Never

If you are a believer in Christ today; if you’ve put your trust in him and have given your life to him, and if you call yourself a Christian and a follower of Christ, you should realize that you are who you are in Christ only because the Father drew you unto himself. Sure, he may have used an event, another person, or an experience in your life as a catalyst, but the Bible reminds us that no one can come to a saving knowledge of Jesus unless the Father draws them. Jesus reminds us in John, chapter 6 verse 37, that after that happens he will never drive you away. It says:

“All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.”

In this verse Jesus attests that it is God the Father who gave him those who have come to believe. And Jesus says that he will never drive them away. Isn’t that a comforting feeling? God wants to draw near to us. It is never his intent to drive us away. We may choose to leave him, turn away from him, or distance ourselves from him, but he will never drive us away. So I encourage you to have the same heart toward him as he has toward you. As it is his intent to never drive us away, let it be our intent to never leave him. Remember, God chose you even when you were lost in your sin and drew you to himself. Now that he has, he will never drive you away.

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When you were young and forced to play sports in gym class were you ever the last person chosen? If you were, that probably made you feel like you weren’t chosen at all. You probably thought, since you were the last one left, your team was forced to take you. Well, it isn’t that way with God. If you are saved by God’s grace, remember that God chose you. Not because you were the last one left. He drew you unto himself because it was his good pleasure to do so. And now that you are his, he will never drive you away. There are more people throughout human history who will find the wide path that leads to destruction than the narrow one that leads to salvation, and you are on the right path because God chose you. I encourage you never to forget that.

Trust Him

I have a friend who immediately left a ministry and job that he loved, to move several states away to a place that he’d never been because he believed God was telling him to do so. He didn’t have anything set up at his new location; no job, no house, and no contacts, but he knew - even though it didn’t make sense to him at the time, that God was calling him. And he knew that even though he didn’t understand God’s plan at the time, that he should trust him. Have you ever been in that place? Have you ever felt God calling you to do something that made no sense at the time? Simon Peter did. And if God ever calls you to trust him by doing something that doesn’t seem to make sense, I encourage you to do what he did. It says in Luke, chapter 5, verses 4 and 5:

“When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’”

To Simon, it made no logical sense to follow Jesus’ command. He’d already fished all night with no results. Neither did it make any logical sense for my friend to leave everything he’d known and move to a strange place. But they did. And as a result of their obedience, God led my friend to a new ministry calling and when Simon obeyed, he caught such a large number of fish that the nets began to break. We might not understand God’s plan when he asks us to do something that doesn’t seem to make sense, but even still, we need to trust him. He has a plan. He sees what we can’t see, and he knows what we don’t know. Our job isn’t to question God. Our job is to obey him, even when it is difficult, and even when it doesn’t make sense.

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If you went back in time and warned your younger self about something you wish you would’ve avoided or handled differently during your life, chances are that your younger self would trust your advice, follow your instructions and ultimately choose a better path than the one you originally chose, even if it didn’t seem to make sense at the time. Likewise, we need to trust God if he calls us to do something that doesn’t make sense on the surface. For Simon, God had in mind a miraculous outcome from his obedient act. What might God have in store for you if you choose to trust him even when it doesn’t make sense at the time? It’s hard to say, but I’m sure whatever it is, you wouldn’t want to miss out.

Extreme Mercy

I’m always learning, and I’m always being reminded, what it means to be like Christ. Being Christ-like is what we are called to pursue, but it is an effort that is difficult to do, and impossible to maintain, without the help of the Holy Spirit. One area that I find particularly difficult is when he calls us to be extremely merciful toward our enemies. He calls us to be extreme in our mercy because he has poured out extreme mercy on us. Remember, the Bible tells us that, “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”. So, even when we were his enemies he showed extreme mercy, and he calls us to do the same. In Luke chapter 6, verses 27 through 28, Jesus says:

“But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”

And in verses 35 through 36 he says:

“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.”

God is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked, so we should be too. I don’t think he is calling us to be a doormat, but he is calling us to be extreme in our mercy, extreme in our forgiveness, and extreme in our love toward those who are extreme in their hate towards us. When I think of extreme mercy, I’m always reminded of the persecuted church; believers who are imprisoned, tortured, or killed because of their faith in Christ. Often times, I read stories of how they pray for their persecutors, and how they genuinely show love toward those who are expressing hatred. They are not doing this in their own strength. The Holy Spirit helps them. And likewise, we need the help of the Holy Spirit if we choose to love our enemies as well.

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Jesus tells us to “love our enemies, do good to those who hate us, bless those who curse us, and pray for those who mistreat us.” That is extreme mercy. But Jesus isn’t asking us to do anything he didn’t do himself. He showed us that kind of mercy, and that, I believe, is why he asks us to do likewise. Not every day do we have the opportunity to love our enemies; at least that is the case for me. But when you have the opportunity, I challenge you to show them extreme mercy. If you do, you will be taking on the likeness of Christ. And not only that, Jesus assures us that if we show extreme mercy then our reward will be great.

Not Withheld

If you are familiar with the scriptures you probably know that our God is a God who forgives. When we sin, there is forgiveness and restoration available to us. Because of his grace, even if we continue to fall, he still loves us and he still desires for us to restore our relationship with him through repentance. But Paul warns that even though we know that “where sin abounds, grace much more abounds”, we shouldn’t use that truth as a license to sin. And Psalms takes it one step further. In chapter 84, verse 11, we’re told that when we are right with the Lord; when our walk is blameless, there is no good thing he will withhold from us. It says:

“For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.”

In the story of the prodigal son, the faithful son was upset that his brother, who rejected then returned to his father, was celebrated with a fattened calf, a ring and new clothes. But the father reminded him that everything the father has belongs to the faithful son. In this statement we too are reminded that “no good thing does the father withhold from those whose walk is blameless”. So if you have sinned and disobeyed the Lord, or if you have turned from him, I want to remind you that there is forgiveness through repentance. But if your walk is strong with the Lord; if you are faithful and blameless before him, remember that there is no good thing he will withhold from you.

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Often times we focus on how forgiving our God is, as well we should. Because all of us have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God, we all need and depend on that forgiveness. You might be in need of that forgiveness today. If you are, I encourage you to humble yourself, ask God to forgive you and repent (or turn away) from your sins. But if your walk is blameless; if you are right before God, then remember this truth from Psalms: “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.” Being blameless doesn’t mean that we are sinless. Everyone sins. No, being blameless is walking in step with the Spirit in as much as it is possible with us, which is a goal that everyone should pursue.

Approach God

In the Old Testament, when there were kings who led nations, if someone were to approach a king without being asked by the king, it could mean their death. Even if one of the king’s wives were to approach him without being called, the same rule would apply. But with our God, who is King of all Kings, we are told that we can approach him with freedom and confidence. Paul tells the Ephesians in chapter 3, verse 12:

“In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.”

So in Jesus, and through faith in Jesus we may approach God with freedom and confidence. Just like a child might approach their earthly father, assuming their father is loving and kind, we are also offered the privilege to approach God, who is loving and kind. Paul tells us that we can approach him with freedom and confidence. We don’t have to worry whether he will allow us to approach, and we don’t have to fear that we might catch him in a bad mood and that he might kill us like earthly kings had the authority to do. No, if we have faith in Jesus, we can come to him with freedom and confidence. We must have faith because faith is the first ingredient in producing any true believer. The Bible reminds us that without faith it is impossible to please God. So if you have faith in Jesus, this verse is for you. I encourage you not to take this privilege for granted. We can approach almighty God without fear of being killed for doing so. In fact, we are told that we are invited to come to him; that we can approach God with freedom and confidence.

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In Jesus and through faith in Jesus we may approach God with freedom and confidence. If there is anything weighing on your heart or on your mind, you can bring it to God. We are granted the privilege to approach him with freedom and confidence. The God of all creation wants to be in relationship with you. He offered his son as a way for us to have that relationship. Every time you pray to God, it is only because of that relationship that he will hear you and allow you to make your appeal to him. It is also our privilege to praise him, to lift him up and to worship him. So I encourage you to take advantage of this truth. In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.