Jimmy D. Brown, Author at Finish Line Faith

Are You Weak? Jesus Offers Power.

Feb 2, 2021

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. – 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

Suffering is either soon to be knocking at your door, or it has already knocked down your door and has invaded your life. It is inevitable; you will suffer in this world. And when you do, you will likely feel powerless to do anything about it. The mountain will seem too high. The situation will seem too overwhelming. The outlook will seem too bleak. The task will seem too great. In times of weakness like these, we need to remember this: if we trust in our own power, our problems will always seem big. If we trust in the power of Jesus, our problems will always seem small. It would be plausible to lose hope and lose heart when facing things that are too much for us to handle if we were forced to handle them alone. But Jesus has said He will never leave us alone, always supplying the grace we need for the needs we face. He does not promise us a plan to escape our hardships; He promises a power to endure them. A life of power is one that is stripped of self-reliance and replaced with Savior-reliance. A life of power is one in which we acknowledge our need for His help, ask for His help, anticipate His help, accept His help in whatever way He chooses to send it, and act by His help. A life of power is one in which we boast in our weaknesses, gladly enduring them (instead of grumbling about them) because it makes Jesus look good in our lives as His divine strength works in us, for us and through us. With His power, no suffering or struggle or setback or situation can ever overwhelm us as we trust in in the sufficiency of His grace. Therefore, let us abandon trust in ourselves and instead trust in our Savior to empower our next steps into the unexpected, uncertain and unpleasant difficulties of this broken world. Because … With faith all things are not made easy. With faith all things are made possible.

Are You Doubtful? Jesus Offers Hope.

Feb 1, 2021

Having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints. – Ephesians 1:18

You don’t have to cross your fingers. You don’t have to be cautiously optimistic. You don’t have to wonder in uncertainty. You don’t have to have a glass half full disposition. You don’t have to fear the worst. You can have a real hope in this broken world with broken people even when life doesn’t work out the way you thought it would because you are certain it will work out for good. That’s what real hope is: a confident expectation of something good in your future. And it comes from Jesus alone when you trust in Him. This hope is based on the character, authority and power of Jesus to deliver all that He has promised to His followers in this life and, more importantly, in the life to come. When He says He will be with us in time of need, give to us all that we need, and come for us to put an end to our needs, we can be assured that He is able and faithful to do as He says today, tomorrow and forever. To the degree we are sure in this, we will be filled up with peace and assurance when we’re running low, renewed and refreshed with a spiritual energy when we’re running out, helped through difficulty and disappointment when we’re running down, and kept steadfast and confident when we feel like running away. This is our hope in Jesus: the best is yet to come. Let us believe it, expect it, anticipate it and await it to come true because Jesus said it’s true. Let us watch for the daily doses of His grace to appear when we need them. And let us regard the eternal pleasure of heaven with Him as something wonderful on the calendar that is certain to come at the appointed time. Because it is. Because it will.

Are You Stuck? Jesus Offers Change.

Jan 29, 2021

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. – 2 Corinthians 5:17

Every human being knows what it feels like to be stuck. Stuck in repeated mistakes. Stuck in character flaws. Stuck in unfulfilling rhythms. Stuck in bad habits. Stuck in inner unrest. Stuck in habitual sin. That last one is the real problem: Sin has made it impossible for us to be who God created us to be. That’s why we get stuck. And turning to external moral codes of conduct, white-knuckle behavior modification, religious checklists and self-help practices is never going to lead to the kind of real and lasting changes in us that we long for. But God in the richness of His mercy and grace sent Jesus to get us un-stuck and offer real transformation for those who put their trust in Him as we become more like Him. The biblical concept of “believe” means that very thing: it is to be transformed by the reality of someone or something. When how we think and feel about Jesus changes, so do we. We don’t cause this transformation ourselves; God does. He initiates it. He motivates it. He cultivates it. He consummates it. This is the reality of becoming new in Christ: a change in our standing with God, a change in what makes us happy, a change in what controls our lives, and a change in what our eternity will be like. What then must we do? We must fill our minds with the promises, truths, commands, reminders and good news of the Bible and let them be the loudest voice in our lives. Change will take place when we believe more fully in more areas of our lives the things that are found there. Take heart today, you can change. If you are trusting in Jesus, God will never give up on changing you from who you used to be into who you were made to be.

Are You Insecure? Jesus Offers Significance.

Jan 28, 2021

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. – Galatians 2:20

Striving for a sense of self-worth through your own personal performance will create more unhappiness in you than you ever dreamed possible. Why? Because you will face disappointment in yourself when you don’t perform well, discontentment when others don’t applaud your performance, and depression when you don’t get to perform at all. The good news is that’s not where your value comes from at all. You have incalculable worth based on what God did, not on what you do. You are so treasured by God that even when you were at your absolute worst (separated from Him in your sinfulness), He loved you enough to send His Son to die for you. This is the jaw-dropping reality of just how much you are worth. Don’t you see? Jesus gave Himself for you. Your worth is not based on your performance; it is based on His. He loves you. Your worth is not based on who you are; it is based on Whose you are. He lives in you. Your worth is not based on your making a name for yourself; it is based on the Name of the One who lives inside you. If you belong to Jesus, the old you is dead, and the life you now live carries a value that does not come from any personal achievement, accolade or attribute. You are priceless because of God’s unrelenting love for you in Christ. He doesn’t love you because you’re beautiful, witty, popular, fit, wealthy, fast, intelligent, kind, influential or talented; He loves you because you’re His. Secure in this, you can give your best effort to be the person you were made to be and do the things you were made to do, knowing that you don’t do any of it to prove your worth. Jesus already did that.

Are You Confused? Jesus Offers Guidance.

Jan 27, 2021

In whom (Christ) are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. – Colossians 2:3

Life is a series of big and small decisions that, in varying degrees, impact and influence everything that happens after each one is made. To be human is to lack adequate wisdom to rightly handle all that we will experience in our journey which keeps us always one misstep away from getting off course in our planning, finances, relationships, pursuits, emotions, spiritual walk, time usage and decision-making of all shapes and sizes. The uncertainties, complexities and perplexities that we face were never meant for us to handle alone, but rather are intended to redirect and reorient us to Jesus and greater dependency on Him to guide us as He knows best. On what He says, we must: Base our faith. Pin our hopes. Entrust our futures. Find our answers. Solve our problems. Take our steps. Build our lives. It is the solid rock on which Christians stand; all other ground is sinking sand. (Matthew 7:24-27) The decision we need to make, the step we need to take, the future that is at stake are too important to risk trying to take our best guess and our best shot at getting it right. The good news is, we don’t have to. There is a treasure trove of wisdom and knowledge that we have access to in Jesus, and all we must do is humbly ask for it in faith (James 1:5). But we will not hear these life-giving, joy-producing, hope-inspiring, course-correcting, God-honoring, truth-telling words if we neglect to read the Bible and pray, for this is where asking and receiving takes place. So, before you make a move, your first move is always to ask Jesus for your next move. When you do, you will hear His sweet voice of truth guiding you into what is good for you.

Are You Struggling? Jesus Offers Deliverance.

Jan 26, 2021

For 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. Let 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 4:15-16

There is a universal, everyday occurrence that is impossible for you and I to avoid: we will be tempted. Sometimes this will strike suddenly, and other times it will swell slowly, but there is never any time we are insulated from its inevitable presence in our lives. Sin always beckons, offering a persuading argument and an appealing promise for what we will gain if we give in and give up. Though it may deliver a temporary sweet taste, the lasting bitterness of sin will always soon follow. Still, it proves to be such a powerful adversary with such a powerful attraction that it is irresistible to us and impossible for us to withstand on our own. But praise God we are not alone! God sent Jesus Who “in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” We can go confidently to Him for help when we are tempted because Jesus understands our struggles, Jesus atoned for our sin, and Jesus offers us merciful and gracious deliverance in our time of need. For those who are trusting in Him, there is pardon for sin so that we bear it no more, and there is power available so we bow to it no more. Today there will be a tug-of-war for control of your thoughts, feelings, motives, attitudes, words and actions, pulling you in the opposing directions of what sin entices you into and what God invites you into. The enemy wants you to give in to a life of little or no thought of God and His ways, and give up on all the wonderful things that God has for you in Jesus. But you do not have to give in or give up! Look to Jesus for help and look for His help to arrive as a way to leave the temptation, the power to stay and say “no” to the temptation, a divine change in circumstances that removes the temptation, the arrival of someone He sends to help you through the temptation, and / or a promise of something worth waiting for that is better than the temptation. Never lose sight of this truth: You are never helpless against temptation as long as there is a throne of grace for you to run to for help.

Are You Hurting? Jesus Offers Comfort.

Jan 25, 2021

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. – 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

To be human is to be a sufferer. It is unpleasant. It is unbiased. It is unavoidable. We will all experience hurts of varying intensities, frequencies and durations while we are in this broken world filled with broken people. While suffering is at times a result of our own sinfulness, it is also at times through no wrong-doing on our part that someone or something does us wrong. When something hurtful or hard is happening in our lives that we cannot escape or eliminate, we often turn to something in order to find comfort and cheer. Though binge-eating, day-dreaming, relaxing and other ways of coping might offer some temporary numbing when times are tough, we need something better. Because sooner or later, that numbness wears off, and the struggle is still there. What God offers us in Jesus is a real comfort that doesn’t wear off. It will out-last and out-match whatever hardships we must endure in our mission for Him, our journey with Him and our homecoming to Him. It’s an encouraging, strengthening, sustaining help from the very presence of God that doesn’t show up once the trial is over, but rather joins us right in the middle of it. Jesus comforts us because He knows what it’s like to endure affliction. He entered into our pain and brokenness by coming to earth to suffer for us and secure for us every comfort from God for our suffering both now and forever. But we will only experience this comfort that encourages us when we are teary and strengthens us when we are weary if we will stop looking to other helpers to do for us what only the Helper can do. Are you hurting today? Trust in and turn to Jesus for comfort. He will not walk away from you, but will walk with you to help you press on this very hour, and He will stay with you and get you through every test, trial and tribulation until He gets you home. Rest in the assurance of this truth: Jesus is for you now, and He will come for you soon.

Are You Discouraged? Jesus Offers Joy.

Jan 22, 2021

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. – John 15:9-11

God wants us to be happy. He’s the Author of happiness. It was His idea. But if that’s true, then why are so many people discouraged and downtrodden… and so often un-happy? The problem is what we listen to that drives what we look to in order to find that happiness. The message of the world is to “do what you want to do and be who you want to be” and this will make you happy, and it plays on repeat in advertising, conversations, entertainment, politics, news, books, talk shows and in our heads all throughout the week. Only… It. Does. Not. Work. The reason we can’t stay happy very long is because we often look to something that was never intended to keep us happy very long. God alone knows how best to deliver enduring happiness, and He delivered it through Jesus. Jesus invites us into the same kind of intimate relationship that He has with our Heavenly Father, one that overflows with love and joy. He tells us to keep His commandments, not to rob us of happiness, but rather to remove the things that are in the way of our full and lasting happiness. His message is “do what I want you to do and be who I made you to be” and in doing so, we will experience His joy, and our joy will be full no matter what else is happening in our lives. Do you want to know how to be happy both now and forever? Receive, believe, trust and obey the words of Jesus. To the degree that we listen to and linger over and live out the encouraging, correcting, instructing, guiding, cheering, uplifting, promising, God-glorifying words of the Bible, we will experience the same joy that is shared by Jesus and our Heavenly Father. Today, and every day, set your eyes, heart and mind on the glorious gospel truths of Scripture. It’s the only message that will truly deliver the happiness that it promises.

Are You Disappointed? Jesus Offers Satisfaction.

Jan 21, 2021

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. – John 6:35

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Most human beings struggle with seesawing their way through life going back and forth between being pleased and displeased with the things of this world. At one moment we are far too easily pleased, settling for appetizers instead of the feast that God offers us, and at the next moment never pleased at all because the appetizers only whet our appetites for the feast. As we settle in and settle for seeking satisfaction in relationships, achievements, possessions and experiences, we find that there is an ongoing craving for something more, something different, something better that always leaves our souls hungry and thirsty. We find that “If only I had or did or could” looms ever in front of us, out of reach but not out of sight. The truth is, we will never be satisfied until we know God, and that’s what Jesus makes possible. He came into the world to be the “bread” that ends our spiritual hungering and longing. He doesn’t offer to get us that new job, new spouse, new vacation, new baby, new home, new personal best, new recognition, new bill of health, or new thing that we think will make us happy. He offers to give us Himself so we can actually and finally and ultimately be happy as we experience all that God has for us in Him. Jesus isn’t a means to an end; He is the end. He’s the source of enjoyment and nourishment. He’s the main meal. He’s the feast that all of the appetizers of this world point us towards. And you and I will be hungry and thirsty no more when we come to Him in faith and believe He will deliver for us all that He has promised to us, both now and for all eternity. The more we pursue Him, the more precious He will become to us, and the more He will prove to us that He is everything we’ve been looking for all along … and so much more. We’ll be more satisfied with what we have in life and less dissatisfied with what we don’t have in life when we are fully satisfied with all we have in Jesus.

Are You Troubled? Jesus Offers Peace.

Jan 20, 2021

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. – John 14:27

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No matter how tough we are, how removed we are, how indifferent we are, or how protected we are, there are real threats to our peace of heart and peace of mind. In this world, we will have troubles. But Jesus entered into our world of troubles so we could have our peace restored, both now and forever. That’s what He offers us … peace with God made possible because He died in our place, and the peace of God made possible because we believe in Him. In fact, to the degree that we trust that He rules and reigns over our lives for good, we will experience a depth of heavenly peace that comes when there is no earthly reason for it. Trust in the heart unseats and undoes trouble in the heart no matter what is happening in our lives, for Christian peace does not come instead of problems, but in spite of them. That doesn’t mean that we should be unconcerned or naïve about the realities of the brokenness around us, but rather we should face them with absolute confidence in the presence, promises and provision of Jesus. He has overcome the world, is with us as we live in the world, provides all that we need in this world, and promises to come back to deliver us from this world! So, today when you get that call, diagnosis, news, task, opposition, stress, roadblock or thing that troubles you, remember Who Jesus is to you and what Jesus promises to you. If you trust that He’s powerful enough, loving enough and wise enough to handle sin, death and Satan to give you eternal life, then trust that He can also help you through all the issues you face in everyday life until He gets you home. As you do, nothing will be able to take His peace away from you.

Christmas Is The Gospel

Dec 25, 2020

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. – John 3:16

We will often fail to live out our faith in Jesus and stumble in our walk with Him. We won’t always love Him most, love others best, and love rightly all the rest. Instead, we will make ourselves the center of our lives, make self-serving decisions as we plan our lives, and ultimately make a mess out of our lives. We are prone to wander. So, what happens when we don’t do all of the things that Christ-followers ought to do? That. Is. What. Christmas. Is. All. About. Christmas is about a gift of God’s Son, a gift of forgiveness, a gift of eternal life. Christmas is about grace. When you and I do things we shouldn’t do or fail to do things we should do, there is grace for us. Pardon for when we have said “yes” to sins committed and power to say “no” to sins not yet committed. Because of grace we don’t give up in our fight against sin and for holy lives; by grace we get up and fight on! Jesus helps those who are trusting in Him to live God-glorifying, joy-producing, onward-marching lives, and when we fail to do so, He makes sure we don’t stay down for long. He picks us up. He cleans us off. He sends us on. Today, let us not linger in our sin and shame and setback, but repent and rejoice in Jesus and restart moving forward in loving obedience by faith as the joyous strains of this song plays on repeat in our hearts: “Grace, grace, God’s grace, grace that will pardon and cleanse within; grace, grace, God’s grace, grace that is greater than all our sin.”

Glory To God In The Highest

Dec 24, 2020

And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. – Luke 2:20

The point of creation and Christmas and the coming new creation is that God is glorious, and He desires to be seen as such by a joy-filled, peace-filled, hope-filled people that He has made and redeemed for Himself. The Scripture stories of Christmas are ripe with this: Good news of… Great joy. Peace on earth. Light shining in darkness. Salvation from sin. A forever kingdom. Everlasting life. A Savior. A Reigning King. A Son of the Most High. Christ the Lord. Immanuel. Glory to God in the highest. Christmas shines brightly with God’s ultimate purpose: that He be honored in us and we be happy in Him. While we can taste this in great measure now, we will feast on its fullness when King Jesus returns and everything that dishonors God and everything that makes us unhappy will be removed. For now, we do as the shepherds did upon experiencing the first coming of Jesus: They returned. The shepherds went back to their everyday lives to tend the flock and glorified God on their way because of Jesus. We too have been given an everyday platform to glorify God by trusting Him, thanking Him, obeying Him and loving Him as people watch our lives. So use what you have been given to make Him look great with your life. If it’s a blessing, use it for the glory of God. If it’s a burden, bear it for the glory of God. There is nothing too great to take on and nothing too great to let go of in showing our adoration, affection and allegiance for Him. Until Jesus returns, let us return to live our everyday lives knowing… God is with us. God is for us. God is to be glorified through us.

Restoring The Image Of God In Us

Dec 23, 2020

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. – Romans 8:29

Jewelry breaks. Toys break. Electronics break. You and I break. God made us in His image but our sin fractured our likeness to Him and our relationship with Him. But Christmas is for the broken. God loves the broken. He sent Jesus for the broken. The Son of God came to do what we could not do, and die for what we could not do, perfectly bear the image of God. Then, after Jesus did what was necessary to restore our relationship with God, God began to restore His image in us by conforming us to the image of Jesus. It is through our union with Jesus, because our faith is in Jesus, that we are made like Jesus. God will not stop until the good work in us is done, loving us just as we are, but never content to leave us that way. We are His beloved unfinished masterpieces, treasured works-in-progress that are always under the skilled brush of God who graciously, patiently adds His loving strokes to who we are so we can become who we were made to be. Though there are days when we look nothing like Jesus, God does not abandon us. Therefore, confident in this, let us repent of areas of un-likeness to God and say “no” to sin, remember the promises that are “yes” for us because of Jesus, and rely on the Holy Spirit to help us live happy, holy lives. Rejoice today! For the Christ Child left the manger and made His way to the cross where the Christmas Gift of God’s Son was broken for the broken so that we could be made right with God, made to look more like God, and made to live forever with God.

He Will Save His People

Dec 22, 2020

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. – Matthew 1:21

We try to ignore it. We try to downplay it. We try to run from it. We try to overcome it. But no matter what we do, it is an exercise in futility, because it doesn’t change reality. This world is undeniably broken. From bullying to human trafficking, from idolatry to adultery, from back-stabbers to glory-robbers, from cancer to consumerism, from shattered dreams to battered women, from addictions to frustrations, from self-centeredness to unkindness, there is a never-ending, ever-increasing list of horrors and heartaches and hurts that we have created in our open rebellion against God and each other. Our world is the inevitable ruin that comes when every person does what is right in their own eyes and chooses to do what feels good over what God says is good. Look inside your heart and outside your window; you know it is true. Any honest survey of our societal landscape would show that we are in trouble. Oh, that this would create a loathing in us for our sin and a longing in us for our Savior! We need a Hero to save the day. We need a Liberator to set us free. We need a Healer to make us whole. We need a Satisfier to make us content. We need a Ruler to reign over us for good. We need an Intercessor to stay the hand of God’s wrath. We need a Savior to save us from our sins. We. Need. Jesus. That’s why He came, to be all of these things for us and to be there for us as we await the day He comes again. Until then, turn to Him for hope and help when you’re not alright and when things are not okay. He will give you all that you need for all that you face so you can endure with joy until the glorious day comes when He fully relieves our burdens, rights all wrongs and reigns forevermore.

We Can Know God

Dec 21, 2020

He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. – Colossians 1:15

People have all kinds of ideas in their heads about God, and these ideas, right or wrong, shape how we view the world and influence how we live in it. When Jesus came to live in this world with us, He made it possible for us to know what God is really like. He displayed God’s character, heart, authority, holiness, righteous anger and love for all to see in real-time, real-life, real-world situations just like the ones you and I face today. In looking at Jesus, we see… Forgiveness for the repentant. Compassion for the broken. Rebuke for the self-righteous. Freedom for the enslaved. Peace for the fearful. Humiliation for the proud. Exaltation for the lowly. Hope for the hurting. Guidance for the confused. Strength for the weak. Authority for the rebellious. Supply for the needy. Joy for the downtrodden. Grace for the unable. Love. For. Everyone. But that’s not all He did. He also made it possible for us to show others what God is like. Jesus is our model, means and motivation for living in such a way that others see, even through our imperfections, glimpses of the image of God. Through our deeds and words, we show and tell the onlookers in our lives that God is not distant from us and unknown to us; He is not disengaged from our everyday lives and uninterested in what happens in them. The Creator of the universe invites us to walk with Him in an intimate, one-on-one, Father-and-child, every day, everlasting relationship. We can know what God is like ourselves when we put our faith in Jesus, and we can show what God is like to others when we walk by faith in Him. And this is the one idea about God that should be ever-present in our heads, ever-shaping our views, and ever-influencing how we live in front of others: He is infinitely more glorious, and knowing Him is infinitely more wondrous, than anything we could ever imagine.

Christmas Is About Greatness

Dec 19, 2020

But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. – Mark 10:44-45

God wants you to be great. But your greatness will not be found merely in your personal achievements, resources, influence, popularity, or any other metric in which you strive to be first. Your greatness will come when you strive to put others first. God wants you to be great … as a servant. In the world we live in, the more people who serve you, the greater you are. But in the kingdom of God, the greater you are, the more people you serve. It’s not about getting more for yourself from others, but giving more of yourself to others. That may seem like giving up a lot. Until we consider Christmas. Until we think of Jesus coming to us and what He came to do. Until our hearts are moved by how much Jesus gave up to serve us. In light of all that we have gained, it doesn’t seem like giving up anything at all. He is a beautiful picture of both our model and motivation for the greatness that comes through serving. Jesus showed us what it looks like to have a servant’s heart and then melts our own self-serving hearts so that we can be great in His kingdom. We long to be first. We long to be great. God is in favor of both of those things. He just measures them in ways that are radically different than the world. He measures greatness in the finished work of Jesus and in every act of His children that expresses that same kind of servant love towards those in need of it. Christmas is a reminder that Jesus came to serve and calls us to serve. So… Be great today. Be like Jesus today.

From Heaven To Earth, From Earth To Heaven

Dec 18, 2020

For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. – John 6:39-40

From heaven to earth. From Bethlehem to Calvary. From a manger to a cross. From God to man. Christmas begins an epic story of just how far Jesus would travel, and just how hard His journey would be, to bring us back into a loving relationship with our Heavenly Father. Jesus came from heaven to earth to make a way for sinners like you and me to go from earth to heaven. His story births our stories where every step we take together is assured because of His willingness and faithfulness to do the Father’s will: namely, to keep us until the end of this life and raise us up at the beginning of the next. Ours will be a journey full of mountains and valleys, victories and failures, eases and hardships, prosperities and poverties. Yet through it all, we will be empowered by His presence and encouraged by His promises as we rely on Him in faith. Christmas reminds us Who Jesus is, why He came, and where He is taking us. Destination: Heaven. He will not lose us on the way. He will not let us lose our way. He promises acceptance and perseverance to anyone who truly believes. Believers are followers, and as we follow Jesus wherever He leads to do whatever He wills, let us remember that He didn’t bring us this far to bring us this far. Step by step on the way to our eternal home, let us hold on to the hope of this promise: Jesus is holding on to us until we get there.

Christmas Is A Declaration Of War

Dec 17, 2020

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel. – Genesis 3:15

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Christmas is a declaration of war on everything that separates us from God and the life with Him that we were meant to enjoy now and forever. Satan deceived Eve, she and Adam sinned against God, and the perfect relationship they enjoyed with Him in paradise was fractured, catapulting all of mankind into sin for which there is no human-merited, human-earned, or human-devised escape. But God sent Jesus to be born, to live and to lay down His life in the fight for our salvation. He died in battle, but did not lose the battle, because in atoning for our sins and rising from the dead, He disarmed and defeated Satan. For those of us who entrust ourselves to Jesus, He forgives us and frees us from our sin and our enemy. Sin no longer separates us from God! Sin no longer has power over us! And until Jesus comes again to give us final deliverance from it, we expect, endure, hate, expose, resist and overcome evil, but we do not give in, give up or give out in our fight against it. We have been equipped with the armor of God, the Word of God and the Spirit of God to empower us as we fight our battles, secure in the truth that Jesus has already secured our victory. Today, by grace, through faith, for God’s glory… Fight against temptation; fight for holiness. Fight against despair; fight for joy. Fight against religious activity; fight for gospel living. Fight against lies; fight for truth. Fight against every form of evil; fight for every form of good. Never settle for less than God’s best for your life! Because of Jesus, make war not excuses.

The Reason For The Season And Everything Else

Dec 16, 2020

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. – 1 Peter 3:15

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Every belief, action, fact, event, spoken word, attitude, and outcome has one. There is a reason for all things. Some are known. Some are unknown. But there is a basis, cause, explanation or motive for why things are what they are. Christmastime and Christianity are based on this one: Jesus is the reason for the season and the reason for our hope. Not favorable conditions. Not an optimistic outlook. Not our resources or connections. Simply Jesus. And it’s not just hope that Jesus has caused for us who revere Him in our hearts as Lord. He’s the reason we celebrate all of the amazing gifts we’ve already been given and the reason we anticipate that the future promises of God will be fulfilled for us, and we will be given even more. He’s the source of our unending hope, joy, peace, purpose, courage, victory, security, faith, strength, truth, acceptance, approval, guidance, access, help, rest, forgiveness, blessings, provision, freedom, life, eternal life, everything. Remember this today: Jesus didn’t come to earth only to rescue us from sin, condemnation and hell; He also came to invite us into the most complete, most lasting, most satisfying life that begins right now and will extend into the never-ending reaches of eternity. The greatest testimony we can give for Jesus is to submit our lives to Him because of this hope that we have in Him. Onlookers in our lives need to see and hear us really living like our hearts are full … because of Jesus … because they really are. Here’s the question: Why do you have hope and happiness? Here’s the answer: Jesus.

He Knows What You’re Going Through

Dec 15, 2020

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. – John 1:14

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When Jesus took on flesh to dwell among us, He didn’t come with an entourage of personal attendants to ensure His well-being. He didn’t book a suite at the first century equivalent of a Four Seasons for His stay. He didn’t plan out an itinerary that was filled with pleasantries and luxuries. He didn’t insulate Himself from the ugliness, brokenness and sinfulness of this world. What He did was join us to suffer like us only a thousand times worse than us. Jesus knows the trials, troubles, tests and temptations that we face in our daily lives because He faced them down too. Life for Jesus on earth was filled with the same things we go through: difficult people, difficult circumstances, difficult tasks, and difficult experiences. And the greatest difficulty always loomed in front of Him: to be crushed on the cross to atone for our sins and secure our trial-free, trouble-free, test-free, temptation-free eternity with God. He suffered. He endured. He conquered. And now He is with you to ensure that you do the same. Jesus knows all about your hurts; and one of the reasons He came was to help you through them and heal you from them. Take heart today and trust in the One who loves, understands, cares and helps you live with God-glorifying, joy-experiencing, hope-filled endurance no matter what you come up against. He doesn’t just know what you are going through. He didn’t just go through it too. He went through it for you.

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