Pastor Stephen Dedman

Tag: grace

In The Likeness Of Jesus

Encouragement

“The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”
Numbers 6:24-26

One of the greatest blessings of being a Christian is knowing that God sees the righteousness of Jesus when He looks upon those who believe in Him. He doesn’t see our faults and failures; He sees the righteousness of Jesus that has been gifted to us.

Some people mistakenly believe that God is only pleased with them when they do good deeds. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. God is pleased with you and only wants good things for you.

God is never ashamed of your imperfections. He desires to bless you and give you peace. He wants you to be made perfect only through Jesus Christ.

If you want to understand who you are through Jesus Christ you need to recognize that God is perfecting you through His Son. Pauls said it this way, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.” (Philippians 3:12)

We are far from perfect. But everyday we should strive to be more like Jesus. Jesus makes all things new!

Pray

Lord, thank You for giving me Jesus. I look forward to being more like You everyday. Help me to understand that I am being perfected through the works of Jesus.

Jesus Is Judge

Faith

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
II Corinthians 5:10

Aren’t you glad you have the forgiveness of Jesus Christ? It’s all because of Jesus that our sins are washed away and our lives are pure and righteous before God.

Reading 2 Corinthians 5:10 with the mindset that our sins are not forgiven is terrifying. While it is true we will stand before the judgment seat of Christ one day, we must also keep in mind that our sins (past, present and future) are forgiven and forgotten.

I pray you stand before Jesus one day and He looks you in the eyes and says, “well done good and faithful servant!” Those are the words that every Christian strives to hear from our Lord.

If a believer is freed from all sin then what will we be judged for when we appear before the judgment seat of Christ? Since Jesus took upon Himself the punishment of sin (death) what is left to be judged?

We will be judged on how we lived our lives here on earth. The moment that Jesus came into our lives and transformed us we started living for Christ.

Remember this… every tree is judged by its fruit. You are known for what you produce. It’s either good fruit or bad fruit. If you produce good works you are rewarded and if you do bad deeds, you will lose your rewards.

As a Christian your citizenship is secured in heaven. Praise God! Nevertheless, God expects His children to live godly to glorify our Father who is in Heaven.

Pray

Lord, thank You for saving my life and forgiving me of my sins. Help me to appreciate the free gift of salvation that has been graced upon me. Help me to live my life for Jesus today.

What Are You Seeking?

Encouragement, Trust

For My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭2:13‬

Why would anyone ever forsake the Lord?  Could there be anything better than the Lord?  

God can only give good and perfect gifts and could never cause any evil on anyone.  Sometimes we encounter times in our lives when we drift away from the Lord and seek our selfish ways.

Jesus said, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” (John 7:37)  Jesus wants to give us an endless supply of fresh living water.  A water that will last for eternity.  A living water that gives all.  

Why would we ever seek for anything else but what the Lord has to offer?  God said, “My people have created their own water pots that can’t even hold water.”  This is so true when we try to rely on our own power and strength.  Without God we are nothing and can do nothing.  God desires to give us the best that He has to offer.  The problem is when we think that we can do something bigger or better than God. There is nothing in this entire universe that could ever out do God.

Think about the things that you are seeking in your life today.  Are they the things of God or the things of your own desires?  Be careful not to forsake the fountain of living water that God has to offer.  His ways are much better than our ways.  His provision is much healthier and will sustain us for eternity.  If you are encountering a dry spell in your relationship with the Lord, the problem is not with God.

Pray

Lord, Your promise is that we I seek You, I will find You.  When I draw you close, You draw unto me even closer.  Let me experience Your power today.