Worship for Today: Seated with Jesus Christ in the heavenly realms!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 2:6-7,

 

"God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus."

 

In a verb tense that demonstrates past action, Paul declares that God has "raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus". Paul is careful to point out that being seated in the heavenly realms is only in Jesus Christ. There is no other, there is no other way. As Jesus Christ said himself, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6. No other religion, no other spiritual teacher or guru can get us there. Heaven's access is but one door, and that door is the person Jesus Christ!

 

We read later in this chapter that it is through Jesus Christ we are saved. The exciting thing Paul points out here is that those of us who are saved are seated with Jesus Christ in the heavenly realms. What is so exciting about this? It speaks to the quality of our existence and standard of life in the resurrection for an eternity. In the previous chapter Paul just pointed out that when God raised up Jesus Christ from the dead, he seated him at his right hand in heaven, "far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come." This is the place given to God's Son, Jesus Christ and is only for him, appropriately so. However, in some way or fashion, we are seated with Jesus Christ in heaven.

 

While I'm not sure how all that works out, or just exactly what that looks like, all I know is that it looks pretty good to me. For me, I am very happy, excited and blessed to counted among God's children. It is something I am eternally grateful for and appreciative of. I also hold the outlook of David when he says "I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked." Give me the most menial position, the most humble of circumstances within the kingdom of God and I am just thrilled to be among those who live in God's wonderful presence for an eternity! And, yet, here is this! We are seated with Jesus Christ himself in the heavenly realms. It certainly is something to muse and consider.

 

What mercy, grace and kindness shown to an undeserving sinner like me!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Life on planet earth- the "penal colony"!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 2:1-3,

 

"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath."

 

Some folks, probably many, have a notion that God's relationship with mankind, on the whole, is one likened to the parent-child relationship. God is the perfect person, transcendent in wisdom, power and moral perfection. above and beyond mankind, his creation. As his creation, we look to him in our frailties and faults for his help in this life, to aid us as we experience those challenges we find daunting and beyond our own abilities to handle- much like the parent-child relationship we are familiar with.

 

While there certainly is truth to some of this perspective, it is to me a misreading of what we are exposed to in the Scriptures. My perspective from the Scriptures is that life on earth is more accurately viewed as existence within a penal colony. All of us have sinned, we are all guilty. All of us have been condemned by God's judgment. All of us are awaiting our final disposition in a fiery lake of burning sulfur. As Paul says above, "Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath." It is God himself who is poised to cast us into that lake of fire!

 

From within this "penal colony", what was once mankind's pristine environment, created by God for that which he delighted in, but has now become the repository of those facing God's ultimate wrath expressed in his judgment, there is wonderful news! News of release and freedom! News of a way to escape our final judgment! Deathrow can be escaped! 

 

For those of us who have embraced Jesus Christ in faith, we read, "But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." Ephesians 2:4-9.

 

How important it is to get this message passed around in this "penal colony" so others may escape certain eternal death by embracing the gospel message!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: We are God's workmanship!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 2:10,

 

"We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

 

Here is something I don't often think of, something I certainly should and yet, I haven't given it the meditation and appreciation something like this deserves. I am God's workmanship! All believers are objects of God's workmanship! I am reminded of Paul's comment in 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" We become renewed/remade/recreated as believers in Jesus Christ and are examples of what God does, the kinds of things he engages in, an expression of his intention for us.

 

Earlier in this chapter, Paul described our depraved condition prior to our turning to God and his intervening in our lives. He says we were dead in transgressions and sins as both a lifestyle and a conclusion to our lives. We used to follow Satan following the cravings of our own innate sinful nature, acquired when mankind turned his back on God in sin and rebellion. As such we were objects of God's wrath, living our lives awaiting our fate in the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

 

In this horrible state of affairs, God's grace was manifested in an act of inexplicable mercy, kindness and love. He sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to take our place in punishment and made a way for us, through faith, to take a place at his table! Now that we have become God's children by embracing him in faith, God carries on his transformational work in our lives, creating a thing of beauty from that which is ugly, repugnant, dishonorable and unseemly. As Paul says in Romans 8:29, "Those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers."

 

As I look at the wonderful things I have seen God do in the lives of brothers and sisters around me, I marvel at the handiwork of God!

 

Further, as God does his transformational work in our lives, we read that he does this that we might engage in "good works" that he has purposed us for. This provides our lives with meaning and purpose, answering the classical philosophical questions of "Who am I?" and "Why am I here?" From this perspective we can see just how it is that our lives fit into the bigger scheme of things in God's economy and establishes the worth of our lives as they are measured in terms of "God's workmanship".

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God's household.

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 2:19-20,

 

"Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone."

 

Paul explains to these Gentile believers that, where they used to be separated from Israel, separated from God's chosen people, those who were the custodians of God's word, the Scriptures, those who had the temple worship, the patriarchs and the promises, these Gentile believers are now joined together with Jewish believers as members of God's household. He says this household is built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets of the early church with Jesus Christ himself as this household's "chief cornerstone".

 

We are God's people and the members of his household! The thought of it is an astonishing realization for me! Where I was once a child of the devil, just like everyone else, God sent his Son for me! Now I am his! Now I have become a member of God's very own household!

 

Paul goes on to say that this household is a building comprised of all believers and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord, a "dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." These are transformative thoughts for anyone willing to meditate on them!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The riches of God's mercy!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 2:4-5,

 

"Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved."

 

The expression of God's "great love for us", the riches of his mercy toward us, is simply inexplicable to me. What we call the grace of God is that by which we have been saved. Due to the nature of our Creator God and his God-sized heart, he chose to reach out to us through his Son, Jesus Christ.

 

I won't get to heaven by doing more good than bad. I won't get to heaven by engaging in any spiritual disciplines, prayer, fasting, you name it. I won't get to heaven by joining any particular church or group. I won't get to heaven by keeping my nose clean with the law. I won't get to heaven by church attendance or tithing. I won't get to heaven by subscribing to the "correct" theology.

 

I will get to heaven because of God's great love for us, the riches of his mercy, his giving of his Son Jesus Christ to die a miserable death to pay the penalty for my sins, the penalty due me. It is entirely by this grace of God that I am saved. All God asked is that I turn from my life of sin to him, embrace him in faith, trust in him. What catches my eye this morning is that it was while I was dead in my transgressions and sins, while I followed the ways of this world and the ways of the devil, gratifying the cravings of my sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts... it was while I was in this circumstance that God reached out to me!

 

How astonishing this great love of God, the riches of the mercy of our God! 

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The supremacy of Jesus Christ.

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:9-10,

 

"And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ."

 

In this lofty, wonderful passage of blessings we have in Jesus Christ, it is Jesus Christ himself who is front and center in Paul's comments. All of the blessings we have, "every spiritual blessing in Christ" is in Jesus Christ, through Jesus Christ, from Jesus Christ and because of Jesus Christ!

 

Paul states in this passage that God's good pleasure was "purposed in Christ" and that all things in heaven and earth will find their fulfilment and completion under Jesus Christ as its head. The supremacy of Jesus Christ is the very completion of God's "good pleasure".

 

Further on, Paul tells us that, as part of all God's creation, the church has as its head, Jesus Christ. He is "head over everything for the church", verse 22. The church is both the "body" of Jesus Christ and "the fullness of him who fills everything in every way", verse 23. I note that I am not the head of the church, my theology is not the supreme authority for the church, my understanding of spiritual things does not reign supreme. Only Jesus Christ reigns supreme. He is the head, he is the authority.

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Jesus Christ is all we need!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:5-6,

 

"In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves."

 

The One God loves in these verses is Jesus Christ. It is through him, through Jesus Christ, that God decided beforehand those who would embrace him in faith be adopted as his very own children. In the larger passage Paul tells us it is through Jesus Christ we have received every spiritual blessing. It is through Jesus Christ, through is blood, we have redemption. It is through Jesus Christ we have forgiveness of sins. It is through Jesus Christ that God purposed to display his will. It is in Jesus Christ that all things will be brought together, with him as the head.

 

All of life finds its ultimate rescue in Jesus Christ. All of life finds its purpose and completion in Jesus Christ. All of life finds its ultimate blessings in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is who and what we need. I don't need a pope, a priest or a spiritual advisor, I need Jesus Christ. I don't need a rosary, a temple or a synagogue, I need Jesus Christ. I don't need the latest book on spirituality, I don't need a spiritual retreat and I don't need to find that "best church in town", I need Jesus Christ.

 

Jesus Christ said it so eloquently himself, ""I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6.

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

 

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God's purposes will be fulfilled!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:11-12,

 

"In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory."

 

Here Paul speaks of the first Jewish believers of the early church as being among those who would bring praise to God's glory. In the following verse, 13, Paul finds the inclusion of the Gentiles as a part of this group as God has chosen all those who will embrace him in faith, those who "heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance..."

 

What catches my eye this morning is that what I see in verse 11. God's choosing of those who would embrace him in faith is something he decided beforehand. He predestined this, "according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will". We may have our plans, our desires, but God has his own. It is this that will take place because he is the one who has purposed it. I read here that God, "works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will", not mine. God has his own agenda.

 

God does exactly what he says he will do. In this passage we are told these decisions God made were made before the time of creation, verse 4. Our God knows all, and is all-powerful. There is simply nothing that can or will stand in opposition to that will. Many will try. The deceitfulness of Satan, the rebelliousness of man's heart are always attempting to thwart the will of God. How futile!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Our lavish God!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:7-8,

 

"In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."

 

I am given to thinking of God in terms of bright bold colors. By color I mean those attributes he holds as our Creator are intense, unmistakable, bright and vivid: felt intensely. There are those who see God in pastels, our great God of moderation, a "comfortable God" who would not put too much spice in the dish. Not me! As I read his revelation to me in the Scriptures I find his judgments literally terrifying and the dimensions of his love beyond measure, boundless.

 

Here in this first chapter of Ephesians, where Paul speaks of the wonderful blessings God has for his children, I see him just so. Paul tells us that God's grace we celebrate in our worship is glorious and rich.This rich grace of God is something he has "lavished" on us, a term the translators of the NIV used to describe the nature of God's giving of it to us.

 

I read in the dictionary that "lavish" is characterized by or produced with extravagance and profusion. It is also defined as immoderate in giving or bestowing; unstinting. Certainly, the gifts Paul speaks of here in this chapter are just that! Lavish - to give or bestow in abundance; to shower! How our God has done just that!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Forgiveness of sins only comes by the blood of Jesus Christ!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:7-8,

 

"In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."

 

In the past I have heard it said that any religion that preoccupies itself with blood is a disgusting religion. "I don't want to have anything to do with your interpretation of a bloody God!" Some folks simply find it offensive to think in terms of someone as wonderful a person as Jesus Christ having to "spill his blood" to satisfy his Father God for the sins of others. "How could a loving God demand such a thing?!" They find the notion of it repugnant.

 

Here in his letter, Paul tells his Ephesian readers that our redemption is "through his [Jesus Christ's] blood". The New Testament is full of references to the blood of Jesus Christ as that which is required to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus himself raised the cup of wine at the last supper with his disciples and said, "Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." Matthew 26:27b-28.

 

The writer of Hebrews says, "When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" Hebrews 9:11-14. Later in the chapter, reviewing what Moses said in the law, he makes the comment, "In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." Hebrews 9:22.

 

"Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." What a statement! For those who find the requirement of blood by God for sin offensive, it is a reminder of the offensiveness of sin to God. As God told Adam, "You must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." Genesis 2:17. The judgment of God is horrific! For those with "delicate sensitivities" who may find the blood of Jesus Christ offensive, be aware that for your own sins, that which is offensive to God, payment will be made. Jesus Christ will make that payment if we embrace him in faith... otherwise we will pay for it ourselves, on our own, but payment will be made!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God has some things for his children!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:17-19a,

"I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe."

 

Paul tells the Ephesian recipients of his letter about his prayer for them. He is thankful for what God has done among them, their faith in Jesus Christ and their love for all the saints, and so he spent time before God in prayer for them. (What a heart the Lord gave Paul! How many of us are so thankful for what God does in the lives of others that we spend time before God for their benefit?) I note these things Paul prayed for were for the Ephesians as believers, not that they become so.

 

What Paul asks of the Lord is that the Lord would give these believers "the Spirit of wisdom and revelation" that they might know him better. He asks God to enlighten the hearts of these Ephesian believers that they may "know the hope" to which they have been invited, or called to, which he describes as "the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints." He also asks God to enlighten these Ephesian believers that they know his "incomparably great power for us who believe."

 

What I see in Paul's prayer for these Ephesians is, of course, available to all believers, including us today. While we have the advantage of the New Testament Scriptures, something these believers had to await, as with this letter, there remains additional things God makes available for believers. The "Spirit of wisdom and revelation" that results in knowing God better is something that works in tandem with a study of the Scriptures for us today. Enlightenment of the heart that results in knowing the hope to which we have been invited, to my mind, goes beyond simply being informed of it. "Knowing" it is something transformative in our lives. In his letter to the Colossian believers, a companion letter which I feel was written by Paul in the same sitting, he says speaks of the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for the Colossian believers in heaven. Colossians 1:4-5. The Colossian believers were transformed by the hope they had leading to the remarkable faith and love evidenced in their lives. Additionally, knowing God's great power for believers, beyond simply being informed of it, is transformative as well. It is one thing to be informed it is quite another to experience and base life-changing decisions due to "knowing". Paul asked for these things for the Ephesian believers that they be transformed in their life as a new creation in Jesus Christ.

 

What I see here is that there are some additional things God has for us after we become his children. I also note that these things are apparently not available on the "lowest shelf" but require prayer. The Ephesian believers had the advantage of apostolic prayer for these things. We today have Jesus Christ himself, as well as the Holy Spirit interceding on our behalf, Romans 8:26,34. We need to be praying for these things, as well, for one another. The exciting thing for me is that God does, in fact, make these things available to us as believers, demonstrating he has accepted us as his very own children!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God is worthy of worship!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:3,

 

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ."

 

Sometimes you hear from someone who is bitter toward God. The loss of a loved one or some reversal in their lives they thought could have been prevented by God, since he has the power to do anything has been the root of some of it.

 

Some simply have a rebellious spirit and resent any moral claim God may have on their lives. Knowing, perhaps below the surface of things, they will have to give an account of their lives when they are engaged in things they refuse to give up can make one bitter toward God.

 

However, as I read these words of Paul, I am awestruck by the truth they deliver. God has blessed us with "every spiritual blessing in Christ." Not just some, not just a few for you and a few for me, but every blessing is for each and every one of us. The list Paul enumerates here is simply breath-taking. He makes us holy and blameless in his sight... us sinners...! He adopted us as his very own children... when we were children of the devil himself! He has freely given us these thing. We have had our punishment paid for by his Son, Jesus Christ, redemption, the forgiveness of sins. As he lavishes his grace on us he has made known to us the mystery of his will... that we bring him glory! We have been marked as God's very own children with his seal of ownership, the Holy Spirit. The presence of the Holy Spirit himself within us is our guarantee of God's deposit on our redemption - the resurrection we look forward to!

 

What else could God have done for us?! What further gift do I need from God, to embrace him with all the appreciation I can muster? What further is due me from him for worshipping him for all he is and what he has done for me?

 

Far from bitterness toward God, his free gift of salvation through his Son is every reason for me to worship him today, every day!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Our God exists as the three persons of the Trinity!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:13-14,

 

"You also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory."

 

These two verses reference the Trinity in "Christ", the "Holy Spirit" and simply "God" representing the Father, (see verse 3). Throughout Scripture the three persons of the our great and glorious God are represented in the Trinity without using the term. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Each has a part to play in our salvation and what each accomplishes for us is breath-taking to consider.

 

In this first chapter of Ephesians Paul tells us that "before the creation of the world" the Father chose those who would embrace him in faith, the "faithful" as Paul addresses the Ephesian believers. As believers, the Father predestined we become his children, not just subjects of his kingdom. In this broader passage, verses 3 to 14, Paul tells us the Father has blessed us "with every spiritual blessing in Christ" as he "lavished on us" his grace.

 

Paul tells us that we have our redemption through the blood of Jesus Christ, the One the Father loves. The forgiveness of our sins is ours through the Son and the fulfillment of all things in heaven and on earth will be found under Jesus Christ as the head of everything.

 

Paul also tells us that we were marked by the Holy Spirit when we embraced Jesus Christ in faith, a seal representing a change in ownership and possession. We are marked as God's very own children. The Holy Spirit is the deposit we have received as the guarantee of our inheritance as God's children.

 

All three members of the Godhead, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, each doing his part in God's agenda of salvation to make a people of his own-- his very own family!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God's promises come from his ancient wisdom and purpose.

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:4-6,

 

"For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves."

 

In this passage, Paul has a sweeping perspective of God's promises from eternity past all the way through to eternity future. God wants us to know, through Paul, that what he has decided to do for those who embrace him in faith are things that he decided to do before the creation of the world and have wonderful and far-reaching implications for eternity future. What God decided to do before he created the world will "be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ." 1:10.

 

God knew before time began that mankind, given a free will patterned after his own, would need to be rescued from his own fiercely destructive and appropriate judgment. It was then he determined, chose, predestined to send his Son Jesus Christ to redeem us, that is, all who will embrace him in faith.

 

Paul begins his letter as a missive sent to those who believe in Jesus Christ, the "faithful". Paul identifies himself with this group as he uses the plural pronouns, "us" and "we". In these introductory thoughts he tells his readers of wonderful things God has for those who embrace him in faith and that none of what God has decided to do is new. None of it is something God just thought up.

 

For those of us who live over two millenia after the fact, it is hard for us to relate to the thoughts and concerns of those who heard these wonderful promises for the first time. Much of this material is new to the human ear since the birth of the church. Paul says God, "made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ." 1:9. Paul assures his readers that what God has promised is not something new, not something from an impulsive streak God has just adopted. One can imagine that the Jews of the day that rejected the gospel message, who claimed ownership of God's revelation, accused the early church of just such a thing, e.g. "You are attempting to persuade us that God has turned over a new leaf, and now what he told Moses is all changed?"

 

The message that Paul carried is that what we, as believers, have in Jesus Christ does not reflect any change with God, but that God intended and predestined these wonderful things before he even created the world. All the Scriptures, from Moses forward, builds to the culmination of God's revelation in Jesus Christ and our future eternity with him. Much theology these days misses the point and attempts to ascribe to Paul's writings things he never intended to say.

 

"He [God] chose us in him... to be holy and blameless in his sight", "he [God] predestined us ["the faithful"] to be adopted as his sons", "we were also chosen... for the praise of his glory." These are all wonderful statements Paul has made to underscore that our future with God is not a result of some new impulsive leap God has made. The promises we have from God are born from the intentions God has had for us from the beginning of time and have the durability of God's ancient wisdom and purpose.

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:4b-6,

 

"In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves."

 

At different times many of us feel like the "red-headed stepchild", a reference that, in Rodney Dangerfield's terms, speaks to the fact that we can't get "any respect", not quite fully accepted. No matter what we do, something is held against us. Whether by spouse, parents, a friend, co-workers, etc. you know the drill. Something we might have done has kept us from being accepted fully by someone.

 

As we consider the forgiveness of God resulting in our standing before him as "holy and blameless", what Paul says here about how we are embraced by God is overwhelming. As we reach out to Jesus Christ in faith, we are not simply members of his kingdom, his subjects (although we are). When we trust in Jesus Christ we are not simply called his friends (although we are). When we respond to the gospel message and embrace Jesus Christ as our Savior, we are not simply accepted as his servants (although we are). We are brought into his very family, adopted by him! And, not as a "red-headed step child"! We are embraced by God as his sons and daughters, loved by him, receiving "every spiritual blessing in Christ"! We are loved by God and are subjected, given over, to his love through his pleasure and will!

 

Here is something to muse on! This is something that given the least meditation is transformational as we await his return! It is this very type of observation of Paul that brings to our minds that which is simply breath-taking! In thinking of this I cannot help but get very excited about what awaits us for an eternity!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: We are holy and blameless in God's sight!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Ephesians 1:3-4,

 

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight."

 

One of the struggles we humans have with forgiveness is that we have memory. Sometimes it is just difficult to let it go when we have been wronged, even when we have been asked to forgive. Thankfully, as believers, God has empowered us to love one another and forgive whatever grievances we may have against one another. Often, however, we see someone who has been a culprit in the past and possibly family or friends are unable to accept him or her as fully forgiven. They have a black mark on them, so to speak. The "dark sheep of the family", that type of thing.

 

When God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins, he forgave us all our wrong-doings when we embraced him in faith. He brought us into his family, we became new members of his kingdom. When God did this he could have marked us as a kind of second class citizen or family member. One who required the death of his Son, and so accepted - in a qualified way. Black sheep of the family.

 

Paul tells us here that nothing could be further from the truth. When God forgave our sins (paid for on the cross by his Son) he determined before the creation of the world that those who would be redeemed would be "holy and blameless in his sight." As if we had never sinned at all! While I'm quite certain we will never lose sight of the fact that it was only through God's love and grace we were rescued from his judgment, we will not retain the status of "the black sheep of the family" in the resurrection. We will be accepted as though we had never sinned in the sense that we will be "holy and blameless" in his sight.

 

To me this speaks of the wonderful heart of our God who has saved us for eternity with him. He doesn't want us to be hanging our heads for an eternity, fumbling and struggling with guilt or a perceived second-class status in his family. We will be fully accepted! Fully embraced! We will celebrate new life with him in a standing of holiness and blamelessness!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God's judgment brings fulfillment of his love.

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Zephaniah 3:20,

 

"'At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes,' says the Lord."

 

The message of Zephaniah is one of judgment. The Lord is going to judge Judah for her rebellion against him, as expressed in her idolatry. The Lord will be bringing the Babylonians against Jerusalem and they will eventually overrun the city and destroy it.

 

Here in this passage the Lord speaks of a later time when he will gather the remnant of Israel together. "I will bring you home." He says he will restore the fortunes of the Israelites and he speaks of a time when Israel will "be glad and rejoice with all your heart..."

 

Such is the nature of the Lord. His judgments have purpose. Horrific and painful, those judgments bring about what the Lord desires and what we learn here is of his love expressed to those who will turn to him following his judgment. God's judgment, his sense of justice works in tandem with his boundless love. The outworking of his justice bring about the fulfillment his heart desires for us.

 

No where is this clearer than in the gospel message. We are all condemned to die and die physically we all will, except for those who are alive and remain until the Lord comes. Nonetheless, the Lord offers us escape from eternal death through the message of his love, mercy and kindness, expressed in the substitutionary death of his Son on our behalf. The Lord uses our physical death to get our attention and offers us eternal life following our death. It all hangs on the choice we make before our physical death.

 

It is then he will gather us together, "at that time I will bring you home." How wonderful that must have been for the returning captives from Babylon. How absolutely fantastic and awesome it will be for us when he raises us from the dead into his eternal kingdom!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God's judgment impacts all.

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Zephaniah 1:2-3,

 

"I will sweep away everything from the face of the earth," declares the Lord. "I will sweep away both men and animals; I will sweep away the birds of the air and the fish of the sea. The wicked will have only heaps of rubble when I cut off man from the face of the earth," declares the Lord."

 

Here is something to think about: as the Israelites engaged in their idolatry, the judgment that would fall on them at the hand of the Lord for their sin had a terrible impact on life that did not participate in the sin that brought his judgment. What did the animals, the birds and fish have to do with idolatry? Nothing. And yet, there is a consequence for all life when judgment comes from God. Does this make God unjust? Of course not. God defines what is just! As the unsaved share in the blessings of a nation whose population, as a whole, worships God, so the saved will share in the difficulties when a nation is uprooted by God for sin. If God brings reversal to an economy, all suffer. If he brings a foreign intruder, all suffer. Even believers. I'm not talking of eternal consequences here, but I am speaking to our responsibilities as citizens in our nation here and now and what we should be expecting.

 

Some like to think that God would never touch them if he were to judge the nation for homosexuality or infanticide and abortion. Since they are not homosexuals, since they didn't have an abortion, when God's wrath comes against a nation, somehow it won't effect them. Nothing could be further from the truth. Just a cursory reading of the Old Testament reveals that God's wrath impacts everyone when he judges a nation.

 

Sure, Lot was spared when Sodom was destroyed and God provided for the widow during Elijah's day. But those are exceptions to the nature of things in God's economy. They are examples provided us to teach us something about God. History tells us when the Jews suffered following their rejection of Jesus Christ, it had its impact on the church in its infancy. Paul took up a collection to help out the hungry brothers and sisters who remained in Palestine. We read about it in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9. Ask Jeremiah how it impacted him when Jerusalem was overthrown by the Babylonians for the Jews idolatry...

 

Believers should never be intimated by unbelievers when arguments are raised about how our "religious ideas" should not be foisted on others. Get real! We all have a stake in what our nation engages in and we all have a personal stake in how we will be impacted by God if the practices of wicked people go unabated and unfettered in our nation.

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com