Beauty Not Ashes

Happy Easter! Today is a wonderful day as we remember the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, Jesus is alive and He is alive forevermore. Jesus came to earth to save us from our sins, to redeem us and reconcile us back to God. We were lost in our sins with no hope. The Bible describes our spiritual state as dead, but in Christ we have a new life in our hearts. Why do we have a new life? Because of the blood of Jesus that was shed upon on the cross, we have been redeemed. Jesus suffered and died, but on the third day he rose again. In Him we have hope, we are reconciled back to God. John 1:12-13 tells us that we become the children of God. Galatians 4:6, tells we can now called God “Abba” which means father. God becomes our father. Wow, what a wonderful promise. We have eternal life in Jesus Christ.

How can we experience this new life? We repent of our sins, asking God to forgive us, and we believe in our hearts and confess with our mouths that Jesus Christ is Lord. (Acts 2:38, Romans 10:9,10)

“He is not here; He is risen just as He said.” Matt 28:6

This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalms 118:24

Many times the cares of this world, worries, problems, troubles, the rush of modern living can make us forget that each day is a gift from God. Not only is it a day made by the LORD. It is a day to rejoice. Rejoice? That may sound distant and unattainable, especially when things are not going our way. However, the Bible reminds us to rejoice in the Lord always. Yes, we find our joy in the Lord. When we make God our refuge, when we focus on His goodness, His might and all that He gives to us each day we have reason to rejoice. Most of all, He loved us so much that He gave us His one and only begotten son Jesus, to die for us on the cross at Calvary. When we make a decision to follow Jesus, to repent of our sins and to make Him Lord and Savior; He then redeems us and purifies us.

Today we can choose to make the decision to do the right thing, to pray, to love God, to praise God, to rejoice in the LORD.

In the book of 1 Samuel we learn that when Saul was king he disobeyed God’s command and God was not pleased with him. God told Samuel to anoint David to be king. Even though David was anointed he humbly and faithfully served Saul. He did whatever Saul asked him to do. However, Saul became jealous of him and tried to harm him. So David escaped and remained in hiding for many years as Saul kept pursuing him. Eventually David became king.

No Saul can stop the blessing of God on your life, as long as you continue having faith in God. The storms of life can come but this cannot stop the promises of God from coming to pass. However, we need to learn from how David responded to those who wanted to harm him.

1.  David did not seek revenge. Even when he was presented with two separate opportunities to revenge, he did not harm Saul. Instead, he spared Saul’s life and remained very respectful of him. 1 Sam 24 and 26. Jesus said in Matt 5:44, “But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
2. David waited for God to avenge for him.
3.  David did not celebrate the death of Saul, instead he mourned for him and his son Jonathan. 2 Sam 1:17-24, 2 Sam 2:4-6.
4. David waited for God’s perfect timing. Even though he was anointed as king many years before he actually became king, he waited till the people came willingly and anointed him as king. 2 Sam 2:4, 2 Sam 5:1-5
5. David continually relied on God for guidance. 2 Sam 2:1, 1 Sam 23:1-2

James 5:16 – The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

I remember hearing a phrase many years ago – prayer changes things- and it does. Through Jesus Christ we have been reconciled back to God. In Heb 4:16 the Bible reminds us, we can approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we can receive mercy and find grace in our time of need.

Note, that the verse above talks of righteous. Is it our righteousness? No, it is Christ who died for our sins, it is His righteousness and through Him we can go to God in prayer.

As we go before God in prayer we need to remember our need to grow in our relationship with God. We need to abide in Him and His Word to abide in us. Prayer should spring forth from our faith in God and our love for Him. Realizing that we need Him and most importantly He is our Creator. He knows us better than we know ourselves.

Psalm 107 talks about how God rescued people who were in trouble. It describes different situations in which people find themselves in trouble and distress. In all these situations they cry out to the Lord and He rescues them.

Psalm 107:13 – Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress.

This reminds us that in our trouble we can cry out to God for help. It then goes on to say that they should give thanks to the Lord.

Psalm 107:15 – Let them give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for mankind.

God is so good, He is so kind and we need to continually thank Him for all that He does for us. For the gift of life, for food, for shelter, for friends and family. Even, thank Him for His beautiful creation, the birds in the air, the sunset and sunrise and the list is goes on and on.

In Habakkuk 3:17, Habakkuk describes a bleak situation, there was no bud in the fig tree, no grapes on the vines, failed olive crop, no food in the fields, no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls. It may be a situation that you feel right now, where nothing seems to be working out and the future looks bleak, no hope. But in verse 18, this is Habakkuk’s resolve and it should be our resolve.

Habakkuk 3:18 – yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.

We can find hope and joy in the Lord, we can rejoice in the Lord. Apostle Paul, while he was in prison encouraged the believers to rejoice in the Lord always, he repeated this again. This joy, this deep seated joy comes from having a relationship with Jesus. He gave His life to reconcile us back to God. 2 Corinthians 5:19.

Maybe you do not have a relationship with Jesus and are wondering where to begin. God is never far from us. First, acknowledge that Jesus is the Savior of the world, that He was born of a virgin and died on the cross and on the third day rose from the dead. That He died on the cross for your sins and mine. Confess your sins and invite Him into your life to be your Lord and Savior. Confess Him as your Lord and Savior.

Jesus Christ died on the cross to take away our sins. One preacher rightly said, “The cross demands a decision.” When you get to hear or know about Jesus as the Savior of the world. You are faced with a decision of whether to make Him your Lord and Savior. There is no neutral decision, even a lack of a decision is a decision. However, I would encourage you to say “Yes” to Jesus, to ask Him to forgive your sins and for Him to be your Lord and Savior. There is no greater joy than to know our sins are forgiven and we have the hope of eternal life.

Jesus was crucified between two robbers, one robber asked Jesus to remember him and the other did not. We too are faced with a choice.

The beauty of it all is Jesus is alive. On the third day, He rose again from death. He is alive forevermore!

In Mark 4:35-41, Jesus told His disciples to go over to the other side. As they sailed a sudden furious storm blew over the boat, so that it was almost swamped. Jesus was sleeping. The disciples woke him up saying, “Teacher don’t you care if we drown?” Sometimes, when we face difficulties it seems like God has forgotten us. Jesus rebuked them for their unbelief. God is fully aware of our situation, of the difficulties we are facing and He cares. He not only cares, but He is able to change the situation around. We need to put our trust in Him.

Mark 4:39 – Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.

Inspite of their fear and doubt, the disciples knew where to run to in the face of the storm. They ran to Jesus. Do we run to God in the face of trouble, calamity or danger? Is God our first response? Do we run to Him knowing that He is Almighty God and able to help us? No situation or crisis catches God by surprise. Like the disciples we should run to Him for help. He is able to speak to our storm and say, “Peace, Be still!”

 

 

John 16:33 – “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

John 14:27 – “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

These are the words Jesus spoke to His disciples. He reminded them that even in the midst of trouble He is the giver of peace. He had given them His Word, so that they may have peace. God has given us His word, He has given us the Bible. His word is true; His word is living and is relevant for us today. God promises to give us His peace even in the midst of trouble. He is a good God and loves us so much! Jesus is the Prince of Peace!

Today, I encourage you to spend time reading your Bible and meditating on His promises. Take time to pray and cast everything that troubles your mind and heart to Jesus.

1 Peter 5:7 – “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”

In this time of uncertainty and worry it is easy to lose hope, but the Bible reminds us that we should cast or commit all our anxiety to God. Notice that it says all, all means all, whether it is worry about our future, worry about our relationships, worry about of finances or worry about anything else. We can cast all our concerns to God. He is bigger and greater than anything we face and He has the solution. He will make a way where there seems to be no way.

At this time I encourage you to talk to God. He is never far from you. He hears every prayer. Commit all your cares, worries and anxieties to Him.