Sermon Video: The insanity of: "Let us do evil that good may result" Romans 3:5-8

By way of answering a question about why our sinfulness doesn't make God's holiness more glorious, the Apostle Paul refutes a heretical path that might potentially be ascribed to Christians, "Let us do evil that good may result."  

Why can't evil methods or processes lead to good (righteousness)?

Among the reasons why this is fundamentally impossible are: the nature of evil, the nature of God, the power of God, the wisdom of God, and the will of God.  In order to believe that evil can result in good one must misunderstand all of these things.

In what ways are (have) Christians accepted this dangerously false premise?  In our personal relationships, our collective actions as a Church (think Crusades, Inquisition, burning people at the stake, and a host of immoral behavior to gain power and control over various portions of the Church), and growing more toxic each year, our politics as American Christians.

In the end, we must reject the false siren's call that we can utilize evil without being corrupted by it, whatever else it is, such a path is not God's.

Sermon Video: The Messiah Needed - Ecclesiastes 7:20

Are good people in heaven?  The problem with this question is that it assumes a definition of the term "good" that is not connected to the holiness and righteousness of God.  If we ask the question according to that standard of purity and perfection, the answer would be "yes", but with the important caveat that there are no such people.  A theme in the Bible, expressed here by Solomon in Ecclesiastes, is that humanity is fallen, in open rebellion against God, and without hope on our own of rectifying the situation.  It is not enough to claim to do 99 morally upright deeds for every 1 immoral act, nor even 999 to 1, for even such lofty aspirations fall short of the standard of righteousness that God set forth for the Messiah: sinless perfection.  Thus our need for a savior, a Messiah, comes into focus, if God had not come to save us, humanity would have remained in hopelessness.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

The Pursuit of Happiness?

"Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" may be the unofficial motto of America, but it is not, much to the chagrin of many, the mantra of our Creator, in particular the last part.  The goal of the will of God for humanity as a whole and individual human beings as well, is not happiness but godliness.  In other words, God's aim is not that we feel happy, but that we be holy and righteous.  And while there is some overlap between feeling happy and being a person who practices holiness and righteousness, there are most certainly not the same thing.  To be a person who,  by the grace of God, chooses holiness and righteousness in this fallen world, is to be a person at odds with the prevailing self-centered worldview upon which human culture, not just American culture, is built.  It is to be a person who eschews personal gain in favor of service to others, who rejects temporary advancement in favor of projects whose fullness will not be realized until our lives are over, and it is to be a person who is willing to sacrifice one's own comfort and material possessions in the service of a kingdom which, while already established, awaits the return of its king and the manifestation of his justice.  It is, then, to be a person somewhat out of time and out of place, a person serving a king and belonging to a kingdom whose reality is not yet what it one day will be, and thus a person who is not seeking happiness, not at least according to any definition that those living for their own ends and purposes would understand or accept.  And yet, with far-ranging negative consequences, much of modern Christianity seems to have missed this point, to have accepted that the job of the Church is to help people be happy (or worse yet, to make them happy).  This is both a deviation from Biblical teaching, and a great hindrance upon the mission of the Church: to share the Gospel and make disciples.

One of the more well known portions of Scripture regarding this topic is this:
Matthew 16:24-26 New International Version (NIV)
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?

There are many more examples of the call in the Word of God to serve through self-sacrifice, among them, these words of John:
1 John 3:16-18 New International Version (NIV)
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

In the end, as a Christian, a disciple of Jesus Christ, it isn't just about you.  Christians are part of something greater than themselves, part of God's plan for all of humanity, and have committed themselves (whether they know it or not) to serving the Kingdom of God, which means that our lives are not about pursuing happiness.

Why "winning" as the goal ought to be anathema to Christians

To 'win', at all cost, and by all means, whether in business, politics, or personal relationships, is an idea embedded in the human heart.  Unfortunately, the disregard for morality, and the value of other people, in the pursuit of 'victory', is a symptom of the darkened heart of mankind apart from God.  As such, the people of God, those who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, and are therefore no longer under the power of what the Apostle Paul terms, the "flesh" (our sinful nature), must forcefully and consistently reject the false claim that "the end justifies the means".

The modern era is not the first time that attempts have been made to remove morality as a check on human behavior, the Italian Renaissance political philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli advocated the divorce of morality from politics in his seminal work, The Prince.  In it he wrote, "He who neglects what is done for what ought to be done, sooner effects his ruin than his preservation."  Thus, immorality is to be excused when it is deemed necessary, hence the association with the immoral claim that "the end justifies the means."  Machiavelli, while influential, was certainly not the first to treat morality as a hindrance to be disregarded when necessary.  The first king of Israel, Saul, convinced himself that he needed to offer a sacrifice to God prior to an upcoming battle, despite knowing that he was not to usurp the role of the prophet Samuel, because necessity demanded it.  Saul's disregard for the expressed will of God was instrumental in his downfall and the choice of David to replace him.  By contrast, in Scripture there are examples of the rejection of this abdication of morality: Joseph remained true to the moral code of the God of Abraham despite the opportunities he had to abandon it when faced with the advances of Potiphar's wife.  Even as a wrongly enslaved man, Joseph refused to set aside his devotion to doing what was right.  In addition, the Apostle Paul and Silas refused to run from jail in Philippi, despite being unlawfully imprisoned, when an earthquake damaged the facility.

Throughout the Scriptures, those who abandon morality when convenient come to bad ends and those who hold true to the Law of God (whether specifically or in principle) are commended.  That is not to say that those who choose to do what is right are always vindicated in this life, nor are they promised such by God, neither do all those who choose to set aside right/wrong receive punishment for their immorality in this life.  Therein lies the rub.  When righteousness is not immediately rewarded, and wickedness is not immediately punished, the selfish and rebellious heart of man begins to seek ways to avoid the absolute demand of God that we live holy and righteous lives, it seeks loopholes, shortcuts, compromises, and makes Faustian bargains.  Such is the darkness of the heart of man in rebellion against God.  For the people of God, however, this cannot be tolerated or excused.  When we go along with immoral means with the hopes of achieving an end we deem to be worthy, we sully the name of Christ and grieve the Holy Spirit.  When we choose power, wealth, fame, or any other moniker of 'success', pursued by immoral actions, we abdicate our responsibility to be salt and light in this world, endanger our witness to the Lost, and call into question the genuineness of our conversion and discipleship.  

For all those who prioritize 'winning' or 'victory' above the call of God to live always, and in all things, according to his Holy Word, a series of warnings from God are a reminder of the futility of that path.

Psalm 1

1 Blessed is the one

    who does not walk in step with the wicked

or stand in the way that sinners take

    or sit in the company of mockers,

2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,

    and who meditates on his law day and night.

3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,

    which yields its fruit in season

and whose leaf does not wither—

    whatever they do prospers.

4 Not so the wicked!

    They are like chaff

    that the wind blows away.

5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,

    nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,

    but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

Ephesians 5:5-7 New International Version (NIV)

5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.  6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be partners with them.

Romans 3:8 New International Version (NIV)

8 Why not say—as some slanderously claim that we say—“Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is just!

It may seem possible to play in the mud without getting dirty, it may seem possible to make bargains with or support others who act immorally without ourselves becoming tainted, but these are lies, lies from the Father of Lies, and lies of a mind not in submission to the will of God.  The choice is clear: Either we, as God's people called from darkness into light, walk in the light, win or lose, success or failure, or we don't.  

Mark 8:36-37 New International Version (NIV)

36 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? 37 Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?

Sermon Video: The Gospel of Reconciliation - Colossians 1:21-23

What is the status of humanity in the sight of God?  This is a question of the first importance, and one often answered with wishful thinking not based in reality.  Humanity is alienated from God, not simply by our actions, but the very mind of each human being has been darkened by our evil behavior.  Thankfully, God was not content to let this be the final answer, he reconciled to himself, through the death of Jesus Christ, those who believe, making them holy in his sight and free from accusation.  This is the essence of the Gospel message, hope through faith, a message to be proclaimed freely to all.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: God rejects moral equivalence - Malachi 2:17

It has been evident throughout human history that virtue is not fully rewarded and wickedness is not fully punished; in fact, at times wickedness seems to be rewarded and virtue punished.  This state of affairs have led some to conclude that God does not exist and therefore right/wrong are simply arbitrary constructs based upon human consensus and thus open to redefinition.  Others have attempted to fix the problem by claiming that God himself (whether personal or impersonal) is not wholly good, but contains within himself both virtue and wickedness.  While both of these attempted solutions are unacceptable (especially since they're not based in reality), what is the answer to the problem of the existence of evil?
The prophet Malachi rejects the attempt by the people of Israel to embrace moral equivalence, telling them that God is wearied by willingness in their ignorance to blame him for the evil in our world.  God is holy, having no part in anything immoral or evil, that such things exist in our world is our fault, not God's.  In the end, the "success" of the wicked will probe short-lived, the justice of God will prevail, and righteousness will be rewarded.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

If God does not love the sinner and hate the sin.

If God does not love the sinner and hate the sin....

He would be unworthy of our love...For such a God would either abandon us as hopeless or leave us in our sin.

There would be no Incarnation, no Jesus...Why send the Son of God, to become a man, if not to rectify humanity's sin problem?  No other purpose is a sufficient cause.

There would be no Cross, no Resurrection...Why would God allow Jesus to die, if not for the sin's of the world?  No other purpose could justify the cost Jesus paid.

There would be no redemption, no rebirth, no hope of heaven...All have sinned, look around you, it cannot be denied.  God has provided the way for us to be saved from our sins, because God is Love AND God is Holy.


God does indeed love sinners, each and every one, from the least to the greatest, for we are all created in his image.

God does indeed hate sin, each and every one, from the least to the greatest, for all sin is a rebellion against the holiness of God.

These two traits of God are not incompatible, they are instead absolutely essential partners.  It is not judgmental for the people of God to share this message, it is an act of kindness, an act of love.  We love our fellow man too much to pretend that they'll be fine without God's forgiveness.  We know better, not because we are better, not at all, but because we have experienced the love of God that is in Christ Jesus, and we have been set free from bondage to sin by the blood of the Lamb.

Are good people in Heaven?

Short answer: No

Heaven doesn't contain "good" people, it contains forgiven people.

God is holy, God is perfect, and only those who likewise are holy and perfect can enter into his presence.

Humanity is not holy, humanity is not perfect, all of us are flawed, all are sinners.

If God had not intervened with the Incarnation, if the Son of God had not died for our sins and if he had not been raised to life for our justification, the gulf that exists between God, who is holy, and humanity, which is not, would have remained separating us from God forever.

Heaven isn't for "good" people; good isn't good enough, only perfection will work, and since the only way for a human being to be perfect is for God to forgive us, and give us his righteousness (through Christ), the only people who will join God in heaven are those who by faith have been forgiven.

Take Time to Be Holy

This past Sunday we sang an old hymn, "Take Time to Be Holy", written by William Longstaff, that begins with this phrase in its second verse: "Take time to be holy, the world rushes on"  Those words stuck with me because they seem even more true today than when they were written.  Our world rushes on at a frantic pace.  We have things planned days, weeks, months, even years in advance; our calendar seems to fill up before we even get to each day.  On top of our general business, we’ve now added smart phones and social media that keep us connected to everyone 24/7 and fill up those moments that in the past may have enabled us to slow down and think about what we’re doing.  Time flows by and we’re too busy to see it passing, we may not stop to take a breath for weeks at a time.  How, in this sort of environment, can we be a holy people?  The hymn has it right, we need to “take time”.

What does it mean to “take time to be holy”?  Holiness doesn’t just happen on its own, it isn’t something that God does through us whether we’re part of it or not.  Holiness is deliberate and it needs considerable time and effort on our part.  To be holy means to be set apart for God’s use.  The tabernacle and the ark were holy because they only had on purpose, the worship of God.  Likewise, things like communion and baptism are holy because they are only used in our fellowship together and worship of God.  So, how can you or I, as individual followers of Jesus Christ (and part of the larger body of Christ) BE holy?  The only way that we can hope to accomplish this is to set aside parts of our lives for the use of the kingdom of God.  This includes time, resources, and talent, and it needs to be something that we consciously choose to do.  We all have commitments and responsibilities, God wants us to honor those, and we all need to take time to exercise and rest both our bodies and our minds, but we need to make sure that we’re not squeezing God in when we have a few extra minutes.  We need to take the time to be holy, make it a part of our lives, a regular and expected part, because it is the only way that we will be able to make progress in our mission of becoming like Christ.  Take a look at your calendar for the next week, the next month, where is the time in there for you to be holy?

The small margin of error for the shepherd of the flock

Headlines such as this are a far too frequent occurrence: “Pastor resigns after sex scandal”, “Pastor resigns amid financial scandal”.  There was another high-profile mega-church pastor who resigned this week after admitting to at least two affairs.  This was obviously a newsworthy story, especially with the 20,000 members attending this church and the satellite campuses far and wide, not to mention the book and TV efforts this church was engaged in with this pastor as its public face.  That failures such as this are sad is evident, but something about the comments that are inevitable bothers me.  Those who belong to the church rocked by such failures of leadership often say something like, “he’s a sinner, just like all of us, we all need to be forgiven.”  On the surface of it, that statement is entirely true.  Any and every church pastor is a sinner saved by grace.  There isn’t anyone who avoided needed God’s forgiveness and grace, and there isn’t anyone entering the kingdom of Heaven on their own merit.  There is a big piece of this puzzle missing, however.  That the pastor was a sinner saved by grace, when he became a follower of Jesus Christ, is entirely true, but he cannot continue to be someone who walks in darkness if he is to shepherd the church of Jesus Christ.

Like it or not, the standard by which a pastor is judged is not the same as that for his congregation.  Not everyone is capable of being a church pastor; not everyone has the gifts or talents necessary, and not everyone has the temperament needed to do the job.  Lastly, but just as importantly, not everyone is capable of the high moral standard that must be followed by someone willing to take on both the privilege and the burden of leading a church.  A church pastor is not allowed to continue in his position if he cannot keep his marriage vows (or his celibacy if he is single).  A church pastor is not allowed to continue in his position if he uses drugs, abuses alcohol, is violent, greedy, power hungry, or unforgiving.  The list is a long one, and could go on, but the point is clear.  To be called to the ministry as a shepherd is no small thing.  It has higher entrance requirements, and a high standard to continue.

Is a pastor who breaks his promise to God capable of being forgiven?  Of course he is; we all are capable of being forgiven.  Should he be allowed to continue in his ministry if he confesses his sins and shows contrition?  No, that ship has sailed.  As I said, it’s no small thing to serve the Church of God.  This is, according to the Word of God, a business where no major mistakes, and let’s call them what they are, sins, are allowed.  It is one thing for your senator to cheat on his wife, its far worse for your pastor to do so.

Does it worry me to write such things, knowing that my wife and I are dependent upon this job to provide for our needs?  No, it doesn’t, because I wouldn’t have sought ordination if I didn’t know my own heart.  I wouldn’t have accepted a call to shepherd this church if I was tempted to cheat on my wife, use drugs, or steal from the collection plate.  The Marines call themselves, “the few, the proud”; the Church needs to have similar high standards about those we allow to lead us.  That may not sound like an attitude devoid of second chances, but in the case of betraying the sacred trust of administering the Word of God, there really isn’t one.

Walking on the light side - I John 1:5

I John 1:5 says, "God is light; in him there is no darkness at all."  This verse uses light and darkness imagery to help us understand what exactly it means that God is Holy.  We need help with the concept because nothing in our world is 100% pure.  Everything has flaws, everything has impurities.  Every day we deal with the imperfections of htis world.  They can simply be minor irriations, or the hurdles that make life difficult to bear at times.  Either way, we live in a world of second best options.
Not so with God.  One of the reasons why God is worthy of worship is because he has no flaws.  God has no compromises in his character.  He never acts based upon prejudice, greed, or fear.  Does that make God an emotion-free force, like a law of nature?  A quick look at Scripture reminds us that God gets angry, feels joy, knows sorrow, and laughs.  And yet, God's character remains the same, holy.  It isn't something that is easy for us to grasp.  We often fall into sin because our emotions "get the better of us" or we allow our thinking to become self-centered as we fail to act in accordance with our new life in Christ.
When John tells us to, "walk in the light, as he is in the light" (vs. 7), he is saying that the direction that our lives are going in need to be toward more holiness, righteousness, and Christ-likeness.  It is certainly beyond our ability in this life to be 100% free of darkness, as God is, but thanks be to God that our savior Jesus Christ was.  The only way we will ever accomplish such a monumental task is to stop trying on our own and accept that Jesus' life will stand in for our own in God's judgment.  Only then will we be able to start the process of purging darkness from our lives with the stength of the Holy Spirit.  One day, we too will walk in the light, as we stand in the presence of our holy God.

Sermon Video: "I will have nothing to do with evil" - Psalm 101

In this Psalm David explains the process of how a follower of God can proress and grow in the faith. The five steps related in the Psalm are this: (1) Know who God is, (2) Set the goal of being like God, (3) Stay away from bad influences, (4) Stay close to righteous people, and (5) Help purge evil from around you, beginning with your own family.

To watch the video, click on the links below
Sermon Video Part 1
Sermon Video Part 2

If God is Love...

The modern world doesn’t like absolutes. It recoils from calling even the most vile acts evil. It dismisses the idea of hell as an antiquated notion that the Church needs to rid itself of. It looks at the morality of the Bible as a suggestion, something that can be changed when needed. That is why it is so interesting that this same mindset has latched onto the declaration of the Letter of First John that “God is love”. If God is love, they say, he wouldn’t send anyone to hell. He wouldn’t fault anyone for believing in a false religion, or no religion at all. The God who is love will always choose love over any other quality.


Sadly, this particular God doesn’t resemble the God of the Bible. He isn’t the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Nor is he the God who revealed himself to Moses and gave his Covenant people the Law. To reduce God to a one-dimensional principle (even one as fundamental to his nature as Love) is to treat God like a force, and not a person. But the God who chose to reveal himself to us through the Scriptures is clearly a person. God has emotions, God gets angry, God laughs, and yes, God loves.

God cares about holiness. He can’t accept rebellion, he can’t ignore sin. How do we know, besides the fact that the Bible is full of God saying exactly that, consider that God cared enough about sin that he tossed Adam and Eve out of the Garden. He flooded the world in disgust in the day of Noah. He leveled Sodom and Gomorrah, and put the sons of Eli to death for their blasphemy. God made his people wander in the desert for forty years because of their unbelief, and he decreed that the people of Canaan were so evil that they must be wiped out, all of them. God takes holiness serious in his people too. When David sinned, the unborn child died as a consequence. When the whole nation of Israel wandered away from him, he sent them into captivity. When Judah did the same, they followed suit. God cares enough about holiness that he sent his own Son to die on the Cross to save us from ourselves. God is love. No doubt about that, why else would he go to such lengths to try to redeem us?

Is hell real? You’d better believe it. Either hell is real, or God is a liar. Either hell is real or Jesus died in vain. Is there any point in worshiping a God who lies to us? Any reason to worship a God who would put his Son through torture for no real reason?? So, go ahead, tell everyone that God is love, just don’t forget to also tell them that God is Holy. And oh, by the way, we’re not. Either we fix that problem through faith in Jesus Christ, or we’re going to hell. Not because God sends people there, but because we earned it.

Sermon Video: John 12:23-32 "When I am lifted up"

Jesus prepares his followers for the road to the cross by explaining that the Son of Man must be lifted up.  In God's ultimate act of love, his holiness and wrath are satisfied by the sacrfice that Jesus chooses to make on our behalf.  Jesus also reminds us that if we're going to be his followers, we're going to need to be servants who rely upon God for rewards rather than seeking after reward in this life.

To watch the video clink on the links below:
Sermon Video Part 1
Sermon Video Part 2

Sermon Video: Psalm 19:7-11, "the Law of the LORD revives the soul"

This message explores the perfection and purpose of the moral
code of God revealed in the Law. Not only is God's law a guide to
right living, but the path to wisdom and joy as well.
 
to watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video Part 1
Sermon Video Part 2

Immanuel, "God with us"

Christmas is upon us once again.  You'd be hard pressed to find an American who hasn't heard of Christmas.  Most of those same people know that the holiday is somehow connected to a child, a manger, some angels, maybe something about a star.  In other words, we all seem to know a little bit about Christmas.  But do we know about why this particular child's birth has been remembered for over 2,000 years?  It was certainly worth noting that Jesus was born of a virgin, that doesn't happen every day does it?  But more importantly, Jesus was Immanuel, which means "God with us".  Jesus is the incarnation (God taking on humanity) of God.  In this case, he is literally, God with us.  When the world was created, God walked in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve.  There was nothing between God and his creation.  After the sin of Adam and Eve (the Fall), an unbridgable gap opened up between God's perfection and our fallen state.  We had no way to come to God, and he couldn't be with us any longer.  Perfection and imperfection don't mix.  With the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, the finale of the process of God's redemption of humanity was set in motion.  As God, Jesus could achieve the perfection that we cannot.  As a man, Jesus could stand in our place before God and receive our punishment.  The baby in the manager 2,000 years ago made it possible for us to be reunited with God by dying on a cross thirty years later and rising from the dead.  He is indeed, God with us. 
Merry Christmas.

From the mountain "burning with fire" to "the city of the living God" - Hebrews 12:18-24

When Moses approached the presence of God on Mt. Sinai he did so "trembling with fear".  The people of Israel were unable to endure the sight of Moses when he returned because he face shown with the radiance of God's glory.  Fast forward about 1500 years to the Temple in Jerusalem.  A massive curtain separates the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies.  What does this all mean?  God's people still do not have access to the glory of his presence.  Their sin prevents them from enduring the holiness of God (God's perfection cannot be in the presence of such inperfection).  Only the High Priest can enter this inner room, and only once a year (The Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur), and that only with a blood sacrifice for his own sins.
That very curtain, the symbolic separation between God and man, is torn in two at the moment of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  The blood guilt has been paid, God's presence can now be approached by man through faith.
And so Hebrews tells us that we now approach Mount Zion, "the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God" where thousands of angels rejoice and celebrate with the "spirits of righteous men made perfect".  Here Jesus "the mediator of the new covenant" awaits us with open arms.
A far cry from a gloomy mountain covered in darkness, fire, and storm isn't it?

Entering God's Rest - Hebrews 4

I was asked to conduct a funeral this past week for someone from Palo (years ago) that I had never met.  This sort of thing can be difficult because as a pastor it's hard to know which Scripture passages will be of the most comfort for the family when you don't know much about the person who is being remembered.  In the end, two passages from the Gospels helped me, Jesus and the thief on the Cross (how wide is God's mercy and how easily obtained) and the 99 and 1 Sheep (God cares enough about each of us to not let us wander off) were able to guide me in my remarks.
Thinking back on that funeral, there was a lot of talk from the family and friends about how their loved one was no longer struggling against the troubles that beset her during her life.  That's certainly true, but I think it misses the point a little bit.  We often think of heaven as a place where we no longer have to endure physical troubles (an aching back, poor eyesight, a handicap); while this is certainly true, it doesn't reflect the real reason why standing before Jesus some day will be so amazing.
The burden that we are all carrying, a burden whose weight we are so used to that we don't even notice it, is sin.  We live in a world where sin is everywhere.  A world where our lives are beset by temptations and tragedies that come from sin.  The true peace of God that we will experience when standing face to face with Jesus will be finally knowing what it is like to be holy.  When selfishness is no longer an option, when fear and failure slip away.  On that day, you will find that a tremendous weight has fallen off your shoulders, never to be taken up again.  On that day, you will truly rest.
I'm reminded of the song, "I can only Imagine"  I love that song; the lyrics are amazing.  "Surrounded by your glory, what will my hear feel?  Will I dance for  you Jesus, or in awe of you bill still?  Will I stand in your presence, or to my knees will I fall?   Will I sing Hallelujah, will I be able to speak at all?  I can only imagine, I can only imagine."

Where do Good things comes from? James 1:16-18

We've had a lot of depressing news in this country in the last couple of years, the state of Michigan has been run through the ringer again and again.  When times are tough, it helps to remind ourselves where the truly GOOD things in life come from.  No, I'm not talking about jobs, health care, homes, or anything that money can purchase.  The truly GOOD things in this world are Faith, Hope, Love, Mercy, Joy, Truth, and Holiness.  I use the capital letters because we often think that we know or understand this ideals but in reality know only the reflection of them as they are enbodied in the essence of God.  Sorry if that's a bit wordy, but the short version is this: If you're looking for anything truly GOOD in life, you're wasting your time and energy looking anywhere else but God.  I have no hope in my own ability to achieve anything resembling perfection on my own.  Nor do I have any confidence in my fellow man to achieve perfection either (no matter what the politicians are promising you).  But, I have complete and full confidence in the Holy God who created this world, who holds us to the standard of his own holiness, and who offers us the chance to join him in holiness through his Son.