God is on the move

Dear Pastor,

Thank you for availing yourself to God that His life might be known in you and through you. Thank you for availing yourself to God that He might use you to make known His gospel and build up His church. Let us remember that as we keep our eyes on Jesus, He is able to save us completely, set our feet on a solid rock and use us in mighty ways. Let us not allow our eyes or thoughts or feelings to wander to the base things of this world or to the worries and fears of this world. You and I are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and as such, He is working on us and in us!

Continue reading “God is on the move”

In the valley

“When I climb down the mountain, And get back to my life, I won’t settle for ordinary things” -Third Day

These lyrics are great words about a resolve or commitment that Moses or others might make who have met God on the mountain. It is a beautiful thing to see God in all His glory. Moses on the mountain, the shepherds at the stable, the disciples on the mount of transfiguration: all of these were powerful and amazing times.

But there came a time where all of those mountain-top experiences came to an end and the people who were there had to go back to the valley and keep living life.

Continue reading “In the valley”

Does your Christianity matter?

You and I will do 100 different things this week. Some of those things may have a significant impact on us personally as well as on our sphere of influence and our legacy. Other things that we do may not matter quite so much. What color toothbrush we pick out or what condiment we put on our hamburger matters little in the eternal picture. What we believe about God and how we treat fellow human beings: that has a massive influence on eternity.

A question to seriously consider is “does my Christianity matter?” Does what I believe about God actually impact the people around me? Does what I do on Sundays really have any bearing on how my coworkers perceive me?

The answer to this question may not be as automatic as you might think.

Obviously, what we believe is enormously important because it often shapes our behavior; however not everything that we claim to believe do we live our lives according to. We may claim that God is love and therefore we should also be loving and yet perhaps we act in an unloving way towards someone. Then we justify that behavior because of the “stress we are under” or “how rude they were” or some other equally insufficient excuse. Sometimes we allow what we claim we believe to be overruled by something more pressing (usually our comfort or pleasure or what is easiest).

So I want to ask again: “Does your Christianity matter”? In other words, do you live your life such that what you claim to believe about Christ and eternal truths is daily evident in your life? Are you following through on your commitment to the Lord to live by faith and not by sight?

If you want your Christianity to matter, it must inform everything you do, whether on Sunday or any other day of the week and regardless of circumstances, or pressure, or other people, or any feelings you may have. Dear Christian, if we claim Christ as Lord let us walk as Jesus walked. Then our Christianity will not only matter but it will be blessed and used of the Lord for His glory and for the redemption of the world.

The temptation to quit

So here is the harsh reality and the raw truth: pastors are tempted to quit, Christians are tempted to quit.

The temptation is to quit trying, to quit persevering, to quit putting in so much effort when the outcome seems so pitiful.

As ministers of the gospel, we are called to share God’s message with people everywhere. His message is good news and full of hope and promise and yet it also contains a very real, very powerful and very uncomfortable warning regarding sin and self-sufficiency. When you and I are preaching and teaching the gospel we are speaking out against evil, worldliness, sin, and selfishness. And these four will not sit idly by while we preach against them but instead will rear their ugly heads so as to continue holding people captive. As a result, it can seem like our ministry of sharing the gospel is like watching grass grow or even worse as we work against the enemies of God. And so the temptation is to quit and yet the call of God is to persevere. God’s call to persevere is not just to keep trudging but rather to walk boldly in and by faith into the future that God is revealing. We are called to stand firm in His promises and persevere in His faithfulness, love, and holiness. So, please, today, reject the temptation to quit. Go to God in prayer, seek His Word for encouraging truths and keep pressing on in Jesus’ name. Let us press on so that the lost will be found, the saved will be sanctified, the church of Jesus Christ equipped and that God would be glorified!

If you need to talk to another pastor and pray together for God to grant you His perseverance, please contact me via email or phone. 

 

God does no wrong by causing or allowing things to happen to our temporal bodies and realities

Why anything God causes or allows to happen to our temporal reality is not wrong or evil but rather part of His master plan to make His people holy.

    1. There is nothing in this life (with the exception of our souls) that will live eternally
    2. Any suffering that comes to our bodies will come to a complete cessation someday when our bodies cease to be alive/exist in this realm
    3. God will cause or allow things to happen to our temporal reality in order to change our soul and prepare us for our eternal reality
    4. If God causes/allows cancer or illness or heart attack or any other physical ailment in order to get our attention and cause us to look to Him and let Him save and sanctify, He has done no wrong but rather the greatest good we could ever imagine (the same can be said for stillborn babies, or people born with infirmities or diseases)
    5. If God causes/allows situations that result in us losing a loved one, being bankrupt, diseased/injured or homeless, these are all temporary/temporal realities and we know that He does everything for His glory and for our redemption/holiness; as such He has done no wrong but the greatest thing ever
    6. Even when we suffer for doing evil we must understand that our suffering comes from
      1. The natural consequences of going against God’s spiritual standards
      2. The natural consequences of going against God’s created rule
      3. God’s holy judgment, plan of redemption & deliverance and  the recompense He brings for both good and evil
      4. In any case, God is justified and still good to cause us to have suffering for our own sinful things in order that He will rescue us from the wrath to come and from the darkness of sin, evil and despair
    7. The only way that God would be doing “evil” in His causing or allowing things is if He
      1. Damned a soul to hell when they had done no evil and actually had served Him all their days
      2. Did some harm to their eternal soul (how would this be possible since His perfect, loving, good and holy?)
      3. Intentionally did things to torment people (with malicious forethought) for His own pleasure of reveling in their misery and pain (and this is what the devil does, not God and any accusing God of this are blaspheming God)
    8. As such God does no evil by causing or allowing things to happen to our temporal bodies/realities
      1. Because we know His motive is holy love
      2. Because we know His character is righteous and good
      3. Because we know His end goal is His glory and our holiness
    9. It is important to state that God never causes a person to do evil or sinfully cause harm or take advantage of another person. The heart-breaking reality is that God has given us free-will and as such allows us to choose whether we will obey Him and do no harm to another, or selfishly and sinfully choose to do things that harm others. When this happens, we should never said “God caused this” or presume that God is in some way complicit regarding sinful behaviors. Instead we must be reminded that God only temporarily allows people to cause others harm and one day He will step in and finally put a stop to all oppression, abuse, manipulation, slavery, sexual aggression/abuse etc.

      So when we say that God does no wrong by causing or allowing suffering in our lives, it applies in matters of abuse too. God did not cause the abuse and He only “allowed it” insomuch as He gives us free will and temporarily allows us to sin against others, but when such travesties and tragedies do occur, we know that God is right there with the victim. We must even acknowledge that God was present not only to comfort and help the victim in the aftermath, but was even present before the sinful deed occurred and was begging and pleading with the aggressor/perpetrator to cease and desist from their wicked ways. God has allowed us all to choose righteousness or wickedness, but may we never dare to accuse God of wrong-doing or complicity in our sinful deeds simply because He gave us the gift of free will. May we always and ever remember that everything God does is always holy love and that even in moment when we presume Him to be absent or silent, He is in fact working and will always right every wrong before it is all said and done.

Shepherds after God’s heart

Jesus said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?”… And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep.

John 21:17

 

 

Dear Pastor,

I know you and I are shepherds. We take care of the sheep. We deal with their complaining, we tend their wounds, we feed and nourish them, we protect them from threats and from enemies.

But how does God call us to shepherd? What does it mean to shepherd like God wants us to? 

The Scriptures say to us in Jeremiah and Ezekiel that God had become furious with His shepherds because of the way they were leading His people. Here are some of the things God judged His shepherds for:

  • Being senseless and stupid and not praying for the flock (Jer 10:21)
  • Not tending to the needs of the flock (Jer 23:2 and Ez 34:4)
  • Telling the people “peace, peace” when there wasn’t going to be peace so long as the people continued in disobedience (Jer 6:14)

As a result of the shepherds’ lack of care for the flock, God says that

  • The flock is scattered (Jer 10:21)
  • The sickly are not strengthened,
  • the diseased are not healed,
  • the broken are not bound up,
  • the scattered are not brought back (Ez 34:4)

What a sad reality for the people who are part of God’s kingdom, His holy nation, His Beloved.

But God gives us two great promises that we can hold to:

  1. He tells us that He Himself will shepherd His people (Ez 34:15) and
  2. He tells us that He will give the people shepherds after His own heart (Jer 3:15)

I know that you and I both want to serve the Great Shepherd with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. You and I want to be faithful to everything He has commanded us. We also want to be the shepherds that God has given the people who are after His own heart. And so I encourage you today:

  • Pray for your flock that they may return to the fold

  • Feed your flock on the bread of life, the Word of God, that which truly nourishes and sustains

  • Warn your flock of the danger, threats and the consequences for disobedience

  • Run after those in your flock who have wandered off

  • Help to heal the sick and bind up the broken

If you and I will do these things, as we faithfully and wholeheartedly run after the Lord, I know that we will see the move of His Spirit in our midst.

Thank you for being a shepherd with a heart for God. Thank you for feeding God’s sheep!

Christ is with us, Christ is in us

Mike J

The reality regarding revival and the salvation of the lost

We do not intend for the church to be revived and the lost saved.

If we did, we would make a plan to work toward that end (at all costs) and would work the plan.

We would not give up or give in.

We would persevere until we saw the revival come and the lost being saved and then we would work diligently to keep that move of God alive. This only comes through prayer and the Word, faith and obedience.

If the church intended to be revived she would take the steps necessary for her own reviving and revitalization (after all God has surely already taken His steps which are necessary for us to be revived).Continue reading “The reality regarding revival and the salvation of the lost”

The kingdom of heaven on earth

Dear Pastor/Christian

What does it mean to pray for and see the kingdom of God come to earth as it is in heaven? If Jesus instructed us to pray this, we ought to be praying and diligently working to see this come to pass. God must have fully intended to have His kingdom established on earth and in the hearts of men and women everywhere, otherwise why would Jesus have told us to ask God for that?

I want you to consider what the kingdom of God looks like in heaven. Not the physical descriptions so much as the atmosphere and the spiritual realities.

First of all, in heaven, God’s reign is undeniable and unchallenged. There is no question as to who is in charge, who has all wisdom and power and who is to be regarded in all things. Similarly, if we are to see God’s kingdom on earth, God’s rule and reign must be clearly acknowledged and the centrality of His light, His love, His wisdom and His desires need to be intentionally established.

Second, in heaven, that which is temporal doesn’t matter. The temporal things have already passed away or are in process of passing away. What matters is that which remains: The presence of God, the Word of God, the souls of mankind. Even so for us to see that God’s kingdom comes on earth as in heaven we must see to it that eternal things are paramount and temporal things are considered as nothing. Eternal souls hang in the balance and we need not waste time on distractions.

Third, in heaven, there is a cleanness, a purity and a wholeness to the people of God. And Jesus taught us to pray that which is in heaven would come here to earth. God desires that His people be made whole. God purifies and cleanses hearts, minds, souls, and bodies. And He doesn’t only wait until the death of the physical body but rather begins it as soon as He is given the opportunity by the individual person who comes to Him in faith.

I know there are countless other things we could discuss that are in heaven. There certainly are things God would clearly desire to establish on earth in our churches, families and our own lives. However, if we pray for and begin working diligently on just these three, I believe we would begin to see the mighty power of God at work. What would it be like in your family and church and your own life if God was honored as Supreme, the temporal things simply didn’t matter and there was an absolute purity of body, mind, and soul?

I can’t wait for heaven and I’m glad I don’t have to. You and I can pray for it, preach it and live it even now “on earth as in heaven”

Christ is with us, Christ is in us

Mike Johnson

You are a threat to the enemy

Dear Pastor,

I want to remind you that you are a real threat to the enemy. The devil truly hates you and want to destroy you. First, because you are a child of the King and are following and serving the one true God with your whole heart. The second reason that the devil hates you so much is that you are leading other people to faith in Christ and to an ever-deepening love relationship with Christ. You are a threat to the enemy because anytime the Lord has a vessel that He can speak through and let His Spirit move through the darkness is pushed back further and the kingdom of God advances. So remember to stand firm on the foundation of Jesus Christ and be alert, watching for the attacks of the enemy. The attacks maybe sneak attacks or they might be full on frontal assaults. Remember that either way, God has equipped you with His Spirit and His armor so that you will not only be protected and able to defend yourself but you are also empowered by God to charge into enemy territory to rescue the perishing. So this week watch out for the attacks of the enemy against your mind, your soul, your marriage, your kids and your flock. The attacks will always be an undermining of the Words and the power and authority of God and a temptation to try things a different way. The enemy also loves to keep us distracted and preoccupied with things that ultimately don’t matter, so we need to be alert to that reality as well.

This week, let God be your strength, your fortress, your strong tower. Let God who leads angel armies defend and protect you and let us be sure to give God thanks and praise as we press on in faith, for the building up of His people and the advancement of His glory.

God is with us, God is in us

Mike Johnson