February 10 – What To Wear

“So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.” – Colossians 12-13 (NASB)

 

So, in view of what God has done through Jesus Christ for the faith believer, Paul is describing the behavior and attitude God expects from us in response. Seven characteristics and habits are listed in our verses. We can add twelve more through verse 17.  Paul identifies us as “chosen of God.” This specifies true Christians as those who have been chosen by God. No person is converted solely by their own choice or works, but only in response to God’s effectual, free, uninfluenced, and sovereign grace. “Beloved.” Election means believers are the objects of God’s incomprehensible special love. Some of the characteristics we are to adopt and practice are stated by Paul as “putting on.” heart of compassion - the seat of the emotions;  kindness – a goodness that pervades the entire person softening all harsh aspects;  humility - is the perfect antidote to the self-love that poisons human relationships; gentleness - sometimes translated “meekness,” it is the willingness to suffer injury or insult rather than to inflict such hurts;  patience - is also translated “longsuffering,” or "forbearance" the opposite of quick anger. This a process of renewal promised by God and made ours ours by His grace.

 

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October 22 – The Forgiven / Forgive

“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” – Ephesians 4:31-32 (ESV)

If we let our guard down, it is easy to find ourselves in conflict with others and that conflict leads to attitudes and actions unbecoming our profession in Jesus Christ. Our verse today cautions each of us about attitudes and actions that are unpleasant. “Bitterness” is a smoldering resentment. “Wrath” is an outburst of rage. “Anger” is internal, feelings of hostility. “Clamor” is brawling, the outcry of strife out of control. “Slander” is evil speaking. “Malice” is the general term for ill will toward others. The six vices are responded to with three commands. being kind is doing what is suitable or fitting to a need. being compassionate is having inner emotions of affection. in forgiving we give freely and graciously. Those who have been forgiven so much by God should, of all people, forgive the relatively small offenses against them by others. Kindness, compassion and forgiveness are what Christ has toward us and we did not deserve it. God exemplified these in Christ. We are promised forgiveness by God and by his grace and help we can forgive each other. 

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September 29 – Be Kind, Be Forgiving

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32 (NIV)

Kindness is valued by many, even those who do not believe in the one true God as we do.  The Dalai Lama is quoted saying “Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.”  Our God teaches us to be kind to one another and then He takes it a step further.  Be kind, compassionate to one another AND forgiving each other.  It is hard sometimes to even think about forgiving someone who has mistreated us.  We might be tempted to think that God is expecting too much from us.  How can we ever forgive a serious wrong done to us?  Remember, that God does not expect anything from us that is too difficult for us to do or more than He does for us. He promises to give us the strength to do all that he asks.  Forgiveness is something God has granted us through grace and mercy and through the sacrifice Jesus Christ made on the cross.  So, through us in Christ we can show God's kindness, compassion, and forgiveness for each other.  Let's do that starting now..

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September 6 – Lifting Up From Deep Inside

“Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.  For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.”   Psalm 86:4-5  (ESV)

There are several places in the Psalms composed by David where he describes his prayers as if he is lifting up his soul to God.  That is how he expressed how he felt when he spoke to God and made contact with the Lord.  We can think of our praying in that way too. True praying must be from our inner being.  Rote repetitive prayers that are said over and over quickly lose their impact on our souls.  But the prayers that please God and that reach Him are those that come from deep within, from our heart and consciously formed by our mind.  We are promised that God responds in good and forgiving ways and that His love for us is steadfast.  And our soul is gladdened when God responds to us with that love. We can think of the phrase “For You, Lord, I lift up my soul” as another way of declaring that we are placing our trust in the Lord.  We trust God for what He has declared and we trust Him to hear us when we lift up our soul in prayer.  

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October 13 – Calling

“For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,  abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.”  Psalm 86:5 (ESV)

These words are addressed to God as in a prayer but the psalmist is not asking for anything.  The verse is for us a promise.  It reminds us how much God loves those who trust Him.  It reminds us that when we call on Him in faith, we can experience His love as He responds to our call.  It promises us what God is like. He is good, forgiving, and loving toward us.  The steadfast love is sometimes called lovingkindness which is God's unending mercy toward us.  We can know God through these attributes when we call on Him.  We who believe know that calling on God is what He wants us to do.  Yes, my friend, when we turn to God asking Him to help us, He showers His love upon us.  This was the psalmist David's experience and it can be ours as well.  

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September 6 – Abounding Love

“You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you.”  Psalm 86:5 (NIV)

The Psalms were written to be songs and to be sung in worship, praise and prayer. When David wrote these words and then sang them to God,  he was expressing what he had experienced in his own life. But we noticed that he praised God for responding to all who would call on Him and that included us. We can join with David in thanking God for His love to each one of us when we turn to Him. When we think of how God has forgiven us and how He forgives us whenever we seek His forgiveness, we realize that this is due to His love for us, and it's because He loves us that He treats us so kindly. Let's join with David and say as he did, “You, Lord are forgiving and good abounding in love to all who call to you.” Today, whatever we encounter, let's remember the promise and call on God.

September 29

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32 (NIV)

Are we tempted to think sometimes that God is expecting too much from us? If that thought comes, we must remember that God does not expect from us more than He does for us, or more than He will give us the strength to do. It is hard sometimes to forgive someone who has treated us in a way we didn’t like. Maybe we think then that this would be expecting too much. Let us remember then that God has forgiven us when we did not treat Him as we should have. When we asked for forgiveness, He wiped it off the record. Let us remember, too, that God will help us to forgive if we ask Him. He doesn’t expect more from us than He would do Himself or more than He will help us to do. 

March 24

“Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Luke 23:34 (NIV)

Jesus spoke several times during his crucifixion – very meaningful words such as those in this verse. He spoke while they were actually crucifying Him – a time of awful physical suffering. He was praying for those who had driven the nails into his hands and feet but also for those who had delivered Him up to be crucified. Just think that at a time like that He could pray that they be forgiven. What a vision this gives us of His forgiving attitude toward all of us. We realize that our sins nailed Him to the cross. Jesus prays for us as we put our trust in Him