A God of Recompense

Posted on October 17, 2025 by Pete

This is the second morning reading Jeremiah’s prophecy of Babylon’s demise. I read Jeremiah 51, the second of two chapters — two LONG chapters — detailing God’s determined vengeance against a nation which had perpetually and “proudly defied the LORD” (Jer. 50:31). Though used of God to chastise His people, Babylon herself would be judged because she too had “sinned against the LORD” (Jer. 50:14). For our God is a God of recompense.

For the LORD is laying Babylon waste
       and stilling her mighty voice.
Their waves roar like many waters;
       the noise of their voice is raised,
for a destroyer has come upon her,
       upon Babylon;
her warriors are taken;
       their bows are broken in pieces,
for the LORD is a God of recompense;
       He will surely repay.

(Jeremiah 51:56-56 ESV)

A God of recompense . . . That’s the phrase which arrested my attention, that’s what I’m chewing on this morning. He is the God who will surely repay.

He will judge . . . vengeance is His (Rom. 12:19). Though Babylon may seem to prevail, though the “nations rage” and “the people growl”; though “the kings of the earth set themselves against the LORD and against His Anointed” (Ps. 2:1-2), “Behold,” says the King of kings and the Lord of lords , “I am coming soon, bringing My recompense with Me, to repay each one for what he has done” (Rev. 22:12). He will surely repay.

And while there is a certain rest to be found in knowing that justice will one day prevail, there is also a joy which wells up as I can’t help but consider afresh that the recompense for my sin was born by the King, that the price demanded for the debt I could never repay was paid in full by the Lord. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

A God of recompense . . . a reason to rejoice. For, to all who have faith in Jesus, He is the “just and the justifier” (Rom. 3:26).

Again . . . Hallelujah! What a Savior!

By His grace. For His glory.

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A Soul Connection

Posted on October 15, 2025 by Pete

While they tell a lot of stories about a lot of things, though they provide a ton of information about how things are supposed to work, I believe the Scriptures ultimately testify of Christ. That, though Jesus “began” with Moses and the Prophets as He gave His Messiah 101 class to the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Lk. 24:27), when it says that “He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” it really does mean that the “things concerning Himself” where found in all the Scriptures. That, when Jesus said the Scriptures “bear witness about Me” (Jn. 5:39), that He was saying all the Scriptures bear witness of Him. So, it makes sense then that, as I work through my reading plan in the morning, I’m always on the lookout for Jesus.

Sometimes it’s a bit tricky, though. Like when I’m reading through The Song of Solomon.

How much of this book is meant as sort of a primer on true love and where’s it to be a picture of the One who loved in truth? Don’t want to miss Christ in it. Also don’t want to project Christ where it’s not appropriate.

But this morning, I think I “found Him” in Solomon’s song. And my reading in 1Peter confirmed it. Because of a soul connection.

On my bed by night I sought him whom my soul loves;
       I sought him, but found him not.
I will rise now and go about the city,
       in the streets and in the squares;
I will seek him whom my soul loves.
       I sought him, but found him not.
The watchmen found me
       as they went about in the city.
“Have you seen him whom my soul loves?”
Scarcely had I passed them
       when I found him whom my soul loves.

(Song of Solomon 3:1-4a ESV)

Whole lotta’ repetition going on there. The Spirit is laying down something that I’m supposed to be picking up. Could it be that the “alias” used by Solomon’s bride for her betrothed might just be an appropriate way for the church to respond to her Bridegroom? I’m thinkin’ . . .

Him whom my soul loves . . . that’s what I’m chewing on this morning.

Meditating on the One who should capture the affections of not just my heart, but of my whole being. Affections so stirring the inner man that I can’t help but be spurred on to a love-fueled pursuit of the One who has loved me “with an everlasting love” (Jer. 31:3). “That I might know Him” (Php. 3:10) — Him whom my soul loves.

And then Peter adds some color as to why there’s this soul connection.

He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

(1Peter 2:24-25 ESV)

The Beloved is loved at a soul level because He is the Shepherd and Overseer of my soul. The connection not something I could ever make happen, but only a reality because He bore my sin in His body on the tree so I might live to righteousness. And in that righteousness, I know a soul enlivened to its Savior, its Shepherd, its Sovereign. So that having my soul healed by His wounds He becomes Him whom my soul loves. And that’s the soul connection.

Though you have not seen Him, you love Him.

(1Peter 1:7a ESV)

By His grace. For His glory.

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God’s People (2018 Remix)

Posted on October 14, 2025 by Pete

Never been a nomad, always had a place to hang my hat, a fixed address to go home to every night. Can’t really say I understand what it’s like to be an exile, a stranger in a foreign land–not even if you count my move to the U.S. (not that strange a land . . . most times . . . but recently, increasingly) from Canada 22 years ago. But I’m thinking that for those Peter was writing to, being “strangers and sojourners” (YLT) in an increasingly hostile environment might have been enough to fill one’s plate.

But instead of Peter spurring on these weary and targeted travelers with gentle encouragements to “keep on keepin’ on” as they sojourn, and to “hang in there” through each day’s pilgrimage, he instead lays on them a list of commands to obey.

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

(1Peter 2:11-14, 17 ESV)

Not enough that they would have to wander around in some strange world with all its strange customs, but they were to keep in check the desire to embrace a worldly culture which falsely promised to satisfy their sensual desires and physical needs. Not enough to endure the hostility of those with a drastically different worldview, but they were to accept the challenge of living in such a way that, while they might be opposed, there’d be no grounds to be accused. When it came to the crazy big kahuna in Rome who was increasingly targeting them for persecution, they weren’t told to do everything they could to oppose him but instead to be subject to him. And to honor his people. While they committed to actively loving one another.

That’s a lot to take on!

Like I said, you’d think it’d be enough just trying to be a sojourner and an exile without having to say, “No” to the flesh, “Watch me” to the world, and “I yield” to the government.

So how come Peter adds these commands to obey onto a journey that’s already pretty demanding to embrace?

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

(1Peter 2:9-10 ESV)

They were more than just pilgrims in a foreign land. More than just wanderers trying to find the next place to wander to. More than just a nomadic band with no flag to pitch and nowhere to pitch it. Though once they were not a people, now they were God’s people.

And that’s what I’m chewing on this morning. Our identity. You are God’s people.

Called out of darkness. Translated into light. Given heavenly citizenship, but for now left to travel in a world not our home, we are God’s people. A chosen race. A royal priesthood. His very own, blood-bought possession. That’s who we are. So that’s how we should act.

Our circumstance doesn’t define us. The prevailing culture around us can’t label us. The darkness no longer has any claim on us. Rather, we are God’s people.

Thus, says Peter, by God’s enabling, live like it. By God’s power, be who you are. For God’s kingdom, be ambassadors during your sometimes barren wandering.

Lot of things I don’t know, but this I do know, I’m a child of the King. A living stone in His spiritual house. A member of His holy priesthood.

I am God’s people.

By His grace. For His glory.

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The Taste (2008 Rerun)

Posted on October 13, 2025 by Pete

Nothin’ coming together after my readings this morning, so I went back to the beginning of my online journal, to the early days of capturing these morning thoughts to see what popped then from today’s readings. This one resonated. Thought I’d put it out there again.

“Betcha can’t eat just one!” Remember that ad? I think it was a Frito Lay advertisement for their potato chips. But I can think of any number of foods which, for me, it’s hard just to have one. You get that first bite . . . or finish that first piece . . . and the taste buds have come alive . . . and the pleasure sensors are screaming, “More! More!” So, what’s this got to do with my morning readings? Well . . . in a way . . . Peter says the same thing . . .

“Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.”

(1Peter 2:2-3 ESV)

Far from being a chore . . . or a discipline . . . pursuing the things of Christ should be a craving . . . a craving driven by having tasted of the Lord’s goodness.

The NKJV translates ” you have tasted that the Lord is good” as “if you have tasted that the Lord is gracious” and the NASB says, “if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.” Regardless of whether we talk about the Lord’s goodness, His graciousness, or His kindness, the thought is the same . . . if we’ve tasted of the Lord . . . then, betcha’ can’t eat just one . . . you will crave more of Him . . . and He will provide all you’re able to consume . . . and much, much more. His table is full . . . the feast is eternal . . . all that’s required is we come with bibs tucked under our chin ready to “chow down!”

So why is it a chore sometimes? Why can there be periods where we never go to the table . . . or, if we do, it feels like so much work? I think because, at times, we’ve lost the taste.

That taste we had when we were first saved . . . or, that taste we sampled when we saw God’s hand on our lives through an answered prayer . . . or, that bit of flavor we experienced when God graced us with an unexpected blessing . . . or, that taste on our lips from that portion of God’s Word that seemed to just burn in our hearts . . . or, that indescribable sensation when we actually knew we had heard the Holy Spirit’s voice or were keenly aware of Him prompting our spirits. All believers can think back to those times when they “perceived the flavor” of the living Lord . . . those times when they experienced God . . . when they partook of His presence . . . when they enjoyed sweet communion inside the veil with the gracious God of eternity. That’s the taste . . . the flavor . . . the reality . . . that propels us to seek Him more. Those are the experiences that constitute that “first bite” and so drives us to heaven’s door with our dishes in our hands crying, “Please Sir, can I have some more!”

But sometimes we lose the taste. The flavor is bland as we go through the routine . . . do the Christian thing ’cause that’s what we do . . . same old, same old. We open our Bibles . . . stare at them . . . maybe quickly read our devotional reading for the day . . . but we don’t really savor the food . . . we don’t linger over it to catch it’s subtle aroma . . . to taste the nuances that are detected only through the teaching ministry of the Spirit inside of us.

Or, we go to church . . . we don’t go to meet with the body of Christ, we just go to church. We walk in . . . take a seat . . . watch the show . . . gag at the worship team’s song selection or delivery of the songs . . . critique the preacher . . . throw in a couple of bucks . . . eat a cookie . . . and walk out. We really have no expectation of meeting the One who said that He would be in the presence of His people and amid their praises. We’re not looking to “love on” one another . . . or for that fact, to be “loved on” by anyone else. No expectation that we’ll hear the voice of God from the pulpit. So . . . we don’t taste . . . and the craving subsides.

Oh, how we need to taste that the Lord is good. How we need to be still and know that He is God. How we need to count our every blessings, count them one by one. How we need to savor our salvation. And when we do . . . betcha’ can’t eat just one! We will crave the things of God just like a newborn craves milk. Recapturing a little bit of the taste will result in a whole lot of desire for the Bible — “Word of God speak!!!” Sampling again that flavor of heaven will ignite our spiritual senses to earnestly seek and to know and to experience our God at the “next level.” No fast food meals here, it’s a lifetime of eating and savoring and digesting and growing . . . but, all the time, there is a tasting that the Lord is good . . . and that craving for more.

Father, help me not to lose “the taste.” Lord Jesus, You are so good! I want to know You more! I can’t eat just one . . . by Your grace keep me feasting at Your table . . . for Your glory . . . Amen!!!

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Bring It!

Posted on October 10, 2025 by Pete

“You ain’t seen nothin’ yet!”

That’s what I hear the Spirit whisper to me as I take in what Peter is writing to the exiles.

Peter, though writing to a dispersed people, longs for them to be anything but a depressed, or a disillusioned people. He reminds them of their deliverance in the past, that they’ve been born again to a living hope (1Peter 1:3). And he reassures them of the divine dynamic of their present, that “by God’s power” they are being “guarded through faith” (1Peter 1:5). And that all this is the stuff “into which angels long to look” (1Peter 1:12), the things prophesied by the prophets — the “grace to be yours” (1Peter 1:10).

But wait, there’s more . . .

He reminds them also of their future and of the inheritance that awaits, of “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven” (1Peter 1:4). And, if I’m picking up what’s being laid down, that’s the grace that will be brought.

Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

(1Peter 1:13 ESV)

The grace that will be brought . . . That’s what puts the gears in motion this morning.

As much grace as I’ve known, I ain’t seen nothin’ yet! For there is a grace yet to be brought. A gift yet to be received (MSG).

Sure, noodle on the wonders of the cross and the grace bestowed through Christ’s finished work — that where sin abounds, grace does more abound (Rom. 5:20-21). Marvel at the fact of an empty tomb and the grace of resurrection power, an all-sufficient grace that makes available divine power in our weakness so that we’re actually inclined to “boast” of our infirmities (2Cor. 12:9) as we know from experience that our weakness is actually our “superpower”. Yeah, try and wrap your head around the abundant grace we’ve already known. And then, try to envision the grace that will be brought.

The grace that will be brought at the revelation of Jesus Christ. The unmerited favor we’ll know when we are face-to-Face. The undeserved joy, pleasure, delight, and sweetness we’ll experience when faith gives way to sight. The unimaginable grace we’ll experience when (if) we are able to divert our gaze from the glorious face of our Savior and peer over His shoulder to see our inheritance, “imperishable, undefiled, and unfading.” Talk about grace overflowing!

And what else can you say but “Bring it!”

By His grace. For His glory.

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Satisfied With His Goodness

Posted on October 8, 2025 by Pete

Oh, what it would have been for those in exile to hear the words of God’s promise through Jeremiah?

For those who remembered Zion from afar as they sat and wept by the rivers of Babylon (Ps. 137:1), what hope must have been theirs as they heard the prophet declare God’s intention to gather to Himself “scattered Israel” and that God Himself would keep them “as a shepherd keeps his flock” (Jer. 31:10). What strength would have been found in in the promise that their redemption was coming and that they would be brought home to “sing aloud on the height of Zion”, their joy radiating over the abundance of the land they had been promised. To anticipate, though currently in the thirst-inducing land of their enemies, being brought to a place where they would “languish no more”, where “their life would be like a watered garden” (Jer. 31:12).

Seems to me there’s some connection there for us current day exiles — for us who are in the world but not of the world and are looking forward to a city whose designer and builder is God (Heb. 11:10).

And yet, while we wait for a kingdom to come, we know that the kingdom has come. We live in the “now but not yet” reality of not just longing for home but of also experiencing home as, through our union with Christ, we are seated with Him in heavenly places (Eph. 2:6). Thus, we find ourselves not only singing the blues by the waters of Babylon but also singing with joy on the height of Zion. And that because, even now, we have known the goodness of God.

I will turn their mourning into joy;
       I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.
I will feast the soul of the priests with abundance,
       and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness.

(Jeremiah 31:13b-14 ESV)

In the day of their return, the ancient exiles of the clans of Israel would declare the goodness of God “over the grain, the wine, and the oil, and over the young of the flock and the herd” (Jer. 31:12). They would sing over the abundance of God’s physical provision. But for us as today’s exiles, for us as God’s holy and royal priesthood (1Peter 2:5, 9), there is a feasting of the soul by which our mourning is turned, even now, to joy. A saturating of the inner being which comforts and displaces sorrow with gladness. So that, even in a foreign land, even though we are not home yet, My people shall be satisfied with My goodness.

My people shall be satisfied with My goodness . . . that’s what I’m chewing on this morning.

The goodness of God. Not found in our stuff but experienced in our soul. Not because we’ve never sinned, but because He is the forever Savior. Not because we’ve never known the collateral damage of sin, but because we’ve also known a grace greater than sin. Not because we have been faithful, but because God is faithful.

And so, I will sing of the goodness of God. (You can too by clicking here)

By His grace. For His glory.

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The Sanctifying Impact of Others’ Sin

Posted on October 6, 2025 by Pete

Life under the sun. Kind of rough, if I’m picking up on what the Preacher is laying down. So many of what we might consider to be the “should be’s” just ain’t necessarily so. I was reminded of that, right off the bat, in this morning’s reading.

In my vain life I have seen everything. There is a righteous man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who prolongs his life in his evildoing.

(Ecclesiastes 7:15 ESV)

Hmm . . . Shouldn’t it be the other way around? The righteous man’s righteousness prolonging his life while the wicked man’s ways cut his life short? Wasn’t that an implied take-away from Proverbs?

The LORD’s curse is on the house of the wicked,
       but He blesses the dwelling of the righteous.

(Proverbs 3:33 ESV)

The desire of the righteous ends only in good;
       the expectation of the wicked in wrath.

(Proverbs 11:23 ESV)

Oh, the difference it makes — the vanity, one might say — that comes from measuring life only by what happens “under the sun”. If we’re expecting to get “here and now” results from promises intended for a “there and then” reality, it can lead to a lot of frustration.

But in the “here and now”, here’s what we can get — wisdom. And growing in wisdom is becoming more like Jesus. For, Jesus is wisdom (Prov. 8:12-31). And becoming more like Jesus? Well, we call that sanctification.

And as I continue to read what the Preacher has to say, it’s these words I end up noodling on this morning.

Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.

Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you. Your heart knows that many times you yourself have cursed others.

(Ecclesiastes 7:20-22 ESV)

Nothin’ worse than being slandered (well, maybe there is . . . maybe lots of things are worse . .. but being slandered feels pretty bad). No one likes being bad-mouthed. No fun being the subject of gossip. It’s the kind of thing we righteous ones are inclined to respond to by setting the record straight with some “righteous indignation”. But, says the Preacher, don’t pay attention to it — don’t take it to heart. How come? Because surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins. Because your heart knows that many times you yourself have slandered others.

And what I’m picking up from what is being laid down is that other’s sin, even when it is sin against me, might just be a mirror which God is holding up to my face in order for me to see my own sin. The sin might be different in kind or severity but, as Jesus would say centuries after the Preacher, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone” (Jn. 8:7). While others might legitimately need to repent of their sin, their sin can remind me of my “me too” reality.

And in that, God’s kindness can lead me to repentance. And that can be used of Jesus to do some refining work in me. And that always leads me to the cross. And that can make me pretty tender to others like me who are also sinners saved by grace, who, while “under the sun”, are ever, like me, in need of grace.

And so, it seems to me that there can be a sanctifying impact of others’ sin — even when that sin is against me.

Make sense? Worth chewing on?

I’m thinkin’ . . .

By His grace. For His glory.

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The Beloved of My Soul

Posted on October 2, 2025 by Pete

The heart of God. That’s what jumped off the page this morning. And in a kind of unexpected place.

Book of the Bible? Jeremiah. Chapter in this prophet’s oracles? Twelve. Context for his words? God’s judgment of His people. Impact on this guy? To quote Crowder, “Oh, how He loves us.”

“I have forsaken My house; I have abandoned My heritage; I have given the beloved of My soul into the hands of her enemies.”

(Jeremiah 12:7 ESV)

The beloved of My soul . . . That’s what I’m chewing on this morning.

The beloved of God’s soul. Synonymous with God’s heritage, synonymous with God’s house . . . aka, God’s people.

Not just beloved, but “dearly beloved” (NKJV). More than just one of many things loved, but “the love of My life” (CSB).

If God is love — and He is (1Jn. 4:16) — then what it is it to be the beloved of God’s soul? What is it to occupy such a place within the heart of the Fountainhead of affection?

Independent of our best days and unconnected to our worst, impossible for Him to love us anymore and unthinkable that He would love us any less. For, whether it’s knowing the blessings of His goodness or the severity of His discipline, we are the beloved of His soul.

Because of who we are? Because of what we’ve done (or not done)? Nope! But only and always because of our union with Christ, because we are “in Christ” — God’s beloved Son, the One with whom God is “well pleased” (Matt. 3:17).

Oh, how the Father loves the Son!

Oh, how He loves us!

According to His grace. Always for His glory.

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Seasons of Siege (2020 Rerun)

Posted on September 30, 2025 by Pete

Talking to a neighbor last night as we kept an eye on her kids and my grandsons playing together in the street. She had some questions about the bible. “Who are the Nephilim?” she asks. “Oh brother,” I think, “can you ask me something simpler like ‘Can you explain the Trinity?'” (This is our second conversation. We’ve already talked a bit about why God allowed Adam and Eve to eat bad fruit in the garden.)

She’s reading her bible again. I asked her what’s spurred this renewed interest to reconnect with the God she had learned about in her youth. She said it’s the crazy times we live in. She’s struggling to make sense of what’s going on in our world. Seems like God in His kindness is working in her heart to tether her to another world.

Times like our current times can be used of God in that way. Kind of like the season we experienced 5-years ago. Here’s some thoughts from then that came out of this morning’s reading in Jeremiah.

Not gonna lie, this season has a way of amplifying my readings in the major prophets. Not that I equate America with Israel. Not that I believe God is in the final judgment business in this age of grace. But that I believe the God of the prophets is an unchanging God, the same yesterday, today, and forever. Thus, the sin which provoked Him to anger in Jeremiah’s day will, no matter where it is found, provoke Him to anger today. To be sure, there is a place for that anger to be quenched, the cross of His blessed Son, but only for those who run to it. And God, just as He did in the days of the prophets, even today intervenes to reveal Himself, and to point people to the way of rescue through seasons of siege.

. . . they weary themselves committing iniquity. Heaping oppression upon oppression, and deceit upon deceit, they refuse to know Me, declares the LORD. Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, I will refine them and test them, for what else can I do, because of My people?”

(Jeremiah 9:5b-7 ESV)

They’re lost. They’re hard-hearted and stiff-necked. They’re running themselves ragged with sin. They refuse to know Me. So what else can I do, says the LORD, but turn up the heat? To refine them in the fire, to test them under pressure, that they might come to their senses.

Even as God was mustering up the Babylonian horde to evict the people from their land because of their persistent, perpetual rebellion and unfaithfulness, He calls them to return. Even as the Babylonians set up siegeworks on Jerusalem’s doorstep, hemming them in, God appeals to His people through His prophet, wanting their season of siege (talk about your shelter in place!) to act as a wake up call and a catalyst for repentance.

“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. . . . For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly execute justice one with another, if you do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own harm, then I will let you dwell in this place . . .”

(Jeremiah 7:3, 5-7a ESV)

And while their return to God would be manifest in amended ways and deeds, what strikes me this morning is that it would be initiated through understanding and knowledge.

Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”

(Jeremiah 9:23-24 ESV)

Nothing new under the sun, those who reject God are those who are full of themselves. Trusting in their wisdom, confident in their strength, relying on their wealth, they say to themselves “Self, we got this. We don’t need no God.” True of fallen Israel, true of fallen empires throughout the ages — even during this age of grace.

But, I’m thinking, God turns up the heat on the nations He has loved –and loved unto death on the cross–so that when their wisdom and their strength and their riches are no longer sufficient to maintain control of their lives, they’ll look up . . . look wwaayy up! And they’ll understand and know there is a God.

They’ll understand. They’ll give attention to, ponder, look towards. Clarity will come. The light will go on.

They’ll know. They’ll recognize, discern, confess to be true, and experience. They’ll taste and see.

And what will they understand when the light comes on? What will they know and admit when they taste and see? That the LORD is not just the God of steadfast love, but also of justice and righteousness. And not just in ancient Israel, but “in the earth.”

They will know there is a God. They will understand He is the Sovereign Creator of all things. And they will experience the holy, put-you-on-your-face-in-reverent-awe fear that saves the soul. And then, by His wisdom, and by the power of His might, and as heirs of His eternal riches they will have the desire, strength, and ability to amend their ways.

What can I do, says the God who loves a people who have strayed? What can I do but refine them and test them? That they might know Me and live.

Even seasons of siege are by His grace. That our boasting in Him alone, though for our good, might be for His glory.

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Hold Fast with Humility

Posted on September 29, 2025 by Pete

Okay, I may be about to misapply a principle of salvation, but here goes. Let’s see how this plays.

Reading in James this morning. Reminded that our salvation is God’s doing, that it is He who “brought us forth by the word of truth” (James 1:18). That “He chose to give birth to us by giving us His true word” (NLT). That He gave us new life. How? Through His word. The B-I-B-L-E . . . yes, that’s the book that saved me.

So, says James, there’s a two-fold posture we are to take towards the word, the second of which I’m guessing most of us are pretty familiar with: “Be doers of the word” (James 1:22).

But it’s the first exhortation I’m hovering over this morning — the one I’m guessing would be less likely to come to mind when we think about how we are to approach the word of God.

Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

(James 1:21 ESV)

Receive with meekness the implanted word . . . that’s what I’m chewing on.

Get rid of the weeds of sin. Root out the “spoiled virtue” (MSG) of a deceptive heart tied to the old man. Cast off the “cancerous evil” (MSG) of a world in rebellion to its God. And having cleared the ground and tended the soil, receive with meekness the implanted word.

The implanted word, which is able to save your souls. We were born through the word, and we will be sanctified by the word. The salvation begun through the word is the salvation that will be completed through the word. True? Okay, then how does that implanted word do its sanctifying work? It’s as we receive it with meekness.

Even for those of us who at first resisted the word, maybe even kicking against the word, when we first received the word, it was with meekness. When we first believed, we yielded. We assumed a certain posture of humility as we opted to receive what we didn’t necessarily fully understand. And, says James, just as we were first saved by receiving with meekness the implanted word, so too the consummation of the saving of our souls will be realized as we continue to receive with meekness the implanted word.

That’s the way of salvation — how it began is how it’s going to be finished. Our salvation which began by faith will be a salvation that is finished by faith — we are saved by faith for faith (Rom. 1:17). The new life initiated as a work of the Spirit will be the new life perfected through the Spirit (Gal. 3:2-3). Similarly — if I’m rightly connecting dots and accurately applying the principle — the salvation which began with receiving the word in meekness is the salvation that will come to full fruition by receiving the word in meekness.

So, if the way of the word is to receive it with meekness, then why is it that when we seek to stand on the word, we so often feel the need to do so with forcefulness rather than with humbleness? Why is there so often an air of arrogance when it comes to rightly dividing the word and contending for the faith? While the word of God is “the sword of the Spirit” (Eph. 6:17), and while it will “pierce to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intention of the heart” (Heb. 4:12), why do we feel we need to wield the sword and do the slicing and dicing and not allow the Spirit to do His work? Why would we not trust that an implanted word which is received with meekness is an implanted word able to work from the inside out and thus save its hearers to the uttermost. And if that’s true, then shouldn’t the word we are to receive with meekness be passed on with meekness? I’m wondering . . .

Meekness isn’t weakness. It is not a fragile position; it is a Christ-like posture. We can stand firm; we can contend for the faith; we can uphold the truth of God, AND we can do it with meekness. The same meekness we are to have when receiving the implanted word.

When it comes to the word, we can hold fast with humility.

Make sense?

By His grace. For His glory.

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