Presented with Exceeding Joy

“Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.” (Jude 1:24-25)

Good morning, my friend. It is my pleasure to share the next few minutes with you. I appreciate your time and the love of Christ we share.

It has been awhile since I visited the book of Jude. It is short – only this one chapter – but it is very powerful. In just these short twenty-five verses, Jude describes our modern Christian world to a tee. He lays it down pretty thick and hard. I encourage you to read this book today (or at least at your earliest convenience). As a Christian pastor, it challenged me to re-evaluate some of my motives and actions, while it confirmed me in other ways. Jude’s writing is meant to be cautionary to believers about whom they follow, whose advice they listen to, and to keep our eyes turned to the One and only Savior, Jesus Christ.

Since my mission is to share words of encouragement, I dropped down to his closing comments to share his heart with you today. I love how he wrote that we are to commend our hearts to “...him that is able to keep you from falling…” If you have given your heart (your love and devotion) to Jesus Christ, you have received a measure of the Holy Spirit to live within you. If your mind is being renewed by and with the mind of Christ (through scripture reading, prayer, meditation, etc), your way of looking at the world and others is being modified to reflect His mission in the earth. If you have taken to heart the teachings of James (faith without works is dead) and begun to follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit (through intuition, following the peace and rejecting anything that removes that peace), you are growing daily and becoming more and more like Jesus. Lastly, if you are living according to these conditions, God is able to keep you (or steer you away) from sinning. Now, let’s be honest, we all fail. We all mess up. My biggest hangup for years was traffic. I have gotten WAY better than I used to be, but sometimes my “old man” likes to come back for a visit. I echo Jude’s words, however, to strive to achieve these lifestyle changes in order to grow and develop into the Christian man or woman God has created you to be.

As you grow and develop, God will begin to mold your life and the world around you to accommodate your gifts. I have spoken briefly about that before, but God has created you with unique talents (natural abilities) and gifts (unique ways to showcase your talents). Most people can bake a simple pie, but it was Marie Calendar who took it to the next level. Many people can draw basic sketches, but it was the likes of Renoir and Rembrandt who displayed great talents in this area. A lot of people can tinkle around on the piano, but Beethoven and Mozart clearly gave us examples of the possibilities available to all of us. Lastly, most of us are good at singing in the shower; however, Pavarotti opened our eyes to the beauty and majesty of music sung at its pinnacle. Now, I can’t say if you are the next Calendar, Renoir, Mozart, or Pavarotti (or Michael Jordan, Hank Aaron, Michael W. Smith, or whomever). All I can say is, God has given you those talents, abilities, and gifts – not for you, but – to serve Him in this world. In so serving, you will bring glory and honor to the One Who gave you those gifts. As Jesus so eloquently taught us: “If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto me.” That, my friend, is your calling. And, in so pursuing that calling, you will be too busy (enjoying what you are doing) and too grateful (for the satisfaction and happiness this brings) to even want to go back to living the old lifestyle!

Jude closes out his book by reminding us that Jesus Christ is able to, wants to, and awaits the pleasure of presenting us faultless (pure) before the presence (of God on His throne) with exceeding joy. I want you to consider today one thing: if you bring exceeding joy to the heart of the Savior, Jesus, how is that going to affect your life? I submit that by walking closer to Jesus, by serving Him in any way you can, by bringing Him glory and honor, by living in His presence daily, you will find in that place joy, peace that passes all understanding, and love that is unexplainable. Dwelling in the presence of God, you will find answers you have long-sought, you will find acceptance from the God of the universe on a new level, and you will know the joy of hearing those words we all seek to hear when we pass from this earthly plane: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy prepared for you by my Father.” As in heaven, so on earth.

Be blessed.