Skip to main content

272. The Window to God for the World

John 14:22-24
Key Verse: "If anyone loves Me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make our home with him."
John 14:23

The world cannot see God, but they do see us. We are the world's window to God. That is why it is so important that we obey His Will. When we stray, yet claim to be His follower, we not only lie to the world, but obscure the world's view of God through our disobedience.

"Lord, why do You intend to show yourself to us and not to the world," the other Judas asks? The world does not love Jesus because it does not know Him. Not only does it not know or love Him, it has rejected even wanting to know Him. They cannot see Him because they do not believe in Him. It is our responsibility, with Him within us, to woo others to Him so that they can see Him and believe in Him as well.

We are His advertisement to the world. What does the world see of God through us? Jesus said that if we love one another, by this, all will know that we are His disciples. (John 13:34-35) Does the world see a loving, accepting people?

Jesus called us to serve, to go as low as to wash one another's feet! (Mark 10:44-45) & (John 13:12-17) Does the world see a people eager to serve one another, and them?

Does the world see the fruit of the Spirit displayed in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control? (Galatians 5:22-23) Or do they see frazzled, worried people who react and become angry, just like them in tough situations? Do they see you, confident and loving, trusting in your Lord that all will work out for the good, (Rom. 8:28) or do they see someone fretting and gossiping and petty, living no differently than they do. Why should they desire to be a Christian if there is no difference?

"He who does not love Me will not obey My teaching. These words you hear are not My own; they belong to the Father who sent Me." (John 14:24) When we obey His words we are obeying the Father. When we don't obey, we cannot be at one with Him. When we disobey, we pull back from the Oneness. We cannot be one with Him while we are in disagreement. Did you ever see your disobedience as having such serious consequences? Did you realize that when you disobey, you are pulling away from the Father and fracturing the whole? Did you realize that when you disobey, you distort the world’s view of God, like a fun house mirror distorts reality? When you disobey, the world sees you being human and sinful like them, they do not see God in all His glory. They do not see the difference Christ makes.

Remember, as a Christian, our life is His now. "Because I live, you also will live." (John 14:19B) Do not continue to try to drag Him into your life of sin, but let Him pull you into His life of glory. Leave the old life behind and move forward, seeking to become One with Him.

Hymn: "We Are One in the Spirit"

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

258. "Remember, Always Remember!"

Exodus 12:1-30 Key Verse: "This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord a lasting ordinance." Exodus 12:14 "Celebrate the feast of unleavened bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come." (Exodus 12:17) "And when your children ask you, "What does this ceremony mean to you?" then tell them, "It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when He struck down the Egyptians." (Exodus 12:27) The original act was an act of worship as the first true act of freedom for the people of Israel. They had been brought to Egypt by Joseph during a time of famine so that through Joseph God could preserve their lives. ( Genesis 37 , & 39-50 ) After Joseph died, however, instead of heading back to C...
Post a Comment
Read more

This Little Light of Mine

Scripture: Psalm 130 Listen Link: www.lcepc.org then look for “sermons” tab. It’s the first Sunday of Advent. Today we lit one candle and heard the passage, in Isaiah 9, about the great light! We have heard that the great light is the child born to us on Christmas day. It is Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us. Christmas is a day we will truly celebrate as we have for years and years, and our ancestors before us for centuries. Christmas is coming! Advent means coming! It is good to spend the next few weeks reflecting on all that it means for us. We begin from the depths of darkness. The world is still suffering the effects of sin. We are still suffering the effects of a world broken by sin. And not just the consequences of our own sins. According to Romans 8:22, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” The fires in California, the floods and storms on the East coast, and all the other natural disasters we hear ab...
Post a Comment
Read more

August 13 What Is Fitting

It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury—how much less for a slave to rule over princes! ~Proverbs 19:10   On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man!” Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died. ~Acts 12:21-23  Wow! Well, what in the world can there be to benefit us here? First of all, perhaps we should review the first Biblical definition of a fool, penned by no other than Solomon’s Father, David himself. “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 14:1 and Psalm 53:1) It is not fitting for the fool to live the blessed life. Why should they when they deny from whom all blessings flow?  King Herod was a fool. Now, just to be clear, this is not the Herod who ruled at Jesus’ birth and ordered the slaughter of the male children in Bethlehem. He ...
Post a Comment
Read more