Be careful when you laugh!

Have you ever laughed at someone because they just didn't seem to understand what seemed to you to be such a clear truth from God's word. What's tragic is that actually many times we're the one that's wrong, but are too proud to realize or admit it. It's important to understand and be humbled by the fact that we as humans are prone to misunderstand God's revelation or to prevert it to promote ourselves. It is cruel then to joke or laugh at the error of others. This is to make light of the riches of God's kindness, tolerance, and patience by not seeing the revelation you've been given as undeserved (Rom. 2:4, 1 Cor. 4:7). The fact that another does not see the truth that you do should make you weep, not laugh. So when you joke at the foolishness of others, be careful, lest you harden you heart, invite God's wrath, and laugh yourself right into hell. I don't think I exaggerate when I say this. Is this not what Jesus meant when he said, "Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall weep later"? Next time and everytime you laugh or joke then, simply do a quick heart-check to make that your laughing is pure, loving, uplifting and glorifying to the Lord, never at the expense of others or making light of another's pain or ignorance. May God reveal to us precious, incredible truth from His Word, and may we be broken, humbled, and made more loving as a result, never arrogant, boastful, sarcastic or condescending. It seems also that sarcasm itself is of very limited value in the Christian life. But I'll blog more on that later.

Wait well: like Jesus for Jesus

Waiting is something that no one likes to do, yet is something that is always required of everyone. We are always waiting to do something. Whether it be waiting to grow up, waiting to finish school, waiting to get married, waiting to have kids, waiting to have what we want, waiting to begin ministry, waiting to see fruit in that ministry, waiting to see Jesus, or just waiting for this traffic light to turn green. All wait, but do we wait well? What does it even mean to wait well? And what is the purpose of waiting? Now I by no means have waiting figured out, but I do know that it is dangerous to think that I will be done with waiting in this life after what I'm currently waiting for occurs. There will always be something else to wait for. We must always remember that we do not deserve to receive immediate gratification for our desires. If we do, it is only God's undeserved kindness to us. Christ Jesus on the other hand deserves to have His desires immediately fulfilled. Yet what an example He has set for us in His word as He constantly waits for His Father's will to be accomplished. He answers Satan that He must wait and trust His Father to give Him bread to eat, freedom from pain, and the glory of the world (Matt. 4:1-11, Luke 4:1-13). He tells His brothers that He must wait to be known and praised publically until the proper time. (John 7:3-8). He tells His mother at the wedding at Cana that His time has not yet come to be praised and exalted for who He is, He having to wait ( John 2:4). He tells the demons that they were not to speak about Him, they knowing that He was the Son of God, because the time for Him to be revealed had not yet come (Mark1:34, Mark 3:12). He tells His closest disciples that they are to wait to tell about the transfiguration of His glory they have just seen, until after His resurrection (Matt. 17:9). And He had to wait to send His disciples out with all authority because the gospel of His life, death and resurrection had not yet been complete (Matt.28:18). We have to wait because our hope in the gospel of final salvation from death through His blood is not yet here. The only thing that your waiting for that will save you is Jesus! All other waiting will beget more waiting. The waiting will only be over when Christ comes. Is not waiting in faith, hope? Have we not been commanded to set our hope fully on the grace to be brought to us at the revelation of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:13)? We have a living hope in Christ! So may we see all other waiting as clarifying our eternal hope! "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation to be revealed in the last time." (1 Peter 1:3-5)