Open Door of Mercy

I remember reading of an old-time preacher who wrote of God’s “open door of mercy” in his appeal to his readers. It may sound like an antiquated phrase, but I hope it is a perspective that will never be lost for those of us who seek to talk to our friends and coworkers about Christ. So often these days Jesus is presented as a pitch for life improvement or personal fulfillment. By contrast, the Bible presents Christ and his salvation as a mercifully provided portal to escape the impending consequences of sin that are coming on a rebellious world. In the words of the Apostle Peter, as he pleaded with those who would hear him, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation” (Ac.2:40). It is a perspective clearly heard in heaven’s call to those on earth in Revelation 18—“Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues” (v.4). Thankfully, for now, the merciful door of escape is still open. But as Peter would later remind his generation, we should never presume upon God’s grace thinking the door will stay open forever. We must instead “count the patience of our Lord” as perhaps the last of the opportunities for any to be saved (2Pt.3:1-15). Time is obviously running out. So let us be thankful and motivated, that at least for today, God’s door of mercy is still open.

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Invisible War

There is a lot going on in the room in which we sit that is very real yet unseen. Not only are we surrounded by a huge spectrum of electromagnetic radiation carrying hundreds of radio programs, television channels, text messages, and cell phone conversations, the Bible says that there is an abundance of spiritual agents, both good and bad, vying to influence our thoughts, affections, and priorities. While the world has long since made a caricature of the white angel sitting on one shoulder and the red demon on the other, we should never let such mocking dissuade us from the truth of what God says is going on all around us. How unfortunate that the world’s scoffing has lulled many Christians into being ignorant of the enemy’s schemes (2 Cor. 2:11). Though we interact with human beings all day long, we are informed that much more is actually in play. “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood” the New Testament warns, “but against cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil” (Eph. 6:12). God, of course, doesn’t want us preoccupied with our spiritual enemies, but he does want us to “armor up” every day with an effective defense (vv.13-18). So let’s keep in mind the unseen realities today and always be spiritually prepared to combat the shrewd work of our spiritual enemies.

For more sermons and devotionals on Invisible War, please go to the Focal Point Ministries website at www.focalpointministries.org.

Trustworthy Tongue

Nothing may be more difficult in the Christian life than avoiding sin in the things that we say. James diagnoses the tongue as a “restless evil, full of deadly poison” (3:8). We experience plenty of circumstances and emotions every day that can easily set off a powder keg of demeaning and destructive words. And while we can’t control many of the negative things we encounter, the Bible says that we can experience increasing success in restraining our negative words. Consider the scene depicted in Proverbs that presumes a frustrated heart, a personal offense, or the pressure from a group of friends venting their own set of caustic words. We are told, “Whoever belittles his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding remains silent” (11:12). As James put it, that kind of restraint may be akin to the challenge of “taming” a wild a beast, but God expects us to be men and women of understanding who with God’s help learn to shut their mouths. Our minds may quickly amass plenty of fuel to add to the fire of words, exposing more dirt, “slandering,” and “revealing secrets” as the next verse in Proverbs says, but “he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered” (11:13). May there be more trustworthy spirits among us who honor Christ and display the power of God’s Spirit by keeping a careful guard on their mouths (Ps.141:3).

For more sermons and devotionals on a Trustworthy Tongue, please go to the Focal Point Ministries website at www.focalpointministries.org. 

A Disconnect

Many say they love God, and yet are seemingly indifferent about the departure from and rebellion against the principles and precepts of God’s word that we see all around us. “To each his own,” “Live and let live,” “We can’t cram our convictions down other people’s throats,” you’ll hear them say. And yet the claim of sincere love coexisting with complete indifference toward mutiny against someone would be an unthinkable pairing in any other arena of life. If you sincerely love your wife, while her work is being maligned, her home is being ridiculed, or her car is being vandalized, you certainly wouldn’t shrug your shoulders and say, “Everyone’s got a right to their own opinions.” You would naturally feel indignant, repulsed, and stirred to defend the things she has created, promoted, and cared for. Perhaps that is the crux of the disconnect for modern Christians—we simply don’t see how God’s commands relate to the God we love. Maybe the problem is that we fail to see how God has personally and intimately expressed himself in the instructions found in his eternal word. Instead of displaying passivity, those in the past who clearly saw this connection wrote: “Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked who forsake your law,” “My eyes shed streams of tears, because people do not keep your law,” and “I look at the faithless with disgust because they do not keep your commands” (Psalm 119: 53, 136, 158). Of course we must be careful how we manage these kinds of feelings, being sure to never express them in sinful ways, but we also should never expect to truly love God without experiencing them.

For more sermons and devotionals on A Disconnect, please go to the Focal Point Ministries website at www.focalpointministries.org.