Seven Truths that I must Continue to Preach to Myself.

Do you ever feel like you need to have a sit-down with yourself, like you need to pull yourself aside and have a “talking-to”? I have found that one of the greatest disciplines that we can have in our lives as Christians is to preach to ourselves. I stand most Sundays and preach to a group of people, but the greatest messages that I deliver are the ones that are just to myself. When I preach Biblical truths to myself, I get Jesus listening-in and saying “Amen.” 

It has been a crazy year, and the world we live in is preaching many things. People in our society love to tell us what they think, and if we are not careful, we will start to feed “truths” that are not in conjunction with the Word of God. One way that I have found to help me from falling into this trap is to preach to myself.

So, this week in particular, there are seven things that I will be preaching to myself. 

1. God is still sovereign. (Psalm 139)

This simply means that God does as He pleases. He is in charge and all powerful, ruling and reigning as He sees fit. He never takes a vacation, and nothing ever takes Him by surprise. He is the same yesterday, today and forever! I can rest that He has a plan and a story that will never be shaken or changed. The simple truth that “He is big and I am not” is a truth that I must never forget (Isaiah 40). I might not understand all that He does and all that He allows to happen, but that does not take away the fact that He is ALL-KNOWING, ALL-POWERFUL and ALL-WISE! 

2. God sets up leaders. (Romans 13:1-2) 

The Bible is clear that there is no authority except from God, and all that exist have been put in place by God. I might not be able to explain why some leaders have been put in place throughout history, but I must let the truth of God’s Word shape my understanding of history. He has a reason and a plan for every leader that is in place! Pharaoh is a great example of this in the Bible. God raised him up, and even in Pharaoh’s wickedness, God made a way for Himself to be glorified!   

3. Honor your authorities. (I Peter 2:13-7)

This is a hard one, but one we must remember. Peter told the people in Asia Minor to honor the emperor, even though the emperor during that time was Nero. I am sure it was not easy to do, and I am sure that they had 157 reasons why they shouldn’t. However, that was not how God wanted His children to act. I must watch what I say; I must watch how I act, and unless it goes against the word of God, I must honor and obey (Hebrews 13:6).

4. I am still a child of God. (Ephesians 2:1-10)

We must never forget that the greatest news of all time is the story of the Gospel. Christ saved me and adopted me into His family. Furthermore, this status as a child of God will never change. He will always be my Father, and I will always be His child! It is easy to forget this when we look at our world today, but when anxiety or fear start to settle in, we must preach to ourselves that we are children of God. When we start to feel that we have been given a bad hand, we must preach to ourselves that we are children of God. When everything around us looks dark, we must preach to ourselves that we are children of God. His love for us is great, and nothing will ever separate us from it (Romans 8). Our salvation is truly amazing!

5. God will make all things new. (Revelation 21:1-5) 

There should be a longing in every Christian’s heart for something better. This is a gift from God, as it is what keeps our eyes on eternity. This life will never bring us completion. So, we must wait and anticipate the day when God will make all things new. He is not going to replace this earth with a new one; no, He is going to lift the curse, putting this broken world back to how He created it before sin corrupted it. We must live justly in this world, but with our eyes on what is to come!

6. Love for one another will show the world we are His. (John 13:35)

How will this lost world know that we are the Church? Is it that we all carry the same opinions or that we all vote the same? Is it how we all look or what songs we sing? No! In John 13:35, Jesus says that all people will know that we are His disciples by the way that we love one another. If Christ followers can’t get along with each other, then how will the world know that we are His disciples? What kind of testimony are we giving a lost world when we fight and argue as followers of Christ over opinions and convictions, turning our backs on each other because we can’t agree? The Bible never says we have to agree with each other on opinions and convictions (doctrines are a different issue), but the Bible says we do have to love. One of the greatest testimonies that can be shown to a lost world is how people of different opinions and convictions can show love for each other as they pursue Christ together. What a testimony this will be as we love one another! 

7. We are still called to “go.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

Our mission has never changed. The mission of the Church was the same when Nero was emperor; it was the same when Hitler was in power, and it is still the same today, “go and make disciples.” We can’t forget the mission that God has given to every individual who calls themself a follower of Christ. We must GO! Too often, we get distracted with the things of this world, and it throws us off from living on mission. But the truth is, this country does not need a better law, a new plan, or a new voice. Instead, this country needs to hear the hope of the Gospel, and how will they hear unless they are told? Remember, we are God’s ambassadors, so please don’t forget your mission! (Romans 10:9-17; II Corinthians 5:20)

I’m sure there are more truths you could preach to yourself, but would you join me in reminding yourself of these seven over the course of this week? Let us all remember who we are in Christ, what we have been called to and how we area called to live! 

Reclaimed by Jesus for the good of the city and the Glory of God!