By: Undre Griggs, Jr. Patience is a sign of faith and faith is a sign of hope; hope in something greater than what we see in front of us. Romans 8:25 (ESV): But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Hebrews 11:6 (NIV): And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. There are so many situations in life where we have little to no control over the results. That is why it is essential we lean on God and his understanding when coping with the difficulties of life. Whether we find ourselves with financial issues, relationship/family issues, or health issues; we must patiently trust that God’s will is in our best interest. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV): Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV): For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Patience produces faith, which creates trust, which leads to obedience in God. When we lack patience, we are more likely to pursue goals on our own timetable instead of God’s timetable. We are going to seek our wisdom before we seek God’s wisdom, and we are likely to forget to include God in our plans. James 4:13-15 (ESV): Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” When we show patience in the will of God, we will be strong enough to handle anything. We will look past the here and now and put our hope in our future with Christ. Our life on earth is but for a moment; our pain is temporary and one day all of our suffering will cease. We should focus on the things that will never cease, because there we will find a peace that lasts a lifetime. 1 John 5:11-13 (NIV): And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.
By: Undre Griggs, Jr. Throughout the Bible, Jesus is referred to as the cornerstone and foundation of the church. There are multiple reasons for this, with the first being His death and resurrection is the premise the church is built on. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (NKJV): Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, Another reason to consider is fact that Jehovah relinquished His authority over heaven and earth to Jesus. As such, Jesus is the head designer and architect of the church. Matthew 28:18-20 (NKJV): And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. We also find the confession that Jesus is the son of God is a foundational piece of the church. As a reference, the same Greek word used here for “rock” is also used in Matthew 21:42 for “stone”. These two verses also share the fact that Jesus is the foundation (cornerstone) and that Jehovah is in control. Matthew 16:16-18 (ESV): Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. Matthew 21:42 (NIV): Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord as done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” While the Apostle Peter had a vital role in the growth of the early church, he was not the rock or foundation of the church. He did not have the ability to modify scripture; nor was he provided any additional revelation or insight. The Apostle Peter was an obedient follower of Christ who laid the foundation as it was taught to him. 1 Corinthians 3:11 (NIV): For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.
By: Undre Griggs, Jr. Shame and guilt are the feeling we get when we know we have sinned. Our morality comes from our creator; so whether we want to admit it or not, we do not enjoy sin. Jeremiah 3:25 (NIV): Let us lie down in our shame, and let our disgrace cover us. We have sinned against the Lord our God, both we and our ancestors; from our youth till this day we have not obeyed the Lord our God.” Understanding sin separates us from God helps us to understand why we would feel sorrow or shame when we sin. To remove shame we must reunite with God under the salvation found in His son Jesus Christ. Romans 1:16 (NKJV): For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. Romans 10:11 (ESV): For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” Once we have placed our trust in Jesus, we must forgive ourselves of the sins we have committed. We should not demean ourselves by continually playing our worst decisions in a loop. Our last mistake is not going to be our last mistake; so we need to learn to let go and let God handle the issues of our life. We cannot be fearful or ashamed of our human weaknesses; we must be confident in the person we can become by abiding in Christ. Isaiah 54:4 (ESV): Fear not, for you will not be ashamed; be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. When we put our trust in God, we will be able to endure all types of persecution and hardships. No matter the ridicule, no matter the embarrassment; if we are working for the furthering of God’s kingdom, no shame will be in our game. 2 Timothy 1:11-12 (NKJV): For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day. Psalm 31:1-2 (NIV): In you, Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame; deliver me in your righteousness. Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.
By: Undre Griggs, Jr. There is a distinct difference between “fruits of repentance” and “forgiveness”. The confusion appears to be the result of not understanding who will benefit from each. Many people believe forgiving someone is a benefit to the person who is forgiven. That mindset will help explain why people believe a person needs to do “something” before they can be forgiven. Some will say that “something“ can be as small as an apology, while others may feel a remorseful person should attempt to nullify each wrong they committed against the person. 2 Corinthians 7:10 (ESV): For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. It is clear in scripture we should immediately forgive others of any wrong we have endured. We do not have the luxury of waiting for others to apologize to us before we forgive them. The reason is also clear; an unforgiving soul is not a soul that is in fellowship with God. Our issue must be resolved for us to partake in the Lord’s Table (Matthew 5:24) and for us to pray to our Father. Some will go days, weeks, months, or even years before they forgive another; but we should not go a moment without the ability to communicate with God. Mark 11:25 (NKJV): And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. Fruits of repentance are something that happens over time and are separate from our ability to forgive others. The outpouring of love will prick the person who needs to be forgiven to change their life for the better. It is no different than our relationship with Jesus Christ. Jesus had already forgiven us when He came to the world as a human being and died in our place. We showed no fruits of repentance to encourage Jesus Christ to die for the remission of our sins. Romans 5:8 (NIV): But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Similar to the people who actually placed Jesus on the cross, we put Jesus on the cross with our sins. Also comparable is the way Christ forgave the people who crucified him without them apologizing or showing sorrow for their actions. It is true that we need to be baptized for the remission of sins to be saved; but does the consequence of our action/inaction reflect on whether God forgave us? Consider someone guilty of murder being required to serve a mandatory sentence of 20 years. There is nothing that the victim’s family can do to shorten the criminal’s sentence; but they can still forgive them of all consequences they can control. They can pray for the person and write encouraging messages to them. They can feel sorrow (instead of joy) for the person who is about to lose their freedom. Sin separates us from God and the wages of sin are death, so the mandatory sentence is the mandatory sentence. That is why we must put to death our old body in the watery grave of baptism - so we can live again with our new body in Christ. But the fact that we have an outlet only proves God has already forgiven you.
By: Undre Griggs, Jr. We are going to find ourselves in situations where we believe we are submitting to someone who knows less than us. This is not easy by any means and that is part of the reason we are expected to esteem others higher than ourselves on a regular basis. There are no caveats, carve outs or exclusions; we are to esteem everyone who is not us, greater than ourselves. Philippians 2:3-4 (ESV): Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. This is one of the greatest traits of children. To their benefit, children spend their childhood life submitting to another’s oversight. If they participate in sports, they have coaches; if they attend a school, they have teachers; they also have parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. 1 Peter 5:5 (NIV): In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” The reason Christ finds it important for us to esteem others over and beyond ourselves… is because they are. If we remain humble and open to learning, everyone will be able to teach us something. For example, we can learn about the beauty of the Old Testament from Jews, the importance of sharing the word of God from Jehovah Witnesses, and the value of tradition from Catholics. We can learn humility from children, repentance from a new born Christian, and the wisdom of the Bible from an Elder. When we look at anyone and esteem them lesser than ourselves, we must be careful to remember we have all fallen. Jehovah’s esteem for us is so great that He sent His only begotten son to die for us while we were still sinners. Jesus Christ esteemed us so extensively that He lived the lowly life of a human and was tortured and crucified for our sins. So how can we not look at believers and unbelievers greater than ourselves? Is it possible for us to believe the differences between us and another person are greater than the differences between us and God? Deuteronomy 32:4 (NKJV): He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He. Love and humility is the recipe for us to cherish and honor others above ourselves. If we are missing either, the task will be too difficult to accomplish. Romans 12:10 (NIV): Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.
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Dean Road
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