Choices of Life

“Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; cast aside the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:14

God told Joshua to call the Israelites to himself. He told Joshua his death would be soon. The Israelites needed to be reminded of who God is, has been, and will be, as well as what He has done for them as His people. In Joshua 24:14, God, through Joshua, challenges them to recommit themselves to Him.

As we consider this verse, we must notice all the imperatives—fear, serve, cast aside, serve (again). For one verse to have so many commands, this should cause us to ask some questions. The questions that come to my mind are the following four.

·       Who gave these commands? God gave them.

·       Whom did God command? He commanded His people, Israel, and, by forward-pushing, His children by faith.

·       How were God’s people to keep His commands since humanity is sinful and unfaithful? God would give them the will and ability to do what He commanded. God gives absolutes. His ways are bigger than people’s. People must have the desire (will) to follow God through their daily growing relationship with Him, which makes His desires theirs. People also receive God’s empowering to do what He commands, asks, and lays out.

·       What did God command the Israelites to do? He gave four commands by using three words and used one of them twice. God emphasized one command because it was a very important imperative.

God’s first command to the Israelites was to “fear the Lord.” Fearing God comes from the Hebrew word yare’. It means to revere and honor. God commanded the Israelites to revere and honor Him above all else. He would give them the ability to do this. The Israelites would be in awe of God and could only worship and revere Him solely if they grasped onto His power to forsake the self-concerned murmurings of their fickle hearts and minds. God does not require what He does not give the ability to do. People must want to be close to God so that they receive His enabling because of their hearts and minds being attuned to His. God said, “Fear the Lord,” to the Israelites. Draw near and worship God.

God commanded the Israelites to “serve Him.” Again, what God commands people He enables them to do. It requires selflessness, which will lead to godliness. God commanded the Israelites to serve Him, Yahweh (the always existing One), not other gods. Those other gods, which Yahweh said not to serve, include manmade things, self, or other God-created things. He told the Israelites how to serve Him—"in sincerity and truth.” People have a faithlessness that allows them to perform worship acts without involving their heart, mind, and soul. God told His people to serve Him with their whole being (sincerely) and faithfully (in truth). These descriptors of the worship God requires may have caused the Israelites recall what Moses told them. He said in Deuteronomy 6:5, “Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.” Jesus reiterated this in Matthew 22:37. So, God commanded the Israelites to grasp His enabling of them faithfully to serve Him sincerely with their whole being.

God gave a third command in verse 14. He demanded they “cast aside the gods your fathers served.” Cast aside means to put away, remove, turn aside from. God commanded the Israelites to grasp the power He gives them to turn away from the false gods the Egyptian, Abraham, along with his ancestors, venerated. Do not worship them; intentionally turn away from worshipping created things. Instead, be in awe of Yahweh and worship Him, the One who was before time, is now, and will be even beyond time. Choose to revere and serve Yahweh faithfully (singularly) and completely, with your heart, mind, body, and soul.

That third command in this verse leads to God’s final command. The final command is a reiteration of the second imperative. He commanded the Israelites to cast away the gods of their forefathers and the Egyptians and “serve Him.” Serving God requires exclusivity, serving only Him. It requires oneness of being and faithfulness. Serving God requires awe and reverence of Him singularly daily. God enables His people to serve Him completely and exclusively. People are fickle and unfaithful. Yet God does not command of people what He does not enable. God gives His people the ability to have a close and personal relationship with Him. From that relationship comes the will and desire to be closer to God and to honor Him with their lives by word, action, attitude, and exclusive worship.

Even today, God enables people to serve Him completely and selflessly. He does this by bringing a sinful person into a close and personal relationship with Him through Jesus. Because of God’s great love for people, He sent His Son, Jesus, into the world to be born in human form, live sinlessly, die unjustly, and arise from death victoriously. Jesus died for our sin punishment, which we deserve, so that whoever believes in Him will be saved from their sin and given eternal life with God in His kingdom (John 3:16). For anyone who confesses with their mouth that Jesus is Lord and believes in their heart that God raised Him from the grave will be saved (Romans 10:9).

Anyone who is God’s child can obey His commands in Joshua 25:14 with His enabling. Trying to live as God’s child without His strength, power, and enabling, leads to sinning--missing the mark. God expects His children to live by His enabling them with ability, power, and strength. Anything less than exclusive and sincere worship of God is unacceptable. They become tepid water He spits from His mouth (Revelation 3:15-16).

Today, I encourage you to consider your relationship with God. Do you have a relationship with God by believing in Jesus? Is your worship of God true worship—done with your whole being? Do you worship God faithfully daily and weekly? Do you grasp God’s gift of enabling you to worship Him in these ways? Have you turned away from other things in your life that had more importance to you than God and returned to worship Him wholeheartedly and singularly?

“Choose you this day who you will serve.” (Joshua 24:15a)

 

Reciprocating

”The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him sincerely and in truth.“

Psalm 145:18 AMPC

 

Notice, the independent clause states a fact: God is near. He stays near His beloved creation, in this case, people. He is the initiator of this relationship.

 

The dependent clause shows a slightly different nearness. The Lord is near to anyone who calls upon Him truly, with their whole being. The initiator of this closer relationship is the person who earnestly sought God for himself or herself.

 

The first clause explains a bit of who God is—Creator, Protector, Provider. The second clause explains the growth of the person because of his or her understanding of who God is. The person recognizes and believes in God as Yahweh—I AM, the One who was, is, and forever will be. God does not change, but when the person truly seeks God, in that person’s heart, soul, body, and spirit, that person gives God a fuller/complete role in his or her life. That saved person accepts God for all He is.

 

When a person seeks God, God becomes more than Creator, Protector, Provider. In his or her mind, heart, body, and spirit, God becomes Lord, Yahweh, and Savior.

 

Is your relationship with God one sided where He is the only one to actively be in it? Or, is your relationship two-sided, where you acknowledge God’s presence and sovereignty and worship Him and He guides you in His ways for your benefit and His purposes of love—love for you and other people?

 

Have you initiated a relationship with God by believing in Jesus as your Savior?

That’s the first step of a lifelong reciprocal relationship with God.

 

Pruned or Cut Off

 

“Every branch in Me that does not produce fruit He removes, and He prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit.”— ‭‭John‬ ‭15‬:‭2‬‬

Every vine, if it’s healthy, has branches. Jesus compared himself to a vine. He said He’s the true vine, the only one based in the Godhead. All other vines that supposedly lead to help and strength now and to life after death are false. They don’t begin from the Godhead and don’t lead followers to true Life. 

Jesus called His disciples branches. He said every branch from the vine that does not produce fruit—meaning obedience to God that causes others to know about Jesus and/or be helped because of His love in the disciple—will be cut off. Notice the difference in words in this verse. The branches not bearing fruit are cut off to be burned up. The branches producing fruit are pruned. 

Cutting off and pruning have two different purposes. Cutting off something to burn up bears witness that the thing removed was tainted, infected, unproductive and producing a fruit that did not carry the standard for which the vine grew. Pruning is not done to remove something producing fruit contrary to the vine. Pruning a vine is done to grow a branch more inline with the potential of the vine. It gives the fruit of the branch a more intense flavor similar to the first fruits of the vine, and, therefore, similar to the vine. 

The branches (true believers) in the true Vine (Jesus) are pruned (trained, disciplined, mentored, corrected, encouraged) so that what they teach, preach, do, and think is what Jesus thought, said, and did. Pruning makes the branch more like the Vine. It ensures the fruit of the branch are greater in cluster and intensity so that the seeds of that fruit bear much fruit with the intensity of the Vine. 

This should make us stop and consider if God is pruning us or cutting us off. If you’re truly a believer in Jesus whose life has been changed so that your words, actions, and attitudes are less like your old self and becoming more like Jesus, God will prune you. If, however, you have never believed in Jesus or say you did but never changed your life and submitted to God, God will cut you off. Why is this important? Pruned branches continue to grow, thrive, and become more like Jesus, with His passion, intensity, and purpose. They live with Him forever. Cut off branches are burned. 

What is the Vinedresser (God) doing to your branch, pruning or cutting you off from the Vine?

Love in Truth

 

 

“We know love by this, that He (Jesus) laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren (Christians). But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother or sister in need and closes his heart against him/her, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.”

— 1 John 3:16-18

 

Jesus gave up His life so that anyone who believes in Him can be saved. He didn’t die just for people who bathe, or have money, or are pretty in form, or who are adults, or who have jobs, or who are from a specific country, tribe, or clan. Jesus had pity and sympathy for each and every person in the world. 

 

John wrote this letter to Christians, which means he was telling the Christians they must not be prejudiced in thought and action  against other Christians, the ones for whom Jesus died and who believed in Him. How can one hate (not love) a brother or sister in faith so much as to withhold earthly relief from a fellow believer in need, especially since Jesus didn’t withhold earthly or spiritual provision from anyone? Jesus went so far as to die so that the spiritual need of the poor could be met.

 

Fellow believers, John wrote, love your family in Christ impartially with you mouth and in action. Don’t let anything earthly, including your old nature, keep you from enacting the life-giving love of Jesus. Jesus literally gave His life to save people. Believers can give life-sustaining support to other believers in need. Plus, what Christians have God gave. So it’s really God giving to Christians in need through other Christians. 

 

Love fellow Christians impartially by word and action. Jesus had pity on you and loved you impartially in the most supreme way. He died for you. Jesus had pity on you and all other people.

Love is…

 

 

“(Love) does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;”

— 1 Corinthians 13:6

 

Love, the “far better way” about which Paul began to write in 1Corinthians 12:31. 

 

He wrote about love in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13.

 

Love does not rejoice and take delight in unrighteousness—injustice and evil—but rejoices and finds joy in life that is in harmony with divine truth—righteousness. [my paraphrase]

 

Each person receives one or more spiritual gifts from the Holy Spirit. No gift is better than the other, just as no Christian is better than the other in the body of Christ. Each believer should strive to know God better and grow to be more like Him daily, as Jesus taught.

 

Instead of comparing ourselves to another, follow Jesus’ example, who, because He loves each person, chose to live as a man for about 33 years. He faced temptations but did not sin, endured ridicule and persecution by people close to Him, as well Gentiles and the people of Israel. Jesus chose to continue to teach, face accusations and scrutiny, endure doubt and betrayal by men, and suffer the pain and suffocation of the crucifixion because He loves each person He creates.

 

Love is God’s motivation. He loves us so much that He chose to send His Son, Jesus, to earth to endure all these evil things so that our sins (our wrongdoings) could be erased from our names. God wants an eternal relationship with each of us. If we do not believe in Jesus and His death as the sacrifice (the Savior) for our sins, God’s judgment of each person requires unbelievers to receive the just judgment for those sins. 

 

What is justice for unrighteousness (choosing your will/desires instead of what’s right)? Unrighteousness is opposite of righteousness—rightness with God. Since God is holy and the epitome of righteousness, unrighteousness is the opposite of holy; it’s evil. Because evil cannot exist where holiness is, the judgment for unredeemed sinners (someone who has not believed in Jesus and accepted the sacrifice He paid to redeem and free each person from the penalty and right judgment of his/her sins) is separation from God. Therefore, since God is in heaven in His kingdom, unsaved sinners cannot exist forever with Him in heaven. So unbelievers will be judged for their sins and suffer the penalty of eternal separation from God, which is hell.

 

“We know love by this, that Jesus laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren (other Christians).” 1 John 3:16.

 

Love is rejoicing because of living in harmony with God and sharing His love with others. God’s love for us is our ultimate example of how we are to love and live. Rejoice and delight in God’s love, then rejoice and delight in loving other people like God does.

Dispelling Darkness

In the shroud of winter’s darkest night, before the first peek of sun’s light filters through the drape of day, hope seems to have been washed out and uncertainty appears to blanket wishful dreams. Fears and nightmares assault the mind causing body to tighten with anticipation of what it cannot fathom. Yet nothing is new under sun or moon when life’s final embers crackle, fizzle, and scar. The last grasping at what once was, the last scrabbling for lost life, gives way to submission and abandon as reality assaults the senses. Time nears its end; mortality awaits all men. A hush falls upon the whole self, a sense of unreality and disbelief.

The fighting and feinting from recent past years now ends as understanding and forlornness rise to reign in whole being. The grudging acceptance of inevitable passing of time, of heartbeat, of breath reveals the new reality. The dust of this one’s future began its last steps, its last breaths, its last thoughts.

Around the corner lies the creeping certain ceaseless canceling of creation – corporeal collapse.

The mental assault of its reality never more real than in the darkest moment of winter’s night. The hope of last sun’s rays rupturing the drapes of life soon drifts dizzily down when mind assaults that hope with the certainty of eternality’s nearness. With sudden gasp, this new and imminent reality rears its intention and nothingness makes its inevitability understood; this one’s time soon ends. Grasping and scrabbling ends. Acceptance begins to dawn within.

Still, silently biding its time comes a knowledge beyond all knowledge, beyond all reason. An understanding hard to acknowledge and accept by many until this time of nebulous in-between-ness becomes the inevitability. This oft pushed-aside reality, knowledge, and belief eases itself forward from the recesses of memory. This memory reminds of power, knowingness, and ever-presence. As it advances forward from mind’s recessive memory, a glimmer of hope, a glimpse of future, a gasping of possibility captures the remnants of corporeal body’s spirit and brightly shines hope, anticipation, and expectation. “Oh, what was that?” this one so near to winter’s eternal darkness asks? “What was that news told to me during Spring’s bright and hope-filled dawning?”

The grinding of old, unoiled wheels turns recalling from memory what someone said. The feeling of possibility springs forward giving last glimpses of hope before life’s final dawn fades away. “What was that news?” the spirit begs mind to recall. Picking through worthless words, actions, and thoughts, “There, move that detritus; I see a glorious shining!” Scrambling through stacks of senseless moments and memories, the unheard, unheeded, and unknown shines brighter until that Word is revealed in the bank of life’s detritus. The one Hope disregarded in the dizzying dance of life still shone dazzlingly even amidst forgotten goals, games, and gambits. Gazing upon this unheeded memory, this long-forgotten message, hope springs, heart sings, head soars with the light of possibility of new dawn.

This Hope, this Message, this Word unheeded still, but recognized as the One not to be missed parts the winter’s darkness giving glimpses at possible eternal gazing upon the Light during the non-time of eternity. Grasping, listening, learning, accepting, hope eternal rises as the sun of summer in the heart. Belief beats breath-takingly as winter’s dark night fades into gray as the Light of the world breaks into the midst of time’s sway bringing brilliance and wondrous joy.

Where once inevitable ending reigned in heart, mind, and body, now hope and life unending spring forth bringing bounteous joy and eternal life with the One Who is beyond all constraints, Who loves unrestrainedly, and gives life eternally because of His faithful love.

Who wants the misery and despair of winter’s shroud? Who chooses that option when Hope and Light from the eternal Spring is available? Hear the message. Believe the Truth. Walk in the way. Accept the gift of love given so that all who believe can have eternal life. No winter’s dark night ever casts its shroud upon it. No nothingness ever penetrates this glorious eternal kingdom of God. Hear. Believe. Be saved from the darkness of eternal death.

Come see and believe in the hope of the Gentiles.

Come believe and receive the God of hope.

Then in that day, the heir to David’s throne will be a banner of salvation to all the world. The nations will rally to Him, and the land where He lives will be a glorious place. (Isaiah 11:10 [NLT])

Isaiah said, ‘The heir to David’s throne will come, and He will rule over the Gentiles. They will place their hope on Him.’ I pray that the God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:12-13 [NLT])

Heart Check

“My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me.” John 7:16 [NASB]

Consider a medieval knight. If he heard his lord call his knights immediately to go to battle, would the knight have time to put on all his armor? Would he go to battle without knowing whom he would battle? Would he blindly hear and answer the call to charge? If he did any of these things, he would be ill-prepared for battle. The places of his body without the armor he left behind in his haste would be the places the enemy would attack most fiercely. The enemy who he thought he might fight wouldn’t be the one who attacked his lord that day and he would fall to their unconsidered strength. This knight is like us. Consider what Jesus told his brothers and other Jews in John 7.

Jesus’ brothers expected that Jesus would go to Jerusalem for the feast week. Why would they expect that? Because He was a Jew by birth, and because they expected He would want to be with the people to preach, teach, and heal. Jesus surprised them by saying He wouldn’t go. He said, “My time is not yet here.” (vs. 6)

We read later in John 7 Jesus went to the feast in Jerusalem. He went up secretly. Now Jesus’ intention for going to Jerusalem contrasted to what His brothers wanted in verses three and four. They said, “Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing. For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.” Jesus’ brothers did not understand Jesus wasn’t trying to gain fame. His going to Jerusalem would be in secret because He realized the religious leaders were trying to kill Him, but He had not yet completed the task for which the Father sent Him, to preach to all the Jews about the grace and salvation God offers. Jesus didn’t go with His brothers because they wanted Him to go for the wrong reasons. He went secretly so people would listen to Him sincerely, not just gawk at the famed man who came preaching new things and healing people. Those gawking people would have come to see the famous man from Galilee, not to listen to His teaching.

Still, when the people found Jesus and listened to Him, not all accepted His teaching as truth. Some challenged Him, and these were not only the Jewish religious leaders. Verse fifteen says, “The Jews then were astonished, saying, ‘How has this man become learned, having never been educated?’” These people challenged Jesus’ teaching because a rabbi or any man of the Levitical order had not taught Him. His father, Joseph, taught Him just like any good Jewish father teaches his sons. The Jews, with their words, cast stones at Jesus, just like the Jewish religious leaders wanted to cause to happen, but with real stones.

What is interesting is what Jesus said to this statement by these Jews. In verses sixteen through eighteen, Jesus said,

My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent me. If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself. He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. [NASB]

With this statement, Jesus put the Jews in their place. It was a positive, verbal slap. He said if anyone is doing God’s will, he would know what Jesus taught. That Jew would recognize what Jesus taught came from the Father. How is this a slap in the face? Since the people didn’t accept Jesus’ teaching, but challenged Him, they didn’t know God and were not doing His will. Since they didn’t know God, how could they dare to judge Jesus, the man they said was uneducated. They themselves were less learned than Jesus and had no faith in God. With that, as they say now, you could hear the mic drop.

This mic drop compels us to reflect on ourselves by considering two questions. First, do we scramble to be a Jesus follower because of His fame and the fame that we would get? Being a Jesus follower should not occur because we want fame and glory. Any glory should go to God. Jesus showed in Mark 2:12 what should happen when a person encounters the miracles and teaching of God. People should glorify God. If we scramble to be Jesus followers for the fame, we aren’t God followers, but glory stealers. Did you scramble to follow Jesus because of His fame, but not consider the cost it would require? You came answering the call ill-prepared and are not wearing the whole armor. You won’t be able to stand in battle as a follower of Jesus because what you teach and preach is not truth. Seek the Lord with your whole being, He said, and you will find Him, He will save you from your sins, self, and death, and give you eternal life.

Second, do we know God and His will or are we judging God’s servants with a lack of head and heart-knowledge? How can we judge a person for what they know when we don’t know what they declare to know? Saying this, though, we need to realize to the depths of our being, God wants us to know Him, His grace, His love, and His salvation, which He offers to every person. Instead of fearing the change Jesus brings, come to know Him through salvation by giving your heart to Him, and you will find no need to judge and no right to judge Jesus and His servants. You don’t have to be ill-prepared for the battles you will face in this world. Come to know the truths of God. Come to know the battles you will face. Be prepared by the Master and Lord who calls you to Him.

We can be the soldier who goes to fight for our Lord. When we know God in truth with our whole being and love Him that way, we are armored for the battles. We know deeply and personally Whom we follow.

Put on the whole armor. Know the Lord intimately.

By these you will stand strong and God will receive the glory.

Lord, God, I come to You admitting I have failed. Each day I try to walk in Your ways, but at some point, I sin. I know You are disappointed, but You won’t let me go. I am Yours. Lord, teach me Your ways. Make me desire to be in Your presence. Lead me in Your paths for Your name sake. Clothe me completely with Your armor and use me for whatever You will, all for Your glory. You are almighty and I am not. You are Savior and I am a sinner, but one whom You have redeemed. Thank you for Your faithful love, grace, and mercy. I love You, Lord. Amen.

Reality

God loves

People rebelled

Prophets foretold

                                   Angels heralded

Shepherds followed

Wise men sought

                        Cattle lowed

Jesus was born

Angels sang

Shepherds bowed low

Wise men worshipped

Kings sought

People rebelled

Jesus taught  

healed  

forgave

People came

People rebelled

Jesus was crucified  

was sacrificed

---

Jesus redeemed

resurrected

ascended

God loves

gives grace  

offers forgiveness

   waits for you

People accept

People rebel

What will you do? 

Recognize Self, Desire Truth: A Psalm 51:5-6 Devotional

David, after admitting his sins and repenting of them in Psalm 51:1-4, admitted in no way could he ever be anything but a sinner, a person who chooses his own way in rebellion to God’s will. He stated this in two ways.

First, David said he was born in sin, “in iniquity.” He understood, with the sin of Adam and Eve, humankind’s makeup was altered so they/we could no longer meet with God without an intermediary. Our will became tainted with self-desire instead of a desire for God. Adam and Eve, our descendants, followed their own will instead of being obedient to God. Each person is born into a sinful, disobedient being.

Second, David said his mother was sinful and so he inherited sin through her. His nature was no better than the one who gave him birth. As sinners, his mother and father conceived him. His DNA came from them and he was a born sinner.

David acknowledged all humankind was changed with the fall in the Garden of Eden by Adam and Eve. He was a sinner in that rite. David recognized he was a sinner because of who his parents were, too. He did not let this keep him away from a relationship with the God whom he had come to know and love and who, he realized, loved him.

David acknowledged God wants to be in a relationship with each person. He said, “Behold You desire truth in the innermost being.” In this verse he meant God desires we know His truth so we can correctly know Him to the depths of our soul, the part of us that communes directly with Him. When we correctly know God, then we will desire to be faithful and always commune with Him, be in His presence. We will not want to rebel and choose a way contrary to His.

Besides this, David said God would make him know wisdom when he repented and lived in relationship with Him. God would enable David to understand how to use the truth God gave Him to act and speak in the world. By opening his secret hidden place - his innermost being - to God, David stated God would purify and empower him by the Holy Spirit to know His will and think, speak, and enact it in the world. His faith in God would be visible. Nothing would be hidden from God or humankind. David would come to be known as a man after God’s heart.

That is the testimony to this day of David’s life. What keeps God from cleansing you and implanting His truth and wisdom in you? What keeps you from having a close relationship that is visibly lived out in the world? I encourage you to do as David did in the first four verses of Psalm 51 –

v  Recognize you are a sinner

v  Realize God is great and compassionate to remove your sins and the stain of your sins (your guilt) from you

v  Repent of your sins one by one

v  Then believe in the Messiah David had faith God would send to redeem each person who believed by faith in Him.

Live by faith in the world with the truth and wisdom of God.

Certain In Christ

1 John 3: 2, 16-24 (NASB) -

      2: “Beloved, now we are children of God and it has not yet appeared what we will be. We know that when he appears, we will be like him, because we will see him just as he is.”  

John 17:13-21 (NASB) -

      13: "But I now come to you; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.” Joy as the bridegroom when he receives his bride.

     14: I” have given them your word” (myself).

     16: “They are not of the world as I am not of the world.”

     17: “Purify and consecrate them, set them apart, in your truth; your Word, Jesus Christ, is truth.” 

         Dear ones, right now you can know we are children of God (disciples of God) because we have received Him; we have heard Him and follow Him doing acts of righteousness (1 John 3:10). God’s spirit within us testifies with our spirit that we are children of God. (Romans 8:16). It has not yet appeared what we will be, but we wait eagerly (Rom 8:23) and with expectation and anticipation. We know when Christ appears we will be like Him, we will resemble Him. (We will be conformed to His image. Rom. 8:29) We know we will be like Him because God and Jesus promised it. Our future is certain. We do not have to wonder what we will “be,” but must be at the task of not only telling others, but in deed and truth, act upon it (1 John3:18 NASB). This is how we can be assured of our belief, we resemble Jesus, we will do acts of righteousness not speak only of our belief.  

         God's love abides/lives in us if we are truly believers. We cannot let another live in need if we own the resources or are able to fill their need. We must surrender our life for another as Jesus laid aside His life for us. Putting aside our life is not just telling them about Jesus, but doing something to help meet their need. Many people come to Jesus because someone has taken the time to listen to them and help fill their need be it physical, emotional, or spiritual. Christ came to be the Answer to all our needs. As children of God, those who heard the Word and accepted Him into our lives, we are set aside and purified for His service. We know we are the children of God by our righteous acts, the fruits of the Spirit which show in us. Without Jesus' Spirit speaking to our spirit, we would not be able to be used by God and to do righteous deeds. We would not be able to show God's love for everyone. John says,  

We know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him in  whatever our heart condemns us, for God is greater than our hearts and knows all  things. Dear ones, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep what his commandments and do things that are pleasing in His sight. This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as He commanded us (1 John 3: 19-23 NASB). 

         The spiritual life is the life of a child. We are not uncertain about God, but about our future. John tells us we do not need to be uncertain of our future. Who we are and what we will be in this life we do not know, but we know who we will resemble. We will resemble Christ when He returns. If we are not just hearers of the Word, but doers, we resemble Christ.  When we act upon God's consecration/dedication of our lives now on this earth, we know we are followers of Christ. Jesus prayed for His disciples; He prayed for us before He left and arose to heaven. He prayed our joy would be complete; the joy He has will be in our lives. His joy is full as the bridegroom who receives His bride. Our joy is tied to His and we can be filled with His joy when we accept Him as our Lord and when we live the life He commands us, to love one another not just in word, but in deed and truth. It really is up to us. Jesus already did everything we need to live an abundant life, with joy and certainty as to our future. When we confess Jesus as our lord and Savior, our joy is full and our future is secure. We will be like Jesus Christ; we will resemble Him.  

         Oh, what great news we can tell others. Based on this good news, our love overflows into deeds of love and righteousness. These are deeds of truth, sharing God's love to all people so their physical needs are met and the future is certain and held in Christ. What greater love can we live than spending our lives sharing Christ's love, His deeds, word, and truth? What is holding you back from acting upon God's love in accepting the Savior and being to the world around you the heart, hands, and mouth of Christ? Act upon Christ's love, accept Him, tell others, and show them the love of Christ in you. Show them acts of righteousness that come through God's love in your heart.  We will resemble Christ and be like Him if we accept His gift of grace and act upon them with acts of righteousness. 

1 John 3:24 “The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us” (NASB)