The Heaton File

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. (1 Peter 2:9)

What It Means To Be A Christian

The death of Jesus Christ gave all men the hope of eternal life. Through His death, Jesus established a covenant between the Father and His disciples that would bear His name. The disciples were first called Christians in Antioch of Syria. Found only three times in scripture, the name Christian is synonymous with the character of those who seek eternal life in Christ. This name describes the relationship of those who belong to Christ and follow His teaching. A disciple is one who follows the teaching of another and as disciples of Christ; individuals adhere to the word of God. The apostle Peter further illuminates the character of the disciple of Christ by four distinct and descriptive terms. He adds to the illustration of the covenant between the Father and His children. It is also suggested in these terms responsibility to be called by the name of Christ.

A chosen generation is not just any generation. These are people that are elected by the grace of God to be persons of His love, mercy, compassion, forgiveness and divine character. Like Abraham and Israel of old, Christian’s are chosen for the glory of the Father receiving His blessings through the blood of Jesus Christ. God knows the name of those who call Him Father. He is aware of their needs, the sorrows, their trials, and their pains. The chosen generation of the Lord is special as those who stand in the might of His presence. Separated from the world, the disciple of Christ is blessed with all spiritual blessings in the Son. This relationship builds trust and hope in the soul of the Christian because they know that in their failings, a compassionate and forgiving God knows that His children are chosen and a generation of godly people.

Every Christian is part of a royal priesthood. Under the Law of Moses, only the men of the Aaronic lineage could serve as priest before the Lord. The tribe of Levi is where all the priests would come and no matter if a person desired to serve as a priest or high priest, if they were not from the tribe of Levi, they were forbidden to serve. In Christ, all become part of a royal priesthood serving the Lord with the sacrifices of praise, glory, and honor. When a person becomes a Christian, they immediately are ushered into the temple of the Lord as a priest to offer sacrifices and present offerings of thanksgiving to the Lord. Their garments of holiness make them distinctive from the world. The hearts and minds of the royal priesthood dwell on the love of God and His immeasurable grace. Through Christ, all priests can now enter the Holy place that once was forbidden. A royal priesthood is special as the Christian is set apart to serve the Lord.

As a holy nation, the Christian is part of a multitude that spans the globe of hearts who serve the Lord in simplicity and dedication of truth. The nation of God is not confined to the borders of a country. All those who call upon the name of the Lord are members of the same nation of holy people serving the same King, following the same law and serving the same purpose. United in the blood of Christ, the Christian is part of a generational nation that has been marching across the world since the Day of Pentecost. No matter the color of skin, language, nationality, culture or gender; all men are one under the banner of the King of King and Lord of Lords who leads His army before the nation of God’s people. Christian’s are warriors who fight for the cause of righteousness in the nation of God. Holy men and women fill the ranks of citizens of the nation of the Lord. The purpose of the nation of the Lord is to fill the earth with the message of salvation found only in the Lord they serve. There is no greater nation that has ever marched, no greater people that have ever lived and no greater purpose than those who are part of the holy nation of God.

The Christian is a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, and a holy nation. This makes them special in the eyes of the Lord. The King James Version uses the idea of being a ‘peculiar people.” Other translations express how Christians are God’s own possessions, and a people to be His very own. What a powerful testimony to the love of God. In all the expanse of the universe with its billions of stars and planets, the Creator has looked down upon the blue dot in the midst of a dark expanse calling His people a special people fitted for His glory. Bearing the name of Christ is an incredible gift that should never be taken lightly. Knowing the mind of God dwells on the people that are His own special, chosen, royal, and holy family is the eternal meaning of love through the gift of Jesus Christ. A Christian is called by the name of the Father.

What reason can there be that a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation and a people who belong to God would not proclaim the praises of Him who called them out of darkness into His marvelous light? There should never be a day that goes by that thankful hearts are not expressing to the Father the gratitude to be chosen, royal, holy and special. The joy of knowing how much God loves His children should express itself in daily praise. Glory be to the Father who thinks so much of His children. When the name Christian crosses the lips of the child of God, may the heart reflect upon what it means to be in covenant with the Lord God. I am a Christian. Thank God.

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless. And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.” (Genesis 17:1-2)

A Covenant With The Almighty

Few men would experience the blessings of this world more than Abram, son of Terah. At the age of seventy-five, the Lord called Abram to leave his homeland and journey to a place shown to the patriarch through the love and grace of God. The promise to Abram was threefold: his descendants would become a great nation and inherit a land not their own and all this would be possible through the seed of Abram. Through faith, Abram believed the promises of God and at the age of one-hundred saw the birth of the son of promise by his wife Sarai. Their names were changed to confirm the covenant repeated by God and would be known as Abraham and Sarah. The hope of God was a deep part of the life of Abraham and Sarah as the Lord carried out His promises through the covenant He made with them. His grace would guide them and protect them and deliver the son of promise. Only through the power of God would this be possible because the Lord had a covenant with Abraham and Sarah and the Lord kept His promises. It was inherent upon Abraham to walk before the Lord with faith and to live blameless before the Lord in love. When they fulfilled the will of God the blessing of a son would fill their lives. God never breaks a covenant He has made. Abraham and Sarah saw the birth of a healthy baby boy though their bodies were dead concerning procreation. Isaac was a son of promise through the covenant of God. Through the faith of Abraham, the covenant made by God came to pass because the Lord is the Almighty and He keeps His word.

God had a covenant with Adam and Eve, the world of Noah and the nation of Israel. As the Almighty God He had promised all men that if they would walk before Him in truth and serve Him blamelessly, He would shower upon them all the heavenly blessings of His grace and love. Every time the covenant was broken it was because of men refusing to follow the will of the Lord. Adam and Eve were given everything in a paradise of Eden and yet they broke the covenant of the first world by taking of the forbidden fruit. The world of Noah was destroyed because the intent and heart of man was only evil. Noah and his family were saved because they kept the covenant and promises of God. Through the grace of God eight souls were saved in the ark when the Lord kept His promises made through the covenant He had with all men to save them if they walked before Him and were blameless. The nation of Israel was given a law through Moses that spelled out all the laws of God for the people to follow and yet they struggled from the start to obey the Lord. A covenant was established between God and the nation of Israel and the Lord never failed to fulfill His promises. Israel on the other hand repeatedly denied the grace of God and eventually was destroyed through their rejection of the covenant. Only a remnant would be saved from Israel. They kept the covenant of the Lord walking before Him in truth and living blamelessly.

Jesus Christ died on a Roman cross through the hatred of His own countrymen the Jews. By the power of God, He arose from the dead on the first day of the week and established an everlasting covenant with all men. This covenant is the greatest example of grace, mercy, and love. It is offered to all men to come and abide in the hope of eternal life through the blood of Jesus. The sacrifice of Christ is the power of God Almighty to give all men the covenant of grace that will give them the hope of heaven. Like all covenants before, man must walk before the Lord in truth and serve Him blamelessly. A covenant is initiated by one party with stipulations for the second party to adhere to the words of the agreement. There is only one Lawgiver, Judge, and King and He has the right and authority to establish the principles of the covenant. When men fail to walk before Him and to walk in truth, the covenant is rejected by God because of His grace. The grace of God saves those who are willing to follow His will but the grace of God will also punish those who disobey His word. Abram knew the power of God rested in the words of the covenant and he trusted in the Lord Almighty to fulfill His word. Salvation will only come to those who follow the covenant of God and walk before Him and serve Him in a blameless manner.

Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: “Many daughters have done well, but you excel them all.” Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own works praise her in the gates. (Proverbs 31:28-31)

The Family Where Love Is In The Home

Where Love is in the Home

(Joe E. Parks)

Where love is in the home there’s happiness.

Where love is in the home there’s joy.

Though the fare may simple be,

Still it’s very plain to see;

Where love is in the home, there’s joy.

Where love is in the home there’s harmony

Where love is in the home there’s bliss.

If advanced in age you be,

You may call to memory;

Where love is in the home, there’s bliss.

Where love is in the home contentment reigns.

Where love is in the home there’s peace.

Gold and silver cannot buy,

What it takes to satisfy;

Where love is in the home, there’s peace.

The virtuous woman of Proverbs 31 is always highlighted for the virtue of a godly woman. This is an accurate depiction of the beauty of the home but it must not be lost in the passage the family unit that creates a home filled with love where the mother, children, and father serve the Lord first in all things. It is not about the material things possessed by a home that makes it rich but rather the possession of a heart of character where love is in the home. This love comes from the love of God. Through the word of God hearts are guided by the teachings of the one who formed and fashioned the first home in a garden called Eden. It was a place of perfection and harmony. Adam and Eve lived in a paradise with God because they had full communion with the Lord. When sin entered the home heartache began. Homes that are filled with the love of God will not be resistant to sin but there will be happiness, love, joy, and peace. Everything created by the hand of the Almighty was very good and He blessed all creation – including the man and woman. Happiness in the home will only come from one source. The fountain of God’s love must permeate the hearts of the husband and wife in forgiveness, kindness, humility, self-control, goodness, and love to find the real happiness of the home. God gives us sunrises to let us see His glory in what He created and He concludes the day with a beautiful sunset to express His divine wisdom. The home is the way the Lord has shown His glory and as life moves toward the sunset of marriage it should reflect the radiant beams of a glowing sunset of the divine will of the Father. Marriage is a relationship where man and woman are one in God and when the light of their lives sets beyond the horizon of life in death they share together the fading beams of life in His love. The family where love is in the home is where God abides.

Then the Lord said to me, “Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: ‘Hear the words of this covenant and do them. For I earnestly exhorted your fathers in the day I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, until this day, rising early and exhorting, saying, “Obey My voice.” Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but everyone followed the dictates of his evil heart; therefore I will bring upon them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but which they have not done.'” (Jeremiah 11:6-8)

Obey My Voice

The longsuffering and patience of God are firmly established in the Old Testament. There is ample evidence the Lord had done everything He could do for the nation of Israel and yet they still chose to rebel against Him. At the time of the prophet Jeremiah, the final tribes of the once mighty nation of Israel were falling deeper into the excesses of idolatry and abandoning the word of God. Jeremiah would prophesy to the nation until the carrying away of Jerusalem captive to Babylon. He would experience persecution, rejection and weep many tears over the condition of the Beloved of God. When the final days of Israel appeared on the horizon, no one could say they had not been warned. God tells the people He had been warning them since their deliverance from Egypt many generations before. It had been more than eight hundred years since the Hebrew people were led out of Egypt by the hand of the Lord and constantly throughout those years the word of the Lord warned, cajoled, admonished and forbade the people from becoming like the nations around them. God had earnestly exhorted the Israelite fathers to do one thing: obey His voice! In the Law of Moses, the blessings of God were enumerated in great detail for the nation if they would obey the voice of the Lord. Jeremiah will twice ask the people if there was anything too hard for the Lord to accomplish. Their deliverance from Egypt was by His mighty power. The plagues that crushed the Egyptian nation were brought about by the word of God. When the Hebrews stood at the shore of the Red Sea with no escape it was the might of the Almighty that divided the waters and brought the people over on dry land. All the stories of the forty-year journey of Israel to the Promised Land declare the benevolent hand of the Father upon His children. The land of Canaan was destroyed of the enemies of God through the will of the Lord as the kingdom of Israel was established under Saul, David, and Solomon. Every part of the history of Israel testified to the power of God to deliver His people if they would obey His voice. They refused.

The grace of God is very clear. He will promise to deliver the people through His great power but that grace alone will not save them. Jeremiah weeps for the hearts of the people who have seen the glory of God fill the Temple and witness the wonderful works of His hand among the nations but they refused to do what God said to do. Every day, the Lord exhorted the people to obey and they refused. Everyone followed the dictates of their evil hearts to do as they pleased, live as they wanted and serve worthless idols to appease their pleasures. Judgment would come soon by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian army. This would be in fulfillment of the promises made in the Law of Moses to Israel if they refused to heed His voice. God’s grace is found in the promises of blessings if the people obeyed but that same grace declares the wrath of God upon the people when they do not obey the voice of the Lord. Jeremiah tells the people God will bring the words of the covenant upon them. The consequence of rejecting the grace of God brings judgment. Repentance was the first word of the plan to save them and they refused to heed the word of the Lord. Salvation was centered upon the need to obey the voice of the Lord. Israel tried to have it both ways: they wanted to serve their idols and continue to serve God. They trusted in the lying words that whisper compromise. Coming to the Temple they would offer their sacrifices to the Lord and the other days of the week steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal and walk after other gods. The house of the Lord had become a den of thieves as they sought to rob God of His glory and He would have none of it. Obedience demanded a whole heart.

Jeremiah lived nearly twenty-five-hundred years ago but the message of the weeping prophet is as clear today as when first uttered to a rebellious nation. Many in the religious world are convinced of the grace of God but not convicted of obedience to the voice of God. Obeying the voice of God demands a faithful heart diligently seeking the will of the Lord in every part of life. Worship is not a go-to-church religion where a cloak of worship is adorned for sake of show and life is filled with the worldly, sensual and rebellious spirit of refusing to obey the voice of God. The Lord has earnestly exhorted through His written word for all men to obey His voice yet they refuse to obey or incline their ear. Everyone follows the dictates of their own heart which is evil. Salvation is not by grace alone. The redemption of the blood of Jesus is the favor and blessing of a merciful God who desires all men to be saved. However, this grace is invalid if a person refuses to submit to the will of the Lord. The children of Israel were blessed with all the favors of the Lord and they refused to obey His voice. He punished them because they broke the covenant. Refusing to obey the voice of the Lord will bring the wrath of God. Hear the words of the will of the Lord and do them.

And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!” But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” (Luke 11:27-28)

The Truly Blessed

When the fullness of time came for Christ to come into the world, God looked among the women of Israel and favored Mary to be the one whom the Son of God would be born. The life of Mary would be filled with questions and reflection of the child she bore in her womb and raised from infancy to that terrible day when she witnessed His death on a cross. There was no one who had greater certainty of the divinity of Jesus than Mary as the virgin birth was real to her in every way. When the Lord began His ministry, Mary was an integral part of His work. She stood at the cross and watched Him die and said not a word. When the church began fifty days later she was numbered with the first disciples disappearing on the pages of God’s revelation thereafter. On one occasion as Jesus is teaching, a woman in the crowd is overwhelmed with the presence of Jesus and shouts praise to the woman that bore this man into the world. It was a sign of respect and honor to speak highly of the mother of Jesus who was probably unknown to the woman. It would be a fitting time to speak in regard to His mother but this was not the time. Some of the final words of Jesus were spoken to His mother as He implored the apostle John to care for Mary. But on this occasion, Jesus diverts the attention away from Himself and from His mother to impress upon the hearers the truly blessed among men. The most important relationship a person could have would be with the Father in Heaven.

Jesus summed up in two points the truly blessed among men. It did not come from the accolades of men for others as exemplified by the honor given to Mary over the centuries. Those who will be blessed are those who hear the word of God and those who keep the word of God. Whatever glory men could bestow on Mary passed when she died. She was a quiet servant of God that was blessed among women to bear the Son of God in her womb and bless the world with the greatest gift man will ever know. Beyond that, her life was in devotion to the cause of Christ and the establishment of the early church. The final mention of Mary is recorded by Luke in the Acts of the Apostles and nothing more is said. What is the most important part of scripture is what is preserved by the Holy Spirit: the word of God. Jesus reminds the woman in the crowd that salvation comes from hearing the word of God. Understanding the will of the Father is where true blessings come. Eternal life does not come from Mary but hearing the message of grace from the word of God and knowing the pattern of redemption in Christ. The early church preached a risen Christ and the necessity of hearing the word of God. Throughout the book of Acts, men and women obeyed the gospel of Jesus Christ when they heard the word and obeyed the word. Hearing was essential to salvation and without hearing there could be no faith. Every example of conversion in the early church began with someone hearing the word of God. They were blessed when they obeyed the word.

The blessings of God do not come only by hearing the word. Jesus pointed out a second and vital part of salvation when He told the multitude that those who keep the word of God will be blessed. Hearing the word is paramount but if the heart is not willing to obey the word there will be no blessing. Many heard the word of Jesus but did not believe. On the Day of Pentecost, there will many people who heard the preaching of the apostles and did not obey the gospel message. Throughout the book of Acts and the travels of Peter and Paul, multitudes of people heard the good news of salvation and refused to obey. The blessings of God will only come when a heart hears the word and keeps the word in obedience. This also suggests that when the gospel is obeyed that a continual action of hearing and keeping the word is required. When three thousand souls obeyed the word of God at Pentecost, Luke records they continued steadfastly in the apostle’s doctrine. Great blessings will come for those who abide in the word of truth. The disciple of Christ will continue to hear the word of God and keep the word of God in their lives. The true blessing will come to those who keep the word. Without keeping the word there can be no blessing. Mary the mother of Jesus was a remarkable woman who lived an extraordinary life. The child of God who hears the word and keeps the word leads a more remarkable life because they are walking in the grace of God redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ.

Now it came to pass the same night that the Lord said to him, “Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it, and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of this rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down.” So Gideon took ten men from among his servants and did as the Lord had said to him. But because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city too much to do it by day, he did it by night. (Judges 6:25-27)

Faith Must Grow

The story of Gideon is one of the heroic men of Old Testament scrip who did much for the Lord with very little. It was a time of great upheaval for the people of God. They had conquered the land of promise under the leadership of Joshua and settled into the new world with great hopes and dreams. A cycle of blessings and cursing plague the young nation of Israel as they allowed themselves to embrace the idol worship of the land and face the wrath of God for their rebellion. In time the Lord would send a deliverer and free the people from the oppression of their enemies. Gideon was a judge of Israel who helped deliver Israel from the Midianites during a seven-year period of fear and persecution. The son of Joash the Abiezrite would be remembered as the judge who subdued the Midianite army with only three hundred men against a host of Midianites, Amalekites and all the people of the East that were as numerous as locusts with camels that were without number. Before this great victory for the Lord, Gideon had to grow in his faith and learn to trust in the power of God to bring victory to Israel. It would not be an easy task for Gideon. His leadership did not appear in one day. Through the longsuffering of God, this great man would be remembered for much more than the challenges he faced early on.

Israel had been greatly impoverished by the oppression of the Midianites. The Lord sent a prophet to the people warning them of their rebellion against His word. He then sent the Angel of the Lord to Gideon and brings about the end of the Midianite rule. Gideon was very reluctant at first and complained to the Lord for what had befallen the people. Asking for a sign of the power of God, the Angel of the Lord told Gideon to prepare a meal and place it upon a rock. Putting out the end of a staff that was in his hand, fire rose out of the rock and consumed the meat and unleavened bread. The Angel of the Lord departed out of the sight of Gideon and the voice of the Lord assured Gideon he would not die. That night the Lord returns to Gideon telling him to take his father’s young bulls and tear down the altar of Baal that his father had and to cut down the wooden image that was beside it. He was then told to build an altar to the Lord on top of the same rock and take a second bull to offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood from the image he cut down next to Baal. Taking ten men Gideon did exactly what God told him to do with the exception of one thing: he was too afraid to do such a thing in the day. The eleven men performed the command of the Lord under the cover of darkness. They feared the household of Gideon’s father and the men of the city too much to do it by day so they did it by night. They were brave but not so brave. Gideon would continue to test the Lord for signs of His divine power and through the longsuffering of God, Gideon would soon have faith enough to lead three hundred men against an innumerable host and win the victory. There is a lesson of faith in the story of Gideon.

Faith is not something men are born with and faith is not something that is easily attained. By definition, faith is the assurance of things that are hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. Gideon had suffered greatly under the oppression of the Midianites and questioned where the Lord had been. Sadly, his father and the household of his father had an image of Baal along with a wooden image that was an abomination to the Lord. Gideon’s faith began with going against his father. When the deed was discovered and Gideon was named as the one who destroyed the Baal, the men of the city demanded Joash bring out his son to kill him. Joash challenged the people to explain why Baal could not defend himself if he were so powerful a god. But the faith of Gideon was not strong and he went up by night to do the will of the Lord instead of boldly going in the day. Faith takes time to grow to maturity. Great men of faith are not born overnight but through a lifetime of trusting and serving the will of the Lord. There will never come a time when faith is complete and all the needs of man are fulfilled in the spirit of faith. Abraham struggled with his faith all his life as did Moses, David, Daniel, Peter, and the apostle Paul. It is easy to look at men and women of great faith and believe they achieved this level of faith by some great personality trait of family or privilege. Lost in the recognition of their faith is the osmosis of character that developed over time as they trusted in the Lord in times of doubt and proved through the will of God the word of God is true and everlasting. Gideon struggled with his faith and yet he is numbered with the faithful witnesses. Faith will always need to grow and the more faith is grown the deeper the roots of God’s love will strengthen the heart against the storms of life. Be a Gideon. Take three hundred men against a host of millions and the victory will be given because of faith in God, and in Him alone.

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” 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. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” Then those who gladly received his word were baptized, and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. (Acts 2:37-41)

If Pentecost Happened Today

When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from the church building of singing, praising and teaching of the word of God. And there were dwelling in Town USA devout men and women from every denomination in the land. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together and was confused because they heard a language they had never heard before. So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?” Others mocking said, “They are full of a new religion.” But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, “Men of Town USA and all who dwell in the regions of America, let this be known to you and heed my words. For these are not confused, as you suppose, since this is only the first day of the week. But this is what was spoken by the Holy Spirit in the message of the Bible of the truth of God’s word. Men of America, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs which God did through Him as shown in the Bible, as you yourselves also know – Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, was taken by lawless hands, crucified and put to death: whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. For King David of Old Testament scripture testified to the message of Jesus as through the fruit of his body, the Christ would come, he, foreseeing the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul would not be left in Hades, nor allow his flesh see corruption. This Jesus God has raised up, of which the apostles witnessed. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out the testimony of His grace to all men which you now see and read in the Bible. Therefore let all the earth know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, who was crucified for the sins of the world, both Lord and Christ.”

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” 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. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” And with many other words, he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” Then those who listened to the preaching of the apostles argued among themselves what baptism meant and why being put under water would have anything to do with their salvation. Some argued strongly that a person only had to be a good person to be saved. Others suggested that accepting Christ as a personal Savior would be all that was required. Many in the crowd tried to correct Peter and instruct him to teach a prayer that said in part, “Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. In Your Name. Amen.” A few parents brought their babies to Peter to have water poured on their heads. There was much confusion and dissension among all those who gathered that day. Peter and the eleven stood in amazement at how simple their words had been and yet many who gathered that day walked away arguing about what a man must do to be saved and never coming to the knowledge of the truth.

Then those who gladly received the words of Peter and eleven were baptized, and that day about thirty souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly in the apostle’s doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.

But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. (Jude 20-21)

Keeping Yourself In The Love Of God

The love of God is the most incredible gift that any man will find in his life. It is the eternal love of a merciful Father that allows the creature to worship his Creator. From the beginning of the world, God has revealed Himself through all generations to receive glory and praise for the abundant grace He gives to a creation that continually rejects and blasphemes His holy name. Jesus Christ is the embodiment of the love of God as He came to earth to save man from sin dying on a cross with no guilt upon Himself. It was not because of any good on the part of the man Jesus died. There are no redeeming qualities of a man suggesting the worthiness of the love of God to save man in his sin. Only through the love of a compassionate God to an undeserving creature did the Creator of all the earth give His Son as a sacrifice. The gift of Jesus will not save a man if he does not accept the grace of God on the merits of the sacrifice. Salvation has never been given to anyone who refuses to obey the will of the Lord. The free gift of God’s love is conditioned upon the heart of a man submitting to the law of God through faith and abiding in the covenant of grace through the love he has for the Father. Beginning with faith the heart is drawn to the word of God to see the eternal mercy of a wrathful Lord upon a disobedient world. Building oneself up in the most holy faith of God is the start of where the heart of love is born. As a result of this love, the Holy Spirit fills the soul of man to express feelings of love to God in the spirit of prayer and thanksgiving. It is then the love of God is realized and embraced as the heart seeks to keep itself in the love God, looking for mercy in Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

There are no words in human language to describe the love of God. Dwelling in God’s love is to live each day with the knowledge of His gift to save men from their sin and redeem them to eternal life. Keeping oneself in the love of God is a passionate activity of constant love for God’s kindness toward all men. Conditioned upon the grace of God men seek the Lord daily to receive those blessings. Salvation is not granted pro bono. The gift of God was free but the acceptance and obedience of that gift are where a man shows his faith in the Lord by doing the will of God. The self-preserving end of keeping oneself in the love of God comes from the faith in the word of God, praying in the Holy Spirit and looking for the mercy of Jesus Christ unto eternal life. It is inherent upon man to keep himself in the love of God. God’s love has never diminished and has never been refused. The reason for the failure of man is because man has failed the love of God. When Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, everything they needed was provided but they rebelled against the love of God and demanded more. Sin is where the heart of man rejects the love of God and walks outside the will of God. Life can only be found remaining in the love of God.

Salvation is a choice. God has done His part and everything He has done is an expression of eternal love for a creation that for the most part has rejected His love. This does not diminish the gift of His love to allow the creation to kill His only begotten Son. Through the blood of Jesus eternal life is offered if men would accept the love of God, obey the word of the Lord and keep the commandments of grace. The Lord could save all men but the choice is the inherent free will of man to show his love for God. Adam and Eve had a choice and made a choice to disobey their Creator. Salvation is found in keeping oneself (active participation) in the love of God. Not everyone who calls upon the Lord will be saved but only those who do the will of the Father. Abiding in the truth of God is remaining in the grace of the Lord through faith. When all men stand before the judgment bar of the Lord God Almighty it will be a time of decision for those who have kept the faith or those who did not believe in God and refused to obey the gospel of His Son. The love of God has been shed abroad to all men. What they do with that love is eternal.

And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:6-9)

Children Need Our Time

One of the great passages to come out of the Old Testament is the admonition of the Lord to Israel concerning the training of children. There was great emphasis put upon the teaching of Jewish children and was part of the Law of Moses. This was not intended by the Lord to be suggestions on forming the souls of young children but rather a command of the Lord for parents to teach their children about the law. At the root of teaching children is the law that God is one and His people should love Him with all their hearts, their souls and their strength. This does not happen by birth but careful instruction by the parents who teach them diligently. When the family is sitting together in the home children are taught to love the Lord. Walking, by the way, the stories of the Lord should fill the minds of the children. As the night draws nigh and the children are put to bed their last thoughts should be on the word of God. Each day should begin with the knowledge of God’s word and bound continually upon their hearts and minds through each day. They should see the love of God in their parents. Throughout the house of God’s people, the message of the Lord should vibrate in upward tones of praise. The home of godly parents should instill in the hearts of children everything given to them by the Lord.

Technology can be a wonderful thing but often it can become a deterrent to the well-being and spiritual health of the family. Radio and television began in a very innocuous manner before the realization of how easy it was to waste the hours away glued to the console and peering into the glowing windows of fantasy land. As technologies advanced, new gadgets began to fill the time with computer screens and smartphones and modern Dick Tracy watches that talk and communicate. Children become enamored at an early age to IPads, Kindles, and hosts of electronic devices (including their own smartphones) spending hours entertaining themselves with the amber glow of a piece of glass. Parents are spending more time peering into their electronic devices than communicating with their children. Fathers would rather sit at the dinner table texting someone at work than talk with their children. Mothers hurry about the day checking the latest chats, videos, and messages than share their day with the children. Grandparents are caught up in the thrill of the new fads. The home has become a place where no one looks at one another, talks with one another or knows who the person is sitting across the living room or dining table. Faces are buried in machines like an Orwellian prophecy come true. Lost in the clutter of modern convenience are children who grow up without God.

The Law of Moses commanded parents to teach their children to love the Lord their God. Giving these instructions to the family involved passing on information and embedding in the hearts and souls of the children the word of God. The most significant part of this command is often the least observed by modern families. Reading the text carefully parents missed the obvious purpose of God’s command to parents: spend time with our children. It will take a lot of time to teach children diligently. Instead of walking down the road looking at a cellphone, parents should talk to their children. Sitting in the home should be a time where parents and children communicate verbally. Bedtime is not a place to end the day watching a movie on television or IPads but a time when parents read the word of God. Mornings should begin with the teaching of the Lord – not Sesame Street or Little Baby Bum. It takes a lot of time to teach children and while there is enjoyment in watching television, playing games on IPads, talking on smartphones and all the new things that appeal to the gadget world, teaching children diligently takes time. And here is the most important lesson all parents must learn: there is only one chance to get it right because there will be no do-overs! If time is not taken when the children are young that time will never be regained. Children need to learn now.

An unnamed author wrote a great story about the importance of time with children. Take time to consider the lesson. “A grandmother is a lady who has no children of her own. She likes other people’s little girls and boys. A grandfather is a man-grandmother. He goes for walks with the boys and they talk about fishing and stuff like that. Grandmother’s don’t have to do anything but…be there. They’re old, so they shouldn’t play too hard or run. It’s enough if they drive us to the market where the pretend-horse is and have plenty of quarters ready. Or if they take us for walks they slow down past things like pretty leaves and caterpillars. Usually, grandmothers are fat but not too fat to tie your shoes. They wear glasses and funny underwear, and they can take their teeth and gums off! When they read to us they don’t skip or mind it if it is the same story again. Everybody should try to have a grandmother, especially if you don’t have cable – because they’re the only grown-ups who have time.”

Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow. (Isaiah 1:16-17)

Isaiah’s Plan For Personal Growth

The need for personal growth has been a constant for God’s people in all ages. Under the Law of Moses, the children of Israel needed to learn how to grow in the grace of the Lord as much as those under the covenant of Christ. Remarkably, the principles are the same. Isaiah, a prophet of God, lived in a time of great spiritual bankruptcy and moral degradation. This was especially acute considering the problem came from those who should know better. The Jews were the apple of God’s eye blessed with all the favors of the Lord Almighty to make them a great nation and a holy nation among all nations. However, they had turned their hearts to the idols of the land and filled their lives with the harlotry of wickedness. God sent many prophets like Isaiah to lead the people back and while some success was achieved, for the most part, the nation fell into spiritual darkness. The preachers of truth would need to give a stirring message to the people to bring them back to the Lord. Their task was not unlike the preaching of Noah in the most severe time of man or Jonah as he faced the city of Nineveh. Repentance was the watchword of the day demanding change in the hearts of men to seek the Lord and find His mercy and grace. As the son of Amoz began his work of prophecy among the people of Judah, the plan was simple, direct and necessary to return to the Lord.

There are six points to the plan for personal growth Isaiah sets forth. The people had defiled themselves with the sacrifices of idolatry and to begin renewal required a cleansing. Coming before the Lord demands purity of soul, heart, and mind. Isaiah’s admonition was not a physical cleaning but the spiritual bathing in the word of the Lord. Sin had polluted their souls and a moral cleansing was needed to worship God. All those who come before the Lord Almighty cannot present themselves before the holy character of the divine with polluted hearts and minds. Moral pollution will lead to the destruction of the soul and only through the healing of God’s love will forgiveness be granted. The first part of personal growth is taking a spiritual bath. Second, the need to remove the evil that has defiled the soul demands action. The Lord cannot abide in the presence of wickedness and sin will separate man from the grace of God if not removed. Often men confuse the love of God with His law thinking the love of God negates the requirements of the law. Isaiah did not suggest the people could continue in their idolatry and come before the Lord pure and holy. Sin defiles and unless it is removed it will hinder spiritual growth. Vital to understanding sin is the need to stop following the ways of evil and remove it far from the heart. Two things necessary to combat evil is to stop doing evil and put it away. In other words, stop doing what is wrong! Sin cannot be continued without consequence. The Lord demands that man cease to do evil. Whatever is bringing about sin must be put far away with no desire to engage in the rebellion against God. He will not tolerate sin.

Following the negatives of personal growth, Isaiah exhorts the people to follow the path of righteousness. The final three admonitions must replace the evil that has been removed. Fourth in the sequence of personal growth is to learn to do good. Removing the evil must be replaced with the positive of spiritual growth. God is good and those who desire to please Him must learn what His goodness is and how to live before Him in righteousness. Evil takes very little to learn but goodness requires diligence. Next comes the desire to seek the right things or to follow after justice according to the word of God. Rather than engaging in the works of evil where injustice is common, the heart of the child of God seeks the good of others and what is right in the sight of God. The final part of personal growth is relative to the relationship with others. One of the most important relationships that establish our kinship with the Father is the way we treat one another. Those who oppress their fellow man, abuse the fatherless and scold the widows are not fitting for the glory of God and His will. As a result of idolatry, the people of God oppressed the needy, the downtrodden and the afflicted. Society had become a place where the privileged engaged in denying the grace of God to others. The oppressor must be rebuked, the fatherless defended and widows cared for. Personal growth is highlighted when the individual shows love and concern for others.

There is a natural flow to the personal growth plan of Isaiah. He begins with the selfishly absorbed individual who is basking in the glory of his evil to the man of God who is concerned for others. Evil is about the self-worth of man’s lustful needs fulfilled in the carnality of his own desires. Righteousness is where man is void of self and his concerns are about others. There is a contrast between the world of the wicked and the world of the faithful. The evil destroys themselves and the faithful of the Lord help others. God is pleased with those who cease to do evil and plead for the widows. Follow the personal growth plan of Isaiah and you will find greater reward in this life and the one to come.