The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance. – 2 Peter 3:9 (Holman)
Jesus promised as He left the earth, He would also come again. Some people have mocked His promise of returning by saying, ” If He’s really coming back, why hasn’t He done it yet?” However, Jesus says here that it’s not that He’s delaying His promise just because He feels like it, but that He’s being patient for others to have a chance to be born again.
Jesus does not want anyone to perish. He cares so much about the human race, that He’s willing to delay His return until more get a chance to come to know Him as Savior. The question is not, “Why would God send anyone to hell if He’s a loving God?” The real question is, “Because of God’s great love and His willingness to be patient for others to come to know the truth, why would anyone choose not to give Him their heart?
We who already know Jesus as Savior play a major part in this desire of God. Just because God desires that no one perishes but that all men might be saved, doesn’t mean it automatically happens. In order for someone to decide to follow Jesus and become a Christian, they must first hear about what He’s done for them so they can have something to put their faith in. That’s where you and I come in. We are able to be used by God to share this, “Good News” to others who have not heard of it while there is still time.
Share this news with others even if they do not act like they want to hear it. God wants for all to be saved. Help bring others to Christ by sharing with them the difference Jesus has made in your life and how to be saved.
Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble. – Proverbs 13:20 (NLT)
Your friends and the people you surround yourself with are important. The people you choose to spend time with and get advice from matter a lot to your future. I once heard someone say to never take advice from anyone who isn’t smarter than you in an area. What they meant was, if you need money advice, you need to find someone who manages their money better than you do. If you need relationship advice, find someone who has had successful relationships in their lives.
Who you walk with, associate with, and take advice from makes a big difference in your life. If you struggle with the temptation to sin in a particular area, you will want to avoid spending too much time with friends that struggle in the same area.
If you choose to make smart friendships, you’ll find that you’ll be challenged and avoid a lot of trouble in your life. It might be hard to say no to a bad friendship or relationship, but realize that you’re worth it. Your future is important enough to say no to a bad relationship. Choose today to walk with wise people. Get advice from wise people and have close relationships with those who challenge you to be better and get closer to God.
We often have this mistaken idea that humility is weakness. We think that if we’re humble, it means we have to have low self-esteem.
Often, we feel like we have to promote ourselves on social media, appear better than we really are, and sometimes even stretch the truth just to get the approval and acceptance of others. And to be honest, doing all that can really be exhausting.
It’s so much work trying to keep up with others. What if there’s a better way?
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. – 1 Peter 5:6 (NIV)
What if instead of trying to appear better than you really are to others, you chose humility? Not that you’d be a pushover or anything, but what if you just did what this verse said, and trusted God?
What would your life look like if instead of trying to promote yourself, you just let God do it for you? Would that take some of the pressure off yourself? Maybe more importantly, would that improve your relationship with God?
What if instead of trying to get ahead, you just spent all that effort on getting to know God more? And you let God lift you up?
Have you ever thought about the fact that pride often leads us to sin? Pride often looks like us simply rejecting something we see in God’s word. Maybe we’re not totally rebellious, but we just think it’s ok to tell a lie when it doesn’t hurt someone. Or maybe we think there are some of God’s rules that are ok to follow but as long as you don’t hurt anyone, you can skip the ones you don’t agree with or don’t like.
But the root of that thinking is pride. It’s thinking that it’s ok to not do something that God says. That it’s ok to make your own choices and your own destiny. And God does give us the freedom to choose, but really that line of thinking is prideful.
“God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” – Genesis 3:5 (NLT)
It’s a lot like how Adam and Eve got into sin in the garden in the first place. God had told them one thing, don’t eat the fruit. And yet, they got into pride. They listened to the devil and chose their own path. I mean, what does it hurt to eat one little fruit? That isn’t murder or anything, right?
And yet, it went against what God had told them to do. And then they got excited about the idea of being like God. And knowing good from evil. This prideful way of thinking led them to sin.
The same is true for us. We might think it’s a little thing, it doesn’t hurt anyone, and so we place ourselves in the place of God and determine what’s right and wrong. The problem is, we don’t have the right to do that. We’re not God.
So we have to determine to not get into pride, into thinking that we can only obey when we want, where we want. God wants our hearts. He wants the best for us. He doesn’t want us to be led astray by pride and sinful behavior. He wants to bless us, develop a deep and loving relationship with us, and be everything we need.
So today, if you’ve given into pride, into thinking that you can call the shots in your life, determine to live today differently. Choose to follow after God and pursue a relationship with Him and see how rich a rewarding life in God can truly be.
Why love God? The simple answer is that He commands it (Deut. 6:4-5 and Mark 12:28-34).
A reason for love is given in 1 John 4:19: “We love Him because He first loved us.”
Our love for God is based upon what He has done for us in Christ, and because He has poured out His Holy Spirit on us. But what is interesting about the command to love God is that it came before Christ. So what is it that should cause God to say, “Love Me”? What is it that should have caused there to be such awe of God?
I would like to suggest that there is something absolutely wonderful about God Himself, something so awesome and terrible that it makes people long to see Him and yet makes those same people quake in fear when they get but a glimpse. There is something about Yahweh that prompts people to love Him with all that they have and yet tremble in fear because of Him (Provb. 1:7 and Acts 9:31). There is something that we should value—not just because there is punishment if we don’t, or that we should value it because we can use it. It is better than any gold, silver, or money. It is more precious than beauty because beauty receives its quality from this reality about God.
What is it? It is the holiness of God.
Of course when “holiness” is brought up some people cringe—even Christians cringe or at the very least hesitate when the idea of “holy” or “holiness” is applied to anything but the Holy Spirit. But the fact that we cringe or hesitate demonstrates that we have no idea what holiness really is. For if we truly understood God’s holiness we would not cringe; we would tremble.
Holiness is the most frighteningly wonderful and beautiful thing about God. It is what made Moses want to see Him. It is the thing that causes the seraphim, those four living creatures circling the throne of God, to cry out, “Holy, holy, holy!” (Isaiah 6:3 and Revelation 4:8). This statement, this constant cry of these beings who are always in the presence of God should cause us to want to know what they know, to see what they see. This thing about God, this holiness that should fill these creatures with wonder is that thing that is supposed to grab hold of our hearts. It is what makes the love of Jesus so spectacular. It is what makes God’s adoption of us so astonishing and astounding.
Think of it! These exalted creatures that get to hover above God’s throne, that get to be in His presence night and day, don’t have something that we have. They cry, “Holy, holy, holy!” and the whole world shakes. If we saw what they see, if we were in His presence then we would shake and tremble and be like Isaiah the prophet who, when he stood in this holy presence, cried out, “Woe is me, for I am undone!” (Isaiah. 6:5). We would fall on our knees and implore the Lord even as Peter did, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” (Luke 5:8). The holiness of God is so majestic, so beautiful, so awesome that because of our sin we want God to go away. Because of our sin we look with awe at the seraphim and think that is as close to God as any creature can get.
But the awesome work of God lifts us up.
He lifts us up, washes us clean by the blood of Christ, and fills us with His Spirit so that the seraphim look at us in amazement, and envy our place. While they circle the throne and cry out holy, we get to draw near. We get to cry holy too, but we get to approach closer and closer. We move past the ranks of angels, past lofty seats of ancient creatures, through the circling seraphim to the very throne of God. We come, not as mere creatures, but as sons and daughters. This one, who is so holy and awesome, we get to call, “Daddy,” (Romans 8:15 and Galatians 4:6).
Want a more detailed discussion of monotheism and its implications for truth? Check out chapter 3 of The Trinity Mystery.
Suggested Readings:
Leviticus 10:1-7
II Samuel 6
Isaiah 6:1-7
Revelation 4:1-11
The Holiness of God by R.C. Sproul
Discussion Questions
What is “holiness?” What does it mean that God is holy? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?
Why do you think the reaction of Isaiah was “Woe is me!” and Peter’s reaction was, “Go away from me!” when they were in the presence of God? How does this relate to the holiness of God?
How can we keep God’s holiness in mind? What benefit is there to us, and how would it affect our lives and witness?
About the Author:
Sam Andersen is a member of the Evangelical Free Church of Oelwein, Iowa where he has the opportunity to teach in different capacities. He holds a MA degree in History from Liberty University and a Bachelor of Ministry degree from the Antioch School of Church Planting and Leadership Development. He is the author of The Trinity Mystery a book that explores the doctrine of the Trinity and its implications, and the children’s book Falling Through the Creek. Email Sam at: writesamandersen@gmail.com.
Do you ever lay awake at night worrying about things? Maybe you rehearse something that happened to you during the day. Perhaps the trouble in the world and chaos around you makes it hard for you to sleep. Worry is something we all deal with from time to time.
Worry, however, isn’t God’s best for your life. In fact, worry can stem sometimes from pride.
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. – 1 Peter 5:7 (NLT)
When you’re worried about something, it’s often because you feel that you need to take care of it. Maybe you feel like you need to defend yourself or that you need to work harder to make something happen. As a result, you let cares and worries keep you up at night.
Here’s the thing, taking worries on yourself can be a form of pride. You think that you have to handle things. You might think that if you don’t do it, no one else would. The truth is, however, that there comes a place of trusting God.
You’ve got to trust that He will defend you. You have to trust that He will exalt you. Sometimes, that kind of trust can be hard to do. We think that we need to do more or be more and keep all the plates in our lives spinning. The truth is, we can let go and trust God.
Today’s Truth: Worry can sometimes be a form of pride.
So today, don’t give in to worry. Choose instead to trust God. He has your best interests at heart and loves you unconditionally. Trust Him to help you in every situation you face.
I want you to imagine for a moment that your family has a car. You use it to get to school, your parents use it to get to work. The car belongs to your family.
Let’s pretend that one day I come to visit your house. Without asking, I decided that I’m going to get your car’s keys and that I’m going to drive it wherever I want. What would you do?
You’d probably be mad. Most likely you would confront me and ask what I was thinking by taking the car.
And you’d be totally justified in doing that. Why? It’s your family’s car. When something is yours you get to have a say in what happens to it.
The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him. – Psalm 24:1 (NLT)
Today’s Bible verse is very similar to the idea of the car being taken. God created the world. It’s His world, and as creator, He has the right to have a say about how we live our lives. He has the right to do this because He created us.
Now, we can choose to ignore what God says. We can choose to live our lives as we see fit. God gives us that freedom, however, living our lives however we think is right is pride. When we say that we can determine what’s right and wrong for us, we’re saying that God isn’t the Lord of our lives and that we’re not submitting our thoughts and desires to Him and what His word says.
Today’s Truth: Calling all the shots in your life is pride.
Today, determine to examine your life. Have you been calling all the shots? Or have you let God have a say in the way you live your life?
But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” – James 4:6 (NIV)
Most of us don’t have a goal of humility. Why? Because it’s not something our culture deems important. We look at people who have accomplished a lot as heroes. We celebrate singers and celebrities. Often, the last thing on most of our minds is practicing humility.
However, in today’s verse, we see that God opposes the proud.
Whoa. That’s a pretty strong statement. Especially in a world that feels like we have to be right and defend ourselves all that time.
Today’s Truth: Pride is an ungodly attitude.
But the truth is, God opposes the proud and gives us more grace and favor if we’re humble. So if you want to be walking in God’s grace and getting more of it in your life, you’ve got to practice humility. It’s not always easy trusting God to bring justice and to exalt you, but it’s the best way.
God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. – Ephesians 1:5 (NLT)
Have you ever been guilty of leaving a school project unfinished until the last possible moment? And then you’re in a panicked frenzy trying to finish up the night before? Maybe you even had to stay up all night to finish. I’ve had my share of last minute projects.
The great thing about God is that He didn’t wait last minute to bring us into His family. He wasn’t panicked and He didn’t have to stay up all night working on it. He had it planned for us in advance and it wasn’t something like a school project that He hated doing or dreaded. He wanted to do it and it gave Him pleasure.
Today’s Truth: You aren’t a mistake. God planned ahead and made a way for you to know Him.
If nothing else, this fact can really make us feel important. God wanted us and thought we were important enough to put a plan together to bring us into His family. He wanted to have a friendship and a relationship with you. When you get ahold of this truth, it can set you free. If you realize that God wanted you. He wanted a family with you. You aren’t an accident or a mistake. God planned ahead and made a way for you to know Him.
Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. – Proverbs 16:18 (NIV)
In our lives, pride never leads to good things. However, it’s really easy to fall into pride.
Maybe you worked really hard, defied the odds, and got a great grade on your history project. You want to scream your accomplishment to every person everywhere. Or perhaps you did amazing at your school’s swim meet and you want nothing more than to be recognized for your accomplishments and hear everyone talk about how great you are.
And so you become proud of what YOU did.
Here’s the truth: pride doesn’t lead to good things.
If we begin to think about how good we are, how good we did, how hard we worked, we often leave God out of the picture. We start to think that we did it all on our own, and as a result, we deserve all the attention.
When we leave God out of the equation of our success, that’s never a good thing. We should always be looking to God, asking His advice, and seeking His approval, rather than the approval and attention of others. It’s God’s help we should want to live out each day of our lives. When we include Him in our success and look to Him to bring us the belonging and attention we crave, that’s when we will be the most fulfilled.
