Tag: Gospel

What Is the Gospel?

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional, Theology for LifeLeave a comment

The gospel is the story that Christians have to tell the world. It’s the message of salvation for a world that is spiritually adrift. As we speak the gospel to others, we act as “ambassadors for Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:20). To remember the basics of the gospel, you can use the basic outline of God, Humanity, Christ, and Response.

God

Who is God? He’s the Creator of all that is (Genesis 1). He is the reason everything exists, and everything was created to bring Him glory. Unlike the gods of paganism, He is not merely part of creation or responsible for one aspect of creation, like the rain or the sun. He is the King over all the universe. The gospel must begin with God, because nothing makes sense apart from Him.

What is God like? God is holy, just, and loving. To be holy is to be set apart as spotless, pure, and perfect. He is unlike us in that He can never make a mistake and has never wronged anyone. And because He is just, God is a perfectly fair Judge who must hold the world accountable. It would violate His nature to sweep sin and evil under the rug of the universe. He must exact a just penalty for every single violation of His moral will. God is also loving, and this is tremendously good news. In fact, not only is God loving, the Bible even says “God is love” (1 John 4:8). As the Bible lays out, God has eternally existed in a perfect relationship of love as three persons in the one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Humanity

Because God is love, we were created for a relationship of love with Him. We were made for Him, and we will never find our purpose in any created thing. We were created to be like Him in many ways, but we have all “fallen short” of His glory (Romans 3:23). Through the cunning deception of our enemy, the devil, we have all missed our true purpose in life by choosing our own way (see Genesis 3).

According to the Bible, the world of humanity is now spiritually lost and broken. That’s why we all see so much evil and suffering in this world, and we all know we’ve done things we knew to be wrong. We each have wanted to do things our own way, and because of that we have incurred a spiritual debt that will have to be accounted for. The worst part is that we have deceived ourselves into thinking we are okay on our own, which has only exacerbated the spiritual darkness that has clouded our thinking (1 John 1:5-10). In short, we have all rejected God as our authority, and because of that, we are destined for a fair and just judgment.

Christ

The glorious good news of the gospel is that God didn’t leave us in our desperate and hopeless state. He promised to send a Savior to the people of Israel, One called “Messiah” or “Christ.” The surprising twist is that this coming Christ would be God Himself. He showed the full measure of His love by entering the very world that had rejected Him. John’s Gospel says of God the Son: “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him” (John 1:10). Incredibly, the infinite Son of God became small, by taking on human flesh and being born of a virgin (Merry Christmas!). Growing up, His friends knew Him as Jesus the son of Joseph. As Jesus grew to adulthood, He lived a perfectly spotless life. His own followers, who knew Him best and wrote about Him later testified that “He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth” (1 Peter 2:22).

Jesus lived that perfect life and taught some amazing things, but ultimately, Jesus didn’t merely come to give us an impossible example to which we must aspire. He came to give His life. For His claims to be divine, He got crucified. And as He hung on the cross, suspended between Heaven and Earth, He bore the very sin that was separating man and his Maker. The judgment our sins deserved fell on Him, and He was willingly sacrificing His life so that we might live. But that wasn’t the end of the story.

Response

On the third day, Jesus rose to life again and appeared to His chosen followers so that they might testify to His resurrection and proclaim that forgiveness of sins is available. He told them that all that He had accomplished had been written about the promised Christ in their Hebrew Scriptures: “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all nations” (Luke 24:46-47).

To “repent” is to change one’s mind about who’s really in charge. It’s about doing a spiritual U-Turn, where you stop living first for yourself and start living for God. But this isn’t about changing behavior to earn forgiveness. God has promised to save only by grace those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord (see Ephesians 2:8-10; Romans 10:9-10). And as you are united to Jesus by faith, you receive a new spiritual life. The Holy Spirit comes inside, and from that point on, we will be transformed more and more into the likeness of God. The secret to repentance is being honest. We have to admit we have gone wrong, that we have done things we know we shouldn’t have, and that our only hope is the forgiveness and cleansing that is offered in Christ. Not only that, but when you trust in Christ, you join the people of God, known as the church. Through fellowship and community, we encourage each other on life’s journey.

This is the story we have to tell. It is a story about reality; it’s an overview of what life is really all about and what God has done to redeem us from our self-deception. It is the hope of the world, because through Jesus, we learn that this life is not all there is. Because of the Cross, our guilt does not have the last word. Because of the Resurrection, death is not the end. There is an eternity before us, and everyone will have to stand before God. My hope and prayer is that you will stand before Him, not dressed in your own shoddy goodness, which will not measure up and will leave us eternally lost, but that you will stand clothed in the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ and experience eternal joy in His kingdom forever.

Remember Whose You Are

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional, Theology for Life2 Comments
Disney’s The Lion King (1994)
So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15, NLT)

Sometimes when I watch movies with my kids, I like to ask them what “gospel themes” they saw in the movie. I do this, because I recognize watching movies is something they love to do (me too, actually), and I want to seize as many opportunities as I can to disciple them in the way of Jesus and help them develop a biblical worldview—even at a very young age.

Now, this isn’t as torturous as it sounds. I don’t pause the movie every five minutes to quiz them. I try to talk after we’ve finished the movie. Sometimes, we only get through half a movie during the evening, so I will try talking with them at bedtime about where they saw things like evil, redemption, hope, and sacrifice show up in the movie. 

Disney’s classic animated film The Lion King is one that actually carries a pretty powerful message about identity. I know, I know. There are some pantheistic themes to The Lion King. It’s good to address those, too. But I would argue that the whole “circle-of-life” thing isn’t actually the main theme of the movie. At the core, I think it’s all about how our identity shapes our purpose in life.

The Lion King is loosely based on Shakespeare’s Hamlet, with the whole bit about the evil uncle slaying Hamlet’s father so that he can be king. But in The Lion King, as young Simba runs away in fear, he also ends up running away from responsibility.

He meets Timon and Pumbaa, a lovable meerkat and warthog duo that has developed a philosophy of life called “Hakuna Matata,” which apparently means “No Worries.” They are the classic slackers. They talk about embracing a lifestyle of “no rules, no responsibilities,” and how this leads to a carefree existence. 

Honestly, I think there are a lot of Timons and Pumbaas in our world—those who would rather eat a plate of bugs than embrace any level of responsibility. The two teach Simba how to belch, joke, and sing. With nothing better to do, they speculate about the mysteries of the universe with no true authority or guidance but their own imaginations. Ironically, I think these comical clods are meant to be an indictment of where running from responsibility will take you—looking for satisfaction by eating slimy worms! Notice we never meet a Mrs. Timon or Mrs. Pumbaa.

Simba joins their lot for a time, until he runs into a freaky baboon named Rafiki, who tells him: “The question is… Who are you?” Simba regretfully admits he’s not so sure anymore. 

Then comes the great turning point in the plot—the reason The Lion King is a compelling story, kids’ movie or no. Simba has a vision of his father, Mufasa, who says, “Simba, you have forgotten me.” “No,” Simba replies, “How could I?” Mufasa continues, “You have forgotten who you are, and so, you have forgotten me… Remember who you are. You are my son and the one true king.”

That reminder is what makes all the difference and compels Simba to return to his place as king. In the same way, you and I who belong to the one true King need to remember who we are.

When you come to Jesus Christ, you leave your old identity behind, and you find your true identity in Him. Through our union with Christ, God our Father adopts us into His family, and He calls us His beloved children with whom He is well pleased (Matthew 3:17; Romans 8:14-17). 

To our great astonishment, God now considers us royalty, destined to be co-heirs with Christ our King. This thought should blow our minds. If we really contemplate what this means, it just might!

The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” (Romans 8:16-17, ESV)

We belong to God our Father, and that means we who suffer in union with Jesus will one day be glorified in union with Jesus. See if your soul can take in the magnitude of that thought. 

What does this mean? Well, for starters it means that we have indescribable value in God’s eyes. We matter more to Him than we could possibly fathom. It means there is a purpose and meaning to our lives beyond “Hakuna Matata.”

Ironically, if your existence is just about a grand “circle of life,” then the “No Worries” lifestyle actually makes sense. We live. We eat. We die. Our bodies become food for bacteria. So, why worry about how you live? Your “life force” is going to keep going around the same circle anyway, so you might as well live it up and enjoy yourself for your brief segment of the circle.

But if we belong to God, we really do have a purpose in this life that will carry forward into eternity. You were made to make a difference—to know God and to make Him known. It also means that God has a calling on your life. Like Simba, we have an enemy who wants to thwart our Father’s plans for us. He lies about our identity. He tells us we don’t matter to God, that we’ve sinned too much to be forgiven or used by Him. 

That is why we have to take up the shield of faith, Scripture says, to protect us from all the fiery darts of the evil one (Ephesians 6:16). Only through faith in what God says about us can we overcome and be more than conquerors through Him who loves us.

Remember whose you are. If you have trusted in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, you have a new identity. You belong to Jesus Christ. You are clothed in His righteousness. You are forgiven. You are valuable in your Father’s sight. He adopted you as His own child because He loves you, and He is not ashamed of you. He is well pleased to call you His own.

“In love He predestined us for adoption to Himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.” (Ephesians 1:4-5, ESV)

Are you interested in learning more about Jesus Christ and what He’s done for you? I’d love to hear from you!

One Thing

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional1 Comment 
“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” (Philippians 3:8, ESV)

The Apostle Paul had one all-consuming passion: to know Jesus Christ more. This one passion fueled everything in his life. He was willing to sacrifice his time, energy, and body. He was willing to go wherever he needed to go and do whatever needed to be done. He was willing to trade everything–recognition, applause for his accomplishments, favor among his colleagues–all for the sake of Jesus.

If you were to boil it down, what is the one thing that is driving your life right now? What is the purpose that defines your life? 

If an alien from another planet was to investigate your life closely to try to determine what you care about, why you get up in the morning, and what you might even die for, what would it be? 

Although there are one thousand and one things we should care about and are important, what if God wants your life to be driven by one thing? And, yes, there are a million and one habits you and I could work on, but if you could name one discipline in life right now that God wants you to practice, what would it be? I think it’s important to focus on that one thing, because otherwise it could be crowded out by the host of distractions that are going to come your way today, tomorrow, and every day after that.

But imagine for a moment where your life might take you in the next five or ten years if you put into practice this one thing on a daily basis. Whatever it is–ask God to empower you by His Spirit to commit to this discipline. And when you do that, you’re living by faith because you’re trusting that God will bring the results if you don’t neglect this daily habit. What is that habit?

Sit with that question for a bit. Let it marinate. Imagine what your life might look like if you lived with single-minded devotion for Jesus Christ above all else. What would you need to sacrifice? What would you have to let go of? What would you have to do? Ask God to show you what one thing is critical and might just transform the trajectory of your life, making you into a more loving, joy-filled, purpose-oriented person. Whatever it is, you’re not going to find it in your past. God is holding out to you something in your future.

“I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” (Philippians 3:12-14, NLT)

Father, You bring light and life to all who commit their lives to follow You. I pray that both the person reading this and I would be fueled by one great passion: to glorify Jesus Christ all our days. Would you work in our hearts and empower us to live this journey of faith with eyes on Your Son, Jesus. It’s in His Name I pray. Amen.

Are you interested in learning more about Jesus Christ and what He’s done for you? I’d love to hear from you!

How Teachable Are You?

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional, Theology for LifeLeave a comment 
“Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.” (Proverbs 3:7, ESV)

As long as we are still here on this earth, we need reminders. I’m 37 now, and I can still remember a conversation with one of my high school teachers twenty years ago that has stuck with me. I think it stuck with me, because overall I thought of myself as a good student. But during that time, I was facing some challenges and not making the best decisions.

He told me he noticed that during the first part of the school year, I was doing well in class, but lately, it seemed like I wasn’t really taking the subject seriously. Initially, I wanted to brush him off. Why is he picking on me? I’m a good student, after all! 

I think he recognized something was off. When a student has done well consistently throughout the year, but they suddenly bomb an assignment–and then another one–the issue is probably the student, not the teacher. For me, it was an issue of teachability. His words stuck with me: “I’m saying this to you because I know you’re capable of more.”

Ouch. Those words stung! It felt like he was calling me lazy. And you know what? He wasn’t wrong! For various reasons, I had stopped putting in the effort. And he noticed and told me as much.

It can be hard to receive counsel from others. We tell ourselves that we know what’s best for ourselves. On top of that, we live in a culture that says you should trust your feelings above all else. Christians need to remember we are in a battle with the ideas, selfish desires, and spiritual forces that oppose the gospel (commonly called “the world, the flesh, and the devil”). And part of that battle is remembering how easily we can fool ourselves. That’s why we need to hear instruction and counsel from others.

The wise king Solomon taught: “Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment” (Proverbs 18:1). 

In other words, the one who refuses the counsel of others is instead surrounding him or herself with bad thoughts. The man who doesn’t let others speak into his life or hold him accountable is ultimately the fool headed for a train wreck. Whether he realized it or not, my teacher’s words to me were like a wake-up call: “Don’t be a fool!” Or said in a slightly nicer tone: “Don’t waste what God has given you!”

Wisdom begins with recognizing how much we need it and how following our own desires and impulses can so easily lead us astray.

Solomon also said: 

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
   and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
   and he will make straight your paths.
Be not wise in your own eyes;
   fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.
It will be healing to your flesh
    and refreshment to your bones.” (Proverbs 3:5-8, ESV)

How teachable are you? Do you let people speak truth and wisdom into your life? Do you let Scripture direct your paths and shape your thinking–or is God on mute in your life?

So often we refuse to listen to our critics or those who disagree with us, believing we already know best. But what if God is sending such people to get our attention? 

The gospel of Jesus Christ is the greatest source for humble teachability. It tells us that we have all made a mess of things through our sin, but at the same time, we have a God who loves us unconditionally–and proved it through the sacrificial death of Jesus. Knowing you are so easily swayed by sin creates humility. You can no longer believe that you can’t be deceived or led astray. At the same time, because God so dearly loves you, you have every confidence to confess where you’ve been duped or made bad decisions, knowing He forgives and restores. 

We have all been in that place. So, know that your sins and mistakes doesn’t disqualify you from God’s love. If we are rooting ourselves securely in His love, it can become the very thing that opens us to receive instruction and correction. 

So let me encourage you to make a commitment to be teachable this coming week. Listen to those who want to provide godly counsel. 

Is there anyone who you need to talk with that you have been avoiding?

Have thoughts on this post? I’d love to hear from you!

How Can I Be Sure I’m Going to Heaven?

On By Jason SmithIn Theology for LifeLeave a comment

It’s hard to trust every promise you hear these days. Most of us have had the experience of someone breaking a promise they made to us. 

I remember a time early in our marriage when Whitney was away at a women’s Bible study one night, and a man selling vacuum cleaners came to our house. I told him right away at the door that I’m not interested. He said, “Oh, I’m not really needing to sell you anything. All I have to do is get enough demonstrations done, and then I get paid for that.” 

“Really?” I said. “You mean you get paid just for coming into my house, vacuuming my carpet, and then leaving without me spending a dime?” “That’s right,” he said. So, I reluctantly agreed, but I made him promise that he wouldn’t try to sell me anything. 

As it turns out, his demonstration included telling me about every part of the vacuum cleaner. I listened respectfully as he explained the marvels of every brush, wand, and hose. He finally got to the point where he demonstrated the vacuum cleaner’s power, but not before dumping some dirt on our carpet. No, he didn’t ask first. Just dumped some dirt and said, “Watch this.” Apparently, he only planned to clean up the mess he himself was going to make.  

After about 15 minutes into this demonstration, he said, “You know, you seem like a nice guy. I want to tell you about an exclusive sale we’re only allowed to give to a few.” Oh boy, here it comes.  

No, I didn’t buy the vacuum cleaner. And no, I wasn’t impressed with the fact that he broke his promise and tried to sell me something. 

We all know what it’s like when someone breaks his or her promise. It’s irritating in cases like my encounter with the vacuum salesman, but in other cases, it can be devastating. We hear politicians make promises they can’t keep. We hear bosses make promises and then forget to keep them. Husbands and wives make vows and then break them. And so, because there’s a sour taste in our mouth from all the broken promises, sometimes it’s hard for us to believe God when He gives us a promise. 

But not all promises are meant to be broken. Some are so unbreakable that they are rooted in eternity. God is a good Father, and a good Father never wants His children to doubt His love for them. He wants them to know they are His–not just for today, but forever. 

Something every Christian wants is assurance of eternal life, but we will never have it until we learn to look away from ourselves to Jesus Christ as the Author of our salvation from beginning to end.  

The Apostle Paul delivered this promise in Romans 8:

“For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom He predestined He also called, and those whom He called He also justified, and those whom He justified He also glorified.” (Romans 8:29-30, ESV) 

The phrase “those whom” occurs four times in these verses. The reason for that is to emphasize he is describing the same group throughout this whole section. Also, note that God is the main Actor here. God is the One who works all things together for good (v. 28). God foreknows, predestines, calls, justifies, and glorifies.  

Those Whom He Predestined, Called, Justified, and Glorified

Predestination means “determine before” or “mark out for a destination.” In other words, God marked out this group ahead of time. Calling means God supernaturally called you to Himself through the preaching of the gospel. Third, justification means God declares you to be right with Him. That happens at faith (Romans 5:1). The moment we trust in Jesus as our Savior, God wipes out our record of sin. Essentially, God takes your record of sin and puts it through a cosmic paper shredder. And then He burns that. There is no longer any legal record of your sin debt in God’s courtroom. But on top of that, God credits us with the perfect life of Christ. That’s what it means to be justified. To be glorified means to be made glorious, brought into the glorious presence of God. It is to be brought home to glory in Heaven to be with your Creator for all eternity.

It’s essential to understand that God can legally and righteously do all this because of the cross. It’s like this. We were on death row, ready to face execution as a penalty for our sins. We broke God’s Law, and we offended His holiness. But then—glorious good news!—Jesus came and took our place on death row and endured the penalty for our sins. He stepped in and the hammer of judgment fell on Him, not us. So when we put our faith in Christ’s sacrifice, God can legally declare us just, holy, and righteous, because Jesus willingly exchanged our record for His. He got our sin; we get His righteousness.  

Please notice from all this that our legal status as being right with God had nothing to do with how good we were. We all like to say to ourselves, “You know, I’m not perfect, but at least I’m doing better than that guy.”  We love to compare ourselves to others. 

Surveys show that nearly every American thinks that he or she is morally better than average. But, if you do the math, you can’t have 98% of people doing better than average. It just doesn’t work.  

My Only Boast: The Cross

The more you understand the gospel, the more you see that our confidence before God can’t come from looking at ourselves. Our confidence has everything to do with the fact that our sins could only be paid for one way. There was only one way we could escape judgment—not by works, but by faith in Jesus Christ. Only Jesus could expunge our record of sins. Only Jesus could rescue us. Our confidence is in Him. 

Paul said, “The only thing I have to boast about is the Cross. That’s it! Otherwise, I’ve got nothing!” 

So often Christians struggle with assurance, because they look first at their own life. They think, I haven’t lived the life God wants me to. I haven’t lived up to all the things that the Bible calls me to be. My life doesn’t always perfectly show the fruit of the Spirit. So am I really saved?  

There is a place for considering your own life. The Bible does say to examine your life and consider whether you are loving Jesus and seeking to honor Him as Lord of your life (2 Cor. 13:5). Because if you have no signs of repentance, that’s a serious concern. James says, “Faith without works is dead” (James 2:26).

But the problem is that your works were never meant to be the basis of your assurance. If they were, you would never be confident of salvation. You would always see there was work to be done and changes that needed to happen. Because we aren’t perfect. No, the ground of assurance is not in looking to yourself but looking outside yourself to Christ on the cross and then the empty tomb and then seeing Him right now at the right hand of the Father interceding for you. It’s about letting the truth of the gospel wash over you again and again. 

Those with true, saving faith don’t become bored with the gospel. If you’re bored with the gospel, then the fullness of the gospel hasn’t sunk in. Because the glory of God’s grace, the beauty of Christ’s personal love for you, and the joy of forgiveness are never boring. 

Take this promise of Jesus to heart.  

“Those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them. For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will. And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those he has given me, but that I should raise them up at the last day. For it is my Father’s will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day.” (John 6:37-40, NLT, emphasis added) 

Let me encourage you to come back to this promise over and over and plead with the Holy Spirit to drill these truths into your heart until you can say, “Yes! That’s true of me! I have come to Jesus in repentant faith, so God has promised eternal life to me.” 

This same security is found here in Romans 8:

"And those whom He predestined He also called, and those whom He called He also justified, and those whom He justified He also glorified.”  (Romans 8:30, ESV) 

Have thoughts on this post? I’d love to hear from you!

Am I Good Enough?

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional, Theology for Life1 Comment

This is the question lurking just below the surface in every human heart. Have I done enough? Do people accept me for who I am? Am I good enough?

The gospel of Jesus Christ is the most stunning message in history. It’s the message that God saves us by sheer grace, but it starts by telling us what we don’t want to hear. It tells us that we have come up short. That we came into this world needy, desperate, and hopelessly lost in sin. That we are by nature in rebellion against the God who made us. I know that sounds harsh. It flies in the face of our culture’s messaging and much of what we were told since we were little.

We’re told “You are enough,” “You have what it takes,” and “You’ve got this.” Apparently, we are mind-blowingly awesome in every single way just the way we are. Sound familiar? It’s interesting how often we have to tell ourselves (or be told) we are awesome. 

According to Christianity, we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” and we need to know how  valuable we are as God’s image bearers. But the Bible never encourages us to look within for a boost of confidence or tell ourselves, “I don’t need outside help.”

I recently saw a school sign that read, “It’s easy to forget, so here’s a little reminder: You’re Awesome!”

Isn’t it a little strange that we are so incredibly awesome, and yet we have to be told that repeatedly? (I also find it a bit ironic that when someone actually seems to believe this and starts boasting about how awesome they are, we call that person a narcissist). 

Brené Brown tells us, “We live in a culture of scarcity, of never enough. There is only one way out of scarcity – and that is enoughness. At some point we need to say: I am enough.” We look at that quote and think, Yes, I am enough. But somehow we struggle to believe it. If I really am good enough, smart enough, and have enough “enoughness”… why do I need to keep hearing this from people like Brené Brown?

The truth is that Brown’s counsel only leads to greater self-obsession, which is ultimately exhausting and joy-sapping. Self-validation is a weighty burden the human soul was never meant to carry.

I have a theory. I think the reason we crave words of approval is that deep down, we know the truth: Something is deeply wrong inside. I’m not everything I should be.

The Bible basically says, “Yes, there really is something wrong with you. Only…it’s worse than you think. But the good news is that if you can believe the hard truth about how bad you really are, you are finally ready to hear the good news of grace.”

The Bible tells us that hard truth we so desperately need to hear. Now, I’ll warn you, it can sting a bit to hear this for the first time. Just remember what Jesus said: “The truth will set you free.” You’ll be ready to receive the cure, only if you’re willing to hear the diagnosis.

On your own and apart from Jesus Christ:

  • You’re not righteous or good. (Romans 3:10)
  • You’re dead in your sins. (Ephesians 2:1)
  • You’re selfish by nature. (Romans 2:13)
  • You’re caught in a web of self-deception. (Romans 3:13)
  • You’re prone to bitterness, anger, and hatred. (Romans 3:14-17)
  • You don’t fear or revere the God who gave you life. (Romans 3:18)
  • You suppress the truth about God, because you don’t want to be accountable. (Romans 1:18)
  • And because of all this, you deserve the just and holy wrath of God. (Romans 1:18; Ephesians 2:3; John 3:36)

Ouch! But as much as that might hurt to hear, remember the Bible doesn’t create sin in our hearts; it simply shows us what’s already there. We will never look for the remedy until we understand we have a spiritual disease called sin, and this disease will kill us unless something drastically changes.

Very often, people new to Christianity and the church will hear this much and tell themselves, “Okay, if that’s true, I better change my act.” This is our default setting. We tell ourselves that if we have gone astray, then we must simply get back on the right path. If we have become morally filthy, then we must clean ourselves up.

The problem is that we are trying to atone for our own sins, and that will never work. What we need is the atonement of Jesus Christ. And until we know what Jesus went through for us, we will never understand how deeply God loves us. Without the cross, God’s love will always seem like a shallow idea rather than a soul-transforming reality.

The gospel explains that we could never be good enough, but Jesus was good enough for us. As the Son of God, Jesus lived the perfectly righteous life we should have lived. And He died the death we deserved in our place as our Substitute. 

The culture is constantly trying to build up my self-confidence, but confidence in myself is not the answer. My confidence is this: At the Cross, Jesus bore all my sins and fully paid for them. He endured the punishment that was coming to me. He paid the debt that I owed because of my sins. My confidence is His blood and righteousness.

Or, as Paul put it:

“But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which[b] the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14)

On our own, we could never be good enough. Only Jesus is good enough. And through faith in His righteous life and substitutionary death, we are forgiven of all our sin and reconciled to a holy God. God declares us to be as righteous as Jesus. This is the doctrine of justification. Faith unites us to Christ, and then His righteousness is imputed to us. Once we are in Christ, God the Father sees us clothed in the righteousness of Christ. 

I am not enough. Jesus is enough.

To be justified by faith in Christ means you are no longer looking to your own moral performance for your standing with God. You can be honest about your personal shortcomings and sins, because you stand righteous (or infinitely good enough) in Jesus Christ. Your confidence isn’t in your awesomeness; it’s in the awesome love of God.

But here’s the radical truth: God loved you and me when we were everything on the list above. You and I were once as lost as can be, and yet God loved us even at our lowest. Knowing this love personally will give you all the confidence you need to face life’s various challenges. God is now for you. Who can be against you? (Romans 8:31)

Have thoughts on this post? I’d love to hear from you!

Failure Is Never Final

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional3 Comments

Before Jonas Salk discovered the vaccine for polio, he had to fail 200 times. When he was asked how he felt about those 200 failures, Salk said, “I never failed two hundred times in my life. I was taught not to use the word ‘failure.’ I just discovered two hundred ways how not to vaccinate for polio.”

Just think about that for a minute. 200 times. What if he had given up after that 200th attempt? Or even the 20th attempt? Polio was a deadly disease that afflicted thousands prior to the discovery of the vaccine. The disease claimed the life of 3,000 people in 1952 alone. Thank God, Salk didn’t quit early. Today, polio is almost completely eradicated across the world. Salk had to think of his failures in a way most people don’t in order to move forward to success.

In the Gospel of John, we read about another man with a series of failures. Peter grievously sinned by denying he even knew Jesus three times. But the truly amazing thing is how Jesus responded to Peter’s failures. Jesus didn’t abandon Peter or discard him as no longer useful to him. In fact, He gave Peter a position of extraordinary prominence in His newly launched church. 

This is an important reminder. When you have a God of infinite grace, failure can become a steppingstone to true success. It’s an opportunity for growth, if you’re willing to receive God’s grace. Every time you honestly confess your sin to God, think of it as taking one more step toward becoming the person He wants you to be.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9, ESV)

Most Christians will readily agree that confession leads to forgiveness, but do we really believe that Jesus cleanses us from all unrighteousness? 

There is tremendous freedom in bringing our failures into the light of God’s presence. He is a God who graciously forgives, but like a good father, He calls us to confess where we’ve gone wrong.

If I snap at my wife Whitney in the morning and then later that evening come home and say, “Hey, honey, what’s for dinner?” There’s still going to be a rift between us. Before our relationship can be restored to what it should be, I have to go through the painful experience of saying, “I was wrong for how I snapped at you earlier. Will you forgive me?” That’s how it always goes with relationships. 

We might assume Peter’s leadership career was over after that failure in the temple courts, but Jesus fully restored Peter. Think about that. It’s hard to imagine something more grievous than denying his Lord three times, but Jesus restored Peter and chose him to be the guy to first proclaim the gospel of grace in Jerusalem.

The same kind of thing could be said of Paul. He had a record of persecuting Christians and blaspheming Jesus, yet God used him to first take the gospel to the Gentile world. Paul even says that God chose people like him because they would showcase His grace and the fact that His cross and resurrection set us free from our past and restore us to our true calling (see 1 Timothy 1:16).

This is what makes Christianity so amazing! Because of the gospel, past failure doesn’t disqualify us from the calling God has on our lives.

While it’s important to confess sin to the Lord, it’s equally important to see that the Lord can grow you through your failures. Never give in to the lie that God is done using you because of something in your past. Maybe you’re holding onto something you need to surrender to Him.

So many Christians feel defeated by past failures and feel they can never move on and move forward in their walk with the Lord. If that’s you, please know that is not a word from God. That’s not Jesus telling you you’re disqualified. That’s the devil.

Revelation 12:10 calls the devil “the Accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accused them day and night before God.” This is one of Satan’s tactics. He will urge us to quit when we’ve blown it. Or tell us we’ve tried God’s patience too many times. Watch out for the critics you face in life. The more you say “Yes” to God’s calling on your life, the more critics will attack you.

But every time you stumble and fall, don’t let Satan sideline you.  By God’s grace, see it as another opportunity to rise again in the power of the Lord and get back in the fight.

Theodore Roosevelt said:

“It’s not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena… who, at best, knows in the end the triumph of great achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly. So that his place will never be with those cold timid souls who know neither victory or defeat.”

If you feel like you’ve failed Jesus too many times, see John 21:15-19 as an invitation to sit down by the fire with Jesus. Hear Him asking you, “Do you love Me?” 

And if the answer is “Yes,” then there’s always hope. And that love can drive you to keep following after Him.

Have thoughts on this post? I’d love to hear from you!

It Will Cost You Everything

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional, Theology for Life1 Comment 
In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be My disciples. (Luke 14:33, ESV)

In the 2001 animated film Shrek, we meet Lord Farquaad, the pompous, proud, and vertically challenged villain. In one of the best lines from the movie, Farquaad sends out his knights on a high-risk mission to rescue a princess from a dragon.

With great feeling, he tells them, “Some of you may die. But that’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make.”

The life Jesus Christ calls us to is radically different. Instead of expecting some kind of faux sacrifice akin to Lord Farquaad, Jesus demands a sacrifice that is personal and total. We’re called to surrender ourselves to Him and give our full allegiance to Him as the King who conquered death.

Jesus Himself came to slay the dragon and purchase His bride (the church) with His own blood. Almost every fairytale is just a dim reflection of the greatest story ever told.

Knowing Jesus made that ultimate sacrifice puts His demand on your life in perspective. In a world where you are encouraged to put yourself first, follow your heart, and live your truth, Jesus demands you deny yourself and follow Him. In fact, Jesus even said, “Unless you give up everything you have, you cannot be My disciple.” 

Notice that Jesus doesn’t tolerate the easy-believism so prevalent today that thinks of Jesus as a ticket to Heaven, but not as the Lord of our lives. Jesus asked that searching question, “Why do you call Me, Lord, Lord, yet don’t do what I say?” (Luke 6:46). As the risen Lord, Jesus calls us to give up everything for Him, to lay it all down at His feet and say, “Okay, Lord. It’s all yours.” 

This means that we choose to find our identity in Christ, first and foremost. How you understand your identity is so important, because if you know who you are (or better yet, know whose you are), you can know what you should do. To give up everything for Jesus means that every aspect of your day should fit your identity in Christ. How you view your relationships, your career, your church, your money, and where you turn for rest, should all be shaped by Jesus.

If you’ve never thought of your relationship to Jesus as something that requires sacrifice, that should raise a red flag. Jesus emphasized repeatedly that there is a cost to following Him. Yes, there are rich rewards, both in this life and the next, and we certainly don’t want to minimize that. But if you’ve never felt like you had to give something up for Jesus, then you’ve missed something essential.

When Jesus called four fishermen to follow Him, we’re told that “they left everything and followed him” (Luke 5:11, ESV). While Jesus won’t necessarily call you to leave your career, He does call you to surrender it over to Him. In the same way, Jesus called Levi (also known as Matthew the tax collector) to follow Him as a disciple. This meant leaving behind his tax booth, which represented his livelihood and opulent lifestyle. But Luke tells us: “And leaving everything, he rose and followed him” (v. 28). 

To reiterate the cost of following Him, Jesus gives two examples: a building project and a battlefield.

He says to the crowds:

“For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:28-33, ESV)

How foolish, Jesus says, to start constructing something you aren’t committed to finish. And who would engage in a war without considering what it will take to win?

Have you counted the cost? Are you willing to put everything on the line for Jesus–even your own life?

It’s important to ask yourself some honest, gut-level questions: 

Is there anything I’m not willing to give up for Jesus? 

Is there anything in my life that I’m prizing more than Jesus? 

Is there a sin I’m unwilling to repent of?

Am I giving Jesus time for communion with Him?

To live as His follower is to enter into His joy. Following Him will cost you everything, but the reward for following Jesus is beyond compare.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, following You is the greatest joy of my life. It’s an adventure of faith, and it’s exciting to see all the ways You are at work in my life and the lives of those around me. If there is anything in my life standing in the way of deeper intimacy with You or faithfulness to You, please reveal that to me by Your Holy Spirit. In Your Glorious Name. Amen.

Have thoughts on this post? I’d love to hear from you!

Charlie Kirk, Evil, and the Hope of Jesus Christ

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional, Theology for Life, Why I Believe3 Comments
Photo courtesy of First Freedoms Foundation

One of the most common objections to Christianity I hear is the problem of evil. How could a good God allow so much evil in His world? I think it’s good to think through this question as believers. It will inevitably come up as you interact with others about spiritual things and seek opportunities to tell others about the hope of Jesus Christ.

Let me first say that there is something very right about that question. It assumes evil is real. That may not sound too profound, but it’s the common ground we all have to deal with. Some things are truly evil. It’s not just that I don’t like certain things or that I get disgusted by certain things. There are some things in this world that are objectively and unambiguously evil, and we all know this, even if our worldview doesn’t have a basis for saying it.

This last week, the world witnessed true evil. Charlie Kirk, a 31-year-old Christ-follower and popular conservative with a massive social media following, was murdered with a single bullet. The event shocked the world. In fact, I’ve talked with many people who have said they were shocked, but not surprised. 

I think what people mean is they are morally shocked by the act of cold-blooded murder, but intellectually, they know evil is sadly abundant in the world, so they aren’t all that surprised. I want to affirm the rightness of being morally shocked by the evil of murder. It is sadly the case that we are so inundated with news about murder, war, gang violence, and school shootings, that it would be easy for us to become calloused and forget how heinous each act of murder and violence truly is. 

Charlie Kirk was an outspoken Christian. He was very vocal in his views, so his name and his online presence were well-known. Many people sharply disagreed with Charlie’s views, and he was constantly on the receiving end of mockery, insults, outright hatred, and death threats for him and his family. And he was shot in broad daylight while debating college students in his trademark fashion that made him so popular among conservatives. All of this helps us understand how shocking his murder was. 

But I hope that we can see what is often lost in the noise: every murder is a violation of the sixth commandment. Murder is unequivocally evil, because every human life bears the image of God and has inestimable worth in God’s eyes. The Bible doesn’t offer a pat answer to the problem of evil or give us a clean explanation for the origin of evil. The fall in Genesis 3 explains the origin of human evil and the brokenness of the world, but the absolute origin of evil (Why did Satan rebel?) is not provided. This is likely because evil is ultimately irrational and incomprehensible. 

We aren’t called to fixate on evil, but to think about things that are lovely, pure, true, and beautiful (Philippians 4:8). We are to fix our eyes on Jesus, the spotless Lamb of God who so lovingly and graciously gave up His life to rescue a world ensnared in the darkness of our own making. 

So, while the Bible doesn’t offer a thorough explanation of evil, it does give us the resources for calling something evil and then finding hope in a purely good God.

We know evil is evil because of its contrast with a perfectly good God. God alone is the standard of absolute goodness, and it’s only by looking to Him as our fixed reference point for all reality that we can see what evil, by contrast, looks like. Those who say evil makes no sense if God is real need to consider how calling something “evil” could make sense if there is no God. Every time you call something like murder evil, you are assuming a standard of goodness. You are saying, “This (murder) is wrong, because it does not conform to that which is good, true, and beautiful (protecting and honoring each human life as sacred).”

If your worldview has no room for God, then on what basis are you calling something “evil”? If we are just the product of a natural, blind, irrational process with no divine Mind behind it, we can talk about survival of the fittest, but not the arrival of moral absolutes. It is only because there is a transcendent Authority on good and evil that we can step back and call something unquestionably “evil.” But the Christian hope gives us more than a basis to call evil what it is; it offers us Jesus Christ as the redemptive hope for a lost world.

In one talk he gave in 2023, Charlie said, “Here is the gospel in four words: Jesus took my place.” Charlie recognized that he was a sinner in need of a Savior, and that Jesus and His sacrifice are the only hope for forgiveness and eternal life.

Jesus, too, was outspoken in His views on God, morality, and truth, and Jesus, too, was murdered graphically and publicly. 

What made Jesus unique, however, is that because He is the sinless Son of God, His death had the power to ransom evil people from their self-destruction and deliver them to the Kingdom of God.

Jesus said, “For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father” (John 10:18-19, ESV)

Jesus took our place. He laid down His life to suffer the consequences of the evil you and I have done, but because He is Lord, He took it up again and rose to life. Jesus called people to repent and believe this good news. Outside of Jesus, we each have to deal with the judgment our sins deserve, and it’s only in Jesus that love will overcome hate. 

May the death of Charlie Kirk spark a revival in our nation, with countless turning to Christ in faith. What man intends for evil, God intends for good (Genesis 50:20).

Jesus alone is the only hope for a lost and dying world, and because He is King, a glorious day is coming when all will be set right.

Have thoughts on this post? I’d love to hear from you!

The Fear of Death and the God of Life

On By Jason SmithIn Devotional, Theology for Life3 Comments 
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.” (John 11:25, BSB)

The fear of death has long plagued humanity. It’s a universal dread that hangs over the whole world. It’s the knowledge that one day, we won’t wake up. One day, our loved ones, our family members, our favorite pet, all those we treasure most in life, will no longer be here. That’s a sobering thought.

And the fear of death is one that humans have tried to deal with from the beginning. How do we escape this fear? What hope do we have? What answers and assurance are there for us?

In his Gospel, the Apostle John wants us to see that the only remedy for the fear of death is the God of life, whom we meet in Jesus Christ. That’s why John puts so much focus on who Jesus is. He knows that nothing else matters if we get Jesus wrong.

God doesn’t want you to live your whole life in fear of death. He wants to give you the assurance of life found in Christ.

John 8 narrates a high-octane dialogue between Jesus and His biggest critics, the religious leaders of Israel. Jesus makes some astounding claims, calling these leaders “slaves to sin” and saying the devil is their daddy.[1] As you can imagine, those comments didn’t sit well with them.

These religious leaders figured, “Well, we can fight fire with fire!” So, they come back with this attack:

The Jews answered him, “Aren’t we right in saying that you are a Samaritan and demon-possessed?” (John 8:48, NIV)

Calling Jesus a “Samaritan” was supposed to be a racial slur, but that’s not the thing that bothered Jesus. However, calling the holy Son of God “demon-possessed” is outright blasphemy. So why would they do that?

See, it was so hard to deny that something supernatural was happening with Jesus. Even the Jewish Talmud concedes that Jesus was doing some kind of supernatural deeds, but they attribute them to satanic sorcery. Some Jews today still believe that Jesus was in league with the devil.

In fact, Rabbi Daniel Asor, not long ago said, “Jesus was a false prophet, for he acted only through sorcery. He himself is the embodiment of Satanism.”

But today, that’s a minority opinion on Jesus. Most people today think of Jesus as a kindly “Mr. Rogers” type of guy who was just a great example of love and compassion. People like Madonna and Justin Timberlake have worn T-shirts calling Jesus their “Homeboy.” Oprah Winfrey has said that she finds Jesus to be an “inspiration,” and Brad Pitt has said that he “respects” Him. That sounds pretty safe. Who wouldn’t want to get on board with a Jesus who is there to cheer us on and left an example of love and kindness?

Now, it’s true that Jesus was full of love and compassion. In fact, no one else comes even close. But what if this view of Jesus is so watered down that it’s not even recognizable when we look at what the real Jesus said and did?

There’s a sense in which people like Brad Pitt say they “respect” Jesus because it allows them to stay a safe distance away and avoid the biggest truth about who Jesus claimed to be. But Jesus doesn’t merely want to be respected or inspire us to be nice. He came into this world making the most earth-shaking claims imaginable. So, to downplay what Jesus actually said is to ignore the real Jesus.

See, who Jesus really is matters because if Jesus claimed to be God 2,000 years ago, that claim still stands today. If it was true in the first century, it must be true in the 21st century.

So, Jesus sets the record straight.

“I am not possessed by a demon,” said Jesus, “but I honor my Father and you dishonor me. I am not seeking glory for myself; but there is one who seeks it, and he is the judge. Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.” (John 8:49-51, NIV)

And here Jesus makes an enormous claim. “Whoever obeys [or holds to or commits themselves to] His Word will never see death.”

Jesus is referring to spiritual death: separation from God. He’s speaking in the same sense as when John earlier said, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”[2]

Jesus is saying that He alone holds the answer to the timeless question of our mortality.

Many philosophers have made the case that the fear of death drives nearly all human behavior. Even when we’re not conscious of it, it’s there under the surface, shaping the way that we approach all of life. Some have said that philosophy itself is the mind’s way of trying to transcend the looming specter of death.

But of course, it’s not just philosophers that have tried to overcome the fear of death.

Here’s what the Bible says. Jesus died for us, “that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery” (Hebrews 2:14-15, NIV).

Interestingly, people have tried all sorts of ways to get around death, to stave it off, and avoid it. But God calls us to confront the reality of our own death, so that we will be prepared for what comes next. So, here’s a question: How often do you reflect on your own death? Most people try to avoid the subject as much as possible.

If you were to ask the Bible, “Why do we die?” The answer is that we were never meant to die. Death is an enemy and a foreign invader into God’s good world (1 Corinthians 15:26). It’s here because sin is here (Romans 5:12). When our first parents rebelled against God, death made its first entry. That’s because when you rebel against the God of life, death is the result. This fear of death tells us that things are not as they should be. And people have come up with all sorts of ways to try to deny death.

Believe it or not, there are those today who have the hope that through medical advancements, like stem cell research and nanobots, they will be able to avoid death altogether. The logic goes something like this: We know that death is caused by certain diseases, disorders, or bodily malfunctions, so all we must do is find a cure for every disease and disorder, and we will be able to live indefinitely.

The first Facebook president, Sean Parker, has boasted: “Because I’m a billionaire, I’m going to have access to better healthcare… I’m going to be like 160 and I’m going to be part of this, like, class of immortal overlords.”

He’s not the only one talking this way. In a recent TED talk, British researcher Aubrey de Grey claimed that through nanobot technology, “the first human beings who will live to 1,000 years old have already been born.” As it turns out, the search for the mythical fountain of youth has continued even in the 21st century.

But at the end of the day, I have to say, it’s all incredibly foolish. There’s only One who can save you from death, and I assure you, it’s not nanobots! It’s the One who called Himself “The Resurrection and the Life.”

Have thoughts on this post? I’d love to hear from you!

[1] John 8:31-44

[2] John 3:36, NIV