Worthy Words

When a person is dear to you, you assign them special names that further express your closeness and endearment to them. Sometimes these names become nicknames that others join in and give reference too. In the angel’s proclamation, in Matthew 1:21, to Joseph about his future son, he told him, “You are to name him Jesus.” This name, Jesus is honey on the lips of every Christ-follower. Jesus! It is the name that strokes the harps of heaven. There is no name more precious. It is a name beyond price. Just five letters, just two syllables have filled our hearts with eternal hope and everlasting joy. Here are the nicknames or titles of Christ taken from the King James text:  Last Adam (1 Corinthians 15:45), Advocate (1 John 2:1), Almighty (Revelation 1:8), Alpha & Omega (Revelation 1:8), Amen (Revelation 3:14), God’s Apostle (Hebrews 3:1), Arm of the Lord (Isaiah 51:9, 53:1), Author & Finisher of Our Faith (Hebrews 12:2), Author of Eternal Salvation (Hebrews 5:9), Beginn...

For many avoiding temptation is a struggle. Jesus knew that his followers had issues with enticement. When asked by one of his disciples on instructions on how to pray, Jesus included these words, “Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil, [or] the evil one.” Luke 11:4 When a Christ-follower learns to pray they discover that prayer teaches them what to pursue or to avoid in the activity of life.   Therefore, earnest and serious action should be taken to avoid temptation. Our desire should be to walk so carefully in the direction of obedience, that we might never tantalize the devil into tempting us. To use a term my wife uses, “Don’t Poke the Bear!” (This is in reference to not over stimulating a small child, resulting in unpredictable bad behavior). You should not venture into the cave where bears reside thinking it’s ok cause their hibernating—you might pay dearly for such a presumption. It is one thing for a bear to cross your path and chase you, but it is e...

Have you ever been reading along in your Bible and suddenly stop and ask yourself, “Wait a minute, what was just said here?” Sometimes I will read quickly past an introduction to get to the meat of the subject matter. That was what I was doing while reading Matthew 11:25-30. It’s the paragraph that has the quotable lines, “Come to Me, all who are weary and …I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me…For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.” But its introductory statement—“At that time Jesus answered”—stopped my progress. Looking at the context of Matthew 11 it doesn’t seem that anyone has asked Jesus a question. It doesn’t even appear that Christ was in a conversation with any other person. Yet the text reads in NASB & KJV, “At that time Jesus answered and said.” Who was it that spoke to Jesus that issued a response from him? God! Still, there is no record of God the Father speaking to him, but we know when a person answers, they answer the person who w...

Why is it that so many Christ-followers live sad and pessimistic lives? I don’t think they should be that way. They most assuredly would not be if they would always see how perfect they are in Christ. It was the prophet Jeremiah who proclaimed, “And this will be his name: 'The Lord Is Our Righteousness.'” (Jeremiah 23:6 KJV) A Christ-follower can always find the greatest sense of peace and quiet, calm and comfort, when focused on the righteousness of Christ and not their situational status. They are so quick to think about how corrupt and depraved their hearts and lives feel. This is certainly true, but why park in the evil of the soul when just a little further up is the road of righteousness where Paul proclaims, in Colossians 1:28, that we are “perfect in Christ Jesus.” Since Christ has done the hard work. He’s left no stone unturned concerning you through his covenant of grace. That even when you have distress and pain, even when you are assaulted by Satan from all s...

Most people have a common desire to be accepted by others. Do you know anyone who doesn’t seek to be accepted? I don’t think I do. Growing up, I felt that I had to perform in order to be accepted. When I was good at something it seemed that others would pay attention—that they would like and accept me. Experience quickly taught me that good performance equaled acceptance while poor performance often meant some kind of rejection. So, driven by the desire to be accepted, I worked to achieve. Still, I was nagged by the suspicion that whatever I did would not be enough. Unfortunately, I also learned this same lesson in church and in a variety of ways. For example, as a kid, I was part of our church’s Bible Drill program. Every Wednesday night, we learned one of the books of the Bible and on Sunday evening we would compete against other. The one who turned to the verse first and read it out loud the most times, would get a gold star by our name on the Bible Drill roster. Another star w...

The fastest way to the throne of grace is to pray in such a way as to throw your whole heart and soul into it. You should be straining every muscle—just like Jacob did when he wrestled with the angel. This type of praying is usually generated when we find that our relationships have come against us with hatred. Prayer is the surest and safest method in response to words of hatred. King David had this experience in praying this way when lying tongues were making accusations against his reputation. He chose not to defend himself but rather take his issue to “The Supreme Court” and plead his case before his KING. “Be not silent, O God of my praise! For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues. They have also surrounded me with words of hatred, and fought against me without cause. In return for my love they are my accusers, but I give myself to prayer. Thus they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.” (Psalm 109:1-5)...

As a believer I’ve not always lived for Christ. But, when the Holy Spirit—God— awakened me to my life of sin; I started my journey as a Christ-follower. I began to internalize the grace of God by my Savior—Jesus—who appeased the wrath of God by dying on a cross for my sin, guilt, and shame and thus making me right with Him. From the moment I was born again I began to live for Christ. He became my one pearl of great price. I value Him so much that I am willing to part with all I have. Jesus has so completely won my heart that it only beats for Him. He is the pattern for my life. I live to bring Him glory. To die for the gospel would be my highest honor. Jesus, the W ord , is the One who has forged my character. Yet, frequently I fall short because of some of the situations I find myself in. Can you identify? In Philippians 1:21 the apostle Paul, who is in prison and chained to Roman guards around the clock, makes this statement, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” ...