Heaven

What Am I Worth Today?

/ pastorpete51 / 3 Comments

But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. Matthew 10:30-31 ESV

I remember the day when we brought our first child home. We just held him in our arms, amazed by everything about him. From his tiny toes to the softness of his skin every detail to us was beautiful. We were discovering the delight of experiencing that life is God’s first gift. It is not something to throw away, treat cheaply or forget. Even if no one else was impressed with our baby we were entirely convinced that he was a treasure.

So if we as imperfect parents loved our son so much, imagine how much God values every one of us. He isn’t impressed by how much money we have in the bank; our family’s status or the color of our skin. He isn’t worried if we are beautiful, smart or strong or even if we can do all sorts amazing things. In fact the good news is that no matter what anyone else in the universe thinks God values us because we are His creation. He has specially designed us and has chosen to give us life. He is busy counting even the hairs on our head because He loves us. He sent Jesus whose own hair was covered with a crown of thorns to show how much we are worth to Him. Remember the words of Jesus “Don’t be afraid. You are of far more value than you know.” Jesus valued us more than His own life so that we could trust Him with ours and be with Him forever!

At the Altar

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But I have this against you that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Revelation 2:4

As Jesus spoke to the church in Ephesus He began by listing all the great things about them. They had been faithful, worked hard, held up under persecution and had stayed away from false teachers. Sounds like the best church in town! But then Jesus brings up the burden of His heart; they have left their first love for Him.

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It might seem to us that He is being hard on them, but the Bible tells us that we are the bride of Jesus Christ. As Heaven’s bridegroom, He is waiting at the altar in heaven and His heart is a longing to be with His bride. But sometimes when He looks down the aisle He notices that something is changing. His bride’s heart who once loved spending time in His presence is now very busy. She still thinks from time to time of Him, but she is also quite involved in a lot of other things. So many things seem so important that her schedule is full with only a few moments left for Jesus.

Then He looks and sees His people not only too busy for Him, but also too busy to bother much about telling others about their need for Him. His heart is longing to see us again totally living for him. What will it take for us to go back to our first love? How will we ever return to where we once were? Jesus tells us clearly. He does not say; “Feel really bad and cry and pray.” He does not add, “Give some more money to the church.” He doesn’t even say, “Go out and start feeding folks at the soup kitchen.”  All of those things are only a pale substitute for the “First Love” that Jesus has in mind.

So if giving money, doing good works or crying at the altar doesn’t bring back our first love, what will? Jesus says; do what we did at the beginning. Did we used to ask forgiveness of people we had hurt? Let’s do that again. Did we once call friends and family to tell them how Jesus changed our lives? Let’s not give up. Have we taken risks to get out and talk to others we came across in our daily lives about their need for him? Let’s get back to work!

Jesus didn’t say to wait for an impulse, a tear or a leading; nor do I need to do what you once did. I only need to remember what I once did, and then do it again! Jesus has given each of us a candle and it shines so we can see the truth about ourselves and repent.

That word repentance sounds harsh, but it is our bridegroom’s heartfelt appeal for us to remember the treasure of our relationship with Him. He warns us if we won’t use the light we will lose it. But if we repent and return to our first love He promises that at the altar He will give us fruit from the tree of life! 

Heaven’s Hotline

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God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;         Psalm 46:1-2 KJV 

The story of the children of Israel leaving Egypt reminds me a lot of our situation in America today. Just like us they were fearful because of the crises they faced. Every time they faced an emergency the people ran to Moses in a panic and demanded answers. Moses in turn knew that he didn’t have the answers, so he dialed God’s hot line. And every time Moses called for God’s help, whether it was about the Egyptian army, the lack of food in the desert or the bitter water at Mara God worked another miracle. It might seem strange that no matter how many times God delivered them they never trusted Him the next time, but are we really any different? Instead of chariots, hunger and bitter water we face the Corona virus, Antifa and economic disaster. Just like the people of Israel it seems as if the world as we know it is about to fall into the depths of the sea. But in the same way that God answered His heavenly hotline for the children of Israel, He is still ready to answer us today 

Though, it feels like running away from our problems would be the safest solution; the real truth is that the only safe place is in Jesus Christ. He offers us a gift of life that cannot be taken away. He makes available a citizenship in a kingdom that will never be overthrown. He is making plans to adopt us into His family where we will be loved and accepted forever. Why not trust Him as refuge and strength in whatever trouble you face? Before turning on the morning news, remember that He is guarding the doors, of both our homes and our hearts. Even when mountains are falling into the sea, He will be with us. He has promised to walk with us both through fire and through the flood. He is our refuge and strength and in Him we don’t ever need to be afraid again!