Colin S. Smith's Blog, page 100

Where Grieving People Can Find Hope Today

Video Notes:

What in the world could a person call to mind – when their soul has no peace, when they have forgotten what happiness is, when their endurance has perished, and their hope is gone – that would make it possible to say, “This I call to mind and therefore I have hope”?

Here it is: “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23).

One member of our grief group said that the early days of her grief after her son was killed in a terrible accident were like being in a pit. She felt that she was sinking. She could feel herself going down. How could she get out?

She said, “I learned to thank God for the smallest things. I thanked him that the sky was blue and that the sun was shining. If I heard a bird sing, I would say, ‘Thank you, Lord.’ Every time I thanked God for something, it was as if I was taking another tiny step toward climbing out of the pit.”

The focus of hope for the person in the depth of sorrow, trying to put life together in the ruins and rubble of loss, is not the hope of God’s ultimate purpose, wonderful and glorious though that is.

The focus of that hope is God’s immediate presence. God’s mercies are new every morning. Your Redeemer is faithful. He is true. He is with you. He is for you and he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). 

Taken from Pastor Colin’s sermon “Hope and Healing.”

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Walk by Faith When Things Get Worse
For the Person Who Feels Weak
21 Bible Verses About Joy

The post Where Grieving People Can Find Hope Today appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

Key Connections (June 1, 2017)

Do You Resent the Life God Gave You? (Sarah Walton, Desiring God)

If we try to make sense of our circumstances, or compare our circumstances to others’, we will inevitably feel like we drew the short straw.

4 Ways to Encourage Your Pastor (Trevor Forbis, Chuck Lawless)

I have found four easy ways to love and encourage my pastor, and maybe these ideas will help you.

Six Great Devotionals to Read This Summer (Jaquelle Crowe, Unlocking the Bible)

Summer is a richly opportune time to savor the slower pace of life by reflecting, contemplating, and examining our hearts and lives.

The Summer of the Bible (Ryan Higginbottom, Knowable Word)

If you’ve been neglecting God’s word or if you’d just like to make the most of the summer, here are five ways to get started.

What If Unbelievers Aren’t Miserable? (Mike Leake, Borrowed Light)

They seem to be getting along just fine without Christ—so why should we turn over the apple cart? And so we go about waiting for the wheels to fall off so we can share Christ.

The post Key Connections (June 1, 2017) appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

Six Great Devotionals to Read This Summer

Summer often feels like an emotional reset. We slow down and collectively catch our breaths, snatching a respite from the rat race. We pause from the frenetic pace of our daily lives in the seasonal shift, moving from the hurried speed of spring to the lazier, longer days of summer.

This time not only gives us room for an emotional reset, but a spiritual one. Summer is a richly opportune time to savor the slower pace of life by reflecting, contemplating, and examining our hearts and lives, asking questions like, “What are my blind spots?,” “How can I follow God more faithfully?,” and, “What needs to change in my spiritual life for me to thrive?”

Of course, this means we primarily spend time in God’s Word, the most precious, healing, peace-giving book in existence. It is eternally relevant, a constant refreshment to tired, busy, overworked souls. This is where we go to find out who God is and who we are.

But don’t stop there…

Six Great Devotionals to Read This Summer

God has graciously equipped his people to write about the truths of Scripture for specific circumstances, to explain God’s Word through books. One of the greatest gifts to the church is devotionals. These books force us to read Scripture more slowly and reflect on its applications.

Here are six solid devotionals to linger in this summer.

1. New Morning Mercies by Paul David Tripp

This is a year-long devotional, but you could easily start it in the summer. Each devotional is based on a “gospel tweet” Paul Tripp wrote – a gospel truth communicated in 140 characters or less. Every day’s devotional is grounded in a Scripture passage and draws a meaningful and profound lesson for application from it.

As I read through it this year, I continually marvel at how perceptively Tripp diagnoses my heart’s blind spots and magnifies them for me to see. But I’m equally awed by the gospel-grace he extends through the mercy of God’s Word.

2. Don’t Follow Your Heart by Jon Bloom

While this book isn’t described as a devotional, it contains 31 brief chapters that are comfortingly “devotional” in style and tone. But don’t mistake its comfort for a lack of convicting truth. The book is defined as “31 meditations for recalibrating your heart…because your biggest problems in life are heart problems.” This book kindly but firmly pulls you from the tempting bubble of self-centeredness and aims to re-center you on a faithful and focused pursuit of God.

3. Hope When It Hurts by Kristen Wetherell and Sarah Walton

What I love so deeply about this book is both its relevance for the hurting and its empathetic instruction for those who want to help the hurting. We all fall into one of those two categories. That’s why reading these 30 biblical reflections on pain, joy, suffering, and hope will provide a healing balm for the hurting and keen insight for those who want to help them. Summer is a good time for thoughtful introspection (without navel-gazing). This book will help you do that, encouraging you to ask, “Am I serving God rightly in my suffering?” and, “Am I loving others well in their suffering?”

4. The New City Catechism Devotional edited by Collin Hansen

The New City Catechism is a resource recently published with the aim of reintroducing the practice of catechesis into contemporary Christian spiritual life. This devotional was published alongside it, and its goal is to be “a gospel-centered, modern-day resource that not only summarizes important Christian beliefs through 52 questions and answers but also helps readers be transformed by those doctrines.”

Each day contains a catechism question and answer, Scripture passage, short devotional, and prayer. Families will especially find this a helpful tool for their summer. As your kids buzz with free time, take a few minutes every week to help them memorize a new question and answer. Then use this devotional to explain, teach, and encourage them – and edify yourself!

5. The Valley of Vision edited by Arthur Bennett

Admittedly, I’m cheating here. The Valley of Vision could hardly be classified as a devotional. But I think it’s so nourishing that you need to read and savor it this summer. The Valley of Vision is a collection of Puritan prayers that are drenched in biblical insight. They are Trinitarian-focused and laced with vivid prose.

Some are prayers of repentance, some of praise and adoration, others of gratitude, still others of petitions and requests. Pastor and author Joe Thorn created a reading schedule through The Valley of Vision in 13 weeks, reading and praying three prayers a day, Monday through Friday. That’s what I’m doing this summer.

6. 50 Days of Heaven by Randy Alcorn

The only way we can face life with the right motivation and attitude is with an eternal perspective. That requires us to recognize how our time here is short, that we must be living with eternity in mind. So we need to fix our eyes on heaven.

Randy Alcorn helps us do that in this devotional based on his seminal work, Heaven. With warmth, imagination, and Scriptural insight, these reflections will give you a robustly biblical and stunningly happy view of heaven. And that will give you a robustly biblical and stunningly happy view of life.

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When Prayer Is Difficult

I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf. (Romans 15:30)

In my Christian life, I have found that prayer is a difficult discipline. And I concur with others that praying moves through different seasons. My posture may change, my prayers may change.

But whatever season I am currently facing, my specific prayers are often marked by experiences. If I am doubting, I pray for faith. If I’m hurting, I pray for healing. If I lack wisdom, I ask God to give me discernment. If this true for you, we are together in the difficult discipline of prayer, for I am no saint when it comes to fervency of prayer. Prayer is a lagging discipline that needs constant shoring up.

The Difficulty of Prayer

Prayer is a spiritual discipline that needs cultivation. The ground needs to be turned over. Seeds need to be planted and watered. We wait like the farmer, trusting the seed will sprout and multiply its blessing.

Prayer takes effort and constant fine-tuning. We learn to pray. We learn what not to say. At one point, Paul commended Epaphras on his fervent prayer life, calling him a struggler in prayer: “Epaphras greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers” (Colossians 4:12). I like this descriptor that the apostle uses—prayer is indeed a struggle.

The great theologian and pastor Martyn Lloyd-Jones once commented on the struggle of prayer. He said,

When a man is speaking to God he is at his very acme. It is the highest activity of the human soul, and therefore it is at the same time the ultimate test of a man’s true spiritual condition. There is nothing that tells the truth about us as Christian people so much as our prayer life.¹

Paul, likewise, shared his personal struggle. He said, “Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved” (Romans 10:1). Paul’s intense passion for lost people is evident here, and the struggle to pray evangelistically is clearly identified by his words.

Three Reasons Prayer Is Difficult

I believe there are at least three main culprits that inhibit true fervency in prayer.

1. Our flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41).

We have difficulty suppressing physical tiredness and challenges. Perhaps there are days when our mind grows tired. Or we’re physically exhausted from work, from our children, and possibly from weakness due to an illness.

I find that physical weakness is often connected to spiritual weakness (though not always connected). For when the body is weak, our minds can think wrong thoughts about God, and our hearts can begin to believe these thoughts. Prayer time can become ineffective because our minds are distracted and wander to different themes.

I’ve caught myself falling asleep like the disciples. In these moments of lapse, I awake and find myself embarrassed or troubled in spirit that I did not labor in prayer. So I pray, “Lord strengthen my body and mind to pray.” Remember that even simple prayers can be launching pads for effective, fervent prayers to the Lord. 

2. Our faith is weary (Mark 9:24).

We sometimes encounter seasons where faith is diminished. Seasons of pain and trials can be factors in a diminished faith. Unanswered prayer can be difficult to understand. When God’s promises go unanswered, we wonder if he is even listening to our requests.

Believer, during seasons of unanswered prayer, remember that God hears you. He is at work. We must fight to believe and trust the Lord, even when we cannot see him at work. “God, help my unbelief” is a simple prayer to say. Sometimes, we have no ornate or theological verbiage to pray. Simple and sweet. Straightforward and honest. So we fight weariness with prayer. 

Believer, during seasons of unanswered prayer, remember that God hears you.
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Spiritual challenges in other people also keep us from praying effectively. People’s burdens can be difficult to manage alone. I’ve found that small groups, Bible study groups, and other discipleship groups are great opportunities for believers to pray together. Burden-sharing builds unity and lightens the load. Still, the burdens can be unbearable, and we need the Lord’s help. I’m thankful for Romans 8 that says the “Spirit bears witness with my spirit,” for he speaks on behalf of our inability (Romans 8:26-27).

3. Our pattern is wrong (Matthew 6:7).

Sometimes, we approach prayer with the wrong pattern. We spend more time focusing on personal needs than addressing “our Father who is in heaven.” God is to be glorified. He is to be adorned, and he is to be worshiped. 

Following a pattern for prayer is helpful and keeps us from becoming distracted by a personal wish list. Patterns direct our thoughts back to God. For the disciples, prayer was a difficult discipline that needed refinement. They grasped their need to pattern their prayers, so they watched Jesus pray. The Teacher provides them (and us) a helpful pattern to be modeled and exercised. Read through The Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6 and notice how God is exalted, sins are confessed, and needs expressed.

There are contemporary models that can serve as tools for your prayer life, like Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication (ACTS). Or you can simply walk through the Lord’s Prayer by reflecting line-by-line on its main features and applying them specifically to your prayers.

How to Pray Effective Prayers

Why not start with praying Scripture as a simple way to cultivate fervency and effectiveness in prayer? While reading through my Bible, my motivation to pray earnestly grows. Maybe read one verse or passage each day, respond in prayer, and repeat as needed. Here are several starting places:

Nehemiah 1:5-8
John 17:9, 11, 17, 23
Ephesians 1:16-19
Philippians 1:9-11
2 Thessalonians 1:11-12

Praying for needs is also effective when a person knows exactly what to pray for. Churches can manage and store prayers, develop a prayer list in their bulletins, and send prayer requests through emails. Individuals can collect prayer needs on a list, praying through it and updating it regularly. (It’s important for us to keep our lists up-to-date and to follow up with people.)

There will be seasons when prayer lacks intensity or fervency. It may be right now that you are experiencing prayer’s greatest fight. How about returning to prayer today, by the strength God supplies? He helps you, and he hears you.

[1] Martin Lloyd-Jones, Sermon on the Mount, 2 vols., pp. 2: 46. Photo Credit: Lightstock]

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Praying in the Spirit
12 Ways to Sit at Jesus’ Feet (When You Have Neither Quiet Nor Time)
Four Keys to Practice Spiritual Disciplines

The post When Prayer Is Difficult appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

The Good News for All Time

Jesus. If he isn’t the epitome of good news for all humanity, hope is undoubtedly lost. Thankfully, our hope in the Savior is not misplaced or misguided, as Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John record the life, death, and resurrection of the risen King of Kings so we, like those throughout the course of history, would believe in and receive this glorious truth with a childlike faith (Hebrews 11:1).

Good News in the Beginning

God starts this story—though he has no beginning (Revelation 1:8). Since we think in a linear manner, it seems fitting to think about the good news in the context of the first humans. God created man and woman in the hopes that they would dwell with him forever, but their decision to disobey his kind provision led to spiritual and physical death (Genesis 2).

In his great mercy, however, the Lord continued to provide for the man and woman and their offspring. In the course of time, he showed the people how to atone for their recurring sins by way of a sacrifice (see Leviticus 4).

The blood of animals sprinkled on the altar was not enough for complete and total redemption. Accordingly, the son of God willingly laid down his life—once and for all—that we would be restored to God for good. And after tasting death for every man, Jesus was crowned with glory and honor (Hebrews 2:9), an unrivaled glory that will endure for all time.

Good News for Today

The good news started at the beginning of time, when God set in motion a mighty plan to draw all people to him like chicks to a hen (Matthew 23:27). The good news exists today too, in the here and now.

Two verses speak to this, and the first concerns an ongoing process noted in Philippians 2:12: “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” What’s Paul alluding to? Holiness. In the words of author Matthew Henry, “The doctrine and example of consistent believers will enlighten others, and direct their way to Christ and holiness.” Holiness is the daily process of becoming more like Jesus (John 3:30). Going after godliness with all our regenerated hearts, in the power of God’s Spirit, is good news for our spiritual growth.

The second passage that alludes to the daily reminder of the good news of God is tucked into Lamentations 3:22-23: “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” What a thought, to deeply know a faithful God who dispenses fresh mercy with each new sunrise. Every day begins with good news, a mercy that covers our worst sins and leads us toward confession, forgiveness, and repentance.

Good News for the Future

While we know that tomorrow will be greeted with mercy anew like today, what does the larger picture look like? What does the future look like?

If we backpedal to the resurrection of Jesus the Savior some 2,000 years ago, this translates into a different tomorrow for everyone who witnessed that unbelievable moment in time as the stone was beside the tomb. The twelve disciples for example, once stubborn and timid, were boldly proclaiming that Jesus was the Christ (Acts 5:29-32) to all who would listen to their message.

What does this mean for us as 21st century followers of Jesus? We are called to be ambassadors for Christ: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19).

Jesus is the epitome of good news for all humanity, hope for the lost.
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Matthew 28 closes with a comforting view for tomorrow and for the future: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Many of us interpret “end of the age” to mean “end of days” or “the end of time.” Regardless of your interpretation, what’s striking about this verse is that Jesus is likely referencing our end. Since he too is fully God, there is no end for him. He will endure forever.

Lastly, the good news reveals that the enemy will be defeated at the end of the age. The thief who comes to “steal and kill and destroy” will meet his well-deserved demise. “And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur” (Revelation 20:10).

The future is one of hope, as what was started will surely be finished. “And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12: 1-2).

That’s good news.

RELATED POSTS:

The Gospel Is More Powerful Than You Think
Seven Truths to Fight Anxiety About Your Salvation
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The post The Good News for All Time appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

God Never Wastes Your Waiting

Microwaves. Instant downloads. Express lanes. Remote-start cars.

We’re a culture that knows what we want—and we want it now.

Feasting on entitlement and instant gratification, we hate delays in traffic, food service, and the Internet. My coworker says we live in a drive-thru society and because of that we’ve developed aversions to any and every delay, glorifying everything instant.

This bleeds over into our walk with God. We want him to answer, provide, and show himself the second we ask, seek, or knock. But sometimes his answer comes in silence (which is not the same as abandonment) or a whispered, Wait.

That’s where God has me right now. It’s good and hard and holy and is daily exposing my heart, which is tainted by the desire to control everything. Impatience reveals we are not God and that, try as we might, we cannot make things operate on our timetable.

In this reality, I am called to wait. Maybe you are, too.

When the Answer Is Not-Yet

I know we’re obeying the Lord. I know it’s not only right but good that we’re waiting. I know he never wastes a wait. I know that in all things he is plotting for our joy and his highest glory, and that’s what I want.

But as a product of the fall and as a former disciple of the culture, I want instant gratification and satisfied longings. I ache for the fruition of these good dreams and desires. I want to see God’s activity in pulling back the curtain of “wait” and giving the green light to move ahead.

But the light is still red. The curtain remains closed. The answer is still “not yet.”

And God is good. Unwavering. Steady.

Abundant in compassion. Present. Aware.

He sees. He knows. He hears.

He holds our hearts. He holds the lantern for our steps. He guides. He directs.

His plans will not be shaken. And neither will we.

Whom You Are Waiting For

Praise God that sadness in waiting does not reflect the heart of the One asking us to wait. Because we know him, hope rises from the ashes of grief, and we’re given the necessary strength to endure. He whispers, Come to me. My yoke is easy and my burden is light. I’ve carried those sorrows already; I’ll carry them again. I’ll carry you.

And rest is found.

He is with us in the classroom of “wait,” teaching us to yearn for him above all else.

Wait for the Lord; be strong,

and let your heart take courage;

wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:14)

Have you realized that many references to waiting in Scripture are about waiting on God? We are never told to wait on an event, person, or anything but God himself. And in this season of tabling good dreams, that realization has changed everything for me.

For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation.…For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. (Psalm 62:1, 5)

For God alone our souls wait. Why? Because we are to seek him. As C. S. Lewis said in Mere Christianity, “Look for Christ and you will find him, and with him, everything else.” He is the real treasure, the One for whom all souls long.

So we wait for him and all he is.

What I’m Learning in the Wait-Lands

For the believer, waiting should be as familiar as an old blanket, shouldn’t it? The whole Christian life is one of waiting. From the point of salvation we are waiting for full redemption, for the eternal celebration, for the final consummation, and for Christ to make “all the sad things come untrue.” And in response to commanding us to wait for him, God says he’s waiting too. Waiting to be gracious to us (Isaiah 30:18). Amazing. 

If the Lord Jehovah makes us wait, let us do so with our whole hearts; for blessed are all they that wait for him. He is worth waiting for. The waiting itself is beneficial to us: It tries faith, exercises patience, trains submission, and endears the blessing when it comes. The Lord’s people have always been a waiting people. (Charles Spurgeon)

Here’s what I’m learning in the Wait-Lands (not wastelands because God isn’t wasting a thing):

Waiting is not an excuse for a lack of obedience here and now. 

Waiting is not code for “figure this out on your own.”

Waiting is not justification for ignoring what/where God is leading in hopes that he will change his mind and ask something easier of you.

Waiting reminds us to wholly lean on Jesus and stay active in the next thing he’s called us to.
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Waiting is not passive.

Waiting is a verb that not only reminds us to wholly lean on Jesus’ name but to stay active and obedient in the next thing he’s called us to.

Maybe you don’t know with certainty what you’re waiting for, just that you are to wait. Regardless of the circumstances, you can have confidence in Whom you are waiting for.

Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him… (Psalm 37:7a)

Not only that, we can have confidence in Who waits with us.

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)

Wait with Hope

In this period of waiting, we must intentionally resist anxiety and fiercely stake our hope not in what we can figure out, but in the One who knows the end from the beginning, who soaks his love into our every breath. We can rest in God who is never idle but is righteous in his rule and flawless in his faithfulness.

That truth stands through the harshest nights and deepest pains. For proof, we look to the cross, where what appeared like God’s inactivity gave way to victory for sinners, and three days of waiting produced the most glorious display of love, hope, and power the world will ever know.

Anchored in that reality, my prayer for us is that, instead of worrying and fretting over what may or may not happen in the next season (or the next), God would find us active and faithful in our waiting.

Worry springs from not being convinced of a sovereign God’s absolute love for you. Worry disappears when you realize that God loves you unfailingly and will let nothing interrupt his plans for your good. (J.D. Greear)

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Key Connections (May 25, 2017)

Why Do Churches Wound Their Pastors? (Dan Doriani, The Gospel Coalition)

Why does the church freely, cruelly criticize its pastors for falling short of perfection? Why do we forget that Jesus alone is perfect, that Jesus alone redeems?

Five things to pray after the Manchester attack (Rachel Jones, The Good Book Company)

Perhaps your heart broke as you switched on the news this morning and saw pictures of last night’s terror attack in Manchester. But if you’re a Christian, you’re not powerless to help—you can pray.

Do I Need to Confess Every Sin to Be Forgiven? (Tim Augustyn, Unlocking the Bible)

If we had to confess every single sin in order to be forgiven, that would be an unbearable burden!

70 Prompts for Praising God (Lianna Davis, Of Larks)

Praise Him with me through this list of 70 prompts.

5 Warnings to Those Who Merely Pretend To Be Godly (Tim Challies, Challies)

There is in each of us a dangerous temptation toward hypocrisy, to be one thing but to pretend to be another.

The post Key Connections (May 25, 2017) appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

Five Ways Jesus Transformed My Marriage

“I have never been more mean in my life since being married,” I said to him.

These words were not spewed in the midst of an argument or disagreement; rather, my husband and I were enjoying time together. I had been spending extra time in the Word seeking the Lord’s guidance for my recent behavior toward Matt, and was convicted of my actions. My irritability, short temper, passive-aggressiveness, and sarcasm had consumed me.

What frustrated me at the time was that our marriage wasn’t in the throes of marital lows. Our marriage was strong, solid, full of joy and laughter. Matt and I established a deep, committed, abiding friendship and intimacy—so what was the problem?

I Left Jesus Out of My Marriage

In loving guidance, the Holy Spirit uncovered hidden baggage that still threatened to haunt me. I had become uncomfortable with my past decisions, sexual rebellion, and destructive relationships. The enemy had deceived me into believing that I was not good enough for Matt; he taunted that my husband was too good to be tied to someone like me, that if he knew who I really was back then, that he’d have a change of heart.

For a moment, the enemy had gained control of my heart and mind. I was ignoring and forgetting the transforming and eternal truths of my Savior. I was leaving Jesus out of my marriage.

How Jesus Transforms Marriage

Whether you’re a newlywed or have been married for decades, the gospel has the power to transform your marriage in ways you cannot. I know this; I’ve seen it. When Matt and I invited Jesus into our marriage, our union was elevated.

Friend, may you be encouraged by these five ways Jesus works in and through marriage.

1. Jesus makes us new.

Everyone comes into marriage carrying baggage or unique experiences from their past. Like me, some struggle with guilt, shame, regret, and damage from past relationships or sexual rebellion. Others wrestle with separating from the conducts in which they were raised.

The good news of the gospel says that we are new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17), free from guilt and condemnation (Romans 8:1). Because of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, we have unlimited mercy and forgiveness from the Lord (Luke 1:76-78). Our past sin and shame no longer have the power to condemn and confine our marriage.

2. Jesus forgives.

As sinners, we fail one another and God daily. But because of Jesus, grace and forgiveness is ours to receive and ours to give (Matthew 10:8). We are equipped to forgive our spouses because Christ forgave us (Ephesians 4:32). Nothing we do to our spouses can compare to the offenses we’ve committed against the Lord. Thankfully, because of Christ, the hostility, resentment, and bitterness we are prone to display can also be forgiven and forgotten.

3. Jesus meets our needs.

Whether intentional or not, spouses place pressure and expectations on one another based on their experiences or preconceived notions. We wrongly expect our spouse to fulfill and take care of our needs and demands—and we forget that Christ is the only one who can strengthen us, fill us, and know us completely (Ephesians 3:16-19).

Scripture reminds us that Jesus desires for us to ask him to take our burdens (Matthew 11:28-30), and by bearing one another’s burdens, we fulfill the law (Galatians 6:2). He alone can deliver us from the weight we project and the weight we carry.

4. Jesus gives us his Spirit.

Jesus isn’t some distant, silent onlooker in our marriages; Christ’s Spirit lives within us (John 14:23; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Galatians 3:13-14), helps us in our weakness, and intercedes for us (Romans 8:26). This is a comforting truth that I remember when there’s conflict, frustration, and attacks from the enemy.

When the enemy gains control of my thoughts, I can count on the Spirit to guide me in godly truth (John 16:13). Likewise, the truth that the same Spirit lives within my husband and me, who is working within both of us, eases my fears and worries. We can abound in hope (Romans 15:13) and live in freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17).

5. Jesus broke sin’s power.

Though sin will be a constant active force in our marriage, the power it has to break us has been broken by our blessed Redeemer. As we are united in marriage, so are we united as believers and family in Christ’s life, death, and resurrection (Romans 6:3-10). We are no longer slaves to sin and have been set free; we are dead to sin and alive in Christ (Romans 6:10-11). Sin is no longer our master because we live under the freedom of God’s grace (Romans 6:14).

Christ’s life, death, and resurrection are not simply points of salvation, but the way of salvation, renewing and transforming those who believe day by day. The good news to all who have placed their trust in Jesus is that he is the solution to marriage—because he alone saves and gives us the power to enjoy it.

RELATED POSTS:

How I Found Peace in My Pain
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What Should I Do When I’m Struggling to Read God’s Word?

There are times when I read God’s Word…and the words seem to fall flat. I’m hungry to hear from God, eager to meet him in my Bible—yet nothing jumps off the page or particularly moves my heart.

This can feel like looking at a delicious meal, and wanting to enjoy it, but having no appetite for it.

Identify Your Motives

Such hunger and disappointment reveal two attitudes about the human heart, one we should pursue and be thankful for, and one we should confess and flee from:

First, our hunger and disappointment mean we desire God—this is good! We want to hear from him, because we love him and want to obey him. We desire to know the God who speaks and walk closely with him by opening the Scriptures.

But our hunger and disappointment can equally say we expect God to reveal himself on our terms and timing, according to our needs and feelings. If we’re not careful, our time in God’s Word can become less about knowing him and more about checking off a list of spiritual duties to make ourselves feel good.

Usually, our hunger and disappointment are some combination of both.

Recognize Your Dependence

C.J. Mahaney says in his book Humility, “One morning, I’m profoundly aware that God is near to me, while the next day I can sense only His absence….I’ve learned that regardless of how I feel when I’m finished reading my Bible in the morning, I can know that I’ve made the statement, ‘I need You. I’m dependent upon You.’”

As I’ve battled through Bible reading in certain seasons, this reminder has helped and humbled me. We open our Bibles to see God and depend on him, and what better opportunity to do this than when we struggle to sense his presence and be moved by his Word. We need God even to meet with him, and this need produces humility within us. So, in a divine turn-of-events, the dryness we feel leads to deeper dependence, exposing our motives and increasing our desperation for God to do what only he can do.

Read God’s Word through Four Helps

Several things have been helpful for me in pursuing humble dependence on God for the reading of his Word each day:

1. Prayer

Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. (Psalm 119:18)

Prayer is an expression of our dependence on God and another aspect of our communion with him. Through prayer, we’re reminded that we approach God the Father through Jesus, not our efforts or merits. Prayer humbles us from plunging into the Word with a self-sufficient attitude and tunes us to the Holy Spirit, who alone can open our spiritual eyes to see and apply his truth.  

Prayer reminds us that spiritual sight is God’s work, not ours; we open his Word by the strength he supplies and trust him to act. Because we know God will never leave or forsake us, we can have confidence he’s speaking and working, even when we can’t sense it. We pray because we cannot read our Bibles to see God’s glory apart from his enlightening help.

2. Confession

Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! (Psalm 139:23-24)

When God’s Word feels dry to me, I can walk away from it feeling insecure and bitter. So I bring this concern before God in prayer and confession, asking him to search my heart.

There are a couple ways our sinful pride is exposed as we read our Bibles:

Insecurity. If “how well” we read our Bibles, and what we “get” from the reading, is the measure of our time with God, then we’ll feel insecure when these are lacking. Insecurity is another angle to pride: It’s self-confidence fighting with failure and refusing to rest in grace.

Bitterness. Pride also lives at the root of bitterness, which says we deserve certain benefits from God and can therefore be upset when we don’t receive them. So we become bitter if he doesn’t act the way we think he should.

Pride is sin. It’s always lingering in our hearts, but a dry season of reading God’s Word exposes it. Leverage your time of prayer to confess pride and sinful motives to God, and ask him to lead you in the way of humble dependence through a repentant heart as you read.  

3. Other Believers

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints…Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth… (Colossians 1:3-5)

Friend, if the Bible has felt dry to you lately, you’re not alone—fellow believers are in the same boat. Yet, many are experiencing the opposite: While some of us are struggling through it, others are enjoying God and seeing much in his Word.

This should encourage us; God is indeed at work among and within his people! When I’m discouraged by my time in the Bible, and I hear how God is growing the faith and love of my sisters and brothers through his Word, I’m encouraged to press on, trust him, and rest in his grace. This is one reason why the local church and its small group ministries are so vital.

4. Grace

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)

There’s a reason Bible reading is called a “means of grace.” We engage with God’s Word not to earn his favor but because we already have his favor, not to work for our salvation but because Christ has finished the work on our behalf. We dive into the Bible’s depths to remember and enjoy what’s already ours in Christ.

We can pray before we start and confess our sin to remember how God gives grace to help us in time of need. And we grasp this grace freshly when nothing seems to jump off the page at us: Our standing before God isn’t dependent on this, but on Jesus Christ, who never changes and is always at work.

Believer, if reading God’s Word has felt like a struggle lately, rest in his gospel. God’s grace abounds even in this.

RELATED POSTS:

Three Keys to Enliven Your Prayers
Spiritual Dry Spells: Causes and Cures
Three Keys to Abide in Christ

The post What Should I Do When I’m Struggling to Read God’s Word? appeared first on Unlocking the Bible.

Bible Q&A: Do I Need to Confess Every Sin to Be Forgiven?

Question: Pastor Smith made a statement that “God only forgives the sins that we confess.” My question is in regard to the inference that the sins we do not confess are unforgiven. The problem I see is that we are all in trouble because no one can remember all of their sins to confess.

Answer: This really is a good question! And the original quote is from Dr. Alan Redpath: “God has not promised to forgive one sin that you are not willing to forsake.” And you’re absolutely correct: If we had to confess every single sin in order to be forgiven, that would be an unbearable burden!

The key words in the Redpath quote are “not willing.” The question is not, “Have you really confessed all your sins?” The question is, “Are you holding onto a sin, and refusing to turn from it?” These are two very different things.

The first is an issue of remembering all your sins; the second is the issue of a willful refusal to turn from sin. Pastor Colin (and Redpath) was, in fact, saying that God has not promised to forgive our willful refusal to turn from sin.

This is an important distinction because our forgiveness does not depend in any way on our performance in the Christian life. Our forgiveness depends entirely on the finished work of Christ in his perfect life and atoning death on the cross. The question that is being raised here with the Redpath quote is, “Do you have an authentic Christian life? Is the Spirit of God at work in your life?” The authentic Christian willingly turns from sin.

I pray that this explanation would be clarifying and helpful, leading you to find rest in the finished work of Christ.

Pastor Tim

RELATED POSTS:

Bible Q&A: Have I Committed the Unforgivable Sin?
Bible Q&A: What Do Muslims and Christians Believe About Getting into Heaven?
Bible Q&A: Are We Commanded to Read the Bible in One Year?

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