Shirley Moulton – Renewal Fellowship

The Seal Of Authenticity

Shirley Moulton — Fri, 28 Feb 2025 05:10:00 +0000

A friend of mine collects Coca-Cola memorabilia, but it must be vintage, not a reproduction. Many people shop carefully for the products of designer manufacturers, because having a designer handbag or luggage is a status symbol. For others, the latest smartphone or video game is the most prestigious version to own. A guarantee of authenticity is a valued thing, and many designers guard their patents against cheap knock-offs.

Are we just as interested in the claims of Scripture for Jesus' authenticity? No one spoke more passionately on the subject than the apostle John.

1 John 5:6-12 – This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater; for the testimony of God is this, that He has testified concerning His Son. The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. (NASB 1995)

Jesus was not a spirit, as gnostics of John's time believed, but a real man, made of flesh and blood, sent to live among us and die a man's death on a Roman cross, taking on the punishment for the sins of the world. He was baptized in water by His cousin John, and shed His blood on the cross; they are His witnesses. The Holy Spirit completes these witnesses to Jesus' humanity and His divine nature. Our faith is based on this reliable "seal of authenticity".

The apostle John deftly exposes the sin of unbelief. By rejecting God's own testimony about His Son, we are effectively saying it's not true. That makes God out to be a liar. Does that go too far for you? For many, His death on the cross is offensive and distasteful; better to trivialize the cross into jewelry or design, or replace it with a self-help gospel!

We have eternal life, but that belief rests on knowing that our salvation rests in Jesus and not in our own efforts and performance. How will you know for sure? It doesn't matter if you have a good day or a poor one, for if our salvation depends on what Jesus did for us, then we can truly know.

Prayer: We praise You, Lord, for the life You have given to us in Your Son, Jesus. Help us in our daily lives to have confidence in that "seal of authenticity". Amen.

Winter And Construction

Shirley Moulton — Sat, 22 Feb 2025 05:10:00 +0000

The saying in my city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, is that there are two seasons: winter and construction. But now, whether it be road repair, maintenance, or construction, it continues year-round. The sight of police officers guiding traffic at intersections affected by road work is common. Why do the drivers obey the directions of the traffic cop? They see that the traffic lights are inoperative, recognize the police uniform, and trust that their guidance will assure smooth and safe traffic flow.

God has offered His grace and guidance to His children, in much more than daily traffic!

1 John 5:1-5 – Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? (NASB 1995)

This passage gives a deep personal assurance of the new life that started when we began a relationship with Jesus Christ. If we love God, we will also love His family and follow His commandments for daily living. The new commands grow naturally from a love of God, but how do we know it's God's commands that we are following? Often there are many opinions, like traffic signs, that can be confusing. We check with God's Word, and we will find that His commands are not overwhelming, because they can be lived out through His power, not our own.

It is not always easy, and we will fail at times, but God is quick to forgive and to set us on the right path. Hard times and personal traffic jams will happen, but God keeps working in us, giving us the joy and ability to live the life He intended from the beginning.

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, that we are born of You and have the victory of faith to overcome all the slowdowns and frustrations of life. We know this victory because we believe that Jesus is Your Son. Amen.

Love Greater Than A Valentine

Shirley Moulton — Fri, 14 Feb 2025 05:10:00 +0000

Each year leading up to February 14, there is a rush, fueled by the chocolate and floral industries, to purchase candy and flowers for the ones we love the most. No flowers declare love more than the roses! But they are also the quickest to fade. The sentiments of Valentine's Day fade pretty quickly, too! The next day, the heart-shaped chocolates are marked down by 50%. To me, the Valentine experience says everything about the frailty and "best before date" of human love.

I am so glad that God's perfect love has no shelf life to worry about! The apostle John says it best:

1 John 4:17-21 – By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us. If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also. (NASB 1995)

As followers of Christ, we will survive judgment, but God wants so much more for us than confidence; He wants us to shine forth His truth in love! As we abide in Jesus and He in us, we take on His identity in our lives. Spiritually, we have His standing before God, not fully mature yet, but shining out that agreement with His truth and our love for each other.

The love of God is so different from what is promoted on Valentine's Day! "We love, because He first loved us" (v.19) is a powerful statement. Before the world existed, He loved each of us. Love comes from Him, and our love flows as a response to Him. We are saved by trusting in Jesus for sin's pardon by faith, and love is the fruit.

Buying a Valentine's Day gift for our loved ones is thoughtful and kind, but we are commanded to love our brothers and sisters in Christ much more. We are His disciples, and we are to love others as He did. Can you learn to love God, Whom you can't see, by loving His children, whom you can see?

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, that we love because You first loved us. Amen.

The Great Harvest

Shirley Moulton — Thu, 28 Nov 2024 04:10:00 +0000

Harvest season has come to the Ottawa valley, and most of the crops have now been gathered, as the winds become cold and clouds scud across the fall skies. Yet, some fields still carry their corn and soybean crops, as the farmers wait for clear days to dry the crop before harvesting. The Canada geese gather in the bare fields, feasting on the leftovers before the winter cold drives them south in long V-shaped squadrons.

Have you ever thought of yourself as a farmer, even a part-time one? In the prophet Hosea's time, everyone grew their own food, even if they were in other lines of work. Being a farmer himself, Hosea used farming analogies to urge his nation to change its harvest practices. Israel had sown the bad seeds of idolatry and injustice, and was reaping a harvest of judgment.

Hosea 10:12 – Sow with a view to righteousness, reap in accordance with kindness; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the Lord until He comes to rain righteousness on you. (NASB 1995)

If Hosea were among us part-time farmers today, what would he say? Just as in his day, what we sow in our lives today, we will reap in the harvest. Our thoughts, like seeds, produce actions, which become behaviour patterns and habits, and these grow in the fields of our lives. A heart hardened to God's love could be compared with fallow ground, not plowed, and resistant to the sowing of the seed of the gospel. So how do we break up the fallow ground of the unrepentant, hardened hearts of those around us? By seeking the Lord now, working on softening them, and keeping at it until they receive the seed, and the ripe harvest of God's love and mercy grows.

God will bring His rain of righteousness, but remember, the harvest is a full season away! We are not to give up blessing, being kind, and witnessing to others, knowing that the fruitful season is coming.

Prayer: We come to You with thanksgiving for the changing seasons and the blessed harvest that You grant to our farmlands. Bless us also as we seek to prepare our own hearts and those around us for Your rain of righteousness. Amen.

The Sure Foundation

Shirley Moulton — Wed, 29 May 2024 04:10:00 +0000

Growing up, I was fairly oblivious to the concerns that my parents were then experiencing: money, household, job security, school schedules, and so on. Global and political crises of our country seemed peripheral. My main concerns were playing outside with my friends, reading, and having fun. Looking back, what made our upbringing possible was the steady and deep love that our parents had for us, and the sacrifices and decisions that they made to allow us that kind of unaware, peaceful, and adventurous childhood. That was our assurance.

The way that we have that same kind of assurance in our spiritual lives, as growing Christians, is through the Holy Spirit, the abiding presence of Jesus within us.

1 John 4:13-16 – By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. (NKJV)

God should be the steady undercurrent in our lives, changing us from the inside out, educating us, and showing us how to acknowledge Jesus for Who He really is. God's amazing power within us allows us to live the life of love, for He is the source. We can say with confidence that love is not about ourselves, our friends' opinions, or what the latest philosophy says. With Him as our centre, we love unselfishly. Loving in our own power is exhausting!

Here are the central truths about God and how He saves us. Jesus is the promised Saviour, Whom we can know and in Whom we can abide. By recognizing and confessing Him as God's Son, He abides in us, and we are in fellowship with Him. Believing in Him and loving others is the evidence that God has taken hold of us.

My childhood was one of complete trust in the loving environment that my parents provided. Perhaps that was not your experience, but you can reach out now and take the love and grace that God is offering; you can believe and experience it. In this new existence, you have the stable foundation that will not shake with the onslaught of troubles and anxiety over the world's upheavals. Reach out and take the indescribable gift.

Prayer: God our Father, thank You that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ, for we are more than conquerors through Him Who loves us. Endow us with that peace that comes from Your firm foundation of love and grace. Amen.

Love Gives Its Best

Shirley Moulton — Sat, 27 Apr 2024 04:10:00 +0000

I once participated in a service of praise, prayer, and foot washing with Christian people during the Lenten season. Sitting in a circle, one by one, we knelt, washed, and dried our neighbour's feet, using a basin of warm water and a towel. Some I only knew socially, and I confess that I felt uncomfortable having someone I was only acquainted with wash my feet! Nonetheless, it was a moving and memorable event.

If I felt uncomfortable, can you imagine how the disciples must have felt, having their Lord and Master Jesus kneel and wash their feet Himself? (John 13:3-12) Perhaps this came to mind when John wrote years later, encouraging us to love each other as Christ did.

1 John 4:7-12 – Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. (NKJV)

John frequently urged believers to love each other; it was his central message. Love is of God, and to be born of God, and to claim that we know Him, we must be able to love those in His body, the church. Jesus' love was given without demand for repayment, even to the point of sacrificing Himself for our sakes. Nothing else would satisfy God's demand for justice for sin, but His love saved us from the judgment that we deserved, and love enables us to grow and live through Him. God did not withhold His best gift, His own Son, "His indescribable gift". (2 Corinthians 9:15b NKJV)

If God did this for us — rebels who turned our backs on Him — how much more are we to love each other, even if it's uncomfortable! How will you respond to His indescribable gift today? Love for others is the evidence that He is among us. People don't see God, but they will see His love shown in our lives. As we love one another, they will seek Him for themselves, in order to be loved by Him.

Prayer: Our Lord, we are amazed that You did not withhold from us Your own best gift, Your Son Jesus, for You love us that much. Help us to love each other as a witness to our world. Amen.

True Or False?

Shirley Moulton — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 04:10:00 +0000

My dad was a talented woodworker and carpenter, doing many renovations in our home and even building a rowboat. I took a woodworking class in high school, and although I was not skillful, I did gain an appreciation for the beauty of wood. The tools for fashioning wood and for building are fascinating. A spirit level is a tool used to check whether a horizontal surface is level or a vertical one is plumb. A magnet will distinguish magnetic metals, like iron and nickel, from non-magnetic ones like aluminum, copper, and brass. A chemical solution is used to test old paint for lead before it is stripped off a surface, so that the woodworker can wear protective gear if necessary.

Wouldn't it be great to have a gizmo in your pocket to be a handy test for truth and falsehood? When it comes to teaching about the Christian faith and our Lord Jesus, not every message is true, as the apostle John reminds us.

1 John 4:1-3a,6 – Beloved, do not believe in every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. (NKJV)

Here, John assures us of our own faith, and advises us to test whether or not the messages about Jesus are true. Some people who speak of spiritual things can be convincing and passionate, even about supernatural things, but is that teaching from the Holy Spirit, or from a selfish, prideful spirit? We have the Scriptures to test every message, for Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the living, active Word of God "is able to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart".

Anyone who doesn't acknowledge that Jesus is God in human flesh is not of God. Many people have nice things to say about Jesus, and even acknowledge Him as a prophet, but stop short of accepting that He was fully human and fully God. This is the beating heart of the gospel, that He came in human form to live with us and to take on God's punishment so that we may be saved. This truth is the test for a genuine message from God.

Let's be confident about the tools that we have at hand to discern truth from falsehood. Don't be afraid or discouraged, because our God is a mighty God, and His truth will last for all eternity.

Prayer: "Thine forever! God of love, hear us from Thy throne above; thine forever may we be, here and in eternity." (Mary Fawler Maude, 1819-1913) Thank You for Your enduring truth, and for the gift of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.