Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say,
Rejoice. Let your moderation be known
unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing
by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God, which passeth
all understanding, shall keep your hearts
and minds through Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:4-7
These last few blogs have been all about Jesus Christ, who He was, who He became, Who He is today and what that means to those who desire to be Authentic Christians, to have Authentic Christian Faith. As a reminder: Jesus was God and was before time began and as a Person of the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. All were and are God and all were are are of the same essence: God. Jesus Christ, God, the Second Person of the Triune God, the Word of God (John 1:1) came to earth to die for the sin of the world, and He rose again from the dead to ascend back to heaven from whence He came to now make intercession for all who believe upon Him. Jesus never was not God. The hypostatic union was for two things: 1. To settle God's justice which cannot ever be done by man. 2. To make intercession His propitiationary sacrifice on the cross for all who come to believe on Him. God, not as the Modalists teach, did not separate into different modes to fit a period of time. God did not send an angel to do His work. God did it all Himself as God who is the Great I am, the One who Exists for all time. What did you do to have this salvation? Nothing according to any work you have done or will do. The only thing is for you to accept this free gift of faith to believe on the One Whom He sent: Jesus Christ.
"The Lord is at hand!" "Rejoice, again I say Rejoice!" These are the words inspired by God for Paul to write so that we will be reminded that God has not gone away even in our darkest times, in our happiest times, God is at hand! Is this not enough for you to give thanksgiving to God? God is right here, right now, and you can: "Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto Him with psalms" (Psalm 95:2). Furthermore, we should be so thankful that we: "Sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. Sing unto the LORD, bless His name; shew forth His salvation from day to day" (Psalm 96:1-2). You, that is if you, have all reasons to be thankful. You have all reasons to shout and sing. You have the presence of our Lord and Savior who, that is, if you have come to believe that Jesus is God, and is our Savior, His presence, the Holy Spirit indwelling in you. Your are sealed and this seal is never to be broken. You have eternity before you and not in Gehenna, but in heaven where Jesus said that He has gone away to make for you a home. With thankful hearts we come before our Holy God even in times when it is hard to be thankful due to some illness, or disease, or disaster, or anything that comes against you, God is still with you, in you, and you have nothing to fear. Paul admonishes us to be in prayer, to bring our supplications to God with thankfulness. Why? Only God can bring to you the peace that comes with your thankfulness. In all times, all types of situations it is God who will keep your hearts and minds on Jesus Christ the One who paid your debt and the One who saved you for eternity and to live with Him for eternity. WE HAVE EVERYTHING TO BE THANKFUL FOR! Listen to the words of Jonah: "But I will sacrifice unto Thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD" (Jonah 2:9). Jonah was praying to God while in the belly of the great fish and in his time of suffering he cried out those words. Are you willing to cry out to God and praise Him for salvation in your time of suffering? What about in your time of joy?
With the special day Thanksgiving Day let us remember that we have a day to give special time to thank God for everything. A time to enjoy family, friends, and a time to meditate upon our God. Thanksgiving day has become a day to rush out, to stand in long lines, just to buy. Really? Is this what the Thanksgiving Day is all about? I know, there are special sale prices, and I know you want to but for Christmas or for other reasons, but is this what Thanksgiving Day has become for you? You have more to be thankful for than many people around the world. Think of those who are living in horrid conditions in North Korea, or those who are or have faced extermination by evil men and are living in conditions that are difficult to describe as they make us weep, that is if we see them as God sees them; a people who are in need and cannot see a way to be thankful. Authentic Christians do not follow the world as they show moderation in all things. Wait a minute! "All things?" Yes! This is what God inspired Paul to write. These are not Paul's words. These are words from God! Are you willing to sacrifice yourself for others and give them reasons to be thankful? Start within your Churches. Are there in your congregation people who live, right here in our land of abundance, who do not have a Thanksgiving Day to enjoy with others? Are there those who are homeless who for whatever reason are homeless have a reason to be thankful because you sacrificed some time to give them food, or just time to speak to them, to bring to them the same joy and thankfulness you have? What can you do to bring to others in lands where they live in horrid political, and religious ideologies, a place where they too need to hear what you know: that God is present and God will by and through you bring to them reasons to be thankful. Do you want those feelings that are so hard to understand, that feeling of thankfulness, that peace from God, to be given to others so that they too can feel God's peace and be thankful?
Do not allow your immoderation to lead you in a way that you feel thankful without aiding others to be thankful. You have many ways to do that, and you know them. Will you do them?
Oh that men would praise the LORD
for His goodness, and for His wonderful
works to the children of men!
And let them sacrifice the sacrifices
of thanksgiving, and declare His works
with rejoicing.
Psalm 107:21-22
Be sincere in your thankfulness
Richard L. Crumb
No comments:
Post a Comment