John Markum

God isn’t Angry

As a follower of Christ, there have been times where I felt like I was a huge disappointment… to God, my family, myself. “How could God ever bless my life? I mean, look at me! He must be so angry at me. I wouldn’t blame Him. I’m angry at ‘me’ too.”

I’m so grateful that God tells us in Isaiah 55, “So high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your ways, and my thoughts above your thoughts.” God doesn’t look at us the same way we look at each other, or even ourselves. As followers of Jesus we will fall, but we are never out for the count because “the Lord upholds us with His hand.” In 1 John 1 and 2, the Apostle John writes to other brothers and sisters in Christ and challenges them to live to the potential that God has placed in them. He tells us to “walk in the light as He is in the light.” But he acknowledges that we will occasionally fail, and in 1 John 1:9 gives us the answer to our sin as followers of Jesus, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from every wickedness.” James tells us that if we will “draw near to God” He will “draw near to you.” God has already poured His anger on His Son Jesus Christ, for our sin. We are free from God’s righteous anger. Because of Jesus, we now have access to God and His love, mercy, forgiveness, and healing.

I can be at my best with God in a matter of minutes when I come to Him for forgiveness and healing. We don’t have to live in fear of the anger of God. We just need to focus on being in a right relationship with the One who took the wrath of God on Himself for us. By doing this, we will “be in the light, as He is in the light.”

Blessings,

John

Knowledge vs. Discipleship

1 Corinthians 8:1 tells us that, “Knowledge puffs up; but love edifies.” It is common in church for us to think that we are “mature” disciples based on our knowledge of God and the Bible. Let me be clear that the more we know about God and His word, the more we can be obedient to Him and His word. But there is a chasm of difference between knowledge and discipleship.

Knowledge makes it possible for me to be a mature follower of Christ; it does not garantee it. You and I need to be ever-learning, ever growing disciples. But we do not become more like Jesus until we behave more like Him. If we can quote the entire New Testament, but fail to love people the way Jesus did, we are not mature disciples. If we know when to stand, sit, and speak in church like a well-trained puppy, but we hold onto grudges, we are not mature disciples.

James 1:22, “But be doers of the Word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” In other words: If we think that hearing and knowing the Word makes us disciples without doing the Word, we’re spiritually dillusional.

Let’s be doers of the Word this week.

Blessings,

John

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