We can be quick to see faults in others, but usually not so quick to see them in ourselves. Going back to the story in John 8, I suspect that most of us are somewhat grateful for the Pharisees, they make us look good.  It’s easy to believe we’re doing OK when we can measure our failures against those of a Pharisee. It’s comforting when we can tell ourselves “I may be bad, but I’m not as bad as __________” (fill in the blank).  When we excuse our own bad behavior based on the behavior of someone else we are clearly missing the mark. Jesus knew we were going to behave this way so He gave a sermon about it.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:38-48)

In this passage from what is commonly called the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives us “the rest of the story”.  He describes for us the completeness of God’s requirements. He tells us that knowing and practicing the letter of God’s law is not enough.  If we are serious about looking like Jesus, we’ve got to go beyond the letter of the Law and get to the  spirit of the law. We have to abandon the ways of this world and seek the ways of God’s kingdom world.   We must practice GRACE in its fullness.

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. (John 1:17)

 It’s not enough:

• To ignore those who hurt us – we must also forgive them
• To give/do what is demanded – we must give/act according to the measure of the blessings we’ve been given
• To not hate – we must also show love
• To love only those who love us – we must also love those who despise us
• To show kindness to those who are kind to us – we must also be kind even to those who would cause us harm
• To pray for those whom we love – we must also pray for our enemies

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:2)

In His final tortured hours, as throughout His life, Jesus lived out all that He taught; in doing so He left us the example of how we are to live. Easy? No. Jesus never said it would be.

And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. (Mark 8:34)

But, Jesus did promise that He would give us the GRACE we need to accomplish all that He has called us to.

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. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

If we want to be more like Jesus, we need only ask God to grow in us a spirit of GRACE. If we truly desire it, if we are willing vessels, and if we will be obedient to His Word, He will do it.

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 4:16)

I’ll close today’s post with this:

Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone) by Chris Tomlin

My chains are gone

I’ve been set free

My God, my Savior has ransomed me

And like a flood His mercy rains

Unending love, Amazing grace

And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” (John 8:7)

In the eighth chapter of John’s gospel we are given a story about a woman who was caught in adultery.

In the opening scene of this account we are introduced to a whole cast of characters each playing a very distinct role. First, we see the Pharisees, a bunch of religious men doing their religious thing . You can almost hear the hardness of their hearts as they throw the woman to the ground at Jesus’ feet. “Here Jesus, this woman was caught in the very act of adultery. Moses said to stone her (which by the way is not true see Leviticus 20:10, Deuteronomy 22:22), what do you say we should to do with her?”

Can you relate to this scene? Has there ever been a time when you have “demanded justice” for some offense? Have you ever disguised God’s truth in a cloak of self-righteousness? Remember, we’re being honest. Speaking for myself, I know I have to plead guilty, as a matter of fact, I’m a repeat offender.

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye. (Matthew 7:1-5)

So many victories were won for us at Calvary. Through Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection we have been set free from the penalty of our sin. There is one word that pretty much sums up all that Calvary accomplished – GRACE.

and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus (Romans 3:24)

GRACE the wonderful, unmerited favor of God

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, (Ephesians 2:8)

GRACE that is greater than any sin we can commit.

Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more (Romans 5:20)

GRACE that is adequate to meet all our needs.

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. (2 Corinthians 9:8).

GRACE that is never exhausted

For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace (John 1:16)

Our having received such grace, should we expect anything less of ourselves than to extend it freely to others? Isn’t that what Jesus is telling us in John 8? To check ourselves first? To remember that we are all sinners saved by His grace? To give the same unlimited grace to others that He has given us?

and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.” (Luke 17:4)

Next time we’re inclined to cast stones, let’s ask ourselves – “who do I want to look like?

A Pharisee, with a rock in my hand?

OR

Jesus, with grace in my heart”?

As I look around, I see so much sickness;  sickness of the body and of the soul.  The enemy seems to be having a field day not only in the world at large, but in the lives of the children of God as well. I have read and recited 2 Chronicles 7:14 many times. Each year on the National Day Of Prayer, I turn to this verse as a reminder of God’s promise.  I have always looked at this verse in light of the healing of a nation, and indeed, it is relevant to our country and our world.  But, until just now, I have never given much thought to how this promise might extend to each of our lives. I invite you to take a few moments and  look out over your “land”.  Where do you need healing?  Your marriage, your children, your job, your finances?  Is there an addiction, a physical illness, an emotional struggle, a broken heart? The LORD has given us very specific instruction on what we are to do.  (You  will want to give special  attention to the order of God’s instruction, it’s important).

• Submit The first step to healing is submission, humbling ourselves before God. Now, that’s a hard one; being submissive to the authority of another, even when it’s God, goes against our grain because we want to be in control. Of course, if we remind ourselves that doing it our own way is how we got to this point in the first place, submitting shouldn’t be so difficult. As we humble ourselves before the Lord, as we bow low in His presence, the healing will begin and we will find relief as the weight of our burden is lifted.
• Pray Next we must seek God’s face. So often, our prayers are a laundry list of our needs – “Here’s what’s wrong God, this is what I want and this is how I want you to do it.” Sound familiar? The Hebrew word for seek is bâqash (baw-kash’). It means to search out, to beg, to plead. Seeking the face of God is not some nice little meek, gentle petition we offer up on the off-chance that God might find favor with us. To seek God’s face is to beg Him to show us His mind, His will, His desires, His way. Seeking God’s face is what Jacob did in Genesis 32 when he wrestled with God and would not let go until God blessed him – and the blessing was given. Jabez was seeking the face of God in 1 Chronicles 4:10 when he cried out to Him “enlarge my border, be with me and keep me from harm” – and God granted his request. The blind man of Luke 18:38 was seeking the face of God when he would not be silenced, but continued to cry out to Jesus for mercy – and Jesus heard him and healed him.

•  Repent  Finally, we must repent.  Notice, the scripture doesn’t say “tell God you’re sorry”.  True repentance isn’t simply a matter of apologizing. Repentance is turning back, laying down; it is a broken heart caused by our sin against a loving God.  It’s all well and good to say I’m sorry, but repentance requires change, otherwise all you have are words that mean nothing.

Our having done these things, what does God promise? He promises He will hear us, forgive us, and heal us. He will restore us and make us whole. The healing may take some time, complete healing always does; A wound must heal from the inside out. Imagine you have a cut on your finger. After a few days, the cut may seem to be well ,but if you were to peel back the scab you would see that the wound underneath is still red and raw. You wouldn’t say “guess this is never going to get well, I might as well cut my finger off”, you would continue to nurse the cut until it was completely healed. That’s how it is with the wounds in our lives. We must allow God to heal them from the inside out, layer by layer restoring the damaged tissue.

Whatever in your land needs healing, put your trust in God. Ask Him to be your Jehova Rapha – The Lord Who heals.

Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love, that he may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine. (Psalms 33:18-19)

Behold! He is our Keeper. His eyes are always on us. He knows all of our ways, and yet He loves us.

Behold!  He is our Lord and our Savior.  When we embrace His sovereign authority in our lives, we receive His peace, His hope, His joy.

Behold!  He is our Deliverer.  He has set us free from the penalty and power of sin.  He has ransomed our souls from death.

Behold!  He is our Father.  Giver of life, provider of all good things.  He sustains us, protects us, cares for us.

Behold! He is the LORD!

Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. (John 21:12)

Sharing a meal is such an intimate thing.

Since our bodies are sustained by the food we eat, when we break bread together, we are, in effect, sharing life.  In the gospels Jesus talks about food often, both literally and figuratively; both physically and spiritually.  Jesus spoke –  “…open the door and I will come in and dine with you”,  “I am the bread of life”, “take, eat, this is my body”, “feed my sheep”, “come, have breakfast” (that I have prepared for you).

When we pray “give us this day our daily bread”, we are saying “feed me Lord with the Bread of Life.  Sustain and nourish my soul with the meal you have prepared for me.”

David wrote in Psalms 34:8, “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!”  As you begin your day, take time to sit at the Lord’s table, enjoy the feast has prepared for you.

Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. (John 17:17)

In the 1950s and 1960s there was a popular game show called “To Tell The Truth”. The show featured a team of challengers which included a central character who had an unusual job or had experienced some unusual event. The central character was accompanied by two imposters. A panel of four celebrities asked questions of the challengers and from the answers would try to determine who was telling the truth (only the true character was sworn to tell the truth). Once the questioning was finished, each panelist voted for who they believed was telling the truth. At the end, the host would say “will the real [central character’s name] please stand up”.

In yesterday’s devotion we discussed Pilate’s confrontation with Jesus when he asked the Lord “what is truth”? Webster’s defines truth as “conformity to fact or reality”. In this world of relativity, circumstantial absolutes, and perceptional reality, how can we know for certain what is truth?

1. Look to the One whose name is Truth.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)

Federal agents don’t learn to spot counterfeit money by studying the counterfeits, they study the real thing.  By learning what true currency looks like, they can recognize fake bills when they see them.  Likewise, if we want to know what is truth, we must get to know the real thing.

2. Search God’s word for truth.

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. (John 16:13)

Finding someone willing to give advice on most any situation is seldom a problem. The life events and experiences shared by our brothers and sisters in Christ can help us through difficult times. But, we have to remember that God’s word is the final authority, the Holy Spirit is our great Counselor. We have to be careful to test the words of man against the word of God.

3. Follow truth.

Make me to know your ways, O LORD; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long. (Psalms 25:4-5)

After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him. (John 18:38)

We see in the above passages the words of two men seemingly seeking the same thing – truth. The Psalmist was willing to wait on God. He wanted to understand the ways of truth. He was eager to learn and to follow. Pilate asked the question, then walked away. Pilate must have understood that if he heard the truth, he would be responsible for it and as evidenced in Matthew 27:24, he wasn’t willing to accept it.

I was talking  with someone recently about how noisy the world has become and how the noise of deception comes at us through all forms of media.  Too often we allow the noise of lies to drown out the still small voice of truth; it doesn’t have to be that way.  If we will only look to Him, search Him, and follow Him, we will know the truth.

Can I get a witness?

and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” (John 8:32)

Truth. We claim to want it but when we get it, we reject it. We claim we seek it, but once we find it we discard or dismiss it. We’re told to speak the truth in love; could it be that truth is rarely spoken in love because there is no love for truth? There is a lot of talk these days about freedom but we choose to live in bondage because we’re not willing to accept the terms of truth.

Truth is not what the world says it is. It is not determined by conditions or circumstances. It is not whatever is convenient. Contrary to what many claim, truth is not relative – it either is or it isn’t. You can say it all day long, you can shout it from the roof tops, you can plaster it all over social media but no matter how popular it is to believe it, there is no my truth and your truth, there is only truth. A world that once was “black and white” has become gray. Unless we turn back to and embrace pure truth, I fear our “gray reality” will fade to black leaving us in total darkness.

Pilate asked Jesus “what is truth”? For Pilate it was a rhetorical question, he had no interest in truth. Nevertheless, to Pilate’s question, what is truth? Truth is what God’s word declares it to be. God has established truth, He defines truth. By His own word, He IS truth.

Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? (Psalms 139:7)

Do you sometimes find yourself resisting God? Are you prone to fight against His word? Are there times when you attempt to avoid His presence?

The psalmist words are true. Our God is ever present. There is nowhere we can go from His Spirit, no place we can hide from His presence. And yet, for a multitude of reasons we try:

Trials we don’t want to accept
Fears we don’t want to face
Sins we don’t want to confess
Temptations we don’t want to resist

It sometimes seems the more we need Him, the more we resist him. If you’ve ever resisted God, I’m sure you will attest that away from the presence of the Lord is an awful place to be; it is a place of darkness, loneliness and despair. Possibly you’re in a “resisting season” right now. Call out to the Lord then listen for His voice [My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.~John 10:27].

Allow Him to draw you back into His presence where He will exchange your panic for peace, your sorrow for celebration, your resistance for rest.

Thank Him today for loving you so much that He has promised that He will not leave you nor forsake you – even in your resistance season.

We all know how annoying having a song stuck in our heads can be. Sometimes it can get to the point of singing another song just to get the other one out! I guess I can say I have been blessed this week to have “I surrender all” stuck in my head. I’ve been singing it all week, but this morning I really sat down and listened to the lyrics. These four lines stood out the most:

All to Jesus I surrender; Humbly at His feet I bow, Worldly pleasures all forsaken; Take me Jesus, take me now.

These lines remind me of a scripture. Luke 9:23 says, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves, take up their cross daily and follow me.” I feel like the lines in this song should be our reply to this scripture. Jesus said, “Deny yourselves”. Just like the song we should give up everything, “surrender all to Jesus”, and “humbly bow” at His feet, abandoning all the things of the world that hinder us from completely following Him. “Worldly pleasures all forsaken.”

“Take up your cross daily”. Now this one is a little more complicated to understand. Many people say, “That’s my cross to bear” thinking of it as we have to carry along our burdens when we follow Christ. However, this is not the case. In the first century, the cross was symbolic and reminded everyone of a painful, unmerciful death. Part of the humiliating sentence was to carry the cross to the place of the crucifixion. In Jesus’ case, he carried it to Golgotha. It was torture because the criminals were practically carrying the thing that was to kill them in a few short hours. All the while they are carrying the cross, they are being laughed at and spit upon by the crowd, a terrible addition to the humiliation.

It’s the same for us. When we take up our cross, we take up with us the entire reality that we are willing to die for the sake of Jesus name. We also must be willing to take on all the ridiculing and humiliation that comes with it.

Lastly, Jesus says, “Follow me”. Now that we are willing to give up everything for our Savior, we must call out to Him, our souls ready and anticipating everything that lies ahead. We must tell him we are ready,
“Take me Jesus, take me now”.

Emma McCranie ©2011

Many thanks to Emma for allowing me to share this devotion with you. Although it was written 10 years ago, the message could not be more timely.

You’ve probably heard the saying ”running around like a chicken with its head cut off”. For those of you who may not be familiar with this old adage, when a chicken’s head is cut off, it takes several minutes for the body to get the message. It’s a strange sight, the chicken continues to run around the barnyard and it looks as if he’s trying to figure out what in the world is going on.

Have you ever felt like the proverbial chicken? Has there ever been a time when your schedule was so hectic and full of demands that you didn’t know which way to go or what to do first? I recently had a headless chicken week. There were several major things going on, all of them seemed to be priorities, each one had an impossible deadline. I fretted and dreaded, moaned and groaned, lost sleep and lost my appetite (ok, so it wasn’t all bad). Finally, on the morning of the “day of reckoning”, I came face to face with the reality that what was required was humanly impossible to accomplish. I just wanted to run away from it all, to crawl under the covers and live there. Instead, finally – thankfully, I ran to God’s word. What I found there was amazing!

Isaiah 48:17-18 says, Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go. Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea”.

This is a powerful scripture on so many levels. We see Jesus reveal Himself as a personal God. He tells us that He is our Redeemer, our LORD, our God, our teacher, our leader. The words that follow however are the ones that really hit home for me on this particular day. “Then (if you had listened to my commandments) your peace would have been like a river”. My mind fixated on those four words “peace like a river.” I wanted to consume them, to grasp their full meaning, because if there was one thing I needed right then, it was peace.
Try to envision if you will the life of a river. Look beneath it’s surface. The rivers course is greatly influenced by what lies on the bed. Along the river’s path are many obstacles, rocks, tree roots, valleys, and caves. As it moves steadily toward the sea, it will often change courses. At times the waters are calm, at other times rough and choppy; but the river keeps right on flowing.

There may be times when you need to change your course – don’t worry, Jesus will show you the way. You will face obstacles, things you don’t understand – don’t fear, He will teach you. Many times your path will be rocky – The Lord will guide you at every turn. In those times when your destination seems uncertain – hear His voice and He will lead you. Now that’s peace!

P. S. As always, Jesus was faithful. The circumstances didn’t change, the details, deadlines, and demands still had to be met. But as I received and believed Jesus’ word, as I obeyed Him and trusted Him, He changed me. As He promised, peace like a river flooded my mind and spirit. The deadlines were met and the Lord profited me with success. All to the glory of Jesus Christ.

Is there some situation in your life for which you need peace? Whatever the need Jesus is waiting to give you the peace you desire if you will only trust Him enough to give Him the worry of your heart.

“Jesus, this burden is too great. I am crippled from the weight of worry about………………… Help me Jesus to have faith in You, to let go of this worry, to obey You when You say “ trust Me”. Teach me Lord how to bring this worry to the hill of Calvary, lay it down at the foot of the cross, turn and walk away and leave the worry behind”. Amen