Justified By His Grace

1 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.
2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.

John 15:1-6 (NKJV)

Whatever God sees as detrimental to your fruitfulness and well-being, He will seek to sever. The tools of Providence may be sharp, but they are held by loving hands.

God’s goal is to grow you in the image of Christ. In this kind of pain, there is godly gain.

Excerpt taken from ‘Into His Presence,’ by Charles Stanely

But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God. (John 1:12, 13 NLT)

All who welcome Jesus Christ as Lord of their lives are reborn spiritually, receiving new life from God. Through faith in Christ, this new birth changes us from the inside out-rearranging our attitudes, desires, and motives. Being born makes you physically alive and places you in your parents’ family. Being born of God makes you spiritually alive and puts you in God’s family. Have you asked Christ to make you a new person? This fresh start in life is available to all who believe in Christ.
(via You Version, Life Application reading plan)

Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished. For He will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon. They will scourge Him and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again.” -Luke 18:31-33 (NKJV)

Ephesians 6:4 lays out four basic principles:

 4 And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord Eph 6:4 (NKJV)

1. ”Fathers, do not PROVOKE your children to anger.”

Literally: ”Don’t exasperate them”

“Don’t overcorrect them”

“Don’t be harsh with them.”

How easy it is when we return home from work to bark at the kids… Let ‘em know who is boss!

2. ”Fathers… BRING THEM UP… “

Literally: ”Cherish them”

“Treat them with tenderness”

“Esteem and appreciate them”

When was the last time you took your kids off “trial,” gently embracing one of them and saying, “You are precious to me… I love you… “.

3. ”Fathers… bring them up in the DISCIPLINE… of the Lord.”

Literally: ”Training” — Visualize the training necessary in turning a floppy puppy into a prize-winning show dog.

“Correcting” — Visualize the painful resetting of a poorly healed broken arm: Excruciating initially, but promising long range usability.

4. ”Fathers… bring them up in the… INSTRUCTION of the Lord.”

Literally: ”Mild rebuke“:Reprimand, disapproval

“Admonition“:Counsel, advice, exhortation

“Warning“:Caution, forewarning, prediction

Kids need your mature perspective on the potholes that lie in the road ahead.

As busy as we are, God has entrusted the primary responsibility of discipline and instruction to us Dads.

May God grant us the wisdom and the resolve to discharge with dispatch our responsibility in a Biblical fashion.

—Facts of the Matter

Enjoying our relationship with Christ, or feeling His pleasure while we work and live, is not simple, but certainly possible. 

1. You can enjoy God as you watch Him work through your circumstances. 

12 But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, Phil 1:12 (NKJV)

13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Phil 2:13 (NKJV)

Troubling situations can overwhelm us for short or extended seasons. Handling them with an optimistic perspective that God is somehow at work for good is the way to live above difficulties.  Trust Him to use your situations for eventual good, as foreboding as they may appear.

2. Enjoy God as you live under His grace, NOT law. You don’t have to perform to please God. Living under grace severs the legalistic mesh of “I must do this” or “I should do that” to gain God’s acceptance. You are accepted by grace, and His favor is extended to you FREELY. God has forgiven you. Forgive yourself.

3. Enjoy God by learning to live one day at a time. Worrying about the future is a great thief and one that Scripture urges you to avoid by trusting God for your daily needs. Don’t get ahead of Him. Accept His provision and daily challenges. Living under a load of anxiety rapidly depletes your joy and peace.

Christ came to give not only eternal life but abundant life as well. That is life to the fullest, and you can experience it.

Into His Presence, Charles Stanley