Holy Spirit - Wisdom For Work

Over the past two weeks we have looked at what it means to receive the Holy Spirit and to live a life filled with the Holy Spirit. This week we are looking at how the Holy Spirit provides wisdom for our work.

The Holy Spirit offers you the wisdom, leadership skills and discernment you need for your work. The Holy Spirit rejoiced as God created this world and created all the principles of physics, chemistry, geology, engineering, mathematics, accounting, creativity, art or leadership that you use in your job. The Spirit delights to share this knowledge with you so that you can be known, like Daniel as a person who has the insight, intelligence and wisdom like that of the gods (Dan 5:11) in your workplace.

The wisdom of the Holy Spirit extends to the trades and all the things you create with your hands. Just as the Holy Spirit filled the craftsmen who built the first tabernacle (Ex 35:30-35), the Holy Spirit today continues to offer to fill you with the ability to create with your hands so that God is glorified and worshipped. In the same way that the Holy Spirit filled David with the wisdom to design Solomon’s temple (1 Chr 28:12), the Holy Spirit continues to fill people with wisdom to design artificial intelligence, self-driving cars, new engineering processes and new medical devices all to the glory of God.

When the Holy Spirit controls your life you can cease from the hectic, frantic pace of work and in quiet adoration be still and know that God is sufficient. The Holy Spirit offers you strength to sustain you wherever you work. The Holy Spirit provides you with the confidence and courage to be who God called you to be and to do what needs to be done without fear.

Through the power of the Holy Spirit you can take your hands off the steering wheel of your life and say: “I thank you Lord that you are in control of this situation.” At the very moment when you in faith utter those words things start to happen. You might not see results immediately but the presence of the Holy Spirit in your life is your assurance that God is at work.

The Holy Spirit will provide you with the wisdom you need to do what needs to be done in your work. Then you will declare with joy that “your accomplishments were not by your might, nor your power, but by God’s Spirit.” (Zech 4:6)

Holy Spirit - Part 2

Last week we looked at what it means to receive the Holy Spirit. This week we explore what it looks like to live a life filled with the Holy Spirit.

Through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. (Rom 8:2)

The Holy Spirit testifies to your soul that you are God’s beloved child. With the Holy Spirit in your life, you no longer need to look for the approval of other people or be concerned about what other people think of you.

A life filled with the Holy Spirit is a life that is free from trying to satisfy our insatiable appetite for attention. A life filled with the Holy Spirit sees God as important in and of himself and not simply in relationship to what he can do for you. A life filled with the Holy Spirit is life that is lived neither seeking recognition or importance, neither desiring power or visibility, but rather seeking to glorify God. A life that is permeated by the Holy Spirit is a life that no longer presumes to be the center of the universe but honors God as the center and sustainer of the universe.

The cost of receiving the Holy Spirit

There is a cost to receiving the Holy Spirit. You have to choose to surrender your self-will, your ambitions, your desires to the one who created you. You have to surrender your desire for the praise of other people and the prizes of this world, so that God’s name is glorified. You have to choose to yield up your most precious things to the one who created all things. In faith you choose to receive the Holy Spirit by believing that .

The Joy of the Holy Spirit

A life filled with the Spirit doesn’t mean that your human nature won’t rear its head. There will still be times when you are slow to understand what God is doing. You will still make judgment errors, and mistakes. Your memory will still fail you. You will still struggle with doubts and addictions.

Sin rearing its ugly head in your life is not the end of the story. Life in the Spirit is like standing constantly under a waterfall gushing with warm water cleansing you from all your sins.

The Holy Spirit and Human Nature

A life filled with the Holy Spirit can experience the agonies and ecstasies of life with joy and delight because joy comes from the Holy Spirit and not the circumstances of life. You will still experience all the emotional and physical pains of this world. But you will also know the joy of sins forgiven, and the assurance that nothing that happens in this world can separate you from God’s presence.

A Spirit Filled Life in Community

When the Holy Spirit permeates every aspect of your life people will see God’s spirit in your life. While you receive the Spirit of God personally, the life of the Spirit is lived out in community.

A life filled with the Spirit is a life that shares God’s love with other believers. A life filled with the Spirit is one in spirit and mind with other Christians. God builds us up together through the Spirit to become a dwelling place where God lives.

Because you have received the Holy Spirit you have much to offer your fellow Christians. You are able to bring the message of Christ to your fellow Christians with psalms, hymns and songs from the Spirit encouraging them to remain faithful, and to never lose hope. 

When your life is filled with the Holy Spirit your love is contagious towards all people, even difficult coworkers, because your love comes from the eternal well of God’s love. When your life is filled with the Holy Spirit your joy overflows even in the most oppressing circumstances because your joy comes from the Holy Spirit not from your circumstances. A peace that passes understanding in the most stressful moments of your day radiates into the lives of those around you when you are filled with the Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit - Part 1

Jesus’ ministry didn’t end at his ascension but continues today from heaven through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a unique person, in fact the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. God freely gives the Holy Spirit to communicate God’s power from on high.

After Jesus’ resurrection the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost and filled the lives of the disciples. The Holy Spirit came upon the disciples not because of the righteous things they had done, but because of God’s great mercy.

God continues to freely offer the gift of the Holy Spirit today to you and me. We have the privilege to choose to actively receive this precious gift. We are able to receive the Holy Spirit through faith in Christ, not because of our works, or our wealth, but because of God’s grace and mercy.

When you believed in the gospel of salvation, God put the Holy Spirit in your life as a seal of his ownership on you, and as a guarantee of what is to come (2 Cor 1:21-22).

You can’t have the Holy Spirit on your terms. The Holy Spirit is more than just a heavenly influence to be invoked on an as needed basis. You can’t project your own needs and wants on the Holy Spirit. You can’t experience the blessing of the Holy Spirit when you want to remain sovereign over certain spheres of your life.

Receiving God’s gift of the Holy Spirit in your life is like turning on a light bulb inside a diamond, and watching that light radiate out of every facet of the diamond. You are a precious diamond that God created. When you receive God’s gift of the Holy Spirit in your life, the light of the Holy Spirit radiates from every facet of your life into the world around you.

When you invite the Holy Spirit into your life, he doesn’t destroy your identity. God is the one who created you and God knows exactly how to perfectly enhance your identity through the power of the Holy Spirit. When you receive the Holy Spirit, you are filled with the power, the wisdom, the creativity and the freedom to do what God created you to do and be who God created you to be.

When you are filled with the Holy Spirit you are able to show up in any situation as your whole self bearing the image of God – bearing the image of God’s grace; bearing the image of God’s wisdom; bearing the image of God’s covenant love; bearing the image of God’s holiness and righteousness.

The Holy Spirit is not your critic, your censor or your killjoy. Instead He is your gracious helper and counselor. The Holy Spirit offers you the infinite resources of heaven that you can draw upon for your life of adventure with your Savior. The Holy Spirit is the mighty burden bearer of the world enabling you to undertake more than you could imagine on your own strength.

Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty. Not liberty to do as you want to do, but liberty for the Holy Spirit to accomplish God’s purposes through your life. Life in the Spirit is a life spent serving the Living God in every aspect of your career, family and social life.

When you receive the Spirit of God, you will find rest for your soul. For it is no longer you working, but the Holy Spirit working through you so that God’s name is glorified rather than yours.

Resurrection Hope

Springtime is so exciting! We purchase seeds in a package which have a picture of what they will look like when they grow. God has imprinted a unique identity in each seed and helps them grow into the plant he designed them to be.

In faith, we take these seeds, bury them in the ground and water them, believing that from these tiny seeds, plants bearing flowers, or vegetables or fruit will come out of the ground.

This points to the hope of the resurrection – when God once again creates something new perfectly suited for inheriting the kingdom of God. As the first of the harvest of those who belong to God, Jesus died for our sins, was buried and then was raised on the third day. 

Jesus, clothed in the dazzling radiance of God’s splendor, crowned with glorious honor, the exact expression of God’s true nature invites you and me to place our faith in him! For it was by God’s grace that Jesus experienced death’s bitterness on behalf of everyone. Whoever believes in Jesus will not perish but have everlasting life. 

This perishable body that we have today will be raised as a glorious body. We are weak sinful people, who are offered forgiveness, holiness and righteousness, through the death and resurrection of Christ so that we can be with him in heaven. In heaven we will not sin or encounter sin. In heaven we won’t be weak or crippled emotionally or physically. In Heaven God will bless us with a new body that he creates for us, a perfect body, a righteous body. 

If we continue faithful to the gospel, we can have confidence that God will raise our human, natural bodies as spiritual bodies. We will still be known; we will still have our personalities and unique identities. Better than that … we shall bear the image of God. Then we shall live once again the way God intended for us to live. We will work, rest, eat, create and love undisturbed by the frustrations we experience today. 

We will inherit the Kingdom of God – God will do a powerful miracle! We will be changed from flesh and blood into imperishable, from mortal to immortality so that we can inherit the Kingdom of God. Death will be defeated. 

Death still stings – grief is real – but we don’t grieve like those who have no hope. We have hope because we know that nothing entrusted to the God of creation and resurrection can be lost forever, even in death. Death has been swallowed up with victory – because Jesus has conquered death. 

So, stand firm, don’t forget the resurrection, don’t give it up. Don’t let the everyday things of life, the everyday mistakes or the sinfulness that you encounter or the sins that you do move you. Don’t let them stop you from being who you are in Christ. In faith embrace the fullness of God’s promise. Give yourself to the work of God. When you fall pick yourself up, dust yourself off, go to God like a little child and ask his forgiveness and then carry on. You are more than your mistakes and sins because Jesus died for you. 

So then, we must cling in faith to all we know to be true. For we have a magnificent King-Priest, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who rose into the heavenly realm for us, and now sympathizes with us in our frailty. He understands humanity, for as a Man, our magnificent King-Priest was tempted in every way just as we are, and conquered sin. So now we come freely and boldly to where love is enthroned, to receive mercy’s kiss and discover the grace we urgently need to strengthen us in our time of weakness. (Heb 4:14-16 Passion Translation) 

Death isn’t the end, just the beginning. Therefore, stand firm – let nothing move you. Always give yourself fully to the work of God because you know your labor in the Lord is not in vain. Walk in the life and hope God has given you. Fix your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith. Live a life worthy of Jesus who gave you eternal life. And when you mess up, ask his forgiveness, embrace the hope he offers you, and press on.

Grace and Resurrection

Don’t lose heart! Don’t lose hope! Remember what Jesus has done for you!

You have not believed in God in vain! God’s word is true! Christ died for your sins, just as the Scriptures said! Jesus was buried in a tomb and rose from the dead after three days, again exactly as the Scripture says! (1 Cor 15:3-4).

Your faith in God covers your past, your present and your future! Your faith in God centers your existence in the eternal, all knowing, all powerful God of the universe! Your faith in God gives you a new perspective from which to view all things! 

Jesus voluntarily put himself under the authority of God the Father. Jesus voluntarily said that each person, you and I are so worth it. Jesus came to the earth to die for us because he knew that was the only way we could come close to God. He didn’t have to, but he did this because he loves us. 

In case you think your sins are too big to be forgiven by God consider the apostle Paul. Paul had viciously persecuted the church and killed a guy thinking he was doing God a favor. Then the resurrected Jesus appeared to Paul and showered him with grace.  In case you think you’ve messed up to badly, consider Moses who also was a murderer, and yet God used him to deliver the Israelites from Egypt. If God could forgive David for seducing Bathsheba and killing her husband, God in his grace can forgive whatever you have done! These are the heroes of the faith! (Hebrews 11) 

You believe in Jesus, so don’t let people get in your way. Don’t let what people are saying get in the way of what Jesus has done for you. It is by God’s grace that you are here! It is by God’s grace that you have a firm foundation to stand on! Your faith is sustained by looking to Jesus Christ crucified and risen! There is no trouble and no toil that needs to be feared because Jesus has obtained the ultimate victory. 

Jesus takes upon himself our sufferings because of his fellowship with us! Allow God to purify your mind so that you are conscious of nothing besides God. Allow God to be the mode and measure of your every movement! Let God be the consummation of all your desires, your love, your praise, your vision! Ask God to open your eyes to see by faith the wonder and power of God. 

Walk in the life and hope God has given you. Live a life worthy of Jesus who gave you life. And when you mess up ask his forgiveness, embrace the hope he offers you and try again! Because Christ is risen, you can know with confidence that you, your life, and your body are valuable and precious to Christ! 

Your journey of faith is unique. Your experience of God’s grace is unique. Your story of struggles, pains, joy, accomplishments and dreams are stories of the gospel that lights the way for others! 

Stand firm! Let nothing move you! Give yourself fully to the work of God even though you are a sinful human being, because you know that you are forgiven and because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 

Because Jesus is risen, because of God’s amazing grace you can say with confidence “What I am now, I am by the grace of God, and God’s grace toward me was not in vain”! (1 Cor 15:10)

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Cor 15:3-4)

Joy and Grace

We all need grace. Grace that calls us by our name when we have lost all hope. God’s grace gives us new birth into a living hope. God’s grace cares for us, provides for us and restores us when we have denied Christ. God in his grace offers forgiveness for all our sins and redemption for our souls.

What Christ, in grace, has done for you alters every dimension of how you live. You now live in hope because Christ’s death and resurrection has given you hope. This hope you have is a precious gift of God. Your living hope rests securely on God’s grace.

After denying Jesus three times, Peter found himself in the pit of despair. Grace did not allow Peter’s story to end there. In that bottomless pit of despair, Peter heard a voice call his name … “Peter, I am risen” … It was the voice of his resurrected friend, Jesus. In that moment he knew he had been given new birth into a living hope. As Peter set his hope on God’s mercy, he personally experienced God’s grace. With the call to “feed his sheep”, Jesus graciously restored and commissioned the one who had denied him. Although he suffered many trials through his life, Peter’s face radiated with inexpressible and glorious joy. 

God’s grace calls you by name, piercing your conscience, addressing all your relationships, realigning your priorities, redistributing your values and expanding your imagination . The same grace that called out to Peter – “do you love me more than these” is calling out to you right now to come home. The grace that restored Peter with the words “go and feed my sheep” is the same grace that calls to you to go and use the talents and skills God has blessed you with in reverent fear today, right here, right now, right where you live and work. 

Just as he who calls you is holy, so be holy in all you do. Be holy in how you live. Be holy in how you do your work. Be holy in your relationships. For it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy” (1 Pet 1:16). When you stumble and fall, as we all do, know that God’s grace is there every moment to redeem all your sinful actions. God’s grace will carry you safely to the last day, to an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. 

Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:8-9)

Prayer Heavenly Father, thank you that you call us by name. May your word’s of grace re-awaken hope and enlarge our imagination for our lives, for love and for holiness. Amen.

Success

In Proverbs we read that “The whole city celebrates when the godly succeed; … Upright citizens are good for a city and make it prosper”- Prov 11:10-11 NLT.

How are upright citizens good for a city or organization? By being faithful stewards of God’s blessings on their life.

What does success look like for a Christian? One way a Christian is successful is when they have used their skills and talents wisely to accomplish the vision God has given them, while keeping their eyes always fixed on Christ.

When you keep your eyes fixed on Christ, you see the Son of God who humbled himself; who came not to be served, but to serve. You are a faithful steward of God’s blessings when you are motivated by God’s love to serve those around you. You don’t need to take shortcuts, play politics or practice manipulations to ‘get results’. Rely on the power of the Holy Spirit so that you can say “I have served to the glory of God” no matter what the outcome is.

God’s vision for your life is how you, with your unique skills, abilities and personality can contribute to flourishing of lives in one small corner of God’s creation. God’s vision for your life is not defined by your past or by what the world around you says. God’s vision for your life is bigger than you. God’s vision for your life is all about seeing God’s creation flourish.

For some of you God’s vision for your life may be something life changing like being an encourager through words, deeds and actions. For others of you God’s vision for your life may be the high and holy calling of raising your family or caring for an aging parent. For some of you God’s vision for your life may be to lead a large or small successful business venture so that lives can flourish. For others God’s vision for your life may be to create beauty through words, art, architecture, numbers, music or in countless other ways.

Many times, the vision God has for a person’s life, is to be an integral part of a bigger initiative.

As Francis Shaeffer once said, there are no little people, and no little places in God’s Kingdom. Engineers, accountants, waiters and baristas be inspired by God’s vision for your life. Your role in your organization is important so that your co-workers, suppliers and customers can flourish.

You might be wondering – what if I work in a company where the leadership appears to be motivated by money or self-interests; or what if I work in a toxic environment?

You are not accountable before God for the motives or behaviors of the leadership of your company. You are only accountable before God to be following God’s vision for your life. You are only accountable before God for bearing the fruit of the Spirit where you are working. It’s not easy, but you can through the power of the Holy Spirit be a well-watered garden bearing the fruit of the Spirit even in dark and toxic places.

God is a God of abundance, not of scarcity. God has promised to supply all you need to be who He created you to be, and to do what he created you to do. Out of His infinite storehouses of riches, God will abundantly and lovingly supply you with all the wisdom, strength, grace, mercy and love you need to be an ever-flowing spring of blessing to God’s creation.

The Lord will guide you continually, 
giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like an ever-flowing spring.
Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities.
Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls.
(Isa 58:11-12)

No Condemnation

Your perfect heavenly Father loves you more than you could imagine! 

Those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death. (Rom 8:1-2 MSG) 

It is God’s heartfelt desire that you would be fully alive, for his glory. 

God offers to give you light from above and shower you with heavenly grace for each moment in the concrete realities of your daily life, As God pours his grace out in your heart persevere in remembering his teaching and keeping his commands. Then your life will be filled with inner contentment, delight, and joy.  

This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what’s coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him! (Rom 8:15-17 MSG) 

God in his love and faithfulness will never leave you – so in childlike unwavering confidence allow God’s wisdom, love and faithfulness to shape your life with righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. This is pleasing to God and will bring you favor with your friends, family and co-workers. 

You do not walk alone. The good Shepherd walks beside you. God’s presence brings grace and joy even in the toughest of circumstances. There is nothing more refreshing than fellowship with God and enjoying his most holy delights. 

God’s wisdom is better than the purest gold. God’s wisdom will help you discover knowledge and discernment. God’s wisdom leads you to walk in righteousness and paths of justice. 

The Lord out of his great love for you will lovingly restore you to the right paths when you go astray. The Lord will graciously forgive you when you choose to be wise in your own eyes and fail to trust that God’s ways are best. 

Rest in God’s immeasurable grace. God will keep you safe. God will keep your foot from being snared so that you can run the race with confidence that He has set out before you. 

Prayer 

O God, I beg two favors from you; 

    let me have them before I die. 

First, help me never to tell a lie. 

    Second, give me neither poverty nor riches! 

    Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. 

For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the LORD?” 

    And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name. (Prov 30:7-9 NLT)

Jesus is Risen

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to live with joy today. True joy comes from our risen Lord, not from your job, your marital status, your rank in life, your successes or failure or what other people say or think about you.

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to live with hope today. Our risen Lord is sure testimony to the end of the story. Our risen Lord offers a certain hope that Jesus will return. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to live with peace in your heart today. God, who orchestrated your redemption in a way you never dreamed, can take care of you in ways you never imagined. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to love your coworkers, your friends and your family today. It is God’s supernatural, abundant love for you that enables you to extravagantly love the people God has placed in your life. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to acknowledge God’s presence in each circumstance of your workday. God has promised to never leave you or forsake you. You can count on that promise because Jesus’ resurrection is proof positive that God is a promise keeping God. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to invite Jesus to be with you in your meetings, your presentations, your paper work, and your interactions with customers. Jesus won’t force himself into your life. Jesus will gladly enter your home, your workplace, your life if you will welcome him in. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to enter God’s presence. You can choose by faith today to allow Jesus’s shed blood to cleanse you from all unrighteousness so that you can stand holy and blameless in God’s presence. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to come to God right now with your hopes and dreams, your fears, doubts, and anxieties and lay them at the foot of the empty cross. Jesus cares about what is on your heart. God who alone had the power to raise Jesus from the dead, is more than powerful enough to deal with each circumstance in your life and your associated fears, doubts and anxieties. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to come to God right now with your questions. You are not the first person to ask hard questions. When you bring your questions to God, you are bringing them to the Creator of the world. Bring your questions to the One who lovingly formed you with your abilities and skills. Bring your questions to the one who created your coworkers, your family and friends. Jesus doesn’t want you perplexed or confused. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to embrace an intimate love relationship with your Redeemer, Savior and Lord today. Head knowledge about the resurrection is informative and insightful but won’t change anything about your day. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to allow Jesus to be your Shepherd, your Father, your Redeemer and your Lord. 

Jesus is risen! Therefore, you can choose by faith to hear his voice say “I love you”, “you are forgiven”, “I’ve got this”, “Come follow me, my burden is easy and my yoke is light”. 

Rejoice! 

Why is Easter Important

With less than a week until Easter, many Christians are thinking of how to celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yet despite this, there are many more Christians who view Easter as just another day of the year, just another government holiday where they don’t have to work, where they get the day off of school, or as a day where they get to eat extra candy from the Easter bunny. Why does this happen? Why do some people no longer view Easter as important to them? Why do some people view Easter as just another day of the year? 

I don’t pretend to have all the answers to this question, nor do I know what goes on in the minds of people. Yet that said, I believe that many people have been listening to the beliefs and views of modern society in regards to Easter, and are letting these views take precedence in their lives, either willingly or unwillingly. There are times when it is difficult to be a Christian in the modern world. There are times when we all struggle with our faith. I’m going to put the idea of Easter into context, to try to explain why it is important for us as Christians to celebrate Easter as one of, if not, the, most important holy days in Christianity. Potentially even more important that Christmas (gasp). 

See, early Christians did not necessarily view Christmas as the most holy and important day of the year. Instead, they viewed Easter as the most important date for all Christians. There were even church councils and treatises on the topic of Easter and the dating for it, no such things exist for Christmas. I am not trying to negate Christmas, just put it in context of early Christianity. Why was Easter so important to early Christians? 

The answer is simple. Easter is so important because all of Christianity revolves around the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. If Jesus did not die for our sins, or if Jesus did not rise again after three days, then the entire hope of Christianity is based upon nothing but lies and falsities. In short, Christianity would be meaningless as a religion, because our sins would not be forgiven by Christ. If it wasn’t for Easter we would have to continue living as the Jews of old and offering animal sacrifices to the Lord for our sins. 

The single reason why Easter was and is so important to Christianity is because it is the centre of our faith and religion, and the basis of our identity as Christians. Sure, Jesus’ birth is important, as is His ascension. But none of them saved us from our sins. Jesus’ birth is only in two of the Gospels, the ascension in another two and Acts. Yet, you know what is mentioned in every single gospel, and is the focus of each gospel? Not Jesus’ birth, not even Jesus’ teachings (though these are quite important), but Jesus’ death and resurrection. It is so important that it was seen as the cornerstone for Christianity, the rock upon which the early Church was built. 

Therefore it can be seen that Easter should be viewed as the most important holiday for all Christians. Not just those pious believers, or those of the early Church. EVERYONE. You, me, your coworkers, your friends, that person down the pew from you, the organist and pianist. Every single Christian should view Easter as the most important event of the year. And we should not be afraid of viewing Easter this way. As Paul says in Romans 1:16, I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes-the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News is that Christ died on the cross for all of humanity, not just the Jews, but also the Gentiles that their sins may be redeemed if they believe in Him, that they will have everlasting life. If Paul is not ashamed of the Good News of Christ, then why are we? Why should we not be out celebrating Easter as if it is the most important holiday of the year? Because it is. Easter is the most important holiday of the year for us as Christians. 

Easter is just as important for us today as it was 1800 years ago in the early church. Just as important because it represents that Jesus saved us from our sins by dying and rising again after three days. 

So this Easter, instead of just accepting it as another day, instead of just welcoming the break from the work week, recognize Easter for what it is and celebrate accordingly. Set aside fanciful notions of the Easter bunny and getting candy eggs in the semi-flooded fields of southern Manitoba, and focus on the truth of Easter. The truth of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This weekend remember the true meaning of Easter, the truth behind Christianity, and thank God for sending His son to die for our sins so that we may have eternal life in Him!

The Way of the Cross

Seeds are small and insignificant. Yet they have God’s life in them. A life that can only be fulfilled when they die. When a seed dies it lies dormant in the ground before bursting forth with life to fulfill its purpose as a plant, a tree, a flower, vegetables, or grain. All of creation is abundantly blessed with the beauty, the aroma and the usefulness of the transformed seed. When that seed dies and comes to life again, the seed not only is a blessing but it produces many new seeds which go on to be blessings. But more than that the new life that springs from a seed brings glory to God.

In the same way, in the grand scheme of creation each of us are like a seed in nature and have God’s life in us. Each of us have the opportunity to be an abundant blessing with the beauty, aroma and fruitfulness of our lives to all of creation, but only if in faith we follow the path of Jesus.  

The path Jesus walked is the path that rejects self-autonomy and self-desires and chooses to daily surrender to devotion and obedience to God’s will. The path Jesus walked rejects the false truth of our importance in this world, and in faith believes the truth that we are priceless treasures and God’s children. 

The path Jesus walked is the path of humility, self-sacrifice, and selflessness. The path Jesus walked can only be walked by dying to love of self and embracing a life of love for our Savior and love for all of his Creation. 

The path Jesus walked is the path that leads to the cross. A seed’s life is not over when it falls into the ground and dies, instead that is the beginning of the seed’s new life. In the same way Jesus’ life wasn’t over at the cross. Jesus sprung to resurrection life 3 days later so that we who believe in him might enjoy the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. 

Our lives do not end when we surrender our will, our desire, our selves at the cross. At the cross our life begins anew forgiven and cleansed from all unrighteousness. At the cross we spring to newness of life and become a blessing to many. 

The cross wasn’t an easy choice for Jesus. His heart was troubled as he wrestled with choosing to follow the way of the cross. Yet in faith Jesus boldly cries out “Father, glorify your name!” (John 12:28). Before he had time to take another breath, God, his Father replied with the assurance that He had glorified Jesus name, and with the promise that He would glorify Jesus name. 

The cross isn’t always an easy choice for us. But when we in faith surrender our lives to God, God gives us a glorious new name as assurance that we are now his child and an heir of his Kingdom. When we surrender our lives to God, God promises that when we get to Heaven we will have glorified bodies and live forever. 

When we submit to the way of the cross, Satan is cast out of our heart, and our Redeemer the Holy Spirit, our creator dwells within us. The devil will continue to assault us, and try to deceive us, but now he can only assault and deceive from without. God, dwelling within us, speaks to us through his Spirit so that we don’t consent to Satan’s temptations. 

Because we have rejected our claim to autonomy and self-control and submitted to God’s control over our lives we are not longer defined by what we do, or our work environment. Instead God knows us as his children. 

Because we have rejected the way of rebellion to God’s will, because we have detached our selves from all the things of this world including the good things, the idols we worship, our addictions and our self-love, we are no longer defined by what people say about us or are talking about. Instead we are defined by God’s love for us which enables us to unconditionally love those around us. 

Because we have rejected the false claim of self in this world which is in rebellion against God, we no longer are defined by fear, because God’s perfect love drives away all fear. As God’s children our life and our future is safe in God’s unchanging hands. 

The way of the cross is more than just a transaction with God, it is the continual experience of God’s intimate love relationship with us. Choosing the way of the cross brings the joy and blessing of being with the Father through our union with Christ. 

Jesus invites you today to come away from the loneliness of living as a single seed separated from God to a life of fruitfulness by dying to yourself and embracing in faith the love of God.

Extravagant Generosity

Extravagant generosity is a bold declaration of your faith and trust in God’s faithfulness and trustworthiness. 

God is a God of extravagance. The first miracle John records in his Gospel is Jesus creating 180 gallons of new wine – more wine than the wedding crowd can consume. The last miracle John records is 153 fish jumping into the disciples’ net as he waited for them on the shores of the Sea of Galilee after his resurrection. This was the same place where Jesus fed five thousand hungry people with a little boy’s lunch of five loaves and two fishes. The most extravagant act of generosity is Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross so that through faith we could have eternal life and enter God’s Kingdom. 

Living with extravagant generosity isn’t easy, particularly in workplace’s characterized by scarcity where we are expected to do more with less.  Extravagant generosity is only possible when we shift our focus from scarcity to God’s abundance. God is present in your workplace, and wherever God is present, there is abundance. 

Extravagant generosity in your workplace comes from focusing on God’s character. 

Extravagant generosity in your workplace is a living demonstration of God’s love. 

Extravagant generosity in your workplace is only possible because of God’s blessings on your life. 

Extravagant generosity in your workplace flows from a heart of thanksgiving. 

Extravagant generosity in the workplace can be demonstrated in a simple act of quietly listening without judgment. Generosity may be expressed by speaking a kind or gracious word to a co-worker, or by exercising patience with a colleague or customer. Extravagant generosity can be demonstrated by sharing the load of an overworked colleague or taking the time to show a colleague a better way to do their work. To be extravagantly generous may require walking a mile in a coworkers’ shoes to understand them. Sometimes extravagant generosity requires sacrifices. 

There will be people who will question you or ridicule you for your generosity in the workplace. There will be people who will take advantage of your generosity. These actions and words hurt but they don’t define who you are. You are God’s beloved child. 

Acts of extravagant generosity in your workplace that flow from a pure heart and clean hands are acts of worship to God that rise like a sweet-smelling fragrance through your workplace to the throne room of heaven.

The Good Shepherd

Jesus is the good Shepherd. Jesus knows his sheep. You are one of his sheep if you believe that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus has given you eternal life. The death and resurrection of Jesus is your hope that nobody, not even Satan can snatch you away from Jesus hand. When you follow Jesus, you never walk in the darkness, for Jesus the light of the world, lights your path.

Jesus knows your joys. Jesus knows your fears. Jesus knows when you aren’t certain about your job, or wondering how you will pay the bills, or what tomorrow will bring. Jesus is your light and your salvation therefore you never have anything to fear in any circumstance (Ps 27:1). 

Jesus hears you in your lament. You can come to Jesus and bare your soul with complete honesty. Jesus will not shame you or condemn you. Jesus understands your sorrow. Jesus weeps with you because he loves you. Jesus hates the pain sin inflicts on your life more than anybody else does. In the middle of pain, sorrow, and exhaustion you don’t have to fully grasp the incomprehensible nature of God. All you need to know is that Jesus is your Shepherd, that Jesus knows you, and loves you so much that he sacrificed his life for you so that you no longer need to carry the burden of sin. 

When you trust Jesus in the midst of your fear; when you pour out your lament at Jesus feet; if you will listen; if you will trust; then you will see God do great and mighty things out of his love for you so that his name will be glorified (John 11:4-5) and your faith strengthened (John 11:14). 

While we know these truths, when fear starts whispering into our ears, we can easily forget these truths. Jesus doesn't condemn us when we lament or when fear overwhelms us and when we forget who He is or can’t comprehend what is happening. In those times, Jesus, our Shepherd continues to call our name, Jesus speaks to us and reminds us that he is the light for our paths, and that he is the Resurrection and the Life. 

Even in the darkest of places, filled with fear, uncertainty and doubt about today and tomorrow; in those times where when you don’t fully understand what is happening in your workplace or in the world around you, hear our Shepherd say again to you, “I am the light of the world.” Listen to our Shepherd’s voice, and follow him, and you will see our Shepherd perform great and mighty deeds. 

The Death of Lazarus

Jesus had just finished telling his disciples that he was the good Shepherd, and that no one could snatch them out of his Father’s hand (John 10:27-30). Then the disciples heard that Lazarus was dying and they were afraid to go with Jesus to Judea because the Jews were threatening to kill them. Full of grace and knowing their hearts, Jesus reminded them that he is the light of the world, and as along as they walk with him, they are safe (John 11:9-10). Not fully convinced, not fully understanding what was happening, but with just enough faith, they went with Jesus to Judea (John 11:16). 

As Jesus approaches Judea, Martha comes running out to him, and in lament bares her soul to Jesus. In the midst of the pain, sorrow, and exhaustion from the past few days watching her brother die and be buried, she hears her Shepherd remind her that he is the Resurrection and the Life. 

Mary stays back at the house. Jesus sees her sorrow and hears her lament from a far and calls for her by name to come to him. As she comes and pours out her heart, Jesus weeps with her. Jesus weeps because he loves her. Jesus weeps because he is emotionally connected with his creation. Jesus weeps in anger because of the pain that death and the devil has caused. 

Just as Mary and Martha heard their Shepherd’s voice. Lazarus also heard his Shepherds voice. Although Satan tried to snatch Lazarus out of Jesus’ hands; Death couldn’t keep Lazarus away from his Shepherd. Calling Lazarus out of his tomb Jesus demonstrated that he is both the hope for resurrection at the last day and the source of life itself from now to eternity for those who believe in him. Jesus proved once and for all that he is the source of the permanence of your unique identity which nobody, not even death can destroy. 

Because the disciples took their fear to Jesus and walked in the light of their Shepherd; because Martha poured out her lament to Jesus; because Mary heard her Shepherd call her name and came to him; because they were obedient; their mourning was turned into joy, their fears were turned into hope and they saw the incomparable power of their Lord. 

When you come to your Shepherd with your fears and follow the light He casts on your path you will experience God's incomparable power and unmeasurable love. 

When you come to your Shepherd lamenting the pain, sorrow and exhaustion of your life, you won’t be condemned or shamed. Instead you will experience God's incomparable power and unmeasurable love.

Fear of God

St. Augustine says that true wisdom is the fear of God. Ecclesiastes echoes this idea throughout the entire book, always coming back to the need to fear God. Yet what is fear of God? If God loves the world so much that He sent His only son, then what does it mean to fear Him? Throughout the Old Testament there is imagery of people trembling in fear before the awesome power and majestic holiness of God. The idea of fearing the Lord is also echoed in the New Testament as well. Yet today the idea of fearing God is rarely talked about in church, and when it is no one really knows what it means to fear God, or even how to do it. 

Yet this idea is mentioned in the Bible, both what it means to fear God,and even how to do so. The reason to fear is God is found throughout the Bible,but for this we will look in Ecclesiastes and in Luke. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 states "Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey His commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad." These verses give the impression that we should fear God for He judges us for everything that we do, including everything that we do in secret, both good and bad. But is this idea just found in the Old Testament, or does Jesus also reinforce this idea in the New? Well,in Luke 12:4-5 He does in fact support this view when He says “Dear friends,don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they can’t do any more to you after that. But I’ll tell you whom to fear. Fear God, who has the power to kill you and throw you into hell. Yes, He’s the one to fear.” See, Jesus also believes that we should fear God for He has the power of judgement over us, the ability to kill and destroy us forever, by throwing us into hell.

This is how we should fear God. To fear Him in the sense that He has the power of judgement over us and sees everything that we do. When you live in such a way that you are aware of this knowledge then you are living in fear of Him. It is said in Psalm 111:10 that "the fear of the LORD is the foundation of true wisdom. All who obey His commandments will grow in wisdom." In living in the knowledge and fear of God’s power, we are doing as the Psalmist says and fearing God in order to find true wisdom and obey His commandments. 

Yet, there is something more you must keep in mind. Something very important as followers of Christ for us to remember. In Luke 12:6-7 Jesus tells us “What is the price of five sparrows-two copper coins? Yet God does not forget a single one of them. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered.So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows.” Here He is telling us that we do not have to be afraid of God.Yet how are we supposed to reason this with the aforementioned fear of God? Does it mean that we should not fear God? What is the deal with this apparent contradiction? 

Nothing! Jesus is not contradicting Himself here, in fact He makes perfect sense. He says that you should fear God because He has the power to destroy you forever. Not that He will. Yes, if you do not believe then that is what to expect, but if you turn to John 15:12-14 you will find that Jesus supports not needing to fear when He says “This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.” When compared to Luke, you will find that Jesus is stating that you need not be afraid of being cast into hell for all eternity, for Jesus laid His life down for His friends, and His friends are those who follow what He commands. Therefore, as follows of Christ who follow His commandments we have nothing to fear from God. As 1 John 4:18 says "such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment,and this shows that we have not fully experienced His perfect love." Yet we must always keep His power of judgement in mind and live in fear and awareness of it, complemented by our belief in Christ. Only then will we be able to find true wisdom.

Pursuing Success

Success and excellence in your career are opportunities to pursue righteousness or opportunities to pursue narcissism. There is no middle ground.

In your pursuit of success you can either choose to follow the path of piety or the path of self-centeredness. Both paths will take you through seasons of abundance and seasons of struggle. You will encounter family crises and health issues no matter which path you follow. Along both paths you will meet loving, caring people who will walk beside you and cheer you on. Along both paths you will encounter people who will be jealous of you, who will malign your character, or who will do whatever they can to destroy you. But, these paths lead to opposite destinations.

When you choose the path of righteousness, God makes you alive in Christ and seats you in the heavenly realms with Christ. Choosing to pursue righteousness is choosing to anchor your life in the same mighty power of God that raised Christ Jesus from the dead and seated him at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

Choosing to pursue righteousness is a choice that enables you to experience God’s great love, mercy and grace. Choosing the path of righteousness is choosing to believe in God’s promises. God has promised blessing for curse; fullness for emptiness; Eden for wilderness.

God is the one who takes the unproductive and make its fertile, God is the one who brings order out of chaos. God is the one who takes waste and turns it into abundance and riches. God is the one who enables you to be successful.

Abraham’s story 

God took Abraham, one man, called him, blessed and made him into a great nation (Isa 51:2). 

Abraham’s life was like many of ours. He had moments of close intimate fellowship with God. In the years between those moments Abraham continued day in day out with the normal routine of life. He survived famine. Twice he feared for his life, afraid that he would be killed by foreign kings who found his wife Sarah attractive. He knew family strife, and the heartache of a wayward child. He faithfully trusted God for 25 years before God fulfilled his promise of a child. He dealt with jealous people who tried to steal his property. He went to battle to save his nephew. He lived alone for 38 years after his wife died when he was 137 years old. He pursued success in everything he did, accumulating great wealth and hundreds of servants. He was well respected as a successful leader and well known where he lived. 

Yet Abraham isn’t remembered for his success or his wealth or his leadership. Abraham is remembered for his righteousness (Gen 15:6). Abraham lived his life in such a way that God is acknowledged as the source of his success. God did the impossible and made Abraham to be a blessing for all nations (Gen 18:18). 

Consider how amazingly powerful God’s strength is that He could create a vast people out of nothing. If God could create a great nation from Abraham and Sarah, a barren couple past the age of child bearing, what could God do through your life? 

Pursuing Success while glorifying God! 

Choosing to trust God for his blessings on your work, your business and your career is a choice to glorify God with the outcomes of your efforts. This sets you free from comparing yourself to others and from shame when you stumble or fail. Choosing to trust God, gives you the courage to step out and do the next task that needs to be done, even when it seems foreign, uncomfortable or scary because you know that God will be glorified by your obedience. 

When you acknowledge what God is doing in your life, God’s light shines in the world around you. The choice to acknowledge God as the source of your blessings, is the choice to be free from all the things of this world that could enslave you (money, people, possessions, fame), and to enter into true freedom as God’s child. 

Pursuing Success and Pursuing righteousness 

Choosing to acknowledge God as the source of your success before you start each day, is a choice to walk down the path of righteousness. 

To be a pursuer of righteousness, you need to listen to God as you strive for success. This means you don’t listen to yourself or try to justify yourself before God. The only righteousness that you can ever produce in your life is that which is gifted to you from God. 

During those seasons of life when you experience success remain steadfastly committed to follow what is right and to hear God’s voice. During those seasons of life, or moments when everything seems to be conspiring against you continue to practice God’s righteousness and listen to God’s voice. 

In your pursuit of success don’t be slow to hear God’s voice. When life settles into a predictable routine don’t impatiently reject God, rather earnestly seek God to enlarge and sustain your heart. 

Choosing the path of righteousness while pursuing success and excellence in your career can be a platform for you to glorify God for blessing you and making you a blessing to those around you. 

“Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness 

     and who seek the Lord: 

Look to the rock from which you were cut 

     and to the quarry from which you were hewn; 

look to Abraham, your father, 

     and to Sarah, who gave you birth. 

When I called him he was only one man, 

     and I blessed him and made him many. 

The Lord will surely comfort Zion 

     and will look with compassion on all her ruins; 

he will make her deserts like Eden, 

     her wastelands like the garden of the Lord. 

Joy and gladness will be found in her, 

     thanksgiving and the sound of singing. (Isa 51:1-3) 

Decreasing Joyfully

You belong to God! God has created you for a special purpose for this time! You don’t have to claim to be someone you’re not. Rejoice at the position and abilities God has gifted you with. They are an honor bestowed on you from heaven. Be careful not to treat them with dishonor, unworthily or ungratefully. Be careful not to fall into the snare of being jealous of the promotion or recognition of others. 

Your identity comes from knowing that you are God’s child because you have put your faith in God. Your identity doesn’t come from people’s approval or praise. Knowing that your identity is anchored in being God’s child you don’t need to manipulate or control people. Instead, as God’s child you can set people free to live the way God has created them in the position God has placed them. 

There is only one thing that you can boast in with confidence. You can boast with confidence that the Lord, God exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on the earth (Jer 9:24). Whether someone increases in importance or decreases in importance in your workplace doesn’t change God’s character one iota. God is still your Savior. God is still the one who called you, who loves you, who restores you, who saves you, who revives you! The only one that keeps all things together is God! God is the fountain of everlasting joy! 

John’s story 

Shortly after baptising Jesus, some of John the Baptist’s disciples came to him and complained about the fact that Jesus was now more popular than John. Now, if there was anybody who should have been jealous it was John of whom it was said “among those born of women, none has arisen greater than John the Baptist” (Luke 7:28). It would have been easy for John to take advantage of the fact that some people mistook him to be the Messiah. Instead John wanting nothing more than to know the love of his Master, listened to their report with great satisfaction. Their report about Jesus increasing filled John with great joy. John could rejoice as his position in society decreased because he knew his labor had not been in vain. John’s joy was anchored in the solid foundation of God’s love for him. 

Your Story 

No matter how your position in society changes, or who is being promoted around you, you just have to be the best you, you can be. This doesn’t mean that you can rest on your laurels. Far from it! You need to continue to hone the skills God has given you, so that you can continue to be a blessing and serve your Lord to the best of your abilities. Sometimes the best you, you can be is to celebrate another person’s success. When you decrease, you can decrease with joy knowing that your life is anchored in the solid foundation of God’s love for you. 

Your job, your income, your possessions, your colleagues, even your next breath are all gifts from God. Gifts which none of us deserve. Everything belongs to the Lord, and the Lord has the sovereign right to exalt whom He chooses, or to take authority away from whom He chooses. Knowing this, you can be satisfied with the position that God has blessed you with. 

You can celebrate your colleagues’ success because you know that God is the source of their skills, and abilities. God has placed them exactly where they are today. As one who has put their faith in God, you can decrease joyfully, trusting that God has not made a mistake, and that God’s Kingdom purposes will prevail. 

It is easy to rejoice and celebrate the success of a colleague who deserves a promotion. It is easy to be delighted when a colleague receives their well-deserved recognition for a job well done. 

But then there are those times when it is hard to rejoice and celebrate someone’s success. We experience emotional pain when we have done all the heavy lifting and then find ourselves on the sidelines while somebody else receives the accolades for our work. Pride rears its ugly face after we have invested time and energy in someone’s life and then watch them experiencing opportunities that were never available to us. Our hearts are broken for the trail of battered and bruised bodies left behind as we watch someone cheat and walk all over other people as they scale the corporate ladder. It is at those moments when the clay wants to cry out to the potter “What are you doing?” It is at those moments when we hear the potter say to us, “my child, whom I love, rejoice that your name is written in heaven!” It is at those moments that our Father invites us to drink deeply from his fountain of eternal joy. 

Knowing that the Lord your God exercises kindness, justice and righteousness you can decrease joyfully. 

This is what the Lord says: 

“Let not the wise boast of their wisdom 

    or the strong boast of their strength 

    or the rich boast of their riches, 

but let the one who boasts boast about this: 

    that they have the understanding to know me, 

that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, 

    justice and righteousness on earth, 

    for in these I delight,” declares the Lord. (Jer 9:23-24)