Yes and Amen

There’s a newish song that we’ve been singing in some of our services entitled Take You At Your Word. I love the chorus of the song. The lyrics read,

I'll take You at Your word
If You said it, I'll believe it
I've seen how good it works
If You start it, You'll complete it
I'll take You at Your word

Over the last week, we’ve been studying what it means for us to be people of honesty; people of our word. However, as this song reminded me, our great hope is that God is a God of his word. What he says he will do.

That was Paul’s statement to the church in Corinth. He wrote to them and said,
20 For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Jesus is the way God fulfills all of his promises to us. Through Jesus our sins are forgiven, we are made right with our Heavenly Father, we are adopted into the family of God, we are sealed for redemption, and we are promised eternal life. God’s eternal “yes” to us will never cease because of the work of Jesus. As the hymn writer Edward Mote penned,

His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.
Jesus is our hope and stay and we can have confidence that in him is God’s yes and amen.

We need to remember that even when we fail and fall short of the expectations we have for ourselves, God will never fail. If he said it he will do it . . . and he has done it in Christ. Jesus doesn’t call us to live with honesty and integrity so that we earn something from God. No, living with honesty and integrity increases our ability to live in the Kingdom of God, experience his freedom, and taste his joy. However, everything that needed to be earned was won by Jesus on the cross. You can take God at his word.

Pastor Ryan Paulson

by Ryan Paulson

InteGRITy

I don’t think anyone wants to be THAT person. You know them too. The one that said they were going to do something or be somewhere and then the day comes and they are nowhere in sight or the task still undone. That kind of person leaves a mark on our lives because being unreliable damages trust. A spouse doubts the promises made and loses a sense of security. An employer's reputation is damaged and business is impacted. Or a child interprets the lack of follow through as if their needs or desires don’t matter and grows up having relational trust issues.

Instead, we desire to be the reliable one. You know that person too, think of them now. I just did and smiled and noticed a sense of ease come over me. Why? Because there is safety and rest found in any relationship with a person who has this type of character. They are a person of integrity who is dependable to do what is right, no matter the cost or convenience.

Jesus is the only perfect example of someone of infallible character. A person whose moral and ethical principles are unchanging—the model for integrity. Everyone else falls somewhere on the spectrum and is a work in progress. It takes GRIT to become a person of integrity. A long commitment with unwavering perseverance in honesty, accountability, and dependability.

These actions shape (or reshape) the core of character and character is often revealed by the words we choose. Jesus points this out too saying, “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil” (Matthew 5:37). An evil character embellishes and their words can’t be taken at face value. But words from a person of integrity can be trusted. James, the brother of Jesus and follower post-resurrection, wrote that someone who can control their tongue is fully developed in character and can control their entire body (James 3:2). He saw that integrity to the very end when Jesus did what He said he was going to do and died innocent, rose in glory, and ascended to heaven.

Friends, what we say matters. What we do matters. Doing what you say you’re going to do matters because we represent Jesus. So let’s commit with grit to doing that well to bring Him the honor due to His name.

Jessica Klootwyk
Discipleship Director

by Jessica Klootwyk

Words Matter

“And don’t say anything you don’t mean. This counsel is embedded deep in our traditions. You only make things worse when you lay down a smoke screen of pious talk, saying, ‘I’ll pray for you,’ and never doing it, or saying, ‘God be with you,’ and not meaning it. You don’t make your words true by embellishing them with religious lace. In making your speech sound more religious, it becomes less true. Just say ‘yes’ and ‘no.’ When you manipulate words to get your way, you go wrong. THE MSG Matthew 5:33-37

I like this version of scripture in Matthew because it speaks to all of us to glorify God, not ourselves, and mean what you say, and say what you mean.

Psalm 19:14 says, Let the words of my mouth and meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight O Lord. Speaking with “religiosity” or “religious lace” as Matthew calls it just makes it less true. Jesus is saying let your true heart be reflected in your speech.

Jesus said, ”But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give an account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words, you will be justified, and by your words, you will be condemned.”

Sometimes in the moment, people want to say the right thing or they are afraid they will say the wrong thing, so they embellish or just say nothing, but we will all be accountable.

“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34).

What we say should bring God glory, not glorify us. Making promises we probably won’t keep, or saying we will pray for someone and then not doing it—those things hurt God’s heart and don’t make us trustworthy. The secret to victory over anything in your life is closeness to Jesus — intimacy with Him!

Father, help me and us to be a reflection of you and your love in all we do and say.

Deb Hill
Executive Assistant

by Deb Hill

Your Honor, My Honor?

by Jonathan Duncan

Prone to Wander

by Jessica Klootwyk

Nobody’s Fault But Mine

28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. - Matthew 5:28-29

I love how Jesus confronts real issues without beating around the bush. He knows his audience is mostly men and he also knows that lust is a problem that all men face. However, I just want to point out how the one Man who was able to go through life, seeing the same women that every other man saw, without ever looking at a woman with lustful intent, knew where the problem with lust really lies. Jesus puts the blame squarely where it should be, on the man with the wandering eye.

Let’s stop and appreciate how rare this is… especially in religious contexts. Think about how many religious traditions handle the problem of lust. Unfortunately, most of them handle lust by blaming the woman. Sometimes women are forced (either by actual laws or by social mores) to cover themselves completely (i.e. the Muslim burqa). They are told, in not-so-subtle terms, that their bodies are too much of a temptation for men and that it is their job to hide their bodies so as not to cause men to sin. These traditions place all of the restrictions on women and assume that if they just stopped showing themselves, men would stop lusting. However, they forget that Eskimos still lust.

The way that Jesus handles this is so very different! He doesn’t follow the typical religious playbook. He doesn’t blame women. He puts the blame squarely where it belongs: on the man with a lust problem. Jesus notices that it is the man’s fault for looking with lustful intent, not the woman’s fault for being beautiful. He doesn’t tell the woman to cover up, he tells the man to “cut out” the problem. We know that Jesus didn’t want anyone cutting out their eyes or hands, but he did want men to know they could deal with their own problems. He is telling men that they need to learn how to control their own bodies. Period.

The overarching truth is that the only one to blame for my sin is me, whatever that sin may be. I cannot blame anyone else. I am the one who will stand before God, so I am the one who must learn how to control my mind and body. This is a truth that men and women need to learn equally. We all deal with our temptations, but the truth is the same, sin is nobody’s fault but mine.

Josh Rose
Family Pastor

by Josh Rose

Truth or Consequences

As a mom of three boys, I wanted to protect them from the harsher realities of life, but also let them learn the consequences of their actions. I didn’t enjoy the trips to the ER for stitches etc. when they went rogue, but hoped they learned something in the process. It was sometimes impossible to protect them from themselves or life but knowing that God was in control helped, he loved them more than I did.

What does this have to do with Matthew 5? Why was it necessary to talk about the consequences of lust so graphically? As our loving Father, he wants to protect us, but he also wants us to know that there are consequences when we make choices that harm ourselves and others. And here he wants us to see that there is a progression from what we see, to what we think and then what we do. God as our loving father knows the consequences of the progression of sin and loss of self-control, while we deceive ourselves. (James 1:22)

He wants us to see the seriousness of the problem. He wants us to grasp that our eyes and hands aren’t the “cause” of the sin; the real problem is in our hearts. (James 4:8) God accomplishes this by pouring the Spirit of His Son into our hearts.

Jesus is saying we should be willing to give up whatever is necessary to protect ourselves from the consequences of an evil, adulterous heart.

Listen to what C.S.Lewis says in his classic work,"Mere Christianity". . .

“After each failure, ask forgiveness, pick yourself up, and try again. Very often, what God first helps us towards is not the virtue itself but just this power of always trying again. For however important chastity (or courage or truthfulness, or any other virtue) may be, this process trains us in habits of the soul which are more important still. It curses our illusions about ourselves and teaches us to depend upon God. We learn, on the one hand, that we cannot trust ourselves, even in our best moments, and, on the other, that we need not despair even in our worst, for our failures are forgiven. The only fatal thing is to sit down content with anything less than perfection." (Mere C. in 'The Best of CSL' p.482)

God wants the best for you. He doesn’t want you to stay stuck in shame, embarrassment, or bitterness. He isn’t going to turn a deaf ear when you mess up if you are sincerely sorry and ask for his forgiveness and help. Most of us know this, but Father please give us the courage and wisdom to share it with those who don’t.

Deb Hill
Executive Assistant

by Deb Hill

Provision and Protection through Faithfulness

What God says and does reflects who he is. His words and actions flow out of his character, his being, his very self. This includes the rules, laws, and expectations he gives to people.

Consider these questions and answers:

Why is it wrong to lie? Because God is truth.
Why is hate so dangerous? Because God is love.
Why is envy harmful to one’s spirit? Because God is content.
Why does unfaithfulness cause so much relational pain? Because God is always faithful, breaking faith hurts and harms.

God’s principles for humanity flow from his character. When people break his principles, it brings trouble and hurt. God’s principles flow from his person. Trusting him and living by his principles (rules, laws, expectations) brings protection and provision.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches that God’s faithfulness should be lived out in actions and thoughts. Not just, “Don’t commit adultery” (Ten Commandment #7 Deut 5:18), but “Don’t even think about committing adultery” (Matt 5:27-28.) Faithfulness is so important to a healthy life, that Jesus encourages taking drastic steps to avoid looking at or acting out sins of unfaithfulness (Matt 5:29-30.) “Chop off a hand” or “gouge out an eye” are exaggerated statements meant to emphasize the importance of doing drastic things to cut out patterns of sin. Making drastic changes to promote faithfulness in mind and deed isn’t necessary just because God made an arbitrary rule about it. God’s expectations follow and flow from his person and character. Trusting God, being faithful to him, and living faithfully in words, thoughts, and deeds reflect his character and bring protection and provision.

Pastor John Riley

by John Riley