December 30, 2020

An Introduction to God

What do you believe about God? It has been said that what a person believes about God is the most important thing about a person. Now, if God never revealed Himself to us we would all be in trouble. But the good news is God has made Himself known to us. And a primary way to know what to believe about God is through His Word. The most times the term, “God,” is used in a chapter of Scripture or in a single psalm is thirty-two times, and that happens twice. Once is in Psalm 68 and the other is the introduction to the Bible, Genesis 1.

Genesis 1 is our introduction to God and it declares some foundational truths concerning God. We rightfully think of Genesis 1 as the account of God creating the heavens and the earth and all that is in them. But the main verb associated with God in Genesis 1 is that of God speaking. Ten times we read the phrase “God said”(vs. 3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26, 29). This is good news. God speaks! God communicates! God makes Himself known. This becomes even better news when we see another repeated phrase in Genesis 1, “and it was so”(vs. 7, 9, 11, 15, 24, 30). What God says is reality and it is powerful. Then God said, “Let there be light; and there was light (vs. 3). Wow! Let the power of God’s Word sink in! He speaks and it happens! What a blessing for us to have the true and powerful Word of God to guide us as we enter a New Year!

But there is another repeated phrase that ought to reinforce God’s Word to be the foundation for life in 2021: “And it was good” (vs. 4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31). Because God is a good God, His Word is good. Do you want to know what is good in 2021? God has spoken! And His Word is not only powerful and real, but it also is good!

As we enter this New Year, may God’s introduction in Genesis 1 encourage us to know Him and trust Him more. Furthermore, may it spur us on to be in God’s Word on a regular basis. Two goals that I would encourage all of us to consider for this next year. First, set a Scripture reading goal. Some maybe could read through the entire Bible for the very first time. A younger reader might want to focus on several books of the Bible or the New Testament. Remember, God’s Word is powerful and it is good and it will teach you about God! Second, set a sermon listening goal. A primary way that God’s Word goes forth today is through the preaching and teaching ministries of the church. Here at First Baptist Church of Hamburg, our Wednesday night Bible Classes will resume on January 13th at 7:00 p.m. And on Sunday, January 24, we will begin two new sermon series; “In The Beginning: Foundations For Living in God’s World” from the book of Genesis at 10:30 a.m. and “That You May Know Him: The Miracles of Jesus,” an in depth look at the Christ’s miracles recorded in Luke’s Gospel.” at 6:00 p.m.

May we grow in the grace and knowledge of our God and Savior Jesus Christ in 2021, as we know Him through the powerful and good Word of God.

January 14, 2020

Expectations

When you run a race, you have an expectation that provides tremendous encouragement. Let me try to explain. In 2019, one of my daughters and I had the opportunity to run a half-marathon (13.1 miles). It was a hot and sunny September Saturday morning. When the gun went off and the race began, every runner had an expectation: at the 13.1 mile mark, there would be a finish line. When you start the race you certainly don’t see the finish line, but you are expecting it. Between the tenth and twelfth mile, the course turned onto a freshly paved blacktop road with no shade and the sun beating directly upon us. That one expectation was what kept many of us running. And although we couldn’t see the finish line until the final tenth of a mile or so, we were looking for it in our minds and we were expecting to see it at 13.1 miles. With each passing mile, we knew we were one mile closer to the finish line.

For believers in Christ, we also have an expectation that keeps us running the Christian race with endurance and faithfulness. That expectation is the Lord’s glorious appearing. Titus 2:13 proclaims, “looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” The verb “looking for” means to expect, and it implies that there is an expectation for the fulfillment of a promise. The great promise for the believer is that Jesus is coming again. In other words, as we live life on the earth, we are to be looking for or expecting that the Lord will come again and we will see Him face to face! The appearing of Jesus is our blessed hope and expectation.

Titus 2:11 describes Jesus’ first coming to this earth. “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.” Praise the Lord for His amazing grace: “that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Praise the Lord for His incarnation, His crucifixion, His resurrection and His ascension. And the grace of the Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us how to live or to run the Christian race. Titus 2:12 declares, “teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age.” This verse describes how we are to live our lives for Christ today. But God’s grace not only teaches how we ought to live today, it provides one of the greatest and most encouraging expectations for every believer. You see, in the Christian life, Jesus is the finish line. The One who gave Himself for us is the One who will return from heaven and take us home to be with Him forever (Titus 2:14).

So here is the encouragement for 2020. Expect the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. That expectation will encourage you to live godly even when the race is hard. It will encourage you to run with joy when the race is smooth. It will encourage you to persevere even when you feel like giving up. Jesus Christ may or may not appear in 2020, but we know that with each passing day we move one day closer to His appearing! Keep looking for and expecting the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior!

January 8, 2019

Well Done!

Well Done! No, this article is not about how you would like your hamburg-er cooked. It is about having the Lord Jesus Christ say those words to us be-cause of the way we live this New Year. My college soccer coach often used the phrase “well done” whenever my team or one of the players on my team did something right. As a team, we wanted to play in such a way that he would say those words to us. How much more should we want to hear our Lord Jesus Christ say those words to us be-cause of the way we live in 2019?

How can we live in a way that the Lord will say, “well done”? Matthew 25:21 is a verse in the middle of the parable of the talents. A lord is responding to his servant with these words, “Well done, good and faithful servant: you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.” This parable is an example of what the Lord is going to say to his faithful servants. Notice the emphasis on faithfulness. The servant is called a “faithful servant,” and the servant is described as one who has “been faithful.” Therefore, if we are to have the Lord Jesus Christ say those words to us, we need to be faithful.
As we begin 2019, let us work on being faithful servants. The acrostic be-low shares some practical thoughts designed to encourage faithfulness to our Lord in 2019:

Focus on the Lord, the Faithful One. Otherwise we will grow weary and faint (Hebrews 12:1-3).
Acknowledge sin and confess it (1 John 1:9). Praise the Lord that we can focus on Him even in failures. He is faithful!
Increase attendance at worship services. Make it your goal to be more faithful in church attendance in 2019. Faithfulness to the corporate gatherings of the church allows us to receive encouragement from other believers as we prepare to meet the LORD (Hebrews 10:24-25).
Thanksgiving. This habit is the will of our Lord for us! If we miss it, we are outside of the will of God (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Be thankful everyday in 2019 – don’t wait until the fourth Thursday of November!
Heartily serve the Lord. Faithfulness is not just about what we do, but how we do it. Colossians 3:23 states, “Whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men.”
Fulfill your God-given role in the family (Ephesians 5:21-6:4). Read what God expects of you in the pas-sage and then faithfully follow Him.
Understand the importance of rest and reflection. Remember that faithfulness does not mean always working (Genesis 2:2-3; Luke 10:38-42). One of the best things we can do to remain faithful is to quietly sit at the feet of Jesus by reading His Word and praying.
Live each day as if the Lord could come back today (2 Timothy 4:6-8).

The servant in Matthew 25 was noted for his faithfulness. May God help us in 2019 to develop godly habits that will help us to develop faithfulness so that if He were to return in 2019, He would say to us, “Well Done, good and faithful servant.”