RESPONDING TO GOD’S TRUTH

“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’ They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ ‘But what about you?’ Jesus asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’”  (Matthew 16:13-16 NIV)

What if Peter had not been receptive to the truth?  What if no one had been willing to acknowledge Jesus as the Son of God?  For two years the trouble had not lain with the transmission of the Word of God, but with the reception of the instruments.  For two years Jesus had not forced His identity on the apostles.  He was not about to change His methods.  They must respond.  They must be open to God.  They must find God in Jesus.

When they do -- when we do -- meaning is found to the drama of the New Testament.  Unless they do -- unless we do -- that New Testament remains a mere collection of interesting stories and sayings.  But when we acknowledge God in Christ, when we know God sent His only Son into the world, then we find the key which unlocks all mysteries, to God and Jesus, to life and eternity.  Revelation is vital, but Jesus commends response to God's truth, and openness to that revelation.

“Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven." (Matthew 16:17 NIV) 

-- H.S. Vigeveno in “Jesus the Revolutionary” 

#5913

SALVATION HISTORY

“I long for Your salvation, O Lord, and Your law is my delight. Let my soul live, and it shall praise You; and let Your judgments help me. I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Your servant, for I do not forget Your commandments.”  (Psalm 119:174-176 NKJV)

The Bible is the record of those divine breakthroughs into human history. “God’s search for man,” it is described, rather than being our search for God. And its accents are considered a key for discerning the continuing divine activity in the present. Unlike most religious literature, it is not chiefly a collection of noble sayings, but a drumroll of events, people, struggles, great and terrible; of frailty, doubts, and heroism; of the ultimate might of right. Scripture isn’t meant as scientific exposition or as mere history. It is “salvation history,” a universal spiritual drama of an overarching compassion and concern for human integrity, of an unwavering love [on God’s part] that seeks an answering affirmation [on our part]. It is a vivid, sometimes parabolic account of God’s persistent, unrelenting quest for us and our stumbling, often faithless response. 

-- George Cornell in “The Untamed God”

#5643

THE RESPONSE TO GRACE

“From then on Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.’”  (Matthew 4:17 NLT)

The more deeply one enters into the experience of the sacred the more one is aware of one’s own personal sin and the destructive forces in society. The fact that one is alive to what is possible for humankind sharpens one’s sense that we are fallen people. The awareness of sin is the inevitable consequence of having met grace... This grace-judgment dynamic reveals that the center of Christian life is repentance. This does not mean that the distinguishing mark of the Christian is breast-beating. Feeling sorry, acknowledging guilt, and prolonging regret may be components of the human condition, but they are not what Jesus means by repentance. Repentance is the response to grace that overcomes the past and opens out to a new future. Repentance distinguishes Christian life as one of struggle and conversion and pervades it, not with remorse, but with hope. The message of Jesus is not “Repent,” but “Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” 

-- Adapted from John Shea in “A Star at Its Rising”

#5546

THE WISE MEN’S RESPONSE

“And going into the house, [the wise men] saw the child with Mary His mother, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered Him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.”  (Matthew 2:11 ESV)

The message of the season is not, "Let it snow" or even, "Let us shop." The real message of Christmas is, "Let us worship." That is what the wise men came to do. And that is what we should be doing as well. 

-- Greg Laurie

#5505

THE SHEPHERDS’ RESPONSE

“So the [shepherds] hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the Baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen Him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this Child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”  (Luke 2:16-20 NIV)

The greatest brightness of the whole birth narrative comes in the shepherds' response. You see, had the shepherds only heard the message and gone back to sheep tending, we would think they were foolish. Had they found a baby and then gone home with a satisfied knowledge, we might consider them extremely fortunate to have been in the right place at the right time. Yet, what they did was greater. They proceeded to tell everyone around them, everywhere they could go, what they had heard and seen; and then they praised and glorified God for it all. The shepherds took on the role of the angels themselves, new messengers of salvation and good news; and in doing so, they extended the light of God's loving Word far beyond where it might have gone otherwise that night. The light of this news, this new day, was carried far and wide; and all who heard it were amazed and still are.

As we hear the shepherds' story, we find our task as the followers of Christ this Christmas. That is, we are called to bear the light of the news of the coming of Christ to this world, to carry the brightness of this gospel… The extent of this light is only limited by our self-limitation and unwillingness to share the message, or lack of faith in believing that the message is that profound, that world-changing… Who do you know who needs the light of Christ's love offered to him or her? 

-- Randy Cross in “Born to Save: An Advent Study Based on the Revised Common Lectionary”

#5504

OUR RESPONSE MATTERS

“We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”  (Romans 8:28 NIV)

We cannot always or even often control events, but we can control how we respond to them. When things happen which dismay or appall, we ought to look to God for His meaning, remembering that He is not taken by surprise not can His purposes be thwarted in the end. What God looks for is those who will worship Him in the midst of every circumstance. Our outlook of inquiring trust glorifies Him. This is our first responsibility: to glorify God. In the face of life’s worst reversals and tragedies, the response of a faithful Christian is praise -- not for the wrong itself, certainly, but for who God is and for the ultimate assurance that there is a pattern being worked out for those who love Him. 

-- Elisabeth Elliot in “A Lamp for My Feet” 

(Elisabeth Elliot, 1926 – 2015, was a Christian author and speaker. Her first husband, Jim Elliot, was killed in 1956 while attempting to make missionary contact with the Auca people (now known as Huaorani) of eastern Ecuador. She later spent two years as a missionary to the tribe members who killed her husband. Returning to the United States after many years in South America, she became widely known as the author of over twenty books and as a speaker. Elliot toured the country, sharing her knowledge and experience, well into her seventies.)

#5341

THE CRITICAL DIFFERENCE

At the conclusion of His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told a quick story about two housebuilders. The one famously built his house on a foundation of rock, and the other infamously built his house on a foundation of sand. Terrible storms hit both houses. The former survived the assault, while the latter fell.

Two builders represented two different kinds of people. And the critical difference between them, according to Jesus, was in how they responded. “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock, “ while, on the other hand, “everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.” (Matthew 7:24-27) The two people heard the same words, you see. The monumental difference in what became of them lay in how they responded to those words…

Graciously, the Lord initiates with us, and it is our calling to respond appropriately to what He is saying and doing. The question is what that response looks like for you and me today. 

-- David Kalas in “Reunion: A Bible Study for Churches Getting Back Together”

#5143

GENUINE GESTURES OF FAITH

“It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that He exists and that He cares enough to respond to those who seek Him.”  (Hebrews 11:6 The Message)

Faith is the belief that God is real and that God is good.  Faith is not a mystical experience or a midnight vision or a voice in the forest… it is a choice to believe that the One who made it all hasn't left it all and that He still sends light into shadows and responds to gestures of faith…

Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want.  Faith is the belief that God will do what is right. 

God’s economy is upside down (or right side up and ours is upside down!). God says that the more hopeless your circumstances, the more likely your salvation. The greater your cares, the more genuine your prayers. The darker the room, the greater the need for light. God’s help is near and always available, but it is only given to those who seek it. Nothing results from apathy…

Do something that reveals your faith.  For faith with no effort is no faith at all.  God will respond.  He has never rejected a genuine gesture of faith.  Never. 

-- Max Lucado in “Life Lessons with Max Lucado: Book of Hebrews”

#4974

THE CHRISTMAS GIFT

A gift is something that is given to another voluntarily and for which no payment is received or expected. It is a way we have of saying to another, “I love you” or “I think you are wonderful.”

God’s ultimate gift to us is the giving of His Son, Jesus Christ. We remember that gift in one of the best know verses of the Bible, John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” When we remember the giving of that great gift, it is appropriate that we should respond to God’s love with expressions of our love. But how can we respond to God’s love? Jesus taught that love of God and love of neighbor go hand in hand. (Cf. Matthew 22:37-40, John 13:34-35, 1 John 4:19). The giving of gifts to those we love is just one way to show that we have learned of love from Jesus. 

-- Kenneth A. Mortonson in “The Advent Instructor: Reflections on Christmas Symbolism”


#4479

GIVING IN RESPONSE TO GOD

“Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”  (Ephesians 5:1-2 NIV)

Our God is a giving God. He is a God of abundance, and He loves to give. In Christ He sacrificed willingly on the cross and then invited us into fullness of life. As His children, we are called to imitate Him. Our generosity in giving is a demonstration of God’s character and a response to what He has done for us.

As we become more and more who God has called us to be – more like Him – through the process of sanctification, we reflect God more and more. We become more loving, more gracious, and, yes, more giving. Because God is generous, we are also called to be generous. Generosity not only points others to God, it is an appropriate response to what God has done for us. 

-- from an article entitled "Why is giving so emphasized in the Christian faith?" on the gotquestions.org website


#4467