Do you suffer from physical illness or disease that you can’t escape from? How you handle your suffering speaks volumes to those around you of your faith in a sovereign God who allows suffering for your good and for His glory! If you want to see how another sufferer handled his suffering, look at the Apostle Paul. In 2 Corinthians 12:7-9, Paul said, “…in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’” Suffering brought Paul to his knees. Humbled before Almighty God, he cried out repeatedly for relief. God’s answer strengthened Paul’s resolve to persevere.

When you stand before God, will He find in you fruit or just leaves? Leaves are important to a healthy, fruit-bearing plant, but if the plant bears no fruit, what is it good for? Jesus made it clear when He said in John 15:8, “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” For the Kingdom of God, it’s not about leaves; it’s all about fruit! When it comes to growing grapes, farmers understand the importance of stressing the vine if they want good grapes. So, they plant them in rocky soil, and sometimes even wrap the vines with wires. This causes the stressed vine to divert its nutrients to the fruit, instead of its leaves. They call this the “bruising of blessing” because it’s necessary to produce the most fruitful harvest.

Do you suffer a debilitating disease, a life-changing injury, the loss of a loved one, gut-wrenching chronic pain, or some other life-altering condition? If you do, have you ever asked yourself, “How can a God who loves me so much allow this to happen to me?” If you have asked that question, then move over, because you’re not alone. When God looks at your suffering even through His narrow lens, He sees your tragedy for what it is. God sees a beautiful mosaic that stretches into eternity. It is this beautiful mosaic with all of its parts, both good and bad, that brings Him delight.

Are you suffering today? Have broken dreams, unfulfilled promises, failing health, financial crisis, or loss of a loved one left you in the pit of despair? God doesn’t want you to be discouraged; He wants you to be encouraged because of Jesus. Better times are coming! If you are a follower of Jesus, remember that no matter how bad things are right now, when you enter Heaven, they will not compare to the glory you will enjoy; all because of Jesus!

Did you know that everyone, including you, will experience some kind of suffering in life? It might come in the form of a broken heart, a chronic condition, a terminal illness, or a dreaded disease. It might be an emotional rejection, or hurt from someone withholding love and acceptance, or a physical injury. God, who wrote the book on suffering, said in Job 5:7, “…a man is born to trouble as surely as the sparks fly upward.” If you haven’t experienced suffering, be assured, you will. But remember, God has the final word!

Have you ever lied to your neighbor, cheated on your taxes, or wronged your spouse? How did that make you feel afterward? Did you have a worldly sorrow over your actions, or a godly sorrow? Worldly sorrow leads to self-pity, bitterness, and trying to hide the behavior. Godly sorrow confesses and forsakes sin and encourages apologizing and making restitution. If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, prove it by making repentance your way of life!   

Did you know that you can sit under sound biblical teaching, spend time with believers, even participate in ministry, and not know Jesus? Being a Christian, even a pillar in the church, and loving Jesus are two entirely different things. At the Last Supper, Jesus told the disciples that one of them would betray Him. They all asked, “Lord, is it I?” None of them said, “Lord, is it Judas?”  Here was a man who was an eyewitness to many great things, yet, even all of the disciples thought Judas was a pillar, but he was a fraud. 

Have you ever felt unnoticed, underqualified, or viewed simply as a replacement for someone else? I wonder if Matthias felt any of these things when he was chosen by the disciples in Acts 1:15-26 to replace Judas Iscariot as the twelfth Apostle? Who was Matthias? His name was not prominent, but his impact was lasting. Matthias was with Jesus and the rest of the Apostles from the baptism of John to the ascension of Jesus.  The gospels never mention his name; yet he was there on every page. Matthias was a willing unknown who followed Jesus with no other motive but faithfulness.

Nathaniel told his friend Philip that Jesus, the Rabbi, was from Nazareth which Nathaniel scoffed, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” But when he met Jesus, he was astonished that the man already knew him! “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Jesus told Nathaniel. Hearing this, Nathaniel exclaimed, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” In response, Jesus assured him, “You haven’t seen anything yet!”

Have you ever met someone who seemed so beyond the reach of God that it appeared inconceivable that they would ever change? Maybe you thought this about yourself? Early in Jesus’ ministry, Jesus met Simon the Zealot. Simon was part of a militant, religious, Jewish sect called the “zealots,” who rebelled against the Roman occupation. They fiercely opposed Roman rule, Roman taxation, and anyone who accommodated the Empire. Sold to murderous violence, Simon was considered by Rome as an outlaw. From a human standpoint, can you think of anyone more disqualified, more beyond the transforming power of God? Then he met Jesus and his life would never be the same again.

When it comes to believing the Bible and especially the claims of Jesus, have you ever struggled with doubt? Perhaps the most well-known doubter in all the Bible is the Apostle Thomas, otherwise known as “doubting” Thomas. In John 20:24-25, when the other disciples told Thomas they had seen the risen Christ, Thomas didn’t believe them. He wanted to see this firsthand, and proceeded to investigate personally. If you, like Thomas, struggle with doubt and need proof - don’t stop! Search courageously! Only Jesus can change your skepticism into surrender and your reluctance into a radical, unwavering faith!

Do you believe God can change you, that you can be transformed into a man or woman of God?  The greatest story in all the Bible that witnesses to a transformed life is the story of the Apostle Peter. Beloved, if God could take an impulsive, uneducated, vacillating, impatient, and selfish, overconfident fisherman and transform him into the pillar of the church that he became, imagine what He can do in you! Like Peter, you can be transformed by the power of God!

Are you part of the family of God? You know, those people in that building down the street who worship the triune God: the Father, alive on His throne, in heaven, sovereignly doing whatever He pleases. Jesus, His Son, alive, at the Father’s right hand, interceding for His people and ruling over the heavens and the earth. The Holy Spirit, alive, indwelling all of God’s people, conforming them into the image of Jesus. Are you part of this family? Would you like to be?

Do you realize we live in the best of times when it comes to access to God’s word?  We have it on our phones, our tablets, and on our computers. We can read it to ourselves or listen to someone else read it to us. The Bible says in James 1:22, “…don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.”  James, the brother of the Lord, exhorts us, “Get it Done!” Starting today, put feet to whatever it is God is saying to you in His word and watch Him change you and the world around you. If you are not getting it done, you are only fooling yourself! Get it Done!

Do you believe God or do you simply believe in God? There is a difference. In Genesis 15, the Lord promised Abram that He would make him a great nation. The Bible tells us “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” To believe someone is to have complete trust in the very fiber of their being. It means when they say something, they are utterly reliable, truthful, and trustworthy. Abram had complete confidence that God was as good as his word, so he took him at his word. Abram believed every word God spoke to him, and so he humbled himself and intentionally chose, in his heart, to completely trust Him. 

Jesus knocks at your door every time you hear a gospel message. He knocks at your door with every moment of depression, fear, worry, anxiety, or pain strikes your life. He knocks at your door every time you receive a blessing you do not deserve. He knocks at your door every time judgment comes, and you face the rod of correction. Jesus is knocking not because He wants something you have, but because He wants to give you something He has…His love, His mercy, and His grace! He wants to give you Himself!  If you are not a believer, Jesus wants you to repent so He can forgive you and give you everlasting life!

Job teaches us that simply being religious isn’t enough and that God is willing and able to do whatever is necessary to bring us to the end of ourselves and into a personal relationship with Himself through faith in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. What you need is to realize that, like Job, it’s not about what you know, but Who you know! Just ask Job!

What are you living for? If it is to amass wealth, then to die is to lose it all. If it is to become famous, then to die is to be forgotten. If it is to party, then to die means the party is over.  But for the Apostle Paul, and for everyone who names the name of Christ, if we live for Jesus, then to die is gain! Can you imagine living a life no longer broken by sin? No more cancer, disease, or dementia. No more shame, anxiety, or regret. No more pain, tears, or sadness. And no more sin! Hallelujah!  I beg you, today, repent and believe in Jesus and what He did for you at Calvary, and you will be saved! Indeed, for the believer, to die is gain!

Are you afraid to die? Do thoughts of death gloom over you and shroud your soul in fear? It didn’t affect the Apostle Paul that way. Paul knew one day he would die and leave his body behind. He knew one day he would pull up anchor and move to an eternal port. He knew one day he would be unyoked from this life and his departure would be at hand. Paul was homesick; he had a strong yearning to be with someone he deeply loved. Paul had an intimate relationship with Jesus in this life, he couldn’t wait to be with Jesus in the next life, and nothing could ruin that reality.

What’s the most important teaching that Jesus taught His disciples? In Mark 9:2-8, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John to the top of a high mountain, and He was transfigured before them. Revealing His divine and glorious nature, His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became dazzling white. Verse 7 (NIV) says, ”Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: 'This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!’” Are you listening to Him?