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The Door in the Valley of Achor

Joshua 7-8; Psalms 69; 1 Corinthians 5   “…’That which is devoted is among you, O Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove it’…Over Achan they heaped a large pile of rocks, which remains to this day. Then the Lord turned from his fierce anger. Therefore that place has been called the Valley of Achor ever since.” Joshua 7:13, 26 When secret sin is in our lives, we, too, cannot stand against our enemies. God’s call to us is that we, too, remove our secret sin, repent, renounce, and cry out to the Lord for mercy and forgiveness. The Lord’s fierce anger against sin is what nailed Jesus to the cross to pay the price for our rebellion. It is the cross which redeems and transforms our sinful heart into purity. God’s desire is to redeem even the most painful and shameful sin into a testimony of his mercy and forgiveness. In Christ, the “Valley of Achor”, or ‘trouble’, can become a doorway of hope (Hosea 2:15). In Christ, our sin-sick hearts can be transformed. If we are i

Wait, then Shout

  Joshua 3-6; 1 Corinthians 4   “…’Do not give a war cry, do not raise your voices, do not say a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then shout!’...When the trumpets sounded, the people shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the people gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so every man charged straight in, and they took the city.” Joshua 6:10, 20 God’s call is often to wait before we go. Waiting in silence reveals our hearts and our motives. We learn obedience and self-control as we wait. Neither the Jericho walls nor any other walls will come down because we march or because we shout; they will only come down because God removes them. Will we wait on the Lord? Will we obey the Word of the Lord? The people’s loud shout on the seventh day of a very unusual battle was a shout of agreement with God.   When was the last time we, too, shouted in agreement with the Lord and his trumpet signal? There is a call to the followers of the Lord to fully engage his mission to reach ever

Building Materials that Last

Joshua 1-2; Psalms 37; 1 Corinthians 3   “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. 1 Corinthians 3:11-13 Are we building faith, hope, and love into each other’s lives, or self-serving values and beliefs that will be consumed with the fire of God’s presence? The foundation of our life in God and of our salvation is Jesus Christ. With the clarity of Christ’s life, as set before us in the gospels, how can we promote, or consume, self-serving teaching? When we build with Christ, we will be living with humility, surrender, love, and the fear of the Lord. We will resist temptation and instead value the gold of faith, the silver of purity, and the precious stones of hope and love. The holiness

Our Story of Christ

  Deuteronomy 32-34; 1 Corinthians 2   “When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.” 1 Corinthians 2:1 How did the gospel come to us? Is our faith resting on man’s wisdom, or on God’s power? Paul was exposing the insufficient foundation for faith in God when it is based on eloquence and superior wisdom. But aren’t eloquence and superior wisdom what fills auditoriums and sanctuaries? Paul’s capacity to debate and use words to sway opinions might not have been as strong as Apollos’; however, his knowledge was formidable. His repeated strategy, despite his capacity to argue from logic, history, and intellectual capacity, was to testify to God’s revelation in Christ. Paul knew Christ. His passion was to introduce others to the living Christ. When we personally know Christ, we, too, have a testimony of the gospel’s power to transform. We, too, have something powerful to share with even the most intimidating i

The Journey of Restoration

Deuteronomy 30-31; Psalms 40; 1 Corinthians 1   “I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.” Psalm 40:1-3 Where do we turn when we are stuck in the mud and mire of sin, despair, or hopeless circumstances? David waited patiently for the Lord. When our sin has placed us in the mud we must humble ourselves and repent. We must resist the lies and oppression of the enemy in the mighty name of Jesus. However, we must also wait on the Lord. It is the Lord who will deliver us. It is the Lord who uses our mud and mire to discipline us so that we, too, learn to obey the truth and resist the lies and deceptions of the enemy. Restoration is God’s heart for us. He wants our feet on a rock and a new song in our mouths. The testimony of restorat

The Harvest is Worth It

  Deuteronomy 28-29; Galatians 6   “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9 God does not grow tired or weary, but he does give strength to the weary and to those who wait on him (Isaiah 40:28, 29). The harvest waits for the proper time. As we sow gospel seeds, and water, fertilize, and nurture faith, we are dependent on the Lord of the harvest who makes faith grow. The harvest is the multiplication of the gospel seed within us into full maturity and fruit which is a hundred fold and more. Working with the Holy Spirit each day to please and obey the Lord requires perseverance and discipline. Loving our neighbor as ourselves is tiring in our own strength. In the power of the Spirit, we can love one another through doing good and waiting on the Lord for the full harvest in both our lives and the lives of others. This kingdom-harvest is worth it! Let’s not give up. All our obedience and faith will be worth it

Love Expresses Faith

  Deuteronomy 25-27; Galatians 5   “…The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” Galatians 5:6 What would we say really counts in our walk with Jesus today? What are we counting? Are we counting daily Bible reading, prayer, gospel opportunities, church attendance, and tithing? Paul points us to faith, count faith. How is faith measured? Paul points us to love and the fruit of the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives. Faith requires action to be visible; but, when we only measure the actions we can miss the source. Love for our neighbor as we love ourselves is the summary of the whole Law of Moses. When faith in God is expressed through this kind of sacrificial, generous love, we know it counts and is worth counting. How are we counting faith? Taking a few minutes to reflect on our current faith-journey and where the Lord is inviting us to grow could change our prayers and behavior in the days ahead. Let’s keep our eyes on the Lord, the author and perfecter of ou