Receive From The One Who Knows

Jesus is divine. He is not like me. Yet, as our LORD, He knows what we go through daily. He understands our struggles and how we can and do give in to our temptations. Jesus walked as we walk in this world. He was here walking this world and subject to all, if not more struggles than I, and yet, He did not give into those temptations, and even suffered more than I as He was killed.

“¹⁵For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” – Hebrews 4:15 (ESV)

Ever notice in the world those who speak for us in the world have rarely gone through that which we go through daily. Oh, sure, they may have had some challenging times, but their challenges pale in comparison to trying to figure out how to just survive. Heads of State, heads of companies, heads of a lot of things, have not walked in our shoes, yet we look to them for guidance in how to make things work. With Jesus, we find comfort in knowing that He did. He walked this world. He never had a true dwelling to make His way back to for comfort. He wandered deliberately giving to others. He lived in tents outside the city. He relied on friends and acquaintances for food and shelter. He found comfort in the company of friends. He was like me.

As Jesus was like me He was also not like me. He died for me. He took my sin and the consequences of that sin to the point of death. He received no such grace or mercy. He was flogged. He was cursed. He was beaten. He was humiliated. All in front of the people in public view of everyone. And no one came to His defense. No one eased His pain. No one provided for His discomfort. But He offers it to us. He gives what He Himself did not receive. Jesus knows what was missing and is sure to provide that to us.

“¹⁶Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” – Hebrews 4:16 (ESV)

I choose to follow and be led and receive from the one who knows. Not the one who talks a good game. Not the one in the position of authority who does not know the struggles I find every day. I choose the one who walked in my shoes. More importantly, I choose the one who walked as I do and yet did not find Himself giving in to the ways and sin that would come at Him. I choose the one who worked through the challenges (and more) than I. I choose the one who did not sin and received no grace or mercy and yet offers and give it to me. I choose to receive from the One who knows.

Who are you getting your guidance? Are you relying on those who are in positions of authority, yet did not struggle as you do? What if you relied on the one who walked as you do and received not as you and yet did not give in as you do, and has grace and mercy for you as one who knows your need?

Receive Through Obedience

This morning I am in Colossians continuing my study on the word “receive”. The passage is titled, “Rules for Christian Households”. The big takeaway for me is obedience this morning. As with a lot of my studies, I am led to passages time and time again and this one is no different. The focus in the past was on the work done and the reward received. This morning I see the obedience to receive and not the work itself.

“¹⁸Wives, submit…”, “¹⁹Husbands, love…”, “²⁰Children, obey…”, “²¹Fathers, do not…”, “²²Slaves, obey…”, and “¹Masters, treat…”. – Colossians 3:18-22, & 4:1

All of these are the rules that we are to obey in our households. They will keep us moving in the right direction with our families and most importantly in our Family of God.

“²³Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, ²⁴knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” – Colossians 3:23-24 (ESV)

And there we have it. Obedience to the rules will result in receipt of the inheritance. See the one we are obeying is “the Lord Christ”. We are serving Him in our work. We are in His house and we are to follow and live according to the rules of the house. Those rules are spelled out in the passage as noted above: “Wives, submit…”, “Husbands, love…”, “Children, obey…”, Fathers, do not…”, Slaves, obey…”, and “Masters, treat…”. Everyone in the house is addressed. We are all accountable to the rules set forth in the household. We are all to obey the head of the house, our Father God.

I remember speaking to our boys and answering their questions as to why they have to do certain things with, “because I am the head of the house and I said so”. I am sure that all of us have used a similar statement in the past and we do so for the good of the children and others in the household. I have to remember that I am part of the house of the LORD and am accountable to what He answers me with, even when that answer is, “because I am the head of the house and I said so”. We will receive our reward through our obedience to the head of our forever household, our Father God.

What is your view on obedience in the house? Do you see yourself with only the earthly household? What if you realize the forever household you are in with God as the head and master and delivered your obedience to Him?

Receive Through Faith

You know we cannot receive the Holy Spirit through our works or even purchase access with our monetary gifts, right? Yet, we continue to try. It is interesting to watch people doing things and spouting them publicly to somehow gain some righteousness in the eyes of the world. And, I guess they do, but that is not going to get them anywhere beyond this world. They are slaves to the law of man and will only receive the volatile and fleeting rewards of man.

“¹²But the law is not of faith, rather ‘The one who does them shall live by them.’” – Galatians 3:12 (ESV)

We were not meant to receive the gift of God through the law. Oh, yes, when looking at the Old Testament and adhering to the Old Covenant, there was the component of following the law to gain righteousness. The Old Covenant is gone and we now live in the New Covenant where Jesus earned our salvation and freedom from sin thanks to His sacrifice on the cross for us. It is His sacrifice that we place our faith and in doing so, we gain the Holy Spirit in our lives to guide us forward.

“¹³Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’— ¹⁴so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.” – Galatians 3:13-14 (ESV)

We do not receive the Holy Spirit through our works according to man and the law. We receive the Holy Spirit through our faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ who suffered to remove the suffering from us.

“¹¹Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” – Galatians 3:11 (ESV)

It is not our adherence to the law, or our good works in this world that allow us to receive the gift of salvation and the Holy Spirit. It is through our faith in Jesus that He paid the price for me and I only need to realize, acknowledge, and accept. It is through faith that I receive and not through any other means.

What is your view of gaining righteousness? Are you out there doing good to somehow receive greatness to come? What if you were to realize that Jesus satisfied the law for you by dying on the cross and you receive the Holy Spirit through faith in Him and His actions for you?

Give and You Will Receive

I get frustrated with giving all the time and not receiving, well as I have been seeing it. This morning I was reminded that we don’t give to receive, but our giving is the receiving. It know, it sounds a bit as though I am speaking in circles a bit, and that is why I forget about all that I have received.

You see, we give, not to receive, but to see that others are receiving that which is good and they are in need of, even if they did not realize that it was a need. I don’t give to others to get something from them, I give to them to remove the need from their plate so that they can focus their attention on other things. I provide for them so they do not have to provide for themselves. Here is an example. Lori makes sourdough bread and over the past few weeks started using nitrile gloves so the dough does not stick to her hands. I noticed she was out of them and went to get a pack for her. This example is not a grand gesture, but one that demonstrates giving without looking for receipt.

The thing is that I did receive something far greater and more important than any physical item. I got to witness Lori using the gloves to do what she does. I received satisfaction that I met a need for her. Isn’t that a better receipt than the monetary or physical items.

“³³I coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. ³⁴You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. ³⁵In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” – Acts 20:33-35 (ESV)

Paul, who was from the educated and ruling class, did not have physical possessions as he was in the throws of his ministry. He provided for the needs of others and did not worry with accumulating things, as he only focused on his “needs”. Paul received the gift of spending time with others and providing for their needs as opposed to his own.

“²³I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. ²⁴But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. ²⁵Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, ²⁶so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.” – Philippians 1:23-26 (ESV)

Paul explains his joy is found in remaining in this life to give to others for their joy in the faith and that they might have “ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus”. All the while being content with what he had even being in prison for his actions.

Too often we look to “what’s in it for me” and shy away from thing that do not bring us gifts. This is not the direction of a follower of Christ. We should be looking as to “what can I do for you” knowing that we have what we “need” and will receive joy by ensuring that others are provided for in their needs. I have to remember that I am giving, not to receive, but that I am/will receive just by giving and seeing others needs fulfilled.

Why do you give? Do you give with the expectation that at some point you will receive? What if you were to realize that you are receiving just by giving to fulfill the needs of others?

Receive, Yes, When, Unknown

We live in a time when we want and a lot of times are able to get things at a moment’s notice. The past weekend, our daughter in law to be stayed with us and wanted pizza to which she order and had delivered. Now, I did not turn the pizza away and did enjoy a couple of slices, it is just that Lori and I will typically order and then go pick up, or Lori just makes the pizza here at the house (Yes, I am spoiled). It is not about when or how fast or uninterrupted things come about, it should be about the quality of that which we are receiving.

“⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” – Acts 1:8 (ESV)

Jesus made it clear to the apostles that they would receive the Holy Spirit and would carry on the work He had begun. He had told them the same thing in the upper room before His death and resurrection (which did happen as we know). And just like us here in today, the apostles where anxious about receiving things in the moment. Jesus addresses the receiving of the power of the Holy Spirit as you can see in above in verse eight. Also look below at how He prefaced verse eight after their asking about the restoration of the kingdom of Israel.

“⁷He said to them, ‘It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.’” – Acts 1:7 (ESV)

Jesus points out that yes, all will be restored and the power of the Holy Spirit will come, just that we are not to know when. We are to prepare constantly for that which will come. We are not to wait on things, just do the work and know that God is working His plan for all and for us in His time. We are to be patient, have faith, and know that we will receive.

Pizza is one thing that we can rush to receive and will be pretty good regardless. But, when we wait that thing is so much more. Homemade pizza that takes some time is so much better after the wait. Receiving the LORD now would be great, but so much better as we wait for Him to provide in His time and not our own.

What is your expectation of the LORD? Are you looking for Him to provide now without thought to the quality of what He will provide? What if you waited on the quality of the LORD, knowing that when He does, we receive the best of Him and not just something good?

Receive, Believe, Become

It is that easy. We receive Jesus Christ, we believe in Him and what He has for us, and we are given the right to become heirs in heaven with Him.

“¹²But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,” — John 1:12 (ESV)

The opening sentence of our introduction to the book of John in my ESV Bible is: “The Gospel of John was written to persuade people to believe in Jesus (20:30-31).” Verse 12 above speaks more to this and what we get in return for doing so, adoption.

It is on us/me to do what is required to get adoption. But it is not what is generally thought. We do no earn our way. We do not take on more work and perform at a certain level. The requirement is only to receive Jesus for who He is and believe in Him. When we have done these tow things, we get the reward, being adopted as children of God.

What are you doing thinking it is getting you somewhere? Are you out there working on being good and doing good things to earn your place in heaven? What if you put down your works and received Jesus and believed in Him to get the reward?

Receiving What You Asked For

We are going to receive what we are due. When we do something wrong in this world, we are accountable to the consequences of our actions. Yes, we may be forgiven for our sin by God, but we are still accountable to punishment according to man. It is about our choice though that leads to our forgiveness by God. We choose Him over man and He continues to provide for and bless us as heirs to heaven.

“¹⁹For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.” – Romans 1:19 (ESV)

We know God because He has revealed Himself to us. He has shown us who He is and what He does and gives us love that we do not deserve. And yet…

“²¹For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.” and “²⁹They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, ³⁰slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, ³¹foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. ³²Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” – Romans 1:21 & 29-32 (ESV)

Even as we/they know/knew God, the choice is to go against Him. The choice to follow the world and not the LORD runs rampant in the world, even today as before. We are slaves to the instant gratification of the now and continue to do and approve others to do those things that are destructive to ourselves and the relationship we have with the Father.

“²⁸And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.” – Romans 1:28 (ESV)

As such, The LORD gives us up to our desires and allows for our destruction. We make the choice to follow ourselves and God allows us to follow our choice. Our choice is asking for the consequences and as such we receive just what we ask for. The LORD will be right there with us waiting for our turn to Him and away from the destructive things, but He will allow us to take on the destructive things and the consequences of them until we choose Him.

What are you choosing? Are you choosing today those things that are giving you instant gratification without thought of the consequences? What if you were to choose the LORD and His ways instead, knowing that we will receive what we ask for?

The Due Reward

What have we done and what is our reward? Well, it is pretty simple when we look at it. We have work to do in this world and for that work we will be rewarded.

“³⁹One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, ‘Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!’” – Luke 23:39 (ESV)

We see here the words of those who were crucified along with Jesus. Knowing that Jesus is the Christ, the one knows that He could save Himself. The criminal also takes the selfish approach asking to be saved as well. The man was looking to get out of the death sentence that he was due as a result of the work he had done. The sentence he was receiving was in line with his deeds according to the law.

“⁴⁰But the other rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? ⁴¹And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.’” – Luke 23:40-41 (ESV)

And then we have the other criminal crucified along with Jesus. The man understood who Jesus was and called Him out just the same. Except, He did not ask for his own redemption as he knew and understood the reward for his deeds was right where he was. But, he also knew that Jesus was doing something extraordinary. Jesus had done nothing wrong and was receiving an unjust reward for His deeds. Jesus was being crucified for the deeds of others and not His own.

Isn’t this something. We are accountable for the actions and deeds we undertake. We are to receive reward for those deeds, and the reward is not always something that we find pleasing. Our reward is in line with the action. We commit a crime, we are punished in the law. We avoid giving of ourselves and we do not receive help when we need it. When we provide for others, we receive the picture of joy on their faces. We show up, and we get to celebrate with those we showed up for.

The second criminal understood the reality of receiving the reward for the deeds committed. He may not have liked the idea of dying for it, but understood that he was accountable to the consequences of his actions. He also understood that Jesus had done nothing to receive death. He knew that Jesus could save Himself, yet was doing something extraordinary for others, even himself. This man knew of receiving due reward.

“⁴²And he said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ ⁴³And he said to him, ‘Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.’” – Luke 23:42-43 (ESV)

This second man accepted the reward he was to receive. But he also accepted the gift Jesus was giving. He did not ask for something other than the reward he was due, but thanks to his accepting of Jesus for who He was and the gift He was giving, the man received the reward of eternal life with Jesus in heaven.

You see, we are due to receive rewards for our actions. Yet we can also receive redemption for those actions through Jesus. And we can receive justification through our faith in Him. And when we do, we receive the due reward that comes, eternal life with Jesus in heaven.

What is your due reward? Are you receiving that which you deserve based on your actions? What if you believe in your accountability and accept the consequences, and accept that Christ died for your actions and have faith in Him to wipe away your sin and provide the due reward of eternal life in heaven with Him?

God’s Choice

There may be things that are bigger and grander and stand out more to the eye of man, but God’s choice is more than enough.

“¹⁵Mount Bashan, majestic mountain,

Mount Bashan, rugged mountain,

¹⁶why gaze in envy, you rugged mountain,

at the mountain where God chooses to reign,

where the Lord himself will dwell forever?”

— Psalm 68:15-16 (NIV)

The mountain range to the north of Mount Sinai were certainly bigger and grander than God’s chosen dwelling place. They were, to the eye of man a more fitting place for God to set up as His place of residence. But here’s the thing, God does not do things to please the eye of man. He chooses based on His wants and needs and not ours. The grandeur of those mountains to the north may have been impressive to man, but to God, they were just another mountain range. Sinai is the choice of God.

“¹⁷The chariots of God are tens of thousands

and thousands of thousands;

the Lord has come from Sinai into his sanctuary.”

— Psalm 68:17 (NIV)

God does not need man to accomplish His tasks. He will use man, but does not need Him. He does not need the biggest and grandest, He is more than enough for all that He sets out to accomplish. God has thousands upon thousands of warriors now and forever. When He sets out for something nothing or no one will stand against Him in success. God sought Mount Sinai as His resting place and that is where He will rest.

Too often am I looking for some way to be enough for me and my family. I am the provider for them and look to make their lives as comfortable as possible. But God is where I find enough as I am certainly not. I don’t have the best solution in mind, I have my solution in mind. God’s solution for me and my family is enough. I will find peace where He leads me and not where I go on my own. God has thousands upon thousands preparing the place for me, it is up to me to allow Him to prepare it and arrive there as He leads me. God’s choice is His choice and much more than enough.

How are you getting along with choice? Are you out there choosing on your own and hoping it is enough in the eyes of man? What if you were to rely on God to choose for you knowing that His choice is much more than enough?

10 Years In Daily Study

Today marks 10 years of daily studying the Word of God consistently. According to my records, I written over 2000 pages containing over 950,000 words and made 1925 blog posts (more if you count before my blog started). And what have I gotten out of all this time with the LORD; just getting started.

As a Christian and follower of Jesus for over 40 years of my life, I was not consistent in my independent study of Gods Word. I was and do consistently attend church and even bible study, yet until 10 years ago, I was not in daily study of His Word. Oh, I could recite some scripture, and knew my way around a hymnal, but I was not in daily commune with the LORD based on my learning from Him.

10 years ago a friend of mine challenged me to read and study Gods Word and send her an email as an accountability exercise. And the accountability worked, as we are here now 10 years later, and I am still studying Gods Word daily.

“¹⁶All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ¹⁷that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” – 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (ESV)

Learning is a lifelong process and should not be left to a few instances and expect to get the kind of depth of learning to last a lifetime. There is learning and then reviewing and then studying again to fully understand. And then just when you think you have learned it all, you find another perspective that changes everything. This is what is/has happened to me over this 10 years. I have gone through the same passages a number of times and each time God reveals something new, at least new to me.

I mentioned that I am just getting started after all this time and that is absolutely the truth. God is not done with me yet and daily I pray that He will reveal more and give me the opportunity to share it with others. 10 years in the daily study of Gods Word and I have not even scratched the surface. The LORD has more for me I am here for it.

What does your study of Gods Word look like? Are you getting His word from your weekly attendance of the church service? What if you were to take a few minutes every day to dive into His Word and see what He has for you?