We have been talking this week about what abundant life yields to us. Abundant life yields (produces, delivers, generates) forgiveness. If we are walking in perpetual, unconfessed sin, we will NOT experience abundant life.

Let’s look at what Isaiah 59:1-2 has to say about this.

Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened,

That it cannot save;

Nor His ear heavy,

That it cannot hear.

But your iniquities have separated you from your God;

And your sins have hidden His face from you,

So that He will not hear.

In the Old Testament, God’s people often wondered why God had not delivered them from their trials.

Was His hand shortened?

Was his power diminished?

Was God hard of hearing now?

Had He not heard their prayers?

Of course, we know that is ridiculous. God is the same today, yesterday, and forever. The same power that created the world and everything in it, is still available to us today. The same resurrection power that made Christ arise from the dead and defeat sin and death forever is alive and well and accessible to us. But there are some spiritual laws that are in place. God cannot be mocked. God is still holy, despite the fact that He reaches out to us common, sinful folks.

If we are not ‘fessed up, it will cause a separation between you and God—much like when you and your spouse are at odds with one another. You are still married. You are still in relationship. But the intimacy and closeness are missing until the process of confession and forgiveness has taken place.

Don’t misunderstand me. Jesus died once and for all. You are not “unsaved” by unconfessed sin. But if you are having trouble feeling close to the Lord, one of the first things to do is ask the Lord to help you see if there is any unconfessed sin you need to deal with.

So, today’s message is this: Confession is good for the soul. It is also good for receiving the abundant life God has for us!

Praying for you today!

Sara

Search me, God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalm 139:23-24

Yesterday, we learned that abundant life yields forgiveness in us and through us. But forgiveness does not come easy. Forgiveness is tricky and sticky. It can elude us and intrude in our lives. If we don’t forgive, we are susceptible to a bitter root, which grows its tangling web around our hearts, souls, and even personalities.

I have had my own set of circumstances of forgiveness from time to time. The details are not important, nor are they as sad and dramatic as many people have to endure. I remember a day many years ago when I was driving on the Natchez Trace, enjoying the beauty all around me. I wanted to listen to music but could not find anything except a country preacher talking about forgiveness. I started to turn off the car radio, thinking to myself, “I don’t have anyone to forgive.” But then I stopped. Why? Because I felt a slight nudge in my spirit. Enough of a nudge to pray. “I don’t have anyone to forgive, do I, Lord?” And immediately the face of a friend popped in my head. Yes, this friend had hurt me. She had offended me and come against me. She had been disloyal. “But that was long ago. We are okay now,” I thought. But the more I listened to the country preacher the more I knew the truth. I had not forgiven her. Not really.

You see, the Bible calls us to be PEACEMAKERS. But I was being a PEACEKEEPER. There is a difference. I knew in my car that day that God was calling me away from just keeping the peace, and toward making peace in my own heart and in that situation.

A peacemaker does not shy back from dealing with a situation with honesty and clarity.

A peacemaker makes peace with others, which is a recognition that peace needs to be made. A peacemaker does not deny that there is a problem, a wrong, or a hurt.

A peacekeeper, on the other hand, just keeps whatever peace is there. A peacekeeper does not want to rock the boat, deal with the truth, or recognize the hurt. A peacekeeper never really changes a situation, just maybe makes it slightly more pleasant.

A peacemaker makes peace. And to make peace with something or someone, you have to deal with it. Now, in my situation, the details had long ceased to be important. And we had talked about it at the time. So, the hard work that still needed to be done was in my own heart. And to tell you the truth, once I began to process of making peace instead of just keeping peace, the old hurt resurfaced and began to hurt me all over again.

There is a great lesson in there. Don’t put if off, friends. If there is un-forgiveness in your heart, even a little bit, go ahead and make peace with it. Because the longer you put it off, the more it hurts when it resurfaces. And it will resurface.

So, in this particular journey, this is what I learned:

1. Just because we love Jesus doesn’t mean that forgiveness is easy. It is hard work.
2. We can never be more like Jesus than when we have to forgive, for what is Jesus if He is not forgiveness?
3. You can’t hate someone you pray for. Even if you all you can manage is a “Lord, bless him or her,” start there. In time, the Holy Spirit will work in your life to such a degree you really and purely want peace and blessing for the other person. This will be the work of the Holy Spirit in us, not from us alone.
4. Sometimes we feel that we can’t forgive someone else. The hurts are too raw, the details too overwhelming. In those cases, you must rely on this truth: You are right. You, on your own, cannot forgive. But Jesus, who is living in you, can. So just move on over and let him do it for you and through you. I promise He will, if you surrender it to Him.

Today, be a peacemaker not just a peacekeeper. I am praying for you!

Sara

The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

                                                                                                John 10:10

Last week we discussed what abundant life is NOT.

1. Abundant Life is NOT equal to material wealth.
2. Abundant Life is NOT equal to the approval of man.
3. Abundant Life is NOT a picture-perfect life.
4. Abundant Life is NOT found when everything is going just as we want it to—because life on this earth will never be exactly just the way we want it.

Now that we know what it is not, let’s think about what it is. Let’s investigate a little bit more about abundant life by asking ourselves what does abundant life YIELD?

There are two meanings to the word yield: 1) it means to produce, provide, deliver, generate.

So, what does the abundant life Jesus gives us produce, provide, deliver or generate for us?

2) YIELD also means to give way to another, to relinquish the right or possession of something.

So, how does the abundant life Jesus gives us enable us to give away to others? How does the abundant life Jesus gives us enable us to relinquish our rights or possessions?

I think both definitions apply in our study of abundant life. From the first definition, what does it yield—produce, provide, deliver, or generate for us?  We can find one of the answers to this question by focusing on why Jesus came. We all know why Jesus came, right? Many of us have learned this from birth at home and church.

He came to forgive us.  That is the bottom line.  If we did not need forgiveness, Jesus would not have had to come save us.

So, abundant life yields (produces, provides, delivers, and generates) forgiveness from Jesus to us. That is how we come to Christ in the first place. We recognize that we are sinners, unable to conquer sin on our own. We recognize that we need forgiveness and then we ask for it. That is how a relationship with Christ begins.

But it doesn’t stop there. Then we need to go on to the second definition of yield. Abundant life yields forgiveness in us (helps us relinquish the right or possession of un-forgiveness) so we are free to forgive others as we have been forgiven.

Forgiveness is hard, no doubt. But rest assured you can never be more like Jesus than when you have to forgive someone. Ask the Lord today whom you need to forgive. Praying for you!

Sara

Middle eastern cultures understood what shepherding was all about.  It was about feeding the sheep, guiding them to good pasture lands, leading them to water, grooming and shearing them, delivering new lambs, teaching them to stay together while leading them, going after the wandering lost ones, and protecting the sheep at all times.

I once read a sermon about shepherds, which pointed out that if we follow the Good Shepherd, we automatically become “under shepherds”–we are shepherds in training.  We need to emulate what the Good Shepherd does for the sheep, and then go out and do the same for others.

John 21:15-17 says:

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep”.

There are many other aspects of this deep passage I could dwell on. For example, The Greeks had four words to describe what we call love, Eros, (romantic love), Phileo, (enjoyment, fondness, friendship), Storge (family loyalty) and Agape (unconditional love with stick-ability).

In this passage, the Lord’s use of the word love is “agape”—unconditional love. Peter’s use of the word love was “phileo”, or friendship, fondness love. The love that Peter referenced is very different from the love that Jesus was calling him (and us) to display. Peter loved Jesus; he had a close friendship with Jesus. But Peter, like us, had trouble with the stick-ability of unconditional love.

It is with agape love that the Good Shepherd loves us. It is with agape love that He wants us to love others.

Jesus wants us to see that everyone around us is a sheep. Remember all the descriptions of sheep from last week? They are sometimes stupid and stubborn. And yet, we are supposed to love them and feed them—provide for them, meet their needs, teach them about the Living Water and the Bread of Life—and we are supposed to love them not just with casual friendship, but also with unconditional agape love.

In Biblical days, people would not have had to study about shepherds. This was their culture. This was their livelihood. But we do need to study this because it makes it even more clear that Jesus is our good—no, our great—shepherd. He is the one and only. And He has made some promises to us that we can tap into. Promises to give us abundant life. Today, I challenge you to let that abundant life and abundant love from the Father overflow to others around you. Praying for you today!

Sara

The past two days we have been learning about the responsibilities of shepherds so we can better understand the role of Jesus as our Good Shepherd. Here is our working list:

• Most shepherds take care of sheep, although they may be responsible for goats as well. Many shepherds must be on call for their animals around the clock. In the same way, our Good Shepherd is always on call!
• A shepherd’s primary responsibility is the safety and welfare of the flock. He is our faithful and trustworthy GOOD Shepherd.

And now a third:

3) Unlike other animals that shed their hair in the spring, many breeds of sheep must be shorn — have their fleece cut off with shears or clippers. An experienced shepherd is expected to shear up to 125 ewes a day without nicking or cutting the skin, and to remove the fleece intact.

Shearing is a Shepherd’s harvest. It is the time that the “fruit” of the “crop” of sheep is gathered.

John 15:16 says:

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.

Even if the “harvest” is not for the benefit of others, it is healthiest for the sheep. Wool sheep cannot be left to go without shearing. The wool continually grows and will become heavy, soiled and unhealthy if not annually sheared.

Whatever is growing in you—in your heart and soul and spirit, in your actions and words—that is your wool. Sometimes it is pretty and helpful to others. That is when it is a good harvest for the Lord. Sometimes it is dirty and unhealthy. It still needs to be sheared and shared. Even the dirtiest wool has purpose. God can use any and every situation for His Glory.

A sheep without her fleece is pretty naked looking, and her nakedness exposes a lot. On shearing day any flaws in the ranch feed and health program are glaringly obvious.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 says:

Now all has been heard;

    here is the conclusion of the matter:

Fear God and keep his commandments,

    for this is the duty of all mankind.

For God will bring every deed into judgment,

    including every hidden thing,

    whether it is good or evil.

These are sobering words.  We would do well to remind ourselves of this verse on a daily basis!  If your “shearing” reveals gaps in your spiritual health, use it as a time to make changes and move on. Ask the Lord of the Harvest to produce the good fruit of the Spirit in your life—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. With this fruit of the Spirit, you will experience the abundant life God intended for you to have, and you will bring glory to the One who saved your soul. Praying for you today!

Sara