Welcome

Welcome to Barnabas Notes. The title of this site comes from the Biblical character of that name who was a companion of the apostle Paul on his first missionary journey and whose name was actually Joseph. He was called "Barnabas," which means "son of encouragement," because of his ability to bless the lives of others. We hope that this blog will be such a blessing in your life!

A peaceful spring on the Macedonian side of Lake Ochrid in the Balkan Mountains

Saturday, October 24, 2009

No Sword in David’s Hand

“You’ve GOT to be kidding me!” That must surely have been similar to the thoughts that passed through Goliath’s mind when he went out that day to, once again, challenge the Israelites. Scripture says: When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth (1 Samuel 17:42). “Disdained” is a nice word that means he was not impressed! In fact, verse 43 quotes Goliath: The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

This may seem a strange way to begin our word of encouragement today, but there is something in this story I want you to consider. David did not defeat Goliath because he was smaller, lighter and quicker while Goliath was just a big, clumsy target. Goliath was a seasoned warrior. He was a champion of the Philistines. David did not think he could win because he was so good with a slingshot he knew he could not miss. He never approached any of the challenges in his life that way.

David had defended his father’s sheep from bears and lions. In fact, he had killed these dangerous predators, but even then he knew that it was God Who had delivered him. And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you” (1 Samuel 17:37). David told King Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine” (1 Samuel 17:32). I do not know how old David was, but he was apparently too young to fight as a soldier, yet he could not stand it that an enemy of God’s people could challenge them (and even Jehovah Himself) and get away with it.

Sometimes we face difficulties in life that seem every bit as threatening to us as Goliath seemed to the Israelites. The old devil plants himself right in front of our doorstep and yells his challenge. It is so terrifying that all we can do is shrink back in fear just like that Israelite army. Maybe what we need to do is look back at that young shepherd who was not about to let anybody challenge his God. I know, your troubles do not threaten God; they threaten you! Well, think of it this way. Has God not promised to take care of you? Has He not promised to make sure you never suffer more temptation than you’re able to bear (1 Corinthians 10:13)? Well, when Satan attacks you and makes you think God cannot deliver on His promises, that is taunting God! That is the time to pick out your smooth stones and step up and face the enemy.

David said something to Goliath that all of us should remember. He said, “This day the Lord will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel (1 Samuel 17:46). David said, in effect, a lesson needed to be taught. Apparently, somebody had gotten the idea that they could challenge the armies of God and get away with it. In your life, today, this week, someone may have gotten the idea that they could challenge or threaten you or your peace of mind and get away with it (overcome you). Not so, if you belong to Jehovah!!

You know how the story ended. David killed Goliath, and he did it without a sword in his hand
(1 Samuel 17:50). There are times when we would very much like to fight back with the weapons of this life. Remember, we have weapons much more powerful than those. We have weapons powerful enough for the destruction of fortresses (1 Corinthians 10:4). God has given you those weapons because you need them to get through this life. Do not ever forget, He loves you and so do I.

Fear the Lord and Serve Him

Even though God had predicted that the Israelites would one day reject Him and ask for a king to rule over them, it was still a disappointment when it happened. God makes it very clear that He knew that they had turned their backs on Him as their King in order to be like the nations around them. And it was not just a disappointment; it was sin. “Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord, that He may send thunder and rain. Then you will know and see that your wickedness is great which you have done in the sight of the Lord by asking for yourselves a king” (1 Samuel 12:17).

There is encouragement to found in this text, however. 1 Samuel 12:13, 14: “Now therefore, here is the king whom you have chosen, whom you have asked for, and behold, the Lord has set a king over you. If you will fear the Lord and serve Him, and listen to His voice and not rebel against the command of the Lord, then both you and also the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God.” All they had to do was fear the Lord and serve Him and everything would be alright.

Well, not much has changed. We have all committed sin in our lives and we feel guilty for it; or we should. The answer is to fear God and serve Him. The particulars of how we do that are a little different now than when Samuel penned these words, but the concept is still the same.

The guilt that we feel for our sins is not pleasant, but it is not supposed to be. It should not feel good when we realize we have done something wrong. And the children of Israel did not feel good about it when Samuel showed them their sin. 1 Samuel 12:19: Then all the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, so that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil by asking for ourselves a king.”

When we sin, the first thing we must do is confess our sins and repent of them. We cannot continue a relationship with God without repenting. And, as it relates to encouragement, we cannot begin to feel encouraged without repentance. I know there are people who would be quick to tell you not to worry about it. God loves you, anyway. Well, I agree. He loves you, but you cannot walk with God and have confidence in His ability to get you through difficult times when you refuse to repent of your sin. When we want to fear the Lord and serve Him, we will obey His commands to repent of our sins.

Samuel had words of comfort even for a rebellious people. He said, “Do not fear. You have committed all this evil, yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. You must not turn aside, for then you would go after futile things which can not profit or deliver, because they are futile. For the Lord will not abandon His people on account of His great name, because the Lord has been pleased to make you a people for Himself” (1 Samuel 12:20-22).

God will take care of you. All you have to do is fear Him and serve Him. All you have to do is give yourself completely, in the way the Bible says to do it. But Samuel left them with a warning: “But if you still do wickedly, both you and your king will be swept away” (1 Samuel 12:25).

I want to close today with more words from Samuel: Only fear the Lord and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you (1 Samuel 12:24). If each one of us will obey this command, we will be able to get through life’s hard places. God will help us get through them. He will because He loves you and so do I.

Standing Beside Your Friends

Sometimes the best thing to help you get through a tough situation is to have a good friend close by. Even when you have to go through something difficult by yourself, it feels better to have someone close who can at least hold your hand, even if it is only in spirit. You may not be able to have someone with you in an operating room, for example, but it makes it easier to know they are in the waiting room, doesn’t it?

The apostle Paul was no different. In 2 Corinthians 7:5, 6 we read: For even when we came into Macedonia our flesh had no rest, but we were afflicted on every side: conflicts without, fears within. But God, who comforts the depressed, comforted us by the coming of Titus; The coming of Titus was important for Paul to be able to endure the afflictions they encountered in Macedonia. It was in Macedonia where Paul and Silas found themselves in prison before they taught and baptized the jailer in Philippi (Acts 16). The Jewish leaders in Thessalonica ran them out of that city and chased them out of Berea, too. Both of those cities are in Macedonia. Still, Paul said the coming of Titus helped them get through a very tough time.

And it was not just that Titus came, but that he brought news of others who were concerned about and suffering with Paul. …and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in you, as he reported to us your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me; so that I rejoiced even more (2 Corinthians 7:7).

As we have pointed out numerous times, you are not in this fight (or these circumstances) alone. God is on your side and that should be enough. Romans 8:31 says that if God is for us no one can be (or stand) against us. However, God is not the Only One on our side. Faithful Christians have a whole family to stand beside us in difficult times.

Close, loving relationships are complicated, aren’t they? Paul’s relationship with the church in Corinth was complicated, too. He had worked with them for a long time and knew them very well and they knew him. In His previous letter to them, Paul had been direct and had criticized them fairly severely on some things. And yet, when times got tough for Paul, his spiritual family in Corinth came to his side, spiritually speaking. 2 Corinthians 7:8, 9: For though I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it; though I did regret it -- for I see that that letter caused you sorrow, though only for a while -- I now rejoice, not that you were made sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to the point of repentance; for you were made sorrowful according to the will of God, so that you might not suffer loss in anything through us.

It is very important for us to note that Paul did not change his mind about the things he wrote to them. Those were things that needed to be addressed and covered sins that needed repentance. Paul did not want to hurt their feelings, but he wanted them to lose there souls even less. I hope you begin to see the incredible power in God’s design for His family here on earth. When we are looking out for each other, we can lovingly point out weaknesses in each other and the result is that sin is repented of and when any one of us is under attack, the rest come to the aid of the one stricken.

I am so glad that I belong to a family that is that strong; that I do not have to worry that if I
preach a sermon that is lovingly (and truthfully) critical of the sin in someone’s life, my brothers and sisters will not love me anymore. At the same time, it is a tremendous comfort to me to know that if someone brings my own sin to my attention, I do not have to now treat them with suspicion, but can still stand by their side when they need me. It is a great system and we have it because God loves us. He loves you and so do I.

I Will Not Fail You

When the children of Israel were about to invade the land of Canaan, after spending 40 years wandering in the wilderness, God commissioned Joshua, the son of Nun to replace Moses. He told him, "From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory. No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you” (Joshua 1:4,5). What a way to start a new job! I know there are times when we start a new job (or just continue in the old one) when we feel as though we were invading Canaan. And sometimes that feeling is justified. Still, it is comforting to know that the same God Who spoke those words of comfort to Joshua, stands beside you and me in the most difficult of times.

One of my favorite themes of Scripture is that of warfare. There is something that stirs my heart when I consider the descriptions made in the Bible of the soldiers of the cross; the “good fight”; the glory of our victory in Jesus. The Israelites were told that “no man will be able to stand before you.” However, they were still going to have to fight. To fight is a scary concept for most of us. We do not like to fight. We do not want to fight, but we have to fight. When you go into the fight, take this bit of advice with you: “Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go” (Joshua 1:7). Of course, we do not live under the law of Moses anymore, but we do live under a law which God expects us to obey. It is the Law of Christ (Galatians 6:2); the law of faith (Romans 3:27); the perfect law of liberty (James 1:25).

I cannot make this point strongly enough: if you will face your enemies, careful to do according to the law of Christ and not turn from it to the right or to the left, you will have success wherever you go. Does this mean that faithful Christians never have to worry about being laid off from their jobs or fired for standing for what is right? No, it does not! Sometimes Christians do suffer for their faith. So, what does this promise mean to us? The “success” that Scripture promises us if we obey this command today is true, eternal success. You may lose your job, your friends, your family, even your life, but if you remain steadfast at the side of God Almighty, your real enemy will never be able to beat you.

The key is our faithfulness to God and His will. Joshua 1:8 says, “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” Again, the book of law in Joshua’s day was the Law of Moses (including the Ten Commandments) and that law has been nailed to the cross (Colossians 2:13,14; Ephesians 2:14-16). Today, we need to meditate on the whole of the Bible just as much (day and night) in order to have the strength to contend with the one who would bring us down. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). This week, when you go out to work or to school, to start a new job or continue with an old one, be strong and courageous. Do not tremble, be dismayed or afraid because God is with you wherever you go. He loves you and so do I.

Precious In His Sight

The things that afflict us in this life are all serious, especially if you are the one suffering. And of course, those things that afflict me seem more serious than those things that afflict someone else. Still, we all recognize that there are some afflictions that we feel more acutely.

I don’t suppose anything hurts as much as the loss of a loved one. Other installments of Barnabas Notes have addressed many passages of Scripture that offer comfort to those who have experienced such heartbreak. One such passage is even written for the express purpose of comforting Christians who have lost a family member or other loved one. But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

For those who are faithful Christians there is the promise that the dead in Christ are safe, will be raised again and will be with their faithful loved ones and Jesus for eternity. This has to be the ultimate in words of comfort. In our pain and suffering through grief, it helps to know that God is there and considers the death of His saints as precious. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His godly ones (Psalm 116:15). At the same time, consider that those who are suffering affliction (whether from the death of a loved one or from some other source) are also considered precious in God’s sight. He will rescue their life from oppression and violence, and their blood will be precious in His sight (Psalm 72:14).

King David was someone precious in the sight of God. In 1 Samuel 13:14 we find that David was a man after God’s own heart. God loved Him very much. When David’s first baby with Bathsheba was born, the child was stricken. The baby suffered for a week and David suffered right along with it. On the seventh day, the child died and as grieved as David was, he determined to live his life in such a way that he would see that child again (2 Samuel 12:23). God comforted these grieving parents. He will comfort us today.

How great is the comfort in the realization that God is watching, that He cares, that He weeps with us, and that He promises to give us the strength to survive. If these words serve to give His comfort to you, I am happy to be a part of that comforting process, but we must understand that He is the Ultimate Source of the comfort we receive.

God takes care of His precious ones. He loves us and gives us all we need to overcome whatever the affliction, even when death comes to our families. Even through our pain and our tears, we can feel better, knowing that God weeps, too. He makes life worth living. He makes it worthwhile to continue on, even when we do not feel like we ever could. I hope you know today that He loves you and that I do, too.

Redeeming the Time

The stated purpose of Barnabas Notes is to encourage those who need encouragement. I pray that you have been encouraged by what you have read in these notes. Usually, the word of encouragement we offer comes from a passage of Scripture that tells us that God loves us and is ready, willing and able to comfort any of us in our afflictions. There is another side to encouragement, however.

In order to be truly lifted up, we have to realize that we have a responsibility, as well. God never promises to take away all our troubles so that we never have to suffer anything. We should not expect God’s blessings in our lives if we are determined to live contrary to His will, as though He does not mind our rebellion. God does not promise to give us strength to endure when we so callously treat Him and His word. It is true that sometimes we suffer as a result of the consequences of our own actions.

The most encouraging thought in all of Scripture is that God will save me in the end, to be with Him in heaven for eternity. However, that promise is offered only to those who, in faith, submit themselves to His will. Those who want to be comforted in this ultimate way (heaven) have a responsibility to live in a certain way.

The apostle Paul said, “Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15, 16). We have to be careful to walk as wise men. It does not just happen. “Walking as wise men” means living the way God wants us to live; living in a way that will result in eternal life and not eternal condemnation. “Making the most of your time” means not wasting time thinking that you will always have another day to do the right thing. The days are evil and every day you hold off giving yourself in faithful obedience to God, it gets harder to do.

I doubt any of us thinks living in fear is a very comforting way to live. How can we live, not in fear, but in hope? How can we know we have eternal life? The apostle John wrote us to tell us just how we can have such knowledge (1 John 5:13). Among other things, John says, “By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him” (1 John 2:3-5).

This is exactly the reason we always refer to Scripture in these notes from friend Barnabas. There is nothing I could ever say that can offer better hope than the hope of Scripture, but in the Word of God we have all the hope we need. Yes, God has required some things from us in order to have hope of eternal life (the ultimate answer to all our problems), but it is also true that if we obey Him, we do not have to worry about any petty little problems here on this earth. Remember the words of Paul: For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us (Romans 8:18). If you are a faithful Christian, you have this same hope. And you have it because God loves you and so do I.

We’re All in This Together

The apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:13: “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man...” In other Barnabas Notes we have spoken about the comforting aspect of the rest of this verse (i.e. that God will provide a way of escape from temptation), but for this week I want to talk about the comfort we find in fellowship; in this case, fellowship in suffering. Now, I do not want you to think that I am glad you suffer so that I do not feel all alone, or that any of us should glory in the suffering of others. What I mean is that it helps to know that what I suffer has been suffered by others who have endured.

I know that when things go wrong in my life, I am tempted to think that I am the only one ever to have gone through something like that. No one could possibly have had it as rough as I have it, I think. One very dangerous result of that kind of thinking is that I may well be tempted to think that it is alright if I succumb to the temptation to “curse God and die” when I am suffering (see Job 2:9), because if anyone else had ever suffered this they would understand. It makes us begin to excuse our sins rather than truly repent of them.

We have not all been where Isaiah was in Isaiah 6:1-5 (in the throne room of Jehovah God), but he showed us the proper attitude to have when we sin. “Woe is me, for I am undone!” is a good response to our own sin. We all have been in the position Peter found himself in when the rooster crowed that morning just after he had denied Jesus for the third time. No, we have not stood outside a house where Jesus was being held and denied him by “cussin” maybe, but we have all denied Him, just the same. When it dawned on Peter what he had done, he went out and wept bitterly (Matthew 26:75).

I have been there. Have you? I suspect that most of us have. In fact, if Romans 3:23 is true and we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, then we have all been where Peter was and we should have the same attitude with regard to our sin. It may feel like no one could possibly have suffered like I have, but that does not excuse my sin and it does not excuse my giving in to the temptation to let myself be overcome by evil rather than overcoming evil with good (Romans 12:21).

No, you are not in this alone. We are all in this together. I hope that the things I have learned because of what I have suffered will help you or someone who needs it. By the same token, I continue to be helped and strengthened by the things that others have suffered before me. We are all in this together and I thank God Almighty that He went through it first and showed us that we can overcome. Have a great week and know that God loves you and so do I.

I Am Not Alone!

One of the loneliest times I ever experienced was in a city of over 1,000,000 people. I learned then that loneliness is not about numbers, but about relationships. There were plenty of people around, but I didn’t know any of them well enough to feel “at home.” I don’t suppose there are many emotions as powerful as loneliness. The feeling of being overcome is almost too powerful to resist and, indeed, many people do not resist it.

Jesus, at the culmination of His entire ministry, felt so overwhelmed and forsaken that He cried out to His heavenly Father, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Mark 15:34). If that doesn’t tell us anything else, it should tell us that this is a serious thing we are discussing, this feeling of being forsaken. If the powers of loneliness and discouragement are that strong (strong enough to impact even Jesus), we had better not take them for granted. But notice that I said they impacted Jesus. I did not say they overcame Him, because they didn’t! By the way, Jesus’ experience with discouragement and loneliness on the cross should also teach us something else. Given the fact that Jesus did not commit any sin (Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:21-23), we know He did not sin by crying out as He did. It is not a sin for you to cry out to God. It is not a sin to feel discouraged and lonely. It only becomes a sin when you do not turn to God for relief.

Long ago, God promised never to leave or forsake His faithful ones (Deuteronomy 31:6,8; Joshua 1:5). The author of Hebrews quoted those verses and applied the same promise to the faithful of God today: “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). God is on our side. Aren’t you glad? I know I am! I need Him on my side!! And you won’t be offended if I point out that you do, too.

The night before Jesus’ crucifixion, He was already under a lot of stress. The pressure to give in and just run screaming into the night (like we’ve all felt like doing) was beginning to build. In Matthew 26:38 Jesus said His soul was “grieved to the point of death.” If that’s not an indication of great stress, I don’t know what is.

Let’s back up a few hours, though. Jesus made a statement to His disciples that gives us a clear picture of what was happening and provides for us today a ray of hope that will help us not to be overcome. We are not alone because Jesus was not alone!! John 16:32, 33: "Behold, an hour is coming, and has already come, for you to be scattered, each to his own home, and to leave Me alone; and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world."

I know that there will be times when you are all alone and you know it, too. It may be that all your friends have forsaken you. It may just be that in an unanticipated moment of stress, there is no one available to “watch your back,” or give you the encouragement you need. It is true that sometimes awful and stressful things happen in a moment and there is no time to prepare or to line up the forces on your side. Jesus said, “You will leave Me alone, but I am not alone!” I want you to know, that is as powerful a statement as we will find. It may look and feel like you are all alone in this world, but if you belong to Him, you are not alone!

Good friends, the world can throw some big and scary things at us. “…but take courage; I have overcome the world,” Jesus says. Our Lord is bigger and stronger than the world. That means we cannot be overcome if we will trust in Him. Those disciples did leave Jesus, but eleven of them came back and they overcame and were not overcome. You may have left Jesus at some point or another. You may have thought He had forsaken you. Well, He did not! He is waiting and He is ready to give you the strength you need to overcome whatever stands in your path. He is there because He loves you and I send this to you because I do, too!

Remember Your Creator

Solomon wrote: Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near when you will say, “I have no delight in them” (Ecclesiastes 12:1). The evil days that Solomon refers to in this passage seem to be the days when we grow old. In the next few verses Solomon makes analogies to the running down of the human body at the end of a long life.

There is coming a day, if the Lord postpones His return and we live long enough, when each one of us is going to understand the truth of this passage better than we do right now. Some who are reading this already understand it better than some others. Sometimes it is hard to be upbeat, positive and happy when your whole body hurts. You look in the mirror in the morning and wonder why you have to suffer the way you do. Some people hurt so much that they seriously consider harming themselves (and some do); others blame God.

We have not spent a great deal of time in these notes talking about this kind of suffering, but it is just as real. When your body hurts and/or you just do not feel good, our enemy (the devil) finds it easier to plant doubt and discouragement in your mind. If you have not prepared yourself beforehand to withstand his attacks, it is harder to come up with the strength and will to do so when you are weak.

So, Solomon says do it now. A day is coming when your body will fail completely. It may be at the end of a long life or it may be because of some kind of accident or illness that threatens you “before your time.” Either way, you need to remember God now, before it is too late! Solomon says to remember Him “…before the silver cord is broken and the golden bowl is crushed, the pitcher by the well is shattered and the wheel at the cistern is crushed; then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:6, 7). In other words, remember God before you meet Him face to Face.

There is nothing I could possibly say that is more important than the way Solomon ends his book. Solomon tried very hard to teach something that would help people and we try very hard to do the same with these Barnabas Notes. Ecclesiastes 12:9-12: In addition to being a wise man, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge; and he pondered, searched out and arranged many proverbs. The Preacher sought to find delightful words and to write words of truth correctly. The words of wise men are like goads, and masters of these collections are like well-driven nails; they are given by one Shepherd. But beyond this, my son, be warned: the writing of many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the body. There is no end to the good self-help books or articles that we can find. It is my prayer that these notes provide some comfort and encouragement. However, what all of us really need to do is pay attention to the One Shepherd Who is able to give us all the comfort we really need.

Ecclesiastes 12:13: The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. As you start another week of work, school or just life in general, you may be in pain, maybe extreme pain. The pain you suffer may be mental or it may be physical, but it’s real, isn’t it? The answer to your pain is found in the word of God. No, reading the Bible won’t necessarily make your arthritis stop hurting, but it will give you the strength you need to keep you from letting your physical (or mental) pain separate you from the God Who loves you enough to promise you an end to all suffering if you will just submit yourself to Him. You have the words of life because God loves you and I want you to know that I love you, too.

Take My Hand, Lord

There’s a song in the song book we use in our congregation called “Take My Hand, Precious Lord.” It is a beautiful song, musically and in sentiment. The whole song is about asking God to take care of us when we are down, discouraged and about to be overwhelmed. The psalmist Asaph wrote a similar prayer. He said, “When my heart was embittered and I was pierced within, then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. With Your counsel You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory” (Psalm 73:21-24).

There are a lot of things that can overwhelm us, discourage us, or embitter us. They all drain us. This is a serious threat that we dare not take lightly. Asaph makes a wonderfully beautiful point. He was where many of us have been and maybe some are right now. His heart had been embittered. He was pierced within. I don’t know about you (although I have an idea you are much like me), but when I am in that condition, I am truly miserable. I can relate to what Asaph says; that he was “senseless and ignorant.” We are blinded to logic and sometimes even reality. All we see is the bitterness, the misery, the pain we feel. We cannot reason objectively. We really are like animals.

Even now, however, there is hope. I simply love the word “nevertheless.” Many years ago, in that old movie “African Queen,” a German naval officer asked Kathryn Hepburn how she and Humphrey Bogart came to be in the lake where they were captured. She replied they had come down a certain river. The German captain said that was impossible. Ms. Hepburn calmly replied, “Nevertheless…” In his mind, what she claimed was impossible. Nevertheless, it was true! Sometimes we find ourselves in an impossible situation…like the one Asaph describes. Nevertheless!! Nevertheless, he found himself with the Lord. When all was lost, Jehovah was nearby. He had taken the downtrodden, discouraged and overwhelmed by the hand. He can, even in the most difficult of times, counsel and guide those who will just take His hand (and, of course, we mean all that taking Him by the hand means). Even in a seemingly hopeless time, we can have hope of being received to glory.

Do you remember the apostle Peter? Peter is a favorite of the apostles to study because he was so much like us in temperament. He was impulsive, passionate and sometimes it got him into trouble. A favorite incident involving Peter was when he actually got out of a boat and walked on the water, just like Jesus! You know the story…how Peter walked on the water and then took his eyes off of Jesus and began to sink. Do you remember what he said? He cried out to Jesus, “Lord, save me” (Matthew 14:30). That’s the key! If you will remember, Jesus plucked Peter out of the water, saved him from drowning, by stretching out his hand and taking hold of him (Matthew 14:31). Take my hand, Lord!

This week, when things get tough or when you get a little discouraged, when the world threatens to absolutely overwhelm you, remember Asaph’s psalm and Peter’s example. Do not be afraid to cry out, “Take my hand, Lord!” He will be there for you, if you will give Him a chance. He loves you and so do I.

Thank You, from the Bottom of My Heart

I am sure all of us, at one time or another, have felt and expressed thanks from the bottom of our hearts. Someone did something for us that absolutely overwhelmed us. “Thanks” really did not seem enough to say, did it? At times like that, you almost feel embarrassed that it’s all you can say or do.

In Psalm 54, David says, “Thank you” to God. Time and again we have expressed our appreciation in this blog for God’s care of us. We need Him to get through this life and none of us would argue with that. David says, “Behold, God is my helper; The Lord is the sustainer of my soul. He will recompense the evil to my foes; destroy them in Your faithfulness. Willingly I will sacrifice to You; I will give thanks to Your name, O Lord, for it is good” (Psalm 54:4-6).

Truly, the Lord is the “Sustainer” of our souls. If you are like me, you cannot count the times you needed His help to get you through a tough time. There have been enemies that have stood over against us, whom God has defeated and we were able to make it through. Yes, He is definitely our Helper. We ought to echo David and willingly sacrifice to Him, which means worship Him. We ought to be happy to give thanks to His name, for it is indeed good.

It is definitely a comfort to know that God is always on hand when we need Him. However, what I would really like us to think about today, and this week, is how much we need to show Him our appreciation. No, He doesn’t need our appreciation because He doesn’t need anything from us to sustain Him (Acts 17:25). We are the ones who need to appreciate Him. We do not want to run the risk of taking Him for granted, as though He owed us anything. We owe Him, and we owe Him everything!!

It has been my prayer from the beginning of Barnabas Notes that something that was said in these short comments would lift someone’s spirit or ease someone’s pain. However, I want you to understand that all comfort comes from God. He it is Who deserves our appreciation for the encouragement that comes through this newsletter or the words of encouragement you give back to me in your kind comments. He is the Source of all good things.

Notice these words from David: Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name. I will give thanks to You, O Lord my God, with all my heart, and will glorify Your name forever. For Your lovingkindness toward me is great, and You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol (Psalm 86:11-13). In order to properly appreciate God for what He has done for us and thank Him, we need His help in order to walk in His truth and fear His name. That means, of course, to live a faithful, Christian life before our Lord. For anyone to say they love Him and thank Him for the grace He has offered and then not to obey His commands or live a life pleasing to Him, is to be ungrateful to the extreme.

I want this thought on your heart. God loves you and has delivered you from more things than you probably even know. The fact that you are alive right now testifies to His deliverance. Show Him how much you appreciate His watchful care, His grace and His love. Give yourself fully to Him in faith and obedience. Know, really deep down, that He loves you and so do I.

Like Mount Zion

Sometimes it feels like all I ever say is that we should trust in the Lord to help us get through the difficult times in life. I know that to some that sounds a little too easy. And, if we are not careful, we will start to think of trusting in the Lord as the easy thing to say, but it doesn’t really work. I’m sorry that I don’t have anything to make that advice sound better or more attractive. All I have to offer is the very Scriptures that continue to tell us to trust God and He will get us through!

In Psalm 125:1 we read: Those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but abides forever. It is a simple statement and, like I said, some are not going to believe it can be that simple. But it can! It really is just that simple!!

I look forward to the New Year and the opportunities it will present. At the same time I know there will be some difficult things to deal with. If it’s like every other year of my life, there will be those I know who will pass from this life in the coming twelve months. Who knows…I might be one of them! The psalmist’s words above tell me that if I trust in the Lord, I will not be moved, no matter what happens. Not being moved does not mean that nothing will affect me, or that I will be cold and impassive. It means that nothing can overcome me and move me away from the grace of God. The most difficult thing that you will have to deal with in the coming year will not destroy you or your faith if you will trust in God to get you through it.

The really comforting part of Psalm 125 is found in the next verse. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people from this time forth and forever (Psalm 125:2). Now we understand why those who trust in the Lord are not moved. They find themselves within the protective arms of our Lord and Savior, Jehovah God! How comforting is that…to know that God “surrounds” you from now on? Why should I worry?

Last week I mentioned that a lot of people have a hard time this time of year for a variety of reasons. I choose to look at the New Year as a new opportunity. The slate is clean, so to speak. I have definitely noticed that the years go by more quickly now than when I was a kid. The good part of that is that I get to start working on a New Year sooner every year (it seems).

I hope you will begin the New Year later this week with the determination to trust in God no matter what happens to you. If you’re suffering right now, trust Him right now! If everything is going good now, trust in God and fortify yourself and your faith; determine to trust God and make yourself strong and ready for the trials to come, because, I’m afraid, they will come. Be of good cheer, however. Know that God is on your side and that He loves you and so do I.

Glory to God in the Highest

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased” (Luke 2:14). You probably recognize this verse as the song the angels sang to the shepherds when Jesus was born. Yesterday, in our morning worship service, we talked about the really important part of the story of Jesus. I know most people of our culture think about the birth of Jesus during Christmas week because of the tradition that many people believe; that Jesus was born on December 25. Of course, Scripture does not tell us when Jesus was born and it never commands us to commemorate His birthday. Still, with so many people thinking that “Jesus is the Reason for the season,” we ought to take advantage of that mindset and use the opportunity to teach the really important lesson of the coming of Jesus.

Scripture does tell us that Jesus was born in a manger because there was no room at the inn (Luke 2). However, even more important than the fact that Jesus was born innocent (as all babies are born innocent, Matthew 18:3), Jesus lived a perfect life and died an innocent Man. His innocence allowed Him to become the propitiation for our sins (Romans 3:25; 1 John 2:2; 4:10; Hebrews 2:17). “Propitiation” means “only acceptable sacrifice.” His perfection and innocence allowed Him to become sin on our behalf. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). What all of this means is that because Jesus was born into this world, lived a perfect life and died on the cross for our sins, we have hope of eternal life.

I hope that you and your family have a wonderful holiday this week. However, I know that for many people, this is a difficult time of the year. It’s difficult for many reasons. Sometimes the end of the year is a “good” time for companies to lay off some of their workers and so some of you may have experienced losing your job. For others, Christmas was a time when a loved one passed from this life. I’m told that for a variety of reasons, the holiday season is a time when more people suffer depression and discouragement than at any other time of the year. It is for this reason that I want to share with you the hope that you can have at Christmas or New Year’s or any other day of the year.

As important as the birth of Jesus was and as glad as I am that He was born, it is far more important that He lived, died and was raised again and therein lies your hope. This is why you can rejoice this week, whether you have anyone to celebrate Christmas with or not. Jesus Christ loves you no matter what your holiday traditions are (or are not). Holidays are left up to the individual and do not matter when it comes to your spiritual well-being (Romans 14:5,6). What matters is your being on His side so that He will be on yours. You may have a heavy load to bear, but Jesus will help you bear it. “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30). He can help you carry it. Let Him!

If any of you are suffering right this moment; if you are dreading this week because of the pain it always brings; if there are new and specific afflictions that are assaulting you now, it is our prayer that you know that God loves you and is ready, willing and able to give you a peace that surpasses all comprehension (Philippians 4:7). Oh…before I forget…I love you, too!

Indescribable Pain

Bible students are familiar with Jesus’ encounter with the Garasene (or Gadarene) demoniac. You remember…it’s the story of the demon-possessed man who was so strong that not even chains could bind him. The people of the nearby village were terrified of him and he was forced to live in the tombs. This is the story where Jesus allowed the demons to go into a herd of swine which then ran down into the lake and were drowned.

While reading Mark’s account of this story the other day, I ran across a statement that made me want to share with you something from this story that might encourage someone in such pain. I think sometimes we think of those who were possessed of demons to have been oblivious to a lot of what was going on. Mark tells us, however, that this man was suffering a pain that I cannot imagine. Look at Mark 5:5: Constantly, night and day, he was screaming among the tombs and in the mountains, and gashing himself with stones. Why was he acting like this? I suppose it could be that the demons just wanted to hurt him, or it could be that he was just out of his head and didn’t know he was hurting himself. I’m not convinced, though.

It seems to me that this guy was absolutely miserable. He was at the mercy of things he could not control. He was in so much pain that he cried out and even gashed himself with stones. How much pain do you have to be in where gashing yourself with stones is an improvement? Like I said, I cannot even imagine!

I will tell you this, however…I have been in mental and spiritual anguish that was bad enough that I wanted to cry out and if I had thought it would help, I suppose I would have tried gashing myself with stones. There is a reason we find this story in the Bible. We have a lesson here that we would do well to learn. When we experience this kind of pain, there is a place we can go…a Person to Whom we can go to seek help and comfort.

Jesus did heal this man and drove the demons out of him. When the swine-herders ran into town to tell the people what had happened, the townspeople came out and saw the man they had feared so greatly sitting calmly and dressed. Jesus had indeed eased his suffering.

I know that some of you go through pain that feels this severe and maybe you are right this minute. I want you to know that I believe your pain is real. I know it hurts and I know that you want to scream out at the top of your lungs and in your mind, the gashing of yourself with stones does not seem like an unreasonable response. I also want you to know that God knows it, too. He knows just exactly what you are suffering. And He knows how to give you comfort. The first thing you need to do is see Him “at a distance,” so to speak, and “come a-runnin’!” Come and bow down before Jesus and let Him give you comfort. I hope this note will help ease someone’s pain. God loves you and so I.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Close to Stumbling

Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart! But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling, my steps had almost slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant as I saw the prosperity of the wicked (Psalm 73:1-3). This is likely a problem that every one of us has had at some point or another. It really does not seem fair that the wicked in this life are able to prosper so much, does it? I mean just look at the lives some of them lead! Why do they have it so easy?

The psalmist says that he almost stumbled over this problem. He looked at the arrogant and the wicked and saw that nothing was ever difficult for them. It got so bad that he began to think like we might think sometimes: Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence; (Psalm 73:13). Did you ever think like that? Did you ever begin to wonder why you worked so hard to do the right thing? I have! Now we know that we were not the first ones to ever think that thought.

It is encouraging to me (and I hope to you) that he stops short of taking this line of reasoning too far. All of us have become frustrated with the apparent futility of being the “good guy,” but most of us keep plugging along, not giving in to the temptation to give up, but we may allow ourselves to become cynical and discouraged, thinking it’s not doing any good. The psalmist says that if he had gone that far and made these statements out loud, he would have …betrayed the generation of [God’s] children (Psalm 73:15). That means he would have led some of God’s children astray, making them believe that righteousness really was a futile effort. He says the whole problem is troubling and hard to figure out…until he comes to God. Look at verse 16,17: When I pondered to understand this, it was troublesome in my sight until I came into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end. It is in God that we find, not just the answer to the puzzle, but the strength to endure.

Not that we want to glory and revel in the plight of others, or that we want to “dance on their graves,” so to speak, but we do not have to be envious of the “good life” that the wicked seem to enjoy. They are headed for judgment. Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction. How they are destroyed in a moment! They are utterly swept away by sudden terrors! Like a dream when one awakes, O Lord, when aroused, You will despise their form (Psalm 73:18-20). I don’t know about you, but I do not see anything here that I find attractive now!

Well, enough about the wicked. Yes, we envy them sometimes and we get discouraged when they seem to always come out on top, but we want to know what will help us. It does not help me to acknowledge the downfall of someone else! This is where the problem hits me and most of us. We become embittered. I need to get over such bitterness. What do I do?

When my heart was embittered and I was pierced within, then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. With Your counsel You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory (Psalm 73:21-24). This is the answer to such bitterness. God will lead us out of it. God will encourage us. The key is being continually with Him! The answer is letting His counsel guide us and afterward He will receive us to glory.

Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works (Psalm 73:25-28). This is it, isn’t it? There is nothing of the wicked that I need covet. God will eventually destroy them and all they have, but the nearness of God really is for our good. If you want to have a peace of mind this week that you might not have had before, you can have it if you make Jehovah God your refuge. He will be that refuge for you because He loves you and I wanted to share this psalm with you because I do, too.

My Rock and My Salvation

My soul waits in silence for God only; From Him is my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken (Psalm 62:1, 2). Sometimes it's hard to wait in silence, isn’t it? When the charging bull gets closer and closer, it’s hard to stay still. I remember hearing when I was young that when you see a snake the best thing you can do is stand still. It seems my feet never got that good advice.

And yet, that is exactly what God expects us to do. The things in this life that afflict us are real and serious. Now, you may not think what is serious to me is very serious and someone may think you are all excited over nothing, but it is real to you, isn’t it? And no amount of explaining or qualifying is going to make you think it is not serious. It is serious and it hurts! There is only one way you can truly find relief and that is to wait patiently on the Lord. Isaiah talked about those who wait on the Lord: Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary (Isaiah 40:28-31). If you will wait patiently on the Lord, He will give you the strength you need to get through this tough time.

The psalmist said that only God was his rock and salvation. Here is the encouraging part. He can be your Rock and Salvation, too. He is the Only One Who can solve, really solve, the problems you have in life. No, He may not make the bill collectors suddenly go away and He might not keep you from losing your job, but He can make even those things work out for good according to His purpose if you will trust Him (Romans 8:28). I promise you this, if you submit your life to His will, His purpose will result in your good more than you can ever imagine, even if it doesn’t feel very good at the time.

Would you not like to have a stronghold into which you could retreat at the first sign of trouble, where nothing or no one could get to you? Well, you have one if you will let God be your Stronghold. Think about that, for a moment. Not even the most powerful enemy any of us has (the god of this world; the devil, 2 Corinthians 4:4) can get to you. He can hurt you and can distract you, but he cannot breach your Stronghold. God wants to be your Stronghold. He wants to make it so that no one can hurt you enough to destroy you.

When you stop and think about the kind of relationship you can have with God, it becomes a little easier to say, “I will not be greatly shaken.” You do not have to be shaken. You may shake a little bit when you look out the window this morning or think about what awaits you today, but you do not have to be shaken. You can walk out that door today with your head held high, with confidence that there is nothing that can happen to you that will come between you and your salvation if you will not let it. I know I am weak sometimes and may let something come between me and my heavenly Father, but it is an encouragement to me to know that my heavenly Father is not weak and if I will repent and come back to Him, He will take care of me.

Take these words of advice and comfort with you today and the rest of the week: My soul, wait in silence for God only, for my hope is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be shaken. On God my salvation and my glory rest; the rock of my strength, my refuge is in God. Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah (Psalm 62:5-8). You have this hope because God loves you and I wanted to share it with because I love you, too.

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Vindicated by His Power

My heart is in anguish within me, and the terrors of death have fallen upon me (Psalm 55:4). The thoughts expressed here in Barnabas Notes have to do with concerns we have that are real, but, for the most part, are not life threatening or even, by the standards of some, really very serious. That is not true of all, however. There are some who read these words each week, who are suffering through very serious circumstances by anyone’s standards. For most, it is enough to say, “Jesus loves you,” reminding you of something you already knew, but just were not focused on at the moment. Some, however, have a very real sense of being all alone in this world, surrounded by enemies, with all hope gone. For this reason, in this issue I want to use some passages that address our fears and concerns with much stronger language.

David said, “Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror has overwhelmed me” (Psalm 55:5). Have you experienced this kind of fear? I know some of you have! Some may be experiencing it right now. It is not just the fear that we have when we think someone has broken into our homes in the middle of the night. You might feel this fear just thinking about going to work tomorrow. I know church leaders who feel this fear about going to church when there is so much discord. If you have been through this (or are going through it now), you know the truth of …and horror has overwhelmed me and the next verse: I said, "Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest" (Psalm 55:6). It is a sickening feeling to have such fear and dread. I don’t suppose that there is any feeling that makes you feel more alone. Still, I want you to understand that the psalmist says these things as part of a prayer. He was not just lamenting his sorry state, but was calling for help. And he was “calling a number” that you have, too!

By the time you read down to verse 22, he says, “Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.” This is a time in your life that is so serious that you have no way out. There is nothing you can do to save yourself. All you can do is “let go and let God,” as someone once said. And before you get the idea that I am saying, “Don’t worry, it will be alright!” I want to make it clear that it may not be alright in this life. There are some problems that take our lives. And it may be that the thing troubling you will dog you to your grave. I know that doesn’t sound very encouraging for an article about encouragement. However, let me also point out that even if this problem in your life takes your life, there is still hope: “Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken” (Psalm 55:22). David prayed: “Save me, O God, by Your name, and vindicate me by Your power” (Psalm 54:1).

I’ve got to tell you, this is truly empowering! Does it not give you strength to realize that even in the face of death you can overcome? God will sustain you even if you die!! The key is casting your burden on Him. The key is being one of the righteous who will never be shaken. I admit that from time to time, I allow myself to be shaken. But then I remember passages like this and the promises associated with them. There is no fiery dart that the devil can fire at me (or you) that we cannot handle with such a promise backing us up!! God gives us the promise of overcoming the worst the enemy can do to us (death) because He loves us so much. It is hard to imagine that He could love me that much, but He does. And He loves you that much, too. And so, by the way, do I.

Worth More than Sparrows

Wow! That is not really the compliment I was looking for. How about you? We all like compliments, but we generally expect something a little different, don’t we? It’s like the preacher who received the compliment, “You’ll be a good preacher, someday!”

Well, before we fall prey to the temptation to start accepting or rejecting compliments based on whether we think they are worded correctly let us understand just what “worth more than sparrows” means. Jesus said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:29-31). He told this to His disciples in the midst of giving them what we call the “Limited Commission.” He was sending them out to preach the Gospel of the coming kingdom to the “house of Israel” (Matthew 10:6). In other words, they were not to go to the Gentiles just yet. That would come later with the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19,20; Mark 16:15,16).

The job Jesus was sending the twelve to do now was a dangerous one. They would be in danger of losing their very lives. Still, they were not to worry. God was going to take care of them. Even in the face of death, they were to put their trust in God. And then He makes that statement, “So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.” His point is that not even the sparrows have to worry about God not knowing about them and what they suffer. And if He watches over the sparrows, how much more will He watch over His faithful?

It is a scary world that Jesus has sent us into, isn’t it? He did not send us on a limited commission like the twelve, but He did send us on the Great Commission. And He did tell us that if we wanted to be His disciples we would have to deny ourselves, take up our crosses and follow Him (Matthew 16:24). The cross we are to take up amounts to living our lives according to the example Jesus gave us in living His (1 Peter 2:21-23). And sometimes that’s hard; almost too hard to do. Still, it is what He expects us to do.

Jesus told the twelve that sometimes brother would deliver up brother to death, a father his child and children their parents (Matthew 10:21). Sometimes even today our enemies are those in our own households; those closest to us (Matthew 10:36). It may be that those closest to you have turned on you and are making your life miserable. Don’t be afraid. God is watching and knows what you are suffering. He will not leave you or forsake you!

There are times when you probably do not feel worth more than even one sparrow. And it may be that being told you are worth more than several is a surprising way to say God loves you, but that is exactly what it means. Times may be tough for you right now. God still knows the number of hairs on your head and that doesn’t mean He has been counting your hairs instead of paying attention to what you are suffering. It means you are important enough to Him that He knows everything about you, and that includes how much you hurt right now. Don’t be afraid. Know that He knows and that He loves you and so do I.

In Good Company

I have made reference to this passage before, but I want to revisit it today. It’s an important one and we should never forget it, especially when the old devil launches a round-house right that connects. The passage I refer to is Matthew 5:10-12. When Jesus began the Sermon on the Mount, He taught that there are certain characteristics we must adopt if we want to be truly, eternally successful. First you have to empty yourself (poor in spirit), mourn (see James 4:9, 10) and be meek. These attitudes cause a drain on our spirits; it’s like using the energy we draw from the food we eat. The difference is that the drain is spiritual. If we will develop a hunger and thirst for righteousness, He will satisfy that hunger and give us the nourishment for our spirits we need to survive. That allows us to have the spiritual energy to show mercy, purify our hearts and be peacemakers. Sometimes, though, those who are at enmity (those who do not have peace) resent the peacemaker. You may remember that when Moses first tried making peace, it did not go over too well, did it? See Exodus 2:14. For this reason, the next thing Jesus says is: “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:10-12).

It hurts when people “insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of” Jesus. And yet, Jesus said, “Blessed are you…” when this happens! And one of the reasons He could say we are “blessed” in this case is that we are in good company. “Blessed” in this passage literally means “happy.” In other words, there is a happiness associated with suffering persecution (and Jesus says verbal abuse is persecution here). Obviously, this is not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill happiness. It does not feel like the happiness I feel when people are nice! This is a happiness that is so deeply rooted in our spiritual make-up that the world will never understand it and we may miss it ourselves if we do not look for it with a spiritual perception that looks at all things from Jesus’ perspective. It is the kind of happiness or joy that would allow Peter and the other apostles to say, in the face of death, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29). It is the kind of happiness that caused them to exit the chambers of the Sanhedrin (Jewish Council) rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name (Acts 5:41).

There are times when every one of us should remember these verses (and others like them). All of us have times when the words of a loved one, a fellow Christian, a workmate or schoolmate hurt and injure. There are times when every one of us needs encouragement. I have told you before of the encouragement you give me with the replies I receive from so many of you. But these verses I give to you are of equal encouragement to me. God loves me and I am so humbled and overjoyed that He does. And God loves you and so do I. God bless you and may you never forget that He will not abandon you if you will stay the course, faithful until death. I hope you have a great week and know that to him who overcomes, Jesus will grant to him to sit down with Him on His throne, as He also overcame and sat down with His Father on His throne (Revelation 3:21).

The Lord Is Still My Rock

Last time we took comfort from a passage in 2 Samuel 22. We read verses 1 and 33-40 and powerful verses they are. However, there is much more in this whole section that will help us and maybe give you a lift this morning. You may be familiar with the song that’s taken from verses 4 and 47. It’s a great song that’s full of encouragement. This morning, though, I want you to look at verses 7-18. It’s a long passage, I know, but I want you to get a feel for how God feels when one of His own is attacked (and you are one of His own, if you are faithfully obedient to His will, John 15:13, 14).

Samuel writes: “In my distress I called upon the Lord, Yes, I cried to my God; and from His temple He heard my voice, and my cry for help came into His ears. Then the earth shook and quaked, the foundations of heaven were trembling and were shaken, because He was angry. Smoke went up out of His nostrils, fire from His mouth devoured; coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also, and came down with thick darkness under His feet. And He rode on a cherub and flew; and He appeared on the wings of the wind. And He made darkness canopies around Him, a mass of waters, thick clouds of the sky. From the brightness before Him coals of fire were kindled. The Lord thundered from heaven, and the Most High uttered His voice. And He sent out arrows, and scattered them, lightning, and routed them. Then the channels of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were laid bare by the rebuke of the Lord, at the blast of the breath of His nostrils. He sent from on high, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy, from those who hated me, for they were too strong for me.

Pretty impressive, huh? How would like to look in your rearview mirror and see that vision coming at you? Well, that’s what the enemies of the Lord’s people have to look forward to. When life becomes so tough that there is nothing left for you to do but to cry out to the Lord, He will hear you if you are faithful to Him (2 Chronicles 16:9). That means He will come out of heaven and the earth will shake and quake and the foundations of heaven will tremble and be shaken. Of course, that is a figurative description of God’s response, but figurative does not mean false. David says God really is angry at those who threaten His. Doesn’t that make you want to be His? Doesn’t it make you want to do better at being faithful to Him? It should!

David says that God “sent from on high, He took me; He drew me from many waters” (verse 17). There are times when life itself seems about to overwhelm us to the point that we are indeed in “many waters.” We are about to drown and there is nothing we can do about it, it seems. And yet, at the point when all seems lost, Jehovah God Himself comes to draw us out of those waters. Those waters (or those enemies) were too much for me to handle all by myself, but I wasn’t all by myself at all. It only seemed that way.

In verse 20, David says, “He rescued me, because He delighted in me.” This is where the conditional part of this whole story is found. I do not mean to suggest that if we want God’s help, we have to make Him like us first. He has already loved us enough to give His only begotten Son to die on the cross for us (John 3:16). I do mean to say that God will rescue us from the enemy that threatens to overwhelm us and He will save us, ultimately in the end, if we are His, if we are faithful to Him. Scripture makes it clear throughout that God delights in the righteous; those who faithfully submit themselves to Him and His will. That’s the key. If you belong to God, you do not fight alone. It may seem like you do, but there is Someone on your side Who cannot be overcome. If you do not belong to Him, you do not have that hope, but you can. You can because God loves you enough to offer it to you, if you will meet His conditions. He loves you and so do I.

The Lord Is My Rock

And David spoke the words of this song to the Lord in the day that the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul (2 Samuel 22:1). David was in a tight spot. There is a good chance he was in a tighter spot than any of us is this week. King Saul was out to kill him. I have had people mad at me before. I think some are mad at me now. However, I do not remember anyone ever being out to kill me, or at least, I do not ever remember knowing about it if they were. Can you imagine what that must have been like?

Well, God delivered David from the hand of Saul. As a matter of fact, that is what 2 Samuel 22 is all about…David’s celebration of his deliverance in song. What I want to encourage you with today is the attitude David had. Read verses 33-40: God is my strong fortress; And He sets the blameless in His way. He makes my feet like hinds' feet, and sets me on my high places. He trains my hands for battle, So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, And Your help makes me great. You enlarge my steps under me, and my feet have not slipped. I pursued my enemies and destroyed them, and I did not turn back until they were consumed. And I have devoured them and shattered them, so that they did not rise; and they fell under my feet. For You have girded me with strength for battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.

Wow!! Here’s the neat part…He can be your Strong Fortress, too! In verse 31, David said, “He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.” That means that if you take refuge in Him, He is your Shield. Of course, you need to know what it means to take refuge in the Lord. It is more than just crying out to Him. It is crying out to Him in faithful obedience. If you cry out to God, but refuse to obey His commands concerning salvation, you have not really taken refuge in Him. However, if you study His word (the Bible) and obey all those commands concerning your salvation (and He has given us every command we need concerning salvation, 2 Peter 1:3), He is your strong fortress, He will make your feet like hinds’ feet and He will gird you with strength for battle. What a comfort that is to know!

Consider for just a moment the enemies we are able to destroy with the help of the Lord. David was talking about enemies in the flesh who were trying to destroy Israel as a nation. When we apply this passage to ourselves and the care our God provides us, we apply it somewhat differently. There may be the same enemies in the flesh, but Christians do not fight the Good Fight in a physical way with weapons according to the flesh. Our struggle is not against flesh and blood ( Ephesians 6:12). Paul actually says, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Therefore, our weapons are not guns, knives and clubs, but weapons that are effective against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. The key here is the word “spiritual.” Our weapons are spiritual because our enemies are spiritual.

Now, you might say, “Wait a minute! My enemies are in the flesh. I’ve got a classmate or a teacher that’s making my life at school miserable.” Or, “My boss hates me and is trying to get me fired.” Maybe a neighbor seems to have you directly in his crosshairs. How is that enemy
not of the flesh? Even in those cases, your real enemy is not in the flesh; is not the person you have identified. That person who is persecuting you in some way is merely a henchman of your real enemy…Satan. He is the one we are really fighting. The person you see every day is his captive and the best thing you can do for him or her is to help them be free of Satan’s clutches. And you know what the key is that sets them free, don’t you? It is the truth of God’s word (John 8:31, 32).

So, our weapons are spiritual because our enemy is spiritual. What are some spiritual weapons we have? One very under-used weapon of the spirit is prayer. Another one that gets far less attention than it deserves is the sword of the Spirit, the Bible itself. If you are in constant communication through prayer and Bible study, with the King Who is reigning over His kingdom right this minute, you are going to be very hard to defeat in battle. The encouragement we give one another is another weapon that allows us to destroy the very fortresses of the devil (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). I hope that this note is a weapon that in some way helps you get through a difficult time this week. God has given you all the weapons you need to win this fight because He loves you and so do I.

The Oracles of God

I have, in the past, written of the “Healing Power of Ministry.” It is true that there is great healing power in ministering to the needs of others. There is a lot that each of us should know and be reminded of when it comes to helping other people. I have made it my purpose in these Barnabas Notes to encourage those who need encouragement. I want to do that today by reminding all of us of how important it is to remain faithful to the word of God.

It does not make any difference how happy you are or how successful you are at navigating the frustrating waters of this life without a mental or spiritual breakdown; if you are not faithful to the will of God, your happiness is temporary. And there are no comforting words to make eternity in hell a little easier to endure. I would much rather encourage you to be faithful to God while suffering through this life, than to make you smile here and lose your soul. There is nothing more encouraging that I could think of to say than to tell you that God loved you so much that He gave His only Begotten Son so that you can have everlasting life (John 3:16).

The apostle Peter said, “Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen” (1 Peter 4:11). Amen, indeed! As a preacher of the Gospel, the first part of this verse is very important to me. If I presume to speak concerning the will of God, I have better speak God’s word.

Notice the second part of the verse. You might say, “Yes, but I cannot minister to other people like some others can. I have needs of my own!” Before you write yourself off as not having enough strength to help other people, notice that Peter commands us to minister to (that means serve) other people “by the strength God supplies.” That means that God will give you all the strength you need to reach out to others.

My dear friends, the reason you are able to draw strength from those who encourage you, is because that is how God designed us to function. Many of you have said some very kind things to me about these notes and I appreciate it more than you can know, but the encouragement that comes to you through this ministry is “by the strength which God supplies.” It is what allows me to encourage you when I feel down myself and it is what will help you to reach out to others when you have needs yourself.

It is my prayer that you overcome whatever obstacles stand in your path to true, eternal happiness. Most of all, I would that you were faithful so that even if before this week is done your life is required of you, you will open your eyes in eternity with never a thought or concern or any need of encouragement ever again. God wants you to be happy (saved, 2 Peter 3:9) because He loves you and so do I.

The Prayer of Faith

One area that we have not addressed as much as we should have in these notes from friend Barnabas is our personal prayer life. It is very encouraging when others pray for you. However, it is also very encouraging to take your concerns and fears to God yourself in your own prayers...if your prayer life is a healthy one, that is. Some people are not as comfortable praying themselves and do not find their own prayers that encouraging, at all. If that is you, you need to change. You need to develop a healthy prayer life and take advantage of the power of prayer.

James wrote: “You do not have because you do not ask” (James 4:2). James is really dealing with those who go through life with selfish motives. They are only concerned with themselves. You cannot expect to get what you want, or even need, that way. In verse 3 he says, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.” Let us go back to that little part of verse 2: “You do not have because you do not ask.” Wow!! I wonder how many times I failed to receive a blessing simply because I did not ask for it.

Some of you reading this right now may have a tough day ahead of you. Maybe a co-worker is giving you fits. Maybe your boss is threatening to fire you. Maybe a classmate or teacher is the thorn in your flesh. Wouldn’t now be a good time to pause and take this concern to God? Tell Him how you feel. Yes, I know that He already knows, but He instituted prayer for your benefit, not His! You will feel better if you start talking to God on a daily basis.

Do you need more wisdom to know how to deal with these kinds of problems in your life? Well, just ask! But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways (James 1:5-8). You need to ask God for wisdom and when you ask, expect to receive it. Now, do not expect to get something that feels like an electrical shock so that you are now wiser than you were. What you ought to expect is that God is going to answer your prayer by exposing you to His wisdom found in His word. The answer to your prayer is already here. You can read and study His word and be exposed to His wisdom, and when you obey that word and learn that His way works, your wisdom grows and your prayer is answered.

You need to know that you are not in this (your struggle) all alone. Your friends, who love and care for you, are with you. And God is with you, too; He is One of those friends (John 15:14). Even if all the rest leave you to the wolves, He is not far away. He loves you and so do I.

The Lord Is My Shepherd

Psalm 23 is no doubt one of the most famous passages of Scripture in the whole Bible. It is a comforting thought to know “the Lord is my Shepherd,” isn’t it? The Psalmist writes: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. That means with God in control, I do not have anything to worry about. What a comforting thought!

There is a lot in my life and in yours that tries to make us worry and be concerned or discouraged. You do not need me to tell you that. It may be that you are heading out the door this morning to an uncertain job situation, or to some other stressful event. Well, if the Lord is your Shepherd, you do not have to worry about it. I do not mean that you can just ignore the problem and it will go away. There may well be some responsibility that you bear. The point is that with the Lord as your Shepherd, it is a load you can bear.

Do you understand what it means to “fear no evil”? The psalmist says he will fear no evil even though he walks through “the valley of the shadow of death.” That means there is nothing that can cause him to fear! Once again, this is you, if the Lord is your Shepherd. Stop and think about this for a minute. One manifestation of evil is that nagging thought in your mind that the things you have to face today or this week are worse than anyone else has to face and are too difficult for you to endure. The problems themselves may not be the evil; it is the temptation to give up that is evil. You do not have to be afraid of that evil.

Did you ever wonder at the phrase “Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life”? You may be thinking that you have made the Lord your Shepherd for many years, but it does not feel like goodness and mercy have followed you all the days of your life. We need to understand that the good that God has in store for us does not always feel like the good we human beings think we should have. The child whose parents make him suffer the consequences of his actions may not feel like such is goodness and mercy, either, although such a lesson may very well save his life one day. By the same token, the things we suffer in this life, if we suffer them faithfully, are producing in us an endurance that will help us be strong in the Lord (James 1:2, 3).

This week, as you struggle through life, remember that there is One Who will help you get through the toughest of times. Stop trying to think that it is all about you. Try to think of yourself as a sheep in the fold of God. Let Him take the troubles off your shoulders. It will be an easier life if you do. Remember, God loves you and so I.

No Matter What

My dog loves me no matter what I do. When I considered beginning with that statement, I first thought I would set it off in quotations because it’s been said by a number of people. However, this is not just a quote of a well-known saying, but in my case, it’s true. My dog really does love me no matter what. And I’m sure if she were capable, she would appreciate me mentioning her in this article. Good girl, Pepper!

I know this is a silly way to make the point, but it does make it. The love that Christians are commanded to have for their fellowman is just as unqualified as the love my dog Pepper has for me. The love I am to have for the lost, the brotherhood, my enemies, et al, is not dependent upon whether or not they deserve it. It does not matter what they do, I am expected by God Himself to love them. Here is the encouraging part…your heavenly Father and His people (Christians) love you, too. God intends for you to be loved no matter what.

Now, we need to explain what we mean. We do not mean that no matter what you do, God and the Christians around you are supposed to just smile and say, “That’s OK. We love you. Don’t worry about this mistake or that sin!” Loving someone the way the Bible commands is not excusing sinful behavior. The apostle Paul loved the apostle Peter enough to oppose him “to his face, because he stood condemned” (Galatians 2:11). The way many people think about love, they would say that Paul loved Peter, but suspended his love just long enough to reprove him. That is not love, though. Love is what caused Paul to oppose Peter. He did not want Peter to lose his soul.

This whole concept may be confusing to some, but only because we have allowed our culture to define love for us. Christian love (the love commanded in Scripture) is a love that seeks the highest good of its object. Sometimes the highest good for someone is very uncomfortable.

God loved you (and me) enough to let His own Son die on the cross so that we might have hope of eternal life (John 3:16). Eternal life is not automatic. We have a responsibility to obey His commands. However, He made that offer knowing that the very people He was offering to save would kill His Son. That is love (1 John 4:10).

What about the love we’re supposed to have? 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 gives a great description of Christian love. One of the things Paul says love does not do is “take into account a wrong suffered” (verse 5). That means that true Christian love does not depend on whether or not someone did something wrong to you. You love them anyway. It also means that there are Christians who love you in that same way…no matter what! It might be embarrassing some day when a Christian friend asks you to stop some sinful behavior, or encourages you to do a better job living the Christian life or “opposes you to your face,” but understand that it is only happening because of a “no matter what” kind of love. That is how much God loves you and it is how much I love you, too.

A Kingdom of Priests and a Holy Nation

In the third month after the sons of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. When they set out from Rephidim, they came to the wilderness of Sinai and camped in the wilderness; and there Israel camped in front of the mountain. Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob and tell the sons of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself. Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.” Exodus 19:1-6.

Can you imagine what that must have been like? For centuries, the children of Jacob (Israel) had been kept captive in Egypt. They knew nothing else; no other lifestyle than slavery. For the last generation or two, Hebrew male babies were to be killed at birth because of the prejudice and fear of the government. Not very long before this scene, the people had witnessed the most awesome spectacle ever witnessed—Jehovah’s judgment on the land of Egypt. All of that ended in the stripping of Egypt of all its riches and the complete destruction of its military while these Hebrews had walked across the Red Sea on dry land. What wonders they had seen!

Now, they have been cast into a world about which they knew very little. How would they live? How would they and their children survive? Have you ever felt that way? Maybe you are the young couple now asking those same questions since you have left your parents' homes. Maybe you are the new parents who have to take that baby home where there is no nurse who comes when you push the little button who shows you how to nurse or change a diaper. Maybe you are just you and you are facing a hostile world and you don’t have any answers. What do you do? To whom do you turn? I’ll bet you can guess “to Whom” I’m going to say you should turn.

After witnessing all these wonderful events, these Hebrews were gathered before Mt. Sinai. Moses gets the word from Jehovah Himself. “You tell them that if they will obey Me and keep My covenant (commands), I will be their God and they will be My people!” Think about that for a moment. Who else in the universe do you want to say to you, “You are Mine and I am yours!”? There is really nothing else to say. If you meet the conditions under which this promise is made, you get what was promised!

I know times are tough and the suffering is real. I know that sometimes you look at the world and do not see any way out. Like someone said, “I not only don’t know the answers…I don’t even know the questions!” Well, let me tell you something. If you will keep the covenant of God (and now we live under a new and better covenant, Hebrews 8:6) He will be yours and you will be His and you will be part of His kingdom of priests and His holy nation (the church). I am so happy to say that God loves you and so do I.

The Hope of His Calling

In Ephesians 1:18, Paul says, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints…” What a prayer! Paul does not pray that his readers will have hope, but that they will see the hope they can have. That is exactly the message that the downtrodden and discouraged need to hear.

Many people have lost (or are losing) hope these days, and with the attitudes of some, it is not hard to see why. The core of the Gospel message the apostle Paul preached was the resurrection. In his greatest defense of the resurrection in Scripture, Paul said “If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15:19). He was right! If the only things we have to hope for are in this life, why in the world would we subject ourselves to any rules or regulations at all?

However, we do not just hope in this life, do we? I know it is hard when you consider going in to work today with the thought that it might be your last because you are going to be fired, laid off, or the plant is going to close. It is also hard to go work or school when you know (or feel) that your boss or teacher has it in for you. Maybe a co-worker makes your life miserable. Perhaps there is trouble in your family that threatens to destroy not just the family’s happiness but even your health. These are painful afflictions, but they can be overcome.

Remember Paul’s prayer. He prays for you (and so do I, by the way) that the eyes of your heart will be enlightened (opened); that you will see the hope you can have. There is a hope associated with the calling of Jesus Christ. If you are a Christian you have hope. You might not realize it and it may not feel like it, but that is the essence of the prayer; that you will realize it! And something else you can hang your hat (I mean, hope) on is the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints. Do you realize that as a faithful Christian, those riches of glory are available to you?

Christians have a good life, do we not? No, it might not all be peaches and cream, but it does not have to be. What makes our life so good is that there is a better one on the way! We do not just hope in Christ in this life only. Many people do pity us, but it is misplaced pity. They do not need to worry about us because we have hope. So many do not. In giving words of comfort to the Thessalonian church about their dear departed loved ones, Paul said he did not want them to grieve as those who do not have hope will grieve (1 Thessalonians 4:13). We do have hope. Praise Jehovah God!!

I want you to take this hope with you. As you head out into the world, no matter your destination, there is nothing that can separate you from the love of God if you will remain faithful to Him (Romans 8:38, 39). He is yours if you are His. He makes that true because He loves you and so do I.

God Is Love

Usually when I sit down to write a post for Barnabas Notes, I work from a particular verse or passage that teaches a lesson of encouragement. This past week, however, as I thought about what I wanted to write this week, I tried to back up and look at more general encouraging thoughts from Scripture. The first thing that jumped out at me was the love of God. What could be more encouraging to anyone than realization of the love of God? For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16). That says it all, doesn’t it? John puts it another way that is just as good: In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another (1 John 4:10, 11).

Maybe that is too general for some. We are used to people trying to encourage us by saying that God loves us and if we will remain faithful, He will take care of us in the end, but what about right now? What is He going to do for me right now? Well, I hate to appear insensitive, but He has already done it. He loved you (already) enough to let His Son die for you. He has done His part, now you have to do yours. I know, that still does not answer the question about what is afflicting you right now in your life...or does it?

The duty of all Christians is to grow toward spiritual maturity (2 Peter 3:18). For us to mature as we ought, we need to mature in our faith and in our hope, among other things. Faith and hope are what will get you through the tough times. You are not going to have times as tough as Jesus did or the first century Christians who were slaughtered simply because they were Christians. Yet, because of their faith and hope, they were able to endure.

Many people work very hard these days to provide for their families. And they are able to provide not just a living (a place to sleep, clothes to wear and food to eat), but many luxuries, too. However, without God, no one has achieved any real success at all. What good does it do to work yourself to death and make wash tubs full of money if you and your family are lost in the end? Jesus asked that same question this way: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36). If you want to be successful, truly successful, in this world, you must achieve spiritual success. You must be a faithful child of God. Anything less is failure, even if you live in the biggest palace on earth.

I know the pain you feel is real and God is not ignoring your pain and neither am I. I wanted to encourage you this morning with more general thoughts simply to show that even the most complicated problems and their solutions are simpler than you think. True, spiritual, eternal success really does boil down to simply living for God and not living for yourself. And the solutions to the things that afflict you right now, are really just as simple as giving yourself to God and overcoming them or letting those problems grow out of proportion and overcome you. Yes, God is love (1 John 4:8) and He wants you to love Him and live for Him. He wants that kind of success and peace of mind for you because He loves you. I want it for you because I love you, too.

Seek and You Shall Find

In Matthew 7:7, Jesus says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” What a comforting thought that if we genuinely seek after God’s will, we will find it. And it is especially comforting given what Jesus says just a few verses later. In verses 13 and 14 Jesus says that the way that leads to life is narrow and the way that leads to destruction is wide. Most people, from what Jesus says (and He ought to know) are not going to spend eternity in heaven.

There is simply no other way to understand what Jesus says here. The world is full of people (and religious people at that) who are doing their best to widen the way that leads to life. I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and acknowledge that some of this is done out of concern for the lost and a desire to extend God’s grace to as many as possible. The problem is that no one has the right to extend God’s grace beyond the limit God has already set. Neither you nor I nor anyone else has the right to say God’s grace will cover a sin that God has said He will condemn, or to say that the way to eternal life is broad when God has said it is narrow.

Now, once again, I know that some people will object to what I have said so far, or will think I am being harsh and judgmental. I would disagree. I am compelled out of the love I feel for all men and for my heavenly Father and His word, to point out that the way to eternal life is narrow. I want as many people as possible to give up on the notion of widening the narrow way or trying to come up with another way to the Father. There is only One Way to the Father (John 14:6). I want them to seek the narrow way, the Way that God accepts.

After reading that the way is so narrow, which can be very disconcerting and discouraging, I am terribly encouraged to know that if I will seek this narrow way, I will find it. And I am absolutely ecstatic to be able to tell you and everyone else the same thing. You do not have to stumble around in some spiritual fog, hoping you stumble across God’s grace. You can know His will and you can know you are saved (1 John 5:13). You can make your calling and choosing sure (2 Peter 1:10). You can be in heaven for eternity. There are things you can do to make sure it happens. God has provided that for you because He loves you that much.

If you are someone who is afraid or worried that you are not good enough to be saved, let me just say that none of the rest of us is, either. If you are worried that you will not find the narrow way, the way that leads to life eternal, let me encourage you by sharing this truth with you: if you seek that way, genuinely seek it, you will find it. If you are one that is confident that you have found the narrow way, let me encourage you to examine yourself, test yourself to see if you are truly in the faith (2 Corinthians 13:5). If you are convinced of your salvation based on human reasoning or doctrine and have not obeyed what so many people think are “narrow-minded” commands, let me encourage you to give up trying to widen the narrow way and give yourself to God and His will. Stop resisting Him and submit. That is the way to eternal life; His way, not mine or yours. God has provided this narrow way to eternal life because He loves you and so do I.