Richard Ellis Talks

Joseph was just an average guy -- until he decided to trust and obey God, and ultimately became Jesus' earthly father. We might not all be Joseph, but when we become Christians, we cease to become "average Joes". The moment we choose to follow Jesus, God dwells in us through His Spirit and works through us to accomplish extraordinary things.

Scripture's filled with stories that sound crazy on the surface, and none more so than the Gospel message of Jesus coming as the Messiah to die for our sins. In fact, 1 Corinthians 1:18 tells us that "the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." We will never convince anybody to believe on our own, but the Holy Spirit can use us -- and our obedience in sharing the Gospel -- to reach people that they might believe and be saved.

Scripture assures us that all the pleasures of this world will never be enough to fix our own brokenness. While it's important to enjoy and appreciate the life that God gives us, we can never lose sight of our role in obeying His commands to pursue Him above all else. Only He can change us from the inside out, and give our lives purpose and meaning.

We are all going to die one day -- of that much we can be sure -- but not all of us are sure of what will happen to us after death. We have the choice to be assured of our salvation in heaven because of Christ's sacrifice on our behalf, but it's up to us to choose. As the sand falls in our hourglass of a lifetime, our "death wish" should be an eternity with Jesus, as well as wishing that same outcome for all those around us.

In the Old Testament, God commanded His people to love Him with all their heart, soul, and strength. In the New Testament, Jesus took it one step further when He commanded us to love others as we love ourselves. The only way for us to obey is to understand the depth of God's love for us, and then to love Him in response. When we do that, we're able to love ourselves and others in the same way.

Those moments when we trade in our original plans of obedience to God, and exchange them for the temporary and fleeting pleasures of the world, can be huge mistakes that lead to grave consequences. Every choice we make has an impact not just on us but on others -- that's why we've got to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

The way we conduct ourselves on a day-to-day basis is meant to represent the abundant life we have in Christ. That means our lives would ideally model for others what it looks like to serve God. When we have a "model home" in both our family life and our personal life, that attracts others to what we have -- which is God in us -- and they're drawn to Him as a result.

Scripture tells us that the world is on a wide and easy road to destruction. That's why as followers of Jesus, we're called to take the narrow path. Ours might be a difficult journey filled with trials and testing, but it's worth it for the eternal reward we have in Christ.

The worry that we feel is often a direct reflection of our lack of trust in God. When we choose to believe that He knows what's best for us and has good plans for us, He gives us unexplainable peace and the ability to rejoice in all circumstances.

Usually the biggest hurdle standing between us and freedom from sin is...ourselves. We have the ability to learn from the consequences we've experienced in the past and recognize the path down which our current struggles are leading us. We can choose to be deceived, or we can choose the path that leads to life in Christ.