The Heaton File

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

By Grace

The first time the word “grace” is found in Scripture is when Noah found favor or grace in the eyes of the Lord. It was in the Garden of Eden that grace was first demonstrated after Adam and Eve took the forbidden fruit. God created Adam and Eve, placing them in the garden to tend and care for it. They were told to eat of every tree of the garden, but the tree in the midst of the garden, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, was forbidden. God warned that in the day they ate of its fruit; they would die. Satan deceived the woman who took of the fruit and gave it to her husband. The eyes of both of them were open, and they knew they were naked. Hearing the Lord walking in the cool of the day, they hid themselves in fear.

Sin brings fear. Adam and Eve did not fully understand the consequences of their actions, but they knew to fear God. When the Lord confronted Adam and Eve, He told them the consequences of their disobedience would be grave. He punished Eve with sorrow in pain in childbirth. Her desire would always be in submission to her husband, as he would rule over her. To Adam, the Lord cursed the ground, and that he would labor by the sweat of his brow to survive. Fearing Adam and Eve would eat of the tree of life and live forever, God cast them out of the garden, protecting the tree with a cherubim at the east of the garden and a flaming sword guarding the way to the tree of life. What Adam and Eve experienced without them knowing it was the grace of God.

The Lord had no other choice but to save man. His righteousness is found in the grace He gave Adam and Eve. Before time began, a plan was in place to redeem sinful man through the gift of grace. When Adam and Eve sinned, God did not abandon them to their own folly without the promise of salvation. He told Satan the woman would bring forth a seed who would destroy him and bring about his eternal ruin. The first message of grace was ironically told to the devil that through Jesus Christ, God would save mankind. God did not destroy Adam and Eve and create two new beings. He formed Adam from the dust of the ground and, taking a rib from Adam, created Eve. The Lord could have destroyed what He created as easily as creating them. Instead, the Lord preserved Adam and Eve, placing upon humanity the consequence of sin as a curse.

Grace is the love of God to offer the world a way of escape. When Adam and Eve sinned, the best they could do was to hide from God. Did they know how to save themselves? Was hiding in the trees a way to escape the wrath of God? As a result of sin, Adam and Eve became fearful, trying to hide from God. They could not find an answer to fear. Hiding from God was useless. Adam and Eve could do nothing to save them. The first heartstring of grace was when Adam and Eve realized their Creator was not going to destroy them but to save them. Facing the wrath of God, Adam and Eve found grace in the eyes of their Redeemer.

The story of grace is found in Noah. God determined to kill everyone on the earth because they had become so wicked. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord because he was righteous, but he had no idea what God was going to do. Grace came when God told Noah what He would do and how Noah could save himself and his family. Noah believed to the saving of his soul, and eight souls were saved through the grace of God. Without obedience, Noah would have been lost. God told him to build an ark, and he did. The water that destroyed the world saved eight righteous souls. Grace through faith in obedience saved the family of Noah.

Today, grace is found in the word of God. The Lord will not destroy man off the face of the earth because He has given His Son as the sacrifice for sin. Grace is found in God, providing a way of escape. Nothing in human wisdom could have devised and brought about the plan of salvation. Everyone is like Adam and Eve – helpless and alone without God. By grace, a man is saved through faith. Adam and Eve were saved by grace. Noah and his family were saved by grace. Every faithful child of God partakes of the grace of God as they act upon their faith to be redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. What a joy to know how much God loves us that while we deserved His wrath, He gave us His love.

And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” (Acts 2:40)

A Perverse Generation

Sin is not new. It has been in the world since Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. Satan lost no time in destroying the minds of nearly every soul on earth when God destroyed all life in the flood, except for Noah and his family. The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Paul illustrated the depravity of the human mind when he described for the Romans how God gave men up to the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies for vile passions. Women exchanged the natural use of what is against nature. The men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another. A perverse world filled with those who committed what is shameful because they did not retain God in their knowledge.

Marriage was created by God when he formed Adam from the dust of the ground and Eve from a rib of Adam. The Lord created male and female for the purpose of a holy union that would bring children into the world. Jesus declared that His Father made male and female in the beginning. He further said that when a man divorces his wife and marries another, he commits adultery. The one who marries the woman commits adultery. What Jesus declared was that the difference between a husband and a wife is the gender of male and female. Throughout scripture, the husband is the male party of the marriage, and the wife is the female party of the marriage. This is the only union that can produce children. Two men cannot produce a child no more than two women. It is a natural impossibility for children to be created outside the law of God.

A recent headline suggests a man is on trial for the death of his husband. It seems incredulous at the perverseness of a generation would accept and promote the agenda of a perverse view of marriage. The irrationality of such a suggestion reveals how the world’s mind becomes polluted by accepting an impossibility. Common sense cannot answer the conundrum of ungodliness when men use language that exposes their ignorance. Calling a man a husband does not make a man a husband. A perverse world is a generation that is crooked in its thinking. To pervert a thing is to distort its purpose. Man was not created for man, and woman was not created for woman. Biology proves that. God created male and female, and only through the creative process of a man and woman can a child be created. There is no deviation in the creation of children, but only a perversion of the union of man and woman.

When a nation turns away from God, it begins to make its own laws. The stupidity of human reasoning is that they try to create something that God has established cannot be changed. When men burn in their lusts for men and women burn in their lusts for one another, it does not alter the established created plan of male and female. At best, they only make themselves to be fools. Jesus died to establish the truth God created in the beginning and turn the hearts of a perverted generation back to the Father. Peter told those gathered in Jerusalem to save themselves from a perverted generation. That generation began with Adam, and it continues to this day. The challenge is finding hope in a broken world through the grace of God and restoring the principles of male and female as designed by the Creator. It is sad a man was murdered and a life lost. Sin never brings anything good.

Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38)

Luke’s Stories About Baptism

Luke is the author of the Acts of the Apostles. He is writing an orderly account of the early days of the church for a man named Theophilus. As a historian, Luke assembles the stories from his research and personal experience. Luke inserts himself into the story when Paul and Silas are called to go to Macedonia to preach the gospel, and Luke continues to travel with Paul in his travels. Paul will mention Luke in his letters to Colosse, Philemon, and his final letter to Timothy. The Acts of the Apostles is exactly what the title implies. Luke tells the stories surrounding the beginning of the church and the fulfillment of the Lord’s command to spread the gospel to all nations. The first part of Acts focuses on the work of Peter and the latter half on the work of Paul.

Jesus commanded the eleven to preach the gospel to every creature under heaven. He told them to make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Those who believed and were baptized would be saved, and those who refused to believe would be condemned. Jesus instructs the eleven that the message of repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem. After Jesus ascended back to the Father, the eleven went to Jerusalem as instructed by the Lord. Ten days later, on the first day of the week, the (now) twelve apostles were in Jerusalem when the Holy Spirit came upon them, and the work of the church began.

During the Feast of Pentecost, devout Jews from every nation gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Harvest. A great sound drew the crowd to the twelve men from Galilee who began preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. Luke records Peter’s sermon as the basis of the new covenant granted to all men by the grace of God. Jesus had promised Peter that he would be the one who would open the doors of the kingdom to the world. When Peter showed the people that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God and that fifty days earlier, He had been killed on the cross, three thousand souls responded to the message of the crucified Christ. When asked what they must do to be saved, Peter told them to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins.

Luke writes that God added to the church daily those who were being saved. As the story of the church unfolds, Luke shows how the gospel was preached in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the world. Philip went to the city of Samaria and preached the gospel, where both men and women were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. A sorcerer named Simon believed and was baptized. Philip taught a man from Ethiopia the gospel of Christ, and he asked Philip why he could not be baptized. They both went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.

The apostle Paul began his story in the Acts of the Apostles as the great persecutor of the disciples of Christ. He imprisoned men and women who were Christians and persecuted them in foreign cities. On a trip to Damascus, the Lord appeared to Saul and instructed him to enter the city and learn what he must do. Three days later, Ananias tells Saul to rise and be baptized to wash away his sins. Saul becomes a devoted servant to the Lord God and will be known as the apostle Paul. Peter brought the gospel to the Gentile world when the Lord brought him to the household of Cornelius in the city of Caesarea, where he baptized Cornelius and all of his household.

Outside the city of Philippi, Paul baptized Lydia and her household. Imprisoned falsely, the Lord set Paul and Silas free from their prison in Philippi. The keeper of the prison was baptized along with all of his household. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue in Corinth, was baptized along with his household. Many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized. Aquila and Priscilla taught Apollos, a great orator but who was only versed in the baptism of John, the way of the Lord more perfectly about the baptism of Jesus. Paul found twelve men in Ephesus, whom he thought were disciples of Christ, but still followed the baptism of John. When Paul taught them the gospel, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

Luke was a first-rate historian who told the story of the early church, showing the grace and mercy of the Father on sinful man. He shows the apostles did what Jesus commanded them. People were taught about the love and grace of the heavenly Father who promised eternal life to those who heard the word, believed Jesus was the Christ, and confessed His name, repenting of their sins, and washed in water for the remission of their sins. One of the key elements repeated in every story is the importance of baptism. Sins are washed away only in the waters of baptism, where the blood of Christ is found. Salvation comes through the grace of God. Belief, confession, and repentance are vital and necessary, and without them, there is no salvation. Faith leads the heart to accept the word of God. The new birth will not happen until one is immersed in the waters of baptism. If you deny baptism as necessary for salvation, you deny what the Holy Spirit wrote through the pen of Luke in the Acts of the Apostles. Why do you wait? Arise and be baptized and wash away your sins.

Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. (Mark 4:18-19)

Choking God Out Of Our Lives

Augustine (A.D. 354-430) said, “God wants to give us something, but cannot, because our hands are full – there’s nowhere for him to put it.” In the parable of the sower, Jesus explained that the thorny ground was consumed by the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things. Many things in life are good, wholesome, and not sinful. God wants His people to be industrious and busy in caring for their families and being a productive part of society. What often happens is not that a person is engaged in sinful activity, but rather that life becomes so busy that God is crowded out. Like Augustine observed, God wants to bless the soul with His grace, but there is no room because life is so full of the cares of the world.

Being busy is not a sign of productivity. Spinning wheels in sand create a lot of motion, but unless there is traction, there is no movement. Life can be full of good things that become the downfall of faith because they consume life, leaving no time for God and no room for Him in the heart. One of the consistent lessons throughout Scripture is the importance of making time for God.

Men and women of great faith found time to spend with the Father. Abraham was the patriarch of a huge family (he had 318 trained servants of war), but he never allowed his responsibilities to overshadow his worship of God. Jesus was an extremely busy teacher throughout his nearly three-year ministry. The disciples would often find the Lord alone in a secluded place, seeking the favor of His Father. Jesus took time to open His hands to the Father. If Jesus needed to spend time with the Father, no one needs it more than His followers.

Life can become so busy that there is no time for God, but the day will come when everyone will make time for God. The hands may be full of the affairs of life, but if God is not allowed to be part of that life, the soul will stand before the Lord with empty hands and empty hope. Life must be about examining what needs to be done and what needs to be left undone. God will not force Himself into the lives of His people. He waits to bless and give His children what they need, but He cannot do that when their hands are full of so many other things.

Crowding out God never serves a good purpose. Men seek the awards and accolades of their peers for being so productive and busy, but if they have not prepared themselves for eternity, their lives are empty. Never become so busy that God is not first in everything. He demands and seeks first place because He loves us. God gave the gift of His Son, proving to the world what He is willing to give. When life becomes so consumed by the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things, God has no room to find Himself. The gift of Jesus becomes a rejected offering of grace and mercy. Eternal life is found when we empty our lives to fill them with the Divine. All things in this world perish. Take hold of eternal life, which will never be taken away. Open your life to the glory of the God who made you.

We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.” (Romans 15:1-3)

Who Do We Please?

Pride and self-centered thinking are the bane of the soul. Selfishness is the trait of thinking only about oneself and what can be done for self-gratification. The world is a selfish place. It is all about “me, me, me” and little about others. Men pride themselves on their own accomplishments and glory regardless of others. Entitled people believe the world owes them everything because they are the center of the universe, demanding respect and recognition. The Christian lives above the selfishness of the world because they follow the example of Jesus Christ. God loved the world enough to send His only begotten Son, and Jesus loved the Father enough to empty Himself to walk in the flesh among men. Jesus did not come to earth to please Himself. He did not die to please Himself. His death on the cross was not about Him because He had no sin. In the greatest selfless act of Jesus dying on the cross, God shows the love of selfless sacrifice for others.

What makes the sacrifice of Jesus more astonishing is that Jesus died in the face of those who hated Him, yet He forgave them. He knew His sacrifice would bring the blood of redemption to humanity, accomplishing the eternal plan of His Father. Jesus had no sin, but He had to suffer and die to save the lost. His life was forfeited to serve others. He did not please Himself. Everything Jesus did was to save others. In a selfless act of love, the Son of God died so the world could find eternal life.

The example of Jesus is the pathway His followers must walk to be His disciples. Jesus did not please Himself, and His followers learn how to remove selfishness from their lives to help others. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Some struggle with greater burdens than others. Paul’s admonition to the Roman saints was for the spiritually strong among them to help those who struggled with weak faith. Not everyone is on the same plane of faith as others. Some, through years of struggle and devotion to God, have a deep and abiding knowledge of the love of God and the power of forgiveness. Those new to the faith face many struggles and often make many mistakes. Like a newborn baby, the Christian must grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ to maturity – but that takes time. The weaker Christian needs the help of the older Christians to be patient with them and help them.

A hallmark of the Christian life is the willingness of God’s people to seek out opportunities to please others ahead of self, leading to edification. The purpose is to build others up. An edifice is a building, and to edify is to build a strong support structure to help others endure the storms of life. Selfishness cannot accomplish the love of God. The Christian is not trying to please himself but to help others. It takes a sacrificial heart to do things that will edify another. When the strong in faith help the weak in faith, they do so not to please themselves, but to help others on their journey of faith. Walking in the footsteps of Jesus demands that those steps be measured by self-sacrifice. Christ did not please Himself. Follow His example.

His name shall endure forever; His name shall continue as long as the sun. And men shall be blessed in Him; all nations shall call Him blessed. Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only does wondrous things! (Psalm 72:17-18)

His Name Is Not Forgotten

A genealogist researches the ancestral heritage of people or families. Creating a genealogy is an account of the descent of a person or family for many generations. Names fill the register of the account of ancestors who thrived in life, going about their daily activities, enjoying whatever measure of happiness derived from their time on earth, and stories recalled through generations. The names of genealogy fill books to the curiosity of the family heritage, but the knowledge of the individual fades with each generation. A name on a register is only a name. Forgotten is the fullness of their story and who they were.

Countless names fill the registry of a genealogy forgotten over the centuries to remain as names on marble headstones or book inscriptions. These names represent people who lived full lives, contributing to the world whatever measure of honor was mustered in the brief moment of life. John Chrysostom said, “If you knew how quickly people would forget you after your death, you would not seek in your life to please anyone but God.” How many generations can a person remember? Someone can remember what their grandfather said and did, and sometimes what their great-grandparents may have done, but beyond that spectrum of time, lives are lost and stories forgotten.

The harsh reality of life for those who seek to build a legacy is that they are soon forgotten and remembered no more. Who can remember the most important accomplishment achieved by a person in 1923? At the time, the world honored a renowned person, and thousands spoke the individual’s name. But what about today? Is that name mentioned or recognized? Forgotten in the ages of the historical dustbins of time, names are gone, and no memory is given to their life. History will remember an infinitesimal number of names with historical accuracy, but 99.99% of people are forgotten, their names banished to the oblivion of insignificance.

Fame is fleeting, and legacies are the errands of fools. The Bible has preserved names that have been known for thousands of years. Abraham and Sarah are remembered. A woman named Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite, is remembered in Holy scrip. Dorcas, an early disciple of Christ in Joppa, is remembered by the Holy Spirit. The name of the Lord God has been remembered since the beginning of time and will continue as long as the sun rises and sets. Men shall be blessed in Him; all nations shall call Him blessed. Jesus Christ is a name that all men know. Most in the world deny Him being the Son of God, but they acknowledge His story after two thousand years.

The difference in the legacy of man and the story of the Divine is that men forget the names of men, but they cannot forget the name of their Creator. What makes the plight of man sad is the feverish efforts made for the world to remember their names – and in death are soon forgotten. What a wasted life. If the souls of men would spend more time seeking God to remember their names, what a change would come in their lives. God writes the names of the saved in the Book of Life and will forever be inscribed on God’s heart when they are found faithful. The goal of man should never be to leave his name in the ages of human history, but to hear the Lord God proclaim his name to the heavenly hosts, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter in.” Men will forget you. God will never forget you. Live for the One who knows your name and will shout your name in the counsel of the faithful.

When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel. (Judges 2:10)

The Next Generation Lost

Twenty-five years earlier, the nation of Israel crossed the Jordan River and conquered the land of Canaan. Joshua, in his eighties, led the victorious Israelites on a seven-year campaign to complete what had failed to materialize forty years earlier. God delivered the Canaanite nations to Israel as He had promised Abraham. At the age of one hundred and ten, Joshua encourages the people to choose to serve the Lord God with sincerity and truth and to put away the gods of their ancestors. The son of Nun exhorts the people to decide who they will serve, but his house will serve the Lord. There is no hesitation in his voice. His firm conviction is established in the promises of God without reservation.

The people of God respond with firm conviction that they would never forsake the Lord to serve other gods because they know what God has done for them. They recount how God delivered them from Egypt with great signs and preserved the nation throughout the wilderness wanderings. The hearts of the people affirm their oath to serve the Lord who drove out the people of Canaan, including the Amorites. They will serve the Lord God and Him alone. Joshua warns them not to make a hasty decision unless they are fully convinced in their hearts. Again, the people respond that they will only serve the Lord. The people say to Joshua, “The Lord our God we will serve, and His voice we will obey.” 

Joshua died and was buried within the border of his inheritance at Timnath Serah, which is in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaash. Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua. When all that generation had died, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the great wonders He did among the people in Egypt and the forty-year wanderings. Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals and Ashtoreths. There was no king in Israel, and everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

It did not take long for the hearts of the people of God to be turned aside to idolatry and the whoredom of the land. One generation fiercely protects its faith, promising to follow the Lord God and Him alone. It takes very little time for a generation to come that does not know the Lord and turns away from righteousness. The next generation would not listen to the judges who taught them the truth. Their hearts longed for the pleasures of the idolatrous world, so they played the harlot with other gods. They turned quickly from the way in which their parents walked in, keeping the commandments of the Lord. Faith was lost in the next generation.

The scriptures do not reveal the exact reasons why the following generation became so wicked, considering their parents and grandparents before them. By virtue of human nature and other stories in the Bible, it seems that the generation of Joshua knew the word of the Lord and lived according to the Lord’s commandments, but they failed to impress upon their children and grandchildren the love of the Lord. They affirmed without reservation that they would never forsake the Lord to serve other gods. What God had done for them was firmly planted in their hearts. They promised to serve the Lord and to obey His voice – and they did exactly that. What they failed to do was to show their children the way of truth.

Israel forgot God because the parents failed to teach their children to love the Lord their God with all their hearts, souls, and minds. Generational faith is not accomplished by osmosis. Men and women of faith must teach and demonstrate to their children the love of God by keeping His commandments. Taking them to a church building has its benefits, but if the children do not see God in the daily lives of their parents, they will turn to the world for their pleasures. Parents can be good commandment keepers who send their children to Hell for lack of showing them the love of God. A generation arose who did not know God – do not let that generation be your generation.

For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. (2 Corinthians 5:1-4)

Desiring Immortality

Jeremy Taylor wrote, “God hath given to man a short time here upon earth, and yet upon this short time eternity depends.” The Holy Spirit describes life as a vapor that appears for a short time and then vanishes away. Methusaleh lived to be 969 years of age, but he died like all men. Life is a brief moment in the eternal pattern established by God for man’s habitation to dwell. In youth, time seems endless, but in old age, time is fleeting. The body begins with vibrance and vitality, maturing into adulthood and the prime of life. The years of youth are transient as they quickly turn into middle age, knocking on the door of old age. There is very little for life to hold on to. The body is wracked with disease and aging. Challenges abound. The joy of youth diminishes. Life ends.

Everything in life must be viewed from the reality of what life is. Death is a certainty that everyone wants to pretend is not a certainty. It is a futile exercise to maintain youth. The power of aging is greater than the youth hormone, and everyone ages to the appointment of death. No one escapes the finality of death. People look forward to retirement and then discover how close retirement is to the final act of life. Throughout the scriptures, God demonstrates to the world the futility of ignoring the inevitable consequences of sin. Jesus did not take away death. He took away the sting of death and the victory of Hades. Death is not conquered fully until the final judgment when God casts death and Hades into the lake of fire and brimstone.

Understanding the brevity of life and the certainty of eternity changes and challenges the mind to consider how to live. Instead of desiring to live more in this life, the soul turns to a desire to embrace immortality. Paul describes the body as a tent, something temporary. A tent is not a building with its firm foundation and strong walls. The tent serves a purpose but is not permanent. For the child of God, death is nothing more than an open door inviting one to bask in the eternal glory of God. Living in the tent of flesh is a burdensome and toilsome journey. For the Christian, the desire to be clothed with the garments from heaven is the heart’s greatest desire.

Life can be hard. It can be filled with trouble. For the child of God, there is a strong desire to experience death to experience life. There is nothing to fear about death. The dying process may challenge the mind, but the ultimate reality of passing into the realm of eternity is a deep longing for the faithful heart yearning to be with God. We groan in this tent, being burdened, but we want to be clothed with eternity. That takes a greater faith. Looking forward to eternity with a greater anticipation of living is a remarkable leap of faith. It is possible when the heart fully trusts in the promises of God.

The core question that all men must answer is what their greatest desire in life is. Some seek fame and fortune, leaving a legacy for history to record. This is an empty life because everyone is forgotten over time. Eternity is different. No one is forgotten. Through faith in God and His great and precious promises, the child of God earnestly desires to experience death to experience eternal life – to be clothed with immortality. The desire is for mortality to be swallowed up by life. God promised eternal life when He raised Jesus from the dead. Walk by faith, not by sight. Live each day with the hope that eternity will come. It may be a while before that day comes, but one day it will. What a day that will be.

Come, behold the works of the Lord, who has made desolations in the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two; He burns the chariot in the fire. Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah (Psalm 46:8-11)

Be Still

Before refrigerators were invented, icehouses were used to store and preserve food. These icehouses had thick walls, no windows, and a tightly fitted door. Large blocks of ice were obtained during the winter and covered with sawdust to prevent melting. This would allow the ice to last well into summer. One day, a man lost his valuable watch while working in the icehouse. He and his fellow workers diligently searched for the valued timepiece without success. A small boy heard of the problem and slipped into the icehouse. He soon emerged from the cold with the man’s watch. The men were amazed and asked the boy how he found it. He said, “I closed the door, lay down in the sawdust, and kept very still. Soon I heard the watch ticking.” For the cool darkness of this dated icehouse comes the timeless reminder of Psalm 46:10: “Be still and know that I am God.”

Life has been characterized as “a rat race and the rats are the only ones winning.” Every generation struggles with trying to fit everything needed to survive into one day. Technology does not simplify day-to-day activities; instead, it often increases the workload. Life is busy. It can be so busy that it makes the head spin. Marriages suffer because the husband and wife have no time for one another. Children become latchkey recipients when their parents are too busy to spend time with them. Older people are left neglected by families that cannot find the time to visit. A mad rush is made toward a common end – death – and then everything stops. Everyone takes time to die.

One of the great Andy Griffith story plots involved a wealthy businessman rushing through town when his car breaks down. Throughout the story, Andy and Aunt Bee spend a slow-paced day as Gomer takes his time fixing the car. Nothing happens quickly. The moral of “Man in a Hurry” is the need to slow down in life. In a fast-paced, busy world, what is forgotten is who God is. God created the world and set the clock to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Adam and Eve had the same amount of time that the modern, busy, hectic, and rushing-about person has today. What is done with the hours of the day is what makes a difference. Everyone chooses how to spend their day.

It takes time to listen to God. Faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of God – and that takes time. The song is sung, “Take Time To Be Holy,” by people who struggle to find time for God. It is impossible to have a relationship with God without taking the time to know God. He wants you to know Him. “Be still and know that I am God” is good advice for today, tomorrow – and the rest of the busy week. Slow down. Take time for family. Spend time with God. It will nourish your soul.

Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us. (1 John 4:17-19)

Overcoming Fear

One of the first emotions Adam and Eve experienced after disobeying God was fear. When their eyes were opened, they were ashamed. Hearing the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden, they hid among the trees in fear. Adam told God they hid because they heard His voice and were afraid. Fear is one of the consequences of sin. The fear of death comes from man being expelled from the garden where the tree of life was found. Death is the great unknown that brings dread and fear to the heart. The uncertainty of life, brought on by disease, war, famine, natural disasters, and conflict between humans, darkens the world with a grip of fear. God created man in His image, and man, as an eternal being, has a consciousness that feeds upon fear when left to its own devices. Satan takes advantage of that fear, leading men to rebel against the Lord.

When Adam and Eve sinned, they experienced fear, but God promised to take away that fear. It was a mystery that would not be fully revealed until Jesus Christ came into the world to offer the hope of life in the face of the fear of death. There is the fear of the death of the body and the fear of separation from fear. God has never left His creation without providing a witness to show them how to overcome fear. Noah overcame fear when He moved with godly fear, preparing the ark for the saving of his household. Abraham faced the fear of killing his only begotten son through an obedient faith, believing in the impossible that God would raise Isaac from the dead. Moses overcame fear when he led the rebellious children of Israel to the borders of Canaan. David faced the fear of Goliath through his faith in God’s power. Daniel and his friends withstood the powers of the Babylonian king because they trusted in God’s deliverance.

Jesus came to take fear away from the hearts of God’s people. Sin brings fear. Jesus takes fear away. The gospel is given to show man the path of love that God had in sending His Son to die for all men. God has given His Spirit to offer the blessing of divine love through the sacrifice of His Son. Through the blood of Jesus Christ, the fear of death is removed. Jesus did not take away war, disease, and death. He came to give man an answer for fearing those things. Love takes away fear because the heart understands the brevity of life and that while life is filled with trials, heartaches, and sorrow; it is but for a moment – like a vapor. The promise of eternal life removes fear, enabling us to claim the crown of life with bold confidence. Love puts death where it belongs and refuses to allow fear to rule the heart.

Overcoming fear is akin to building an ark, leaving altars of worship and glorying in God, obeying the Word of God without any doubts, defying the Goliaths of the world, and facing death with a determined soul that will not back away from serving the one true God. A bold and courageous spirit will love the Lord with all the heart, soul, and mind. There is no torment in love because the love of God is so immense that there is no room for fear. Overcoming fear is believing that God is true, His promises are absolute, and His love is enduring. Faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the word of God, and love comes from faith. Overcoming fear can only come from the word of God dwelling in the heart of the child of God. Prayer becomes the natural response of faith, and through that faith, fear is dismissed.

On the front of the mantel in the ancient Hind’s Head Hotel at Bray, England, the following was inscribed: “Fear knocked on the door. Faith answered. No one was there.” Perfect love casts out fear because the love of the child trusting in the love of the heavenly Father will have no fear. The greater the faith, the less there is to fear. There is no hand as great as the one that holds the universe. If God can place the universe within the span of His hand, what is there to fear? Jesus Christ came to take away the fear of death because there is victory in the resurrection. Fear is but for a moment. Love is forever. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.