Always Remember to Rejoice

Nehemiah said, "Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10

The prophet Nehemiah wrote this to a repentant yet grieving Israel after they had learned just how far they had fallen from the Law of Moses.

So even today, we can be crushed by past sins, mistakes and simply missing the mark of prefect obedience and honoring God. That's what word "sin" really means. Like an archer who takes aim but misses the target.  A Christian is someone who knows they are covered by the once for all time shedding of Yahushua's precious blood.  He in fact is our Shabbat and makes every day sacred to his Father and our God. Back in Nehemiah's day, the temple system was set up to deal with the sins of God's covenant people. Animal sacrifice, abstaining from certain foods lest you become impure, and other rituals were part of daily like. This system, only foreshadowed the BETTER covenant which would come through Christ.

Sometimes we get too locked into technicalities. Some may say, "Well, that was the prophet talking to those particular people at THAT time." You totally miss the point that Yah is the same yesterday, today and forever! Guess what? God's mercies are still fresh and new every morning but now all of these blessings come through Christ, our only mediator.

"For there is only one God and likewise only one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus," 1 Timothy 2:5

So this is God's new and better covenant and new and better way of dealing with us and sin. That being the case, why would the joy of the Lord not be our strength today? That would defeat the whole purpose of a better covenant, wouldn't it?

But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises. Hebrews 8:2

So always remember to rejoice in the Lord, no matter what things may look like in the natural. This an amazing source of strength if we would only believe and tap into it. 

New Every Morning...

They are new every morning: great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:23

It comforts me to know that each morning, God's mercies are new and fresh. So it really perplexes me why many Christians are still self-flagellating over sins and mistakes they made years ago.

Here's the thing. Christ's blood and sacrifice was made once and for all time.  All time includes the time we are living now and any future sins we may commit. Due to our fallen nature, no matter how good we try to be, each day we all sin in our words, our minds or actions. We try but Satan trips us up on one point or another even if we ourselves don't realize it.  In fact the Bible says that those who claim to be without sin deceive themselves.

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:8

Notice it also says the truth is not in us.  So right there we're liars too! That is not Yah's plan for our lives to be lived under condemnation. Remember Yahushua came to remove us from the effect of the Law which would be simply termed, "The wages of sin is death..." Romans 6:23.  We were under that judgment but Christ's love and sacrifice has changed that for repentant believers:

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. Romans 8:1

Walking after, means following a path. Our flesh wants to wear the sackcloth and ashes while beating ourselves for our sins. This is man's way of making himself righteous before God. If we are going to do all of that, what value is Christ's sacrifice for our sins? Are we really trusting in Jesus' finished work on the cross in that through HIM we are now the righteousness of God?

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21

So today may have been rough. You lost your temper. Maybe you were where you should not have been doing something you should not do. Don't be discouraged because that is just what ha-Satan wants you to be. He is the accuser of the brethren for that same reason. Ask for forgiveness and for Christ to strengthen you for the next time. Also remember, tomorrow is a new day and God's mercies are new as well.