Be in the Light

Over the next three days let’s explore three aspects of this “great salvation” we’ve been exploring in this series, in the light of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. The first great salvation truth is: 

We are saved from the darkness of confusion, and enter into the light of a new commission.

 

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. ² So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”
³ So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. ⁴ Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. ⁵ He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. ⁶ Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, ⁷ as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. ⁸ Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. ⁹ (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) ¹⁰ Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
¹¹ Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb ¹² and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
¹³ They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”
“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” ¹⁴ At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
¹⁵ He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”
¹⁶ Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).
¹⁷ Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
¹⁸ Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. John 20:1-18

Be wise today and always - step in to the light of Christ and leave the darkness behind.

Ask and Listen

Do you admit your need God’s guidance to make any decision?  None of us can see the future. We don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow—much less next year, or 10 years from now. The Bible says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.” (Proverbs 14:12) On the other hand, God knows everything that has happened to you, that is happening to you and that will happen to you. In order to keep our lives heading in the direction God desires, we have to go to him for guidance in making decisions. We must ask and listen for the answer.

Ask in faith for direction. James 1:5-6 says, “If you want to know what God really wants you to do, ask Him, and he will gladly tell you, for He is always ready to give a bountiful supply of wisdom to all who ask Him; but … if you don’t ask in faith, don’t expect the Lord to give you any solid answer.” (TLB)

God is willing and anxious to give you wisdom in all aspects of your life. But you need to expect that he will answer your prayer for guidance. Often, we ask God for guidance, but then we walk away without waiting for his answer. When we think our decisions depend totally on us, it only increases the stress level. When we ask God for guidance, we need to then begin looking for his answer. He will provide it.

Listen for God’s response. God designed you to hear His voice. Job 33:14 says, “For God does speak—now one way, now another though man may not perceive it.” God speaks to us through His Word, His people, circumstances and impressions—among other ways. You need to be sure you’re listening to those “channels”, so you can hear what the Lord is saying to you.

 

Be wise today and always - follow God's Word for your best life.

Trust in God

Do you trust God even when you don’t understand? 

 

Remember what Solomon tells us in Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."

 

 This is another reminder that you can’t figure everything out on your own. You’re a child of God—not God, and only the Lord can tell you the best direction to go when you are making life decisions.

God doesn’t want you to be confused, and he will never lead you into confusion. If you’re having trouble figuring out which way to go, get back to the basics and trust that God will give you the guidance you ask for.

What areas of your life do you need to admit your need for God’s guidance in making a decision?

Be wise today and always - trust in God in all matters of your life.

Live Like Your Saved

Believers must have your heart and minds focused on doing things God’s way, and not swaying back and forth between it and the world. Being indecisive is a form of double-mindedness and James says that leads to instability

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. ⁶ But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. - James 1:2-8

I think part of the problem is we complicate decisions, often factoring in information that isn’t really important—relying on our own wisdom while failing to specifically seek God and his wisdom.

 

Be wise today and always - live like you are saved.

Plugged In

The Holy Spirit is our ultimate power source. Are you plugged in? As you know you can have the most expensive electronic device in the world, but if it's not plugged to an outlook it's not going to work. The same is true in our Christian walk. If we are not in God's will and power then life is not going to work.

Two prongs of the plug is the Spirit's ability to pray for our needs even when we can't voice them, and the other is to keep us in harmony with God's will for our lives. On some plugs there is a third prong, and that is for grounding. The same must be true in our life that we stay grounded - in the Word of God!

Remember those three prong plugs are for the appliances that need more power and can do more. May the same be said of us. Amen?

Be wise today and always - stay plugged in to the Holy Spirit.

Promises

People always want to know a secret, but with God there are no secrets only promises! Let's continue to look at Romans 8 today, and God's promises to believers.

²² We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. ²³ Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. ²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. ²⁶ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. ²⁷ And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.  

Believers have a new prayer guide:

A. His identity - the Holy Spirit
B. His intercession - prays for us when we don’t know what we should pray for
C. His intensity -The Holy Spirit is the power source we need to be plugged in to. Look at:
1. How He prays - in our groaning
2. What He prays - for us to be in harmony with God’s will

 

Believers have a new confidence.

Romans 8:28 - And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

What is God calling you to do today?

Be wise today and always - live your life God's way.

New Hope

The apostle Paul wanted everyone to know about the hope God gives to the world. Let’s take a closer look at Romans 8:18-21, and what it is saying to believers.

¹⁸ I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. ¹⁹ For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

Believers have a new hope:

  

All Christians – all those who believe in Jesus for salvation

1. Present sufferings – We will experience pain and grief
2. Future glory - today’s grief is nothing compared to His coming glory. We are to wait patiently and confidently.

 

All of Creation - natural things made by God - Genesis 1:1 - God made everything!
1. Nature is the victim - the natural world of plants and animals groan in pain because of the fallen world.
2. Nature is the victor - nature will be liberated from decay and death to freedom and fruitfulness.

Be wise today and always - have hope!