus began His ministry on earth, He heralded the beginning of the end. With His first coming and later ascent into heaven, His return to earth could occur at any time or day. The Christians could know the first part of God’s kingdom coming on earth was imminent.

How did Peter tell the Christians of Asia Minor to live as they waited for Jesus’ return to earth? In verse seven, he wrote, “Be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.” To the casual reader, Peter may have sounded like he told them to keep on praying. Yet, when considering the Greek words Peter wrote, we realize he taught these Christians, “Because Jesus was to return imminently, be clear of mind, heart, body, and spirit and have God’s perspective of the world. Understand the truth on both sides of a situation and gain God’s understanding from how He sees it. Then, with God’s perspective and giving all oneself to Him, dedicate yourselves to pray God’s will through His Spirit within you, forsaking your own earthly opinion. Offer your whole being: heart, mind, body, and spirit, as a sacrifice of self-desire and self-will for God’s will according to His wise and knowing perspective.”

Peter understood prayer is more than a “gimme list.” He realized prayer is meant to be a believer’s joining with the God to be in a closer relationship and likeness with Him. Prayer is about relationship with God.

When a parent first introduces prayer to a child, it would be at a meal and/or at bedtime. After that, the next time a person encounters the idea of prayer would be at church as part of worship or in Sunday School where the child hears about Jesus praying or the Jews of the Old Testament communing with God. Still, at each of the learning points, the child or teen may not have learned prayer is about having a relationship with God. The child/teen would have learned what prayer to say at which event or what is expected to be said in a prayer. Yet, that child/teen/young adult may not realize times of prayer are to be about seeking God, His perspective, His will, and growing to be closer to and more like Him.

Peter made this last point clean when he wrote in verse eight, “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.” What was most important? Show deep love for each other. Our human idea of love is flawed. It often is self-serving. We love so that someone will return our love. We love because we are grateful for someone or something they did. Our love is connected to what we have experienced. It comes from our own needs and from our limited supplies. This love is not about what Peter wrote. He wrote about agape love, not philia love. He wrote about the love that comes from the source of all love, God. Just as God is the source of faith, joy, hope, salvation, etc., He is the source of true love. The love people give each other-philia or eros-is mixed with self-serving motives. Agape is pure love that does not depend on how a person feels. God loves. In 1 John 4:10, the apostle John wrote, “This is real love—not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to as a sacrifice to take away our sins. God’s love is a one-way covenant with us. He loves us even when we don’t love Him. He loves us when we sin, and He wants us to return to a relationship with Him. When Peter wrote 1 Peter 4:8, he meant, “Continue to love each believer like God loves so that the person’s sins against you do not keep you from loving the other believer with a tainted love.”

Having this form of love, agape love, God’s love, requires a person to have a close and growing relationship with God through Jesus. How does a person have a close relationship with God? Believe in Jesus, God’s Son, as the Savior who died to take your death judgment for your sins so you would not die and be eternally separated from God. Believe and live. Believe and experience pure love. Experience agape love that requires nothing from you except to receive it and be with God. Join God in prayer and Bible study growing in a closer relationship with Him and become more and more like Him. Be like Jesus, who though He was persecuted, hated, and hurt, still loved us, and died for us. Prayer becomes more than a recitation of thanks over a meal or a bedtime blessing over our sleep. Prayer becomes our connection with God, who loves us without end. It becomes so much a part of our relationship with God that it no longer feels like a discipline, but a sacred honor and blessing to be with Him. We then want to embrace any opportunity we have for prayer. Unable to get enough with the twice daily times of prayer we learned as children, we find ourselves breathing in and out, our hearts and minds joining with God, so when people see us, they see the heavenly Father. They marvel at the presence of the One with whom you have a genuine likeness.

Get out of meagerly praying for people based on your self-interest. Pray selflessly and with God’s will in mind. Grow in your relationship with Him. Become the shining beacon of His love to the world around you.

Pray because it is a privilege to join with God.

Pray with each breath.

Pray and thank the Lord for this blessing.

Always be thankful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 [NLT])

Shepherd of My Heart

 

²Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be, not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve. ⁶Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. ⁷Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:2, 6-7 (NIV)

 As we humble ourselves to do God’s will and serve others because we willingly obey Him, we should do this because we love Him, not because we must. If we have cares and anxieties that burden us and cause us to be distracted in our obedience to Him or cause us to think twice before obeying Him, then we must give those anxieties and cares to Him. God does not ask us to ignore those difficulties, but to willingly obey Him and receive His heart-peace, shalom, knowing He will take care of what causes us anxiety.

God cares for your heart. He cares about what keeps you from willingly saying yes to Him. God cares about your anxieties and fears you continue to bear as you serve Him. When you answer, “Yes” to God, give Him your anxieties with your willing submission of obedience. He will lift you up. Your burdens will be lighter because you gave them to Him. Covenant is two-sided.

¹⁰And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast. ¹¹To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. 1 Peter 5:10-11 (NIV)

Desires of My Heart

 

“Everyone who was willing and whose heart moved them came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the tent of meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments.” (Exodus 35:21 [NIV])

We each know of or are a person who grudgingly did what someone asked. A parent would have asked you to clean your room and you delayed in obeying. With a threat of disciplining (the compulsion), you did the task. This unfortunate part of our nature shows itself because we chose to exercise the freewill God gave us by rebelling. In this instance, you rebelled against your parent because you chose to follow the desires of your natural heart. Any rebellion we do is against God since He created the moral laws from His own holiness. The opposite of a negative compulsion (disciplining by grounding, loss of privileges, etc.) is a positive compulsion. A positive compulsion comes from an inner calling to your spirit to obey because of love and/or respect for the person, the law, and God. A person often obeys this calling because of who compels him or her, his or her care for the one calling him or her, and the result or reward for obeying.

The Bible tells of compulsions, desires, impulses, heart-stirrings, and urgings within our hearts, minds, and spirits. We can note these from as early as Adam and Eve’s time in the Garden of Eden. First, they wanted to be with God and grow in their relationship with Him. Next, they learned of something more enticing to them than their relationship with God. The compelling and urging by the serpent led to their desire and choice to go against God’s commands. Adam and Eve’s freewill led them to choose self over God. This instance is not exclusive to this one passage. People rebel and sin against God like the Bible writers recorded throughout the Bible. They choose to follow the desires of their own heart intent on themselves. Other instances in the Bible show people respond to God’s urgings, compulsions, and impellings by following Him. Let’s consider a few of these instances and understand what they meant at the time and what they mean for us, identifying the  of what God urged, what action occurred, and what reward or result occurred for the person and/or people following God.

After the Israelites left Egypt and crossed the Red Sea, they lingered at Mount Sinai. At this mountain, God instructed them through Moses. Moses spent much time with God on the mountain and received His plans on how to build His tabernacle. He told Moses of the fine wood, gold, silver, and linens He required for building His tabernacle. The Egyptians gave these things to the Israelites before they left Egypt (Exodus 3:22 & 12:35-36). What happened after Moses told the Israelites of God’s requirements is what we must notice. Moses recorded their actions in Exodus 35:20-35. He said in verses twenty through twenty-one,

Then the whole Israelite community withdrew from Moses’ presence, and everyone who was willing and whose heart moved them came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the tent of meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments. [NIV]

Three things happened in these verses. The Israelites recognized God. They responded to Him. Something happened. These three things we will call the impetus, action, and result. Through each of the Scripture passages we consider, we will look for these three things.

Exodus 35

In Exodus 35:20-21, the impetus for the Israelites’ action came from their hearts’ moving. In other translations, the passage says, “their hearts were stirred.” Notice the verb is passive. The Hebrew word from which this “stirring” comes means to be carried away by an external force to oneself. The Israelites did nothing to cause their hearts to stir. It occurred by God’s calling to them. As Moses relayed to the Israelites what God said He needed for the tabernacle to be built to His specifications, God’s desires moved the people’s hearts and as He called them. God moved their hearts. The people recognized God as divine and almighty. They knew He rescued them from slavery.

Their recollection of what He did for them and who He is caused a reaction to the impetus. The Israelites heard with their ears, their hearts, and their spirits. They responded to God’s love with their own love for Him shown through obedience. They responded by giving back to Him that which He gave to them-love and tangible items. Remember in Exodus 3:22 and 12:35-36, God told the Israelites through Moses to ask the Egyptians for gold, silver, and fine cloths. Back before these people understood why God gave them these fine things from the Egyptians, He had a plan for them. The Israelites did not yet understand God’s plan for them when they received the gifts from the Egyptians.  He provided what the Israelites needed for themselves and what they needed to give back to Him to build His tabernacle. God gave the impetus by stirring the hearts of the Israelites. The Israelites action occurred because they chose to bend their hearts toward God in love and obedience. They gave to Him what He requested to build the tabernacle.

Whenever calling by God and an action toward that calling occurs, a result in obedience to God takes place. The result for the Israelites was four-fold. Physically, God would continue to give what they needed for life; He would continue to bless them. Mentally, the Israelites acknowledged God as the One who provides and realized they could trust Him. Emotionally, they received God’s love and returned it to Him. They deepened their connection with Him. Spiritually, they recognized God as almighty and eternal, the God of their forefathers, the One who never left them. With this recognition, they responded with faith and trust in Him by loving Him in return and trusting Him to provide all things. Notice, each of these four parts of a life is intertwined with the others. One does not exist without the other on this plain.

To sum this passage up, the people recognized God and His call on their lives. They responded out of love because of His love and care by acting on His stirring their hearts by obeying His plans for building the tabernacle. The Israelites grew in their faith in God, in their relationship with Him, and proved their covenant with Him. The stirring of the Israelites’ hearts did not occur at their bidding, but at God’s Spirit. God was the force outside of them that stirred up their hearts to seek, recognize, acknowledge, and heed Him. People from neighboring nations watched the lives of the Israelites to see how their God worked among them. They sought, too. The Israelites answered God’s stirring of the hearts and brought Him glory.

As we continue to consider God’s stirring of people’s hearts, we must recognize He did this throughout the Bible. From Adam and Eve in Eden, to Moses at the burning bush, to Mary when God spoke to her, to the apostles, Paul, and other Christians, God stirred hearts, compelled, urged, entreated, and impelled them for His service.

1 Corinthians 9

In 1 Corinthians 9:16-27, we read part of Paul’s letter to the church at Corinth. In verses sixteen through eighteen, Paul said,

¹⁶For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! ¹⁷If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me. ¹⁸What then is my reward? Just this: that in preaching the gospel I may offer it free of charge, and so not make full use of my rights as a preacher of the gospel. [NIV]

In considering this passage, what or who compelled Paul? Notice, Paul said, “I am compelled.” He did not compel himself. God did. This word “compel” comes from a Greek word meaning necessitated from external conditions. God compelled Paul when He saved and called Him on the road to Damascus. God gave the impetus for Paul’s resulting actions. He placed it in Paul’s heart. Paul desired to seek, recognize, acknowledge, and obey Him out of love for Him.

What action did Paul say occurred because of God compelling Him? He said in verse sixteen God compelled him to preach. That preaching is not of what the people in the Greek world heard before, but of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Like with the Israelites, God’s compulsion was specific. Out of love for Him and for people who did not trust in Jesus, God called Paul to preach the gospel. He recognized in this calling, this compulsion, a negative occurred if he did not preach the gospel. How do we learn this? Paul said at the end of verse sixteen, “Woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!” Not only did Paul recognize God and accede to His authority over his heart, spirit, and life, he realized consequences came from living contrary to God’s compulsion. When a person walks life contrary to God’s best plans and desires, he or she is rebelling against God. Many stories tell about rebellion against God and its consequences. Noah and his family remained the face of the earth after the great flood. Two of Aaron’s sons died for performing their daily services in the tabernacle in the wrong way. The Israelites wandered in the desert for forty years. Judas Iscariot died a sinner’s death for betraying Jesus. The stories of rebellion and their resultant consequences can be found throughout the Bible. Paul recognized God’s calling Him came with a warning for not complying. He did not want to experience that discipline.

We have knowledge of Paul’s life story. He accepted God’s compulsion to preach the gospel. What result came from his loving obedience to God? Paul’s preaching free of charge in obedience to God’s compulsion made him a voluntary slave submitted to God’s will. By submitting to God’s desire for his life, he aimed to tell as many people as possible about Jesus so they could become children of God – Jews and Gentiles, slave and free. He summarized this life of service to God and humanity with verses twenty-two and twenty-three, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.” [NIV]

Paul ran to get the prize, he said (vs 24-27). For him, the goal of his life revolved around completing the race as an obedient child and servant of God. Paul’s reward of receiving the prize of being perfected in Christ’s image, being with Him in heaven, came only from God. This prize represents three motivations for Paul’s life. He obeyed out of love for God, out of love for others that Jesus put in him, and for God’s glory. He said in 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” Paul’s goal and the result of His life’s obedience to God’s compelling and love for him was to give God glory. He recognized and acknowledged God’s call on his life as the impetus, the desire of God for him and accepted that desire as his own. Paul responded to this impetus from God with action by telling every person he met about the gospel. His action led to people receiving salvation through Jesus and God getting glory.

2 Corinthians 5

¹⁴For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that One died for all, and therefore all died. ¹⁵And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again. (2 Corinthians 5:14-15 [NIV])

In these verses, just like in 1 Corinthians 9, Paul spoke of God compelling Him. This word “compelling” means urging, impelling, and compelling of the soul/spirit, heart, and mind. This compelling is an urging of one’s being to respond with action according to what is asked. What came with this urging that would make a person more favorable towards doing what the Spirit compelled? See at the beginning of verse fourteen-Christ’s love. Paul left no doubt in a person’s mind as to Who compelled him. He recognized the call of Christ on his heart because Jesus saved the Pharisee, the one who persecuted and killed Jesus-followers. Paul understood he did not deserve Jesus’ love.

Because of Jesus’ merciful love for a sinner like him, his response to Him could only be to love Him. Paul’s acknowledgement of Jesus’ right to his life and his own love for Him led him to answer God’s calling to preach. Out of love obedience came. Paul would do what Jesus called him to do because of this love. Jesus’ love for sinful Saul/Paul compelled him to do what He asked of him. That impetus, Christ’s compelling, led Paul to preach the gospel. Paul recognized Who called him to preach. He acknowledged that call and the reason, His grace though he himself sinned, and obeyed Jesus’ calling. Paul’s action, internally, was loving Jesus and, externally, was preaching to every person to whom he could.

The result of Paul’s recognizing, acknowledging, and being obedient to Jesus’ compelling him to preach affects the four spheres of a person-mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual. Paul yearned to be “fully clothed” by being perfected by Christ on the day he entered heaven. He no longer wanted to groan and be burdened because of not being clothed in His heavenly dwelling (vs 3-4). Paul received courage from Christ while at home in his body (on earth) and away from the Lord (vs 6). He was called Christ’s ambassador (vs. 14). Paul worked for Christ (vs 21). He carried within himself the hope of becoming the righteousness of God through Jesus (vs 21). These are the result of Paul acknowledging and acting on Jesus’ call on his life. Each of these brings glory to God. God would be seen in Paul’s life in each of the actions and the results. People would seek God and glorify Him because of who He is and what He has done as they saw in Paul’s life and their own.

Impetus leads to action then to result. What one allows to cause their actions shows what his or her desires (impetus) are-self or God. From those actions come results, either praise of self and what one did or acquired or praise of God for what He did and Who He is. Paul chose to act on God’s compelling of him. He gave all the glory to God.

Luke 24

Luke wrote about two disciples of Jesus walking on the road to Emmaus after Jesus’ death and resurrection in Luke 24:13-53.  As these two disciples walked from Jerusalem to Emmaus (about 23 miles distance), a man met them on the way and walked with them. As they walked, the third man explained the Scriptures to them from Moses and all the prophets that told about the Messiah. When the three men arrived in Emmaus, the two disciples invited the third man to stay with them for the night. Roads were unsafe at night and people were often robbed. This third man stayed with them and when they sat to eat, He broke the bread and prayed to God. At that moment, the two disciples realized Jesus had risen from the dead alive and walked with and talked with them throughout the journey. Jesus then disappeared. At this point, Luke recorded what the two disciples said and did in verses thirty-two to thirty-five. He said,

They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the eleven (Jesus’ first disciples) and those with them, assembled together and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” Then the two told what had happened on the way and how Jesus was recognized by them when He broke the bread. [NIV]

What or Who caused the impetus, the action, and the result of the actions of these two Emmaus-traveling disciples? What compelled these two men to action? Upon looking at the statement they made to each other after Jesus disappeared from their sight (vs 31), we read, “Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” The idiom of “hearts burning within us” is what compelled the men to action. Their “hearts burning” within them means they experienced movement in their hearts to recognize, acknowledge, and respond to someone with action. The word “burning” lets us realize the urgency of this compelling, desire of their hearts. The fire within the men required quenching with action immediately. Upon reading verse thirty-three, we realize these two disciples left Emmaus immediately to return to Jerusalem. The two men disregarded their safety by walking at night on a road with boulders that provided hiding spots for robbers. The care for their safety came second to declaring Jesus rose from the dead. They had seen, heard, and eaten with Him. The impetus for these two disciples began with the burning in their hearts. It came from Jesus.

These two disciples did not manufacture the desire, but obeyed God’s compelling. They desired to tell the disciples in Jerusalem about what they saw. Because of the burning in their hearts caused by Jesus, they felt compelled to tell the disciples about Him being alive. The two men acted immediately, walked urgently to Jerusalem, and gave testimony of Jesus’ resurrection. They understood the importance of Jesus’ resurrection because of what the women told the disciples that morning, what Simeon Peter verified for himself, and what Jesus explained from the Scriptures as they walked to Emmaus. The testimony of these two men became a stabilizer for Jesus’ followers’ faith in Him and an impetus for sending them out to testify about Him. Jesus revealing Himself to the two disciples impelled the men to return quickly to Jerusalem.

Their actions and words testified to Jesus being alive. Their actions resulted in the other eleven disciples and the other Jesus-followers to believe for themselves when Jesus met them (vs 36-49). It resulted in belief by His disciples and worship of Him and praise to God (vs 52-53). Jesus speaking to them opened their spiritual eyes. The two men recognized Him and responded with an urgency. They acted upon the compelling. The actions of the two men resulted in others trusting Jesus fully. It also led to worship and praise of God.

Philippians 2

Paul often wrote letters encouraging Christians to be like him and/or to be like-minded. For him, Paul sought to live his life so like Christ that he could teach people to be like Christ by being a living example for them to imitate. In Philippians 2, he urged (compelled) the believers to be of the same mind as Christ. Here again, the one doing the urging is someone outside oneself. The people would have known Paul from his visits and would realize he preached the gospel. This means they might heed the urging of Paul. The Philippians would do this because they looked up to him as a man being close to the Father and Jesus, and one who learned the gospel very well. Paul became their spiritual father. When urged, out of consideration of Paul’s life and the gospel he preached and out of the truths God taught them and Who they recognized as the One who loved them salvifically, the Philippians would consider the urging/compelling of Paul. They would recognize its validity and author. The believers in Philippi would acknowledge the intent came from God. They would seek to heed the urging/compelling to be like Christ because of love for and out of obedience to Him. The impetus, in this instance, was Paul’s urging of the Philippians as their spiritual father, which he wanted them to consider as Christ’s urging. Paul wanted them to respond to his urging so they would respond to Jesus. Paul explained what being like Christ meant in verses five through eleven.

If the Philippian Christians followed through on Paul’s urging, they would be humble, servants of others, and obedient to God. Their actions would resemble how Jesus acted. The result of their being like-minded with Christ would show they live humble and obedient to God. Their lives would show a striving to grow in relationship with Him and people. God would continue to sanctify them. He would be pleased and would receive the glory.

Paul continued teaching, in Philippians 2:12-18, about obedience to God. In these seven verses, each parent can relate to what he wrote because of raising his or her own child. Paul taught against grumbling while serving the Lord and each other. It appears some Philippian believers did what they felt the Lord required, but they made it known they did not like doing it (vs. 14-16). If a person seeks to “work out their salvation with fear and trembling” (vs 12), he or she strives to grow in likeness to Christ-grow in sanctification. Grumbling is not growing. Grumbling while doing what an authority said is grudging obedience. Paul told the Philippians if they obey God’s will and grow in Christlikeness, then they will become “blameless and pure children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation” (vs 15a). That would result from obeying the compulsion without grumbling. The life of the Philippian believers who obeyed the urging of Paul to be like Christ without grumbling would grow the believers in their walk with Christ (in their sanctification). It would also make their lives a testimony to God’s praise and glory.

More

Many other passages in Scripture tell of God compelling/urging, moving a person or a group of people to action in love and obedience to Him, that resulted in a testimony of Him and praise and worship lifted to Him. Paul urged Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:2 to “preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season.” Paul told him to keep his sense of urgency from God to proclaim the gospel. That urgency, the impetus, came from God. The action of obedience caused him to preach. The result would be people hearing about Jesus, professing faith in Him for salvation, and praising God. Timothy would bring glory to God.

In 1 Peter 5, Peter wrote to the elders of the church. He urged them to keep the compelling God placed on their lives, even if they must share the sufferings of Christ. By doing that, they will also “share in the glory to be revealed.” Peter urged the elders to shepherd God’s flock, just as He called them to do. He told each Christian to humble themselves. Be alert and of a sober mind. Resist the devil. Stand firm in the faith. Each of these commands Peter wrote to the dispersed Christians in the Roman empire, reminding them of God’s compelling them. Peter concluded the body of his letter to the Christians in 1 Peter 5:10-11 by writing, “The God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast. To Him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.” Peter reminded the Christians they answered the calling God put on their hearts to trust him. They acted on it by trusting in Jesus as their Savior and living as a Christian, though persecuted. The result of their obedience would give God glory. They would recognize God’s power and praise Him just as Peter did in this closing.

Conclusion

God speaks to each person. He created humanity with a desire (a compelling) for relationship with Him and other people. The freewill He gave each person allows him or her to choose what he or she will do with their desires. God calls to each person to come to Him. He urges him or her to seek, recognize, acknowledge, and come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ. Belief in Jesus as the Son of God causes that close communion with God, for which He created each person. It involves the heart, mind, spirit (led by God’s Spirit), and body. A person’s seeking, recognizing, acknowledging, believing, and obeying this call from Him and the call to tell others about Jesus is obedient action, the physical part of the covenant with God a person makes when he or she trusts in Jesus. The result of a person’s obedient action to God’s calling, compulsion, urging, impelling, and movement of one’s heart, mind, and spirit, results in praise to God by other Christians and heavenly beings. It may result in people coming to faith in Jesus because of that person’s obedience. What we must remember, God does not call a person once, just at the time of trusting in Jesus Christ. God calls to a person compelling and urging him or her to follow Him daily. Jesus calls His disciples to pick up his or her cross daily and follow Him (Luke 9:23).  Alternately, a person can choose to fill his or her own desires and experience fulfillment only on a mental and, maybe, physical level. Contrarily, the desires of one’s heart, when fulfilled, do not give complete satisfaction and peace because every facet of a person does not receive fulfillment. Most often, the spiritual side of a person remains unquenched.

God wants a close relationship with each person. He does not coerce anyone. He lets each person choose to seek Him or seek to fulfill personal desires. Each person gets to choose what will guide his or her way. To have a close relationship with God requires communication and communing with Him. Because of this, God will talk to you each day if you will listen for Him. He will move your heart, stir your spirit, urge, and compel you to do and be for Him in this world. Your obedience to what He says will bring Him glory. If the glory does not spotlight God, then the urging and compulsion you followed did not originate from Him, but from yourself.

Each person will feel compelled by things. Wisdom and communion with God will illuminate if that compulsion or desire is from God. If from God, it will lead to Hi, receiving the glory. If it originates from a person, the result will cause the glory to shine on one who is not God.

The urgings you obey determines who you love most and who will get the glory,

you or God.

Who leads you? Who do you follow?

Who receives the glory at the end of your day?

Then Jesus said to all of them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.” (Luke 9:23-24 [NIV])