Sunday, March 22, 2015

Filled With All Joy and Peace

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver
"Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" (Romans 15:13)

Joy and Peace. What sober thinking person does not desire these two things? Men spend most of their lives in pursuit of them. This is what man-made religion is STRIVES for and what "pure and undefiled religion" POSSESSES. Being in a right standing with God, one in which you are welcome and blessed in His presence, will bring you joy and peace. Sure, "joy" and "peace" can be found in some measure in other areas of life but they will always be found wanting. The joy and peace we are speaking of here are the results of salvation from impending and present doom as well as the possession of eternal life. We are talking about a peace which surpasses all understanding and can guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus (Php 4:7). We are talking about joy unspeakable, inexpressible and full of glory (1 Pet 1:8). These things are only the product of faith.

In Believing. Joy and peace are like fuel gauges for faith. If your joy and peace are fleeting it is because you may be shrinking back in unbelief. The answer is not just: "Be joyful!" or "Be at peace!" The answer is: "Believe the gospel!" God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world but that the world might be saved by Him (Jn 3:17). Do you believe this? Christ Jesus bore our sins in His own body on the tree that we being dead to sins should live unto righteousness (1 Pet 2:24). Believe thou this? God made Him, Who knew no sin, to be sin for us that we might be the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor 3:21). Jesus perfectly accomplished the will of God and in so doing we are sanctified by the offering of His body once for all (Heb 10:10). Do you believe? He made an end of sin and finished the transgression (Dan 9:24). He made a new and living way to the Father (Heb 10:20). Our sins, which were many, have been forgiven us (Lk 7:47). There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1). Believe that! You've been seated with Christ in heavenly places. Your life is hid with Christ in God. All things are yours. You've come to Mount Zion. You have peace with God. Your name is written in heaven. Your inheritance is in heaven. Nothing can separate you from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. You have passed out of death into life. You have been delivered from this present evil world by the will of God. An abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom will be ministered to you and you shall always be with the Lord. Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing.

Filled Up. Not just some. Not just a measure. God is able to FILL you up with ALL joy and peace. This is how the Lord is: abundant in blessing. There is nothing meager about God. God's provision is never described as "almost" or "nearly" or "a lot." The work of Jesus and the ministry of the Holy Spirit brings forth a filling of joy and peace. ALL joy and peace. When the windows of heaven are opened and joy and peace are poured out they become the most prominent and dominant of experiences. They are able, praise God, to flood the soul. They are like springs to dry ground. All doubt is pushed aside and the weary pilgrim is made to stand when joy and peace given by God.

Productive. All holy activity springs forth from having peace with God and joy as a result. Joy and peace are then the energizers behind good works. This arrangement is at work when we see the kingdom of God flourishing. For the kingdom of God is "righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Rom 14:17). Without joy and peace we will find ourselves shackled by the fear of being condemned and the guilt ridden, downcast disposition that results from it.
[This is experience of any religion that tries to approach God on the basis of merit and good works. Legalistic religion will always be void of joy and peace...unless, of course, it is also a delusional religion. The lack of joy and peace will prevent the people from moving. They are so afraid that at any moment God will smite them that they cannot freely give themselves to the work of the Lord. It is safer for them to do nothing than to abound in good works that may not be expressly authorized by the apostles. Only the full assurance of faith will be able to deliver them from such vain philosophy.] 
The joy of the Lord is the strength of a believer (Neh 8:10). Joy is spiritually invigorating. It causes those who have been saved by God to run and jump like calves out of the stall. It gives us feet like hinds' feet and sets us on high places. The Lord blesses His people this way. We are able then, like Paul, to finish our course and our ministry of testifying of the grace of God with great joy (Acts 20:24)! Think of it, your life's work can be a joyful work. I suggest that we all strive to enter into THIS work.

And what of the productivity of peace? The purged conscience (peace) liberates the soul to serve God acceptably. The full assurance of faith knows that God has accepted us in His Son and therefore we can press on to participate in the ministry of reconciliation. Joy and peace assure our acceptance with God and enable us to do whatever we can to labor in His field. Against such things there is no law. There is no limit to the progress that can be made or the labor that we can engage in. Fueled with joy and peace in believing, God enables us to run and not grow weary as we wait on Him.

Have faith brethren. Your warfare is accomplished! 

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

The God of Hope

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver
"Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" (Romans 15:13)

Men have need of a better day. Furthermore, they have need of the knowledge of a better day. It is not enough for there to be light at the end of the tunnel. In order for men to enter the tunnel and endure its darkness they must know that darkness is not the end of the matter. There must be light and they must know about it. This is what hope is about. Those who have hope know that the happenings of today must be endured because the benefits of tomorrow are too good to be neglected.

Hope. Without hope men are left with despair and in the very best circumstance: ignorance. We simply do not know what tomorrow will bring. In fact, Jesus exhorted us to take "no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself" and again, "sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof" (Mt 6:34). There is not benefit in worrying about what is unknown. There is great blessing, however, in trusting in the One who does know what tomorrow holds. There is everlasting comfort and incomprehensible peace in trusting in the God of hope.

Hope is the earnest expectation of good things to come. It is not tangible but it is powerful. You cannot hold it but it can take hold of you. It can dominate your thoughts, comfort you heart, and drive your actions. For "hope that is seen is not hope: for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance" (Rom 8:24-25). This perseverance and patience is characteristic of all those who are abounding in hope. They will not forfeit the unseen blessings of heaven for the temporary pleasure of what they can see. Instead they consider themselves to be strangers and pilgrims in this world all the while looking eagerly and longingly toward that world which is to come. AND... they will do anything to obtain a good inheritance in that world. Though laboring by the sweat of their brow they recognize that they are plowing in hope and threshing in hope knowing that without a doubt they shall be partakers of their hope (1 Cor 9:10).

The God of Hope. All hope is based upon the promise true substance not just wishful thinking. "Hope," after all, "maketh not ashamed." We are not simply trusting in the existence of an inheritance ready to be revealed but rather trusting in a God who is always faithful to provide abundantly more than His people can ask or imagine. In view of this our hope is associated with "full assurance" (Heb 6:11) and is able to sustain us until the end. For our hope is not in a someTHING but a someONE. The someTHINGS come to us because the someONE is a provider. God has gone on record describing Himself as "The God of Hope."

Wherever there is God there is hope. We can hope in whatever God promises. It is a sure thing. If we can get to God we can obtain whatever it is that He has promised. Whatever peril, affliction, sorrow or temptation paves the road we must traverse on our way to the Father, we can be sure that our Shepherd is able to bring us safely there and grace that will be revealed worth every drop of sweat, every shed tear and every anxious thought. The God of Hope will dispel all these things with the glory of His presence. With God there is hope and our hope is in God.