Walking Miracles

Isaiah 11:1-5

1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of power,
the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD -

3 and he will delight in the fear of the LORD.
He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; 4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. 5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.

It is now time to step into a world that most people avoid. It is the world of Godly judgment and righteousness. Most of society love to hear about how God loves them no matter what and that God’s arms are open so wide, how He has closed His eyes to their short comings, and how He doesn’t even smell the stench that has entangled their lives. All of these things bring a great smile to my face and they are even fun to preach about. However, we must remember that the God of this universe, as laid out in scripture, is also a just God and is full of righteousness and truth. God has not closed His eyes to your sin and yes, his olfactory (the smelling part of a nose) is not broken. He sees it all and smells it all, but has chosen to not make you pay the consequences by allowing Jesus Christ to die for our short comings and take on the punishment for our depravity. Sin is not to be looked at lightly and the fact that we are human does not give us a get out of jail free card whenever we choose to jump into the deep end of the world and its muck and mire. God has made a way to continue relationship and yet, we will always suffer the consequences for our sin.

I saw this article that made me laugh, as the person writing it was a bit extreme and possibly is the type of person who has painted his car and his house with messages of God’s destruction. But this title was so true and it brings into the light the balance of how the Lord’s forgiveness and love is applied.

What Happens In Vegas
… Is RECORDED In Heaven!

Being from Vegas myself and watching the gaming business exploit people and find ways to tempt its visitors and residence with destruction has been very sad and heart breaking. While I was a pastor in Las Vegas, there were many prayers sent out asking the Lord for direction of how to make a difference in a place that is trying to drag everyone to the pit. I do believe that God is doing wonderful things in Las Vegas and some of the most wonderful people I have ever met have been placed there to help keep the Lord’s name shining bright.

The point of this man’s article is based out of the book of Revelations.

“And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” -Revelation 20:12

I cannot even begin to explain to you what this will look like or mean to each of us. However, I do know that there will be a time to give an account for every word that has been spoken, attitude formed and action agreed to. This scripture is not one that has a lot of popularity today and I would be shocked to see it placed in a church growth book of messages to get more people in your church. And yet, the fact that the God of scripture is loving and righteous at the same time must be up held for all to see. He does care about the sin in your life. He does want you to be a good husband, wife, father, mother, child, friend, neighbor, employee, boss, and stranger. Choosing to follow the Lord in these areas does not earn your way into heaven. He has already taken care of that part of the equation.

Ultimately, the goal is not based upon anything we have or experience here on this earth. It is based upon that future time in heaven with our maker. There are many horrible decisions that I have made in my past and will have to stand before my God and face those head on. But starting today, right now, right here, I can make decisions to be able to stand in front of the creator of the universe and hear the words spoken in Matthew 25:21.

“Well done, good and faithful servant!”

And so can you!

God does love you and has a great plan for you. Even if yesterday was full of great shame and self-disappointment. Today is a new day; full of new opportunities to honor the Lord and be an example for others to see what kind of miracles our God is capable of. Your life is that walking miracle!