BeyondSeeLevel

John 16:27 for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.

God loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. This is the universal, sacrificial love that He gives all men. That whosoever believes in Him will be saved. This is the love that led Jesus to die on the cross despite and in spite of us. It’s the kind of love that we have absolutely nothing to do with. We didn’t earn it. Neither did we deserve it.

He loves us because He is love.

Romans 5:8 God demonstrates His own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

The love in John 16:27, makes it a little more personal. It’s, what I will call, the next level of love. It’s personal because this love is a “because of kind of love”. Not because you’re so good. Not because you’ve earned it. And not because you deserve it. But this is a “because of kind of love” simply because, as His child, you now belong to Him.

In the Greek, this love is a friendship kind of love. “Phileo”

It’s where the city of Philadelphia gets its nickname “the city of brotherly love”.

Jesus is letting us know that because we have chosen friendship with Him as our Savior, we have also chosen friendship with God. And because we love Him, God loves us.

The agape, sacrificial love is a big deal. But we can’t benefit from it unless and until we say “yes” to the invitation of the gospel. And once we say yes to Jesus, and obey the gospel of Christ that saves us and brings us into fellowship with Jesus and God, He then loves us on a whole other level that’s personal.

Agape love opens the door to phileo love.

We then have access to blessings that are only for those that are in Christ Jesus. You don’t get access to these blessings outside of Christ.Are you in Christ?

Ephesians 1:3 Praise be to the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

Every individual in this world has been blessed by God. Whether they acknowledge Him as Savior or not. But because we are His children; because we are in Christ, we have access to blessings that they only belong to His children.

Matthew 5:45 For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just in the unjust.

Sidenote: Even as His children, there is a possibility that we can block access to the blessings that He wants to give to us because of our own disobedience. So yes, we can forfeit blessings from God because of our own sin, even as His children.

2 Corinthians 6:14 What fellowship does righteousness have with unrighteousness? And what communion does light have with darkness?

In other words, you can’t live in darkness/sin and be in fellowship with the light. Jesus is the Light of the world.

This phileo love draws and drafts us into friendship with God.

John 15:13-15 13 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.

Unlike our human friendships, friendship with God is perfect and complete. As good of a friend as we try to be to others, we’ll never be the perfect friend because we’re not perfect. With all the best of intentions, we don’t always get it right.

Jesus is not like us!

Jesus is a faithful confidant at all times. You can tell Him your most private secrets. He’ll never look at you any differently because He knew your secret before it became your secret. He’s a loyal friend. He will never leave you or forsake you. Sometimes your friends can’t be there for you because they have needs of their own they may be struggling with. Not so with Jesus. He needs absolutely nothing. He’s all sufficient. He’s a trustworthy friend. He’s trustworthy because He can’t fail and He can’t lie. You can take Him at His word. He’s supportive in every way. He wants us to cast our cares on Him because He cares for us. He doesn’t waiver in His love for us when we’re tripping in ours for Him. He changes not! He’s not hot one day, then cold the next. He’s faithful even if we’re not.

This is the kind of love He gives His friends.

Are you a friend of Jesus?

If you are, then you are a friend of God’s. And know that this divine friendship with God comes with glorious benefits. It’s not like the world. Friends with benefits in the world will keep you separated from God in your sin. But friendship with Jesus will keep you in fellowship with Him and God.

Some of you may never have had a good friend. You may have never been able to go the distance with someone. Seasons change. People change. And even when you have had a good friend, the degree of closeness can change because life changes.

But I’m telling you …Jesus is not like your earthly friends.

Psalms 34:8 Taste and see that the Lord is good.

If you try Him for real, life will never be the same for you. You’ll truly understand that He’s always with you and that you have full sufficiency in Him.

🎶There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus. No, not one. No, not one. None else could heal all our souls’ diseases. No, not one. No, not one Jesus knows all about our troubles. He will guide till the day is done. There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus. No, not one. No, not one.

If Jesus isn’t your best friend, He should be. He should be the first one you wanna talk to or vent to. He should be the first shoulder you cry on. He should be the first one you seek for counsel and advice. He should be the first one you ask for help. He should be the one you seek for refuge.

How do you get there?

Spend more time with Him. Talk to Him more. Make sure that you’re letting Him talk to you through the Word. Stay faithful and obey Him.

John 15:4 You abide in Me. And I will abide in you.

This epitomizes closeness and intimacy.

A good friend wants to see you happy. But a great friend wants to see you holy. Jesus is our greatest friend.

1 Peter 1:16 Be holy because He is holy.

That’s the love He gives His friends.

It’s a sanctifying love. A purifying love. A cleansing love.

You can be friends with someone and become defiled and worse off.

1 Corinthians 15:33 …Bad company corrupts good character.

But when you become a friend of God’s, you become clean and better off than before.

If being His friend wasn’t enough to make you shout, His love for us makes us part of His family!

In Mark 3, after Jesus chose His twelve apostles, they were so busy, they couldn’t even find time to eat. His mother and brothers, thinking their biological relationship to Jesus would give them privileged access to Him, sent word for Jesus to come out and speak with them.

Mark 3:35 Anyone who does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

Jesus says not only are you my friend if you obey Me, but you are now My family if you do the will of My Father.

It’s such a beautiful thing to be friends with your family members. I know some biological siblings that are best friends. It’s a beautiful thing to witness. But for some, the thought of family doesn’t bring pleasant thoughts. And that’s understandable because people are flawed. Sometimes family can hurt you more than anyone else. But there’s no greater family than being in God’s family.

Ephesians 1:5 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.

God is pleased that you are part of His family. He wanted you to be part of His family. As a child of the King, you are family to the God of heaven. The Great I am! And being in the family of God, makes you part of a royal family.

The love of Jesus has brought us into the family of God, Himself. He’s not loving us from afar. He’s loving us up close and personal.

Jesus says that we are His mother, brothers and sisters if we do the will of His Father.

Hebrews 2:11 He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why He is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.

Do you realize that God knows absolutely everything about you and He still wants you? He knows every sin you’ve ever committed and He still loves you. He still pursues you because He wants you to be part of His family. He’s not ashamed of you at all. As a matter of fact, He calls you the apple of His eye.

Romans 8:29 For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

God is intentional. He knew what He was doing before He even formed you in your mother’s womb. He created you to be His image-bearer. To be like Him! And He created you to become part of His family.

There’s no other identity you could ever have that is greater than being God’s image-bearer. There’s no greater family you can be part of than God’s family.

All this because He phileo loves us. He loves us up close and personal. And if we abide in Him, He will abide in us.

As children of the King, we are the bride of Christ. As a wife, I wouldn’t want to be married to a man that I don’t have a personal relationship with. I’m on one side of the house. He’s on the other.

Jesus didn’t take you as His bride just to say you’re His. You’re in the house. And that’s enough. He wants to abide with you. He wants you to know Him. He wants to do life with you. (Now and forever more) He wants intimacy with you.

John 16:27 for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.

This love from Jesus is not a fluffy pat on the back of fellowship. Shake your hand. Give smile and a head nod. Then keep it moving. No!

This love says that because you’ve loved Jesus, God loves you up close and personal. Because you are a friend of Jesus, God is your friend. This love let’s you know that you can’t even have a relationship with God if you don’t have one with Jesus first.

As children of God, we have been truly blessed beyond measure. We should all strive to live lives that honor the friendship we have with Jesus. And we should live lives that bring honor to God and the family of God. Jesus loves us with a redeeming love.

Father God, You are awesome. You are wonderful. And we bless Your holy name. Thank You for loving us. Thank You for being our friend. Thank You for receiving us into Your family. I pray that we will be encouraged knowing that You love us so well! That You love is up close and personal!

In Jesus name, Amen

*Tressa Jo

I remember when George Floyd was murdered, one of my good friends was clueless to all the things going on in society. She had no idea what the talk of the day was. She hadn’t heard of his senseless killing. She didn’t hear it on the radio or see it on television. How in the world could she not know what was going on?!

I’ll tell you why.

She was consumed with caring for her dying husband. The weight she was carrying was her world! It was taking everything within her to watch the man she loved slowly fad away.

I also remember when Barak Obama became the first black president of the United States. Much like my friend, I too was in a similar situation. Although I was aware, I had no urge to celebrate (in my mind I wanted to). But my mother was dying. And trying to care for my children, care for her (along with my sisters), make ends meet and navigate through holding on and letting go of my marriage to my drug-addicted husband, my world was very small. It was enough trying to carry that weight that nothing else around me seemed to matter.

My heart just is very heavy thinking about the person today, that’s so consumed with the heaviness of their own world, that the current events of today just don’t matter.

They don’t matter when your spouse is dying. They don’t matter when your parent or child is dying. They don’t matter when you’re sick and can’t get well. They don’t matter when you just receive a diagnosis of cancer. They don’t matter when you just got laid off and are worried about paying your bills. They don’t matter when you’re going through a divorce. They just don’t matter….

What a blessing it is that so many of us have space in our worlds for the current events of the day to matter. We have space in our worlds to major in the minor things.

Be thankful! Be very, very thankful for that space. I’m sure that person with the small, heavy world would be willing to swap with you. It’s such a dark and lonely place to be.

One day your world will be too small to care about the current events of the day. 😞

*Tressa Jo

At some point, we’re going to have to answer God’s call for us to grow up, become honestly self-aware, disciplined and have self-control. When we’re being contrary to that in any way, we have to stop blaming others. If it’s not in you, it wouldn’t come out of you. Truth is, that’s a heart issue! The circumstances just helped reveal it.

Whenever your personality overshadows the character God calls you to walk in by His Spirit (that is Jesus, Himself) it’s evidence of your own rebellion or rejection of the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. Having or knowing the Word of Truth doesn’t automatically mean you abide in it.

It’s not complicated. It’s as simple as the difference between light and darkness; holy and unholy; good and evil; Spirit and flesh. And regardless to what you think, believe, proclaim or profess, the fruit you bare reveals the choice you’ve made!

*Tressa Jo

You can place one situation or circumstance in the middle of a room. That room will have different doors allowing access. Entering the different doors gives different vantage points of that same situation. Entering one door, you see things differently than you would entering the other door. Both vantage points can offer perspectives that are true. But both vantage points can also have blind spots because of the limitations of only being able to enter one door. Thus not being able to see from both sides of the room.

Empathy is that thing that bridges the gap between the two doors. It is the ability (and willingness) to understand and share the feelings of another that enters through a different door.

Pride shuts the door of understating because it refuses to accept the fact that the room has more than one door; more than one legitimate vantage point; more than one lived experience. Pride will fuel contentions and conflict because of the differences.

Humility enables you to walk in one door feeling what you feel and thinking what you think. But also realize that those that walked in the other door also have a right to feel what they feel and think what they think. Humility will fuel curiosity and care despite the differences.

This necessitates open doors to open doors. Open to listen. Open to seek understanding. Open to not demanding your own way. Open to correction. Open to consideration. Open to compassion. Open to empathize.

Sidenote: Satan has always capitalized on our inability or refusal to empathize. And he always will!

We’re all benefactors of Jesus’s empathy and compassion!

When it’s all said and done, the only door that matters is Jesus!

John 10
11 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved….
14 I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.

*Tressa Jo

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.

Serving in a manner that pleases God requires love. Simply going through the motions of serving is not enough. But it takes a heart that’s led by genuine, sincere love.

But in reality, loving the way God loves does not come natural to us. It is a kind of love that looks beyond faults and sees need.

It is a kind of love that recognizes that the object of love doesn’t deserve it, but the giver of love gives it anyway.

It’s a kind of love that has divine purpose attached to it. Meaning, it’s not about endearing a person to us. But it’s about pointing a person to God, Himself.

It’s a “Silver and gold, I don’t have. But such as I have, I give to you” kind of love. I may not have what you want, but God has assigned me to show you what you need. And you need Him more than anything.

God commands that we love. But loving others is not always easy. It comes with risks.

We risk rejection.

We risk judgment.

We risk a person responding to our love with hate.

Jesus knew this best. He loved those who hated him. And as we interact with fallen mankind, we will find those that love who hates them. And hates those that love them.

At any given time, if we try to serve without love being the center of our motivation, we will find ourselves resentful or fearful of God’s call to love.

Love is such a beautiful thing. It’s powerful. It’s life-altering.

Why in the world would we resent the call by God to love? Especially after being benefactors of his love ourselves.

In our human nature, it’s easy to love those that love us back. So when we encounter those that reject our love and respond with hate, we naturally want to respond by going in the opposite direction — just leave that person alone. Or, as it’s being encouraged in today’s society, we would match their energy. So, if they hate us, we hate them. We go where we’re celebrated, not tolerated. You cancel me, I’ll cancel you.

But Jesus modeled something totally different than this.

Michelle Obama said “When they go low, we go high.”

So if they respond with hate, we respond with love. This is the Jesus way.

Luke 6:32,35,36

32 If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.35 but love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the most high, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.36 be merciful, just as your father is merciful.

Jesus didn’t love us because we loved Him.

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

In other words, we did nothing to deserve Jesus’ love for us. We did nothing to earn His love for us. He demonstrated His love towards us, in spite of us not loving Him back.

I thank God that Jesus didn’t match our energy. I thank God that He didn’t cancel me even though I had canceled Him in my sin and rebelliousness. I thank God!

This is the example that Jesus sets for us to follow. So we pray, “God, help me to love.”

Help me to love when it’s difficult.

Help me to love when I’m angry. Help me to love when I’ve been mistreated.

Help me to love when I’ve been used and abused.

Help me to love when I’ve been abandoned.

Help me to love when I’ve been rejected.

Help me to love when I’ve been disrespected.

Help me to love like You!

God will help us love. Because when we love, it is when we share in His likeness and image the most. God is love. Loving others is the most godly thing you could ever do. Love is a bold and powerful expression of the very nature of God, Himself.

We must understand the weight of our call to love if we’re going to be able to love without fear.

Love is not just what we are to do. It’s who we are. The children of God are expressions of love in this dying world.

Loving others requires sacrifice and vulnerability. This can be a scary place. Taking the risk to love someone that hates you doesn’t make you feel secure at all. It’s a possibility that they may never love you back. Jesus knows this very well.

Love requires sacrifice because it considers the other person above self. Sometimes love will cause you to put yourself on the back burner. It will cause you to consider yourself less. And that’s a scary thought to think that someone could take advantage of you because you love them.

God understands all of our concerns and all of our apprehensions. This is why we can pray to Him to love without fear.

We understand that when we do have fear, that it’s not a spirit that comes from God.2

Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

That spirit shows up in how we think, feel and reason. And ultimately in how we move.

So, we can think and feel and reason our way out of moving in love. And we can feel justified in doing so.

So initially, we have to recognize upfront, that whenever we’re struggling to love, whether it is because of fear or any other driving force, it’s not of God.

Fear is also understood as timidly or cowardice.

Fear paralyzes us.

Fear builds up walls instead of bridges.

Fear will cause us to distance ourselves from others.

Fear will cause us to become critical of others in order to justify our lack of obedience to God to love them.

I’m saying that, to say that fear has many faces. It doesn’t just show up with feelings of nervousness or insecurity. Oftentimes, fear is masked as other resistive mindsets.

Whatever the case may be, God tells us to boldly move in power, love and discipline (sound mind).

When I consider “discipline”, this communicates to “do it anyway”.

Do it even when you’re nervous. Do it even when you’re feeling insecure.

Do it even when you feel inadequate.

Do it even when you feel unqualified.

Do it even when you feel scared.

Before I came to the Lord, I used to be very shy. People didn’t know it. Being in front of other people would make me very nervous. Even if I didn’t have to speak. But when I came to the Lord, it was obvious that God had a calling on my life that would require me to be before people from time to time.

I would sit in Bible classes and the thought of making a comment would make my heart race. Despite feeling of nervous, I had stronger feelings to share because I felt strongly that what I had to share could really help somebody.

So I made a rule for myself. If the thought of sharing what’s on my mind makes my heart race, then I had to say it.

Over time, disciplining myself to speak, (even though I was nervous), it became easier to do and I became less fearful. Now, I seldom deal with any type of nervousness or fearfulness when I have to speak.

When we discipline ourselves to do what God calls us to do in the face of fear or apprehension, He gives us boldness and power to do it again and again. We no longer operate in the weakness of our own inadequacies. But we operate in the power that God gives us through His Spirit.

Many people have committed to making Kingdom contributions while feeling fearful.

Why? Because when they serve publicly in any way, it opens them up to criticism. Who wants to volunteer themselves to be put on a platform to be criticized and scrutinized? Nobody!

And I’ll add this too: nobody does more criticizing than the folk that don’t do anything.

But they did it because the opportunity to serve was stronger than the desire to avoid criticism. They are determined to do what they believed God has called them to do.

They did it scared.

They did it nervous.

They did it feeling insecure and inadequate.

But they did it to please God, to make a Kingdom contribution and to serve others.

Fear doesn’t have to be a person for any of us. God will give us everything that we need in order to love Him and to love others without fear. All for His glory!

God, I thank You for loving us in spite of us. I ask God that you empower us to love others. For those that are dealing with fear, I ask You to help them recognize that You are the source of their power. Help them rely on Your strength to do what You have called them to do. I pray that they will discipline themselves to be obedient to the call that You have on their lives. And with time, trusting more and more, that You will strengthen them and give them the boldness they need to love and serve You and others.In Jesus’ name

Amen

*Tressa Jo

John 15:5

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Abide in Jesus…

Abide in Jesus.

Not in anything or anyone but Jesus.

Abideth is a verb. It’s an action word.

to remain; to sojourn, tarry; not to depart; to continue to be present; to be held, kept, continually; to continue to be, not to perish, to last, endure: to survive, live

Already, we get a picture that abiding takes intentionality. We have something to do. It’s not a post for us to rest on. It’s more of a position we actively stand in. Abiding in Jesus requires us to do some work.

Jesus says He is the vine and we are the branches. Automatically we envision a tree. Jesus says He’s the one that keeps us rooted and grounded. He’s the one that ensures we get access to all that we need to live, to thrive and stay alive. In essence, He’s our life line; our life source. 

In Acts 17:28, Luke says, 

“For in Him we live, and move, and have our being.”

If we remain in Jesus; sojourn with Jesus, tarry in Jesus; don’t depart from Jesus; continue to be present with Jesus; endure in Jesus, we will bring forth fruit. 

The Bible says that we know a tree by the fruit it bears. Jesus is letting us know that the evidence that we are connected to Him, as the vine, is us bearing some very specific fruit.

This fruit is what identifies us as children of God. It’s our Christian character. It’s not the fact that we are members of a congregation. It’s not the fact that we read our bibles. And it’s the fact that we’re in ministry of some kind. 

But the fruit we bear is literally the result of you pouring out of yourself what you’ve postured yourself for Jesus to pour into you through a surrendered life in Him; this fruit that we bear as branches, our own Christlikeness.

Galatians 5

22 ”But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control…

The only way we can consistently bear this fruit, sharing in the character of Jesus, is if we abide, remain, don’t depart from Jesus.

Abiding in Jesus is not some casual connection. It’s not a Sunday and Wednesday connection. Or a hit and miss kind of occasion. 

Think about it: if something gives us life, we can’t afford to miss a day. 

If my heart only beats on Sundays and Wednesdays, I can’t live. If my blood only flows through my veins occasionally, I can’t live. If my lungs only functioned when they feel like it, I couldn’t live. 

So abiding in Jesus is not something that’s casual. It’s not something that we can be on and off about. 

Abiding in Jesus is so important for our spiritual wellness and survival that we can’t afford not to be connected. Not only do we risk not bearing fruit, but we risk spiritual death when we’re not connected to and abiding in the vine, Jesus. 

How do I abide in Jesus? How do I remain in Jesus? 

Abiding starts with your belief in Jesus, but it doesn’t end there. It’s not enough for us to be consistent in proclaiming our belief in Jesus, but not demonstrate it. We have to be about what we talk about. We must be doers of the Word and not hearers only. James 1:22

And I’m not talking about ministry. I’m not talking about getting busy in the church. The reality is, way too many of us believe that ministry work secures us in our relationship with God. 

We’re trying to replace surrendering to God with service in the church. 

We can’t work our way into God’s will or into His favor. 

You can give God your hands without ever truly giving Him your heart. But if you give Him your heart, you will give Him your hands too.

So ask yourself…

Have I given God my heart? Am I all in? Am I sold out for Jesus? Is Jesus my day and night?

It does us no good to embellish the answer to this question. It won’t get us any closer or committed to God. You have to be honest with yourself and with God. He already knows anyway.

Abiding in anything is about commitment and consistency. And you’re not committed or consistent with anything that’s not on your mind. This is why we have to surrender our thought life to God.

Colossians 3:2-4 NKJV

Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 

You have to die to yourself. This means that God’s will takes precedence over your own will. You understand and embrace the rule, dominion and sovereignty of God.

Your life in Christ, no longer belongs to you. But it belongs to God.

And so, your mind is fixed on Jesus and you filter everything and every part of your life through His Word and according to His will. 

Therefore, it’s imperative that our thought life is aligned with the Word of God. Because wherever your mind is, the rest of you will follow. 

This is why 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us to “Take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ.”

Am I thinking on those things above?

We sing…🎶 “I woke up this morning with my mind stayed on Jesus.”

Is that really true or are we singing lies? Is the thought of God/Jesus the content of your thought cup or just overflow into the saucer? 

Are we filtering our lives through the expectations of Jesus according to His word? 

Or is He an afterthought or a last resort? 

People say “I have no choice but to trust Him.” 

Well…. 

Yes you do have a choice. Even when you have no more options, you still have a choice to trust in Jesus. And truly trusting Him is not because you have no more options. As a matter of fact, that’s not choosing or trusting Him at all. 

If we are abiding in Jesus, He has to be our first option, not our last option. He has to be our number one priority, not an “if I get around to Him” or “If I have enough time” option.

1 Peter 1:15

Just as he who called you to be holy, holy, and all you do. What is written, be holy, for I am holy. 

God has called us out of sin, into righteous and holy living. 

You can’t abide in Christ if you’re living in sin.

John 15:5

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

We have a life in Christ. As long as we are in Christ, we are alive. To be separated from Christ is death. Without the vine, Jesus, we can do nothing.

Without the vine, Jesus, we are nothing.

There are a lot of walking dead in the world today. They are without Jesus. They exist. But they’re not alive.

In Jesus, we have an abundant life, and bear much fruit.

Stay connected to the lord! Abide in Him and He will abide in you.

And if you are one that believes that you don’t have a relationship with Jesus, today is a good day to get connected.

Despite your past life without Jesus, Jesus has been pursuing and calling you to Himself and wants a relationship with you.

*Tressa Jo

I was talking to a friend the other day, and she expressed some grief over a sin that she had committed many years ago. I’m talking 40+ years ago. She had repented and moved on with her life. However, there were some people that knew her then that were still bringing up from her past.

We know that the Bible teaches that the devil is the accuser of the brethren. But it’s something else when the brethren become accusers of the brethren, always bringing up the past. Not allowing a person to move forward in their forgiven state.

I was grieved for my friend because what those people thought of her held her hostage to her past even though God has freed her.

We may all have some knowledge of the story of David in the Bible. Even though God used him in a mighty way, David didn’t have a pretty past. And oftentimes, when David is mentioned, we still mention him along with the sins he committed. But even with David committing what we would call “big sins”, in 1 Samuel 13, God says that David was a man after His own heart.

Psalms 32:1 Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

This verse let us know that we are blessed because we have had our sins and our transgressions forgiven. But we have to understand that repentance proceeds forgiveness.

Romans 8:1 …there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…

You can be confident that you have been forgiven of your sins if you are in Christ Jesus and have been covered by His blood. This is the part that some of us can shout about. God does not hold your sins against you. He does not count them against you. Even when people hold them against you and won’t let you live down the things that you have done, God does not.

Psalms 32:3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.

Some of us aren’t walking in the liberty we have in the forgiveness of God because our secrets are making us sick. I’m not saying that you have to tell anybody. But you haven’t even talked to God about it! And if you haven’t talked to God about it, you have not repented of it.

The Bible teaches us that the blessings of the Lord are rich and adds no sorrow to it. Forgiveness is a blessing. When you walk in the forgiveness of God, you don’t have any shame. There’s no shame because God has removed it. But you won’t experience this liberty when you are consumed with what other people think about you, and with what other people are saying about you. You have to consume yourself with what God is saying about you.

Psalms 32:5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.

Confess your transgressions to the Lord. This is the only way we can experience the forgiveness of God and freedom from guilt. If you can’t confess your sins, you won’t repent of your sins. David confessed his sins. And God forgave him.

Psalms 32:11 Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!

We want an upright heart before the Lord. We don’t want a wicked heart. Does this mean that you have to be perfect and sinless? Absolutely not. That’s impossible. The goal is to pursue holiness and righteousness. The goal is to resist Satan and sin. God will honor our sincere efforts to do His will, even if we fall short. His grace is sufficient and the blood of Jesus continues to cover us.

Romans 3:23-24 reminds us that everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the impurity of our sins by sacrificing His own life for our sins.

Did you hear that!?

We all fall short. Because we all fall short, we all need the grace and mercy of God. So don’t let anyone make you feel like you’re beyond God’s forgiveness. You can joyfully walk in the forgiveness of God. You can tell everyone that keeps bringing up your past that you’re not worried about where you’ve been because you know where you’re going.

Tell them, “I am forgiven!”.

*Tressa Jo

If you’ve ever been to a movie theater or play, you sit in the audience as one of many. If you’ve ever attended a sports event, you sit in the stands as one of many. If you sit in the privacy of your own home, watching television, you’re still one of many. We sit as spectators, observing.

After we finish watching, we formulate thoughts, assessments, reviews and opinions about what we just watched and observed. “That was good!” “That was a waste of my time.” “I wouldn’t mind seeing that again!” “It was too long.” “I hope they have a part two.”

Truth is, as we go through life, we have opinions, assessments and reviews pretty much about everything. And if we’re not careful, we’ll start believing that our personal opinions about everybody and everything has to be known.

Every now and then, we get a rude awakening that what we think about people and things really don’t matter as much to others as it does to us or as much as we’d like for it to. Sometimes our opinions and assessments get lost in the crowd, right along with what everyone else thinks. Nevertheless, we still continue to have and share our opinions.

Nevertheless, there are people that are building notoriety, careers and followings simply by sharing what they think. Whether it’s based on facts or feelings, people’s opinions get attention.

Truth is, too often, we position ourselves in houses of worship with this same approach – ready to give our opinion, our review. We become spectators, observers, watchers, and critics, seated comfortably on our pews as part of a perceived audience. Some have even become the praise and worship police. Critical of how others express themselves in their own wisdom to God.”

That was good!” “That wasn’t good.” “That went too long.” “It doesn’t take all that.”

The preacher preaches. The singer sings. The usher serves. The greeter greets. The members fellowship. No one and nothing is exempt from being observed and given a personal assessment.

The applause, the affirmations and the recognition of a job well done, become our gauge for how well we serve and worship. The “Amen” from the audience voices our agreement. But as we seek to voice our opinionated assessments, “Amen” becomes our way of voicing our approval.

In the House of God, being in the audience, or even on the stage, has deceived many of us into believing that our opinions matter. We’re blinded to the fact that we are the ones on the stage when we assemble in the presence of the Lord. It doesn’t matter if you’re in the pulpit or sitting in the pews. We’re all being observed by an audience of One. And the only assessment, opinion, thought or review that matters of us, is God’s.

In the book of Leviticus, God makes it clear that He determines what should be offered up to Him as worship and He determines if what we offer is acceptable or not. God doesn’t consult the opinions of others or listen to see if the majority thinks the way He does, when He decides to accept our offerings of worship or not. God doesn’t observe the crowd to see who else is liking what we do or how we do it. Neither is He consulting us for our thoughts before He accepts the worship of another.

God is literally the only one in the audience. He’s not just watching what we do. He’s assessing and discerning our hearts. He knows when our “Amen” is sincere and intelligent. And He knows when our “Amen” is to agree with His Word or just to approve of His servant. He knows when we sing songs and are more concerned about sounding good than we are concerned about connecting to the significance of the lyrics. He knows when we’re clapping, shouting or standing just because everyone else is and we want to be seen as engaged as everyone else. He knows when we sit still and composed if we’re connected to His presence. He knows that as the Word is being preached, if our minds are focused on Him or something or someone else. He knows when we’re scrolling through Facebook on our phones and not the scripture. He knows when we’re having a conversation via text messages with someone else when He’s trying to have a conversation with us through the preached Word.

God knows and He’s not impressed just because we showed up. He’s not impressed just because we dressed up. He’s not impressed because we received lots of amen’s as we preached or taught His Word. He’s not impressed because people stood up as we sang that song. He’s not impressed how long you’ve been committed to that work or service at church. He’s not impressed.

As an audience of One, God’s opinion about us is the only one that ultimately matters. He’s not looking at the quality of our performance. He’s looking at the posture of our hearts. He decides if what we’ve offered up to Him as worship is acceptable or not.

God is assessing our lives and about to give us His final review. As our show comes to an end; as the final buzzer sounds; as the credits of our lives start to roll across the screen, God will give us His final assessment of our lives. He will either say “Well done!” or “Depart from Me!” The Audience of One has spoken.

*Tressa Jo