Seeking the Savior

Seeking the Savior   
by Max Lucado    

Simeon said, “Can I stay alive until I see him?”

The Magi said, “Saddle up the camels. We aren’t stopping until we find him.”

The shepherds said, “Let’s go…. Let’s see.”

They wanted the Savior. They wanted to see Jesus.

They were earnest in their search. One translation renders Hebrews 11:6: “God … rewards those who earnestly seek him” (NIV, italics mine).

Another reads: “God rewards those who search for him” (PHILLIPS, italics mine).

And another: “God … rewards those who sincerely look for him” (TLB, italics mine).

I like the King James translation: “He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (italics mine).

Diligently—what a great word. Be diligent in your search. Be hungry in your quest, relentless in your pilgrimage. Let this book be but one of dozens you read about Jesus and this hour be but one of hundreds in which you seek him. Step away from the puny pursuits of possessions and positions, and seek your king.

Don’t be satisfied with angels. Don’t be content with stars in the sky. Seek him out as the shepherds did. Long for him as Simeon did. Worship him as the wise men did. Do as John and Andrew did: ask for his address. Do as Matthew: invite Jesus into your house. Imitate Zacchaeus. Risk whatever it takes to see Christ.

passions, but the reward goes to those who settle for nothing less than Jesus Himself. And what is the reward? And what awaits those who seek Jesus? Nothing short of the heart of Jesus. “And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him” (2 Cor. 3:18 TLB).

Can you think of a greater gift than to be like Jesus? Christ felt no guilt; God wants to banish yours. Jesus had no bad habits; God wants to remove yours. Jesus had no fear of death; God wants you to be fearless. Jesus had kindness for the diseased and mercy for the rebellious and courage for the challenges. God wants you to have the same.

He loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to be just like Jesus.

From Just Like Jesus
Copyright 1998, Max Lucado

Finding Freedom in Christ

Finding Freedom in Christ   
By Alistair Begg    

No one but Jesus can give deliverance to captives. Real liberty comes from Him alone. It is a liberty rightly granted; for the Son, who is Heir of all things, has a right to make men free.  

The saints honor the justice of God, which now secures their salvation. It is a liberty that has been dearly purchased. Christ reveals it by His power, but He bought it by His blood. He makes you free, but it is by His own bonds.

You go clear because He bore your burden for you: You are set at liberty because He has suffered in your place.

Although the purchase price was great, Jesus gives it freely. He asks nothing of us as a preparation for this liberty. He finds us sitting in sackcloth and ashes and invites us to wear the fitting garment of freedom; He saves us just as we are and without any help from us.

When Jesus sets us free, the liberty is perpetually enjoyed; no chains can bind again. Let the Master say to me, "Captive, I have delivered you," and it is done forever.

Satan may plot to enslave us, but if the Lord is on our side, whom shall we fear? The world, with its temptations, may seek to ensnare us, but He who is for us is mightier than all those who are against us. The movements of our own deceitful hearts may harass and annoy us, but He who has begun the good work in us will bring it to completion in the end. The enemies of God and the antagonists of man may gather their forces together and come with concentrated fury against us, but if God acquits, who is he that condemns?

The eagle that flies to its rocky perch and afterwards soars above the clouds is no more free than the soul delivered by Christ. If we are no longer under the law but free from its curse, let our liberty be practically displayed as we serve God with gratitude and delight. "I am your servant; the son of your maidservant. You have loosed my bonds."

I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me. - John 14:6

Members without a Club    
by Shawn McEvoy    

I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me. - John 14:6

"I don't respect [believers] who don't proselytize. I don't respect that at all. If you believe that there's a heaven and a hell, and that people could be going to hell, or not getting eternal life, or whatever, and you think, well, it's not really worth telling them this because it would make it socially awkward... how much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible, and not tell them that? I mean if I believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that a truck was coming at you, and you didn't believe it, but that truck was bearing down? There's a certain point where I tackle you. And this is more important than that."

Wow, great words. Completely sums up what's at stake with Christian evangelism, and why it's so important, not to mention commanded. Who said that? Famous pastor? Leading revivalist? World-traveled evangelist?

An atheist. One who later in the same speech will say, "I know there's no God," and "religion does a lot of bad stuff," but who was nonetheless touched by a genuine gesture that a simple, normal, respectable gentleman made in giving the gift of a Gideon Bible.

The atheist in question is Penn Gillette, of the famous magic act Penn & Teller. You can check out his story of being offered a Bible following one of his shows on YouTube (or you used to be able to - the link has since been blocked by Sony).

I am sure Mr. Gillette and I - and you - disagree on a lot of things. But he's so right about this. Our pastor was recently addressing some of the tough questions about Christianity, including the one about "how can Christians claim to know the true way; aren't all ways equally valid?" And he settled on our verse today - John 14:6 - which is always our beloved starting prooftext for how Jesus himself stated that no other way would work.

While that is blessedly true, our pastor suggested we have tended to invert (if not pervert) the subtlety of Jesus' message here. That is, we've behaved like we're privileged members of an exclusive club, one that has all sorts of rules to keep others out. One that gets to tell them how wrong they are. One that should be full of joy and open arms, but is instead full of stern sobriety and pointing fingers. One that nobody would really want to join anyway, even if it were a club, which it isn't.

For one thing, we're on a journey toward perfection rather than cloistered in a cozy clubhouse, and in the same chapter Jesus told his followers that the many rooms in his Father's house were being prepared. We aren't living in them yet. Our clubhouse is not our current home. We have merely started the trip, and yet...

We forget where we come from.

Christianity is flawed in part because it is full of losers - yes, those who have humbly admitted their own shortcomings and acknowledged The Answer is found outside themselves. My own father - before his conversion - said he viewed Christianity as a crutch for weak people. "Exactly," was my response. "But realize, Dad, that also means you're saying it exists and has real value just as a crutch does."

Christ did not come for the healthy, but for the sick, the weak. That's us whether we admit it or not. We have no claim to exclusivity. The message of John 14:6, similar to how eloquently Mr. Gillette put it, is that anyone is welcome for INclusion, provided they... what? Please us? Donate? Stop being so mean? No. They must simply believe. Our job is to tell them that truck is bearing down, politely and sincerely... to give the Bible and to read it ourselves... to model a life not based on legalism or even moralism, but on the joy of every day's opportunity along the narrow road and the freedom we have to choose to follow it or not... to preach the gospel and, when necessary, use words to do so.

When Jesus told His followers that He was the way and the truth and the life, it was a statement of comfort. He had just told them He would be leaving, but that if they had seen Him (and they Had) then they had seen the Father, and that "you know the way to the place where I am going."

Comfort others with this verse. There are a lot of hurting people in this world who point to this text as the source of their conundrum with Christianity. Remind them that we're not about keeping people out, evoking a membership privilege or condemning them to a more dire fate. Let God do His job. Our own part has so little to do with dos and don'ts, and everything to do with sending out party invitations via grace, freedom, and acceptance. I was lost, and someone pointed me to this road. Many others had tried before, but their words finally took hold and my eyes were opened to see it was indeed the right road. Pure blood was shed for you as it was for anyone who would accept it, repent, seek forgiveness, know joy. Here's a Bible. Won't you read it and join us on our merry Way?