Wouldn’t it be fun to celebrate with fireworks in church? What celebrations could we mark with fireworks? Here’s my list:

• Every Easter hymn. He is risen indeed!
• Every announcement of the Gospel–God’s glorious, free grace!
• Every baptism–a new member in the family!

 But I wouldn’t stop with Sunday. As we live out our lives of faith, we could celebrate every time someone:

• notices and stops to help someone who’s hurting
• puts aside their own comfort in order to serve
• wisely says “no” to an invitation to a volunteer task because that particular task would be poor stewardship of their time
• notices and thanks a humble servant
• reminds someone else of the purpose behind all that we do

In a firework show, the best is saved for last: the concluding climax fills the sky with deafening noise and blazing light. Similarly, we will save our best fireworks, our biggest celebrations for those events that stir heaven itself: a life transformed, a sinner who repents, a wandering soul found by our seeking God (Luke 15:7).

Praise him–today and forever!

You are welcome to copy this article for one-time use in your organization as long as you will receive no monetary benefit from it. Please include this copyright line and submit an actual copy of use to CTA, attention Editorial Manager.

Used with permission grant #062810 © 2010 CTA, Inc. No duplication of this article is allowed without the express written consent of CTA, PO Box 1205, Fenton, MO 63026. www.CTAinc.com.

Four words. So simple. So obvious.

In response, words of agreement flow easily from our mouths: “Of course we hate evil and love what is good!” We want to believe it. But Amos packed more into his command than we might grasp at first.

 Love. Hate. Those verbs come packed with passion. Love embraces and holds tight. Hate commits us to fight with our whole being. Do we “hate evil” and “love good” with that kind of zeal? 

Our culture teaches us to tiptoe around the truth so as not to offend. But God’s Word speaks much more plainly than our politically correct society. For example, the Scripture clearly teaches God’s love for all people (John 3:16), but it also warns us against making light of sin (Proverbs 15:9, 26). 

When I examine myself critically, I realize how seldom I truly hate much of what God hates and how seldom I am willing to take a stand for what God loves. 

This realization drives me to Calvary’s cross. Here, Jesus took a stand. Here, he went to battle for each one of us on a Friday we call “Good.” In true love, Jesus died. In true love, he rescued us from the power of sin, the lies of an evil world system, and the accusations of Satan. In true love, Jesus earned for us a life of victory, a grace-filled, forgiven life. 

Christ lives victoriously with and in his people, creating a wellspring of strength and courage to flow within us. That living water creates a hatred for evil and a delight in what is good and godly (Romans 12:9). It musters up the fighting Spirit within us, reminding us of what is at stake.

Authentic love and righteous hatred both make sense at the cross. And the cross of Christ makes both possible.

I’ll meet you there! You’re going to love the new strength Jesus gives. You have his Word on it.

Prayer starter: Lord, I’m not sure there’s much of a fight left in me, but then again, I’m not always fighting for things you love. Thank you for fighting victoriously for me and for my salvation. Empower me to take a stand . . .

This devotion is drawn from Man of God: Soaring to New Heights, CTA’s new devotion book for this Father’s Day season. It’s written by Tim Wesemann and is available in both NIV and KJV editions.

Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com

You are welcome to copy this article for one-time use in your organization as long as you will receive no monetary benefit from it. Please include this copyright line and submit an actual copy of use to CTA, attention Editorial Manager.

Used with permission grant #060710 © 2010 CTA, Inc. No duplication of this article is allowed without the express written consent of CTA, PO Box 1205, Fenton, MO 63026. www.CTAinc.com.

This picture of God, mistaken though it is, nonetheless captures the view of many people still today whom we might call “cultural Christians.” Folks like these have a passing acquaintance with Christianity and perhaps a tie to the church through a pious parent or godly grandparent, but no real grasp of the Holy Scriptures or of what our Lord Jesus truly taught.

Sadly, this picture of God has sometimes poisoned the original intent of potentially powerful customs in the church. Take Lent, for instance. We can tell what our culture thinks about it by watching the excesses of Mardi Gras. The drunkenness and other debauchery, lasting in some places for weeks, seems to say something like this: “Let’s get in all the sin we can before Lent arrives and God’s angry fist descends to destroy our fun.”

While some Christians observe Lent and others do not, we all do well to prepare our hearts for the glorious celebration of our Savior’s resurrection at Easter. Such preparation goes much deeper than a superficial decision to “give up chocolate” for six weeks. The early Christian church used the 40 days before Easter to rehearse the key teachings of Christ and all he has done to rescue us from sin and death. New believers were instructed in the faith; more mature believers made use of this time of preparation to review the basics of Christianity they had come to confess as truth. 

Think of it this way: Medical doctors often treat patients with a newly diagnosed chronic illness. High blood pressure, for instance. After a week or two on medication, the patient’s symptoms begin to fade away. Some patients interpret this as a miraculous cure —and stop taking the medicine. The symptoms come roaring back, sometimes with disastrous results. Call it denial. Call it a failure to communicate. Call it what you will, the doctor shakes her head and the patient bears the consequences.

The spiritual version of this scenario may occur even more often. Pastors and other Christian workers face it all the time. The Holy Spirit leads a person to recognize her sin and her need for the salvation Jesus has won for us. She relies fully on the blood of Christ shed for us on his cross. True peace cascades into this believer’s heart and life.

Yet after a week or two, a month or two, life seeps slowly back into a routine, a kind of “new normal.” Satan subtly slips the key truths of repentance and faith out from her field of awareness. She—or should I say we, for it happens to all of us—fail to notice because we’re focusing on other areas of our busy lives. Without realizing it, we’ve stumbled back under the Law, back under the bondage of trying and of trying harder to please God.

Instead of recognizing the truth that in Christ, God is already pleased with us, we labor under what St. Paul calls in Galatians 3 the “foolishness” of works (vv. 2–3), the “curse of the law” (vv. 10–14). At heart, this curse involves primarily the burden of shouldering the doleful “have-tos,” “shoulds,” and “musts” that Satan hangs over our heads like an eternal sword of Damocles.

•  In Christ and his cross, God is already pleased with us—with you! He takes as much pleasure in you right this moment as he will on that day he welcomes you into his eternal presence in the heavenly home. His love is an everlasting love that began in eternity past and will never change (Jeremiah 31:3; Malachi 3:6; Ephesians 1:3–4).
• In Christ and his cross, your sins are gone. They have disappeared into the sea of God’s forgetfulness (Micah 7:19). God has removed them as far from you as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).

 Our culture, of course, fails to understand this kind of love and forgiveness. Even our own minds boggle at it sometimes. Consider, for example, Romans 4:5: 

To the [person] who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness (NIV, emphasis added).

 God justifies the wicked! Think of it! If we were good, we wouldn’t need a Savior! As we prepare for Easter, we do so remembering how much we truly need Jesus. We go back to the basic truths of sin and salvation. We recall that, though we once slaved for sin and Satan, we do so no longer. We instead revel in the deep, deep love of Jesus who died for us “while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8 NIV).

 And we exercise the freedom that’s ours in Christ for all it’s worth! Our heavenly Father wants our spiritual walk to be the exciting, joy-filled adventure of being who we are in Christ. We no longer have to do good works to earn our salvation. Instead, we get to! We can! We want to! (And for those times when our sinful nature tempts us not to want to, we have the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit working in us to renovate our desires.) Only the children of God can understand the joy of the psalmist:

I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free (Psalm 119:32 NIV).

Like children at 3:30 pm on the last day of school as summer vacation begins, we race down the steps and out the front door, free from assignments and term papers and the tardy bell. We get to do what we want. And what we want to do is to run in the path of Christlikeness, because at the cross, our Lord Jesus has set our hearts free.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

You are welcome to copy this devotion for one-time use in your organization as long as you will receive no monetary benefit from it. Please include this copyright line and submit an actual copy of use to CTA, attention Editorial Manager.

Used with permission grant #041008. © 2008 CTA, Inc. No duplication of this devotion is allowed without the express written consent of CTA, PO Box 1205, Fenton, MO 63026. www.CTAinc.com.

It’s also why more and more churches have begun to look for ways to “theme” major celebrations—like the weeks leading up to Easter (Lent, in liturgical churches). And it’s why CTA wants to work with you as you think about doing it, too. 

Whether yours is a house-church, a mega-church, or something in-between, this year’s theme, The Power of the Cross, will resonate with worshipers. Materials—many free—include:

• Day-by-day devotional materials based on the Power of the Cross theme.
• Free sermons tied to the Power of the Cross devotions
•  Discussion guides tied to the Power of the Cross devotions and sermons, written for small groups or Bible study. (You will find the appropriate study on the pages following the free sermon for each week.) 
• Materials for kids and youth, helping them to focus on thePower of the Cross theme, too!
• Free invitations and follow-up materials, all based on the Power of the Cross theme and art.

Ash Wednesday is February 17, 2010, so it’s not too late to order! But don’t put it off. Just think of what God might want to do in the lives of everyone in your church this spring!

Recently, a popular cable television channel began airing a series based on what happens to animals in utero. Week by week we watch as baby dolphins, baby elephants, and baby puppies develop, computer graphics and 4-D ultrasound imagery taking us inside the womb to watch the growth process day by day. Fascinating stuff!

It makes me wonder what it might be like to use the same state-of-the-art graphics to explore the process human babies undergo as they develop in their mother’s womb. Awe-inspiring, no doubt! I’m confident the experience would movingly illustrate the words of Psalm 139:13.

For you created my inmost being;
       you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

Thinking about all this, I must admit that too often I take God’s gifts for granted. You, too? This verse points that out as it describes the intimate care our Creator used as he brought each one of us to life. The slope of your nose. The shape of my ear lobes. The blood vessels of our heart, our lungs. The cells that make up our spleen and kidneys—and all those other organs we so seldom think about.

All of these drew God’s close, personal attention. My chin is not an accident. Your hair color isn’t either. Our lips and eyes, our mouths and foreheads, our biceps and big toes all brought a smile of approval to our Father God’s face—even before we fought our way through the birth canal and took our first big breath.

You and I were uniquely formed, “knitted together” as the psalmist puts it, in our mother’s womb.

That implies a lot! For example, when we fret about being too tall or too short, we insult the divine Artist who made us just so. When we neglect the bodies God has given, failing to get enough rest, eating too much of the wrong foods, neglecting the exercise that would keep us strong and vibrant—these are sins. When we fail to care for the hungry, to honor the elderly, to protect the innocent (yes, even the innocent in the womb), or to respect individuals who are different from us, we offend the one who made us all.

When we consider all this, we can draw only one conclusion. We’re all guilty before God. It’s bad news. Worse, we deserve eternal death because of it.

The good news, though, is that our Creator willingly became our Redeemer. Our Judge is also our Brother. Jesus heals and forgives. He really does! Calvary’s cross proves it. That cross is the ultimate irony—an instrument designed to bring the cruelest death imaginable has brought life, eternal life. It’s the life Christians celebrate most of all. It’s the life we will celebrate forever. All because of what Jesus did for us.

So now, today, what are you going to do with the life your Creator-Redeemer has give you?

Need a free PowerPoint slide to use as you present this devotion? CTA has developed one for you! Check out our website for resources you can use year-round in your sanctity of life efforts.

“I thank Thee that I have never been robbed before. I thank Thee that even though they took my purse, they did not take my life. I thank Thee that though they took my all, it was not much. I thank Thee that it was I who was robbed, and not I who robbed.”

 This almost unbelievable prayer reminds us that we always have something for which to thank our Lord. . . .

Read the rest of this devotion from CTA’s collection of free downloadable Ministry Messages. Pastors, are you looking for a jumpstart for your Thanksgiving Day sermon? You may find some ideas here! (Scroll down to find the Thanksgiving collection.)

We’d also like to let you know that it’s not too late to order Father’s Day gifts to present to the men of your church this Sunday.

We can get your order out as late as this Thursday (6/18) with expedited delivery. Friday is cutting it close, but we may be able to get your order to you by USPS Saturday delivery. We suggest you call customer service for help at 888-285-3598.

Here’s the official verbiage we use on our website:

IMPORTANT! To ensure delivery in time for Father’s Day, we strongly urge all customers to choose Next Day Air as their shipping method. If you have questions, please call Customer Service at 1-888-285-3598.

And from this blessed father to all, Happy Father’s Day!

Father’s Day Articles:

• 3 “Body Building” Ideas for Father’s Day
• 4 Encouraging Words for Fathers & Father-figures
• Celebrating Father’s Day—Purposefully!
• Letters to Dad
• Timely Tips for Father’s Day
• The True History of Father’s Day
• Praying for Dads
• 3 Hints for Making Mother’s Day and Father’s Day Meaningful

Ministry Messages:

• Blessed for Life Adult Ministry Message
• Blessed for Life Adult Ministry Message – Versión en Español
• Blessed is the Man Who Trusts in the Lord Adult Ministry Message
• Blessed is the Man Who Trusts in the Lord Adult Ministry Message (KJV)
• Blueprints for Life Adult Ministry Message
• Blueprints for Life Adult Ministry Message (KJV)
• God Promises for Parents Adult Ministry Message
• Man of God Adult Ministry Message
• Man of God Adult Ministry Message (KJV)
• Man of God Adult Ministry Message – Versión en Español
• Measure of a Man Adult Ministry Message
• Measure of a Man Adult Ministry Message (KJV)
• Measure of a Man Adult Ministry Message – Versión en Español
• Strength for the Journey Adult Ministry Message
• Strength for the Journey Adult Ministry Message – Versión en Español