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How much do you enjoy grief? Do you relish being tested and tried by hardship and adversity? Such things aren’t fun and certainly don’t sound enjoyable. And yet, suffering, trials, and tests can lead to joy! In 1 Peter 1:6-7 we read, “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

The “in this” Peter speaks of is the truth that, by God’s mercy, Christians are born again and possess a hope of salvation, resurrection, and eternal life. But before we inherit eternity, we must live this life with its various griefs, trials, and tests. But if we hold fast to Jesus through these trials, how much sweeter and more joyous heaven will surely be!

Do you appreciate the gift of salvation? Too often, mankind enjoys God’s deliverance, only to return to evil ways.

In Judges four, God used Deborah and Barak to mightily deliver Israel from oppression. Chapter five then records a song of praise for God and His saving power. Verse 31 contains the final stanza, “So may all your enemies perish, O Lord! But your friends be like the sun as he rises in his might.” Then the Bible says, “And the land had rest for forty years.” That’s a great ending. But listen to the start of chapter six: “The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord…” Israel was faithful for a while, but before long returned to sinful ways. How tragic. But can we say we are better? Do we strive to be faithful every day? Or like Israel, is our life a cycle of periodic obedience, followed by an inevitable return to sin and evil?

Stewardship of Stuff

One of our greatest enemies is stuff.  Stuff can be nearly anything and everything, and the stuff you cherish might be different than the stuff I cherish.  But ultimately, we all can be distracted by stuff.  The material things of this world are sometimes necessary–stuff like food and clothing.  But often, material things become alluring and distracting.  We want fancy clothes and luxurious meals.  We want bigger houses and nicer cars.  We want more gadgets and things, and before we know it, we are bogged down by materialism and stuff.

Things are not evil in and of themselves, but we must be wary of our attitude towards things.  When our focus is centered on earthly things and not spiritual things, we are in trouble.  We need to remember the words of Jesus, “Be on you guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”  Discipline yourself to be a good steward of possessions–be charitable, don’t be covetous, and always remember that earthly things will pass away, but spiritual things will last forever.

 

In this first lesson of the series, Nate Bibens provides an introduction to the Sermon on the Mount, as well as an introduction to “The Beatitudes.”

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