John 15:11, Ephesians 2:1-10 Audio file is at the end of text.
What does God promise? Joy. Really. Jesus made it clear that if we love God and love others as we love ourselves then, "our joy will be complete." Over and over I have said here that you may be tempted by preachers and teachers who try to get you to do something to be a Christ-follower. Wrong. You do not have to send in money to some guy on the TV who says he'll send you back a package of the blood of Jesus and that will draw you to God or win you some points in heaven. I guess some people actually watch these guys and actually send in money or they could not keep themselves on TV.
Do you know Mel Jones? He is my friend and he has a ministry to help people throw off addictions to alcohol and drugs. Mel could do anything and make loads of money. But because of what God has done for him, he loves. That is what he does. He does not have a to-list, he has a to-love list. Mel pours out his life for others because Jesus poured out his life for Mel--and for you and me. There is no way Mel would buy into that TV preacher selling blood because at his very core Mel knows personally the one true God.
So how do we learn from Mel? How do we choose who to believe, who to give money to and who to spend time with? Let's look at the Ephesians passage. It says that we were living pitiful lives of disobedience and self-absorption and then God looked at us and showed us mercy.
That's one for God. God observed that we were in ridiculous need of help and it is only his mercy that creates the opportunity for us to realize our true potential. Next, God "made us alive" in Christ.
That's two for God. God put our rescue in place. "He took our sin-dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on his own, with no help from us! Then he picked us up and set us down in highest heaven in company with Jesus, our Messiah."
The entire Bible is the story of God making us, saving us and trying to help us stay on the path he designed uniquely for each of us. God's done all the work. Following God is not about doing a bunch of stuff because God has done all the work and this passage makes it clear that if God let us work our way to him we would tend to brag about all the good work we do. We would post on Facebook, "Look at the hungry people I fed today. Look at the elderly I read to today. Look at the poor children I bought clothes and books for today. Look and see my picture with the needy. I'm the one in the middle."
No, no, no. It is not about work; it is about love. What does God ask us to do with the two moves he makes on us? He asks us to accept his free gift then love him and love others. That's it. That's one for you. Two for God and one for you.
Now that you agree you need to be rescued and you accept God's mercy and grace in the person of Jesus, you will want to make your own to-love list. Mel's got his and your list will not be like his. Ephesians 2:10 says, "He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing." And, our work must flow out of love.
So how do we learn from Mel? How do we choose who to believe, who to give money to and who to spend time with? Let's look at the Ephesians passage. It says that we were living pitiful lives of disobedience and self-absorption and then God looked at us and showed us mercy.
That's one for God. God observed that we were in ridiculous need of help and it is only his mercy that creates the opportunity for us to realize our true potential. Next, God "made us alive" in Christ.
That's two for God. God put our rescue in place. "He took our sin-dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on his own, with no help from us! Then he picked us up and set us down in highest heaven in company with Jesus, our Messiah."
The entire Bible is the story of God making us, saving us and trying to help us stay on the path he designed uniquely for each of us. God's done all the work. Following God is not about doing a bunch of stuff because God has done all the work and this passage makes it clear that if God let us work our way to him we would tend to brag about all the good work we do. We would post on Facebook, "Look at the hungry people I fed today. Look at the elderly I read to today. Look at the poor children I bought clothes and books for today. Look and see my picture with the needy. I'm the one in the middle."
No, no, no. It is not about work; it is about love. What does God ask us to do with the two moves he makes on us? He asks us to accept his free gift then love him and love others. That's it. That's one for you. Two for God and one for you.
Now that you agree you need to be rescued and you accept God's mercy and grace in the person of Jesus, you will want to make your own to-love list. Mel's got his and your list will not be like his. Ephesians 2:10 says, "He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing." And, our work must flow out of love.
