What Remains Matters – A Simple Mission of Love – Purity 746

To see today's photo, go to mtforchrist.org or follow me, M.t. Clark, at— on Facebook or Twitter. Good morning. Today's photo of the geological wonder known as the Sugarloaf at sunset comes to us from Dave Bond Photography as they visited the Hallett Cove Conservation Park in Adelaide, South Australia on May 27th. The Sugarloaf, named for its resemblance to a mass of hard refined sugar, is said to have been shaped due to wind and erosion. The red layer is made of boulders and sediment deposited on the bottom of an ancient glacial meltwater lake. When the lake was drained, white sand blew over it and settled. Well, it's Wednesday again, and I couldn't think of a better photo to represent Hump Day and the posses— process of gradual change than this picture of the Sugarloaf. Even though some sources say it took the Sugarloaf 280 million years to form from the gradual shaping of wind and water, the beauty of Sugarloaf lies not in what was lost, but in what endured the test of time and remained. As I often say regarding our journey of life, it is not where you start that matters, but where you finish that will defined who you are and what you stand for. And like the Sugarloaf, it won't matter what was lost over the years and through the— over the years and through the winds of change, but what will matter is what remains. Yesterday, one of my jobs sent me to a senior couple who had been married for 70 years. The husband, a World War II veteran who had enlisted in the Marine Corps at 17 years old, still had a strong handshake at 97 years old, and his wife of 90 years was still proud of and in love with her hero. Why these two were still in such good health at such an advanced age is anyone's guess, but I would hypothesize that it could have something to do with their faith, as I happened to notice several pieces of tangible evidence of their devotion to Jesus Christ in their home. Proverbs 16:31 says, Gray hair is a crown of glory. It is gained by living a godly life. And this couple's kindness and love for one another would reflect Christ's statement about his disciples, which in John 13:35 said, "By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." This simple example of love and a prolonged commitment to God and one another inspires me for the years ahead for my beloved wife and I. In my journey of faith over the last 12 years, I have continually sought the Lord and His will for my life and have always imagined that my journey would lead me to some epic mission or some great work of ministry. And I realize now that I have found it as my marriage to Tammy Lynn is something that the Lord has provided me with that gives me love, meaning, and purpose. Ephesians 5:25-33 tells us, "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for her, that he might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that he might present her to himself as a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish." Talking of the church. And then it goes on. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. Talking about the body of Christ. And it says, for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. And the two shall become one flesh. This is a great mystery. And then Paul goes on, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless, let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. As I was saved and delivered from my personal darkness and chose to be faithful to the calling of following the Lord's will for my life and decided to live according to God's word, I found the peace, love, and joy of the Lord. But let's keep it real. When you, when you decide to live a lifestyle of a Christian disciple, the rest of the world and even other quote-unquote Christians can think you have gone off the deep end. Living according to biblical Christianity with discernment and balance is not common at all, and the convictions and moral discipline it requires separates you from the rest, the rest of society, as there are many things that are acceptable in our society today that Christians really shouldn't do at all. My conviction to remain sexually pure unless I was married after my divorce was challenging, especially considering I wasn't sure I, I would ever get married again. So when I decided to remain celibate unless married, I was fully prepared to go through the rest of my life without sex. Any kind, as the Bible convicted me that all sin out— all sex outside of marriage was sin and bondage to the flesh. I'm just doing a quick edit. There we go. Uh, but amazingly, sexual purity was possible and a great relief once I had a degree of freedom in it. So I was okay. In fact, despite the occasional temptations to consider going back to my old ways, I was great. Anyway, the point is not that, wow, I get to have sex again. Uh, the point is that I never thought that I would enjoy the love and intimacy of a Christian marriage. It seemed to be something that just was not going to be in the offering for me because frankly, there are some rather worldly women calling themselves Christians and my level of commitment to follow the Lord was not exactly lining the ladies up at my doorstep. Um, but the Lord used my podcast to introduce me to Tammy Lynn, and in less than a year's time, we became friends, fell in love, and were married with our faith and the Lord at the center of our marriage. So I take those vows, uh, those verses in Ephesians 5 about loving my wife like Jesus loved the church as my continual mission and purpose for the rest of my life. I don't know if Tammy Lynn and I will live to be 97 and 90 like the couple I saw yesterday, but if we do, I plan on honoring my wedding vows and endeavoring to love my wife like Jesus loved the church. I think one of the problems of the Christian faith in America is the lack of understanding and commitment people have when it comes to knowing what the Bible says and applying its wisdom to our lives. Christ's great Commandments would have us love God with all our hearts, souls, and minds, and to love our neighbors as ourselves. So God comes first. Love him by getting to know who he is, by seeking his presence, and by knowing and living by what his word says. Then, if you are married, your first neighbor is your spouse. So love them sacrificially and make sure that you are both in tune with that first commandment to keep God at the center of your relationship to maintain the proper balance. If you are both accountable to follow the Lord, neither one of you will seek to dominate or abuse the other, and your love will be built on mutual love, trust, and service to one another. I know I'm only at the 5-month mark of my marriage with Tammy Lynn, but my marriage to her represents part of God's plan for my life. And I plan on being faithful to follow the Lord's direction and to let him live in the center of our marriage, to guide us in loving one another and to show his love to everyone we encounter. Today's Bible verse comes to us from the New Living Translation Bible Promise Book for Men. This morning's meditation verse is 2 Thessalonians 1:6, and it says, in his justice he will pay back those who persecute you. Today's Bible verse reminds us that God is sovereign, and no one is free of the consequences of His judgment, and that those who persecute Christians will be paid back. As Creator, God sets the standards for what is right and wrong behaviorally, but in truth, our behaviors really are a reflection of whether or not we understand and respect God's authority as Creator and righteous Judge of the universe. If we believe the Word of God is true and Jesus is who He said He is, we will put our faith in Him as Lord and Savior and then seek to follow what the Lord instructs us in His Word. But as much as this world would like to profess tolerance, those who deny the truth of God's Word are often not content to just live and let live. And will actively mock, deride, condemn, and persecute Christians for what they believe. Darkness has no place in the light, and the darkness of men's hearts will cause them to persecute Christians. But today's verse assures us that those who persecute Christians will be repaid. Even if they deny God's existence, they are still subject to His law and His judgment. The only good God has to be a just God, and the Bible speaks of the, of how the wicked will be punished for their sins. We are to endure persecution and love our enemies in hopes that they will put their faith in Jesus, because we know that we were worthy of God's wrath too, but we found mercy and grace. As much as we can be relieved that justice will be done, we should seek to save that which is lost. While there is still hope that they can see the light and leave their darkness behind. As always, I invite all to go to mtforchrist.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. Today we continue sharing from John Piper's Don't Waste Your Life, and today's sections, uh, let's see, it says, if you come with no interest or knowledge, and a summary statement on faith of faith on missions, and even civilians love to follow the triumphs of the front lines. So if you want to see what that's all about, go to mtforchrist.org and you'll see that excerpt from John Piper's book Don't Waste Your Life on the bottom of today's blog post. Um, and so yeah, the implication is not to waste your life, and, uh, the way you you don't waste your life is by living for God. Um, and we live for God by coming to faith in Jesus Christ so we can become part of his kingdom, and then by, by seeking to do his will in the world and in our personal lives. Um, so that's what we do here at mt4christ.org and the M.t. for Christ 24/7 podcast and M.t. for Christ 24/7 YouTube channel as we simply seek to encourage people to, to live according to their faith and to experience their freedom in Christ. We do that by sharing our, uh, the teachings we did in 2021 for Victory Over the Darkness, The Bondage Breaker, and Freedom in Christ. They're all available on the podcast and our YouTube channel. And we also encourage the study of God's word because we have to know what His word says we're going to live by it. So we encourage daily Bible study, and we encourage, you know, that you get out and talk to your friends about it. So we do that by sharing our Bible study discussion that we do once a week with Arthur and Susanna Sincotti. Yesterday we— well, not yesterday, but Sunday we discussed the topic of love with Susanna Sincotti as Arthur was down. Recovering from his tooth extraction. And today being Wednesday, we're releasing a throwback episode on the YouTube channel for— I believe the topic is the design of the church. And so if you want to see what we have to say about the design of the church and what we came up with from our topical Bible study, you can check that out on YouTube today. Today. And, you know, quite frankly, that, that's on the audio podcast as well. It has been for some time. But if you actually want to see us talk about it, um, go to, go to our MT for Christ 24/7 YouTube channel today to check that out. All right, um, well, it's Wednesday. We're progressing through the week. Guess what? It's June 1st. Um, it's happy birthday to me. No, it's not today, but it's my birthday month, June. On my wife's birthday month. So, you know, the good thing about a new month is that if you didn't get things right last month, you can start again this month. And maybe there's some things in your life that you weren't, you know, as disciplined in doing that you, you know, regret. And well, today is the first of the month, so maybe we can start again. It might be the middle of the week, But it's 6/1/2022, and all things are new, as God's mercies are new every day, and a new month can be a new beginning. So if there's something that's out there, you know, that you wanted to do and haven't done, we encourage you that you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you, and that if you trust in him, you can accomplish great things. And, you know, lean on him for understanding and strength, and he will guide you in that, and he'll help you. And of course, we always encourage people to get connected to a local church so you can have the support of other Christians in your endeavors to follow the Lord. So that's all we got to say about that. So yeah, maybe there's some things I need to take care of, uh, this month that I've been a little lax in, in the month of May. So, uh, new— it's a new day, a new life, uh, in the kingdom. And let's, let's, let's rejoice and pray. Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you for another day in your kingdom. We thank you for a new day, a new month, uh, of a new— of the new life that we have in Christ. And Lord, we just pray, um, for everyone listening today, that they'd be blessed in this new life in Christ. And Lord, that they'd experience more of their freedom, a deeper relationship with you. And Lord, that they'd receive the blessings that you have for them, whether that's physical healing, insights, or other, other, other blessings. We pray for you to come alongside them in their journey of faith. And Lord, today we pray for you to go before us all, that you would open our eyes to what you want us to see and that you would lead us into the things you want us to do and give us the abilities to do them skillfully, uh, if, if possible. Uh, we, we appreciate all the help we can get, Lord. Uh, Lord, we thank you, we love you, and we pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.