Two of my grandchildren are celebrating birthdays next week. Ezra will be one and his sister Amelia turns three two days later. Ezra came home from the hospital on his sister’s second birthday. We’re experiencing a lot of firsts just this week with Ezra standing on his own and adding more words to his vocabulary. All of the special attention in the world hasn’t prevented Amelia from feeling jealous. She loves her little brother a ton but when she wants the attention he’s getting, she whines.
We’ve all been working together to help her understand how very much she’s loved and to also make over how she’s growing and changing too. She’s beginning to realize the benefits of being the big sister, of being older and able to do more than little brother, but every once in awhile we still need to remind her to use her words. We can observe her behavior and know she’s unhappy or tired or not getting something she wants, but unlike her baby brother who is actually pretty adept at making his wishes known simply by pointing, she is very capable of expressing herself. So we ask, “What do you need, baby girl? Use your words.”
Words and actions go hand in hand, one supporting and confirming the other, but sometimes, like the sleepy toddler throwing a tantrum, wanting this or that but never being satisfied, our words and actions don’t align. We say one thing but our actions pronounce another. Even when the disconnect is subconscious, it’s easily recognizable.
If we’re honest, we demand integrity in our business and social lives. We judge harshly those who promise one thing and deliver something less and we hold in high regard those who go above and beyond what is expected. We hold others to this standard because we don’t like being swindled, feeling cheated or disrespected, but often we fail to recognize inconsistencies in ourselves. Sometimes we fail to recognize truth when it’s staring us in the face.
“The people surrounded him and asked, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense?
If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
Jesus replied, “I have already told you, and you don’t believe me.
The proof is the work I do in my Father’s name.
But you don’t believe me because you are not my sheep.
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.
No one can snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else.
No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand.
The Father and I are one.”
Once again the people picked up stones to kill him.
Jesus said, “At my Father’s direction I have done many good works.
For which one are you going to stone me?”
They replied, “We’re stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy!
You, a mere man, claim to be God.”
“Why do you call it blasphemy when I say, ‘I am the Son of God’?
After all, the Father set me apart and sent me into the world.
Don’t believe me unless I carry out my Father’s work.
But if I do his work, believe in the evidence of the miraculous works I have done, even if you don’t believe me.
Then you will know and understand that the Father is in me, and I am in the Father.”
And many who were there believed in Jesus.”
John 10:24-33, 36-38, 42 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/jhn.10.24-42.NLT
Being God, Jesus saw beyond the obvious question to the heart of it. He challenged his challengers to look closer, to scrutinize his words and actions in light of scripture. If He had simply told them plainly, as they asked, their reaction would have been unchanged. Jesus pushed for greater understanding of God and His plan but also for His listeners to gain a better understanding of themselves. These questions never came in isolation, as when Nicodemus came to Him alone at night. They were public, accusatory, deliberate attacks on His character. It’s odd that Jesus had a very similar conversation with his disciples in private. His answers and His aim were exactly the same.
““Don’t let your hearts be troubled.
Trust in God, and trust also in me.
There is more than enough room in my Father’s home.
If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?
When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.
And you know the way to where I am going.”
“No, we don’t know, Lord,” Thomas said. “We have no idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one can come to the Father except through me.
If you had really known me, you would know who my Father is.
From now on, you do know him and have seen him!”
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.”
Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am?
Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!
So why are you asking me to show him to you?
Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
The words I speak are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me.
Just believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.
Or at least believe because of the work you have seen me do.”
John 14:1-11 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/jhn.14.1-11.NLT
As we later see in Judas, proximity to Jesus alone doesn’t work the human out of us. Only God can do that work by His Spirit through surrendered and obedient faith in His one and only Son, Jesus. Grace is the glorious beginning of the gospel. Recognizing that there is absolutely nothing we can do to atone for our own sin is where faith begins. Jesus’s death and resurrection accomplished for me once for all time what nothing and no one else could do. That is God’s grace. When I truly believe that He bore my sin on the cross, I must live in obedience only to Him. Sin is no longer my master.
“What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions?
Can that kind of faith save anyone?
Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing.
What good does that do?
So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough.
Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.”
But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”
You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God.
Good for you!
Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror.
How foolish!
Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?
So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.
Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.”
James 2:14-20, 24, 26 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/jas.2.14-26.NLT
“Test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith.
Don’t drift along taking everything for granted.
Give yourselves regular checkups.
You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you.
Test it out.
If you fail the test, do something about it.
***
We’re rooting for the truth to win out in you.
We couldn’t possibly do otherwise.”
2 Corinthians 13:5-9 MSG
https://bible.com/bible/97/2co.13.5-9.MSG
“For I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself.
I promised you as a pure bride to one husband—Christ.
But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted, just as Eve was deceived by the cunning ways of the serpent.
You happily put up with whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed.
But I am not surprised!
Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
So it is no wonder that his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness.
In the end they will get the punishment their wicked deeds deserve.”
2 Corinthians 11:2-4, 14-15 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/2co.11.2-14.NLT
We take our cars in for regular service to be sure they continue to serve us well for the long haul. Our souls need the same kind of regular maintenance. A daily diet of God’s Word can help us spot the inconsistencies in our own lives like a mirror shows imperfections. Our most difficult task is to keep our focus on ourselves, asking and allowing God to do the work of sanctification when it is so much easier and more gratifying to spot the errors in others. Be honest. When was the last time you prayed for someone who was out of fellowship with God? Have you experienced that godly jealousy for lost souls that moved you to prayer? This one thing is an indicator of my own spiritual health, a constant check the Spirit uses to hold me accountable.
“But don’t just listen to God’s word.
You must do what it says.
Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.
For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror.
You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like.
But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.”
James 1:22-25 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/jas.1.22-25.NLT
If you woke this morning, the Lord’s hand of blessing rests on you. If you have your health, family and friends, a home, freedom, especially from sin and death, then you are abundantly blessed. Most anyone with means to read this post including an education, time and an internet connection has probably never faced religious persecution, at least not violently.
Maybe you’ve been passed over for a job or simply chosen not to accept a position because of the compromises you’d be expected to make. Perhaps you’ve experienced a broken relationship or needed to walk away from a friend group because of your convictions. Maybe you feel left out or alone because of your choices regarding appropriate entertainment. When your convictions are founded in God’s Word, you do not need to defend your choices. God will.
“Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good?
But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it.
So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats.
Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life.
And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.
But do this in a gentle and respectful way.
Keep your conscience clear.
Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.
Christ suffered for our sins once for all time.
He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God.
He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.
Now Christ has gone to heaven.
He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.”
1 Peter 3:13-16, 18, 22 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/1pe.3.13-22.NLT
“Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Philippians 2:9-11 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/php.2.9-11.NLT
“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead.
Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.
And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.
So be truly glad.
There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while.
These trials will show that your faith is genuine.
It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold.
So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
You love him even though you have never seen him.
Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy.
The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls.
So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control.
Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world.
So you must live as God’s obedient children.
Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires.
You didn’t know any better then.
But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.
For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”
And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites.
He will judge or reward you according to what you do.
So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.”
For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors.
And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value.
It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake.
Through Christ you have come to trust in God.
And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory.
You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth, so now you must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters.
Love each other deeply with all your heart.
For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end.
Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God.
As the Scriptures say, “People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. But the word of the Lord remains forever.”
And that word is the Good News that was preached to you.”
1 Peter 1:3-9, 13-25 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/1pe.1.3-24.NLT
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