By Arul Gaspar
Our Lord Jesus is worthy to be praised and honoured for eternity, because He is the centre of the gospel. The Lord Jesus is the way, the truth and the life to the world. No man gets saved from sin without Jesus Christ. Therefore, “NO JESUS, NO SALVATION” is an absolute truth and there is no second thought about this proposition.
The Psalmist assures God’s people two essential blessings: the LORD’S strength and the LORD’S peace. This statement has the future time phrases; “will give” and “will bless”. What makes the psalmist go so confident to confess such an expression in regards to ‘assertive faith’ in the Lord Jesus Christ? What drove him to declare such a genuine desire for the Lord?
Had there been no cross and bloodshed of the Lord Jesus Christ, we would have been in the kingdom of Satan and his dominion all through our life. It is His blood that has opened up a great way eternally to seek the kingdom of God. The death of Christ marked an essential purpose for the entire world so that God would be pleased with the participation of His people in worshipping Him in spirit and truth.
Paul in Acts 20:28 tells “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood” (ESV). Jesus Christ has redeemed us from the clutch hold of eternal damnation and brought to eternal life by His substitutionary death. Thus our redemption has come through Jesus’s death.
It is well proven fact that our Lord God is good, fair and just. There is no evil in Him. He is holy. There is sin in him and He cannot sin. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The greatest trouble in the world is to live in sin. When we wallow in our transgression, we cannot recognise the reality around us. When we are dead in sin, God alone can make us alive or revive us back to life from such a peril. Therefore, the Lord Jesus is such a stronghold or strong tower in times of trouble. He is mighty to save us from darkness so that we may glorify Him holy name.
What stands out for us in our life is God’s word. Creations including all the heavenly and earthly bodies are great and beyond our imagination. We become awestruck when we encounter such magnificent things. Do you know what created all these awesome things? It is His Word alone. The Psalmist says, “ I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word “ (Psalm 138:2 ESV).
It is a pure instruction for a younger person involved with God’s ministry. Anybody committed to the work of the gospel of Christ is bound to listen to this piece of time tested advice. If we have denied ourselves…taking up his cross and following the Lord Jesus, we need to show these qualities …
Paul motivates Titus to be a model of good works in the Assembly of God and his elect. In 1 Timothy 4:12, Timothy is intructed to be a person who should not be despised of his youth, but should set the members an example in speech, conduct, love, faith and in purity. Thus we can only reach out our own brothers and sisters in Christ and preach the gospel of Christ when we maintain our words, deeds and thoughts in a Christ-centered fashion.
Paul emphasises on Titus’ godly teaching that stems from his life that clearly demonstrates his cent percent devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. It is clear that we should live out our gospel-entered faith in the society so that God may be glorified. Our quiet and calm life coupled with the Word driven decision making life style can draw many closer to the Lord Jesus Christ.
King Solomon, the wisest of all humans ever lived with God’s grace on the earth talks about restraining our spoken and written words. There are four important words or phrases here: “restrains, knowledge, cool spirit and understanding.” All these four expressions bear the mark of god fearing attitude and outlook.
Eugene H. Peterson in The Message translation states like this: “The one who knows much says little; an understanding person remains calm” (Proverbs 17:27 MSG). Solomon’s words may seem common and secular; however, we can learn a great truth about it considering the fear of the Lord. The same author says, “… Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight” (Proverbs 9:9-10). If we are not righteous or godly saved by the atonement of Christ, we will end up saying a lot in words that are worldy and ungodly. And those words will lack God’s insight. As a result, these empty words reveal our nature that we are not god fearing. What else can you expect from the ungodly except …“the works of the flesh: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, …“(Galatians 5:19-21 ESV).
It is His mere grace that we live under the Lord’s guidance and we are so privileged to have His written words in the form of the Bible. Let’s spend our days in meditating upon the Scriptures.
Who are considered “the righteous” according the Lord Jesus Christ? Who will shine like the sun in the kingdom of God? Why would the Lord Jesus say that ‘who has ears, let him hear.’? Let’s focus on these three questions.
The Psalmist addresses all the people who wait for the Lord God. His motivation is devotional and relational. He touches upon two essential aspects of human control system: mind and heart. These two areas of our life play a foundational role in establishing a rich and satisfying relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. King Solomon says, “[5] Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. [6] In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. [7] Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. …(Proverbs 3:5-7 ESV)
The prophet Jeremiah states, “[23] Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, …(Jeremiah 9:23 ESV) When David was handing the charge to his son Solomon, he said, “[9] “And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever. (1 Chronicles 28:9 ESV)
In all these three discourses, the godly men like Solomon, Jeremiah and David with their wholehearted sense and sensibilities have given importance to one thing in life: giving our heart and mind to the Lord Jesus Christ. If our thoughts, desires and understanding are not subject to the gospel of Christ, our behavioural patterns will not be conformed to the likeness of Christ; the inmost desires of our heart will be tempered with the worldly scholarship, and we finally end up with trusting our ways and means.