It is an interesting comparison that we should consider in our lives. One of those statements we have asked ourselves many times while the other we rarely truly consider. The comparison is also seen in the following: Not known for his fundamental faith in our Savior, Abraham Lincoln would often have one-line statements that gave indication that perhaps he was. One such was when asked whether or not God was on the side of the North, the wise President responded by saying: “Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.”
Are we on God’s side? Are we fully trusting, fully committed, fully loving Him as we should? Are we “ALL IN?” We tend to always wonder why He is not with us like we expect Him to be. In our busy lives; in dealing with our problems; while dealing with monotonous daily tasks as well as dealing with possibly life changing events – we often ask ourselves: “Does God even care about me?” or “Does God not see what I’m going through?” In our desperation we question His faithfulness. I suppose we have all done this at times.
The real problem is not God at all. In our problems and anxiety we deal with each day we shout at and beg God for His attention as if He doesn’t care – yet He does already! He has proven it time and again. He created you, He sustains you, He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to die for you. Our God is all in for us, He has already proved that in a multitude of ways. Rather, we need to make sure that we are “ALL IN” concerning living for Him! The reason we struggle so much is because we are often "Partly in" or "Half in." We reserve a portion of our life, or justify our disobedience in some way. Yet, God has always loved us and given us His all and His best. God’s love does not change, He cannot lie nor can He go against His Word. He certainly is not the problem. Notice just a few of His precious promises:
· He promises never to leave us or forsake us – Hebrews 13:5
· He promises to bear our burdens – Matthew 11:28-30
· He promises to give us the strength to live of Him – 2 Corinthians 9:8
· He promises to help us through the problems we face – 2 Cor 12:7-10
Since these things are true and God cannot be the problem, then why do we constantly question Him? We should be looking at ourselves. Hebrews 3:12 says: “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.” We are so easily distracted from our purpose in Christ. We need to look at our lives (Take Heed) and prayerfully search and consider where we have been distracted, where we have been sinful, where we have allowed the world to influence us more than God and where our anxiety, worry, stress, or doubt come from. We need to see where we are not fully committed to God. Then, when we see its source, let’s get rid of that thing that is discouraging us from being what God wants or add that missing component where we have not been “ALL IN!”
The Lord Jesus Christ sums up how to be all in Mark 12:30-31 when He says: “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”
Are you “ALL IN” for God? God is not looking for half-way – we talked about that a week ago in the sermon on being a lukewarm Christian https://faithlife.com/posts/3589313 . God wants us all the way in, trusting fully in His care and provision for our lives. We have hopefully trusted Him for our eternal souls, but let us also trust Him for what we need to live right now. Let’s fully trust Him in our lives and LET’S BE ALL IN!
ALL IN?
IS GOD ALL IN FOR US VS. ARE WE ALL IN FOR GOD.
It is an interesting comparison that we should consider in our lives. One of those statements we have asked ourselves many times while the other we rarely truly consider. The comparison is also seen in the following: Not known for his fundamental faith in our Savior, Abraham Lincoln would often have one-line statements that gave indication that perhaps he was. One such was when asked whether or not God was on the side of the North, the wise President responded by saying: “Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.”
Are we on God’s side? Are we fully trusting, fully committed, fully loving Him as we should? Are we “ALL IN?” We tend to always wonder why He is not with us like we expect Him to be. In our busy lives; in dealing with our problems; while dealing with monotonous daily tasks as well as dealing with possibly life changing events – we often ask ourselves: “Does God even care about me?” or “Does God not see what I’m going through?” In our desperation we question His faithfulness. I suppose we have all done this at times.
The real problem is not God at all. In our problems and anxiety we deal with each day we shout at and beg God for His attention as if He doesn’t care – yet He does already! He has proven it time and again. He created you, He sustains you, He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to die for you. Our God is all in for us, He has already proved that in a multitude of ways. Rather, we need to make sure that we are “ALL IN” concerning living for Him! The reason we struggle so much is because we are often "Partly in" or "Half in." We reserve a portion of our life, or justify our disobedience in some way. Yet, God has always loved us and given us His all and His best. God’s love does not change, He cannot lie nor can He go against His Word. He certainly is not the problem. Notice just a few of His precious promises:
· He promises never to leave us or forsake us – Hebrews 13:5
· He promises to bear our burdens – Matthew 11:28-30
· He promises to give us the strength to live of Him – 2 Corinthians 9:8
· He promises to help us through the problems we face – 2 Cor 12:7-10
Since these things are true and God cannot be the problem, then why do we constantly question Him? We should be looking at ourselves. Hebrews 3:12 says: “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.” We are so easily distracted from our purpose in Christ. We need to look at our lives (Take Heed) and prayerfully search and consider where we have been distracted, where we have been sinful, where we have allowed the world to influence us more than God and where our anxiety, worry, stress, or doubt come from. We need to see where we are not fully committed to God. Then, when we see its source, let’s get rid of that thing that is discouraging us from being what God wants or add that missing component where we have not been “ALL IN!”
The Lord Jesus Christ sums up how to be all in Mark 12:30-31 when He says: “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”
Are you “ALL IN” for God? God is not looking for half-way – we talked about that a week ago in the sermon on being a lukewarm Christian https://faithlife.com/posts/3589313 . God wants us all the way in, trusting fully in His care and provision for our lives. We have hopefully trusted Him for our eternal souls, but let us also trust Him for what we need to live right now. Let’s fully trust Him in our lives and LET’S BE ALL IN!