Your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly. —Matthew 6:4   Many businesses have “points programs” that offer rewards to loyal customers. You can stack up these rewards by using their companies’ services, like eating at local restaurants, staying at certain hotels, or flying on particular airlines. Choosing to spend your money this way makes a lot of sense.   God has a rewards program as well. Jesus often spoke of His desire to reward us for loyally serving Him. When we are persecuted for His sake, for example, He says to “rejoice . . . for great is your reward in heaven” (Matt. 5:12 ). In contrast to the Pharisees’ pious habit of giving, praying, and fasting in public, Jesus instructed us to do these things privately, because “your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly” (6:4,6,18). When it comes to living for Jesus, faithfulness never ultimately puts your life in a deficit position, regardless of what it costs.   But we don’t serve Jesus for the rewards. When He died for us on the cross, He did far more for us than we deserve. Loyalty to Him is an act of worship…

  There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1   Have you ever heard the story of Martin Luther?  As a young monk, Luther wanted nothing more than to please God.  But, like the rest of us, he struggled with sin and fleshly lusts.  His way of dealing with this problem was to severely discipline his body.  He felt that if he mistreated his flesh, it would somehow make him more godly.    One day he took a trip to Rome to walk the 28 steps of Pilate’s Staircase, the Scala Santa (Holy Stairs).  He climbed those stairs ON HIS KNEES.  Surely this painful sacrifice would garner favor with God, right?  As the pain grew and the blood flowed, he heard the voice of God say to him, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”  That revelation changed his life.    ARE YOU HURTING YOURSELF?   There are people today who still do hurtful things to their bodies thinking it will produce favor with God as they show Him they love Him.  Some whip their backs until the blood flows to prove their love and atone for their sins.  Others eat bland…

  When my daughters were single-digit ages—two, five, and seven—I wowed them with a miracle. I told them the story of Moses and the manna and invited them to follow me on a wilderness trek through the house.   “Who knows,” I suggested, “manna may fall from the sky again.”   We dressed in sheets and sandals and did our best Bedouin hike through the bedrooms. The girls, on my instruction, complained to me, Moses, of hunger and demanded I take them back to Egypt, or at least to the kitchen. When we entered the den, I urged them to play up their parts: groan, moan, and beg for food.   “Look up,” I urged. “Manna might fall any minute.”   Two-year-old Sara obliged with no questions, but Jenna and Andrea had their doubts. How can manna fall from a ceiling?   Just like the Hebrews. “How can God feed us in the wilderness?”   Just like you? You look at tomorrow’s demands, next week’s bills, next month’s silent calendar. Your future looks as barren as the Sinai Desert. “How can I face my future?” God tells you what I told my daughters: “Look up.”   When my daughters did,…

  I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust.” —Psalm 91:2   Everybody was wrong about the ark of the covenant (an item in the tabernacle that represented the throne of God). After losing a battle to the Philistines, Israel sent messengers to Shiloh to ask that the ark be hauled to Ebenezer, the site of their army camp.   When the ark arrived, the Israelites celebrated so loudly the enemy heard them all the way over in Aphek. The ark’s arrival caused the Philistines to fear and the Israelites to have courage.   They were both wrong. The Israelites took the ark into battle and were again clobbered by the Philistines, who captured the ark. Another mistake. The Philistines got sick and their false gods were destroyed.   We can understand the Philistines’ error—they were idol-worshipers. But the Israelites should have known better. They failed to consult God about using the ark. While they knew that the ark was earlier carried in battle (Josh. 6 ), they didn’t consider that God’s plan, not the ark’s involvement, allowed Israel to defeat Jericho.   No matter our resources, we will…