Author: Kerry

It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. For if those who live by law are heirs, faith has no value and the promise is worthless, because law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression. Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.
Romans 4:13-16

Only One Way

“There is more than one way to skin a cat.” The origins of this English saying are uncertain, but the meaning is clear. There is more than one way to achieve an aim. There is more than one approach to solving a problem. There is more than one way to get from A to B. Whatever you are trying to do, there are alternate ways of doing it; if plan A fails, one goes to plan B, and so on.

While this may be true in many earthly endeavors, the apostle Paul makes it clear that it is not true when it comes to heaven and eternal life.

For example, if you could get to heaven following God’s laws, the “more than one way” axiom would be true. One person could choose plan A, another plan B, and so on. However, the law does not bring life; the law brings wrath. That’s because where there is law, there is sin, and where there is sin, there is condemnation. The way of the law as a means of righteousness and eternal life does not and cannot work. That leaves us with only one way.

And what a beautiful way it is! The promise comes by faith. Righteousness comes by faith. These are beautiful words: by grace… guaranteed… to all!

The righteousness that comes by faith in Jesus is the way for all. It is the only way for all.

That is not a limiting truth; it’s a liberating truth. You are free from doubt, worry, and uncertainty concerning your eternal future. You are free to rejoice, worship, serve, and live. Free, through Jesus.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, you are the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Help me cut off every thought and philosophy that suggests there is another way from me to you, from earth to heaven. May I rejoice in you always! Amen.

“You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
John 3:10-17

The Need for Understanding

Nicodemus was a religious leader in Israel and a teacher of the people. He should have understood what was going on when Jesus came, but he did not understand because he did not realize that Jesus came from heaven.

When we realize the basic fact that Jesus is the Son of God from all eternity who came from heaven to earth and became a human being, we begin to understand.

When Jesus was lifted up on a cross, it did not look good. It was hard to understand how anything helpful might be happening. But there was a time when Moses lifted up a statue of a serpent on a pole, and the people who looked at it were saved from death.

Now a similar thing happens. Jesus was lifted up on a cross. His suffering there paid the punishment for our sins. Everyone who looks to him in faith will receive eternal life. It’s tough to understand, but Jesus came from heaven to accomplish and explain it.

We need to understand. God arranged everything because he loved us. Jesus did not come to condemn us because of our lack of understanding. Instead, he came from heaven to save us.

Prayer:
Lord, give me the understanding of your great love and keep me safe all the way to eternal life. Amen.

Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”
John 3:5,6

The Need for Baptism

The man talking to Jesus was confused. How do you enter the kingdom of God?

Jesus explained that people enter the kingdom of God when they are baptized. Baptism is not just plain water but water used by God’s command and connected with God’s Word, which is how the Holy Spirit does his work. Because baptism is like starting over in life, Jesus compares it to being born. Jesus was telling the man that he needed to be baptized.

You need to be baptized too. Baptism gives you forgiveness for your sins, and you need forgiveness.

You need to be baptized. Baptism makes you holy, cleansing you by the washing with water through the word. Without holiness you cannot enter heaven, where everything is holy.

You need to be baptized. Baptism clothes you with Christ. When you are wearing the spiritual clothes of Christ, the only man who has ever lived a holy life, you appear holy in the eyes of God the Father, and he welcomes you into his kingdom.

You need to be baptized. Baptism makes you a child of God, a member of his family. With baptism you can call God your Father, and you can depend on his Son, Jesus Christ, your brother.

You need to be baptized. Baptism connects you to the death of Jesus, and that payment for your sins on the cross is exactly what you need to go through death and enter eternal life in heaven.

You need to be baptized. Baptism saves you, not because it removes dirt from your body, but because it connects you to the resurrection of Jesus Christ and gives you a clear conscience.

You need to be baptized!

Prayer:
Let me always, Lord, remember that the water and the Word bear your never-failing promise: my salvation is assured. Amen.

It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.
Romans 4:13

The Need for Righteousness

A Mormon woman who had become Lutheran took me to the apartment where the two young Mormon men on their mission were staying. We had a nice discussion. The young men mentioned the “gospel” a few times. I asked them what they thought the “gospel” was. They replied, “The gospel is the set of laws the heavenly Father gave us to show us how to get to heaven.”

Mormons aren’t the only people who think the gospel is a set of laws. Abraham and his offspring were given special laws by the Lord, and it would have been easy for them to think that following those laws would get them to heaven. But even the promise that the Savior would come from the line of Abraham was not given because Abraham and his offspring would keep those special laws.

Religions around the world have each devised their own set of laws for pleasing God or getting to heaven. None of them work. Getting to heaven does not happen through obeying God’s law. Getting to heaven happens through the righteousness that comes by faith.

What does “the righteousness that comes by faith” mean? “The righteousness” is the perfect life of Jesus, the only person who has ever lived a perfect life good enough to get to heaven. “Comes by faith” means that whoever believes in Jesus has his perfect life credited to them as a gift.

The gospel is not a set of laws. It is not through the law that you receive the promise of salvation. The gospel is a promise. You are going to heaven through the righteousness that comes by faith.

Prayer: (Christian Worship: Hymnal – 405)
On my heart imprint your image, blessed Jesus, King of grace,
that life’s riches, cares, and pleasures have no power to hide your face.
Let the clear inscription be: Jesus, crucified for me,
Is my life, my hope’s foundation, and my glory and salvation. Amen.

What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter? If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God. What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.
Romans 4:1-5

The Need for Faith

You might think that God likes people who do good things. God is definitely in favor of good things. He is the one who tells us what is good and what is bad, and he also clearly tells us that he wants us to do the good things and refrain from doing the bad things.

But you are missing something very important if you think that your reward is heaven because you do good things. Good things do deserve a reward, but for the reward to be heaven, you have to do the good things perfectly every moment of your life.

Only Jesus has done that. He did all the good things and refrained from doing all the bad things every moment of his life. But rather than taking the reward of heaven, he suffered the punishment of hell and then declared that the righteous life he lived would be the ticket to heaven for everyone who believes in him.

In the Bible reference for today, we hear that Abraham did good things. He went to heaven, but not because of those good things. Abraham believed in the promised Savior, and even before that Savior arrived, God said that Abraham was righteous and could go to heaven, not because of what he did, but through faith in Jesus.

It works the same way for you. God doesn’t try to figure out whether you have done enough good things to be called godly or ungodly. He knows that his Son, Jesus, has done enough, and when you believe in Jesus, that faith is credited to you as righteousness.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank you for giving me your righteousness. Amen.

The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
Genesis 12:1-3

A Gift to the World

The Lord asked Abram to move away from his extended family to a brand-new country, a place where he had never been, a place that God did not even identify at first.

Abram could probably have made quite a long list of things he needed. There were so many uncertainties. He had to have a way to survive, to support his immediate family, and make a new home.

God was undoubtedly aware of those needs. But he was looking out longer than the next couple of years. Abram would be blessed, and his reputation would be good. If people were against him, they would be cursed. Abram’s descendants would become a great nation.

Those are amazing promises! Then God made a promise even more amazing. He said that all peoples on earth would be blessed through Abram.

God saw beyond Abram’s immediate needs to the future needs of the entire world. He knew that everyone in the world would need a Savior from sin and death. So he planned that the Savior, Jesus, would be a descendant of Abram, a blessing to the entire world.

God knows that you have immediate needs. He promises to bless you and take care of you. Then he looks to your more far-reaching needs, like forgiveness of sins and salvation, and he provides you a gift in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. That gift is for all people on earth. That gift is for you.

Prayer:
Lord, help me when I am consumed by my immediate needs, and lift my eyes to the cross of Jesus, where you took care of my needs for eternity. Amen.

The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” So Abram left, as the Lord had told him.
Genesis 12:1-4

Faith Trusts God

How many times have you moved in your life? Often there are many worries, anxieties, and fears that accompany moving to a new place. Abram likely experienced many of these feelings when the Lord called him to leave home.

Yet “Abram left.” Driven by God’s great promises, he did what the Lord told him. God in his undeserved love had chosen Abram. Of all people, the Lord came to Abram and promised to make him into a great nation, to bless him, and to make his name great. Those who showed kindness to Abram would be rewarded with blessing, and those who showed hostility would be cursed. Ultimately, God promised to bless all people through him. Moved by God, Abram obeyed.

When we look at Jesus, we see how God fulfilled this promise to Abram and to us. Through his Son, God has blessed all the peoples on earth. The curse of sin that came to all people through Adam has been replaced by the righteousness won for us by Jesus. Faith trusts what God says is true.

Faith also leads us to obey God’s commands. What crossroads lie ahead in your life? What challenges do you face in your walk with Jesus? How does God ask you to follow him on a daily basis? As you answer these questions in your own life, consider the example of Abram. By grace, he trusted in God’s undeserved love for him and willingly did what God told him.

Prayer:
Dear heavenly Father, you have blessed all people through the life and death of your Son, Jesus Christ. Moved by the forgiveness of sins and your promise of life eternal, help me to trust in you as I face the challenges and temptations of my everyday life. Amen.

How much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!
Romans 5:15

One Man

In 2014, author Boris Johnson wrote a book entitled, The Churchill Factor: How One Man Made History. In his book, Johnson makes the case that our present world would be a very different place had it not been for the presence of one solitary man—Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of Great Britain during World War II.

To make his point, Johnson paints the scene. It is May of 1940. Churchill has just become Prime Minister. The war is not just going badly for Britain; it is going very badly. She is alone. Her armed forces are weak. Her allies in Europe are in collapse. And the Nazi military machine is devouring territory in real time. Churchill meets with his cabinet. The question before them is simple. Does Britain cut a deal with Hitler, thereby saving countless British lives, or does it choose to fight? Johnson asserts that we forget how close—how very close—Britain came to cutting that deal. One man, Churchill, convinced them to fight. Remove Churchill from that cabinet meeting, Johnson says, and Western Civilization as we know it would have vanished.

As irreplaceable as Winston Churchill may have been, however, even the rescue of Western Civilization is a small matter in comparison to what lay in the balance at another time. That time was when all of humanity was lost in a darkness of its own making. It was not the darkness of Nazi rule or political repression. It was the darkness of sin—yours and mine. Such darkness meant a pointless, miserable experience, separated from the goodness of God. And there was not a thing anyone could do to stop it.

Except for one man. And this one man was more than a man. He was the very Son of God who chose to walk among us as a human being. On our behalf, Jesus Christ lived the perfect life that the holy God demands. Then, in our place, Jesus took upon himself all of the punishment that all of sinful humanity deserved. And at the cross he paid the price in full.

That one man—the God-man, Jesus—changed everything. Our rescue is complete. Forgiveness is ours. Now through faith in him, the darkness is gone.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, you are the one man who has changed everything. Move me by your Spirit to look to you alone. Amen.

The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done? The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Genesis 3:12,13

Taking Responsibility

When’s the last time you heard someone take responsibility for their actions? Owning up to one’s behavior is a rare thing these days. When caught in a lie or in an unpopular decision, politicians pass the buck. After doing something inappropriate, athletes duck behind lawyers. When engaging in questionable behavior, celebrities hide behind the facade of popular opinion. Even when public apologies are made, they are often in the form of legally prepared statements that are carefully crafted to avoid acknowledgement of guilt.

It is easy for us to shake our heads and condemn such actions, but truthfully, we aren’t any different. Like so many others today and like Adam and Eve in our Bible verses for today, we too seek to blame others for our actions and avoid taking responsibility for those actions. We blame our up-bringing. We blame the circumstances of the situation we were in. We blame people we were with when the bad thing happened.

While passing the buck and denying responsibility might deter others from holding us accountable for our actions, it does nothing before God. God sees through it all and demands that we come clean for our sinful thoughts, words, and actions.

Thankfully, when we do that, we see that we have someone who took the blame for us. Knowing that we could not make our sins right, let alone own up to them, God sent someone who would take ownership of sin. Even though he personally never committed sin, Jesus took ours on himself. He picked up all our sins and carried that heavy burden all the way to the cross, where he died for each and every one of them. He suffered and died so that we wouldn’t have to. He didn’t blame us even though he had every right too. Rather, he died so that we might live.

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for dying in my place. Forgive me for my sins. Enable me each day to own up to my sin and trust that you have removed them from me. Amen.

But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
Genesis 3:9,10

Hide and Seek

Do you remember playing hide and seek? Many parents have loved playing that simple game with their young children. Dad or mom would often hide in obvious places, but the toddlers were so happy to find the parent that they would giggle with delight. They were so cute when they played that game.

It is not so cute when we play hide and seek with God. He is always calling out to us in his Word, but we tend to hide, even as adults. Maybe we feel guilty for not being in God’s house more often. Maybe we don’t want to address our own life choices that we know aren’t God pleasing. Maybe we are angry at God or one of his representatives. And so we hide. And like when our parents hid from us as toddlers, we hide from God in rather obvious places: places like work, Netflix, excuses, and even kids’ sports. While we think we are conveniently unable to make time for God, it is all painfully obvious to him that we are trying to hide. He knows exactly where we are and what we are thinking.

And by a miracle of his grace, he still seeks us. He still comes to find us even though he knows all our sin and all our guilt. In love, he seeks to find and save us. That is exactly why he sent Jesus into this world to be our Savior. A Savior who was willing to suffer and die to pay for all of our sins. A Savior who would pay for and remove all our sin, guilt, and shame so that we could now have a right relationship with God. Because of Jesus and his work for us, there is no reason to hide. No reason to fear coming back to God.

So maybe it is time to stop hiding. Come out, come out, wherever you are! Find free grace and forgiveness from God through Jesus.

Prayer:
Dear Jesus, forgive me for the times when I hide from you and your Word. Thank you for taking my sins away. Enable me to come back to you every day. Amen.