Faith

On Sinning Less

/ Lee A. Robinson / Leave a comment

I heard someone recently ask Elon Musk what he thought was the greatest piece of advice ever given him. After some deliberation he concluded that it was “to strive to be less wrong.” This struck me as a different and perhaps helpful way in approaching life. It is futile and frustrating to strive for perfection. However, to simply shave off a little bit of imperfection seems much more likely and encouraging of a goal. I could say, “I am never going to eat anything unhealthy ever again!” Wishful thinking. However, if I say, “If all else fails, I’m just not going to drink soda for a few months.” This is much, much more likely to be realistic and, if achieved, will push my health in a positive direction.

The ultimate goal for every person is to become more and more like Jesus Christ. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8:28-29). We are born in the image of our fallen father Adam and it is the lifelong challenge for us all to be recreated and restored into the image of the perfect son of God. This is aiming at perfection. My thought at this moment though is not to think of it as, “I have to become perfect,” but rather, “Today the goal is just to remove something – even if it’s seemingly small – from what is unlike Christ. Sculptures start with a bland block and chisel away little by little until the desired image appears. 

Here are a few suggestions on how to effectively purge off imperfections of your life…

  1. Remember who God is and who you are. God made you. You did not exist eternally and then at one point create a god to worship. God always existed, then in time he made you, to worship him. God created the game, therefore he gets to set the rules. He embedded the rules in our hearts. We intuitively know what is right from wrong. We didn’t create our conscience, it was factory installed. Who put it there? God. This all means that our obligation is to obey the rules. Obey and live, disobey and die. Submit to God’s authority & rules and be happy, or rebel and be sad. Where is your heart right now? Is it resting under God’s authority? Are you content being a servant of God, or are you still longing to be the master of your own life? Positioning yourself gently under God is the first step to sinning less. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10)
  2. We must admit that we are sinful and that the true enemy is within. We are our own worst enemy. Of course, there is a devil, a corrupt world, difficult people, and severely challenging trials, but if we were like God (if we were holy) we still would not sin because we would be patient, merciful, forgiving and full of faith. I am the problem, not something or someone else. I have this part of me that doesn’t want to admit it. Why are we so quick to judge others, to point out their faults, to excuse our own and to think that we are better than others? Why does it seem so offensive when other people wrong us, but when we do wrong it doesn’t seem to bother us as much? This is our real nature manifesting itself. We are sinners. Admit it. If we don’t we will always be making excuses for ourselves, never actually growing spiritually. We must be quick to turn ourselves in to God. “Woe is me, for I am undone!” (Isaiah 6:5) “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy” (Proverbs 28:13).
  1. Meditate on the consequences of your sins until it hurts. Our sins displease God: our wise creator, benevolent provider, redeemer, savior and friend: the one who left heaven and was crucified for us. There is no one so gentle towards you; so kind, compassionate, merciful, longsuffering, encouraging, thoughtful, committed. Think of how loving God is to you. He only wants your good. He never makes fun of you, hurts you, lies to you, or abandons you. He is by far your best friend. When you choose to sin it breaks God’s heart because he loves you: he knows that in some way your joy and peace is going to be disturbed because of this. Do you see him? He’s not upset or mad, he’s broken. Honor him by doing what pleases him.  
  1. Our sins also displease and hurt others. Every time we sin, no matter what it is, we hurt other people. Sometimes it is directly, by saying or doing something wrong to that person. But think about the other people involved in your life. Those who witness your wrong doings are presented with an unpleasant thing to watch and the weak are encouraged to do the same. When we sin other people are inconvenienced by it. There has to be valuable time spent trying to deal with the sin until it is corrected. Life is not all about you. We know deep down that it is more honorable to put others’ needs and desires in front of our own. Love other people by choosing to sin less. Another thought on this is, every time you sin, you become less equipped to serve other people in the future, so people who could have benefitted from you now will not. “Consider one another” (Hebrews 10:24). 
  1. Sinning now conditions you to sin easier and more in the future. Most people don’t like smoking the first time they try, but many acquire a taste for it. The more you allow yourself to do the same wrong thing over and over and over again, the easier it is going to become and the more you will enjoy it. Drug addicts build up a tolerance to the chemicals. This means that the more their bodies become used to those chemicals, the more chemicals are needed in order to get the same effect. A person who started consistently smoking a couple cigarettes a day will be smoking a whole pack after some time. Do you want to enjoy sin more and need more extreme sins to get the same feeling? God forbid. If not, sin less. Be afraid of where you may end up. Ask any old person and they will tell you that time flies. Time flies. They say about things that happened 40, 50, 60, 70 years ago, “It seems like yesterday.” Don’t wake up tomorrow being deep in sin because you excused your “little sins” today. “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate” (Proverbs 8:13). 
  1. Sin robs you. Do you like being robbed or lied to? Of course not! But when you sin you are freely giving away the most precious treasures you have: your peace, your joy, your freedom! Think about it. When you sin you hide because you’re scared and ashamed. Sin never leads you to joy or confidence. It may feel good for a brief moment, but then you are plagued with worry: you start having to think of ways to not get caught or to get out of the consequences. All of this is dark. Sin is a shrewd liar: promising you freedom but only bringing you into bondage. It’s proven that little children are happier if they play in an area that has clear boundaries. If they have no boundaries and no rules then they get frustrated. Dealing with God’s rules and boundaries are hard to handle sometimes, but playing inside of them is unexpectedly the true path to freedom and joy. “What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:21-23).
  1. You only have one life. If you break your pencil you can always go and get a new one. You can’t just go get a new one if you break you. You only have one opportunity to manage the life that you have. How many days old are you? Today, I am on exactly day 13,600. That’s a lot of days. I will never be able to live any of my past days, ever again. I only had one chance to either make good decisions or bad decisions. The person I am today is the culmination of all of those decisions. The more that I consistently do what is right the better my life will be. The more I abuse my body, soul, mind and spirit, the worse my life is going to become. Also, we have to live with this life for the rest of our lives. You will always carry your past decisions with you. Strive to live in a way that will preserve your life instead of destroying it. You are precious and valuable – there is only one you – so treat yourself as though you are. “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
  1. Have faith. There are times in your life when you desperately wanted something and didn’t get it, but it was ok. For example, there was a night when you really wanted dessert, but your parents said, “No.” It hurt alot and it seemed in the moment like you couldn’t handle it. But the next morning you completely forgot about it never to think about it again. Recognize that temptations only last for a short while. If you overcome it in the moment it will go away. Whatever the sin is, it will try to convince you that you will never be happy without it, but this is a lie. The truth is that you need righteousness and holiness, because without them you truly will not ever be happy. Crave what is good, yield to holiness and it will satisfy you for real. “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him” (James 1:12).
  1. Believe the Gospel: the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. You cannot sin less without Jesus. You have a fundamental problem: you are a sinner, you’ve sinned already and you will want to sin more in the future. Thankfully, Jesus died for all of your sins – past, present and future. Not only did he die for you, but also rose from the dead, for you. This means that he is the way for us to have power over the temptations of sin. Jesus came out of the grave: he can create life out of death. If he can do that, then he has the power and wisdom to be able to make you happy and content without that sin. You do need water and food to survive, but there is no sin that you need to survive or to prosper. You need the miraculous, creative power of Jesus to generate in you what is not there. This miracle happens as we internalize and obey the truth. Jesus said, “The truth shall make you free.” There is nothing in this world you can see or touch that will truly make you happy. Truth, righteousness and love makes you happy, and these are received only through the Gospel. So, confess your sins to God. Ask Jesus to forgive you. Thank God and rejoice in his forgiveness. Next time you are tempted to sin, run to Jesus and ask him to save you and do a miracle in your life. Ask him to give you contentment without having whatever sin it is you’re being tempted with. “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin” (Romans 7:24-25).
  2. Meditate on God’s Word. Fill up your heart and mind with his Word. “Sanctify them through thy truth, thy Word is truth” (John 17:17). God’s Word is alive and powerful. The Word will lead you to a better understanding of God, yourself and the world around you. It will make you wiser to understand good and evil. The more you learn and grow in knowledge and understanding, the more you will be able to identify sin and avoid it. “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalms 119:9-11).

One Reason Many Christians Don’t Vote

/ Lee A. Robinson / Leave a comment

Most Chrsitians in America believe in what is called the Rapture: the idea that at any moment Christians all around the world will be instantaneously “raptured” or “snatched up” into heaven by God. Accompanying this idea is the belief that the world is going to get worse and worse leading up to the rapture. There will be an increasing decline in morality; an almost total abandonment of true religion; chaos worldwide and dramatic political upheaval. Simply put, the current craziness of our world today is the harbinger that Christ is about to return at any moment – certainly within our lifetime, but most likely within the next couple years, weeks or even days. This doctrine I believe has the power to have a profound effect on the worldview of Christians specifically as it pertains to politics and voting. Here’s how:

If the world is certainly going to hell in a handbasket, and if Jesus is literally about to snatch the church away from this world, why would we invest any effort into culture or politics? As it is commonly stated that it is foolish to “polish the brass of a sinking ship.” If Jesus is coming back tomorrow afternoon the list of things to do is very limited: basically shout the gospel from the rooftops until he comes. Not only is there no time for casual activities, but there’s also no time for wholesome, godly, constructive activities such as: reading books, planting a garden, building homes, writing songs, starting schools or businesses or striving to redeem our state and the culture we live in. 

As a new Christian I took the rapture and its corresponding end-times belief system to heart. I think this is one of the main reasons why I used to not vote. Why would I vote? I thought, “It doesn’t ultimately make a difference. Things are going to get worse and worse anyway. This world is not my home. We just need to get the gospel out to the world before Christ returns, etc.” 

Over time I have seen another possibility from the Scriptures, namely Post-millennialism, or A-millennialism. What both of these views share is the belief that the world is actually going to slowly but surely become more and more Christian until ultimately the world as a whole will be discipled, which will culminate at the 2nd coming of Christ. I like the way Doug Wilson describes this: “In other words, the Great Commission will be successful in history.” Not only will all of the people groups of the world as a whole be converted, but also the governmental structures and systems of the world will also be redeemed. The world will become a Christian world. 

Now, how does this viewpoint affect the mind of the Christian as it relates to politics and voting? Well, if we have the promise that Jesus is already the King of all the Kings and that he is the ruler of the nations (Rev. 1); that he is going to save the world (John 3:17); that all authority has been given to Jesus in heaven and on earth already (Mat. 28:18-20); and that he is committed to partnering with the global Church and all Christians to redeem the world: then the time to get involved is now. In this system the harbinger of Christ’s coming is that all enemies are placed under his feet (1 Cor. 15). So, it’s not the ungodly passions of the world that attract the coming of Christ for judgment, but rather the passion of Christians redeeming the world and presenting it to Christ at his coming.   

The point of this article is not to defend in detail the postmillennial view over the premillennial view (maybe a later time some more analysis will be given), but my goal is to show that these different systems do exist in the minds of Christians and they do have an impact on how we view the world and live in it. 

Whether you are premillennial or postmillennial there is no absolute guarantee that Jesus will come back in your lifetime. It has been 2,000 years, it may be another 10,000 before he comes again. Either way there is nothing in Scripture that would negate the possibility that you might experience the greatest revival that has ever happened in history; that your country might become the most Christian nation that has ever existed.

So, pray, then go vote. 

The Scandalous Grace of God

/ Lee A. Robinson / Leave a comment

I want to talk to you a little about the grace, mercy and love of God. 

It’s one thing to give mercy to a guilty person. It’s a whole ‘nother thing to give grace to a guilty person. Grace is by definition un-merited (un-deserved) favor, but God’s grace is not only extended to the righteous, but also to the guilty. This, of course, is completely on the basis of the offering of the perfect life of Christ at his crucifixion on our behalf. But it is still a wonder, and still very hard to accept – even for those who have been regenerated.  

God’s grace is greater than all of your sins. We are more than conquerors through him that loved us. If Adam didn’t sin there would be no mercy, forgiveness, healing, or redemption. 

We know that God doesn’t want us to sin. He never tempts us or lures us into sinning so that we can experience more forgiveness. Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid! 

However, God knows in advance that we will sin. He can see beforehand the decisions we will make that will bring destruction into our lives. Why does he not stop us from making them!? Wouldn’t he stop us if he were truly loving and merciful? 

We may not understand it all, but we can rest assured that his heart is all love and favor. He designs that our failures will turn out for our good. The Father planned that the Son would come to die for our sins before Adam sinned. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us! Your good Father in heaven planned some good to come out of your failures before you made those bad decisions. 

Our worldly, man-centeredness thinks that it is only our successes and moral victories that bring good into our lives and that all of the pain and suffering in our lives we deserve. This is partly true and we should be very careful to not overlook those realities. However, this is not the whole story. God’s love and favor towards us is greater, more powerful, and more determined than our failures. 

God wants us to be at peace. He wants our hearts settled and resting in the full, unreserved, glad acceptance of the heart of God. He wants us to be able to look into his Eyes of kindness and joy towards us, not to look down in shame in his presence. We should be ashamed of our sins. But if we acknowledge them, confess them, turn away from them and turn to him – through Christ – then they are gone! This may at times even be a moment by moment exchange. Are you repentant? Look into His Eyes: behold his love for you. 

Don’t beat yourself up. Don’t think that any form of flagellation will bring you joy or bring pleasure to God. You cannot pay for your sins. It’s offensive to God when you try. The only thing God wants you to bring to the equation of salvation is your own sin and brokenness. Jesus paid it all. Isn’t he good? The Gospel really is good news. Believe it. Do you think the Gospel is actually more amazing news than you realize or less? It is much more unbelievable than we realize.

I pray today that your whole heart and soul would be baptized in the all encompassing, all-enveloping love of God; that tears would well up out of your heart and out your eyes, and that you would be able to say nothing less than, “Thank you Jesus. Thank you God;” that you would be assured deeply in your own heart that God is unbelievably good at all times and in all ways.           

He makes everything beautiful in his time (Eccl. 3:11). 

FLY. (Faithfully Learn to Yield)

/ Lee A. Robinson / Leave a comment

If you could choose to be any animal what would you be? I would want to be an eagle, or any high flying bird. One of the most spectacular images from nature to me is seeing a bird suspended in mid air, unstriving, just coasting in the breeze. Wow. Every time I see this my heart fails a little and I ask God to help me to live just like that: to live in the power and freedom of the Spirit. The bird is not inactive, he’s probably hunting. He’s doing what he needs to do. He doesn’t realize it, but he’s doing an incredible feat, not in his own power, but utilizing the dynamics of the wind. In one sense, the Chrsitian life is supposed to be easy. “My yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Mat. 11:30). This is a great image, because it includes hard work (yoke, burden). The thing is though is that if we are yoked with Jesus he is doing all the work. We’re just along for the ride. 

Why are we so stubborn? Why do we insist that our ideas and desires are so much better than the will of God? Every moment is a simple choice: do what I want in my own strength and wisdom, or do what God wants and rest. 

As much as I would want to fly in open skies, I know that I would be absolutely terrified if I could just all of a sudden lift off and start flying. What if I fall? One reason we do not do God’s will is because it is absolutely terrifying. He calls us out of our comfort zone to do impossible and often implausible feats. But how many times did he say, “Fear not.?” We should be afraid to not do his will. I know with myself I am afraid that I will mistake my own inner voice from the voice of God. I have the desire to jump or go and act, but it’s just me and not God. This is a trouble for me, but one that I hope to become more clear on. So we must learn to discern his voice. If we follow his Word, we follow his power. “For the word of God is quick and powerful.” 

If we are not terrified and doing things that are impossible for us to do then we’re probably not doing the perfect will of God. Something to think about today. 

Get quiet. Pray. Remember the Word. Then fly. 

Jeremiah, Don’t Quit

/ Lee A. Robinson / Leave a comment

For Audio . . .

“O LORD, thou hast deceived me (you have induced or persuaded me – to believe in you and to represent you), and I was deceived: thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed (I am gripped by you and cannot shake away from your Word): I am a laughingstock daily, every one mocketh me. For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the LORD was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. Then I said, I will not make mention of him (of God), nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with holding it in, indeed I could not.” – Jeremiah 20:7-9

Jeremiah is often called “the weeping prophet,” and for good reason. He just happened to be the one charged with the unpleasant task of signaling the final warnings to Israel of impending national destruction. He was there in Jerusalem when it happened and later penned a funeral dirge for the city (the book of Lamentations). All that to say that he was given a very burdensome task. He was a famine-time prophet, not one of an abundant harvest. Early on in Jeremiah’s ministry the LORD told him that no one was going to accept his message (7:27). Imagine being called by God to a ministry and then after you’re settled into it you get assurance – from God – that no one is going to care at all what you have to say. Instead of giving heed to his message and honoring Jeremiah, the people despised him, ridiculed and mocked him on a daily basis and several times tried to kill him. 

Perhaps you may feel like a Jeremiah? You’ve been doing God’s will – maybe not perfectly, but humbly and to the best of your ability – but there seems to be little to no fruit from your labors; it seems like no one is even taking notice of what you’re doing for the Lord; it seems like no one cares (except the people who are unhappy with you – they make it known that they don’t appreciate you). Maybe there are even people coming after you physically or in some other way trying to destroy your life and ministry? It seems like the more you try to do what’s right, the more you are despised for it. You feel like Paul who concluded, “and I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved” (2 Corinthians 12:15). 

Jeremiah was a champion as far as courage goes. He stood in the midst of an arrogant, hardened mob of people and daily mourned out God’s message of condemnation. He was a weeping, hell-fire & brimstone preacher. He had a backbone of steel. However, he was only a man, a man with a tender heart, and his resolve was challenged one day… 

On this occasion Jeremiah gathered some Israelite leaders together. During the meeting he smashed a clay pot on the ground and warned them that the LORD was going to smash the nation of Israel and break them so that they could not be repaired. Afterwards, Jeremiah went up to the temple (the busy public square) and began to proclaim that Yahweh was going to bring evil on the city because of their wickedness. While Jeremiah was preaching, Pashur the priest’s son walked up and delivered to Jeremiah some kind of blow (maybe a punch to the face or gut or something), then locked him in the stocks beside the temple, publicly humiliating him. The next day Pashur released Jeremiah from the stocks, but while he was Jeremiah began again to preach, and told Pashur that all of his friends were going to die by the sword, that he himself would be taken captive to Babylon, and would die and be buried there because he was a false prophet! Wow. So much courage. 

However! The very next lines in the text after this story are the verses at the heading of this chapter. Jeremiah is exhausted. He begins to complain about how difficult his ministry was and then he concludes, “Then I said, I will not make mention of him (of God), nor speak any more in his name” (Jeremiah 20:9). He came to a breaking point (understandably so!) and was entering a major temptation to give up. 

Maybe you are right here, right now. In the past, you had waves of difficulty, but you plunged into them and pretty quickly resurfaced, but this time it feels like you have sunk to the bottom with iron weights tied around you. The circumstances are different. It’s too much. Well, let this passage from Jeremiah remind you that nothing is impossible with God . . . 

Thankfully, on this occasion, Jeremiah did not give in to giving up. His flesh said, “I’m done,” and then his spirit immediately responded, “But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with holding it in, indeed I could not.” What happened?! There was another power working inside of Jeremiah other than his own feeble resolve – the power of God. When Jeremiah became weak, God became strong. When Jeremiah gave up, the LORD raised him up. Jeremiah didn’t quit because he really couldn’t quit. Jeremiah’s calling stretched all the way back into the eons of eternity, it started in the heart of God, and God wasn’t done with him yet. 

Consider Jeremiah’s calling from chapter 1, when he was a young man, “Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations” (Jeremiah 1:4-5). God planted his Word in Jeremiah’s heart from the womb, it was more native to him than his mother’s milk. Being a prophet wasn’t Jeremiah’s idea, it was his destiny. His ministry didn’t arise from his own ambition, therefore it is not going to fall by his own inhibition. His message was God’s, his tears were God’s, his mission was God’s, and God was not done speaking to Israel yet, so therefore Jeremiah was not done speaking yet. 

Remember who you are – Jeremiah – was why you started doing this. If it did arise out of your own ambition, then may you quit right away! But if your calling is real, then it started in the heart of God before eternity, just like Jeremiah’s did. Remember these Scriptures… The apostle Paul knew from whence his calling was. He said the Lord, “…saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works (or, our ambition), but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began” (2 Timothy 1:9).” “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, to reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:” (Galatians 1:15-15). This eternal calling was motivation for Paul to keep going. He was confident about this for other believers as well, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” (Philippians 1:6). 

God didn’t make a mistake when he called you. He knew exactly what he was doing. All of the events that led up to you calling on Christ for salvation. All of the events that led up to you desiring a certain kind of ministry. All the things in your heart to do for God. None of those things were an accident or happenstance. God made you who you are – with your personality, gifts, temperament, etc. You are where you are at this time in history to do his perfect will. Don’t give up because the road is rough, or because you have stumbled or because you don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. Focus on him who called you from the beginning. Remember those circumstances when he first called you – whether it was a scripture, or a song, or a sermon, or a deep time of prayer. God hasn’t changed, you have, but I am confident that if you choose to bring your heart and mind back to the Word you heard at the burning bush that it will burn in your heart like a fire and that you will feel no other option than to pursue it. 

His Word Was In My Heart 

Jeremiah said, “I’m done. I’m not going to even make mention of God anymore.” But again, the very next phrase is, “But his word was in mine heart.” He couldn’t get away from it. It was part of his nature. Earlier on in the book he said, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts (Jeremiah 15:16).” God planted his Word in Jeremiah from the womb, but then in conscious experience Jeremiah had tasted the unique goodness Word of God and had swallowed it whole. It was part of the fabric of his being. Many other saints in the Scripture spoke of this experience of “eating” the word of God. 

When you became a Christian you didn’t just turn over a new leaf or change your mind about something. You were changed at the core of your being. Jesus said that we must eat his flesh and drink his blood. You did this and became partakers of him. You became one with him and he with you. The Spirit of God, his divine nature, came into union with your spirit, thus making you a new creation. No matter where you go from here God is going with you. Not near you, but in you, in all your thoughts and feelings and outlook. You cannot ignore God. He’s so patient and good. He has all the time in the world to bear with you. He is faithful, he promised that he would never leave you nor forsake you. 

You have taken in the Word of God. You’ve studied it, memorized it, lived according to it, rejoiced in it. Remember the unique joy of the Word in your life. 

Something divine, supernatural happens when the believer turns their eyes to heaven in prayer, or becomes calm before the Scriptures. There is a real connection with the eternal One, the Word, and you cannot but help to speak about it. Paul said, “I believed, and therefore have I spoken (2 Corinthians 4:13).” Just like that exceptional restaurant you ate at, or that great show you went to, you want to tell other people about it. Almost every year our family visits Sight and Sound Theaters in Lancaster, PA. In the realm of live theater, especially for Christian based shows, their performances are extraordinarily good, second to none. I recommend to people often to bring their families there because I know the experience is so worth it – even to people who seem like the last people who would be interested in something like a live musical. I believe, therefore I speak about it. You tasted that the LORD was gracious and you spoke about it. Perhaps you spoke about it for a very long time. Return to your first love. You may be in the fog right now. Its ok. Jeremiah was there too. Press through though. Continue to be faithful and then glorify him again. “Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works (Psalms 73:25-28).”

True Success 

One more note on Jeremiah about what true success in life is. God was upfront with Jeremiah, “No one is going to believe you. You are going to warn about coming judgment and call the nation to repent, but they are not going to. The judgment will come” (my summary). So, was Jeremiah a failure? The people weren’t saved. They didn’t give heed to his warnings. Obviously God’s heart is for people to repent and avoid judgment. The Lord is “longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).” He takes no delight in the death of the wicked. However, God also delights in righteousness, judgment and justice. Israel had become corrupt and now it was God’s pleasure to defend his truth and those who were being oppressed. All of this is higher than Jeremiah. What was his part in God’s dealings with this nation, and other nations? His part was simply to be faithful – to be God’s heart and mouth to the people, and Jeremiah did this faithfully. Although Jeremiah’s preaching wasn’t well received, it was nevertheless true. What he said was the faithful Word of God and the prophecies he spoke did come to pass. 

Take the time to think deeply about what you regard as true success. True success is not equivalent to lots of outward signs of people repenting, being converted and mobilized in the work of God. If those things truly happen then it certainly is a sign that God is at work, but God can be at work even through a man or a ministry that appears unsuccessful. For example, God told Moses in the desert to speak to the the rock so water would gush out to quench the thirst of Israel. Moses in his anger disobediently smote the rock, but water still came gushing out. That Rock was Christ and Christ fed his people out there, but God was furious with Moses. He came down hard on him and decided that he would not go in to the promised land. By appearance this was a wonderful success – a day of refreshing and revival – yet it was the worst day of failure for Moses. So we have to be extremely careful about judging on the outward appearance – whether it’s judging other people’s lives or our own lives.

There are very large, exciting churches that are a displeasure to God and there are very small, “unexciting” churches that are choice servants of God. Similarly, there are very large, exciting churches that are a pleasure to God and there are very small, “unexciting” churches that are a displeasure of God. How do we know the difference? We cannot know in an ultimate sense, but we can examine faithfulness to God’s Word or not. Is the Bible being taught in a simple, straightforward manner? Is righteousness being exalted and sin being exposed? Is there church discipline happening? Are people being encouraged to evangelize and be rich in good works? Are the leaders and members humbly walking in love and unity? If so, these are all good signs that God is pleased. The same is true as individuals. If you are striving to conform your life to the Word of God with a humble heart and to do what he calls you to do – he is pleased, whether or not you see the results you are hoping for. You have to get your eyes off of other people. Stop comparing yourself and your works to theirs. Everyone is different, has different gifts and a different calling. If you have been doing what is right with a humble heart then disregard the results. It’s fine to examine the results. Maybe there is a way for you to improve to be more effective in whatever you’re doing, but certainly don’t give up. It got really hard for Jeremiah. It may get hard for you. Let God search your heart. If you have done something wrong, repent of it and make it right. From there though, focus on doing what you know for sure the Lord has called you to do. Leave the results with him and give him time to renew your passion for him and his work. “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self (1 Corinthians 4:2-3).” This is what you have to focus on – simply being faithful to your Lord. 

Jeremiah, don’t give up.

Don’t Quit (Peter)

/ Lee A. Robinson / Leave a comment

For Audio . . . https://youtube.com/live/SLSiVK9SwjY

“Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me? . . . Feed my sheep.” – John 21:17

Peter loved Jesus. He was a genuine follower. Jesus had transformed him from an average, worldly fisherman to a saint and pioneer of the new kingdom God was about to build. However, Peter still had his struggles. He was often stuffing his foot into his mouth. Once he brazenly rebuked Jesus – never a good idea. As bad as that was, it wasn’t the worst. The day he totally blew it was when he denied his Lord. Sweet Jesus: the one who found Peter lost in his sins, who brought him on board the Great Mission as leader of the disciples; the pure, humble teacher healer who had come to Israel, the gentle lamb who was hated, wrongfully arrested, being beaten, about to be crucified. At that very moment, when Peter (of all moments!) should have been there for his friend and Lord, warming his hands by the fire, he repeatedly denied him, with cursing! He had given in to embarrassment, fear and betrayal. He instantly knew it too. All it took was one look from the Lord and he knew he had sinned a great sin. He wept bitterly. Peter was crushed because he had crushed his friend in his greatest hour of need. He also let down his other friends who he was supposed to be leading. What was he good for now?  

How about you, Peter? Every Christian sins, but perhaps in your case it seems like you have sinned a particularly grievous sin in a uniquely corrupt way. Some sins seem tolerable – like perhaps gluttony, or gossip, or materialism – but other sins truly seem to reveal your depraved heart, like adultery, pornography, rage, violence, drunkenness/drug abuse, idolatry or theft: the kinda stuff that many unbelievers don’t even participate in. Maybe you have fallen into a great sin as a genuine follower of Christ. Or, maybe you have given in to “little” sins so repeatedly that they have caused big problems for yourself and those around you. Maybe you feel like God could never forgive you, or, if he would forgive you he certainly would not use you in any special way. Maybe your reputation has been tarnished? Perhaps, like Peter, you may even feel like giving up, out of respect for the Lord, not desiring to dishonor him anymore…

We do seem to get the indication that Peter was giving up. He went back to fishing (John 21:3), back to who he was and what he had done before he met the Lord. He probably thought, “The Lord gave me this wonderful gift and calling, and I let him down. I failed. I guess I’ll default back to who I used to be.” The temptation after failing is to give up: to revert back to who you used to be, and to do what you used to do before you knew Jesus. You begin to think more about secular pursuits than the ministry God has called you to; to make church attendance and involvement less of a priority; to replace personal worship and study of the Word with other hobbies; to replace sacrificial giving to the Gospel with other financial priorities, etc.

How did this turn out for Peter and the others? “They caught nothing” (John 21:3). Remember when Peter met Jesus? That was also a day where he “caught nothing,” meaning a day when not only were his nets empty, but his soul was also empty. His life was void of ultimate meaning and purpose. It’s no accident that as professional fishermen they caught nothing this new day as well. It was on purpose, for the Lord to show him that he wouldn’t find anything genuinely meaningful compared to Christ if he were to go back. 

Don’t go back. Don’t give up. Why? Because you really can’t go back. You are different. You’ve been born from above. You’re a new creation in Christ. You’re sheep not swine. It can’t be the same. You may give up on pursuing Christ and working in the ministry, but whatever idol you put in the place of Christ is not going to satisfy you. You have tasted the heavenly gift and the powers of the world to come. The Holy Spirit lives in you! You’ll never be blessed unless you pick yourself up and begin to pursue Christ afresh! 

He’s Not Done With You

Thankfully, Jesus was not done with Peter. In fact, the glory that Peter had experienced over the first 3 years with Jesus was nothing compared to the glory that Peter was yet to experience with his Lord for many years to come! 

Jesus came to Peter in the sweetest way. As they were fishing, catching nothing, Jesus appeared on the shore, beckoned to them to throw the net on the other side causing them to enclose a massive catch of fish. This is reminiscent of when Jesus first revealed his desire to call these disciples – perhaps symbolic of re-calling them again to discipleship. Jesus was already on the shore making a meal. As they approached him there was the sweet smell of baked bread and fish being fried over the fire. Jesus greeted them with an invitation to “come and dine” with him. This initial meeting with Jesus could have been much different, right? Jesus could have hunted Peter down and wrathfully rebuked him, or punished him in some way. Think about it… or, perhaps worse: Jesus could have just given up on Peter and never returned to him or communicated with him again and left him to wallow in his regrets. But no. There is no one like Jesus. Think about the worst thing you have ever done to someone. The next time you saw them face to face were they preparing you a feast, desiring to share a meal with you? If so, praise the Lord for that person, but most likely that did not happen. 

The reality is, that no matter what you have done – to the Lord or anyone else – Jesus is waiting for you to come to him. Not to come crawling over broken glass to be punished forever for what you have done. He wants to fellowship with you. He wants t oconfirm his love for you and his commitment to work his plan out in your life. He knows your broken heart, regret, and your shame for what you have done. Psalm 34:18 says, “The Lord is nigh to the broken hearted,” and Psalm 51: 17 says, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” It’s hard to accept how gentle and forgiving his heart is towards us. We beat ourselves up over our sins. Other people treat us very harshly over our sins, but Jesus doesn’t do this. He was beaten on our behalf; mocked, shamed, killed. He wants it in the past and he is looking to the future. 

After seeing Jesus present himself to Peter in this reconciling manner, we get to the heart of the whole situation. As the finish the meal Jesus asks Peter a question, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?” Wow. What a question! He could have said, “Simon, why should I forgive you,’ or ‘Why should I let you follow me?” But, no, he’s looking forward, not backward. Remember: Jesus knows everything. This question was not for Jesus, but for Peter. Deep down Peter knew that he loved the Lord, but up to this moment, in his won mind, I’m sure that his internal dialogue was all self condemnation. “How can you say you love the Lord when you sided with his murderers?” Jesus was pulling from deeper down in the well of Peter’s soul. He was leading Peter to recall his true self, which was genuine love for Jesus.

Just because you have sinned doesn’t mean that you don’t love Jesus. “A just man falleth seven times, but he rises up again” (Proverbs 24:17). Righteous men fall. Christians sin. Our love is not determined by whether or not we sin, but what we do with our sins. Unbelievers make excuses for their sins, the care less whether they have offended the Lord or not, they certainly don’t confess their sins and repent of them, and they don’t fear God’s chastening in their lives. But if you are a genuine believer, you do all of those things. You are guilty over your sins, you’ve probably already confessed them, your striving to overcome them, and it tears you up that you have offended your Lord and hurt other people. This means that you love Jesus!!!

Do you remember how you first came to Jesus, who you were when he called you? He didn’t call you because you were righteous. He called you because he had a plan for you. Thankfully, his plans have not changed: Romans 11:29, “For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.” So, if you love him, feed his sheep – continue striving to be what he has called you to be and continue doing what he has called you to do. What a wonderful Savior we have – he wastes nothing and recycles every fault and weakness of his followers! You do not dishonor Jesus by serving him after you sin. He didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. You do honor him by exemplifying the Gospel: continually repenting of your sins and coming to Christ alone for forgiveness. 

  One last note on Peter: at the end of their conversation Jesus revealed to Peter that not only would he persevere in his faith, but that he would also in the end give his life for Jesus, which, according to tradition Peter requested to be crucified upside down because he didn’t feel worthy to die in the same manner as his Savior. In response, Peter asked what was going to happen with John. Jesus didn’t answer his question but rather said to him, “follow me.” This is interesting to me. Jesus was lazer focused on his relationship with Peter, having a most intimate conversation with him, and what is Peter doing? He’s wondering about John and what is going to happen with him. Don’t be so focused on other people – what they are doing or what they think about you, or how you appear to other people. Focus on your relationship with Christ, what he thinks about you, and what he has called you to do. The path for every Christian looks different. Embrace yours. 

“Father, I pray for whoever may be reading this, that they would have a deep abiding peace and relief that you have forgiven them of their sins and that you still desire to use them in special ways. Help them to see that your power and glory is easier seen through broken vessels than “whole” ones. Reinvigorate a lasting desire for the things of heaven than the things of the earth. Grant them wisdom, power, grace and faith to fully overcome and break free from their besetting sins, and to have full liberty in heart and mind as they serve you. Amen.”