Results

And Solomon brought in the things that David his father had dedicated, and stored the silver, the gold, and all the vessels in the treasuries of the house of God. (2 Chronicles 5:1 ESV)

Results

I am not a good gardener, because I am impatient for results.  I would not be a good road construction worker because I am impatient for results.  I would not be a good hospice health care worker, because I am impatient for results. 

I am not a good David, because I am impatient for results.

King David had wanted to build God’s House, and even began to gather necessary raw materials, but God said no.  It was David’s son, Solomon, who built the temple.  And finally, years after David’s death, the preparation that David began bore final fruit.

But David never saw it while on earth.

This is the way that God works with His people.  He has given us tasks, duties, and responsibilities.  But the results are in God’s gracious hands.  He does not necessarily reward us with results on our schedule.  But because the work we do for Him is HIS work, He completes it when He is ready.

So we can enjoy the work, perhaps, without needing results.  So we can more easily remember that the work is HIS, and relax while we work.  So we can contentedly obey, like King David, knowing that God’s results are probably even better than we can imagine. 

What a blessing God’s results are.

Prayer

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. (James 5:13 ESV)

Prayer

When I push the correct icon on my phone, a telephone call results.  And my phone works because I have paid for the privilege of telephone service.

There is very little Grace evident in any telephone call I make or receive.

But prayer, the means believers have to communicate with God, only exists because of His Grace.

He listens to us because He is gracious.  He inclines His ear towards us because He is gracious.  He commands us to pray because He is gracious.

Prayer is not our right, our power, or the result of our righteousness.

Prayer works because God graciously listens.

Prayer exists because God graciously listens.

What a blessing prayer is.

Sleep

Sweet is the sleep of a laborer, (Ecclesiastes 5:12 ESV)

Sleep

I sleep better after a day of hard work, than a day of loafing around.  So my experience confirms what the author of Ecclesiastes writes here.

But the context of this proverbial statement goes beyond ‘sleep pattern analysis.’  Sleep is not just a body’s natural revitalization process.

Sleep is a gift from God.  Yes, because our bodies and minds need sleep.  But also, because in sleep we taste slightly of our Eternal Rest.  In sleep we can find solace from our sins and sin’s effects.  In sleep, God performs an amazing act, still not fully understood by modern medicine, in which we are freed from so much suffering.  In sleep, we are blessed by God.

So nearly every night, for nearly eight hours, we receive another blessing from God.  And like His other blessings, He does not give it to us as a reward, or a payment, or the result of our efforts.  But it is given to us because of His Grace.

What a blessing sleep is.

Possesions

So Joshua said to the people of Israel, “How long will you put off going in to take possession of the land, which the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you?” (Joshua 18:3 ESV)

The Land

My brother and I shared a bedroom.  We did not fight excessively about room distribution, but there were times we squabbled.  Who got the top bunk? Who got the better dresser?  And most of all, whose room was it?  Was he a guest in MY room?  Or was I a guest in HIS room.

My father walked by the room while we were having one such discussion and he settled the dispute quite simply.  “It’s MY room,” he proclaimed. “Why you buy a house it can be YOUR room.”

The Israelites during the time of Joshua were very aware of land ownership.  Not only did Joshua remind them in speeches such as this, that the land was given to them… but they remembered the battles that the Lord won on their behalf.  They remembered the hordes of Canaanites fleeing not the army of Israel, but the Army of the Lord.

We would do well to remember that same concept.  You did not buy your land, the Lord gave it to you.  You did not buy your car, the Lord gave it to you.  You did not achieve your education, the Lord granted it to you.  You did not rise to great heights, or fall to great depths, the Lord gave you your position.

Remembering His gifts is a good way to remember His Grace.  All that we use, steward, and manage for Him is His, not ours.  But He rejoices to give them to us.

What a blessing our possessions are.

Love

But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8 ESV)

Love

Love is unconditional, so I do not love ice cream.  I reject it if the flavor is horrid.   Love is unconditional, so I do not love my car.  I reject it when it doesn’t start in the morning.  Love is unconditional, so I do not love any form of government.  I reject it when it fails to do what I want it to do.

Love is unconditional.  It is not love, because.  It is not love, if.  It is not love, when.

And so the only time we are loved, it involves Grace.

God is gracious, so He is able to love.

We did not, do not, and will not deserve His love.  But He, in Grace, loves us.

What a blessing love is.

Hope

Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand. (Proverbs 19:21 ESV)

Hope

I took a cross-country overnight bus trip in Australia in 1990.  I had not yet absorbed a sense of Aussie geography, and had barely a sense of how many hours the trip would take.

To make it worse, the bus driver was not interested in answering the no-doubt annoying questions of this overconfident but under-knowledged Yank.  Eventually he asked me to move farther back in the bus.

But I blame him.  I was seeking hope.  While I knew the destination, Sydney, I did not know anything along the way.  I was asking for information because I wanted hope.

I could have just closed my eyes and hoped internally.  But internal guessing does not lead to hope.  I could have remembered past glimpses of maps of Australia’s mountain ranges. But memory does not lead to hope.  I could have reasoned the pathway, using geometry, algebra, and logic.  But reason does not lead to hope.

Hope usually comes FROM someone.  In my case, I wanted it to be the bus driver.

Our God understands that.  And so He gives us hope by giving us His Word.  We can read His purposes, know His lovingkindness, and hope that HE knows where we are going, and how we will get there.

But God could be like my bus driver.  He does not owe us an explanation.  He does not owe us hope.

He is gracious, though.  And so He gives us reason to hope, the gift of hope, and hope itself.

What a blessing hope is.

Faith

Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24 ESV)

Faith

We know with our minds that faith is a gift, lest anyone should boast of our faith as if we achieved it after much effort.

But that gracious gift of faith was not given once.  We get to receive the ability to choose to believe over and over again.

That is what this father meant by his plea to the Lord.  At that moment the father believed that Christ could and would heal his son.  But the man knew tomorrow might be a different day.

God gives us faith that leads to salvation.  But He also gives us faith to believe in the tiny moments.  In our daily crises.  In our daily fears.  In our daily insecurities.  In our daily doubts.

Faith is the gift, in fact that keeps on giving.

And it comes to us purely and only through God’s Grace.

What a blessing faith is.

Work

You have given him dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, (Psalm 8:6 ESV)

Work

I showed up one summer on a film set, directed by a good friend.  He had done a number of films, and I thought it would be fun to hang out and see what might happen.  He gave me a couple of duties, a couple of small parts, and away we went.

Each film he’s given me more things to do.

Now I am a producer!!!

But never has he given me duties because I earned the right to work for him.  He gave me things to do because he respects, likes, trusts, and enjoys me. 

God gives us work for the same reasons.

He has given us dominion over the entire universe, everything that He has created.  That is a lot of dominion.  But God did not give us entrance exams, skill tests, or require experience before He gave us dominion.

And He does not need minions.  He could do everything He desires in this universe with less effort than a snap of His fingers.  But God is gracious.  He gives us work.

God is full of Grace.  He loves us, His people, and He graciously gives us jobs to do.  And not just preachers!  Every occupation, formal or informal, is placed before us because He is gracious.  Every responsibility is given to us because He is gracious.

And having something to do, or SOMETHING to do, is a blessing.

What a blessing our work is.

Disciples

For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. (I Peter 23:21 ESV)

Disciples

My Uncle John had been a plumber for longer than anyone I knew.  And he had advanced to the point that he owned the shop.  He was a plumber’s plumber.

At one job, when I was a young teenager, he let me follow him around.  He flitted from task to task, and I walked behind him, trying to learn.

I am not sure I learned that much.

I am not sure that I was qualified to be his apprentice that day.

I am not sure I deserved his expenditure of time, energy, and patience.

But Uncle John was gracious that day.

He let me be his disciple, not because I had earned the opportunity… but because He loved me, his nephew.

We are Christ’s disciples in the same way.  He lets us follow Him.  He expends time, energy, and patience.  He did not choose us because we passed a test, or proved ourselves, or were already righteous.

He lets us follow Him because He is gracious.

What a blessing discipleship is.

Reason for Grace

…He raised up David to be their king, of whom He testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after My heart, who will do all My will.’ Of this man’s offspring God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as He promised. (Acts 13:22, 23 ESV)

Reason for Grace

By definition Grace is unearned favor, undeserved reward, and unmerited blessing.  However, those aspects of Grace do not presuppose that God gives Grace for no reason whatsoever.

While WE might not know God’s purpose and reasons, He certainly does.

From our perspective, Grace might seem random and foolish.  But God extends Grace to us because He has purposes, intentions, goals, and knowledge far beyond us.

We can see some hint of this in the case of King David.  God chose David, not because David had already been God’s man… but because God knew David would do God’s will, and led genetically to the very Son of God Himself, Christ Jesus.

Yes, that whole ‘outside of time’ thing is confusing.

But we can see that David was not Graced because David earned it… but rather because God had an unspoken plan, an unannounced intention, an unstated understanding of who David was going to be.

God hinted at this, even, when selecting David as Israel’s next King.  He said, “God looks at the heart” (I Samuel 17:7 ESV).  Not referring to David’s cardiac muscles.  But rather the unseen, the behind the scenes, the internal.  The particular realm of God’s Spirit.

There is always reason for Grace.  Never as reward, or obligation… but always because of God’s knowledge, providence, and love.

God’s reasons for Grace are a blessing.

Noah and Grace

But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord… Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God. (Genesis 6:8,9 ESV)

Noah and Grace

Why was Noah chosen to lead the Ark Expedition?  It might seem it was because of Noah’s righteousness.  But it was not.

Before Noah acted with righteousness, Noah found favor in the eyes of God.

He did not earn favor in God’s eyes.  He found favor because God chose to see Noah favorably.

Noah’s obedience, all the way up the ramp of the ark, was due to that favor.

And that favor is another word for Grace.

This famous story is not an example of finding salvation through righteousness.  It is a prime example of God’s Grace towards us that starts the salvation train rolling.

And I lean heavily on that.  I rejoice greatly in that.  I depend absolutely on that.

Because of my salvation depended on my righteousness, I’d be watching the Ark from the water.

But the Lord found favor with me, too.  In fact the Lord has found favor with each of His children, or we would not be His children.

What a blessing God’s favor is.

Salvation

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” (Genesis 3:15 ESV)

Salvation

Most Christians understand that our salvation is a result of God’s Grace towards His People.  We do not earn salvation, deserve salvation, or buy salvation.

But it might be more Gracious than we usually think.

Notice this great Gospel Promise is not given to Adam and Eve.  It is given to the enemy.  Satan, here personified as the tempting serpent, is given a promise.  Satan will lose in his bid to conquer God and God’s creation.

If this salvific promise were given to humans, we might choose to find some conditions in it.  In fact, it is common for us to falsely find or invent conditions regarding salvation in many of the unconditional promises in God’s Word.

But God’s promise of salvation is presented here as a negative promise to the evil one.  Our activities, thoughts, intentions, desires, choices, character, family, professions, integrity, or niceness are not mentioned.

Because here, clearly, we receive the promise of salvation as bystanders.

God’s Son, Eve’s offspring, will fight for our souls and win.

Sure, of course, absolutely, God commands our response, our love, our acceptance of Christ’s work crushing Satan’s head.

But God does it.  God promises it.  God foretold it.  God carried it out. 

It is His bailiwick. So with hope, faith, and joy, embrace it.

What a blessing salvation is.

Scripture

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (II Timothy 3:16 ESV)

Scripture

In the one football game that I was the sole coach and play-caller, I spoke to the opposing coach after the game.  I had won, you see.  I had won dramatically, with skill and strategy. 

And I wanted him to know HOW I had beaten him.  So I described my tactics, plans, and ability.

I do not think he appreciated the conversation.

I spoke to him for MY sake.  Because it made ME feel good.

God is not like me.

He created the universe, and has providentially worked in history and today, and will continue to do so tomorrow.  He has a wonderful plan involving His people, His Son, His Kingdom, and every proton, neutron, and electron.

And He has no reason to tell us anything about it.  He is not required to explain Himself to us.  He is not forced to describe His motivation, His activities, or His goals.

But He does so, eloquently.

Because He Graciously decided to do so.

God’s Word, the Bible, is another act of God’s Grace. 

What a blessing that Grace is.

Creation

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1 ESV)

Creation

Yes, the first event in history was God’s amazing act of creation.  No other witnesses were present, but the Biblical description makes a pretty amazing picture.  First, God had to imagine what ‘everything’ would be like.  He invented the universe, and made it.  Eventually, mankind was made in God’s image, but the rest of planet earth, our solar system, our galaxy, and the universe were made without a blueprint, model, or previous idea.

And then He made what He imagined. 

I’ve imagined a lot of things, but have not been particularly effective in bringing my thoughts to reality.  I still have no time machine, perpetual motion device, alchemic gold from lead process, or a bacon tree.

But God made everything.

But the question today is, why did He bother?

He was not bored.  He did not need a playground.  He was utterly self-sufficient and completely content.  He was the almighty God, dwelling in His glory.

But He was also full of Grace.

He did not create the universe because He needed it, or was obligated to anyone, or had to follow come universal law.

He did it out of Grace.

He did it for His people.

He did it because somehow, unstuck in time as He was and is… He knew His people, and made a place for us to dwell. 

The first event in the Bible… the very first verse… is a description of God’s Grace!

What a blessing that Grace is.

Counting Blessings

We all know we are supposed to count our blessings.  From the old hymn, to Bing’s crooning, we are nudged, reminded, and challenged to be more aware of blessings.  And we have a lot of blessings.

Think objectively about them for a moment.  We are more safely housed than much of the world. We are better fed than much of the world.  We have more information available than much of the world. We have more peace than much of the world. 

Think enthusiastically about them for a moment.  Our lives, even with our many pains, ailments, worries and fears are very good.  Because God does everything for His people, for our good.  While we are trained by our society to be cynical and cautious, instead, we have blessings enough to make our cheeks sore from smiling, our eyes glaze in brightness, and our hearts beat with joy.

Think honestly about them for a moment. The creator of the universe loves His people, and that means us Christians.  The Sovereign Lord of all has moved heaven and earth to bring us His blessings.  The unconditional love of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit outshines all darkness, is destroying all shadow, and not only gives us what we need, He gives us amazingly grand things to meet those needs.

But the most amazing blessing, the prime blessing, the first blessing is grace.

For the next while, let’s focus on the best blessing… the Grace of God. 

What a blessing.

Self-Control

Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. (Titus 2:6 ESV)

Self-control

God has given (and repeatedly gives) His people the ability and desire to love, be joyful, pursue peace, be patient, be kind, be good, be faithful, and be gentle.

We are not very good at using those gifts.

A while ago, a family gave me a mandolin.  I was trying to learn how to play, but had trouble.  My fingers almost have muscle memory for guitar chords, and mandolin chords were obviously different.  And my new mandolin chords were messing with my ability to play guitar chords without thinking.

It was hard, and I was not very good at it.

Playing at a dinner, when I finished the rote-memorized song, an observer whispered to me, “wow, two of those chords were beyond you!”  It was embarrassing, but correct.

I almost gave up.

And then, when I was complaining about the tricksy mandolin, a musician friend told me that the mandolin strings and chords were not simply randomly different than a guitar… but the mandolin was exactly the same as a guitar, but upside down.

Suddenly the mandolin became playable.

All I needed was the key.

The key to the fruits of the spirit is self-control.

We can do all of the other gifts, if we have self-control.  It seems rather obvious.  We need to choose to love, find joy, and the rest. 

And that seems hard.  We don’t do very well at them.

But another fruit from the spirit is self-control.

God enables us, God strengthens us, God empowers us.  

It starts by surrendering our days to Him.  We struggle with the fruits when we try to do them ourselves.  But surrendering to God releases the other fruit.

Self-control, also, is a fruit.

Gentleness

A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. (Proverbs 15:1 ESV)

Gentleness

Many Christians have come to believe the modern quip that talk is cheap, and that actions speak louder than words.  While it is, of course, true that unfulfilled promises, hypocritical statements, and say one thing, but do another, display lack of character, our words actually are of primary importance.

It is our words that show our heart, not our eyes.  Actions performed without explanation are often misinterpreted.  Words build up or destroy more commonly than deeds.

Gentleness, too, is not found only in what we choose to do.  Gentleness can be understood as the choice not to exert our strength, when given an opportunity.

But the choice to be gentle is also found in how we speak, what we say, our words, statements, and utterances.

Not only because words can cut and hurt, but because the things we way, and the way that we say them, show the present condition of our heart, the strength of our sanctification, and our desire to love.

Soft answers, meaning gentle words, seem to be less common these days.  As we become more socially, politically, and personally polarized, our words more and more become weapons and means to immediate victory.

But our words can also be winsome and attractive.  Not just for our own sake, but for the Kingdom’s sake.  For the demonstration of the gospel.

Truth must be spoken clearly … but our words can be gentle.

God’s Word must be brought to bear… but our words can be gentle.

All of the gospel, including the need for the gospel, must be presented without compromise… but our words can be gentle.

Even when we are right, and everyone around is wrong.

How we speak is a matter of choice.

Gentleness is a fruit.

Faithfulness

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 ESV)

Faithfulness

General George Patton was famous for finishing what he started, even annoyingly so.  From the first time he put on a US Army uniform, when he started to carry out an order, he finished carrying out that order.  He was therefore known for burning the midnight oil, digging eternal ditches, and not giving up before the finish line.

That is a hard way to live.  But it is a form of faithfulness.

We who are God’s servants might desire to be more like Patton.  Looking back at the end of the day, we often realize that we gave up too soon on some task that we believed He set before us.

We stopped forgiving, when it became too hard (and well before 70 times 7!!!).  We stopped loving when it became too hard (and well before we reached Christ’s standard of love). We stopped praying, reading His Word, and listening to Him, when it became too hard (and well before He was done communicating with us).

It is hard to be faithful.

But Paul assures us that we will become more like Patton, NOT through our effort, or will, or practice.  But because God, we actually started us on His path, will bring us through to the end.

In fact, we will be exactly as faithful, at the end of our path, that He wanted us to be!  His sovereignty ensures that.  We will not be as faithful as we desire, or hope, or aim at… but He finishes us right where He wants us to be.  He brings us to completion.

Choosing to be faithful is not really choosing to try harder, grit our teeth, or be more successful.  Choosing to be faithful means that we throw ourselves at HIS merciful work in our lives.  Choosing to be faithful means that we acknowledge it is HIM who enables us to finish whatever we are able to finish.

He gives us faithfulness.

Because faithfulness is a gift.

Goodness

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9 ESV)

Goodness

Statesman Winston Churchill, caught dosing in the middle of a parliamentary debate quipped in self-defense, “Being right is tiring.”

I am not sure I know what he meant.  But I do know that being good is tiring.

Goodness, because it is the opposite of selfishness, takes effort.  Goodness, because it is an act of submission to God’s will instead of my own, takes effort.  Goodness, because it is usually not noticed or immediately rewarded, takes effort.

But we Christians have the fruit of goodness growing in us.  The more we practice it, the easier it can become.  The more we choose goodness, the more naturally that choice occurs.  The more we desire goodness, the more clear good choices become.

And while we do not choose to do good with expectation of cheers and personal benefit, Paul here notes that planting goodness will reap something. 

But what it reaps is not profit, awards, honor, or decoration.  The reaped result of goodness are these things: When we choose goodness, we choose being more like our hero, Jesus.  When we choose goodness, we choose freedom from the slavery of self.  When we choose goodness, we choose the joy of walking with our beloved Savior.  When we choose goodness, we choose the real peace of fellowship with God.

Goodness is its own reward.  And we can choose it!

Because goodness is a fruit.

Kindness

A man who is kind benefits himself, but a cruel man hurts himself. (Proverbs 11:17 ESV)

Kindness

I recently ate at a local restaurant, and the serving staff was not kind.  We had some cutlery issues, and while the matter was eventually resolved, it was clear that helping us was not a priority.  I recently heard of a dental procedure, that while medically correct, was not carried out with kindness.  The employee was gruff, not responsive to pain, and impatient.  I recently dealt on the phone with a sales representative.  While my questions were answered efficiently, the operator was cold, bored, and hurried.

In each case, the employee undoubtably had rational explanations for their lack of kindness.  Kindness is not efficient.  Kindness is not immediately profitable.  Kindness is time-consuming.

But also in each case, I will not likely do business with those establishments.

Not only is kindness a characteristic of Christians, who display kindness as a fruit, but kindness is a long term investment in relationships.  Not only do Christians get to reflect Christ’s kindness in our kindness, but that kindness will be favorably received.  Not only do Christians have the Spirit-given ability to choose kindness, but kindness itself bears grand and joyful fruit.

Christ shows the way, and we get to follow Him in kindness.

Because kindness is a fruit.