John Shirk

JOHN SHIRK – We have a new theme this year for encouraging growth in your relationship with God. 2018 has been designated as the Year of Integrity. We will take a look at what God’s Word has to say about integrity. We will also examine how God’s people walked with integrity.

Today’s Person of Integrity is Jesus.

When Jesus was inviting people into a relationship with Him, He used two words that were life-changing for whoever would accept His invitation.

Those two words were “Follow me.” There are many faithful people in the Bible with godly characteristics to admire. But no one was like Jesus. He was the Only One who always did what was right and never sinned. He becomes the perfect example of integrity for us to follow. He is full of grace and truth. If we follow Him as Savior and Lord, He will save us from our sins and transform us into His likeness. Under His influence, we will experience a life of love and freedom and joy that this world cannot offer us.

The faithfulness of Jesus to fulfill His mission inspires us to follow Jesus and live a life of integrity.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Focus on God examines Jesus as our Prince of Peace.

The prophet Isaiah foretold a time when a child would be born and a son would be given to us.

According to Isaiah 9:6, one of the ways we could identify this child is that He would be called “Prince of Peace.”

This description refers to the end of armed conflict between nations and the end of hostility toward God.

War and violence are part of this broken world tainted by sin. But Isaiah was inspired by the Holy Spirit to envision a day to come when all bloodshed will stop through the reign of the Messiah.

Isaiah 2:4 says, “They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.”

This will happen in a favorable spiritual climate where the people walk in the light of the Lord.

Knowing Jesus as our Prince of Peace is a reason to trust in God for today and forever.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Trust, today’s Focus on God examines Jesus as the Promised One.

According to Acts 13:22, the Apostle Paul spoke of David as a man after God’s own heart. David reigned as king over Israel in one of their best moments in history, when they were established in the land under a king who trusted God.

Then, in the sermon, Paul pointed to a descendant who was even greater than David. “From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised.”

David was a king, but Jesus was the promised Messiah, the One foretold in the ancient Scriptures. He was the One people were anticipating.

Just as Jesus came to the world as the fulfillment of God’s promise, He will fulfill the promise of forgiveness and eternal life to all who call on His name for salvation.

Knowing Jesus as the Promised One is a reason to trust in God for today and forever.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Promise of Hope is based on Psalm 48:14.

“For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.”

We can cling to God with the assurance that He will never leave us or forsake us.

When we come to a fork in the road, God is there to guide us with His wisdom.

When we need a friend, He is forever faithful.

When we need strength to overcome temptation, God is there with His grace to help us in our time of need.

We needed the hope of heaven, and God provided the way when He sent Jesus into the world to become an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

God’s guidance to the end is a promise of hope for those who follow Jesus in the Year of Trust.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Promise of Hope is based on Zephaniah 3:17.

“The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.”

Here we see a picture of God’s people purified in His grace. If there is one thing that can bring comfort to our day, it’s music. It is an art form that can help us experience peace in a turbulent world. And here, God is using music to express His delight in those who belong to Him. He has won victories on their behalf and He has won their heart. There is a great celebration ahead for those who celebrate Jesus.

The enjoyment of Heavenly music is a promise of hope for those who follow Jesus in the Year of Trust.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Trust, today’s Focus on God examines Jesus as the Savior of the world.

According to First John 4:14, “We have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.”

Love was the motivation behind Jesus’ entrance into the world. God recognized that we had a sin problem, and He provided Jesus to be the solution for our sin, so that we might receive forgiveness and eternal life through faith in His name. This salvation is offered to the world and is available to all who call on the name of the Lord.

At the announcement of Jesus’ birth to Joseph, the angel said about Mary, “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

Knowing Jesus as our Savior is a reason to trust in God for today and forever.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Trust, today’s Focus on God examines His blessings.

According to James 1:17, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

God’s gifts to us are blessings that enable us to thrive for the glory of God. We are blessed to receive the perfect gifts of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. There are also good gifts that God provides for us, such as food to sustain us in life, abilities to enable us to serve, and people to encourage us in the faith.

For every blessing, we have an occasion to thank God for His gracious hand.

The good and perfect blessings of God are reasons to trust in God for today and forever.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Trust, today’s Focus on God examines His eternal reign.

According to Psalm 90, verse 2, God is God from everlasting to everlasting.

There is never a period of time in which God did not reign as God. He is self-sufficient and self-existent.

This means that the birth of Jesus was not actually the beginning of His existence. He was honored in heaven before He suffered on earth. Before His crucifixion, Jesus prayed in John 17:5, “Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.” In that same prayer, He later said, “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory.”

His request is for His followers to be where He is and to see Him in His glory. This is fulfilled in the book of Revelation, where Jesus reigns for eternity. God’s grace is what makes forever possible for His people.

The eternal reign of Jesus is a reason to trust in God for today and forever.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Trust, today’s Focus on God examines His sympathy to those who are weeping.

To be sympathetic is to express sorrow with someone in the midst of their grief and loss.

Jesus expressed sorrow at the gravesite of his friend Lazarus. He came and was moved by the grief of Lazarus’s sisters-Mary and Martha.

When they greeted Jesus, they said basically the same thing. Lord, if you have been here, my brother would not have died. John 11:33 says that when Jesus saw Mary weeping and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. Verse 35 says, “Jesus wept.”

If Jesus was moved by their raw emotion, we can believe that Jesus is also moved in spirit when we experience a season of sorrow. Jesus is not removed from our suffering. Rather, He stepped right into it when He went to the cross.

The sympathy of Jesus for our tears is a reason to trust in God for today and forever.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Trust, today’s Focus on God examines the comfort of His love.

According to Psalm 34:18, the LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

The comfort of His love can be found in God’s compassion for us in our distress, and God’s capacity to see us through our times of trouble.

For the follower of Jesus, trouble is a season, not our final condition. Verse 15 says that the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry.

Verse 19 says, “The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all.”

The comfort of His love is a source of peace, a reason for hope, and an opportunity to grow in our sympathy for others when they experience similar times of trouble.

The comfort of God’s love is a reason to trust in God for today and forever.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com