Home Not Heaven // Micah

James 1:12-13 “Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.”

The primary “temptation” James instructs us to “endure” is the one he talked about in the verses immediately proceeding, namely the temptation to allow material goods to take an improper place in our lives. Not only do we tend to worship money, use funds for selfish ends, and hoard resources intended for Gods work, but we then turn around and blame God for tempting us by giving money to us in the first place. The disease infecting our first parents, blame-shift sickness, is a virus now universally contracted.

James responds to those blaming God for their giving into temptations with three important truths:

God is impervious to evil and does not tempt anyone with sin.

Temptation comes from our lust to have it our way over God’s.

God grants endurance and reward to those who turn from evil to Him.

The fight against evil requires a commitment to truth and reliance on grace and comes with a reward for the steadfast. In Christ alone lies the truth and grace needed for salvation and the endurance leading to eternal rewards.

Lord, help us to see ourselves in the light of truth, confess where we fail, and endure in the grace found through Christ’s gospel. When we sin, may we remember that deflecting blame causes us to miss the fact that our temptations lie on the doorstep of Home, not Heaven.

- Micah McElveen

Rolled Away // Micah

Do you ever have days you would rather forget? You know, the ones that seem to be headed downhill from the time you roll out of bed. The thought of a button that wipes the memory of regret, failure, and disappointment is quite appealing on those days. While memory swipes are not realistic fresh starts are.

At Calvary, Christ paid the price our sin debt required in horrific fashion. Pronounced dead, His lifeless body, broken and beaten for us, was pulled from the cross and placed behind a massive stone inside a borrowed tomb. But Christ, who was thought to be overcome by death, rolled away the stone meant to keep Him from life. In doing so, He conquered death and made a way for all who trust in Him to be granted eternal life. The power of Christ's death is sufficient to secure the pardon of sin and His resurrection affords new life now and forever.

This same power that rolled away the stone and raised Christ from the dead is effectual for living renewal. Yes, it secures eternal salvation futuristically but it holds the power for current victory over that which ensnares us today. Fresh starts come on the back side of us laying down what holds us back and allowing ourselves to be raised up to what lies ahead.

As the end of Holy week draws near we intently gaze upon the cross and the tomb. May we look to the cross and lay down our sin and unbelief. May we come to the tomb and see, that while we can't erase the past, He can roll away our guilt and shame both now and forevermore.

"They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. So they went in, but they didn't find the body of the Lord Jesus." Luke 24:2-3

"O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Corinthians 15:55–57

- Micah McElveen

Sex: The False Idol // Micah

The gift of sex that God has given to humanity is a wonderful thing when exercised inside God’s plan. Aside from bringing new life into the world, God made sex as a means to enjoy the beauty of one's spouse in a way that brings pleasure and enhances intimacy. Like any good thing, sex, when turned to as an ultimate thing, makes for a bad god. When sex is worshipped, it consumes and births sexual perversion, which in turn fathers all kinds of devastating off-spring. Adultery, rape, pedophilia, pornographic addictions, incest, sex-trafficking, prostitution and so on are all branches on the family tree of sexual perversion that grow from the root of sexual idolatry.

We are tempted to seek fulfillment that can only come from Christ in sex. We make gods of the beautiful and give glory to sex icons in society. We miss the fact that beauty in its various forms is ultimately intended to elevate the creator of it, not the object itself. 
In idolatry we are enticed to give worship to objects over the one who made all things including: beauty, humanity and the gift of sex. When we are tempted to give into sexual temptation, to seek physical fulfillment outside God's plan, may we reject the lie and run to Him instead. When we are enticed by the idol of sex, may we raise our gaze to behold the beauty of The One who is beautiful beyond compare.

"Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;" I Corinthians 6:18-19

“One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.” Psalm 27:4

- Micah McElveen