Larry Grays – NorthStar Church Blog

Digging Deeper: Confessing or Denying Jesus

Larry Grays on August 30, 2024

“Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven.

Matthew 10:32-33 (NLT)

CONFESSING OR DENYING JESUS

Two young men came to New York City from the countryside for a visit. They stayed at the same boarding house and shared a room. When it was time for bed, each felt ashamed to be the first to kneel and pray in front of the other. So, they sat watching each other. At last, one of them mustered up a little courage, and with a burning blush, as if he were about to do something wrong or wicked, he sank to his knees to say his prayers. As soon as the second saw that, he also knelt. After they had said their prayers, each waited for the other to get up. When they finally did, one said to the other, “I’m really glad to see that you knelt; I was afraid of you.” “Well,” said the other, “I was afraid of you.” It turned out that both were Christians, yet they were afraid of each other. You might smile at that, but how many times have you done the same thing—maybe not in the exact same way, but in effect? (source unknown)

There is coming a day when we will all stand before God the Father. The good news is that, on that day, Jesus will claim and confess everyone as His who confessed Him publicly. The bad news is that those who deny Jesus Christ on earth will be denied by Jesus Christ before God in heaven. To deny Christ in this sense means refusing to recognize His claims over one’s life. It means refusing to openly follow Him. Jesus teaches us to examine our lives and ask: Am I confessing, or am I denying? Baptism is one of the first ways we publicly confess Christ before others.

Reflection

Mike said, “Baptism is my declaration that I’m no longer a ‘fan’ in the stands but a PLAYMAKER on the field for Jesus!” Is it clear to the people around you that you are on Jesus’ team? Have you demonstrated that through baptism? If not, what is holding you back?

Prayer/Praise

Thank Jesus for being willing to claim you as His when He stands before God the Father. Pray that God will give you the courage to never be ashamed of your relationship with Him.

Dr. Larry Grays is the father of four and lives in the Canton area. Larry consults with churches, schools, city governments, and businesses nationwide. He’s been a member of the NorthStar family for over 20 years.

Digging Deeper: Baptism Follows Faith in Christ

Larry Grays on August 29, 2024

But now the people believed Philip’s message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized.

Acts 8:12 (NLT)

BAPTISM IN THE NEW TESTAMENT ALWAYS FOLLOWS A PERSON COMING TO FAITH IN CHRIST

When a person pledges allegiance to the flag, he or she is openly identifying with the United States of America. Likewise, when a person is baptized, he or she is pledging allegiance to Jesus Christ by openly identifying with Him.

A second illustration of baptism is the wedding ring. When a man (or woman) gets married, he (or she) almost always begins to wear a wedding ring or band. The wedding ring does not make someone married; some people choose not to wear a ring, yet they are still legally and truly married. However, the wedding ring is more than a piece of ornamental jewelry. It represents the solemn commitment of a man and a woman to become husband and wife. It is a public testimony to that commitment. A wedding ring identifies a wife with her husband and a husband with his wife. It is a public symbol of a private commitment. Likewise, when a person is baptized, he or she is publicly identifying with Jesus Christ. It is an outward symbol of an inward commitment. (Brian Bill)

Acts 8:12 emphasizes that “as a result” of believing the message of Jesus and salvation, many were baptized. Baptism that comes before someone believes in Jesus for themselves is nothing more than getting wet and has no spiritual value for the believer personally. Biblical baptism always followed someone believing the message of Jesus.

Reflection

Do you remember when you were baptized? Did your baptism come after you repented of your sins and trusted in Jesus for your salvation? If not, let our church office know that you would like to get your baptism in the right order, and let’s get it scheduled.

Praise/Prayer

Thank God for pledging His commitment to you by inviting you into a personal relationship with Him. Ask God to help you live out your commitment to Him, beginning with baptism and continuing by daily following Jesus.

Digging Deeper: Baptism – From Death to Life

Larry Grays on August 28, 2024

12 For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.

Colossians 2:12 (NLT)

BAPTISM IS A SYMBOLIC ACT THAT TELLS THE WORLD THAT JESUS HAS BROUGHT ME FROM DEATH TO LIFE

Randy Travis released a song entitled “Pray for the Fish.” The second verse says:

Well, the preacher ducked him under that cool clear water, then he did it again. Eddie came up yellin’: “Lord in Heaven, hallelujah! I’m a brand new man! Well, the water got to bubblin’, sky got to rumblin’ an’ the thunder backed up the choir. The fish started jumpin’; it was like they were swimmin’ in a lake of fire. Then Eddie’s Momma stepped outta the crowd, And started yellin’ out loud: “Pray for the fish! They won’t know what’s coming when the sin starts rollin’ off the likes of him. Lord, be with ‘em, they ain’t done nothin’.”

Mike reminded us on Sunday that baptism tells the world that you have been changed from the inside out. When you are baptized, you are visually preaching the gospel. As you stand in the water waiting to be baptized, you symbolize Jesus dying on the cross. As you are lowered into the water, you’re providing a visual demonstration that Jesus was buried in the tomb. As you shoot out of the water, you are providing a picture of Jesus rising from the dead. Baptism is a physical picture of you dying spiritually to your old self and coming out of the water to a new life as a Christian.

Reflection

Jesus taught that Satan wants to destroy life and that He came to give abundant life. In what ways has Satan tried to destroy your life? In what ways has Jesus given you new life?

Praise/Prayer

Praise God for the power He has to rescue from spiritual death and give you the gift of eternal life. Ask God to show you how He wants you to experience the new life He has given you while you are here on earth.

Digging Deeper: Jesus Commands Every Follower of His to be Baptized

Larry Grays on August 27, 2024

19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:19-20 (NLT)

JESUS COMMANDS EVERY FOLLOWER OF HIS TO BE BAPTIZED

A father was talking to his oldest son about the boy’s upcoming baptism. Wanting him to understand the significance of the event, he took great care in explaining it to him. While they were talking, the boy’s younger brother, a little four-year-old, left the room looking visibly upset. Concerned, the father followed him to see what was wrong. Tearfully, the little boy confessed, “I want to be alphabetized with my brother.”

Many of us have grown up with confusion about what baptism means and why it’s important. On Sunday, Mike took great care to help us understand the significance of baptism by explaining what Jesus said about it. Matthew records these words in Matthew 28:19-20 as the final instructions of Jesus before He ascended back to heaven. This passage calls every Christian to go, make disciples, teach, and baptize. The progression is: we go and spread the gospel; in our witnessing, we will make disciples; we baptize those disciples and then teach them to obey the words of Jesus. It is fundamental to our mission in the world. Baptism is a clear command of Jesus Christ. We obey Him when we are baptized, and we disobey Him when we refuse baptism.

Reflection

Did you have a clear understanding of baptism before the message on Sunday? What is something new you learned or a perspective you gained about baptism from the message?

Prayer

Praise God for the clarity He gives about what He expects from you in your walk with Him. Ask God to reveal any areas of disobedience in your life, starting with baptism.

Digging Deeper: Lydia – Going Public

Larry Grays on August 26, 2024

14 One of them was Lydia from Thyatira, a merchant of expensive purple cloth, who worshiped God. As she listened to us, the Lord opened her heart, and she accepted what Paul was saying. 15 She and her household were baptized, and she asked us to be her guests. “If you agree that I am a true believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my home.” And she urged us until we agreed.

Acts 16:14-15 (NLT)

LYDIA: GOING PUBLIC

In Acts 16, Paul and Silas came across what amounts to a women’s small group Bible study. They meet a woman named Lydia, whom the Bible describes as a “worshipper” or “God-fearing woman.” Lydia believed in God, but she was not yet saved. According to Pastor Matt Chandler, “God-fearing” means she had rejected paganism and was worshipping the Father. Lydia had come to believe that there is one God. She listened to the teachings of the Jews, trying to grasp what it meant to live a God-fearing life; she wanted to live out her faith in the context of her family and her business. It was into this setting that Paul appeared, and Lydia listened to his teaching. Lydia eventually became the first Christian convert in Europe.

Lydia understood that the gospel wasn’t just for her; it was for the world, beginning in her home. Lydia made the decision to believe in Jesus and be baptized. She then introduced her family and everyone in her household to the gospel. What started in Lydia’s house eventually spread to the nation. Lydia went public with her faith.

Reflection

Have you ever heard someone say, “I believe faith is a personal matter”? Do you think Lydia believed her faith and baptism were a personal matter? It was a personal decision that affected everyone around her. How has your faith and baptism impacted your household lately?

Prayer

Praise God for His ability to completely change our homes. Tell God you are willing to go public with your faith. Ask God to help your faith be contagious to the people around you.

Digging Deeper: Express Your Faith Through Your Worship

Larry Grays on May 31, 2024

8 From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord.

Genesis 12:8 (ESV)

EXPRESS YOUR FAITH THROUGH YOUR WORSHIP

A church had a man in the choir who couldn’t sing. Others tried to help him find other places of ministry in the church, but he insisted on being in the choir. The choir director became so desperate that he went to the pastor. “Pastor, you have to do something with brother Jones. If you can’t persuade him to leave the choir, then I quit and most of the choir will quit too. Help us!” The pastor went to the man and suggested that he leave the choir. “Why should I leave?” he asked. “Several people have told me you can’t sing,” the pastor replied. “That’s nothing.” he responded. “Fifty have told me you can’t preach and you are still here.” (Source Unknown).

Worship does not depend on your ability to sing well. Worship is how we respond to God’s greatness and how we express our faith in Him. The first evidence of a living faith is a changed life. The second evidence of a living faith is true worship. Twice in this short passage, we are told that Abram built an altar to the LORD. Warren Wiersbe notes that “Wherever Abraham went in the land of Canaan, he was marked by his tent and his altar (Gen. 12:7–8; 13:3–4, 18). The tent marked him as a ‘stranger and pilgrim’ who did not belong to this world (Heb. 11:9–16; 1 Peter 2:11), and the altar marked him as a citizen of heaven who worshiped the true and living God.”

Reflection

One of my favorite definitions of worship is “all that I am rightly responding to all that God is.” Romans 12:1 says, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” What are some ways you worship God with your entire life?

Prayer/Praise

Thank God for all the mercy and love He has shown to you. Take some time to worship God by singing along with some of your favorite worship songs. Offer God your body to be used by Him however He wants.

Digging Deeper: Express Your Faith Through Your Witness

Larry Grays on May 30, 2024

Genesis 12:8 (ESV)

EXPRESS YOUR FAITH THROUGH YOUR WITNESS

Abram lived out his faith and others could see the impact it made on his daily choices. Abram pitched his tent between Bethel and Ai. The word Bethel means “House of God.” Bethel is the symbol of communion with God. It was at Bethel that the patriarch Jacob would later meet God one lonely night (Gen. 28). The name Ai means “A Heap of Ruins”. Ai is the symbol of the world. It was here that Israel would later learn a valuable lesson about faith, obedience, and the destructive power of sin. As Abraham journeyed, he seemed to be moving away from “A Heap of Ruins” toward the “House of God.” This symbolizes the fact that Abraham was moving away from what he used to be, toward that which God desired for him to be! That’s what happens when a person sets out to walk with the Lord!

In 1893, engineer George Ferris built a machine that bears his name-the Ferris wheel. When it was finished, he invited a newspaper reporter to accompany him and his wife for the inaugural ride. It was a windy July day, so a stiff breeze struck the wheel with great force as it slowly began its rotation. Despite the wind, the wheel turned flawlessly. After one revolution, Ferris called for the machine to be stopped so that he, his wife, and the reporter could step out. In braving that one revolution on the windblown Ferris wheel, each occupant demonstrated genuine faith. Mr. Ferris began with the scientific knowledge that the machine would work and that it would be safe. Mrs. Ferris and the reporter believed the machine would work on the basis of what the inventor had said. But only after the ride could it be said of all three that they had personal, experiential faith. (Source unknown).

Reflection

God does not intend for you to live your faith in private. Genuine faith shows up in our daily lives and brings light to dark places. Where is your faith most obvious, and where is your faith most hidden?

Praise/Prayer

Praise God for the dark places He has placed you so you can be a light for Him. Ask God to show you someone who needs to see and hear about the difference Jesus can make in their life.

Digging Deeper: Place Your Faith in More Than Earthly Prosperity

Larry Grays on May 29, 2024

Genesis 12:8 (ESV)

PLACE YOUR FAITH IN MORE THAN EARTHLY PROSPERITY

Imagine that you are out in the middle of a lake and there are two rowboats and you are standing with one foot in each boat. One boat, however, is filled with holes and is sinking fast. It is obvious that unless you do something you will soon be in the lake. The boat with the holes represents ourselves with all of the leaks caused by sin. The boat without holes represents Christ. It should be obvious that with one foot in each boat, we shall end up in the same place that we would have ended up in had we had both feet in the boat marked “self.” The only safe place to be is to have both feet firmly planted in the boat marked “Christ.” (C. Spurgeon)

We were reminded on Sunday that “our faith is greater than our square footage.” In Genesis 12:8 the only piece of Promised Land that Abram actually owned was his burial plot. Everything else was in a tent. A tent is not a permanent dwelling. However, Abram’s hope and faith weren’t in temporary material possessions; they were in the Lord. Hebrews 11:10 reminds us Abram “was looking for that city whose architect and builder is God.”

Reflection

What are some ways that living in a tent symbolizes the foolishness of trusting in material things? What are some eternal things that you are investing in and in what ways?

Praise/Prayer

Praise God for the eternal hope you have in Christ. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you any earthly possessions you may be clinging too tightly to.

Digging Deeper: Your Faith Requires Trust, Not Complete Clarity

Larry Grays on May 28, 2024

8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.

Hebrews 11:8 (ESV)

YOUR FAITH REQUIRES TRUST, NOT COMPLETE CLARITY

During a baseball game in the summer of 2006, Boston Red Sox centerfielder Coco Crisp made a spectacular play. David Wright of the New York Mets hit a ball toward left-center field. The ball was moving away from Crisp as he raced after it. Just as it began to fall to the ground, Crisp dove headlong toward it. With his body flying through the air, he stretched his gloved hand as far as possible—and caught the ball. Some called it the best catch they had ever seen. What were his thoughts as the ball sliced through the air? Crisp said, “I didn’t think I could get there. I decided to go for it. I took a leap of faith.” (Our Daily Bread)

When Abram left his hometown of Ur he took a leap of faith. In Hebrews 11:8, the Bible says, “he left not knowing where he was going.” In Genesis 12:1, God promised to eventually show Abram where He was leading him. But when Abram left he did not have clarity about his final destination. He only had trust that God would not lead him astray. God doesn’t always tell us where He is leading us. He simply wants us to trust and follow Him.

Reflection

Can you think of a time when God did not give you clarity but He asked you to trust Him to not lead you astray? Is there something God is asking you to let go of now and trust Him to provide?

Prayer

Praise God for His perfect timing. Thank Him for bringing clarity when it’s time. Ask God to help you learn to wait on Him.

Digging Deeper: Stepping Out in Faith

Larry Grays on May 27, 2024

1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Genesis 12:1-3 (ESV)

STEPPING OUT IN FAITH

We learned on Sunday that God had a blessing in store for Abram, but to receive the blessing, Abram had to trust God’s Word, step out in faith, and leave all that was comfortable to him. This required a lot of faith because he was a successful businessman with established relationships and connections. God’s call was a call to separate himself from the corruption around him, and Abraham obeyed by faith. His faith opened the door to God’s blessings.

Imagine two letters that are sent to the post office. One letter is typed beautifully by a word processor. It is typed on exquisite, expensive stationery. There is not a word misspelled. It is beautifully framed. Everything is perfect, not a smudge, not a smear. It is perfectly addressed and it’s placed in the mail.

Another letter is written. This letter is written on common notepaper like a yellow legal pad. It’s stuffed into an envelope. It is written in pencil. It is full of grammatical errors. It is smudged and dirty. It has erasures on it. But there’s a difference in the two letters. The first letter, so beautifully written, has no stamp on it. The second letter, written in pencil, with smudges and smears, has a stamp on it. Question: Which letter will be delivered?

Faith is the stamp that gets your letter on through—faith. Some people may pray beautiful prayers; I mean they are eloquent, and they may be right, and the content may be good, but there is no stamp on the letter. (Adrian Rogers)

Bible scholar, Warren Wiersbe, writes, “The life of Abraham is an example for all Christians who want to walk by faith. Abraham was saved by faith (Gen. 15:6; Rom. 4:1–5; Gal. 3:6–14) and lived by faith (Heb. 11:8–19), and his obedience was the evidence of his faith (James 2:14–26).”

Reflection

Obedient faith hears what God’s Word is saying to me and responds with appropriate action. What did you hear from God’s Word in the sermon this week? What was God saying to you? How did you respond?

Prayer

Praise God for His faithfulness to keep the promises in His Word. Ask God to grow your faith to step out and trust His promises.