Truth Matters Posts
Come on man!
Do we need to be reminded again who Jesus is!?!
• rescued us from the authority of darkness, and transferred us to His kingdom
• image of the invisible God
• in Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities
• He is before all things,
• in Him all things hold together
• made peace through the blood of His cross
(Colossians 1)
Like Dr. S.M. Lockridge preached…”That's My King.” But is He really your king…my king? We like to say He is…but is He really? We often don't live like it. We often don't really trust Him with our lives. We refuse to obey His word because of our pride…our feeling too vulnerable…our lack allowing His word to speak to our own hearts and minds. When we understand who our Lord and Savior is…how can we ever have reservations about obeying Him completely…how can we neglect a committed, intense relationship with Him? There is no one greater than Jesus. There is no one who provides us with eternal life than Jesus. There is no one who loves us more than Jesus. There is no one who can protect, deliver, safeguard, guide us through life more perfectly than Jesus. And yet…we live with doubt, anxiousness, defeat, without trust, without hope. In the words of President Biden, “come on man!”
Today's My Utmost for His Highest also confronts us with a similar, “come on man!”
We have to battle through our moods into absolute devotion to Jesus Christ, to get out of the hole of our own experience into abandoned devotion to him. Think about what the New Testament says about Jesus Christ, and then think about the trifling, inadequate faith many of us have. Yet we base our faith not in him but in our experiences. We complain that this or that hasn't happened to us, and we talk about all our difficult things.
We have to continually move beyond our experiences into faith in Jesus Christ. We have to seek the New Testament Jesus Christ—not a prayer meeting Jesus Christ or a book Jesus Christ, but the Jesus Christ who is God incarnate, the Christ whose majesty so overwhelms us that we fall at his feet as if dead (Revelation 1:17).
No wonder the Holy Spirit has such a rugged impatience with unbelief. He knows that all our fears are wicked, and that we fear because we won't nourish ourselves in our faith. How can anyone who is identified with Jesus Christ suffer from doubt or fear! Our lives in him should be psalms of irrepressible, triumphant belief.
When thinking about President Biden's “come on man,” I think about this stinging rebuke: “then think about the trifling, inadequate faith many of us have. Yet we base our faith not in him but in our experiences. We complain that this or that hasn't happened to us, and we talk about all our difficult things.” Knowing who we serve and follow, we should be the most confident, joyous people on the planet. We have to keep reminded ourselves of Jesus' power, love, provision, and direction in our lives when our faith falters and Satan attacks. My prayer for me and you this day is this: Lord, help us to “take up the shield of faith with which we will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one.” Remind us often Who we serve! Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Can't Escape
One of the supreme dangers of giving oneself to the exegetical details of the biblical text and doctrine is you can become an expert on the Bible, but not realize what the Bible is saying to you personally. This next Sunday I'll be preaching from Colossians 3:19 where the text tells husbands to love their wives and not to become embittered against them. I can delve into the text with precision and accuracy, which I do, without realizing that God is talking to me personally. I came to realize the text was exposing weaknesses in me as a husband that need repentance and correction.
I think a lot of us are like that. We agree with the admonition to be “workmen&women that need not to be ashamed,” but we don't pay much attention to the next part “rightly dividing the word of truth.” I think the phrase “rightly dividing” means more than just accuracy…it also means coming face to face with what God is saying to us personally. Sometimes it might be because we don't like the personal confrontation with God…sometimes because we want to “straighten out” someone else…but many times we need to be reminded again and again—my Lord Jesus is speaking to me and no one else in the room…it's not primarily about accuracy, it's about what is God saying to me.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest reminds us this very thing:
Martha believed in the power at the disposal of Jesus Christ. She believed that Jesus could have healed her brother, Lazarus, if only Jesus had been present when Lazarus was dying (John 11:21). She also believed that Jesus had a unique relationship with God and that whatever Jesus asked of God, God would do. But Martha needed a closer personal intimacy with Jesus; her program of belief was entirely focused on future fulfillment. When Jesus told her that Lazarus would rise again, she replied, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day” (v. 24). Jesus wanted her belief to be rooted in the present moment; he wanted her faith to be a personal possession, and he asked a question that led her to a new understanding: “Do you believe?”
Is there something similar in the Lord's current dealings with you? Is Jesus educating you into personal intimacy with him? Let him drive his questions home: “Do you believe? What is your ordeal of doubt?” Have you, like Martha, come to some overwhelming moment in your circumstances, a moment when your program of belief is about to become personal belief? This can never take place until a personal need arises out of a personal problem.
To believe is to commit. If I have a program of belief, I commit myself to a certain set of ideas or principles and abandon all that is not related to them. In personal belief, I commit myself morally to confidence in the person of Jesus Christ and refuse to compromise. I commit myself spiritually to the Lord, and determine that, in this particular thing, I will be dominated by him.
I was reminded of the passage from James 1:23-24 -- 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24 for once he looked at himself and has gone away, he immediately forgot what kind of person he was.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord we don't want to be those who just study and hear but then walk away from our study not realizing You are speaking to us to reprove, critique our hearts, instruct us personally. We want to be accurate, but more than that, we want You to dominate our lives. We love Your word. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
How to Decide
Common sense or faith? This is the dilemma we all grapple with in the Christian life. We want God's will to prevail in our lives, but where do we start? Do we wait for some unmistakable sign giving us direction? And if so, how can we be sure the “sign” is from God?
“Common sense” is the ability to make sound judgments and decisions based on simple perception of the situation or facts. It's often about practical, straightforward thinking that's rooted in basic human experience and logic. When trying to discern what direction to go, I think it starts with “common sense” constrained by God's word. That is, we decide based upon our perceptions of the situations, our experiences and facts we know, but we can never go with “common sense” that leads us outside of scripture parameters. But, “common sense” is where we start.
Then…we go. We pursue our “common sense” decision. A rudder can't steer a non-moving ship…neither can God direct us unless we “go.” What happens next is that in our pursuit, God comes into the picture. That's what Romans 8:28 is about. We pray that God blesses our “common sense” decision, but inevitably He works within our decision to draw us to Jesus. Sometimes God brings in factors that cause us to change our “common sense” decision and we change course. Sometimes God tweaks our decisions in directions we never considered. But in every case, God will use our experience and logic to point us to Jesus Christ. Sometimes painfully, regretfully…sometimes through increased discernment given by the Holy Spirit and our spiritual maturity, but in either case, God will work through our decisions (whether good or bad) to draw us to Christ. (Romans 8:28-30)
Today's My Utmost for His Highest hits upon this important issue:
“Faith in antagonism to common sense is fanaticism; common sense in antagonism to faith is rationalism. The life of faith brings the two into a right relationship. Common sense isn't faith, and faith isn't common sense. They stand in the relation of the natural to the spiritual, of impulse to inspiration.
Faith must be tested before it becomes real. If we love God and are called according to his purpose, we can rest assured that no matter what happens, the working of his providence will transform the object of our faith—Jesus Christ—into an active, vital force in each of our lives. The whole purpose of God is to make faith real in the lives of his children. He does this for each one of us personally, working through our individual circumstances.
God brings us into certain circumstances in order to test and educate our faith, because the nature of faith is to make its object real. Until we know Jesus, God is a mere abstraction; we cannot have faith in him.
Faith knows that for every commonsense situation, there's a revelation fact that can be drawn upon to prove in practical experience what we believe God to be. Faith is the whole person rightly related to God by the power of Jesus Christ.
A very wise, “common sense” guy made this statement:
We can make our plans, but the final outcome is in God's hands.
2 We can always “prove” that we are right, but is the Lord convinced?
3 Commit your work to the Lord, then it will succeed.
4 The Lord has made everything for his own purposes
Proverbs 16:1-4 TLB
Having to make a decision? Here's the sequence: 1) Before you “go,” evaluate your decision based upon God's word. 2) “Go,” that is, use the “common sense” God has given you 3) Commit your decision to God's glory 4) Know that your experiences, logic, facts God will use for His purposes 5) Know that God will direct your decisions to bring you to Christ-likeness.
When it comes to making decisions, may our prayer today be expressed in this song:
Give of your best to the Master;
Give Him first place in your heart,Throw your soul's fresh, glowing ardor
Into the battle for truth.
Jesus has set the example,
Dauntless was He, young and brave;
Give Him your loyal devotion;
Give Him the best that you have.
Give of your best to the Master;
Give of the strength of your youth;
Clad in salvation's full armor,
Join in the battle for truth.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Not Sympathy
Such a distorted view we often when proclaiming the gospel. We often give the impression that God was moved with sympathy toward us. God knows we'er just sheep gone astray…and out of sympathy and love for such vulnerable folks like us, He sent Jesus to give us a chance for eternal life. That is a distorted view of what salvation is.
1. We never were just wayward “spiritual goofballs.” We were all deliberate, hopeless “enemies” of God and Christ. (Romans 5:10; Romans 3:10-18)
2. God did not send His Son because He wanted to show sympathy. Jesus came for expressed purpose of dying in our place. (1 Timothy 1:15 -- It is a trustworthy saying and deserving full acceptance: that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; Luke 22:42 - “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me, yet not My will but Yours be done.”
3. God takes the initiative in our salvation. (John 6:44 - “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.”
Yes we like to talk about the “love” of God as if the gospel was about some sympathetic celestial grandfather, but often missing are the facts about who we are and what it took to save us rebellious sinners.
This is what today's My Utmost for His Highest points out:
“The modern view of the death of Jesus is that he died for our sins out of sympathy. The New Testament view is that he bore our sins by substitution: God “made him . . . to be sin.” Our sins are removed because of the death of Jesus, and the explanation of his death is his obedience to his Father, not his sympathy with us. We are acceptable to God not because we've obeyed or promised to give up things but because of his Son's death.
We say that Jesus came to reveal the loving-kindness of God. The New Testament says that Jesus came to take away the sins of the world. Jesus never spoke of himself as one who'd been sent to reveal the Father's sympathy. Instead, he spoke of himself as a stumbling block, as someone who came to erect new standards and place new demands on all who heard his word: “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin” (John 15:22). The great stumbling blocks in modern spiritual life are our Lord's character and the demands of the Spirit. We think we'd be happy if only God would stop demanding personal holiness. Maybe so, but we'd be happy on the way to hell. It is God who puts the stumbling blocks in our path, and the stumbling over them awakens us.
The idea that God died for me and therefore I go scot-free is never taught in the New Testament. What is taught is that “he died for all” (2 Corinthians 5:15) and that, by identification with his death, I can be freed from sin and have his righteousness imparted to me (Galatians 2:20-21). The substitution taught in the New Testament is twofold: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” It's not Christ for me unless I am determined to have Christ formed in me”
The gospel tells us who God is…who we are…what God has done…and what our response must be. Never let us forget that order. It's an amazing love that God has, but that love is manifest on His terms not on our warped view of sympathy.
Thank You Lord for dying for me. Now I can better comprehend better Your amazing love. As Lehman wrote in 1953:
The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell.
It goes beyond the highest star
And reaches to the lowest hell.
The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled
And pardoned from his sin.
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure—
The saints' and angels' song.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Consumers or Edifiers
What really matters? That's a question the modern day church-goer needs to evaluate, especially in these days of deception and falling away. Jesus prophesied that as we get closer to the time of the Tribulation, this falling away will become more common place - “And at that time many will fall away…And many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many.” (Matthew 24:10-11). The Spirit speaking through the Apostle Paul warned - “…in the latter times some will fall away from the faith …holding to a form of godliness but denying its power” (1 Timothy 4:1; 2 Timothy 3:5). God's viewpoint could be directed to many modern day church-goers - “I am amazed that you are to quickly deserting Him who called you…(Galatians 1:6)
President John F. Kennedy raised another issue for self-centered, consumer oriented church-goers. He was stating politically what modern church-goers should be saying to themselves: “Ask not what your country can do for you…ask what you can do for your country.” Modern, self-centered church-goers should replace “country” with the more important concept, “church.” The church was never designed to be “consumer oriented” but rather the church was designed to be a mutually edifying group of God's people helping one another to grow in conformity to Jesus Christ…and that will require humility and self-sacrifice.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest hits upon these topics:
“We imagine that God has a special interest in our personal biases. We're sure He'll never deal with us as He does with others. We think, “Well, of course God has to handle those people in a very stern way, but He knows my biases are OK.” Not a bit of it!
Instead of God being on the side of our biases, he is deliberately wiping them out. It's part of our moral education to have our biases pierced straight through by his providence.
God wants only one thing from us: unconditional surrender. When we are born again, the Holy Spirit begins to work his new creation inside us, and a time will come when the old life will have gone entirely—the old sense of self-importance, the old attitudes.
How are we to get this new life? The life that has no self-interest, no oversensitivity? How will we get the love that is not easily angered, that thinks no evil (1 Corinthians 13:4-6)? The only way is by allowing nothing of the old life to remain—only simple, perfect trust in God, such trust that we no longer want God's blessings, only God Himself. Have we come to the place where God can withdraw His blessings and it doesn't shake our trust in him? Once we've seen God at work, we will never again worry ourselves about what happens. All our trust will be in our Father in heaven, whom the world cannot see.”
Today's consumer-oriented church-goer will have real problems with this Truth Matter. It takes commitment and an unending pursuit of truth to realize we live to edify others in the body of Christ not insist on fulfilling our personal biases. We all have to remember -“the whole body, being joined and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the properly measured working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.” (Ephesians 4:16)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, as long as we see the church having to acquiesce to our biases, we will view that church as consumers. Help us to put aside our biases and see our roles as building up one another in the body of believers God has placed us in. Our prayer should reflect this song:
Make me a servant, humble and meek.
Lord let me lift up those who are weak.
And may the prayer of my heart always be:
Make me a servant, make me a servant, make me a servant today.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Speak Gracefully
There are times when we are so convinced our positions are right, that we come across angry, belligerent, unforgiving. It might have to do with politics, finances, sports teams etc., but it even extends to our theological convictions. Could it be that a lot of that “angry, belligerent, unforgiving” attitude comes from our own insecurities or inabilities to defend our convictions with understanding and grace? We think we'll win if we talk louder or more forcibly. I appreciate there will be times when we have to be forceful when it comes to God's word, but I don't think that should be our Christ-following modus operandi of getting to the truth. I listened to part of the sermon I preached yesterday and I was struck by the very thing I'm warning about today, namely “talking louder and more forcibly”...coming across “angry, belligerent, unforgiving” to get a point across. The Spirit of God had to deal with me and bring me to repentance.
I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who deals with this issue. We all do to a lesser or greater extent. We have to be careful here because if our positions are based in truth, let the truth do the convincing, do our homework, know of what we speak, but not by trying to defend our position by forcefully insisting. Our convictions should be based on the truth of God's word but seasoned with grace and understanding. The Spirit reminds us:
“sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make an explanation to every one who asks you to give an account for the confidence that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.” (1 Peter 3:15)
This is the theme of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“There was nothing impulsive and nothing cold-blooded about our Lord, just a calm strength that never got into a panic. Most of us develop our Christianity along the line of our own impulses rather than along the line of God. Impulsiveness is a natural human trait, but our Lord always ignores it, because it hinders the development of the life of a disciple.
Watch how the Spirit of God checks our impulses. Impulsiveness is fine in a child but disastrous in a man or a woman; an impulsive adult is always a petulant adult. Impulsiveness has to be trained into intuition by discipline.
Discipleship has no impulsiveness in it; it is built entirely on the supernatural grace of God. We do need His grace in order to live twenty-four hours of every day as a saint, to go through drudgery as a child of God, to live an ordinary, unobserved, ignored existence as a disciple of Jesus Christ. We think that we have to do exceptional things for God, but this isn't true. We have to be exceptional in ordinary things, to be holy in mean streets, and this isn't learned in five minutes.”
We thank God that He is compassionate and gracious to us as He reveals His truth to us. It's not going to be our “forcefulness” that convinces people to see things from God's perspective, but it will be a gracious communication of God's truth that the Spirit will use to change minds and hearts. God put it this way:
12 Now we have received the [Holy] Spirit who is from God, so that we may know and understand the [wonderful] things freely given to us by God. 13 We also speak of these things, not in words taught or supplied by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining and interpreting spiritual thoughts with spiritual words [for those being guided by the Holy Spirit]. (1 Corinthians 2:12-13 amp)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, help us to be more like You...communicating truth with the Godly balance of grace and uncompromising biblical truth. Keep our insecurities and pride out of it. Help us to be humble communicators of Your truth. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Blessed Uttermost
The other day I was driving in my car and heard a song on the radio I needed that day:
I'm saved to the uttermost and I know that I am,
Washed in the blood of the precious lamb.
Through the Father, through the Son, through the Holy Ghost,
I'm saved to the uttermost.
The reason I needed that song was because I was feeling so inadequate, so prone to sin...thinking Jesus would have had it with me. The Holy Son of God would no longer tolerate the sinful imperfections in my life...imperfections that are my fault...imperfections that keep me feeling that I'm no longer acceptable to Holy God. Then I was reminded of that song, “I'm saved to the uttermost, washed in the blood of the precious Lamb.” But the most important part of that song was “and I know that I am.” I needed to be reminded of that. I needed to be reminded of what God says to me: “nothing can separate me from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:39) A renewed sense of confidence, assurance, and a thankful heart for the magnificent, magnanimous grace that bought me and made me His own came as I thought about the word “uttermost” in that song.
Maybe you go through experiences like mine...you probably do...I think we all do. The more mature we become as Christ followers, the more sin bothers us. During those times it becomes even more important that we remember “uttermost.”
Today's My Utmost for His Highest reminds us of the importance of “utmost:”
“There are many things I cannot do: I cannot save and sanctify myself; I cannot redeem the world; I cannot make right what is wrong, pure what is impure, holy what is unholy. All this is the sovereign work of God. Do I have faith in what God, through Jesus Christ, has done? He has made for us a perfect atonement, placing us back in a right relationship with him. Am I in the habit of constantly realizing it?
The great need in each of our lives isn't to do things or to experience things but to believe them. The atonement isn't something I experience. It is the great act of God, upon which I build my faith.
Do I understand that Jesus Christ wants his atonement to be recognized in every practical thing I do? In my home life? In my business? I must continually bring myself to judgment and ask, “Am I looking at this matter in the light of the atonement, or am I lacking Christ's discernment?” Every time I obey, absolute Deity is on my side. Obedience means that I've placed all my hope in the atonement, and everything I do is met by the supernatural grace of God.”
There's nothing more that needs to be done. We are saved permanently, perfectly, forever. When we go through times of self-judgment and feelings of rejection, let us be reminded of this passage:
21 And since this great High Priest of ours rules over God's household, 22 let us go right in to God himself, with true hearts fully trusting Him to receive us because we have been sprinkled with Christ's blood to make us clean and because our bodies have been washed with pure water. 23 Now we can look forward to the salvation God has promised us. There is no longer any room for doubt (Hebrews 10 TLB)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, what assurance, peace, and blessing it is for us to know we are saved to the uttermost...and know that we are. Thank You for Your magnanimous grace that goes before us every day. May Your love and Your grace drive us to obedience and increased love for You. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
He’s There For You
The Message paraphrase renders Matthew 11:28-30 this way:
28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly.”
Life comes at us hard sometimes. We fret, fume, feel disappointed or defeated. Do we remember the invitation Jesus gives us? Just come to Him...tell Him our frustrations...and while we do, know that He is God and that He loves us. King David figured it out:
My lovingkindness and my fortress, My stronghold and my deliverer, My shield and He in whom I take refuge, (Psalm 144:2)
The next time life is hard, remember these words from Isaiah 30 -- 20 The Lord has given you bread of distress and water of oppression; He, your Teacher will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will see your Teacher. 15 “In [m]repentance and rest you will be saved, In quietness and trust is your might.” 18 Therefore Yahweh waits with longing to be gracious to you, And therefore He is on high to have compassion on you. How blessed are all those who wait for Him.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest emphasizes this point:
Isn't it humiliating to be told that we must come to Jesus?
Think of all the things you won't come to the Lord about. If you want to know how spiritually real you are, test yourself with these words: “Come to me.” In every degree to which you are not real, you will argue rather than come; you will go through sorrow rather than come; you will do anything rather than present yourself, just as you are, to your Lord.
“Come to me.” When you hear these words, you know that a change must happen inside you before you will come. The Holy Spirit will show you what you have to do. He will show you that you must take an axe to the thing that is preventing you from getting through to the Lord. You will never get any further until you do. The Holy Spirit will locate the one unmovable thing in you, but he won't budge it unless you let him.
How often have you come to God with your requests and had the feeling that you'd achieved your goal, only to come away with nothing? And yet all the time, God has stood with outstretched hands, not only to take you but so that you will take him. Think of the invincible, unconquerable, untiring patience of Jesus as he says, “Come to me.”
Let me end these thoughts by inviting you to sing this prayer:
I am weak but Thou art strong;
Jesus, keep me from all wrong;
I'll be satisfied as long
As I walk, let me walk close to Thee.
Thro' this world of toil and snares,
If I falter, Lord, who cares?
Who with me my burden shares?
None but Thee, dear Lord, none but Thee.
Just a closer walk with Thee,
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee,
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
What Then
Remember this test?
9 And Satan answered Yahweh and said, “Does Job fear God without cause? 10 Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But send forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.” (Job 1:9-11)
It's a test we all must face...that is, when we feel blessed...or God seems to be using us greatly...or people seem to be inspired by our service, we feel a sense of satisfaction and our commitment to God and His purposes is without question. But what about when all those “blessings” are removed...when we don't see the “blessings” we think we should expect? What then? Are we still committed to faithfully serving God and trusting in His purposes? It's easy to live on the mountain top, but our faith and trust in Jesus is found in the valley where we feel disappointment and abandonment. It's in the valley where we must look beyond our disappointments and seek God's purposes.
This is the theme of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“After every period of exaltation, we are brought down with a sudden rush into things as they are, where it is neither beautiful nor poetic nor thrilling. The height of the mountaintop is measured by the drudgery of the valley—but it's in the valley that we have to live for the glory of God. When we are on the mountaintop, we see the glory of God, but we cannot live for it. Only in the depths of the valley, in the realm of humiliation, do we discover our true worth to God; only there is our faithfulness revealed.
Most of us can do all sorts of difficult things when we are filled with a sense of heroism. But this is only because of the natural selfishness of our hearts, our desire to be useful and adored. God wants us to relinquish the heroic frame of mind. He wants us to live in the valley according to our personal relationship to him.
When you were on the mountaintop, you could believe anything. But what about when you were up against facts in the valley? You may be able to give testimony about your miraculous spiritual experiences, but what about the thing that is humiliating you just now? The last time you were on the mountain with God, you saw that all power in heaven and earth belonged to Jesus. Will you see it now in the valley?”
How easy it is for us to feel satisfied and fulfilled when we see our desires and goals met to our expectations. Without even realizing it, this striving for “satisfaction” may be more fleshly driven than trusting in God working in and through us in ways we don't realize...or worse, in ways we refuse to go through. Faithfully walking in the valley with Christ means deepening our trust in Him when our own expectations seem dim or unattainable. It's what Bunyan called “the Slough of Despond” in Pilgrim's Progress. Our prayer should be: Lord, teach us to trust in Your purposes as we travel in the inevitable valleys of our pilgrimage. We want to be faithful and trust in Your purposes for our lives.
I'm reminded again of the words of Andrea Crouch's song:
So I thank God for the mountains
And I thank Him for the valleys
And I thank Him for the storms He's brought me through
For if I'd never had a problem
I'd never know God could solve them
I'd never know what faith in His word could do
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 9-25-24
One question that pops up regularly...maybe you even ask yourself the question - how can I be sure I'm saved? 1 John is often referred to as the “Tests of Life” epistle, but the best indicator of true salvation is found in "The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). The reason it's such a good diagnostic tool is because it's impossible apart from regeneration. By that I mean, apart from genuine born-again, regenerated conversion, no one but Spirit indwelt believers can meet Jesus' kingdom requirements. If your life shows a marked progression toward these kingdom characteristics (Matthew 5-7), you have been regenerated by God. If you take a non-interest, an argumentative attitude, or a rejection of these characteristics, you may consider yourself to be a Christian (by your own standards), but you really are not. In those chapters Jesus makes it clear: 20 So then, you will know them by their fruits. 21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. (Matthew 7:20-21)
Today's My Utmost for His Highest addresses this important issue:
“The demands our Lord makes in the Sermon on the Mount are impossible for us to meet—unless he has done a supernatural work inside us. There's no enthusiasm, no natural human quality, that can withstand the strain that Jesus Christ places upon his workers. The only thing strong enough is a personal relationship with him. This relationship must be put to the test until the disciple has just one purpose remaining: “I am here for God to send me wherever he will.” Everything else in a disciple's life may get muddied, but this relationship to Jesus Christ must remain perfectly clear.
If I am going to be a disciple of Jesus, I must be made one supernaturally. As long as I'm dead set on being a disciple, I can be sure I am not one. Discipleship isn't a matter of my determination, but of God's: “You did not choose me, but I chose you” (John 15:16). This is the way the call to discipleship begins. I can ignore God's call, but I can neither generate it nor decide how to answer it. When our Lord makes disciples, he doesn't ask them to do things they're naturally cut out for. He asks them to do things they've been supernaturally cut out for by his grace.
The Sermon on the Mount isn't some unattainable ideal. It's a statement of what will actually happen in me when Jesus Christ has changed my disposition and put into me a disposition like his own. Jesus Christ is the only one who can fulfill the Sermon on the Mount.”
Seems like in our postmodern culture, the idea of being judged has become an anathema. “Trophy for Everyone” is the new mantra. Not so when evaluating one's relationship with Jesus Christ. There are no trophies for the unconverted (Matthew 7:24-27). No trophies for self-defined Christians (Matthew 7:21-23). No trophies for those who do not repent (change their minds) concerning their sins and trust in the cross alone (Matthew 5:20). Jesus was very clear: “26 And everyone hearing these words of Mine and not doing them, may be compared to a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain descended, and the rivers came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.” 28 Now it happened that when Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were astonished at His teaching; 29 for He was teaching them as one having authority (Matthew 7:24-29).
These three chapters are not to be trifled with. Either there is an internal, heart desire to be more like Jesus and take on His characteristics....or there is a neglect, disregard, rejection of the personal application of Matthew 5-7. Which is it for you? Remember, everyone does not receive a trophy...only those who have been empowered and regenerated by God the Spirit. God informs / reminds us; if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you...if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. (Romans 8:11,9) The Spirit is who enables us to win the “trophy”...no one will be able to do it on their own.
Fanny Crosby summed it up for “trophy recipients:”
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchased by God
Born of his Spirit, washed in His blood
Perfect submission, all is at rest.
I in my Savior am happy and bless'd,
watching and waiting, looking above,
filled with his goodness, lost in his love.
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Temptation x2
The Christian deals with two different kinds of temptation. When talking about “temptation,” we're talking about inclinations / enticements that lead to sin...which ultimately leads to destruction. That, of course, is Satan's purpose. The first kind of “temptation” is the kind which affects the person and leads to personal destruction. For example, Solomon describes it this way: “Can a man take fire in his bosom And his clothes not be burned? 28 Or can a man walk on hot coals And his feet not be scorched? (Proverbs 6:27-28) Unbelievers understand this principle. Our penal system is based upon “do the crime, do the time.)
But the Christian has yet another kind of temptation the unbeliever knows nothing of...namely, the temptation to disregard the indwelling Holy Spirit. “19 Do not quench the Spirit; 20 do not despise prophecies” (1 Thess 5:19-20) and “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may approve what the will of God is, that which is good and pleasing and perfect. (Romans 12:2)” are both directed at believers.
The point is...believers are constantly being tempted by Satan to disregard the conviction and teaching of God, the Holy Spirit to distrust, disregard, or rationalize away what the Spirit says. This results in spiritual defeat, heartache and even loss of privilege for the believer. For example: “...husbands, show your wife honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.” (1 Peter 3:7)
Today's My Utmost for His Highest reminds us of this second kind of temptation:
“Until we are born again, the only temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in the book of James: “Each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed” (1:14). Once the Son of God was formed inside us through the Holy Spirit, the Spirit began to detect certain of Satan's temptations—temptations which we, on our own, could never recognize. Satan doesn't tempt believers to sin; he tries to lure us away from what has been put into us by our spiritual rebirth, in the hopes that we'll no longer be of value to God. He tempts us to change our point of view, so that we'll no longer see things from Christ's perspective. Only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
What happens in temptation is that an outside power comes to test the things we hold dear within us, the things that define our personality. This explains the way in which our Lord was tempted. Within his person, he held the fact that he was to be the king of humankind and the savior of the world, and these are precisely what Satan came to test him on. Jesus went through the temptation and “did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15), emerging from the battle with his personality intact. If we will commit ourselves to him, his Spirit will take us through every temptation in the same way, and we will emerge from the battle victorious.”
This second kind of temptation is where we believers spend most of our battles...that is, “.being tempted by Satan to disregard the conviction and teaching of God, the Holy Spirit to distrust, disregard, or rationalize away what the Spirit says.” This is how Satan demoralizes, weakens, and incapacitates believers. Our marching orders are these: “if you are living according to the flesh (the enticements of temptation) you must die, but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the practices of the body, you will live. 14 For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. (Romans 8:13-14)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, external temptations abound for us, but the more important temptations are those which cause us to distrust or deny You. Keep us aware of not disciplining out minds and hearts to be obedient and seeking after You. Satan is clever and savage, but “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. (1 John 4:4)
Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
YOUR temptations
In C.S. Lewis' classic The Screwtape Letters, we have an experienced demon Screwtape writing to an inexperienced demon Wormwood. Screwtape's objective is to train Wormwood how to effectively tempt and destroy humans...that is, how to separate them from God through sin. What makes this classic so genius and insightful, is Lewis' portrayal of how temptation works. Screwtape knows and teaches that not all humans fall for the same temptations. He instructs Wormwood to look for peculiarities, certains character flaws that would make a human susceptible to specific temptations. In other words, correlate the human's unique flaws with a specific temptation that addresses that flaw.
There's a lesson to be learned here...namely, we all have certain, peculiar, vulnerable, character and personality flaws that make us struggle with certain temptations. Where these “flaws” come from is sometimes hard to pin down. We all have them. It's part of the old sin nature (OSN) we inherit from the fall. It's part of that sinful “nature / nurture” inheritance we all have. The point of today's Truth Matters is not determining the “why,” but determining the “what.” We know we are weak sinners vulnerable to certain temptations, but the question is -- what do we do about it?
Today's My Utmost for His Highest addresses this issue:
“My disposition on the inside—that is, the makeup of my personality—determines what I am tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the nature of the one tempted and reveals the possibilities of that nature. Each of us has our personal inclinations, but temptation itself is the common inheritance of humanity.
Am I baffled by temptation? Do I have trouble understanding whether the thing tempting me is right or wrong? This is normal, for a time. When I first begin my walk in faith, I may be tempted by things which are generally considered good, but which fall short of highest and best. Temptation promises a shortcut to what I seek, but it will never get me there. The key is to keep my sights firmly set on the highest—on God himself—and let what is merely good pass me by, however tempting it may be to follow it. Though God will not save me from temptation, he has promised to help me in its midst: “Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted” (Hebrews 2:18).”
When it comes to “temptation,” there is no “one size fits all.” Three important Truth Matters to keep in mind:
1) We must rely upon our study and meditation on God's Word to accurately reveal where our weak spots are. For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)
2) We must become “biblene.” It's one thing to be “biblical” and have knowledge and doctrine, but it's another thing to make God's Word the directive of our thinking and behavior. I have thought much about your words and stored them in my heart so that they would hold me back from sin. (Psalm 119:11 TLB)
3) We've got to take “the-bull-by-the-horns” and discipline ourselves not to succumb to those temptation thoughts, mind-sets or behaviors. But you, O man of God, flee from these things, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, gentleness. (1 Timothy 6:11).
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, You know what it is to be tempted. You know how calculating, destructive and hateful our enemy Satan is. You know how much we need Your Word and Your power to defeat Him. We pray to You for righteous transparency and power to resist temptation and live holy, sanctified lives. Help us Lord. Glorify Yourself in us. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Every Day
“I know God is preparing me for some ministry, some purpose, some kingdom endeavor...I don't know exactly what it is yet, but I know I am “created in Christ Jesus for good works” and He will bring it to pass...if I am patient.” That is the statement of an undisciplined follower of Jesus Christ...a follower who does not recognize that every day in every circumstance he or she must be involved in Christ's kingdom endeavor. The believer who “waits” to be used by God is missing the point completely. God breaks it down like this in 1 Corinthians 10:31 -- Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
We need to understand that every conversation, every thought pattern, every menial task, has kingdom ramifications. It's not a matter of being prepared for some future Godly endeavor...it's today...it's how we see our lives right now...it's being consistently committed to Christ-likeness in this moment.
This is the point of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“It takes all of God's power in me to do commonplace things in the way God would do them. When Jesus washed his disciples' feet, he was performing work of the most menial and commonplace kind, yet the way he performed it made it holy. Can I use a towel in the way Jesus used a towel? Towels and dishes and all the other ordinary stuff of life reveal what I'm made of more quickly than anything else. It takes God Almighty in me to do my chores in the way they ought to be done.
“I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you” (John 13:15). Watch the kind of people God brings around you. You will be humiliated to discover that this is his way of revealing to you the kind of person you've been to him. He is telling you to treat the people in your life as he has treated you. “Oh,” you say, “I'll treat people as I should when I'm out ministering in the world.” That would be like trying to produce the munitions of war in the trenches; you'd be killed while you were doing it.
We have to go the second mile with God. Some of us get worn out in the first ten yards, because God compels us to go where we cannot see the way. “I'll wait to obey until I get nearer the big crisis,” we say. We have to obey now. If we don't practice walking steadily in the little things, we will do nothing in the crisis.”
Perhaps God does have some notably visible kingdom endeavor ahead for us, but if we are not faithful to the kingdom endeavors we face every day, we are missing God's calling. The song goes:
Day by day and with each passing moment
Strength I find to meet my trials here
Trusting in my Father's wise bestowment...
Ev'ry day the Lord Himself is near me,
With a special mercy for each hour;
That's more like how we should view our every day commitment of faithfulness to our Lord Jesus. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, Your desire for us is not to wait for some special moment, but to live each hour of each day for Your kingdom's sake...no matter what or where. Help us Lord. Keep reminding us Lord. May today be totally devoted to You. Use our little things for Your honor and glory. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Workshops
I have a workshop. It's there where my tools, hardware, power tools, extension cords, etc are stored. Right now, my workshop is a mess. I haven't been keeping up with its organization and useful access. When a needed repair or project needs done and my workshop has not been maintained, the repair or project suffers because I might not be able to find the right tool or hardware I need at that moment.
As Christians, we all have a “workshop” that must be maintained and that “workshop” is a thought-life organized by the Lord Jesus...a “thought-life workshop” made necessary and useful through personal worship, personal prayer, and personal study of the Scriptures. Just like my workshop...our “spiritual workshops” are private...no one see them or cares about them, but when the spiritual repair is needed or a spiritual emergency fix demands it, if our “workshops” are not properly maintained, we'll have a hard time meeting the need...we won't be able to find the required spiritual “tools” or our spiritual “hardware.”
Not to belabor the illustration, the point is this: if we don't maintain our personal relationship with our Lord...if we're not seeking His face everyday and disciplining our thoughts and thinking around His word and in prayer and worship, we won't be of much use when the spiritual emergency requires us to respond as Jesus would...in our own lives or in the lives of others.
This is the point of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“We imagine that we'll rise to the occasion when a big crisis comes along. But a big crisis only reveals what we're made of; it doesn't put anything new into us. Are you telling yourself that you'll do what's necessary if God gives the call? You won't—not unless you're already rising to the occasion. You have to be the real thing with God before the big event, in your private life with him.
A private worshipping relationship with God is the great essential of spiritual fitness. The time will come when you have to step out from your sheltered, private place—and go forth into the glare and the crowd. If you haven't been worshipping in private, as the occasion arises, you'll find you have no value to God in the outside world. But if you have been worshipping in private, you will be ready when God sends you out, because in the unseen life—the life no one saw but God—you've become perfectly fit. When the strain arrives, God will know he can rely on you.
Do you think you have no time for worshipping or praying or reading the Bible? Do you say to yourself, “I can't be expected to live a worshipful life in the circumstances I'm in right now; my opportunity hasn't come yet. When it does, of course I'll be ready”? You won't be. If you haven't been worshipping where you are right now, as the occasion arises, then in the crisis you'll be useless to yourself and an enormous hindrance to those around you. The workshop of the disciple's life is the hidden, personal time spent worshipping God.”
Let me paraphrase Matthew 6:6 -
But you, when you pray, go into your inner room (that “workshop” where our thoughts and intents are organized by the Word, prayer, worship), and when you have shut your (“workshop”) door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, some times our “workshops” are neglected...mainly because of procrastination or lack of motivation or just plain neglect. Lord, we are brought to repentance. We see our failing and our need. We commit to keeping our “workshops” ready to be used to serve You and bring You honor and glory. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Devotion – the Prerequisite
One of the most disconcerting verses for the Christian is 1 Corinthians 3:15 - “If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire.” We're talking about appearing before Jesus where He will be issuing rewards pertaining to how faithful we were to Him during our Christian lives. There will be those who will not receive rewards. They will be saved...sins forgiven...clothed in Christ's righteousness...spending an eternity in heaven with God, but they won't be the recipient of rewards from the Master. I'm not sure how those “rewards” will be manifested in heaven for all eternity, but some will have them...some will not.
The question is - “What is the prerequisite for a reward? “Works” are apparently not the issue. Matthew 7:22 and 1 Corinthians 3:12 where some works are compared to “wood, hay, straw” are burnt up and deemed unrewardable. Then...what is the issue? The issue is summed up in Luke 14:33 - “no one of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possession.” This is not referring to austerity. It is referring to the preeminence of Jesus Christ in one's life. Unless He has taken over your life, your thinking, your allegiance, your greatest desires, there will be no rewards coming from the Lord. That is the “prerequisite.”
Today's My Utmost for His Highest speaks to this issue:
A disciple is one in whom the Holy Spirit has forged this realization: “I am not my own.” To say “I am not my own” is to have reached a point of great spiritual nobility. If I am a disciple, I make a sovereign decision to give myself over to Jesus Christ. Then the Holy Spirit comes in to teach me his nature. He teaches me this not so that I'll hold myself apart from others, like a showroom exhibit of holiness, but in order to make me one with my Lord. Until I am made one with him, he won't send me out.
“If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children . . . such a person cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26). Jesus doesn't say, “Such a person cannot be a good and moral individual.” He says, “Such a person cannot be one over whom I write the word mine.” This doesn't mean I won't be saved; it simply means I won't be his.
The spirit the disciple receives isn't the spirit of hard work or of doing practical things for Jesus. It's the spirit of love and devotion, of being a perfect delight to him. The secret of the disciple is “I am entirely his, and he is carrying out his work through me.”
Be entirely his.”
Jesus isn't interested in our works, He's interested in our devotion to Him. Webster uses words like: affection, passion, desire, respect, adoration, longing, loyalty, preference to describe what “devotion” is. Without our “devotion” to Jesus, our works will be burnt up without reward. Our devotion to Jesus must be of such great extent that we can say, “it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God” (Galatians 2:20). Without that “prerequisite”...no reward.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, draw us close to You. We desire to see Your face in our prayer life, in our Bible study. We want to be more like You...love like You...be righteous like You...share in Your holiness. Our works will fall into line and we will look forward to the rewards. May it be so. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Give It Back
Today's Truth Matters covers a subject that you have probably rarely thought of...namely, giving back to God what God has blessed you with. Especially in the affluent, materialist world we all live in, we assume God's blessings to us are ours to keep and enjoy to the point that these blessings are protected, hoarded and even fought to preserve without ever giving a thought to giving them back to God. There are two basic reasons why this “giving back” rarely crosses our minds:
1) We fail to realize that God blesses us so that we can bless others. The greatest example of this was demonstrated by Jesus. Philippians 2:5-8 shows us:
5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant...He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross.
He emptied Himself of all the glory of the godhead to serve us. The text says, “have this attitude in yourselves.”
To the materially blessed Jesus said, “If you want to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” (Matthew 19:21)
2) This world is not our home. Joel Osteen wrote the book, “Your Best Life Now.” If that's what you believe, you're on your way to hell because for the Christian, “your best life” is ahead in heaven, not here. For us to hoard, fight for, and spend our blessings on ourselves is a strong indication that we have lost our “eternity focus.” Jesus advises us:
19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal (Matthew 6:18-20)
Today's My Utmost for His Highest hits upon this Truth Matter:
“It's at the peril of your soul's well-being that you use God's gifts to satisfy yourself. If you do, you cannot pour it out before the Lord. Remember that you can never sacrifice to God that with which you long to satisfy yourself. Satisfy yourself with one of his blessings and it will corrupt you. Rather, you must do what common sense says is an absurd waste and pour it out...There's only one way: through the determination of my mind.
Have you become bitter and sour because you have clutched God's blessings for yourself? God wants to use you to enlarge other people's horizons. Get into the habit of giving back to Him everything He gives to you, and He will make you an immeasurable blessing to others.”
Here's a Truth Matter written by evangelist C.T. Stud that's well worth reminding ourselves of: “Only one life will soon be past, only what's done for Christ will last.” The actor Denzel Washington reminds us: “You'll never see a U-Haul behind a hearse. There is a cap on earthly success, a ceiling on the amount of joy that possessions and awards can bring before disillusionment sets in. All of it is so fleeting. But a life of true significance has unlimited impact. It is measured in how well we've loved those around us, how much we've given away, how many seeds we've sown along our path.”
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we thank You for all the blessings You give to us. Blessings like loving parents, Christian friends, so many material things, living in this great country. But Lord, we determine to not let these blessings become selfish, ego driven, self-satisfying...but rather, Lord we will use Your blessings so that we can share Christ's love with others and advance Your kingdom. Remind us often of our short time and Your eternal glory. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Ulcerated Christianity
I call it “ulcerated Christianity.” We all suffer from it from time to time. It's when we allow circumstances, relationships, trials, misfortunes to cause us upset and joylessness. One of the reasons is because we sometimes harbor the feeling we're not pleasing in the sight of God...that is, we dwell on our spiritual defeats and disappointments. Last Sunday we saw some of the consequences of living the Christian life like that...horrible living. We needed to be reminded that we stand perfect before God because our sins (all) have been paid for and now we stand clothed in Christ's righteousness (Galatians 3:27). Secondly, we forget how much God loves each one of us (John 3:16; Romans 8:38-39). But thirdly, and the point of today's Truth Matters...heal your “ulcerated” Christianity by looking away from your “predicament” and focusing on Jesus...His sovereignty...His eternal and loving plan for you.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest reminds us:
When our Lord speaks peace, he makes peace; his words are forever Spirit and life (John 6:63). Have I ever received the peace of Jesus? It comes from looking into his face and realizing his undisturbed calm.
Are you painfully disturbed right now, distracted by the waves and billows of God's providential permission? Have you been examining your beliefs, searching them for a bit of peace and joy and comfort and finding none? Then look up and receive the undisturbedness of the Lord. Reflected peace is proof that you are all right with God, because you are at liberty to turn your mind to him. If you aren't right with God, you can never turn your mind anywhere but on yourself. If you allow anything to hide the face of Jesus Christ from you, either you are disturbed or you have a false sense of security.
Are you looking to Jesus right now, in a matter that is urgently pressing, and receiving peace from him? If so, he will be a gracious blessing of peace in and through you. But try to worry it out and you will obliterate him from your life and deserve what you get. We become disturbed because we haven't been considering Jesus Christ. When we turn to him, our perplexity vanishes, because he has no perplexity; our only concern then is to abide in him.
Bring all your troubles and worries to Jesus; lay them out before him. In the midst of difficulty, bereavement, and sorrow, hear him say, “Do not let your hearts be troubled” (John 14:1).
In high school, I worked for a painting contractor who sent me on a number of scary jobs...one of which was scraping and painting the frames and sash of windows on a five story building. Talk about “ulcers,” I was developing them just thinking about standing out on a window ledge that high. That all changed when I was given a thick, wide, leather belt that was fastened to secure I bolts. The belt gave me the security to work with confidence and freedom...No more “ulcers.” That's the way we get rid of our “ulcerated Christianity”...we look to and place our confidence in Jesus no matter how high the building might be. That's what Jesus meant when He said, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” (John 14:27)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, so often we find ourselves as “ulcerated Christians.” Help us to realize Your sovereign, powerful, loving oversight of our lives...all the days of our life. Just to know You care about what we experience...that nothing takes You by surprise...that You orchestrate our lives with purpose...that nothing can separate us from Your love...that gives us the “thick, wide, leather belt fastened securely” to Your omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence. We now can live in freedom and joy no matter how high the “window ledge” we're standing on. Remind us often. Heal us of our “ulcers.” In Jesus' name...Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Let’s Be Commonplace
The evaluating world around us defines commonplace as “not unusual, interesting, or original...ordinary, unremarkable, unexceptional.” Most of us hate to be placed in the category of the “commonplace.” It's interesting to note that it's exactly the category the world places Jesus in. Isaiah 53:2-3 reminds us of how the world perceives Him: “He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.” Even Jesus' own family and peers found Him to be “commonplace:” “Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? 56 And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at Him.” (Matthew 13:54-57).
The point is this...anyone who is committed to serving and bringing glory to God must be willing to be “commonplace” in the eyes of the world. The reason being---the goals and aspirations of the Christian are not the same as the world's. God put it this way in Philippians 3:19-21 - “(the world) whose god is their appetite, and who set their minds on earthly things. 20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” The sad reality is that even among Christians “commonplace” is looked down upon. Yet, God takes great joy in working His blessed will through “commonplace” disciples.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest reminds us:
“The New Testament notices things we completely overlook. When Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” he is elevating a state which counts for nothing according to our standards. At the bedrock of Jesus Christ's kingdom is the unaffected loveliness of the commonplace. What I am blessed in is my poverty. If I know I have no strength of will, no nobility of disposition, Jesus says I am blessed; it's through this poverty that I enter his kingdom.
The true character of the loveliness that counts for God is always unconscious. Conscious influence is smug and self-righteous and unchristian. If I start looking for evidence of my own usefulness, I instantly lose the bloom of the Lord's touch.
Who are the people who have influenced us most? Not the ones who thought they did, but those without the slightest notion of their impact, those who radiated the unconscious loveliness of the Lord's touch. We always know when Jesus is at work in someone's life, because he produces something inspiring in the midst of the commonplace.”
This last week I lost one of those “commonplace” folks who blessed my life. Bill Banfield (95) was a successful businessman but he always came across as “commonplace”...unassuming, unpretentious, sacrificial, a willing listener and helper. God uses folks like Bill Banfield in many ways not always obvious to those outside. God takes great pleasure in using “commonplace” folks to bring Him glory. The day will come when faithful “commonplace” folks will receive magnificent rewards at the Judgment Seat of Christ (1 Corinthians 4:5) - “5 Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men's hearts; and then each man's praise will come to him from God.”
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, keep us poor in spirit. Help us to see our insignificance apart from You. Help us to be defined by Jesus in Matthew 5:2-11 as faithfully “commonplace.” Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Common Sense News Flash
“Common sense” refers to sound and prudent judgment based on a simple perception of the situation or facts. It represents the basic level of practical wisdom that any adult human being ought to possess. Essentially, it's the ability to make good judgments and behave in a practical and sensible way. So, when faced with decisions, common sense guides us toward sensible choices.
No one can dispute the need for making good decisions, but if we're not careful, “common sense” can actually be a great detriment to our being useful to Christ and His kingdom. Proverbs 14:12 reminds us: “There is a way which seems right to a person, but its end is the way of death.” Jeremiah 17:9 goes even further: “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it?” God shows us the meaninglessness of following our own devices...our own “common sense. Here's a Truth Matters news flash--- common sense will never lead you to God...ever.
Listen to what Oswald Chambers points out in today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“Never let common sense break in and push the Son of God to the side. Common sense is a gift that God gave human nature, but the gift that comes from His Son is supernatural sense. Common sense has never once detected the Father, and never will. Don't enthrone common sense.
Our ordinary wits never worship God unless they are transformed by His indwelling Son. We have to keep our mortal flesh in perfect subjection to Him, letting Him work through us moment by moment. Are we living in such dependence on Jesus Christ that His life is being manifested in us?”
This morning I was listening to a testimony from comedian Ray Allen. He was a belligerent, atheistic, "common sense" guy looking for any way to make money, enjoy life, and attain fame. His “common sense” drove him close to bankruptcy, losing his wife and family, and thoughts of suicide. A Christian friend gave him some tapes from a Bible teaching pastor on Ecclesiastes 1:1-3 and the passage ultimately led him to Christ: “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.2 “Futility of futilities,” says the Preacher, “Futility of futilities! All is futility.” 3 What advantage does a person have in all his work which he does under the sun? Where does “vanity” come from? Always from our “common sense.” Let's be careful to develop a “sense” that comes from a deepening relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ.
Here's my prayer for you and me today: It's from The Message Paraphrase rendering of Romans 12:1-2 -_So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for Him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.” Lord...this is the “sense” we want. Draw us close. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Trust Your God
Ethel Waters used to sing this song at some of the Billy Graham crusades:
Why should I feel discouraged,
Why should the shadows come,
Why should my heart be lonely,
And long for heav'n and home;
When Jesus is my portion?
My constant Friend is he;
His eye is on the sparrow,
And I know he watches me
The song talks about discouragement, shadows, loneliness...all experiences we all face. But does it ever occur to us that if God superintends the every day life of a sparrow that He is also superintending us even in times of discouragement, shadows, loneliness? Jesus tells us: “29 Not one sparrow (What do they cost? Two for a penny?) can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. 30 And the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don't worry! You are more valuable to Him than sparrows. (Matthew 10:29-31 TLB). The question is...have we internalized that Truth Matter? Do we understand that nothing in our lives is an accident? No relationship, no circumstance, no discouragement is not orchestrated by God that knows what our need is. God orchestrates the life of a sparrow. He loves you so much that He chose you and sent His Son to pay your sin penalty on the cross...need I say any more? Ethel Waters' song is a reminder: “When Jesus is my portion; My constant Friend is He; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.”
Today's My Utmost for His Highest points to this great truth:
“If I consider my individual circumstances, what do I see? Am I so identified with the life of the eternal Child of God that I, too, am simply his child, continually talking to him and realizing that all things come from him? Are the graces of his ministry working through me in my home, my business, and my community? Am I wondering why I'm going through the things I'm going through right now? It isn't that I have to go through them; it's that they have been chosen specifically for me by God's providence, with an eye to my growth in grace.”
Trust your God. Our lives are an intricate, purposed, set of specific and individualized circumstances designed by a sovereign God who loves us beyond what we could imagine...to grow us and conform us to the likeness of His Son. These “discouragements,” “shadows,” or “lonlinesses” are all part of His process. Trust your God through them all.
And we know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into his plans. For from the very beginning God decided that those who came to him should become like his Son, so that his Son would be the First, with many brothers. (Romans 8:28-29 TLB) That is our confident prayer today. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Prayer is....
When we pray what are we doing? Most of us pray because we want an answer from God to solve some dilemma we want Him to fix. Sometimes He responds and gives us what we think we need, but how He answers is really not the issue. Keep these five Truth Matters in mind when trying to define what prayer is:
1. Connection with the Divine: Prayer is a means to deepen one's relationship with God, expressing reverence, gratitude, and desires.
2. Expression of Dependence: It reflects our reliance on God for guidance, support, and sustenance
3. Transformation: Prayer can change us, making us more aligned with the values and character of Jesus
4. Comfort and Guidance: It provides comfort in times of distress and helps us seek God's will and wisdom
5. Privilege and Power: Prayer is seen as a privilege, offering us direct access to God, and it holds power even if the exact workings remain a mystery
Of the five, I think 2 and 3 are important for us to realize most when it comes to prayer. Sometimes we miss his answers because we're not listening or we're expecting a different answer so we don't recognize it when it comes, and other times the answer comes through reading the Bible or talking to others, but God will answer. His wisdom far exceeds our own because he sees farther and loves deeper and has his sights set on an eternity with those he loves, not just gratification in the immediate moment.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest stresses this point:
“Our identification with the Lord is realized most strongly in prayer. Jesus said, “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Matthew 6:8). Then why ask? So that you “may be one” as the Father and Son are one (John 17:22-23). Prayer is perfect and complete oneness with God.
If we think of prayer not as a oneness with God but rather as a way to get answers or blessings, we think wrongly. When we go to God for answers, we are bound to get irritated, because although God always responds, it isn't always in the way we want. When a prayer seems to go unanswered, we must be careful not to blame someone else; that is a snare of Satan. If we look to God, we will find that there's a reason which is a deep instruction for us, not for anyone else. We will see that our refusal to identify ourselves with our Lord in prayer is what has led to our irritation. We must remember that we are not here to prove that God answers prayer; we are here to be living monuments of his grace.”
The point is, we are not omniscient...God is. A lot of time we pray for things, circumstances, or people to meet immediate needs or desires, but we don't realize God has a perfect plan that transcends the immediate. He might be in the process of changing us (often is the case) or that “person” or “circumstance” may be undergoing a change we're not aware of, but God is working to His glory. Like number 4 above states: prayer “provides comfort in times of distress and helps us seek God's will and wisdom.” If we keep that Truth Matter before us when we pray, we realize the real meaning and importance of prayer.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, help us to see prayer in a different light. Help us to understand and experience the privilege we have in coming into Your presence seeking Your face and placing our trust and faith in Your will and way. Thank You Lord for allowing us to spend time with You. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Cannot afford Laziness
Where does sin start in most of our lives? If the truth were known, it starts with laziness. We lackadaisically allow our minds begin to wander in areas we know are not spiritually beneficial at best; or areas leading to destructive sin at worst. That “wandering” leads to focusing. “Focusing” leads to debating within ourselves why this ungodly thing would be satisfying, fulfilling, beneficial or needed. Once we get to this point, we open ourselves up to the destructive power of sin. It all starts with “laziness.” As Christians we can't afford to be lazy...not even for one moment. The remnants of our sin natures will seize upon our laziness, and before we realize it, our enemy Satan will gain a foothold in our lives. God's word tells us “stand firm” (Ephesians 6:13); “be of sober spirit, be on alert” (1 Peter 5:8); “flee from lusts” “refuse foolish and ignorant speculations” (2 Timothy 2:22-23); “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise... because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16).
If we don't get this “laziness” under control it will eventually destroy us spiritually, emotionally, physically. An antonym of laziness is “hard work”...”disciplined work.” The faithful Christian life is “hard work”...”disciplined work.” None of us can afford to be lackadaisical in what we allow ourselves to think about. We must train our minds to think after God. Not an easy task, but it starts with filling our minds with God's word.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest highlights this point:
“Many of us are all right for the most part, but we're still lazy about certain things. It isn't sin that makes us this way; it's the remnants of our old carnal life, the life we led before we were born again in the Spirit. Carelessness and laziness are an insult to the Holy Spirit. There should be nothing careless about us, whether it's in the way we eat and drink or the way we worship God.
Not only must our relationship to God be right; the way we express that relationship must be right, too. Ultimately God will let nothing about us escape His attention. He keeps every detail of our lives under His scrutiny. In numberless ways, God will bring us back to the same issue over and over again until we learn our lesson. The issue may be our impulsiveness or our independent individuality or our tendency to let our thoughts run away with us. No matter what it is, God will bring us back to it again and again until He has made us fully aware of the thing that isn't right. He'll never tire, and He won't stop—not until He has achieved the finished work.
Thanks to God's wonderful work in you, you know that you are all right in what matters most: your relationship to Him. Now “let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” Watch out when you start letting things slide, or when you hear yourself saying, “Oh, that will have to do for now.” Whatever the issue, God will point it out with persistent patience until you are entirely His.”
When it comes to laziness / lackadaisicalness...where we allow our thoughts, our emotions to be unbridled, we take our cue from the Lord Jesus' vigilance when He was tempted to allow His mind to wander. Notice how He handled it: “it is written...it is written” (Matther 4:1-11). A major part of the “”hard work” “disciplined work” of the Christian is the memorization of scripture. Jesus was able to stand firm against letting His mind wander because He could quote appropriate scripture. This is our antidote...this is the kind of “discipline” we all need. This is our prayer today:
“Keep me far from every wrong; help me, undeserving as I am, to obey Your word, for I have chosen to do right. 31 I cling to Your words and follow them as closely as I can. Lord, don't let me make a mess of things. 32 Help me to want Your will, then I will follow Your word even more closely.“ (Psalm 119: 29-32 TLB). Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
People Who Disappointment
There seems to be an old truism of human nature...”people will disappoint us.” (Some synonyms of “disappoint” are: frustration, dissatisfaction, letdown, disillusionment.) When we feel disappointed in people, we can become critical, judgmental, unforgiving, and sometimes even cruel. In order to keep from these ungodly reactions, our focus should be on God and not on our “people disappointments.” By that I mean, we know each of us battles with a sin nature. That sin nature will surface in others and in ourselves which will result in disappointment. We have to be careful in how we respond to these “disappointments.” We have to understand that each of us is on a journey called “sanctification”...or...becoming more like Christ. On this “journey” we all will be disappointing at times. Our response to people who disappoint us found in God's counsel to us in Romans 12:16-21 - “do not be haughty of mind,” “do not be wise in your own estimation,” “never pay back evil for evil,” “so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men,” “leave room for God...I will repay says the Lord.” In other words, God is more than capable of dealing with “disappointing people”...trust God and leave it to Him to work in their lives.
Of course there is a corollary here too...perhaps your “disappoints” in others is unfounded. Maybe you're not evaluating the situation correctly. You're not omniscient. You really don't know all the parameters...all the reasons for the supposed “disappointment.” Maybe the problem is more with us. Again, our focus must turn to God and His working in our own lives.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest speaks to this topic:
“Unless our human relationships are based in God, they will end in a disillusionment that makes us cynical, severe, and unkind in our judgments of others. But the disillusionment that comes from God brings us to the place where we see men and women as they are, and yet there is no cynicism in our hearts, nothing bitter or biting on our tongues.
Many of the cruel things in life spring from our illusions. We aren't true to the facts of one another, only our ideas of one another. People are either completely delightful or completely terrible, depending on our idea of them. The refusal to have our illusions taken away is the cause of much of the suffering in human life. If we love another person and we don't love God, we demand every perfection from that person, then become cruel and vindictive when we don't get it. We are demanding from a human being what no human being can give.
Our Lord's confidence in God and in what God's grace could do was so perfect that he never despaired of anyone. If our trust is placed in human beings, we will end up despairing of everyone. There is only one being who can satisfy the deepest aching abyss of the human heart, and that is our Lord Jesus Christ.”
What an essential Truth Matter this is. Allowing ourselves to be disappointed with others often becomes “the cause of much of the suffering in human life.” The point is...we don't have to “suffer” because we can focus on God's purposes in lives of others...God knows how to transform His children. Here are our marching orders: “...with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:3-4)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, deliver us from allowing our disappointments in others cloud our confidence in You and do not allow our disappointments keep us from loving our disappointers as You have loved us. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
What's Your MO
One of the most provocative and perhaps most provoking passages in scripture is found in Matthew 7:21-23. There Jesus says this:
“22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; leave Me, you who practice lawlessness.'”
Here you have people doing good things, admirable things, even “religious” things, but Jesus condemns their efforts. The disciples were doing the very same things, yet they were not only accepted, but rewarded by Christ. What was the difference? This is a very important question for today's “religious” person. So many think they are doing God's work when in actuality they are falsely representing Him. The difference lays in the motive...the reason WHY they are engaged in good works. That's what Jesus was pointing out when He said, “21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.” It's “the will of the Father” that separates “lawlessness” from genuine works for God. It's an internal desire to bring honor and glory to God through obedience to His leading that results in genuine works of God. Any other motive results in “practicing lawlessness.”
Today's My Utmost for His Highest emphasizes this point:
“The defining characteristic of Christian disciples is not that they do good things; it's that they are good in their motives. Their motives have been made good by the supernatural grace of God.
The only thing that surpasses right doing is right being. Jesus Christ came to put a new heredity into anyone who would let him, a heredity that would surpass the righteousness of the Pharisees. Jesus says, in essence, “If you are my disciple, you must be right not only in how you live but also in your motives and your dreams, in the deepest recesses of your mind. You must be so pure in your motives that God Almighty can see nothing to censure.”
Who can stand in the eternal light of God and have nothing for God to censure? Only the Son of God. Jesus Christ claims that, by the power of his redemption, he can put his own disposition into anyone, making them as pure and simple as a child. The purity God demands is impossible for me unless I can be remade from within—and this is exactly what Jesus Christ has undertaken with his redemption.
None of us can make ourselves pure by obeying laws. Jesus Christ doesn't give us rules and regulations. His teachings are truths which only he can interpret. If we wish to understand them, we must do so through the disposition he puts in us—his own disposition. This is what it means that Jesus Christ alters our heredity: he doesn't alter
human nature; he alters the disposition of sin that lies beneath it. This is the great marvel of his salvation.”
The sin nature we all battle with promotes “self” rather than God. Good works done so that somehow we derive fleshly benefit is “lawlessness” in God's eyes...perhaps the worst kind of “lawlessness” because of the hypocrisy that is at its core...the pretense of doing something to honor God while actually honoring ourselves. God is most interested in our motives not our proclaimed ministries. We have to constantly examine the “WHY” behind we are doing.
1 Peter 4:11 sums it up:
Whoever speaks is to do so as one who is speaking actual words of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Lord, teach us to be true to the motive of glorifying You. Move us by Your Spirit to do good works. This is our prayer today. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
The Need for Personal Crucifixion
Yesterday I preached a sermon dealing with 5 non-negotiables of the Christian walk. Regretfully, today's average church and many Christians are best described by the Laodicean church in Revelation 3:14-22. Those 5 non-negotiables are: commitment, rejecting unGodly influences, being willing to suffer rejection from the world, self-imposed limitations, and living to glorify God. Anyone desiring the “Christian walk” must start with these 5. The root reason why many Christians fall short of these 5 has to do with “personal crucifixion.” It has to do with what the Apostle Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20 -
“I have been crucified with Christ [that is, in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body I live by faith [by adhering to, relying on, and completely trusting] in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (AMP)
The Amplified Bible is helpful in defining “personal crucifixion” as “[by adhering to, relying on, and completely trusting].” It means putting aside everything...every relationship...every personal agenda...every self-generated entitlement and replace these with “relying on and completely trusting” Christ and His word...and...living it out.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest shares these sentiments:
“In the Christian walk, God has to deal with us on the death side as well as on the life side. On the death side of my walk in Christ, I identify myself with the death of Jesus Christ, allowing Him to crucify my old life for the sake of the new. There is always a battle royal before we can walk as Christians...always something that tugs at us with resentment against the demands of Jesus Christ. The battle begins the instant the Spirit of God shows us what the Christian walk entails: “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26).
In the process of walking as Christians, the Spirit of God strips me until I have nothing left but myself—no father, no sister, no friends, no self-interest. Am I willing to be simply ready for death? The Christian walk requires it. No wonder Jesus said that He “did not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Matthew 10:34). This is where the battle comes, and where so many of us faint. We refuse to be identified with the death of Jesus. “It's too severe,” we say. “He can't want me to do that.” Our Lord is severe, and He does want us to do that.
Am I willing to reduce myself simply to me? To strip away everything my friends think of me, everything I think of myself? To hand that naked self over to God? The moment I do, He will sanctify me wholly, and my life will be free from all attachment that is not in Him.
If I pray, “Lord, show me what the Christian walk means,” He will show me. It means being made one with Jesus. Our Christian walk isn't some quality or ability that Jesus Christ puts into me. It is Him in me.”
I think today's affluent, self-indulgent, American Christian has lost sight of being crucified with Christ. As a consequence we cling to those things that become road-blocks to our walk with Christ. Some of us need a “reset”...some of us need to confront this Truth Matter for the first time.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, “crucifixion” is a harsh word for us personally. It's scary and humiliating. But we know it's the way we must live if our Christian walk is to be strong. Help us Lord to get over ourselves and totally allow You to take over. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
The Main Thing
Sermons should be loaded with scripture. Preachers who rely upon antidotes, experiences, stories, eloquence of speaking, selected interesting or topical preaching are putting themselves at great risk. The Apostle James gives this warning to preachers:
“Not many [of you] should become teachers [serving in an official teaching capacity], my brothers and sisters, for you know that we [who are teachers] will be judged by a higher standard [because we have assumed greater accountability and more condemnation if we teach incorrectly].” (James 3:1 amp).
The pastor/teacher must rely upon three truth matters:
1. “the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating” (Hebrews 4:12)
2. “All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness;” (2 Timothy 3:16)
3. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
It is the word of God that the Holy Spirit uses to change the hearts of people. Teachers are given varied gifts and abilities of communication, but the focus must always be on the word of God and not on experience or “soap boxes.”
Today's My Utmost for His Highest reminds us of these truths:
“Paul was a scholar and an orator of the highest abilities. When he says that he didn't use “wise and persuasive words” in delivering the gospel, he isn't speaking out of self-deprecating humility. He's saying that if he'd tried to impress people with his talent when he preached the gospel, he would have veiled the power of God. Paul knew that belief in Jesus is a miracle produced by the redemption—by the sheer, unaided power of God—not by making fancy speeches.
As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to follow Paul's example. If we are going to preach the gospel, we must practice a special kind of fasting—not from food but rather from eloquence and impressive diction, from everything that might hinder the word of God coming through us to reach others. The power of the redemption does flow through the preaching of the gospel, but we have to recognize that this power is never due to the personality or the eloquence of the preacher.
“We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20). Preachers are representatives of God. We are commissioned to present His gospel, not human ideals. If it's only because of my charisma that people desire to be better, they'll never get anywhere near Jesus Christ. Anything that flatters me in my preaching will end in making me a traitor to Jesus, because I will prevent the creative power of his redemption from doing its work. “And I,” said Jesus, “when I am lifted up . . . will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32).
It isn't that God hasn't gifted men with certain individual abilities and approaches to teaching...He has. But the point is this...the word of God must always be the main focus. It's the word of God the Spirit uses to regenerate the unbeliever and sanctify the believer. The preacher must never lose sight of this. While there are times when stories, experiences, or antidotes may be useful in helping to explain God's truth, the focus must always be on God's written word.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, raise up men who will obey the call to preach and teach...men who are committed to Your word above all else...men who realize how powerful Your word is...and people who are hungry to know “Dost sayst the Lord.” Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
“Little Christs”
No less than 164 times, Paul refers to Christians as people “in Christ” or “in him” or “in God” or “in the Lord.” It's a tantalizing phrase, with thrilling implications for the lives of Christians. In Colossians, the Apostle also reminds us that “Christ is in you” (Colossians 1:27)...we are “in Christ” and “Christ is in us.” So what is the primary implication of these truths? The purpose is not that we create great monuments or organizations, or that we create “successful” lives, but rather, our lives are to be lived to reflect Christ. A literal translation of Colossians 3:10 - “having already been regenerated and made new, continue being renewed according to the norm and standard of Christ.” That's it! Our lives are to reflect Christ. In fact, the term “Christian” means “little Christs.” We are to be “little Christs.” When people see us they should be seeing a representation of Christ. Our thoughts and intents of our hearts should reflect how Christ thinks and purposes. If we would be committed to this truth, it would revolutionize our churches, our marriages, our families, our occupations, the influence we would have on our culture.
My Utmost for His Highest hits upon this recognition:
“In the redemption, Jesus Christ rehabilitated the whole of humanity, putting it back into a right relationship with God. Our Lord's sacrifice means that now each and every one of us is able to enjoy an intimate, personal relationship with the Father. But developing a spiritual life of our own isn't the only reason we are here. We are also here to “reach unity in the faith”—to realize Jesus Christ in our shared life in the church.
“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers . . .” (1 Corinthians 12:27-28). The first great obedience of the church is to Jesus Christ. When the church stops putting Christ first and starts focusing on its own development as an organization, it ceases to be a spiritual society. The reason Jesus Christ places apostles and teachers in the church isn't to build up a worldly institution; it's to build up the body of Christ—the unified community of believers.
Am I building up the shared body of Christ? Or am I seeking personal development only? If I am keeping my focus on the essential thing—my relationship to Jesus Christ—then I am doing what is right for the entire body. If instead I am wanting and seeking things for myself, my relationship to Christ and to his community is distorted. It will be a big humiliation to recognize that I haven't been concerned about realizing Jesus Christ, but only about realizing what he has done for me.
Thomas Chisholm lived to be almost 100. In his many years of walking with Christ he discovered the main issue...the most important issue...the issue that should drive every believer. Upon reflecting on his life, Chisholm wrote this song that is my prayer for you and me this day:
Oh! to be like Thee, blessed Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I'll forfeit all of earth's treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.
Refrain:
Oh! to be like Thee, oh! to be like Thee,
Blessed Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Clean your terminals
Sometimes appliance battery terminals start to corrode and no long can make contact with batteries. Nothing wrong with the batteries, but corroded terminals make the appliance useless. Either clean the terminals or throw out the appliance. This Sunday I'll be preaching from Colossians where we are told Christians are unique people because of this truth: “Christ in you.” Think about that for a minute. The everlasting, supreme, never fading, most powerful, always present Christ lives in every believer. With Christ in us, we believers should never stop fulfilling the purpose God has for us.
The problem comes when our connection with Jesus becomes “corroded.” Jesus put it plainly: “5 I am the vine, you are the branches; the one who remains in Me, and I in him bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown away like a branch and dries up...” (John 15:5-6). Are you feeling “dried up” in your Christian life? Maybe it's because your “spiritual terminals” are corroding. Maybe it's because your connection with Jesus is not what it should be. The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life (1 John 2:16) are what corrode our connection with “Christ in you”...our source of never-ending spiritual power.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest is both a warning and an encouragement:
“We are all capable of being spiritual sluggards. There are times when our sole objective is to secure peace and comfort for ourselves. Preventing “sluggardness” will require a special kind of initiative—the initiative of Christ-realization, not self-realization. To live a remote, retired, secluded life is the antithesis of the spirituality Jesus Christ taught.
This can turn us into spiritual sluggards; this can cause us to retreat from the world and to use prayer and Bible reading merely to soothe ourselves. We might start going to God for the sole purpose of getting enjoyment; we might lose interest in manifesting the life of Jesus Christ in our own lives. If we are behaving like this, we can be sure we've taken a step in the wrong direction. Enjoyment, peace, and relaxation are effects of the spiritual life, but we try to make them causes.
Peter wanted to rouse Christians to action by reminding them of what Christ had done. “I think it meet,” he said, “to stir you up by putting you in remembrance” (2 Peter 1:13 kjv). The danger of spiritual sluggishness is that we do not want to be stirred up. All we want is repose. Jesus Christ never encouraged the idea of spiritual repose. His instructions were clear: “Go and tell . . .” (Matthew 28:10).”
Christians become “sluggards”...useless for the kingdom...when they allow their “terminals” to become corroded. We are reminded of the admonition given to the church: “15 ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. 16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have no need of anything,” and you do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (your “terminals are corroded) (Revelation 3:15-17). Corrosion cleaning - “7 If you remain in Me, and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.” (John 15).
My prayer for you and me today is this: Lord, show us the corrosion in our lives that keep us from our power source “Christ in you.” Once You have done that, we will confess our lack of maintenance, repent, clean our “terminals” and receive Your power. To this end we pray. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Where’s your focus
Yesterday we pulled the Greenbrier Pregnancy Center float in the 2.5 hour Alderson, WV July 4th celebration. A lot of work went into the decoration of the float and truck. Folks rode on hay bales with big smiles as they tossed thousands of candy pieces to hundreds of children aligned along the parade route. What would cause us to take on such an activity? Perhaps the most important part of our parade appearance was the men who walked alone side of the float handing out hundreds of gospel tracts and engaging folks in sharing the gospel. You might say these kinds of activities leave us open to criticism and vulnerability. We didn't look at it with that perspective. If we had, we probably wouldn't have done it. Rather, we committed to representing Christ and leaving the consequences to Him.
The point is this, often when we contemplate representing Christ or sharing the gospel, we focus on what the negative consequences might be to us personally, our church, or our organization. Focusing on evil consequences keeps us silent and ineffective ambassadors for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20-21). Rather, our focus should be totally on God and how He would use our commitment and obedience to work out His perfect plan and purpose in bringing others to know Him and trust in Jesus Christ.
Focusing on God and not evil consequences is the theme of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“Don't calculate without God. God seems to have a delightful way of upsetting the plans we've made without taking him into account. When we get ourselves into circumstances that God didn't choose for us, sooner or later we realize our mistake and are filled with regret. The only thing that keeps us from the possibility of regret is bringing God in as the greatest factor in all our calculations.
Does God really mean for us to take no account of evil and wrong? Love isn't ignorant of the existence of evil, but it doesn't treat evil as a relevant factor in making plans. When we calculate without God, all our reasoning starts from the premise that evil must be considered first. God wants us to start from a place of confidence and love.
God won't prevent your heart from regret. Pick yourself up a hundred and one times a day in order to obey. Do this until you get into the habit of putting God first and calculating with him in view.”
The GPC float was cheered by most of the hundreds of people along the parade route. It was good to bring awareness to these communities that the pregnancy center is open and operational. But we were most encouraged by the receptivity and openness of those who received the gospel tracks. To God be the glory great things He is doing.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we are so prone to focus on the potential evil around us. Lord keep us focused upon You. We take Your admonition seriously:
“For no one can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ... If any man's work which he had built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss...” (1 Corinthians 3:10-15)
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Each a Call
God has used Oswald Chambers as a conduit probing the applications and explanations of deeper spiritual/biblical truth. His sermons were carefully recorded by his stenographer wife Biddy and compiled into the devotional that has helped bring insight and clarity to many preachers and teachers of the Word. It was first published in 1927, translated into 39 languages; in its 97 years of publication over 13 million copies have gone out world wide. Many of Chambers' messages have direct application for those called to Bible exposition and preaching. He was the Principal of the Bible Training College in London. But his spiritual insights go beyond those called in pastoral or mission ministries...insights and challenges we all face as part of the body of Christ.
Several weeks ago I was preaching out of Colossians 1 where the inspired Apostle highlighted some the characteristics of those called by God to the responsibilities of pastor/teacher. In my message I had to try to explain what being “called” to this role was about. Pretty much an impossible task...it's so personal...so unique...so private...so improbable...that it's hard to explain. Jeremiah put it this way - “in my heart it becomes like a burning fire Shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding it in, And I cannot prevail. (Jeremiah 20:9) Paul tried to explain it - “For if I proclaim the gospel, I have nothing to boast, for I am under compulsion. For woe is me if I do not proclaim the gospel. (1 Corinthians 9:16)
Today's My Utmost for His Highest is an example of Chamber's gift of clarification regarding deeper, spiritual realities...in this case, the calling of a pastor/teacher:
“Never choose to be a worker for God. But if God has called you, watch out that you don't “turn to the right or the left” (Proverbs 4:27). We aren't here to work for God because we have chosen to do so; we're here because Christ Jesus has taken hold of us. Now that we are in his service, we no longer wonder whether or not we're cut out for it; we no longer think about what we'd like to preach. What we preach is determined by God, not by our natural inclinations.
Keep your soul steadily related to God and remember why you have been called—not only to give personal testimony but to preach the gospel. Every Christian must testify, but Christians who have received the call to preach have an added responsibility: they must endure the agonizing grip of God's hand on their lives. Your life is in the grip of God for one thing and one thing only: to answer his call. How many of us are held like that?
Never water down the word of God. Preach it in its undiluted sternness, with unflinching loyalty. But when it comes to dealing with your fellow human beings, remember who you are: not a special being set above the rest, but a sinner saved by grace, a sinner who has yet to obtain the prize. “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).”
Not many of us are called to the role of pastor/teacher (1 Corinthians 12:28-30), but God has called each of us to be an ambassador of Jesus Christ. Whatever your calling it will also be personal; unique; private; improbable...hard to explain. Wherever God has placed us, that's where we “must endure the agonizing grip of God's hand on their lives. Your life is in the grip of God for one thing and one thing only: to answer his call.”
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we must respond to Your calling on our lives. Keep us quiet before You so that we would hear Your call for each of us. May we be found faithful looking forward to the rewards You have promised to each of us. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Vindictive or AGAPE
This Sunday I'll be teaching from Colossians 2:2 where the Apostle Paul points to the preeminent characteristic of the church of Jesus Christ...namely, love for one another. As we explore that “characteristic” we will find out that AGAPE love is grounded in humility and not allowing Satan to destroy love by being offended. God inspired Paul to tell us “love is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered...endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:5,8).
I came across an insightful book entitled “The Bait of Satan…Living Free from the Deadly Trap of Offence.” The author, John Bevere writes:
“As I travel across the United States ministering, I have been able to observe one of the the enemy's most deadly and deceptive traps. It imprisons countless Christians, severs relationships, and widens the existing breaches between us. It is the trap of offense.”
In his book, Bevere makes the point that when we are offended (real or imagined) our natural inclination is to defend or excuse our self-protecting reaction often accompanied by resentfulness, hatred, retribution, demand for justice, or withdrawal. In other words we naturally dwell on how we've been mistreated, maligned, attacked. Bevere points out that being offended is an opportunity for the supernatural…it's about demonstrating the love of Christ overcoming seemingly impossible, natural, human reactions.
In My Utmost for His Highest, Chambers reminds us -
A true servant of Jesus Christ is one who is willing to experience offence for the reality of the gospel of God. When a person is confronted with contempt, immorality, disloyalty, or dishonesty, he is so repulsed by the offense that he turns away and in despair closes his heart to the offender. But the miracle of the redemptive reality of God is that the worst and the vilest offender can never exhaust the depths of His love. Paul did not say that God separated him to show what a wonderful man He could make of him, but “to reveal His Son in me…” (Galatians 1:16).
One of the things I like about Bevere's book is at the end of each chapter he has what he calls “declarations”…that is, insights for our prayer life that would keep us from the “trap of offense.” Three of these “insights” are my prayer for you and me this day:
• “Holy Spirit, flow into my life with Your power, and eradicate every fiber of selfishness that would try to snare me and cause me to love myself more than I love You and others.”
• “I will use this period of spiritual training in my life to focus on the greatness of my God instead of the impossibility of my circumstances.”
• “When I am treated unjustly by others, I refuse to become offended and thereby fulfill Satan's purpose to move me out of God's will.”
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
No Negotiations
The account of the prophet Jonah is both fascinating and instructive. Of course, the “fascinating” part has to do with the great fish that swallowed Jonah and housed him in its stomach for three days and three nights before vomiting him up unto dry land. But here are a number of “instructive” lessons to be learned in the four chapters of this book. I think the main one is this: when God leads us to do something for Him, no matter how unreasonable it might seem to us, just do it...don't take time to negotiate or reason it out...just do it. Jonah was commissioned by God to reach out to Israel's cruel, brutal, murderous enemy in Nineveh with a message of warning for judgment of sin and the need for repentance. Jonah was looking for vengeance...God was about demonstrating His mercy. The prophet not only needed to learn about God's mercy, but he needed to learn the lesson of uncompromising obedience. So do we. By that I mean, when God gives us clear direction regarding His will, in our trust of Him and His plan, we obey. No negotiations...no rationalizations...just do it...just obey it. God's glorious work will unfold due to our obedience. Disobedience might result in some “fish time.”
Today's My Utmost for His Highest speaks to this lesson:
“Sometimes we step right out in faith and walk happily along. Then self-consideration comes in, and down we go. If we are keeping our sights on our Lord, it doesn't occur to us to worry about ourselves or our circumstances. The circumstances of our lives simply are. It's only when we focus on them that we become overwhelmed. We lose sight of Jesus and receive his rebuke: “Why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:31).
Let circumstances be what they are. Keep looking to Jesus, maintaining complete reliance on him. If you begin to debate when God has spoken, it's all over. Never say, “I wonder if that really was God speaking.” Be reckless. The second you hear God's voice, fling yourself out in faith. You do not know when God's voice will come, but whenever you sense it, even in the faintest way imaginable, recklessly abandon all to him. It is only by abandoning yourself that you learn to trust the Lord. You will hear his voice more clearly through recklessness.”
In 1882, Louisa Stead wrote the words of this familiar hymn which highlight our “Truth Matters” today and should be our continual prayer:
Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus
Just to take Him at His Word
Just to rest upon His promise
Just to know, "Thus saith the Lord"
Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus
Just to take Him at His Word
Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend
And I know that He is with me
Will be with me to the end
Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him
How I've proved Him o'er and o'er
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus
Oh, for grace to trust Him more
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Judgmental Sin
The Bible gives us plenty of passages having to do with biblical discernment and the necessity of making judgments leading to criticism (e.g. Galatians 2:11-21). The problem comes when our judgmental criticisms come from our own personal preferences, viewpoints, our way of doing something. Sunday I'll be preaching on some of the attitudes and behaviors that cause pastors much pain and struggle (Colossians 2:1-7). One of those is when the saints develop and demonstrate a “critical, unloving spirit”...a spirit that results mainly from pride, selfishness, vindictiveness, resentment or from some other mental attitude sin. “Critical spirit” is one of Satan's best used means to separate believers and even split churches and marriages. Seems like part of our old sin nature inclines us to have “critical, judgmental, spirits.” This is what we all must guard against in our own lives and interactions with people. Jesus warns in Matthew 7:1 - “do not judge or you too will be judged.”
Four things we must realize when we feel drawn to judge and criticize others:
1. “When humans criticize, they only succeed in weakening and wounding.” We even need to be very careful with our Godly, “constructive criticism” but when our criticism stems from our sin natures it will surely cause divisiveness and hurt.
2. “It is impossible to enter into communion with God when we are in a critical mood.” We know this statement true by our own experience. Hardly any better way to become callous toward God than by developing, maintaining, and messaging a critical spirit.
3. “There is always one fact more...” How can we use our personal measuring sticks to judge another when we can't know all the parameters of another's life? We don't know what they're going through...we can't understand how the experiences of their life has shaped them.
4. “what WE would be if it weren't for His grace.” Criticism has a way of elevating ourselves in our own eyes. Rather than having a compassionate, helpful, edifying response, we feel driven to elevate ourselves above others. We constantly need a “smack down” to the reality of our sinful attitude and our own need of God's grace. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. Not a one time experience..
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, “prone to wander Lord I feel it” is how the song goes. The lyrics are so true when it comes to our “judgmental criticisms.” Please Lord, keep us from this sin. Convict us sternly by Your Spirit when we begin to wander in that direction. May our lives manifest the love of Christ...nothing more and nothing less. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Where Is the Majestic Vitality?
In today's My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers ends his insight with this statement:
“Sometimes we get pathetic; instead of accepting the will of the Lord with confidence, we start talking about “suffering” it. Where is the majestic vitality of the Son of God in that?”
One of things that I like about Chambers is he has a Spirit given gift of spiritual reality...that is, he tells it like it is. His ending statement is a case in point. How often are we snagged on our sufferings. Our suffering, be it relational, physical, financial, emotional, spiritual often takes up our thinking and we can't seem to shake it. We find ourselves constantly thinking about our plight...strategizing...sometimes feeling like failures...often times regret...driving us to feelings of depression and hopelessness. Jesus said,
“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)
But what does that promise mean?
Today's My Utmost for His Highest gives us this insight:
“Do I want to get to this place of rest? I can, right now. The questions that matter in life are remarkably few, and they are all answered by the words “Come to me.” Not “Do this, don't do that” but “Come to me.” If I will simply come to Jesus, my life will be brought into accordance with my deepest desires. I will cease sinning, and I will hear the song of the Lord begin.
Have you ever come to Jesus? Watch the stubbornness of your heart. You will do anything besides the simple, childlike thing. The attitude of coming is one of complete surrender; you let go of everything and commit all to him.
Jesus Christ makes himself the touchstone for our lives. Personal contact with Jesus changes everything.
Jesus isn't saying that he'll put you to bed, hold your hand, and sing you to sleep. He's saying, “I will get you out of bed—out of the inertia and the exhaustion, out of the state of being half dead while you are alive.” He's saying, “I will fill you with the Spirit of life, and you will be sustained by the perfection of vital activity.”
Sometimes we get pathetic; instead of accepting the will of the Lord with confidence, we start talking about “suffering” it. Where is the majestic vitality of the Son of God in that?
Instead of sulking in despair, we come to Jesus not only knowing He is fully aware of our suffering, but that He has our circumstance in His purview (Webster - “range of authority, competence, responsibility, concern, or intention). He is lovingly sovereign and gracious. He wants us to trust Him completely. We demonstrate that “trust” by unconditionally believing in His word and responding with child-like obedience. Our vision shifts from our suffering to Jesus. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we want to see You today...feel Your presence...trust in Your care for us...learn to love You more deeply. Help us to live according to Your word:
7 These trials are only to test your faith, to see whether or not it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests gold and purifies it—and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold; so if your faith remains strong after being tried in the test tube of fiery trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day of his return. 8 You love him even though you have never seen him; though not seeing him, you trust him; and even now you are happy with the inexpressible joy that comes from heaven itself. 9 And your further reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:7-8)
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Expectation
What did you expect when you became a Christian? Did you expect to BE someone you weren't before? Maybe you expected to RECEIVE blessings or material security. Or maybe you expected your painful relational, emotional, physical, or difficult circumstances to go away. The “truth matter” is that none of these should be the “expectations” that take precedence over one...that is, having a personal relationship with God Himself. The thief on the cross got it right:
“Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43)
The point is this...the primary expectation we have as believers is our eternal (including the present) relationship with God. We grow to love Him...to know Him more deeply...to be in His presence...to walk with Him more closely. That will not only be your heavenly expectation, but it is the expectation of our lives today. The “thief” got it...have you?
Where are you now in your Christian life? Are you so burdened and buried in your predicament... or are your priorities and cravings set on achieving temporary worldly goods or aspirations? Is this what you expected when you became a Christian? The real joy of being a regenerated Christian is knowing God and relishing His presence. That's the expectation and aspiration we should have every day.
This song popularized by Fernando Ortega should be our prayer each morning and day:
In the morning when I rise,
in the morning when I rise,
in the morning when I rise,
give me Jesus.
Refrain:
Give me Jesus, give me Jesus.
You may have all this world, give me Jesus.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
God’s Purpose through Trial
All of us have gone through periods of time in which we ask, “Why is God putting me through this?” These may be times of tragedy, or hopelessness, or disappointment, or failure. God is not mean or cruel or sadistic when He allows these hurtful situations in our lives. Think of it this way...sometimes the surgeon cuts us, hurts us for the purpose of correcting or removing some impediment to our well-being. Jesus knows our “well-being” is to be one with Him. Here's Jesus' prayer specifically for you and me:
“that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me. (John 17:21).
When we realize how deeply we've been affected by sin, it should come as no surprise that sometimes radical “surgery” is necessary so that we are in Christ and He is in us. Not only will we experience the “well-being” of living in closer harmony with God, but our testimony to the world will become obvious.
This is the point of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“If you are walking a lonely path just now, read John 17. It explains exactly why you are where you are: Jesus has prayed that you may be one with him, as he is one with the Father. Jesus isn't leaving you all alone; he is getting you alone with Him, so that His prayer for oneness might be answered. Do you have some other goal for your life? Since you became a disciple, you cannot be as independent as you used to be.
God isn't concerned about our plans. He doesn't say, “Do you want to go through this trial? Do you want to suffer this loss?” He allows things to happen to us for His own purposes. Either the things we go through make us sweeter, better, and nobler, or they make us more critical and fault-finding, more insistent on having our own way. Either trials and difficulties make us fiends, or they make us saints; it depends entirely on our relationship with God. We will know that our Father is working according to His wisdom and toward His ends, and this will prevent us from becoming mean and cynical.
Jesus has prayed for nothing less than absolute oneness with Him. Some of us are far from this state of oneness, but we can be sure that, because Jesus has prayed that it may be so, God won't leave us alone until it is.”
The Apostle James puts in perspective for us:
2 Consider it nothing but joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you fall into various trials. 3 Be assured that the testing of your faith [through experience] produces endurance [leading to spiritual maturity, and inner peace]. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result and do a thorough work, so that you may be perfect and completely developed [in your faith], lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4 amp).
Some of us are in the midst of trial today. We've given up hope and are confused. Be assured our trial is allowed by a loving God because He sees some “surgery” is needed. When viewed from this perspective, we have great assurance in this statement: “We will know that our Father is working according to His wisdom and toward His ends, and this will prevent us from becoming mean and cynical.”
My prayer for me and you this day is this: Lord, thank You for loving us and even for the trials that result in our trusting You more...knowing Your desire is that we find peace and well-being in our relationship with You. Help us Lord to make our way through our trial with the knowledge that we are in Your hands. Teach us and heal us for Your name's sake. Amen.
Today's Utmost reminds me of Cyrus Nusbaum's song:
Would you in His kingdom find a place of constant rest?
Would you prove Him true in providential test?
Would you in His service labor always at your best?
Let Him have His way with thee.
His pow'r can make you what you ought to be;
His blood can cleanse your heart and make you free;
His love can fill your soul, and you will see
'Twas best for Him to have His way with thee.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Carefully Careless
How are we to live as Christians?...the answer is being “carefully careless.” Most of us think Jesus was speaking in hyperbole when He said:
“25 “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?... 33 But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6).
What Jesus meant was that our primary focus of life is to be obedient and honoring Him. Our wakeup moment in the morning should be “seeking His kingdom and His righteousness.” But...we object, “We've got places to go...things to do...responsibilities to fulfill.” Haven't you ever heard the expression, “You're so heavenly minded, you're no earthly good?”
God's word teaches that we do have everyday tasks and responsibilities, but this is where we must apply the “carefully careless” principle. We are on earth to serve the King. He is our highest priority and righteousness is our primary object every day. We must take on the responsibilities of life, but they must not over-shadow our relationship and commitment to Jesus. In fact, it should be reversed...namely, our relationship and commitment to Christ should over-shadow whatever the day's agenda brings before us. We are to be “carefully careless” with the things of life.
This is the point of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“The words Jesus speaks here are the most revolutionary words human ears ever heard: “Seek first his kingdom.” Even the most spiritually-minded of us argue that we must do other things first. “But I must make money. I must be clothed. I must be fed,” we say. When we reason like this, we make it clear that the great concern of our lives isn't the kingdom of God; it's how we're going to get by financially. Jesus reverses the order, telling us to get rightly related to God first. He asks us to maintain our relationship with our heavenly Father as the main focus of our lives, and to take the focus off all other concerns.
Jesus is telling us to place our relationship to God at the center of our lives. He's saying, “Don't make the main concern of your life what you will eat and what you will drink. Be focused on God.”
Some people are careless about what they eat and drink, and they suffer for it. Some are careless about what they wear, and they look as they have no business looking. Some are careless about their earthly affairs, and God holds them responsible. What Jesus is saying in these verses is that the great care of our life should be to put our relationship to God first, and everything else second. One of the harshest disciplines of the Christian life is allowing the Holy Spirit to bring us into harmony with this teaching of Jesus.”
The words of this old song explain the “carefully careless” principle:
This world is not my home
I'm just a-passing through
My treasures are laid up
Somewhere beyond the blue
Oh Lord, you know
I have no friend like you
If heaven's not my home
Then Lord, what will I do?
The angels beckon me
From heaven's open door
And I can't feel at home
In this world anymore
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, teach us to be “carefully careless” with the details of our lives. Yes...we know You have given us responsibilities, but we are called to prioritize these under our greater commitment to serve and honor You. We pray for this reminder often. You are King. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Are You Persevering
Sunday morning I'll be preaching on the subject “Perseverance of the Saints.” You might recognize that phrase coming from the acrostic associated with Calvinism's TULIP. When it comes to the permanence of our salvation and the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives resulting in becoming more like Christ, I prefer to use the word “Preservation” because the word reminds us sovereign, omnipotent God is the one that makes it happen. “Perseverance” has an additional component to it...that is, our lives are to take on a “light” and “salt” quality that we are responsible for (see Matthew 5:13-16). This kind of “perseverance” is hard...very hard. Trials and people come in to our lives to test our “perseverance.” We will need to call upon the Lord for us to be gracious and humble and allow His heart and mind shine through us no matter how difficult the circumstance or person. The Apostle James put it this way: “2 Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith brings about perseverance. 4 And let perseverance have its perfect work, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (1:2-4).
Today's My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers deals with this “perseverance:”
“Do you remember why you have been saved? So that the Son of God will be manifested in your life. Now you must harness all your powers to realize your election as a child of God; rise to the occasion, every time.
You can't do anything for your salvation, but you must do something to manifest it in the world. You must work out what God has worked in. Are you working it out with your mind, your tongue, your body? Or are you still the same miserable, cranky person, set on having your own way? If you are, it's a lie to say that God has saved and sanctified you.
“With my God I can scale a wall” (Psalm 18:29). God is the Master Engineer. He allows difficulties in order to see if you can overcome them. Because you are his child, he will never shield you from his requirements. Peter says, “Do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you” (1 Peter 4:12). Rise to the occasion. Do the difficult thing. As long as a trial gives God the opportunity to manifest himself in your body, in whatever way he wants, it doesn't matter how much it hurts.
The aim of the disciple's life is to let the Son be manifested so that the Father can do whatever he wants with us. We are not here to dictate to God. We are here to submit to his will, so that he may work through us, using us to feed and nourish others.
God never has museums. We have to keep ourselves ready, so that the Son of God can be manifested in us here and now. May God find the whine in us no longer. May he find us instead full of spiritual pluck and daring, eager to face anything he brings.”
I can't add much to Chamber's insights today. He's spot on. Only two things come to mind: 1) Remember...we're not building a comfortable nest for ourselves during our time on earth. This life is only a testing ground for our faith and proving ground demonstrating the power of Christ. 2) Our dependency on God should drive us to His word and praying that the Holy Spirit would work His word into our lives.
My prayer for you and me today is this: Lord, thank you for the trials that You put in our lives. They force us to grow and that's what we want. Help us when we are weak, but we resolve to be the “light” and “salt” humbly committed to putting aside our personal agendas for Your name sake. Amen.
Loving OCs (obnoxious characters)
In 2 Corinthians 13:5, the Apostle Paul admonishes us to take inventory on our commitment to Jesus Christ. The Spirit prompted Paul to write: “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?” One of the clearest “tests” is how you respond to the “obnoxious characters” (OC) in your life. The caveat might be the person you consider to be an OC is not obnoxious at all...it's you that has a problem, not them. But let's say that our OC really is an OC...maybe treating us unfairly, maybe they have an irritable mannerisms or personalities, maybe they are unkind or ungrateful or hateful toward you. This is where the test of “Jesus Christ in you” comes to play. The OC will test us as to whether Jesus Christ is truly living in and through us. Maybe a review of 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 is the order of your day.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers speaks not only to our OCs but how we respond to any of the obnoxious things that come into our lives:
“It isn't a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved in order to reveal the life of the Son of God in our own lives. We know whether or not we are revealing his life when we come up against disagreeable things. When I meet with a task or a person I find unpleasant, what do I express? Is it the essential sweetness of the Son of God or the irritability of my self apart from him?
The only thing that allows us to enjoy the disagreeable is the bright enthusiasm of the life of the Son of God. If we get into the habit of saying, “Lord, I am delighted to obey you in this matter,” the Son of God will come to the forefront, and we will glorify him by revealing his life.
There must be no argument or debate. The moment we obey, the light of the Son of God shines through us. The moment we object, we grieve the Spirit. We must keep ourselves in good shape spiritually if we want the life of the Son to reveal itself, and we can't keep in shape if we give in to self-pity. Our circumstances are opportunities for demonstrating how wonderfully perfect and extraordinarily pure the Son of God is. The thing that ought to make our hearts beat is a new way of revealing him. This doesn't mean choosing the disagreeable; it means embracing the disagreeable when God places it in our path. Wherever God places us, he is sufficient.
Let the word of God be active and alive inside you, so that the life of Christ will reveal itself at every turn.”
“4 Love endures with patience and serenity, love is kind and thoughtful, and is not jealous or envious; love does not brag and is not proud or arrogant. 5 It is not rude; it is not self-seeking, it is not provoked [nor overly sensitive and easily angered]; it does not take into account a wrong endured. 6 It does not rejoice at injustice, but rejoices with the truth [when right and truth prevail]. 7 Love bears all things [regardless of what comes], believes all things [looking for the best in each one], hopes all things [remaining steadfast during difficult times], endures all things [without weakening]. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7 amp). Next time you come across an OC in your life ask yourself 3 questions:
1. How can the love and light of Jesus Christ be seen in me?
2. Is my response to my dear OC in synch with the 1 Corinthians 13 passage?
3. Am I really the OC in the relationship? Robert Burns wrote this poem directed to a lady who kept seeing others as OCs:
Oh, would some Power the gift give us
To see ourselves as others see us!
It would from many a blunder free us,
And foolish notion:
What airs in dress and gait would leave us,
And even devotion!
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord You bring folks into our lives that test how much we know You and follow You. Let the love of Christ flow from us. We're not looking for a positive response; we're looking for the power of Christ to be manifest in and through us. Help us here Lord. This is not easy. We need Your strength and wisdom. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Looking For Perks?
What ever gave us the idea that serving God would lead to a life filled with “perks?” The Cambridge Dictionary defines “perks” as: “an advantage or something extra that you given because of your job.” To be honest, we often expect “perks” in whatever the ministry God calls us. I'm not talking about only material “perks”...I'm talking about acclaim, respect, being successful in the eyes of people. It's a problem when we minister for these kinds of “perks.” Realistically, here's what we can expect if we're faithful to God's calling:
“4 ministers of God, in much perseverance,...8 by glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true; 9 as unknown and yet well-known, as dying and yet behold, we live; as punished and yet not put to death, 10 as sorrowful but always rejoicing, as poor but making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing all things.” (2 Corinthians 2:4-10)
Who would line up for a job that included those “perks?” The Apostle Paul did and at the end of his life he said these parting words:
“...all who are in Asia turned away from me...Demas has deserted me...at my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me...But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me... 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4).
Most of us would rather not “do our duty in obscurity,” but that's precisely what God is looking for...that is, He is looking for saints who are not looking for “perks” in this life. But there are genuine “perks” that will be awarded to those who faithfully...in obscurity...without fanfare...carry out the ministries God has set them to. Paul was looking forward to those “perks” when he reminded us: “8 In the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:8)
My prayer for me and you this day is this...Lord, we experience times when we feel little reward for the work we put in for Your kingdom. We sometimes feel like no one knows or cares. During those times, remind us by Your Spirit we are not working for temporal “perks,” but rather, we are being faithful to Your calling and some day we will be recipients of heavenly, eternal “perks.” Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Are We Oozing
Those who are saved will indeed be conformed to the image of Christ through the process of sanctification (1 Corinthians 6:11). When a person is saved, the Holy Spirit breaks the bondage of sin and gives the believer a new heart and a desire to seek holiness. This Truth Matters will inevitably separate true believers from those not genuinely saved. It's one of those tests of life. God writes: “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?” (2 Corinthians 13:5). This test is essentially this: Is the image of Christ...obedience to God's Word...the convicting work of the Holy Spirit increasingly present in your life? If not, check yourself to see if you've truly repented of your sins and clung to the cross and the Savior. While the Christian life is one of vigilance and commitment, the fact is, regenerated believers will increasingly “ooze” Christ's characteristics...the main one is unconditional love (agape).
The amazing fact of genuine Christianity is that we are now new creatures...that is, we operate differently. Not because we have hoops to jump through, but because Christ-likeness becomes increasingly natural to us. This is a magnificent testimony to the power of the gospel. Like the Apostle Paul testified: “it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord...we thank You for the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We want You to “ooze” out of our lives increasingly. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Numbers?
What constitutes a valuable, dependable soldier? God inspired the Apostle Paul to write: “No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.” (2 Timothy 2:4) We have been reminded time and time again about allowing the details of life to become more important to us than serving God. But the second part of that verse is what we focus on today...namely, the discipline of our spiritual life. Without that discipline we will not be valuable or dependable soldiers of Christ. In other words, unless we place our time with Lord through prayer, Scripture, and worship of utmost importance, we can never expect our Lord to be pleased with our service...and His pleasure should be our priority. What happens when we become lax with these spiritual disciplines, we can become distorted and confused about our success as kingdom soldiers. “Success” is not determined by numbers or the lack of them. Success is determined by bring joy to God through our humble submission to His design, and that design is only discovered by our deepening relationship with Him.
Left to ourselves, this is a difficult lesson to embrace. We've been taught numbers are most important whether they be GPA, salary, attendance, conversions.... But when it's all over, Jesus informs us of an interesting outcome: “But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.” (Matthew 19:30) It's His way of saying, don't be enamored by numbers. They are not necessarily indicators of success, but rather, one's heart and commitment to Lord. He'll take care of the numbers, our job is to stay sensitive and committed to His voice through spiritual discipline. My prayer for you and me today is summed up in the lyrics of this song:
Make me Your vessel
Make me an offering
Make me whatever You want me to be
I came here with nothing
But all You have given me
Jesus, bring new wine out of me
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Being Weaned
As we grow in our Christian lives there are certain servants of God that make indelible impacts on our lives...Pastors, teachers, educators that we have learned to trust and even become dependent upon to teach us God's word. I have at least six such Bible teachers that I rely upon often...most likely, so do you. The problem comes when we begin to rely upon them rather than getting alone with God and His Word and seeing for ourselves what God is revealing to us . An additional problem comes when God takes these trusted Bible teachers away from us through death or perhaps other circumstances. We may feel a void because we have depended upon their feeding us for a long time. Believers must understand a weaning process that must take place. We thank God for these teachers, but we must not prioritize them over going into the Scriptures to seek God's ways for ourselves. A sort of “weaning” process should be taking place. Webster defines “weaning” as: “to detach from a source of dependence.” Faithful Bible teachers are a gift from God, but they are to deflect from themselves and direct us to a deeper personal relationship with the Lord Jesus. Faithful Bible teachers must be seen as men like John the Baptist, “I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘make straight the way of the Lord.” “This One is He who comes after me, of whom I am not worthy to untie the strap of His sandal.” (John 1:23-27)
We must always be careful not to lock unto the teachings of a man rather than seeking God's face through our own Bible study and prayer. Sometimes I think we just get lazy and depend upon someone else's study and work rather than doing the heavy lifting of personal Bible study “accurately handling the Word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we are so thankful that You have brought faithful expositors of Your word into our lives. We have grown in our knowledge of You through them. But we realize that we must take on the personal responsibility of standing on our own...being “weaned”...and learning from You personally through Your word. To that end we pray and we will commit ourselves to “Be diligent to present ourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed” (2 Timothy 2:15). Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Lord or Feelings
I recently saw a bumper-sticker that said, “Vote for Trump...I don't care about your feelings.” I guess what that sticker was trying to say was don't let your “feelings” for Trump personally get in the way of voting for constructive policies.
In the Christian life, we often allow “feelings” (passions, moods, heartstrings) get in the way of the constructive ways of God...His “policies.” “Feelings” are often shaped by our sin natures and keep us from listening for and obeying the voice of God. Jeremiah 17:9 reminds us— “The heart (where feelings originate) is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can know it?”
Jay Adams, in his book Competent to Counsel, teaches this approach to counseling: “lovingly confronting people out of deep concern in order to help them make those changes that God requires. By confrontation we mean that one Christian personally gives counsel to another from the Scriptures. He does not confront him with ‘feelings,' either his own or those of whom he is counseling.”
Wise counsel...not only for those who counsel, but as a guiding principle for living the Christian life.
We often try to put “the cart before the horse”...that is, we think our “feelings” should be the driving force that leads us to a deepening relationship with the Lord. No. Our obedience to “God's policies” should be our driving force. Feelings will follow, but they will be feelings of victory, joy, and gratitude. Our bumper-stickers should read—“I vote for God's word...I don't care about ‘feelings.” My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, may the words of the Psalmist ring true in our lives— “How can a young man or woman keep their way pure? By keeping it according to Your word.” (Psalm 119:9) Help us to put aside our “feelings” and commit ourselves to Your “policies.” Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Radical Moment of Decision
Dealing with persistent, habitual sin seems to be an insurmountable dilemma for so many of us. It's kind of a spiritual rollercoaster ride where there are times when we feel we have conquered our pet sin only to succumb to it again and again. It's a struggle that brings us guilt and shame when we realize the strangle hold this sin has on us. It's not that we aren't aware of sin's destructive force in our lives...it's not that we don't want to please our Lord Jesus...it's not that we haven't confessed our sin to God...it's not that we haven't made resolutions with ourselves and to God that we will walk away from these habitual sins...it's because we can't seem to rid ourselves of sin's hold on us.
One Bible teacher I had as a teenager stated:
“Freedom is not the right to do what we want, but the power to do what we ought. By engrafting God's Word in us, “sin shall not have dominion over [us]” (Romans 6:14). “If you continue in My word . . . you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32).”
But in reality...in practical terms where we live...how do we do that?
The key to victory over habitual sin is not trying to overcome it as though it were a goal, an effort we must make. Rather, God wants us to live in a “crucified with Christ” zone where we make this assumption - we have been crucified with Christ...our habitual sin has been crucified on Christ's cross and has no more dominion over us. We must get to that “radical moment of assumption / decision”...that moment of realization...that we, by identifying with Jesus' death, have put to death that sin. The sequence is this:
1) Spend time in the Word and prayer. Pray that God, the Holy Spirit, would reveal the root cause of our “habitual sin.” This might take some time and will require humility, repentance, and submission to what God is revealing to you.
2) Once revealed, nail it to the cross...that is, regard it as dead.
My prayer for me and you this day is this: Lord, we do not want to live on a sinful “rollercoaster” any more. Sin shall not rule over us. We have died with Christ and we have been raised with Him to a new life. We nail that “habitual sin” to the cross that it would no longer control us. This is our commitment...herein we stand. Praise and worship belongs to You. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing
2=1
In theological terms, the “hypostatic union” means--Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully man. He is simultaneously perfectly divine and perfectly human, having two complete and distinct natures at once. As God, Jesus knew He would accomplish paying the debt for our sins on the cross. But as a man, Satan would tempt Jesus again to spare Himself of the pain and suffering of the cross. So overwhelmed by His human aversion to the cruel suffering of crucifixion, doctor Luke took notice of Jesus' “hematidrosis”...(a condition in which capillary blood vessels that feed the sweat glands rupture, causing them to exude blood, occurring under conditions of extreme physical or emotional stress.)
“And being in agony He was praying very fervently, and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground.” (Luke 22:44)
As God, Jesus had no doubt He would perfectly pay the debt for the sins of the world, but as a man, would He faithfully offer Himself up as the Lamb of God...endure the suffering and the pain? “Father if You are willing, remove this cup from Me” (Luke 22:42) was His human cry. But He endured the physical pain and suffering of the cross out of the perfect love He has for you and me.
What a lesson Calvary teaches us! What commitment to God's saving plan did the Son of Man demonstrate to us! Here's the lesson the Son of Man teaches us—“For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me (John 6:38). It probably won't require any of us to physically suffer the way Jesus did, but it does show us the kind of commitment God calls us to in faithfully proclaiming the gospel of the cross. We must have the same mind-set as our Lord...”not to do my will, but the will of Him who sent me.” My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we see the depth of commitment and love Jesus demonstrated for us. May that be the lesson we take with us each day resulting in a thankful heart and making God's will our chief priority. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth or Consequences
I remember a game show on TV called “Truth or Consequences” (1957-1973). On the show, contestants received roughly two seconds to answer a trivia question correctly (usually an off-the-wall question that no one would be able to answer correctly, or a bad joke) before "Beulah the Buzzer" sounded. Failing to complete this "truth" portion meant that the contestant had to face "consequences," typically an embarrassing stunt.
Most of us have lived or are living a “Truth or Consequences” existence in our Christian lives. The “truth” is that we have allowed a sinful thought pattern to take hold of our minds our emotions and even our inner natures. We will see that these “sinful thought patterns” lead to painful decisions and mistakes that cloud our joy and peace. Most often, these decisions and mistakes bring with them a loss of what could have been. The word I'm looking for is “regret”...the recognition of how these sinful thought patterns have ruined relationships...have caused unnecessary suffering and pain...made us unproductive for the kingdom. These sinful thought patterns have many shapes and sizes...could be unforgiveness, pride, laziness, lust, covetousness, quest for self-centered entitlements, inferiority...on and on the list could go. The interesting thing is that God often causes us to remember these “consequences.” They serve to grow us more Christ-like as we see the relationship between sinful thought patterns and painful decisions.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest addresses this issue:
“What is it that blinds you to the peace of God “in this your day”? Do you have a strange god- not a disgusting monster but perhaps an unholy nature that controls your life? More than once God has brought me face to face with a strange god in my life, and I knew that I should have given it up, but I didn't do it. I got through the crisis “by the skin of my teeth,” only to find myself still under the control of that strange god. I am blind to the very things that make for my own peace. It is a shocking thing that we can be in the exact place where the Spirit of God should be having His completely unhindered way with us, and yet we only make matters worse, increasing our blame in God's eyes.
“If you had known….” God's words here cut directly to the heart, with the tears of Jesus behind them. These words imply responsibility for our own faults. God holds us accountable for what we refuse to see or are unable to see because of our sin. And “now they are hidden from your eyes” because you have never completely yielded your nature to Him. Oh, the deep, unending sadness for what might have been! God never again opens the doors that have been closed. He opens other doors, but He reminds us that there are doors which we have shut- doors which had no need to be shut. Never be afraid when God brings back your past. Let your memory have its way with you. It is a minister of God bringing its rebuke and sorrow to you. God will turn what might have been into a wonderful lesson of growth for the future.”
These are penetrating words. Words that require honest, Spirit led conviction and transparency before God's word. Sometimes it will require periods of pain and suffering before we begin to see the “truth” that has led to our “consequences.” Yes we may have closed doors to the joy we might have realized, but now God has opened new doors...we must not allow these “sinful thought patterns” to continue to harm ourselves and our testimonies. God reminds us in Romans 12:1-2 - “Therefore I exhort you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice—living, holy, and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may approve what the will of God is, that which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we carry a bunch of baggage that weights us down and jeopardizes our decision making and joy in serving You. Identify this “baggage” in our lives by the work of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Once identified, give us the power and strength to overcome and not let that “baggage” control us. We confess our sinful thought patterns. May we fight to eradicate them from our lives...trusting and depending upon You to help us be clean vessels (2 Timothy 2:20-21).
Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Every Step Goes Higher
There is a song I haven't heard for a while. It goes like this:
We are climbing Jacob's ladder,
We are climbing Jacob's ladder,
We are climbing Jacob's ladder,
Soldiers of the cross.
Ev'ry round goes higher, higher,
Ev'ry round goes higher, higher,
Ev'ry round goes higher, higher,
Soldiers of the cross.
The song speaks to the “strategy of elevation” ...that is, as we learn to trust God more and obey what the Spirit is showing us, we move to a higher plain of relationship with God...God reveals more to us and we experience more Christ-likeness. Think back a year ago...are you at a higher level in your relationship with God? If so, it's because you're “climbing higher.” Climbing a ladder requires effort and trust in that ladder, so too in the process of sanctified “elevation.” God waits for us to take the next step higher in our relationship with Him. We will experience Godly changes in how we think, our priorities, how we love others, our edifying usefulness among the brothers and sisters in the church.
This is the theme of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“A higher state of mind and spiritual vision can only be achieved through the higher practice of personal character. If you live up to the highest and best that you know in the outer level of your life, God will continually say to you, “Friend, come up even higher.” Never allow God to show you a truth which you do not instantly begin to live up to, applying it to your life. Always work through it, staying in its light.
Your growth in grace is not measured by the fact that you haven't turned back, but that you have an insight and understanding into where you are spiritually. Have you heard God say, “Come up higher,” not audibly on the outer level, but to the innermost part of your character?
God has to hide from us what He does, until, due to the growth of our personal character, we get to the level where He is then able to reveal it.”
The point of today's Truth Matters is this: don't give up, keep climbing higher in your trust and obedience to God even when it's hard and seems beyond what you are able...after all, the song defines us as “soldiers” ...brave, committed, willing to endure hardship, trusting our Commander. My prayer for you and me this day is this:
Lord...many of us are struggling today. Help us to see that our struggle is another rung on our sanctification ladder. We'll trust You in the midst of our struggle, and as we do, we'll reach for that next rung where we will see You more clearly. We need Your help Lord through the struggle because sometimes we don't feel like “soldiers”... we're not reaching for that next rung. The enemy would love for us not to “reach.” We cling to Your promise:
No (circumstance) has overtaken you but such as is common to man, but God is faithful, who will not allow (a circumstance) beyond what you are able, but with the (circumstance) will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13 DB amplified version)
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Unless You Abide in Jesus
On the Thursday of Passion Week, Jesus was with His disciples giving them instructions and reassurance of how to become “fruitful” in His kingdom. The main instruction was this:
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit from itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.” (John 15 4)
There are at least two important “Truth Matters” in Jesus' statement:
1. “Bearing fruit” is a given priority for the believer. This “fruit” has to do with bringing folks to know the sin cleansing power of Jesus Christ. Our lives are to reflect that. by keeping your conduct excellent among the Gentiles, they may because of your good works, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation. (1 Peter 2:12)
2. The key here is “abiding in the vine.” Just to have “excellent conduct” as a goal in itself is not how “fruit” is born. There are many unbelievers who have excellent conduct but end up in hell and bring many with them. There are many believers who strive for excellent conduct but only to promote themselves and never bear fruit. “Fruit producing conduct” can only come when the believer is in close relationship with Jesus. The “fruit” comes naturally out of that relationship. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'” (John 7:38)
Today's My Utmost for His Highest speaks to this issue:
“Goodness and purity should never be traits that draw attention to themselves, but should simply be magnets that draw people to Jesus Christ. If my holiness is not drawing others to Him, it is not the right kind of holiness; it is only an influence which awakens undue emotions and evil desires in people and diverts them from heading in the right direction. A person who is a beautiful saint can be a hindrance in leading people to the Lord by presenting only what Christ has done for him, instead of presenting Jesus Christ Himself. Others will be left with this thought— “What a fine person that man is!” That is not being a true “friend of the bridegroom”— I am increasing all the time; He is not.
To maintain this friendship and faithfulness to the Bridegroom, we have to be more careful to have the moral and vital relationship to Him above everything else.”
The very important point is this...walking closely with the Lord Jesus in meditating on the Word and in making application of that Word through prayer, is what will result in “fruit.” We don't have to contrive “good behavior.” The kind of behavior that results in “fruit” spills over naturally from our relationship with Jesus. That kind of “Christ generated behavior” is what draws folks to the Savior.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, keep us from being superficial Christians. Give us the faith and trust to allow You to so direct and influence our lives that not only will we receive joy, peace, and confidence, but that others would see You in us and be drawn to the Savior we love. Amen.
Havergal's song is where “fruit” has its origin:
Take my life and let it be
consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days;
let them flow in endless praise,
let them flow in endless praise.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Fellowship of Suffering
Have you ever wondered what the Apostle Paul meant when he said he wanted to know “the fellowship of His sufferings?” (Philippians 3:10) Most likely, we think about the persecution Jesus suffered...and we might indeed suffer as Jesus did as He told the truth about sin and righteousness...as we are to do (John 15:20) But there's much more to Paul's prayer than just persecution. Actually, it has to do with something more intense, more troubling, more difficult than just persecution. It has to do with Paul's previous statement, “I have suffered the loss of all things.” (Philippians 3:8)
To fellowship with Jesus in suffering means that we put aside our personal wants, desires, goals, purposes, selfishness and follow Christ. We will have to change how we look at our lives with all our expectations, our claimed entitlements, our independence. We need to be reminded of at least two Truth Matters:
1. You are a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” (James 4:14-15) The point is, our “expectations,” our independent purposes and desires are really insignificant in comparison to eternity. The song reminds us “Only one life will soon be passed, Only what's done for Christ will last.” That, my friend, is what fellowship with Jesus Christ's suffering is.
2. Fellowship with our Lord's suffering will demand our full commitment to God's word...obedience. No matter if we can or cannot see positive outcomes, we commit our lives to Him. This commitment will cause us to suffer the loss of all we once held dear and turn our lives over to God. Vulnerability is part of the “suffering.” It's what Jesus was agonizing with when He “fell on His face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.” (Matthew 26:39)
Indeed, we are called to suffer in fellowship with Christ. “Suffering the loss of ALL things” is what intimidates us...makes us feel vulnerable. We say, “If I give up my desires and expectations, where will my joy come from?” God tells us this: 7 so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 And though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory (1 Peter 1:7-8)
My prayer for me and you this day is this...Lord, keep our priorities straight. Help us to see our lives through the lens of eternity. Help us to learn the continuing lessons of faith as we become more conformed to our Lord Jesus. We'll obey what You show us in Your word. We trust You with the outcomes. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
When Common Sense Comes Knocking
I think we've all experienced times when we become discouraged and defeated that our particular area of kingdom service seems a failure in our eyes. Sometimes that may be a sign from God to move on to another service or a time to take spiritual inventory of our own lives. But more times than not, we allow ourselves to be discouraged because we lose our focus on our Lord Jesus Christ. By that I mean, we forget we are in His hands for His purpose to use us in ways that transcend our common sense. We forget we are not our own...our lives are not our own...we belong to Christ to use us as He sees fit. In other words, when our service seems a failure, even though Christ calls us to function in that service, we have to remember that He is the Cornerstone who put us there and trust Him for what He is doing in and through us.
Of course, this is not an easy recognition or commitment. It often flies in the face of our common sense, but this is where we must be careful and dig deeper in our relationship with God. Sometimes it will require prayer and fasting to discern what God is trying to tell us. Sometimes it will require Godly insight from brothers and sisters in the body of Christ. It's very easy to put blinders on during times of discouragement and never see God's actual working in and through us. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord...do not allow Satan to discourage and quench the Spirit's leading in our lives. Help us to remember that You are in control of circumstances and, most of all, our lives. Help us to live our lives in such a way that we can say with the Apostle Paul: “I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4:7) Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Call or Duty
I'm not into video games but there is one I hear about from grandsons and teens. The game is Call of Duty. All I know about the game is it is a war game having to do with WWII. But the name presents an intriguing question for believers. Do we minister out of a sense of “call” or “duty.” If we operate out of a sense of “duty,” there are many perks that go along with that approach. People will commend you for sticking with a program. There will be a sense of satisfaction because duties are being fulfilled. And best of all, we often contrive what our duties should be...not to be overly demanding but allow us to function admirably in our comfort zones.
Jesus does not seem impressed by folks operating out of a sense of “duty” (e.g. Matthew 23:23). He's more interested in believers who operate out of a sense of “call” and relationship with Him. Not many “perks” here. Jesus made that clear: “...any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:33). Here are the “perks” to expect if you operate out of a sense of call: “...glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true; 9 as unknown and yet well-known, as dying and yet behold, we live; as punished and yet not put to death, 10 as sorrowful but always rejoicing, as poor but making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing all things. (2 Corinthians 6:8-10).
What is the difference? The difference is that “duty” is contrived by our own thinking. “Call” is the result of walking with the Lord...worshipping Him...listening for His voice (often in opposition to our own)...making our relationship with Him our priority
So which is it? Are you going to live your Christian life out of a sense of duty...that is, your formulations of what those “duties” should be, or, are you going to walk more closely to the Lord and with reckless abandon give yourself to His wise plan. There will be “perks” for either choice. Choose which set you want. Matt 19:29-30
And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name's sake, will receive one hundred times as much, and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, keep us close to you. So close that we hear Your call. So close that our lives don't become “duty” filled but open to Your “call.” Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
When My Well is Dry
Maybe there's a situation or person in your life you know needs to come under the loving change brought by God the Spirit. You pray and pray and pray (maybe for years) for these changes to take place. You try everything you know to see the changes made. Your intentions are good and you want God glorified, but nothing seems to work. Finally, in a state of depression and failure you say,
“I can't go any deeper...I have no more resource...I'm emotionally, spiritually and physically exhausted and feel lost. I know my Lord is with me and I go to Him for strengthening and comfort. I've gone to the depth of my well and it's dry.”
Here's where today's Truth Matters provides us with a much needed insight...namely, our “well” is not where the answer is. Jesus does not go deep into our “well” with us to drudge up answers. No. Our help must come from above not at the bottom of our “well.”
If we only see our Lord as a comforter or strengthener in our attempts to see needed spiritual change, we miss a very important point...that is, God's wisdom and His power is what will bring about change...and that is from above not down deep in our “well.” Our approach must be to affirm God's omnipotence. Trust in His working.
I guess a lot of our lack of faith comes from our expectations of what we want to see happening. Compounded on that is our impatience with God...we want to see it happening now. We see our “wells” of desire, processes, and fixes as to how God will work. What He wants, is for us to depend and have confidence in His power...to depend on His timing...to know He has purposes beyond which we have understanding but will bring honor and glory to His name. We must not depend upon our “wells”...they will run dry. We must look to almighty God from which our help will come.
My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, You've told us to put our cares and anxieties on You (1 Peter 5:7; Matthew 11:28). We lose sight of that. Please remind us of this every day. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Christ Wins We Win
Seems like every day we hear and read about increasing botchery happening all over the world, but even more concerning, in America. I just read an article this morning published by the National Police Association (February 2024 - “No Sacred Place: Worship at Risk”) that shows churches in America are experiencing unprecedented violence and criminal attacks in 2024. We look at the crime statistics and we are often dismayed at the trend. We see the Apostle Paul's predictions for the days preceding Daniel's 70th week becoming more clear. The list causes many to fear and face their future with apprehension— “2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, without gentleness, without love for good, 4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 holding to a form of godliness, but having denied its power. (2 Timothy 3:2-5)
The cure for many of our apprehensions comes when we realize two Truth Matters:
1) If we're not careful, we begin to see things as if they're falling apart; but in reality, all these things are falling into place in preparation for Jesus' second coming. (Matthew 24:3-14)
2) Even more importantly, we believers are in our God's sovereign hands—“because God has chosen you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth... 15 So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the instructions which you were taught from us. 16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, 17 encourage your hearts and strengthen them. (2 Thessalonians 2:13-17)
The point is this...we persevere through troubling times because we trust our Lord and Savior. He wins. We are one in Him. He brings us to ultimate glory...we are winners in Him. Being in His hands, Christ Jesus is our confidence.
We persevere through troubling times because the Sovereign, Creator of the universe; the only God who became a man to pay our penalty for our sin by dying on the cross so that we would be with Him for all eternity in heaven; the One who shapes the history of man for His glory; is our God and the One who loves us with an infinite, eternal love. My prayer for me and you is this...Lord, calm our fears. Relieve our apprehensions. Help us to persevere with faith and confidence as we think about Your power, plan, purpose, and Your love for us. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
This one will say, ‘I am Yahweh's'; And this one will call on the name of Yahweh; And this one will write on his hand, ‘Belonging to Yahweh. (Isaiah 44:5)
Just Do It
We are familiar with Nike's trademark swoosh and the marketing slogan “Just Do It.” I think the marketing slogan had to do with the tedious dread the athlete experiences as they must take on the drudgery of training, diet, and preparation for their physical objectives. In those times, the athlete must self-motivate and “Just Do It.” If he or she does not have that self-motivation, those physical objectives will not be met and the athlete will not succeed.
Life, in general, is a lot like that. There are times when we have to plow through times of drudgery. No one is going to make us or even encourage us to plow through; we “Just Do It.” We also experience this in our service for the Lord Jesus. We expect some “lightening bolt” to get us moving for the kingdom's sake, but in fact, there will be no “lightening bolts” but the necessity to “Just Do It.” Sometimes we waste precious kingdom opportunities, not because we can't see the opportunities, but we just don't get moving. We'll find when we “Just Do It” we then will experience and realize the leading and power of God as He uses us to complete His work.
We ask the question, “What comes first...the chicken or the egg?” In the case of most believers, God shows us an opportunity to advance the kingdom, but then it is up to us to “Just Do It.” If we don't, we'll just sit on that opportunity and it will pass us by. Reminds me of the guy I read about today in my morning time with God who buried his talent and it earned nothing for the master (Matthew 25:14-30). The purpose of that parable is to tell us to “Just Do It.” My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, so many times we see what needs to be done for the kingdom's sake, but we don't get off our rear ends and start working. Our problem is that it will require sacrifice, effort, a realigning of priorities. Help us to see that is exactly what you want from us...for the kingdom's sake and Your glory. We commit ourselves to “Just Do It.” Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Desperation Brings Us to Praise
Andrea Crouch wrote a song that every believer can relate to. The chorus goes like this: “Through it all, Through it all, I've learned to trust in Jesus, I've learned to trust in God.” Seems like when life seems to be going great, things appear to be predictable and under control, our expectations are being fulfilled, it is harder to develop trust and a desperate relationship with Jesus. I think it's part of what Jesus was trying to teach His disciples when He told them, “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Matthew 19:23-24) The point is, there's nothing wrong with being rich...as there is nothing wrong with enjoying the blessings of life...but Martin Luther would never have written A Mighty Fortress is Our God if he did not experiencing the hardships and unpredictability of his life during the Reformation. Paul too credits the humility, stress, and pain he suffered as God's way of conforming and directing him to Christ.
This is one of the blessings of being older...you can now see how those painful experiences, those hours spent in anxious uncertainty, those seemingly dry, thirsty deserts we passed through all made us more God focused, God dependent, driven to the Word and prayer. God works that way in all our lives.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest reminds us of this Truth that Matters:
“Sometimes God puts us through the experience and discipline of darkness to teach us to hear and obey Him— pay attention when God puts you into darkness, and keep your mouth closed while you are there. Are you in the dark right now in your circumstances, or in your life with God? If so, then remain quiet. If you open your mouth in the dark, you will speak while in the wrong mood— darkness is the time to listen. Don't talk to other people about it; don't read books to find out the reason for the darkness; just listen and obey. If you talk to other people, you cannot hear what God is saying. When you are in the dark, listen, and God will give you a very precious message for someone else once you are back in the light.
After every time of darkness, we should experience a mixture of delight and humiliation. If there is only delight, I question whether we have really heard God at all. We should experience delight for having heard God speak, but mostly humiliation for having taken so long to hear Him! Then we will exclaim, “How slow I have been to listen and understand what God has been telling me!” And yet God has been saying it for days and even weeks. But once you hear Him, He gives you the gift of humiliation, which brings a softness of heart— a gift that will always cause you to listen to God now.”
I've been to Red Rocks, CO...a perfect amphitheater carved out of a red rock canyon by God. There, this song was sung that sums up what the “desert places” are intended to bring for the Christian. Sometimes music brings out the “truth matters” better than words:
I'm Desperate For You - Red Rocks Worship - Lyric Video - YouTube
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we thank You for the times when You bring us to an end of ourselves. Those are the times You become precious to us. We learn to walk ever more closely to You. For those times, we thank You. “What a friend We have in Jesus...What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer.” Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Narcigesis
I believe it may have been the reformed theologian R.C. Sproul who coined the term “narcigesis.” The term is defined this way:
“Narcigesis is combining the words narcissism and eisegesis.” Narcissism is “excessive interest in or admiration of oneself,” and eisegesis is “interpretation of a text by reading into it one's own ideas.” So, narcigesis is “the explanation of the Bible in a way that shows excessive interest in oneself and prioritizes one's own ideas.”
In other words, the “narcigetic” is one who interprets the Bible according to his or her own liking. Of course, this becomes problematic and dangerous because of the distortions and untruths put upon God's word.
I was reading this morning in Matthew 22:29 where Jesus rebuked some “narcigetes” of His day: “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.”
Could that same rebuke be needed today...by us?
I think the term “narcigesis” is an apt description of how many Christians today approach their understanding of the Bible. Rather than paying attention to what the Bible is actually saying, they “cherry-pick” passages that they think reinforces what THEY think God should say, be, or do. God tells us: Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15). “Narcigetics” be dammed. We never want to get into the position where “I am devoted to things and even to service and my own convictions. God may say whatever He wants, but I just don't hear Him.” My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, may we never get ourselves into a position where we are “in error because we do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.” Speak to us Lord through Your word and give us discernment to see where we are becoming “narcigetes” rather than humble and diligent students of your word. This is especially important for those of us who have been given the responsibility of preaching and teaching the Bible...but it's essentially true for all of us. Open the eyes of our hearts, souls, and minds to Your Word. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
My Biggest Regret
Dr. John Macarthur was once asked by a seminary student (I paraphrase because I can't recall the exact quote): “As you mature in your Christian life, will you sin less?” Macarthur's response was: “Yes, I sin less, but I'm remorseful more.” How can that be? Why is it that as we mature in our Christians lives we become more remorseful? I think there are two reasons:
1) As we mature we learn more about who God is, and who we are. By that I mean we become more and more aware of how far we are from the righteousness and the purposes of God. The more deeply we understand God, and more deeply understand our sinfulness and our flesh, and who we really are, it becomes more hurtful and causes us remorse.
2) As we mature in our Christian walk we sense how faithless, how negligent we have been not to heed God's word, believe it, and put it into practice. This causes us greater remorse as we see how much we have been so artificial, phoney, thoughtless to the things revealed in God's word.
Today's My Utmost for His Highest reveals the reason for the mature Christian's remorse:
“We don't consciously and deliberately disobey God— we simply don't listen to Him. God has given His commands to us, but we pay no attention to them— not because of willful disobedience, but because we do not truly love and respect Him. “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). Once we realize we have constantly been showing disrespect to God, we will be filled with shame and humiliation for ignoring Him.
We like to listen to personal testimonies, but we don't want God Himself to speak to us. Why are we so terrified for God to speak to us? It is because we know that when God speaks we must either do what He asks or tell Him we will not obey. But if it is simply one of God's servants speaking to us, we feel obedience is optional, not imperative. We respond by saying, “Well, that's only your own idea, even though I don't deny that what you said is probably God's truth.”
Am I constantly humiliating God by ignoring Him, while He lovingly continues to treat me as His child? Once I finally do hear Him, the humiliation I have heaped on Him returns to me. My response then becomes, “Lord, why was I so insensitive and obstinate?” This is always the result once we hear God. But our real delight in finally hearing Him is tempered with the shame we feel for having taken so long to do so.”
Pastors are being counseled these days to preach as if they are addressing 7th and 8th graders. Of course there are times when the elementary truths of God's word need to be explained in the most simplest of terms, but pastors who only preach on the 7th grade level will get churches filled with 7th grade level Christians (a problem seen in many of today's “evangelical churches”). As Christians get fed on the “meat” of God's word (Hebrews 5:11-14), they will experience the remorse Macarthur was talking about and explained by Oswald Chambers. The question is, why put ourselves in the position of remorse? Why aren't we finding “real delight in finally hearing Him?” That's question we each must answer. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we don't want to live in the remorse of wasted opportunity...the remorse of disobedience...the remorse of not experiencing Your blessing. We want to know You more and walk with You more completely. Help us Lord to fulfill Your purposes. Amen
The old “Farmer's Almanac” adage applies here: “If you quit hitting your head with a hammer, you'll feel less pain.” Think about it.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Sanctified or Thrown Out
Seems like America is becoming less and less “Christian” in any real sense of the word. The abominable state of our secular colleges and universities, our anti-God and anti-Bible culture, opening our borders to anti-Christian aliens for the purpose of their votes, weak churches and weak pastors not “contending earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints (Jude) ...all of these are contributing to an anti-Christian America. But perhaps the main cause of the degeneracy of America has to do with today's Christians themselves. We have lost the personal meaning of “sanctification.” By that I mean, we've lost the meaning of what it takes to be the corrective “salt” and “light” demanded by Jesus (Matthew 5:13-20). Today's Oswald Chambers' My Utmost for His Highest, confronts us with this damning truth:
“Are we prepared to pay the cost of sanctification? The cost will be a deep restriction of all our earthly concerns, and an extensive cultivation of all our godly concerns. Sanctification means to be intensely focused on God's point of view. It means to secure and to keep all the strength of our body, soul, and spirit for God's purpose alone. Are we really prepared for God to perform in us everything for which He separated us? And after He has done His work, are we then prepared to separate ourselves to God just as Jesus did? “For their sakes I sanctify Myself…” (John 17:19). The reason some of us have not entered into the experience of sanctification is that we have not realized the meaning of sanctification from God's perspective. Sanctification means being made one with Jesus so that the nature that controlled Him will control us. Are we really prepared for what that will cost? It will cost absolutely everything in us which is not of God.
Are we prepared to say, “Lord, make me, a sinner saved by grace, as holy as You can”? Jesus prayed that we might be one with Him, just as He is one with the Father (see John 17:21-23). The resounding evidence of the Holy Spirit in a person's life is the unmistakable family likeness to Jesus Christ, and the freedom from everything which is not like Him. Are we prepared to set ourselves apart for the Holy Spirit's work in us?”
The Mennen Skin Bracer commercial of 1972 showed a man splashing on an alcohol laced after-shave and then responding to the shock to his raw, shaven face. He exclaimed, “Wow...I needed that!” The “Skin Bracer” woke him up...ready for his day. I think most of us need a healthy dose of “spiritual bracer.” We need the conviction of what Chambers wrote for February 8 above. It's the “bracer” that will wake us up to our roles of “salt” and “light” needed to influence our degenerating culture. Nothing of which Chambers pointed out will be easy. Jesus pointed that out too when He stated:
“28 For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it ... 34 “Therefore, salt is good, but if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned? 35 It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, [j]let him hear.” (Luke 14:25-35)
This is where the men are separated from the boys...where the women are separated from the girls. This country, this culture, this world, needs men and women who understand what it means to be “sanctified”...the cost and the purpose.
My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, we want to be “totally in” resulting in our “sanctification.” Forgive us of our negligence. our lack of commitment. Use us this day as Your “salt” and “light.” Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
God’s Glory or Our Dejection
The main point of our preaching series “God's Love” is that God's love is not how we conjure it up in our minds. The Bible's description of God's love often takes us by surprise...sometimes it's not understood by us...it always requires faith and trust in God's loving purposes. The problem is when we try to superimpose our expectations and near-sighted approval of how God should manifest His love. Two problems here:
1) God is perfectly holy...we are not. How He loves is a perfect manifestation of AGAPE (“Agape love is not merely an attribute of God, it is His essence. God is fundamentally love. He alone loves in the completeness and perfection of love)
2) God is omniscient...that is, God knows the beginning from the end...we do not. God knows how, when, and where to manifest His love. In other word, we don't tell God what love is, He tells us how His love is demonstrated. Whatever His mercy and grace and kindness and goodness and tender-heartedness achieved cannot obliterate what will be made manifest by His hatred, His anger, His wrath, His vengeance and His justice. All of God's attributes have a place in the demonstration of His love.
If we cannot accept the fact that the chief desire of God is that His attributes will be honored and glorified, then we will experience “spiritual dejection” when we are faced with seemingly unanswerable questions in the tragedies of life. Not trusting in “God's Love,” we are left with resentment, disillusionment, and anxiousness.
We don't realize that all the time God is at work in our everyday events and in the people around us is key to understanding God's love. No matter what the circumstance might be, we know that God is working through that circumstance according to His love for us. Although we may not be able to see or understand the path God has laid out for us, we know and trust God has a glorious purpose for it and we will finally see God's ultimate expression of His love. My prayer for you and me today is this...Lord, teach us that You are always working in our lives out of Your infinite love for us. No matter what the circumstance might be, the circumstance has been carefully designed by a loving God to bring out the image of Christ in us and bring You glory and honor. Keep us from feeling dejected because of our spiritual short-sightedness. Amen.
Stanphill's song comes to my mind:
I don't know about tomorrow,
I just live from day to day.
I don't borrow from its sunshine,
For its skies may turn to gray.
I don't worry o'er the future,
For I know what Jesus said,
And today I'll walk beside Him,
For He knows what is ahead.
Many things about tomorrow,
I don't seem to understand;
But I know who holds tomorrow,
And I know who holds my hand.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Kings or King-makers
There is a huge difference between those who live their Christian lives to be well thought-of, congratulated, honored, esteemed...another words, live to be “kings” and...those who have little thought of being “kings” but rather, give themselves up in order to make others succeed and be great for the glory of God...in other words, they see their role as “king-makers.” To be a “king-maker” is not a glamorous job. In fact, it requires one to let go of self-aspiration and take the role of one often unappreciated, unknown, and seemingly insignificant in order that others might succeed in their Christian walk and become great in the kingdom of God. The Apostle Paul describes the life of a “king-maker:” “ 28 Him we proclaim, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. 29 For this purpose I also labor, striving according to His working, which He works in me in power.” (Colossians 1:28-29) Sometimes a “king-maker” will be highly regarded and gain notoriety, but most of the time he or she will not.. There must be a conscious decision to become a “king-maker.” Today's My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers addresses this issue:
“Are you willing to sacrifice yourself for the work of another believer—to pour out your life sacrificially for the ministry and faith of others? Or do you say, “I am not willing to be poured out right now, and I don't want God to tell me how to serve Him. I want to choose the place of my own sacrifice. And I want to have certain people watching me and saying, ‘Well done.' ”
It is one thing to follow God's way of service if you are regarded as a hero, but quite another thing if the road marked out for you by God requires becoming a “doormat” under other people's feet. God's purpose may be to teach you to say, “I know how to be abased…” (Philippians 4:12). Are you ready to be sacrificed like that? Are you ready to be less than a mere drop in the bucket— to be so totally insignificant that no one remembers you even if they think of those you served? Are you willing to give and be poured out until you are used up and exhausted— not seeking to be ministered to, but to minister? Some saints cannot do menial work while maintaining a saintly attitude, because they feel such service is beneath their dignity.”
Paul made this statement in Philippians 2 “3 doing nothing from selfish ambition or vain glory, but with humility of mind regarding one another as more important than yourselves, 4 not merely looking out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others... 17 But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.” Those are the thoughts and aspirations of a “king-maker.” “Being poured out as a drink offering” may not be a popular aspiration, but it is the mind-set of a “king-maker.” I think God would have us all to have this mind-set. After all, it was the mind-set of our Lord Jesus - “5 Have this way of thinking in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although existing in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself” (Philippians 2). Why? So that others might become kings in glory.
My prayer for you and me this morning is this...Lord, humbly we place our lives before You to be used to bring others to glory. Help us put aside our pride and ambitions and use us to the building up of others. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Losing is Actually Winning
Webster gives these definitions to the word “loss:” “the harm or privation resulting from losing or being separated from something;” “the act or fact of being unable to keep or maintain something.” The case could be made that Christians are a bunch of “losers”...that is, in order to follow Christ, we will suffer “harm or privation” we will “be unable to keep or maintain.” The Apostle Paul put it this way: “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 More than that, I count all things to be loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him...” (Philippians 3:7-11)
What Paul was referring to was personal. He lost prestige, worldly honor, his former way of life and thinking so that he could identify with and know Christ.
Each of us has a personal story like Paul's where we suffer loss to be counted as a follower of Christ. Jesus teaches His disciples to “turn the other cheek,” trade the world's acceptance for persecution, trade worldly sophistication for child-like faith, trade self-conceived control for God's sovereign purposes, trade pride for humiliation. Whether we're talking about marriage, or career, or parenting, or ministry, or fleshly desires, we will suffer personal loss in order to follow the Lord Christ.
In other words, being a Christian means we lose our ambitions, expectations, plans, self-promotions in order for Christ's power to be seen in us...and that loss will seem counter-productive every time...we will chafe under that loss...many times we don't recognize God's perfect plan. Paul was able to accept those “loses” so that he “may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.” (Philippians 3:10-11). That “resurrection” wasn't only a reference to the rapture, it was also a reference to leaving behind the ambitions, expectations, plans, self-promotions and now becoming one with Christ. This is a case where “losing is actually winning.”
My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, help us to see that what we thought was winning must be put aside for Your purpose in our lives. Remind us often that Your purpose will make us real winners and bring glory to Your name. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Am I On Course?
God tells us - “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.” (1 Corinthians 9:24). In Hebrews 12:1 “...laying aside every weight and the sin which so easily entangles us, let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” In 2 Timothy 2:5 God uses another athletic illustration - “if anyone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.” Our problem is figuring out “the race that is set before us.” The question is - “Are we still on course?” A follow-up question is - “How are we competing...how great is our commitment to winning the race?”
The goal of every Christian is to lift up, magnify, promote, honor, praise, and acclaim the Lord Jesus Christ. When trying to figure out the “course” for our lives, the 1647 Westminster Confession puts it this way: “What is the chief end of man? Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.”
Maybe we need a “course correction.” Maybe we need to see that the goal of our lives is to bring glory and honor to the Lord Jesus Christ. That may involve the redemption of sinners, the sanctification of saints, but these are tangential to the “prize,” namely, lifting up the Son of God. We have to ask ourselves the question, do we see exalting Christ the main purpose of our lives? That prize is what must direct our “course.” Whether it's in our teaching, parenting, mentoring, working, playing...are we running the race with the purpose of lifting up Jesus Christ? Will we remain “unmovable” in our race for the prize even through heartbreak, disillusionment, and tribulation? The answer to that question will determine “how great is our commitment to winning the race.” It is one of those self-diagnostic questions that may require a “course correction.” Etched in my grandfather's pulpit so that he was reminded whenever he preached were these words: “They would see Jesus.” Not a bad reminder for all of us.
My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, You are great and greatly to be worshipped and praised. In our evangelism, in our desire for holiness, let us never forget the prize...lifting You up, exalting You. To You be the honor and glory and blessing now and forever. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Top Priority
Ask yourself this question: “What is the most important purpose God has for my life?” You might begin to trot out a number of things like: to be a Godly parent; a Godly husband or wife; a faithful and honest employee; a Godly friend; steeped in the service of the church or Christian organization; a caring neighbor.... All those are areas where we, as Christians, should reflect Christ. They are part of “working out of our salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12-13). But the most important purpose God has for you and me is to share the gospel...the life changing reality of redemption. Think about this: God has placed you where you are so that you would uniquely share the gospel with those uniquely around you. You were created and molded for a time and place such as this...for the purpose of communicating the gospel. That's your most important purpose. It's the priority Jesus emphasized in Matthew 28:16-20 and Acts 1:8.
1 Cor. 9:24-27, Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”
The gospel ordered the way Paul lived. Everything he did was based on the priority of sharing the gospel. It wasn't based on what was in his best interest, his friends, his comfort or anything else that is typically considered the pursuit of happiness in the US. Although we may not be an apostle like Paul, we can still learn from his example. Paul exercised self-control based on his priority of the gospel. Have you considered whether or not your life is based around the priority of the gospel?
True...we are not “Apostles” in the sense that Paul was, but he was given to us by God as an example to emulate: “Brothers, join in following my example, and look for those who walk according to the pattern you have in us.” (Philippians 3:17). And that “pattern” was the priority of sharing the gospel. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, keep us fixed on the priority You have established for us, namely, sharing the reality of redemption. So many things...so many distractions...so many enticements keep us from the one thing we have been molded for. Help is to see the brevity of life and the reason You've put us here. Help us to refocus and reset our lives for Your kingdom's sake. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Not Understanding
I was seeking God's face earlier this morning while meditating on Matthew 16:21-23. That's the passage where the Apostle Peter misunderstood God's love and while he thought he had Jesus' best interest in mind, he was actually thinking and acting contrary to God's love plan. Jesus called him out on his misunderstanding and rebuked him harshly... ”Get behind me Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” (Matthew 16:22). We often like to ridicule, or even feel superior, to Peter because of his leaping to his own conclusions, but in reality, aren't we VERY OFTEN like him? Rather than living and serving in humility and trusting in God's plan and God's love, we insist on our own understanding and stand in need of the same rebuke Peter got. Today's My Utmost for His Highest (the beloved devotional by Oswald Chambers) brings this nearsightedness to our attention:
“God has to destroy our determined confidence in our own convictions. We say, “I know that this is what I should do” — and suddenly the voice of God speaks in a way that overwhelms us by revealing the depths of our ignorance. We show our ignorance of Him in the very way we decide to serve Him. We serve Jesus in a spirit that is not His, and hurt Him by our defense of Him. We push His claims in the spirit of the devil; our words sound all right, but the spirit is that of an enemy. “He…rebuked them, and said, ‘You do not know what manner of spirit you are of' ” (Luke 9:55). The spirit of our Lord in His followers is described in 1 Corinthians 13.
Have I been persecuting Jesus by an eager determination to serve Him in my own way? If I feel I have done my duty, yet have hurt Him in the process, I can be sure that this was not my duty. My way will not be to foster a meek and quiet spirit, only the spirit of self-satisfaction. We presume that whatever is unpleasant is our duty! Is that anything like the spirit of our Lord— “I delight to do Your will, O my God…” (Psalm 40:8).”
I don't know about you, but Peter's rebuke by the Lord Jesus sends a dagger to my heart. I'm often just like Peter telling Jesus what I THINK He should or should not do? Am I humbly willing to submit to His plan and purpose for my life no matter how inconceivable that plan seems to me? Am I deserving of the same rebuke Peter got? Bottom line is this...is my desire to glorify the Lord God of my own design or am I humble to, with joy, place myself in His holy design? That's a question all maturing believers must come to recon with. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, forgive us of insisting on our ways of serving You...of our preconceived purposes and expectations. May we humbly accept Your plan and purpose for us to be perfect, a blessing to others, and glorifying to You. We ask in Jesus' name...amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Compromise
I looked up Webster's definition of “compromise.” One of the definitions is: “to find or follow a way between extremes.” Many modern day Christians believe this is the way to win an unregenerate world over to our side. If we would just “compromise” a little with a world energized and directed by “the schemes of the devil (Ephesians 6:11,” we would move the needle in our direction. In God's word, you cannot find that definition of “compromise” anywhere in the Bible...only warnings against it. In fact, all the examples of attempts to compromise found in scripture led to further ungodliness. The Bible makes it clear that God does not condone compromising His commands: “Be careful to do what the LORD your God has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or to the left” (Deuteronomy 5:32). Joyful are those who “do not compromise with evil, and they walk only in his paths” (Psalm 119:3, NLT). God is holy, and His ways are right. God is good, and His ways are life giving. Concerning matters that God has clearly addressed, we do not negotiate, bargain, or compromise.
Webster has other definitions of “compromise: “a concession to something derogatory or prejudicial”... ” to make a shameful or disreputable concession.” These definitions are what believers should think about when tempted to give up what we know to be “truth matters” for even good intentions or human strategies.
In other words, our lives are to reflect God's truth. Where or when does God bend or compromise His truth? Never. Neither should we. Not compromising includes not being hypocritical. When our intention is to actively pursue a deeper relationship with God and obey Him in all things, we are less likely to compromise. We will more readily recognize the things that seek to draw us away from God. We will more readily recognize His voice and trust Him (see John 10:4). We come to understand the magnitude of His holiness, the crushing nature of sin, and the depth of His grace. We long to follow Him in all our ways. The better we know God, the better we can resist the temptation to compromise His truth. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, help us to overcome our “sophistication” and humbly submit to Your truth. The consequences are Yours, but holding firmly to the truth is our testimony and responsibility. Keep us ever anchored to Your truth and not be swayed by “compromise.” Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Allow your eyes to adjust
I get up in the morning and after a time of prayer and meditating on God's word, I try to write one of these “Truth Matters” and then proceed down to the barn to feed the horses. It's about a hundred yard walk. The sun is reflecting off the snow and by the time I get to the barn, I walk into the feed room and experience “snow blindness”...that is, the dimly lit feed room becomes completely black. After a few minutes my eyes adjust and can begin to see to get the work done. I have to wait in order to see clearly.
In a way, that's how it is in our service to the Lord. We walk in the bright light of God's revelation to us...we study His word...we seek Him to speak to us...we rejoice in His revealed truth to us...and then proceed to be used by Him only to find we enter into a dimly lit area where we experience “revelation blindness”...that is, we can't see how God is purposefully orchestrating our lives to be used for Him.
It's the “waiting” that becomes a hurdle to us...because we want “results” we can see and somehow manipulate. We are “cause & effect” people often discounting God's sovereign, omniscient purposes for us. In other word, we may not know or see what God is doing through us until God takes away our “revelation blindness” and gives us confidence that He is in charge AND...the results are His. Before heading down to the barn to feed the horses, I am praying this for you and me this day: Lord, turn our impatience into trust and confidence in Your working in and through us. Help us to be faithful through times of “spiritual blindness” as You gradually open our eyes and allow us to see and trust in Your hand. Amen.
Whittle's hymn written in 1884 still points to our response to “revelation blindness:”
I know not why God's wondrous grace
to me is daily shown,
nor why, with mercy, Christ in love
redeemed me for his own.
But “I know whom I have believed,
and am persuaded that he is able
to keep that which I've committed
unto him against that day.”
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Joy to Jesus
President John F. Kennedy once said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” This same exhortation could be said to Christians concerning their relationship to the Lord Jesus. Did it ever occur to you that we can bring pleasure and joy to our Lord? We view Him as our provider, protector, and loving Father...and rightly so. But did you realize we can bring Him joy in serving Him; bring Him joy in loving Him; bring Him joy in wanting to be with Him through prayer and the word? Maybe we need to stop and realize how often our typical focus is on how God can bring us joy...while we fail to realize we can bring joy to Him. Today's My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers reminds us of this:
“Jesus said to her, ‘Give Me a drink' ” (John 4:7). How many of us are expecting Jesus Christ to quench our thirst when we should be satisfying Him! We should be pouring out our lives, investing our total beings, not drawing on Him to satisfy us. “You shall be witnesses to Me…” (Acts 1:8). That means lives of pure, uncompromising, and unrestrained devotion to the Lord Jesus, which will be satisfying to Him wherever He may send us.
Beware of anything that competes with your pleasure-giving loyalty to Jesus Christ. The greatest competitor of true devotion to Jesus is the service we do for Him. It is easier to serve than to pour out our lives completely for Him. The goal of the call of God is His satisfaction, not simply that we should do something for Him. We are not sent to do battle for God, but to be used by God in His battles. Are we more devoted to service than we are to Jesus Christ Himself?”
An older saint I knew, Spencer Banfield, loved this hymn because of the reality it was in his life. The hymn goes:
I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear, falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses
And He walks with me
And He talks with me
And He tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known
The part we often overlook is “the joy WE share as WE tarry there” ...that is, our part in the joy the Son of God derives from our fellowship with Him. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we want to sit down with You this day...to talk with You...listen to Your voice...express our love to You. For we know this brings You great joy and that is what we want to do. We want to bring You joy today as we walk with You. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Costly for Others
What would God have me do?...or what is God's call on my life? Just like there are no two snowflakes exactly alike, God's call for each of us is individual. God's call on your life will not be exactly the same as God's call on mine. It's a waste of time to compare, contrast, or explain our call. No one beside God could understand how uniquely God has shaped us for His call. There are many contributing factors that shape our “call”...factors such as: DNA, childhood-adolescent-adult experiences, family influences, marriage, spiritual development, achievements and defeats, personal abilities or the lack there of, physical and emotional tendencies. The point is...we are complex and individual. What we must understand is God's omniscient sovereignty carefully puts in place all these “complexities” that make you you. We were created and orchestrated by God to be used by Him. As we seek God's call, these “complexities” steer us and prepare us for that which will bring Him glory and advance His kingdom. For some of us, it may take years to realize how our “complexities” are to be used in the service of the King. We come to realize there is a need to be filled in reaching the world with the gospel or a need in edifying the brothers and sisters in the body of Christ, and then the Spirit of God opens our eyes as to how God can use us.
We come to a point in our lives where we identify with the Apostle Paul when he wrote:
12 I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He regarded me faithful, putting me into service... for this reason I was shown mercy, so that in me as the foremost (of sinners), Christ Jesus might demonstrate all His patience as an example for those who are going to believe upon Him for eternal life. 17 Now to the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. (1 Timothy 1:12-17)
It is when we realize the brevity of life and the eternal worth of our “complexities” that we begin to realize and pursue God's call on us. We serve with joy and confidence as we begin to understand how our God designed “complexities” plug in to His purposes. My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, sometimes it is a mystery and wonder how You have intricately prepared us for Your service. We pray for the leading of the Spirit to show us how and where we are to be used for the advancement of Your kingdom. You have uniquely prepared us and now we are ready and willing to be plugged in. Amen
Reminds me of the prayer found in one of Fanny Cosby's hymns:
Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
By the pow'r of grace divine;
Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
And my will be lost in Thine.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Costly for Others
When we engage in any facet of ministering to the lives of people, there is going to be a cost to others. There will be a cost in terms of precious personal relationships. Jesus told His followers: “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.” (Luke 14:26). The word “hate” is hyperbole, but it forewarns the follower of Christ of focus that will be required. But there will be another kind of cost to others...namely, sacrificial material support. This may come in the form of financial support, or other kind of sacrificial support that will enable us in fulfilling the call God designed for us. For example, consider those who financially supported Jesus: “And it happened that soon afterward He was going around from one city and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with Him...and many others who were ministering to them from their possessions. (Luke 8:1-3)
While we all know of “ministers of the gospel” who have exploited and distorted this concept for personal gain, the fact of the matter is that much of God's work through us will require the support and help from others...and it will be costly to them...it will require sacrifice. We hate that notion because we want to be independent and self-reliant not needing anyone's help...we don't want to be an inconvenience to others...but that's not how God designed ministry to take place. We need the financial and material support of others.
Whether it be Christian education, the pregnancy center, missionary outreach, the local church, there will be expenses involved that will need the financial support of others. Ministries will not be able to function without sacrificial support. It takes a great deal of humility to rely on others to support our ministries. The thought of “fund raising” when involved in God's work is both humiliating and intimidating, but we must put aside our pride and independence and accept God's working through the lives of others. There is a certain grace that God must give us as we see how our ministries require sacrifice on the part of others. My prayer for you and me today is this: Lord, teach us the humility and blessing of receiving. You use others to see works done in Your name go forward. Bless those who give for the furtherance of the gospel and Your kingdom.
Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Almost Christians
In the day in which we live, one of the important tasks of Ambassadors for Christ is to face professing Christians with the fact they have never been regenerated. They don't show the characteristic signs of regeneration e.g. prayerful humility; a thirst for God's word personally and corporately; a growing love for others as described in 1 Corinthians 13; an increasing desire to know Jesus Christ more intimately. In other words, “if there's no smoke in the chimney there's no reason to think there is a fire in the fireplace.” Many “Christians” today say they have been “converted”...that is, they see some kind of advantage of being biblically influenced...they may become active in some “do goodism” that has the facade of being Christian...they have adapted a Christianized lingo...they have even learned how to “make-believe” pray...but honestly, they still live and talk like the world. I call them “almost Christians.” They have never come to the place where they have become utterly crushed because of their sin and receive the forgiveness only Jesus can give. They do not know the presence of the Spirit nor are they willing to be directed by Him. This situation is the disaster of evangelicalism today...in fact, the designation “evangelical” has lost its defining identity of true, regenerated believers. Living under the umbrella of “evangelicalism” has become a dangerous and self-deceiving place to be these days
How dreadful and terrible it will be when so many self-proclaimed “evangelical / almost Christians” find themselves confronted by Jesus Christ and sentenced to an eternity in hell because they refused to believe themselves to be totally lost sinners in need of God's only provision. Matthew 7:21-23 should strike terror in the lives of many of today's “evangelicals” -
21 “Not all who sound religious are really godly people. They may refer to me as ‘Lord,' but still won't get to heaven. For the decisive question is whether they obey my Father in heaven. 22 At the Judgment many will tell me, ‘Lord, Lord, we told others about you and used your name to cast out demons and to do many other great miracles.' 23 But I will reply, ‘You have never been mine. Go away, for your deeds are evil.' (The Living Bible paraphrase)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we know about self-deception and how easy it is to be self-deceived. We know folks who profess to follow Christ but their profession is self-deceived. They still want to be in control of their lives and agendas and are unwilling to humbly fall on their knees before the Lord Jesus and give themselves over to the Christ who died on a cross for them. Use us Lord to make this clear. Use us to bring others to true repentance and Spirit led lives. Empower us...embolden us to speak the truth in love. Use us as Your ambassadors to preach the gospel in all its wonder, mystery, and clarity. We pray for salvation for those “almost Christians.” Amen.
Truth Matters 1-4-24
Maybe it's a goal that now seems out of reach, or maybe it's a failure you now are desperate to rectify, or maybe it's a move or new relationship you believe to be in your best interest...you want to help God out by taking control and making it happen. The counsel for such impulses is...wait. When we take the impulsive initiative to fix or rectify a situation we will miss a sanctifying lesson and bring with it suffering to ourselves and to others we touch. When we feel the impulse to “fix” huge emotional or relational issues, it's time to wait on God's providential, sovereign working and learn to trust in His wise plan. God counsels us:
Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and make manifest the motives of hearts. And then each one's praise will come to him from God. (1 Corinthians 4:5)
Today's My Utmost for His Highest gives some insight on this issue:
“There are times when you can't understand why you cannot do what you want to do. When God brings a time of waiting, and appears to be unresponsive, don't fill it with busyness, just wait. The time of waiting may come to teach you the meaning of sanctification— to be set apart from sin and made holy— or it may come after the process of sanctification has begun to teach you what service means. Never run before God gives you His direction. If you have the slightest doubt, then He is not guiding. Whenever there is doubt— wait.
At first you may see clearly what God's will is— the severance of a friendship, the breaking off of a business relationship, or something else you feel is distinctly God's will for you to do. But never act on the impulse of that feeling. If you do, you will cause difficult situations to arise which will take years to untangle. Wait for God's timing and He will do it without any heartache or disappointment. When it is a question of the providential will of God, wait for God to move.”
Taking this approach to many of our quandaries of life is very hard for us. We don't want to take a Pollyanna approach to life saying, “let go and let God,” but we have to learn to be trusting in God's providential and sovereign purposes and learn to wait upon His plan to unfold. To this end I pray for you and me this day...Lord, You are great and greatly to be praised. Help us to have such trust in Your working in our lives that we are surprised by joy when we give over to You control of our lives. Our confidence and trust is in You. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 1-4-24
Maybe it's a goal that now seems out of reach, or maybe it's a failure you now are desperate to rectify, or maybe it's a move or new relationship you believe to be in your best interest...you want to help God out by taking control and making it happen. The counsel for such impulses is...wait. When we take the impulsive initiative to fix or rectify a situation we will miss a sanctifying lesson and bring with it suffering to ourselves and to others we touch. When we feel the impulse to “fix” huge emotional or relational issues, it's time to wait on God's providential, sovereign working and learn to trust in His wise plan. God counsels us:
Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and make manifest the motives of hearts. And then each one's praise will come to him from God. (1 Corinthians 4:5)
Today's My Utmost for His Highest gives some insight on this issue:
“There are times when you can't understand why you cannot do what you want to do. When God brings a time of waiting, and appears to be unresponsive, don't fill it with busyness, just wait. The time of waiting may come to teach you the meaning of sanctification— to be set apart from sin and made holy— or it may come after the process of sanctification has begun to teach you what service means. Never run before God gives you His direction. If you have the slightest doubt, then He is not guiding. Whenever there is doubt— wait.
At first you may see clearly what God's will is— the severance of a friendship, the breaking off of a business relationship, or something else you feel is distinctly God's will for you to do. But never act on the impulse of that feeling. If you do, you will cause difficult situations to arise which will take years to untangle. Wait for God's timing and He will do it without any heartache or disappointment. When it is a question of the providential will of God, wait for God to move.”
Taking this approach to many of our quandaries of life is very hard for us. We don't want to take a Pollyanna approach to life saying, “let go and let God,” but we have to learn to be trusting in God's providential and sovereign purposes and learn to wait upon His plan to unfold. To this end I pray for you and me this day...Lord, You are great and greatly to be praised. Help us to have such trust in Your working in our lives that we are surprised by joy when we give over to You control of our lives. Our confidence and trust is in You. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 1-3-24
This Sunday we will be speaking about another armament of the Christian -the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17). In our teaching, we'll be looking at the issue of “illumination”...which every Christian needs and is provided for by God the Spirit. Simply put, illumination in the spiritual sense is “turning on the light” of understanding when it comes to spiritual truth. There is no question that God desires us to accurately understand what He has given us. Words have meaning, and we must pay attention to the details in those words. If, however, we stop there, we simply have an academic understanding of facts or philosophies, which do no one any good. The Spirit of God, who enlightens us to hear and understand God's Word, then takes that knowledge and guides us in living it. Romans 8:14 says “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” The illuminating and leading work of the Holy Spirit in our lives is a confirmation that we are indeed children of God.
This is what the Apostle Paul was getting at when he wrote:
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the depths graciously given to us by God, 13 of which depths we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual depths with spiritual words. 14 But a natural man does not accept the depths of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually examined. (1 Corinthians 2:12-14)
There are two ways Christians are “illuminated:”
1) Studying the word of God...not just for information...but meditating on the Word and asking the question “what is God revealing to ME personally?” Illumination always leads to repentance and action. We pray for the Spirit's insights in our individual lives.
2) God has ordained and gifted pastors and teachers to provide spiritual insight and illumination...”so that we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by emotions and carried about by every wind of doctrine...but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, that is Christ.” (Ephesians 4:14-15)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we pray for illuminating insight into Your word. Keep us personally in Your word. May it be our highest priority as we begin our days. Provide for us pastors and teachers that are faithful to Your word and endowed with truthful insights to teach us and show us Your truth. For these things we commit ourselves. Teach us the deep things God wants us to know and live. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Who So Ever Will
Seems like in Reformed circles the necessity of appealing to the “will” of the unbeliever has been set aside because we have been convinced of God's initial regenerating work in one who is spiritually dead (Romans 3:10-18). God is sovereign in the salvation of the spiritually dead. Reformers call it “Irresistible Grace.” Jesus made it clear: “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6:44). We acknowledge the truth of God's necessary, initiating, regenerating work that alone can make the spiritually dead responsive to the gospel. But at the same time, we must not set aside our appeal to the sinner's “will.” We used to sing the song:
Whosoever will, whosoever will!
Send the proclamation over vale and hill;
'Tis a loving Father calls the wanderer home.
"Whosoever will may come."
This may seem paradoxical, but our evangelism must be shaped by both of these truths. Knowing that the Spirit of God must break the rebellious heart of the unbeliever, we must also appeal to the “will” of the unbeliever. The gospel message is an appeal to the hearts and minds of the unbeliever. Focusing only on sovereign regeneration can make our gospel appeal cold, mechanical and lacking compassion. We must engage the sinner with a passionate plea to be saved from eternal judgment and receive God's provision in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul put it this way: “We beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:20-21).
We who are biblically reformed in our understanding of the Scriptures, have no doubt concerning the necessity of the Spirit's work in taking a heart of stone and making it a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26). But at the same time, with the love of Christ, we must passionately appeal to the “will” of the unbeliever using the Scriptures to change their minds, repent and put their trust in the Lord Christ. The Apostle Paul is an example to us:
Paul was explaining to them by solemnly bearing witness about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them concerning Jesus, from both the Law of Moses and from the Prophets, from morning until evening. (Acts 28:23)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, give us the passions for souls that You have. We're not “selling” the gospel. We're desperate to save folks from eternal hell. May our desperation be evident in the way we proclaim the good news of the gospel. May we have the same “desperation” demonstrated by the Apostle: I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. 3 For I could [a]wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brothers (Romans 9:1-3).
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Run to Christ
People, circumstances can cause the Christian great emotional pain and unsettled spiritual defeat. This is especially true when:
1) ...We become introspective...focusing on our failures. Coming to believe we deserve every bit of our emotional turmoil. This is especially true for spiritually sensitive folks who crave Christ-like reality in their lives.
2) ...Our sense of self-worth is tied to other's opinions of us or being in control of those “opinions” or circumstances around us.
3) ...We forget God has a purposeful plan to make us more and more like Jesus Christ. Rather than putting our focus on Him, we forget that God has placed that person or circumstance in our lives. We focus on the “fix” rather than realizing God's working in our lives. BTW...it may not result in the “fix” we initially thought important, but God will bring about His perfect result as we put aside our introspection, self-worth, insecurities and be fully confident in Christ. The writer of Hebrews 12:1-3 put it this way:
...let us strip off anything that slows us down or holds us back, and especially those sins that wrap themselves so tightly around our feet and trip us up; and let us run with patience the particular race that God has set before us. 2 Keep your eyes on Jesus, our leader and instructor. He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterwards; and now he sits in the place of honor by the throne of God. 3 If you want to keep from becoming fainthearted and weary, think about his patience as sinful men did such terrible things to him. (TLB)
The third verse from the Hebrews passage is key - “3 If you want to keep from becoming fainthearted and weary, think about his patience as sinful men did such terrible things to him.” Jesus contemplated another “fix” (“Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me, yet not My will, but Yours be done.” (Luke 22:42). That's what “Christ-likeness” is about...”Your will be done.” When we take this point of view, mark it down, God will perfect us and bless those around us. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, how often do we allow unscriptural introspection, self-worth, and unbelief to bring us emotional and spiritual defeat. Lord, we want to put our rest and assurance in You. Strengthen our faith. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Confronted by Sin
Joel Osteen, pastor of one of the largest churches in America, was being interviewed on the Larry King Show when Larry King made the observation that Osteen hardly ever preaches on sin. To which, Osteen replied, “People don't need to be told they're sinners...they already know that.” Osteen (and most other pastors today) would rather talk about how Christianity can help with finances, marriages, self-worth, success...but sidestep the issue of sin. The fact is, people don't know about sin...its devastation...the necessity of repentance...of confronting their personal rebellion against Holy God. Preaching on sin is a hard message in today's culture of victimization, entitlement, lack of moral clarity, disregard of the Scriptures, and rejection of the idea of God's judgment. The preaching on sin is of paramount importance in the proclamation of the gospel. The Apostle Paul put it this way:
I would not have come to know sin except through the Law... 13 Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by working out my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful. (Romans 7:7,13)
Indeed, the subject of sin must be addressed constantly and often from the pulpit. It is the starting point of one's recognition of their need for the gospel.
Preaching on sin cuts through to the hearts of self-righteous men and women. They must come to recognize their rebellion against Holy God, the consequences, and the coming judgment. Growing up in Christian circles, I was often given the impression that those preachers categorized as “Hell Fire and Brimstone” preachers were driving people away from the faith. I now realize that it is only by preaching on sin that folks are drawn to the good news of the gospel. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, in our desire to be “liked” and “acceptable,” we tend to stay away from addressing sin. We stay away from addressing the root cause of one's separation from God. May we be bold in proclaiming the truth of sin and grace. Amen.
This song gives the sequence of realizing one's sin and the grace of the Savior:
Lord I come to You
Let my heart be changed, renewed
Flowing from the grace
That I've found in You
Lord I've come to know
The weaknesses I see in me
Will be stripped away
By the power of Your love
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
What Are We Praying For?
Wednesday evenings we here at ECC, meet together for a common meal, but the main focus is prayer. Like many other Christian prayer meetings, there is the tendency to be praying from the wrong perspective. We often get focused on the difficult circumstances...sometimes tragedies...of those who we love or are concerned about. Our prayers are often driven by sympathy and the desire to “fix” the situation. Jesus changes our perspective on intercessory prayer by reminding us:
28 And do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for an assarion (A Roman copper coin, approx. 1/16 of a laborer's daily wage)? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. (Matthew 10:28-29)
Two Truth Matters we take away from Jesus' statement:
1) God is in control of even the smallest of details in the lives of those we are praying for.
2) It is God's perspective that is the most important focus of what we should be praying for.
God has placed difficult circumstances and even tragedies in the lives of those we pray for so that He can show His omniscience, omnipresence, bring about His purposes, and ultimately, cause that person to trust and love Him. We should pray not so much for “fixing” the details of the situation, but pray that God's purposes would unfold in the person's life and in the lives of those involved. It is a different perspective, but one that makes us true “intercessors.”
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we so often get caught up in the details of another's difficulty. We tend to pray for the “fix” rather than realizing You have a loving and redemptive plan for that person. Help us to pray with the mind of Christ.. “so that our faith would not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God (1 Corinthians 2:5). Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Quirks and Peculiarities
We all have “quirks” and individual “peculiarities” that seem to identify us personally. These “quirks” and “peculiarities” are not necessarily bad...they can often be endearing characteristics that draw us to others and others to us. But they can be very bad when they become an impediment to the leading of the Holy Spirit. For instance...are there people in your life the Spirit is wanting you to befriend and help, but yours and/or their “quirks” and “peculiarities” keep you from being obedient?...or maybe there is some aspect of ministry God has been calling you to, but you object because you can't get past your “quirks” and “peculiarities.” If the truth were known, often we embrace our “quirks” and “peculiarities” refusing to set them aside so that the Spirit of God can have control of our lives. This is part of what Jesus was getting across to “would-be” disciples:
“Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of even one's own self!—can't be my disciple. Anyone who won't shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can't be my disciple. (Luke 14:26-27 the Message paraphrase)
I know folks who see themselves and try to present themselves as “athletes” or “professionals” or “glamorous” or “red-necks” or “leaders” or “private persons” (the “quirks” and individual “peculiarities” list goes on...) but they have a hard time ministering to folks who are not like them or folks who do not pay tribute to their “quirks” and individual peculiarities.” The truth is...hanging on to our “quirks” and individual “peculiarities” are part of our residual sin natures and will impede God's working in us and through us. Without question, God created us as individuals, we all do have “quirks” and individual “peculiarities,” but when we cling to these, our commitment to the indwelling Christ will inevitably be distorted and sometimes destroyed. We need to be careful and discerning about his aspect of our lives. My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, you've made us so wonderfully different, but never let us cling to our personal differences at the expense of obeying Your word and allowing the Spirit to work in and through us. Amen.
When I think of putting aside my own “quirks” and “peculiarities,” I think of the words of this song:
We are called to take His light To a world where wrong seems right, What could be too great a cost sharing life with one who's lost? Thru His love our hearts can feel All the grief they bear; They must hear the words of life Only we can share.
People need the lord, At the end of broken dreams He's the open door.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Quirks and Peculiarities
We all have “quirks” and individual “peculiarities” that seem to identify us personally. These “quirks” and “peculiarities” are not necessarily bad...they can often be endearing characteristics that draw us to others and others to us. But they can be very bad when they become an impediment to the leading of the Holy Spirit. For instance...are there people in your life the Spirit is wanting you to befriend and help, but yours and/or their “quirks” and “peculiarities” keep you from being obedient?...or maybe there is some aspect of ministry God has been calling you to, but you object because you can't get past your “quirks” and “peculiarities.” If the truth were known, often we embrace our “quirks” and “peculiarities” refusing to set them aside so that the Spirit of God can have control of our lives. This is part of what Jesus was getting across to “would-be” disciples:
“Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of even one's own self!—can't be my disciple. Anyone who won't shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can't be my disciple. (Luke 14:26-27 the Message paraphrase)
I know folks who see themselves and try to present themselves as “athletes” or “professionals” or “glamorous” or “red-necks” or “leaders” or “private persons” (the “quirks” and individual “peculiarities” list goes on...) but they have a hard time ministering to folks who are not like them or folks who do not pay tribute to their “quirks” and individual peculiarities.” The truth is...hanging on to our “quirks” and individual “peculiarities” are part of our residual sin natures and will impede God's working in us and through us. Without question, God created us as individuals, we all do have “quirks” and individual “peculiarities,” but when we cling to these, our commitment to the indwelling Christ will inevitably be distorted and sometimes destroyed. We need to be careful and discerning about his aspect of our lives. My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, you've made us so wonderfully different, but never let us cling to our personal differences at the expense of obeying Your word and allowing the Spirit to work in and through us. Amen.
When I think of putting aside my own “quirks” and “peculiarities,” I think of the words of this song:
We are called to take His light To a world where wrong seems right, What could be too great a cost sharing life with one who's lost? Thru His love our hearts can feel All the grief they bear; They must hear the words of life Only we can share.
People need the lord, At the end of broken dreams He's the open door.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
We Are Not “Dirtbags”
The Urban Dictionary defines the term “dirtbag” this way: “typically living with lack of reason to be alive, living in depression or lost, and somewhat of an underdog.” I don't like using culturally defined terms like that, but this definition is the way many Christians suffer spiritual depression...that is, we sometimes feel like “dirtbags” because we do and think things we know are sinful and displeasing to God and then respond by going into a depressive dumpster thinking God is fed-up with our failures. Often, rather than the Spirit's conviction leading to repentance (the commitment to change and obedience to the Word), many Christians resort to tears of depression and defeat and live like “dirtbags.” Satan loves that term and knows he can squash a Christian's testimony and kingdom usefulness if he can keep them thinking they are “dirtbags.” “Dirtbag” Christians need to be reminded of two things:
1) The Holy Spirit's ministry is to reveal our sin and bring us to Godliness. (e.g. Hebrews 12:7-11)
2) It is the cross of Jesus that eliminates any thought of being spiritual “dirtbags”...by that I mean, though we sin in thought and deed, we have been made perfect in God's sight because we are now identified with the righteousness of Jesus Christ. We must not only know this, but believe it and live it.
Isaiah 1:18 -- Come now, and let us reason together,” Says Yahweh, “Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool.
In other words, we are not “dirtbags.” We are washed clean by Christ's redeeming work...perfect, righteous, prepared for good works (Ephesians 2:10). Reminds me of the song:
When Satan tempts me to despair,
and tells me of the guilt within,
upward I look and see Him there
who made an end of all my sin.
Because the sinless Savior died,
my sinful soul is counted free;
for God the Just is satisfied
to look on Him and pardon me;
to look on Him and pardon me.
May the words of that song be our prayer reminder this day. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Repentance or Regret
Much of the error of today's evangelism has to do with not understanding what repentance is. We know a person has to repent before they can be saved, but really what does that mean? Most have the idea that to repent means to be sorry for the mistakes made or for the hurt caused or for misunderstandings of others. Yes, we all have made mistakes, caused pain, hurt others and wish we could take a “mulligan” (a free shot sometimes given a golfer in informal play when the previous shot was poorly played). Many think that “repentance” is going into some kind of confessional and feeling really bad about theses mistakes...hoping that God would forgive and remedy our selfish stupidnesses. But this is not what salvation repentance is. A person cannot be saved until they realize they have no part with the holiness of God...until they realize they are rebels against God...until they realize the present and eternal consequences of their sin. Preacher “Smiling Joel” Olsteen once made the remark on the Larry King show: “People don't need to be told they are sinners, they already know that.” NO THEY DON'T! They have to be shown what sin is...how that sin affects their relationship with God...and the only remedy to be reconciled to Holy God is by the propitiating work of the Cross (2 Corinthians 5:19-21). This is the missing element of today's modern “evangelistic” message. We start off by telling the unbeliever “God has a wonderful plan for your life” (they have a “wonderful plan” too...hoping God will help them achieve it) but we neglect to tell them about the holiness of God and how far short they measure up...that they are headed for an eternity of hell...separated eternally from the goodness of God...without putting their faith and trust in what Jesus Christ accomplished for them on the cross, they have no hope. This is a humble recognition, but this is where effective evangelism must start. “Hell Fire and Brimstone?” Yes...that is what is missing in many of our churches today
The “Got Questions” website apply explains it this way:
“When the Holy Spirit convicts people of their sin, He represents the righteous judgment of God (Hebrews 4:12). There is no appeal of this verdict. The Holy Spirit not only convicts people of sin, but He also brings them to repentance (Acts 17:30; Luke 13:5). The Holy Spirit brings to light our relationship to God. The convicting power of the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to our sin and opens our hearts to receive His grace (Ephesians 2:8).
We praise the Lord for the conviction of sin. Without it, there could be no salvation. No one is saved apart from the Spirit's convicting and regenerating work in the heart. The Bible teaches that all people are by nature rebels against God and hostile to Jesus Christ. They are “dead in trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1). Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6:44). Part of that “draw” to Jesus is the conviction of sin.”
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, in our evangelistic efforts, we cannot bypass the importance of repentance. We trust God the Spirit to take the message of repentance and penetrate the hearts of the elect (Ephesians 1:3-8). Help us to be clear and true to the gospel message. Use us. Speak through us we pray. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Trusting in God’s Covenant
Romans 8:28 has become a familiar verse to most of us - “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him.” But we don't often recognize the covenant nature of that promise. By that I mean, this is an indisputable, unalterable, eternal promise given to each of us who have trusted in Christ. “Covenant” is defined by Webster as “a written agreement or promise usually under seal between two or more parties especially for the performance of some action.” God has guaranteed that all things that happen to us are designed by God specifically for our good. If this “covenant” was not made with the omniscient, omnipotent, loving, God, we might doubt or take offense to many of the difficult, hurtful, disappointing circumstances in our lives, but God never breaks His “covenant” with us...He can't!
When people make promises, they guarantee them by appeal to some authority above them so that if there is any question that they'll make good on the promise, the authority will back them up. When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee—God can't break his word. And because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable. (Hebrews 6:16-18 MSG)
God has you and me in His hands. All the outcomes of our lives will result in eternal glory, joy, and praise. Trust Him and let Him work out our glorious outcome...even when things seem difficult.
God's covenant with us (Romans 8:28-29) is unchangeable. We always seem to be asking, “why this, or why that?”...as if God has forgotten us or thrown us to the wolves. NO, NEVER. God has made a covenant promise to us that we can rest in. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, help us to live confidently and bask in the joy of knowing that You are shaping and molding us through the ups and downs of life. We may not understand, but You have had a plan mapped out for us before we were even born...and the end result of it will be our perfection and glory throughout eternity.
“I knew you before you were formed within your mother's womb; before you were born I sanctified you” (Jeremiah 1:5 TLB)
We stand firm in Your covenant with us. Amen.
Reminds me of Babbie Mason's song:
He sees the master plan
And he holds our future in His hand,
So don't live as those who have no hope,
All our hope is found in Him
We see the present clearly
But He sees the first and the last
And like a tapestry He's weaving you and me,
To someday be just like Him
God is too wise to be mistaken
God is too good to be unkind
So when you don't understand
When don't see His plan
When you can't trace His hand
Trust His Heart
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Not Relative but Absolute
We live in a post-modern era where “relativism” is the “Holy Grail” of our institutions of higher learning and even most American churches. In other words...there are no “absolutes”...no inarguable standards of moral, ethical, or even “scientific” thought. Students at most of our major universities and many church goers will hear this mantra:
“So let's stop pretending we know what truth is. I should not pretend that all that is true for me is true for you. We should not pretend that all that is true for our species is true for other species. We should not pretend that all that is true on this planet is true on all planets, or that all that is true at our scale is true at all scales. There are multiple truths.” (Urban Dictionary)
This is the world in which we live. Becoming a born again Christian requires a confrontation with the “absolute” “incontrovertible” standard of God's righteousness; and repentance realizing we don't meet that absolute standard. The gospel message is a hard sell. The gospel has always been a “hard sell” at this point, but it seems even more so as we enter these end times. The Apostle Paul predicted an increasing “relativism:”
3 For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine and accurate instruction [that challenges them with God's truth]; but wanting to have their ears tickled [with something pleasing], they will accumulate for themselves [many] teachers [one after another, chosen] to satisfy their own desires and to support the errors they hold, 4 and will turn their ears away from the truth and will wander off into myths and man-made fictions [and will accept the unacceptable]. (2 Timothy 4:3-4 AMP)
Indeed, the gospel is a “hard sell” to our “relativistic,” “amoral,” culture, but we cannot use that as an excuse not to proclaim the truth of the gospel. Regardless of the culture in which we live, there is supernatural power in the truth of the gospel. As we proclaim the gospel to a relativistic world, it is the supernatural intervention by the Holy Spirit that breaks through the relativism of the hearer so they will realize the truth of God. Our job is to proclaim the gospel. It's the job of the Spirit to convict and convince. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we are so often intimidated by the difficulty of proclaiming Your truth in our a truth culture. Remind us often that Your truth has power that overcomes any culture.
14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes (Romans 1:14,16 LSB)
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters My Response to "wok Christian" deniers
Answer to BoniJean
Of course there have been all kinds of misinformed, purposeful distortions of the Bible. The Apostle Peter exhorts and reminds us: 15 and consider the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, 16 as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. (2 Peter 3:15-16)
We have ample historical and linguist evidence that we essentially possess the original text of Scripture in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. Since the King James translation (which 47 scholars used only a limited numbers of minuscules and manuscripts called the Textus Receptus in 1611) there have been numerous archeological, linguistic and historical discoveries that continue to help Bible scholars refine and bring us better translations. The point is, the study of textual criticism is on-going, complex, and beyond just saying the number of translations is some kind criteria of inauthenticity. Just to opposite is true. This quest for the autographs is important because -- 19 we have as more sure the prophetic word, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. 20 Know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes by one's own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever made by the will of man, but men being moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. (2 Peter 1)
Having recognized but not exhausted the translation issue, now we come to the REAL issue...namely, why did Jesus come. Here's what the Bible teaches:
1) You are a sinner. Read Romans 3:10-18, 23 that tells us who we are before the holy and righteous God.
2) The Bible clearly tells us of our destiny without putting our faith and trust in the cross work of Jesus (Romans 6:23; Matthew 7:13-29)
3) God became man to be the only sin bearer ( John 1:1-17)
4) Jesus Christ...not Mohammad...not Budda...not Allah...not anyone or any other teaching can provide the sinner with eternal life (Acts 4:12 “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
Do I expect this REAL issue to be embraced by the majority of people?...no. It is the Spirit of God that breaks the sinner's heart and draws him or her to the Savior. I close with this insight for all rejecters of God's word:
And when I came to you, brothers, I did not come with superiority of word or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the witness of God. 2 For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.... 0 But to us God revealed them through the Spirit, for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. 11 For who among men knows the depths of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the depths of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the depths graciously given to us by God, 13 of which depths we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual depths with spiritual words.14 But a natural man does not accept the depths of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually examined. 15 But he who is spiritual examines all things, yet he himself is examined by no one. 16 For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will direct Him? But we have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2 - taken from the Legacy Standard Bible [Look up the translation on Google])
I pray for all the deniers of the truth of Scripture that God would take the blinders off.
Truth Matters “Beating the System”
Yesterday I preached a sermon reminding folks that they are dangerously “hemmed in” by the world, the demonic realm, and their flesh. This doesn't spell defeat, but it does put us on notice of how and what God has provided that will bring us through victoriously (Ephesians 6:10-18). We have a Great High Priest in heaven (the resurrected Jesus Christ - Hebrews 4:14-16) who is aware of our struggles and was tempted like we are (except He didn't have a sin nature like we have)...but He is praying for us...concerned about us...desiring to help us. Jesus is praying:
“15 I'm not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from Satan's power. 16 They are not part of this world any more than I am. 17 Make them pure and holy through teaching them your words of truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world, 19 and I consecrate myself to meet their need for growth in truth and holiness.” (John 17 TLB)
Recognizing and believing God is sovereign in all things (Ephesians 1:5), we are now faced with OUR part in victory over the world, demonic forces, and our residual sin natures.
And btw...it is not enough to know God's will. We have to tighten our “Belts of Truth” (Ephesians 6:14) and do it. Sounds simple, but going to war is never simple. It will extract from us a strong determination...a resolve...an integrity...apart from which we will be defeated. We've got two things we rely on for victory: 1) God's working in our lives to strengthen us and guide us (Ephesians 2:10). 2) Our obedience, trust, submission to God's word.
The first is God's work and He never fails. The second is OUR work and is subject to our commitment (James 1:22-25). My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we will not lose our battle today. We know we are “hemmed in” but today we will be conquerors...especially over the calls of our sin natures. We are reminded of Your admonition: 12 So then, brothers, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— 13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you [f]must die, but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the practices of the body, you will live. 14 For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. (Romans 8 LSB). May we take that admonition seriously today. “...leave no doubt.” Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Beating the System”
Yesterday I preached a sermon reminding folks that they are dangerously “hemmed in” by the world, the demonic realm, and their flesh. This doesn't spell defeat, but it does put us on notice of how and what God has provided that will bring us through victoriously (Ephesians 6:10-18). We have a Great High Priest in heaven (the resurrected Jesus Christ - Hebrews 4:14-16) who is aware of our struggles and was tempted like we are (except He didn't have a sin nature like we have)...but He is praying for us...concerned about us...desiring to help us. Jesus is praying:
“15 I'm not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from Satan's power. 16 They are not part of this world any more than I am. 17 Make them pure and holy through teaching them your words of truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world, 19 and I consecrate myself to meet their need for growth in truth and holiness.” (John 17 TLB)
Recognizing and believing God is sovereign in all things (Ephesians 1:5), we are now faced with OUR part in victory over the world, demonic forces, and our residual sin natures.
And btw...it is not enough to know God's will. We have to tighten our “Belts of Truth” (Ephesians 6:14) and do it. Sounds simple, but going to war is never simple. It will extract from us a strong determination...a resolve...an integrity...apart from which we will be defeated. We've got two things we rely on for victory: 1) God's working in our lives to strengthen us and guide us (Ephesians 2:10). 2) Our obedience, trust, submission to God's word.
The first is God's work and He never fails. The second is OUR work and is subject to our commitment (James 1:22-25). My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we will not lose our battle today. We know we are “hemmed in” but today we will be conquerors...especially over the calls of our sin natures. We are reminded of Your admonition: 12 So then, brothers, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— 13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you [f]must die, but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the practices of the body, you will live. 14 For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. (Romans 8 LSB). May we take that admonition seriously today. “...leave no doubt.” Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Cute Story or Death by Decree”
Seems like many like to make the birth of Jesus into some kind of a Hallmark tear-jerker. Jesus' birth did not happen so that we would be impressed by the “cuteness” or the “desperation” of the nativity. Jesus was born to go to a cross and die for our sins. That's the real story of Christmas. Jesus' birth was intentional...it was decreed by God in eternity past...that God's wrath, God's righteous judgment toward rebellious, sinful people would be targeted to the perfect Lamb of God. In a sense, Jesus' birth was a judicial birth. God's eternal punishment for our sin was to be born by this baby. This is not a “Hallmark” story...the birth of Jesus is eternal, judicial reality.
So that I don't completely offend “Hallmark” lovers...while Jesus' birth and death were decreed by the Father, Son, Holy Spirit in eternity past, Jesus was the One who demonstrated God's love for sinners by being the perfect Lamb who would perfectly meet God's righteous judicial requirement. “God so loved the world that He gave His Son.” Christmas reminds us of God's love. It reminds us that the Son loves us so much that He willingly took on human flesh so that He would provide us a way to be clean and righteous before Holy God. We could say, Christmas is the greatest of all “Hallmark” stories.
6 (the Son, Jesus Christ), although existing in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a slave, by being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (Philippians 2:6-8)
Thank You God for this unspeakable, judicial gift.
We praise and give thanks to You.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Believing and Applying”
Believing and applying God's word everyday is the only way we experience “oneness” with God. We sing the song - “Trust and obey for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus,” but for many these are just words, not an actual, personal, commitment or experience. As our Intercessor in heaven, here's what Jesus is praying for you today:
these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves...sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth...the glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one. (John 17 LSB)
“Oneness” with God is what Jesus prays for for each of us. But that “oneness” can never be achieved apart from obedience to God's word. It's not His fault...it's our fault. Many Christians are looking to “feel it,” but they will never have that satisfaction...that oneness with Jesus Christ because they have overlooked or refuse obedience. There are areas where they refuse to submit and follow the Lord Jesus. When we decide to put Jesus first, we then begin to experience the joy and confidence that can be ours.
There are two important ways we are to approach God's Word: 1) We have to know and understand what it says. This will require the work of grammar, historical context and biblical context...but...2) We must look at every passage and pray: “What are You trying to reveal about myself?...What are You revealing about Yourself?...What in my life needs to change? When both of these are operational, then the last ingredient is obedience. Frankly, without obedience, your Bible study is a waste of time. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord...reveal to us who we are and who You are. Give us the commitment and follow-through to obey. Then, we will experience the oneness with You which will give us trusting confidence and joy. This is what You want from us...this is what we give to You this day. Be our help this day. We will obey. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters Vessels not Professionals
Here's where secular and much of Christians counseling / psychology misses the most important factor in being able to counsel or help another. (It's also what we everyday Christians...moms and dads...church ministry endeavors...advice givers... fail to realize.) Namely, it is one's personal relationship with the Lord Jesus that gives them insight and helpful counsel. One can academically study and research for “silver bullets” that can be applied to various problems, but God only uses counselors that are first and foremost His. In other words, it's one's committed relationship to the Lord from which Godly discernment comes. Sometimes Godly discernment may seem counterproductive to our way of thinking or strategizing for another's sake, but this is where Godly counsel and “professional” counseling differ. Out from the life of one who is focused upon Jesus Christ, lead by the Spirit, committed to God's word, comes truth that matters. Much of the time that person will hardly recognize the effectiveness of his or her counsel...it's almost an unconscious awareness of how God's truth is being channeled through them.
The best qualification of a counselor is one who is totally devoted to Jesus Christ. By that I mean, one whose life is so permeated with his or her love for Jesus, that Christ's discernment stops them from being “amateur providence makers” and unconsciously allows the Spirit of God to provide real wisdom, insight, and healing. Stay close to your Lord and let Him influence hurting people through your dependence and commitment to Him. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, You are the master counselor. There is none like You who can heal and make right. We just want to be vessels used by You. We're not looking to be “professionals”... just instruments of Your love and wisdom that we have as we draw close to You. May it be. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters Thought-life Battles
Most of us spend the bulk of our Christian lives engaged in battles we should never have had to struggle with. I'm talking about our thought lives...that is, what we allow Satan to tantalize us with...his schemes of temptations and drawing us away from God. Here's how it goes -- the Holy Spirit, who dwells within us, goes to work and brings conviction of what we've been thinking about (John 16:5-11)...then we repent...experience God's forgiveness (1 John 1:9)...and we go on to repeat the cycle over and over and over again. Our lives become perpetual cycles of conviction and repentance. What we should be doing is focusing on Jesus...on what He has done for us...of our position in Him...our gratitude...our daily worship of Him...our eternal destiny with Him. When we learn to do this, most of the needless battles we cycle ourselves through fade away.
It's time for us to discipline our “thought-lives” and seriously consider again what Jesus teaches His disciples in Matthew 5:3-10, but especially verses 3,6,8 (The Amplified Bible):
3 “Blessed [spiritually prosperous, happy, to be admired] are the poor in spirit [those devoid of spiritual arrogance, those who regard themselves as insignificant], for theirs is the kingdom of heaven [both now and forever].
6 “Blessed [joyful, nourished by God's goodness] are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness [those who actively seek right standing with God], for they will be [completely] satisfied.
8 “Blessed [anticipating God's presence, spiritually mature] are the pure in heart [those with integrity, moral courage, and godly character], for they will see God.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, this is our need...this is our prayer:
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it;
Prone to leave the God I love:
Take my heart, oh, take and seal it
With Thy Spirit from above.
Rescued thus from sin and danger,
Purchased by the Savior's blood,
May I walk on earth a stranger,
As a son and heir of God. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters Trusting in God’s Sovereignty
Understanding and believing in the sovereignty God is of vital importance to the Christian for these two reasons:
1) It gives us absolute assurance that our loving heavenly Father is in control of our lives even when we may be perplexed or confused by our circumstances. Jesus gave us His assurance:
“I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish—ever; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29 [a]My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. (John 10:28-29).”
2) We know that wherever God leads us to serve, our service will accomplish an eternal weight of glory. This is an important truth because we often ask the question “is it all worth it?” We see little visual evidence of “success” and wonder if God is really working through us. J.B. Phillips paraphrase renders 2 Corinthians 4:17 this way:
These little troubles (which are really so transitory) are winning for us a permanent, glorious and solid reward out of all proportion to our pain. For we are looking all the time not at the visible things but at the invisible. The visible things are transitory: it is the invisible things that are really permanent.
It's understanding the sovereignty of God that keeps us going when we don't see the results we expected.
In Today's My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers, he reminds us of God's sovereign purposes in our lives. It's good to be reminded of this important Truth Matter:
“After sanctification, it is difficult to state what your purpose in life is, because God has moved you into His purpose through the Holy Spirit. He is using you now for His purposes throughout the world as He used His Son for the purpose of our salvation. If you seek great things for yourself, thinking, “God has called me for this and for that,” you barricade God from using you. As long as you maintain your own personal interests and ambitions, you cannot be completely aligned or identified with God's interests. This can only be accomplished by giving up all of your personal plans once and for all, and by allowing God to take you directly into His purpose for the world. Your understanding of your ways must also be surrendered, because they are now the ways of the Lord.
I must learn that the purpose of my life belongs to God, not me. God is using me from His great personal perspective, and all He asks of me is that I trust Him. I should never say, “Lord, this causes me such heartache.” To talk that way makes me a stumbling block. When I stop telling God what I want, He can freely work His will in me without any hindrance. He can crush me, exalt me, or do anything else He chooses. He simply asks me to have absolute faith in Him and His goodness. Self-pity is of the devil, and if I wallow in it I cannot be used by God for His purpose in the world.”
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, sometimes we can't see how You are using us... how our lives are significant or accomplishing anything for the kingdom. Help us Lord to be faithful to that which You have called us knowing that You are using our faithfulness in ways we may not see or understand this side of heaven. Keep us vigilant and in-tuned to the Spirit and then be glad the results are in Your hands. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters Spirit’s Intercessory prayer
This might seem shocking to some, but when we conisder prayer, we are not omniscient. By that I mean, there are many times we don't even know what to pray for. Either there are dangers we are not aware of so we don't pray...or there may be ministries God wants to use us in that are incompressible to us so we don't pray...or perhaps our prayer life is skewed to the point we are praying for things that are contrary to God's will and purpose. Jeremiah the prophet found himself in each of these categories...and so do we.
God, in His grace, intervenes and the Spirit prays for us in ways we don't even recognize or understand.
the Holy Spirit helps us with our daily problems and in our praying. For we don't even know what we should pray for nor how to pray as we should, but the Holy Spirit prays for us with such feeling that it cannot be expressed in words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows, of course, what the Spirit is saying as he pleads for us in harmony with God's own will. (Romans 8:26-27 TLB)
Well then...because sovereign, omniscient God prays for us in ways we cannot express, then why pray at all?...just let the Spirit pray for us. This is not how God designed our lives to be lived. He desires our conscious prayer. It testifies to our dependence upon Him and His love for us. God told Jeremiah...and us: “Thus says Yahweh who made the earth, Yahweh who formed it to establish it; Yahweh is His name, 3 ‘Call to Me and I will answer you.” It is through our conscious praying that God's hand is moved. For example, the Spirit inspired James to write this: “5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But he must ask in faith, doubting nothing, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. (James 1:5-8)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we are eternally grateful that You intercede for us when we don't know how or what to pray for, but we are just as grateful that we can come into Your very presence with the concerns we have and know about. May we be more faithful in our personal prayer life. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 11/06/23
When we were in school we were expected to become proficient in a subject area. We read, wrote papers, listened to lectures, and memorized facts. When it came to morality, we acted upon certain beliefs we developed from church or from our families or peer groups. But when it comes to our relationship with God, the Christian with a new nature, is given an insatiable desire to know Him...fellowship with Him...walk with our Lord Jesus...be led, taught, and strengthened by God the Spirit. We sang a simple, but descriptive song last Sunday about this “insatiable desire” every truly born again Christian is imparted with. Here are some of the words:
This is the air I breathe
Your holy presence living in me
This is my daily bread
Your very word spoken to me
And I I'm desperate for You
And I I'm I'm lost without You
This is the kind of intimacy and desire God imparts to us when He gives us a new heart... when we believe and are changed. Ezekiel describes this:
26 Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to do My judgments. (Ezekiel 36:26-27 LSB)
This is a supreme diagnostic truth...namely, if one claims to be a Christian but cannot sing the words of the song referred to earlier, there is every reason to doubt whether that person has been born again...renewed...imparted with a new heart.
The person who has been born into God's family does not make a practice of sinning, for this new life has been born into him and controls him—he has been born again. (1 John 3:9 The Living Bible)
My prayer for me and you this day is this: Lord, continue to instill in us and make it more and more our experience to make You and Your word the very “air I breathe.” Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “The key to the Christian’s joy”
Do you ever feel like you've lost contact with God? There is no presence of the Holy Spirit to guide, comfort, and direct your life. Feels like you're on our own, making your own decisions, pursuing your own path through life. You're living the words to the hymn - “Prone to wander, Lord I feel it. Prone to leave the Lord I love.” God allows us to “wander” until we realize the emptiness we feel as we stumble along. We know something's not right, but we continue to “stumble” and “wander.” There's a reason why we find ourselves in this predicament...namely, we have forgotten what it means to submit to God's word...to be obedient...and as the popular song goes “we've lost that loving feeling and it's gone, gone, gone OOOOOH.” We've forgotten what it means to give up our lives for the purpose of making God our first and primary reason for living.
When we first feel that emptiness, that distance from the Lord, we need to step back, evaluate our lives and ask ourselves this question...”am I sold out to Jesus as my Lord, or am I trying to live a superficial Christianity where I place my own aspirations and pursuits above those of the Lord Jesus?” Dr. Charles Stanley regularly reminded us - “God will not use any of us until He has broken us.” He was talking about “breaking” us from ourselves...he was talking about making the Lord Jesus our preeminent desire. Apart from making the “sold out to Jesus as my Lord” decision, we will not experience that assurance, that enduring power, that fullness, which is key to the Christian's joy. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we are indeed “prone to wander...prone to leave the God we love.” The song goes on and becomes our prayer:
“Here's my heart, oh take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above.” Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Embracing the Cost”
Jesus tells us in Luke 14:27 - “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” We'd actually like to bypass that admonition and replace it with our own - “We will follow You as long as it does not create hardship, pain, or suffering.” I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we will not be of much use to God until we get over our insistence that we not enter into the sufferings of Christ. The Apostle Paul made it clear what Jesus' admonition means:
I have put aside all else, counting it worth less than nothing, in order that I can have Christ, 10 Now I have given up everything else—I have found it to be the only way to really know Christ and to experience the mighty power that brought him back to life again, and to find out what it means to suffer and to die with him. (Philippians 3:7-10 Living Bible)
Hardship, pain and suffering is what it cost Jesus to accomplish the will of His Father...namely, to bring salvation and hope to a world lost in sin headed for eternal hell. If we are to enter into the work of Christ (which is what Lordship is all about), our life expectancy should be the same as what our Lord willingly endured
This idea of “carrying our own cross” is counter intuitive to most of us. The only way we will make personal sense of sharing in the sufferings of Christ is by having an eternal perspective. It's the perspective the Apostle Peter wrote about in 1 Peter 1:6-7 -
6 In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various [a]trials, 7 so that the [b]proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which [c]is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, teach us to know the brevity and passing nature of our earthly lives. Teach us to have Your eternal perspective. Remind us often of the glory ahead in heaven whenever we experience suffering and sacrifice for the kingdom's sake. To that end we commit our lives in the short years we have on earth. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Be a disciple before making disciples”
David wrote something in Psalm 51:10-13 that is the essential requirement of all those who desire to see unbelievers become committed followers of Jesus Christ. He wrote:
10 Create in me a new, clean heart, O God, filled with clean thoughts and right desires. 11 Don't toss me aside, banished forever from your presence. Don't take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me again the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. 13 Then I will teach your ways to other sinners, and they—guilty like me—will repent and return to you.
(Living Bible)
The prerequisite for evangelism and making disciples is this: I must first be sure my life demonstrates my commitment to following Jesus before I will effectively disciple another. In other words...making committed disciples requires that I be a committed disciple. Two principles to take notice:
1) God is more concerned with our relationship with Him than any evangelistic or discipleship ministry we might be involved in. Jesus tells His disciples - “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)
2) We need to be able to say with the Apostle Paul: “Brothers, join in following my example, and look for those who walk according to the pattern you have in us.” (Philippians 3:17) Paul was talking about following the pattern he set in his own discipleship. How can we think we can be instrumental in seeing unbelievers become committed followers of Christ when we ourselves are not committed disciples? This is especially true for parents desiring to raise Godly children.
Parents...sit up and take notice - you will not be able to lead your children to become committed followers of Christ if you yourself are not one. You must not only be a “pattern,” but more importantly, your life must be an open book to Christ. In other words...your life must be an open book to Christ before you can be an open book of Christ to others. My prayer for you and me this day is this...Lord, teach us about “first things first.” May we seek Your face throughout our days so that we can fulfill the purpose You've given to each of us (Matthew 28:19-20). Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “God’s Calling”
Webster defines “calling” this way: “a strong inner impulse toward a particular course of action especially when accompanied by conviction of divine influence.” How does one come to know this “conviction?” God uses a number of means to bring us to recognize His “calling” -- He uses His Word and the Spirit's leading...He uses providence by orchestrating circumstances...He uses other people, particularly other believers who recognize God's calling in our lives...He gives us a burden (“a strong inner impulse”) to serve in some particular manner. “Callings” are individual not some response to “group think.” But here's the hard part...often, these “callings” will put us in ministries or services that are not spectacular or successful in our eyes. We must realize at least two things: 1) Faithful response to God's calling is what He desires from us. 2) God is sovereign in that He uses our “calling” in ways we could not have imagined or known.
These two truths are what we must keep before us or we become discouraged and doubting.
I think the hardest part of fulfilling God's purpose in our lives is that we are prone to be “results driven.” I know that “results / goals / objectives” are how we typically view ministries, but the fact is, if we are faithful to our “calling” we will be accomplishing His purpose...our service will never be void of very important significance in God's plan. The day will come when we are with God in glory that our eyes will be open and we will see the greatness of God's plan and our part in it. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we will serve You no matter how meager our contribution may seem to us. We will rest in the confidence we have in Your purpose for us. May we go out with great joy and knowledge of our “calling.” Amen.
Reminds me of another old hymn:
Would you have Him make you free, and follow at His call?
Would you know the peace that comes by giving all?
Would you have Him save you, so that you need never fall?
Let Him have His way with thee.
Would you in His kingdom find a place of constant rest?
Would you prove Him true in providential test?
Would you in His service labor always at your best?
Let Him have His way with thee.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Leave no doubt”
In a recent sermon I used coach Bill Steward's pre-game address to the 2008 Fiesta Bowl WVU football team. He stressed "out straining," "out hitting" the opponent and most of all..."LEAVE NO DOUBT" regarding the team's commitment to win. That's the kind of commitment we must have when the temptation to sin in thought or deed raises its destructive head against us. We must tell ourselves and the demonic realm that WE WILL NOT PROCEED with sin...we will "LEAVE NO DOUBT"...we will not be defeated in this spiritual warfare. When it comes to sin, we must demonstrate commitment, integrity, dedication to win over sin. No other approach or excuse will work.
The "Belt of Truth" referred to in Ephesians 6:14 speaks to the readiness and commitment of the Roman soldier to battle against the enemy. We must be the same when it comes to defeating sin in our lives. We must go in to each day with this mantra: "LEAVE NO DOUBT" in our battle with our flesh and Satan. Paste it on our mirrors. Tape it to our dashboards. Recite it throughout our day. Be victorious! My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we're through being lackadaisical. No "lackadaisical" soldier wins the battle. In our commitment to defeat sin we will "LEAVE NO DOUBT." Amen.
Reminds me of the final stanza from Am I a Soldier of the Cross:
Since I must fight if I would reign,
Increase my courage, Lord!
I'll bear the toil, endure the pain,
Supported by Thy Word.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing
Truth Matters “Our Struggle with Expectations”
We all have expectations of what our lives should be and how we end up. There are family expectations, financial expectations, possession expectations, recreational expectations, retirement expectations, church expectations. It may be a shock to you, but God doesn't care about our expectations...in fact, His desire is that we forsake these expectations and replace them with knowing Him and giving ourselves to His expectations for our lives. If we're honest, we realize that most of the expectations we have do not stem from God but they are the result of prejudices we develop over the course of our lives. The word “prejudice” is defined as: “preconceived judgment or opinion; an adverse opinion or leaning formed without just grounds or before sufficient knowledge.” These “prejudices” develop from fleshly desires, worldly enticements, and Godly ignorance. These “prejudices” evolve into our expectations. These “expectations” get in the way of a humble submission to God and having an eternal view of life. In the 10-23 devotional by Oswald Chambers, “My Utmost for His Highest” he says it as succinctly as can be said:
“Our Lord never tolerates our prejudices— He is directly opposed to them and puts them to death. We tend to think that God has some special interest in our particular prejudices, and are very sure that He will never deal with us as He has to deal with others. We even say to ourselves, “God has to deal with other people in a very strict way, but of course He knows that my prejudices are all right.” But we must learn that God accepts nothing of the old life! Instead of being on the side of our prejudices, He is deliberately removing them from us. It is part of our moral education to see our prejudices put to death by His providence, and to watch how He does it. There is only one thing God wants of us, and that is our unconditional surrender.
How are we going to get a life that has no lust, no self-interest, and is not sensitive to the ridicule of others? How will we have the type of love that “is kind…is not provoked, [and] thinks no evil”? (1 Corinthians 13:4-5). The only way is by allowing nothing of the old life to remain, and by having only simple, perfect trust in God— such a trust that we no longer want God's blessings, but only want God Himself. Have we come to the point where God can withdraw His blessings from us without our trust in Him being affected? Once we truly see God at work, we will never be concerned again about the things that happen, because we are actually trusting in our Father in heaven, whom the world cannot see.”
One of the hardest realizations we make in our Christian journey is that our “expectation” must be set aside in preference of loving God and submitting to His perfect will. When we do, we look back and wonder what took us so long to realize that true blessing, peace, and contentment is found in Him. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, the words of this hymn is our prayer today -
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it;
Prone to leave the God I love:
Take my heart, oh, take and seal it
With Thy Spirit from above.
Rescued thus from sin and danger,
Purchased by the Savior's blood,
May I walk on earth a stranger,
As a son and heir of God.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Reason for Rejecting Sin”
When the Holy Spirit reveals sin in our lives, Christians will deal with it in one of two ways:
1) We view our sin as disgust in God's eyes. We view our sin as a disappointment to God and our failures lead us to despair. We hate that feeling. So to avoid disappointing God AGAIN, we refuse to be failures in God's sight and carry on our struggle to stop sinning. We live as if we relate to God as an eternal parent who we hate to disappoint. In other words, we try to overcome sin because after we have sinned AGAIN we feel the pain of remorse of disappointing God.
2) The other way of dealing with sin is not so much in dealing with the aftermath of how we disappoint God, but rather, when the temptation to sin comes to us we remember what it cost Christ Jesus to pay for that sin. In other words, when we are reminded of the blessing of the atonement and of the blood shed to provide us with that blessing, out of gratitude, we reject the sin. This is one of the primary reasons to regularly observe the Lord's Supper. We deal with our sin because we are reminded of what it cost God to pay for it. The motive becomes not one of feeling we've disappointed God, but rather, our motivation not to sin comes from our love toward the One who died in our place and His enduring, eternal love for us.
I think the second of the two is the most important way to address sin.
As children of God we certainly do not want to disappoint our heavenly Father with our sin, but our love for Him and realizing His atoning work for us is a far greater incentive when it comes to conquering sin. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, the next time we are tempted by our sin, remind us of what You had to pay so that we might be righteous in Your sight. We praise You for Your atoning work and love for us. Amen.
Reminds me of a stanza from one of our best loved hymns:
And when I think that God, His Son not sparing
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in
That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing
He bled and died to take away my sin
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee
How great Thou art, how great Thou art
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Focus of Christian Organizations”
Involvement in organizations such as the Greenbrier Pregnancy Center or WV for Life can be reduced to merely humanitarian services whose goals are to help alleviate human suffering. While there are numerous biblical examples and exhortations for Christians to intervene in the sufferings of those around them and around the world, we must never lose sight of the primary reason for such interventions...namely, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to keep all that I commanded you” (Matthew 28:18-20). We must be careful not to allow our humanitarian desires overshadow God's primary intent...namely, God is “not willing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) How easy it is to get sidetracked from the main thing to peripheral pursuits. Many Christian ministries start out focused on the mandate Jesus gave us (Matthew 28:18-20) but over time, the organization becomes increasingly more focused on its humanitarian mission and organizational necessities than the focus God wants us to have...namely, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, and the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'” (John 7:38-39).
Numerous examples of organizations that started out with Matthew 28:18-20 as their driving force but lost their initial reason for existence and became subservient to sustaining the organization...(e.g all of the Ivy League universities, Harvard, Yale, Princeton ff.) This happens with local churches as well. While organizational efforts are necessary to carry out the Great Commission, we must never lose sight of God's primary purpose for the organization. This commentary of John 21:17 is what our ministry organizations must keep before them: “Identify yourself with My interests in other people,” not, “Identify Me with your interests in other people.” My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, keep us focused on Your primary objective as we seek to reach out to folks...namely, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:31) Never let us lose the reason for why our ministry organization exists. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters “Prayer Workers”
I have always been fascinated by the construction and engineering that goes into the development of an industrial building or complex. The building will house high powered technicians and equipment that will produce services or goods. I am awed by the construction process, but seldom are we awed by the workers who carry the pipes, dig the ditches, do the welding, run the wiring etc. But they are key to the construction process. Without them, there will be no goods or services. It's kind of like what prayer is. The necessity of prayer is often overlooked as to its essential part of God's production possibilities. It's the necessary “grunt work” that will bring about fruit. Because it is “grunt work” it is hard. We don't naturally make time for it. It is the reason why we don't see fruit. No one sees us “carrying the pipes” or “digging the ditches”...and no one pats us on the head for this labor. But without prayer, God will not produce “goods and services” that make our ministries effective and God glorifying
For His own purposes and design, God requires us to pray to unleash His power in our lives and in the lives of our families and the church. It's hard and tedious, but it's so necessary that no spiritual progress will be made without it. Engineering accomplishment requires construction workers. God's power and accomplishment require prayer workers. Are you...am I...willing to be one of the necessary “prayer workers?” Nothing happens without “prayer workers.” My prayer for you and me today is this...Lord, continue to teach us the importance of prayer. Without it, we will do nothing God glorying. We move His powerful hand when we pray. Never let us forget. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 10-10-23
DO YOU NOT REALIZE HOW IMPORTANT “OBEDIENCE” IS? We hear that word bantered around with frequency in evangelical circles, but we treat “obedience” as if it has nothing to do with our relationship with God or our rest in Him...kind of an optional response in our Christian lives. We know (or should know if we'd study our Bibles) what God demands, but we rationalize, bury, or pass on them because we want to do what we want, when we want, how we want, and then wonder why we are not growing in Christ...not experiencing the blessing promised in God's word. I'm reminded of that poignant passage in Hebrews 3:18; 4:2-3 -
18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient?... 2 For indeed we have had good news proclaimed to us, just as they also; but the word [a]that was heard did not profit those [b]who were not united with faith among those who heard. 3 For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said,“As I swore in My wrath,They shall not enter My rest,”
How many Christians I know who want to live as close to the edge of worldliness in language, desires, pursuits, entertainment as they want and then wonder why Jesus seems to distant to them. If one really wants to know the joy and blessing of being in Christ it begins with being obedient...there is no other way. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, how foolish we are to think we can experience the joy of being Yours without obedience. We will obey because we love You and because we desire the rest that can only be found in You. Amen
Reminds me another familiar hymn:
When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still
And with all who will trust and obey
Trust and obey, for there's no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters "Oswald Chambers"
Oswald Chambers once made this statement: “The greatest need we have is not to do things, but to believe things.” At the moment one is regenerated and believes in the atoning work of Christ, he or she immediately possesses 40 blessing they did not have before coming to Christ. It's beyond the scope of these daily Truth Matters to list them all, let alone explain them, but here are some of them: imputed righteousness; removal of condemnation; indwelling of the Holy Spirit; come under God's care; removal of the domination of the old sin nature; access to God... the list goes on with 33 more. The point is, when we truly believe what God says we have on account of the atonement, do we live like it? Christians who seem filled with depression, anxiety, fear, insecurity, yielding to sin, hopelessness are Christians who have lost their sense of the awesomeness of what Jesus Christ has accomplished and given them personally in His atonement. Chambers was correct: “The greatest need we have is not to do things, but to believe things.” This is the point of today's My Utmost for His Highest:
“I cannot save and sanctify myself; I cannot make atonement for sin; I cannot redeem the world; I cannot right what is wrong, purify what is impure, or make holy what is unholy. That is all the sovereign work of God. Do I have faith in what Jesus Christ has done? He has made the perfect atonement for sin. Am I in the habit of constantly realizing it? The greatest need we have is not to do things, but to believe things. The redemption of Christ is not an experience, it is the great act of God which He has performed through Christ, and I have to build my faith on it. If I construct my faith on my own experience, I produce the most unscriptural kind of life— an isolated life, with my eyes focused solely on my own holiness. Beware of that human holiness that is not based on the atonement of the Lord. It has no value for anything except a life of isolation— it is useless to God and a nuisance to man.
The atonement of Jesus must be exhibited in practical, unassuming ways in my life. Every time I obey, the absolute deity of God is on my side, so that the grace of God and my natural obedience are in perfect agreement. Obedience means that I have completely placed my trust in the atonement, and my obedience is immediately met by the delight of the supernatural grace of God.”
When we are told in 2 Corinthians 5:17 -- “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come” -- we often fail to realize how extensive and intrusive the atonement of Jesus Christ is to us. Now we are to live based upon the truths we know are ours. It is what keeps us confident, clear-headed, and God glorifying. Hebrews 10:35 reminds us: “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.” My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, You have given us 40 blessed promises when we trusted in You. May we constantly remember who we are in You and trust in the promises. We will be strong and confident. Amen.
Reminds me of the hymn:
Standing on the promises that cannot fail.
When the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,
By the living Word of God I shall prevail,
Standing on the promises of God.
Standing on the promises I cannot fall,
List'ning ev'ry moment to the Spirit's call,
Resting in my Savior as my all in all,
Standing on the promises of God.
Truth Matters 10-04-23 Preparing for the “vision”
One of the joys of being a coach is giving an athlete a vision of how good he or she can be. Once the athlete buys into that vision they soon realize that the “vision” will not become reality unless they are willing to sacrifice and go beyond what they feel capable of physically and mentally. At this point, unless the athlete has committed confidence in the coach, they give up and the “vision” is not realized. This often true analogy in the athletic world is applicable to our lives as Christians. Jesus gives us a vision: “whoever does and teaches my commandments, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:19). We want greatness, but now read the rest of the chapter. These next verses stretch us beyond what we feel physically, spiritually or mentally capable of. Like the athlete, this is the turning point. Either we have the confidence to be committed to what Jesus asks of us or “60 Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, “This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it? 66 As a result of this many of His disciples [k]went away and were not walking with Him anymore.” (John 6). The point is, God gives us the vision of being useful and great for His kingdom, but are we willing to go through the rigors, self-sacrifice, commitment to attain the vision?
Here's where the analogy of the coach and athlete breaks down. Coaches make mistakes...sometimes they're in it not for the athlete's best good. Jesus isn't like that. Not only is He not mistaken in the vision He has for us, it is always for our best good. Not only that, but He is God...let that sink in for a minute. We will experience His gymnasium: “2-4 Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.” (Hebrews 1:2-4 The Message Paraphrase)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, break us, mold us, build us so that we conform and fulfill your vision for us. We want to be great for Your honor's sake and the building of Your kingdom. Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 10-03-23 Handling “insurmountable circumstances”
Focusing on our Lord Jesus during times of seemingly insurmountable stress or circumstances is necessary for us to rise over them for God's glory. What I mean by that is: 1) We must trust in the fact that God loves us and is pursuing Christ-likeness in us; 2) God is sovereign in placing us in the situation we find ourselves; 3) The only way to experience peace is not in eliminating the “insurmountable circumstance,” but putting our focus on Christ...on His sustaining grace...on His purposes...His love for us. Our natural tendency is to focus on the “insurmountable circumstance”...changing it...getting rid of it...ignoring it. This is the recipe for resentment, depression, disappointment, fear...none of which should characterize the life of the Christian. A life like that is no longer focusing on Christ and does not demonstrate the power of Christ in rising above, what appear to our natural self to be, “insurmountable.”
This lesson is probably one of most hard for us as Christ followers, but it must become our “modus operandi.” Jesus promised us that life would be filled with tribulations (John 16:33) but God's Word also gives us confidence in trusting Christ through them: we stand, and rejoice in confidence of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And patience, experience; and experience, confidence: 5 And this confidence maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. (Romans 5:2-5)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, please instill in us “confidence” of Your purpose, love, and care for us...even in the midst of seemingly “insurmountable circumstances.” Help us to live our lives unto You and rise above every trial with the peace and confidence of knowing You.
Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 10-02-23 “Living in the Valley”
You desire to be used by God...to have others recognize your giftedness...to feel good about what God is accomplishing through you for His kingdom's sake...you want the spiritual mountaintop experience to continue. But then, you enter into a time where none of that seems to be happening. It's during those humiliating times...often confusing times...when your “metal” is going to be tested. What I mean by that is this---God does give us spiritually mountaintop experiences, but those “experiences” are not where we live. We live in a world of relationships, circumstances, regrets, hopelessness where it becomes easy to lose our confidence in God. It is there in the “valley” we must prove our trust in our Lord God...where we must learn to lean entirely upon His plan and purpose for us
The day is coming when we're in heaven and the tapestry of our lives will be revealed. It is then we'll discover how important our “valley” lives were to the glory of God. Wherever we find ourselves today (probably in the “valley”), let us be faithful in pursuing Jesus in faithfulness, obedience, and loving Him. My prayer for you and me this morning is this: Lord, so often we are prone to discouragement and defeat because we don't see anything spectacular coming from us. Help us to understand You are not expecting us to be “spectacular” but instead...faithful, trusting, obedient and loving You. May that be our goal, our reason for living. Amen
Reminds me of the words of Nusbaum's old hymn:
Would you in His kingdom find a place of constant rest?
Would you prove Him true in providential test?
Would you in His service labor always at your best?
Let Him have His way with thee.
His pow'r can make you what you ought to be;
His blood can cleanse your heart and make you free;
His love can fill your soul, and you will see
'Twas best for Him to have His way with thee.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 9-29-23 “Where Is Your Focus?”
I want to try not to make this day's Truth Matters autobiographical, but in the retrospect of 76 years, I can relate to the Apostle Paul's self-description in relation to his “calling” --
15 It is a trustworthy saying and deserving full acceptance: that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost. 16 Yet for this reason I was shown mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Christ Jesus might demonstrate all His patience as an example for those who are going to believe upon Him for eternal life. (1 Timothy 1:15-16)
Webster defines “calling” this way: “a strong inner impulse toward a particular course of action especially when accompanied by conviction of divine influence.” God gives every maturing Christian a sense of His “calling.” If we continue to seek God's purpose for our lives, this “call” becomes an irrepressible drive that can change the course of our lives. It's like how Paul expressed his “call” - “For if I proclaim the gospel, I have nothing to boast, for I am under compulsion. For woe is me if I do not proclaim the gospel.” (1 Corinthians 9:16) Of course, not all of us are “called” to be preachers or missionaries (a common misconception of the term), but God has “called” each of us to some service for building His kingdom...it's not a “calling” of our own contrivance...in most cases, it will be uncharted, and often unimaginable.
I have found God's “call” to have these characteristics:
1) It was a service I never aspired to...that is, I never saw myself functioning in that service...I had no desire...plus I never thought I had the ability.
2) The “call” developed over time. Doors opened...door closed. Experiences, relationships, education, the Spirit's illumination took some time. Repentance, the Word of God, and increasing trust and faith in Christ were keys. Often times this period was confusing. I was unaware at that time that God was preparing me for His service.
3) Once the “call” became clearer, then it came down to decisions of life that had to be made. But what I found was that those decisions were blessed by God in the sense of His encouragement and provision.
Most folks who engage in the “call” of God will probably follow a similar pattern although it will be individual as to the how, what, and when. Just remember, that “call” is why God caused you to be born. Earnestly pursue it. Nothing is more important. Be faithful and diligent with your “calling” because God's eternal rewards will be yours (2 Timothy 4:7-8). My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we would be more sensitive to Your calling. Give us discernment that only comes from Your word and the indwelling Spirit. Help us to encourage others in their callings too. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 9-28-23 “Where Is Your Focus?”
Most of us have heard the expression: “Only one life will soon be past...only what's done for Christ will last.” The key to understanding that truth is our focus. By that I mean...is our focus truly on eternity or is it on our lives now? The answer to that question will determine how we live our lives...our priorities, our agendas, our goals and aspirations. I think this is where many of us fail. If our focus is on eternal things, the things of our earthly lives will fade...if our focus is on earthly things, eternal realities will fade. Someone has quipped: “He is so heavenly minded, he is of no earthly good.” The more accurate restatement is: “He can only be of earthly good if he is heavenly minded.” Jesus drives home the point continually (Luke 14:25-35)...until we realize the preeminence of the eternal God, we cannot be His disciple...the truth is...we WILL not to be His disciple.
Isn't that the essential issue in being a disciple of Jesus? Do we truly understand the permanence of eternal life with God compared to the fleeting temporal life of what we are trying to build now? How stupid we are! Here's another expression we have heard: “No one trails a U-Haul behind a hearse.” Jesus put it this way: “God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you prepared?' 21 So is the one who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:20-21) My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, teach us the brevity of our earthly lives but remind us of the importance of building our treasure in heaven...of being eternally minded.
19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21) Amen.
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 9-27-23
John 2:23-25 describes most of us: “many believed in His name, when they saw His signs which He was doing. 24 But Jesus, on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men, 25 and because He had no need that anyone bear witness concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man.” The text talks about many of us who have seen the truth of the gospel but are really not totally committed to Him. There are other things in our lives that we allow to have a higher priority than sacrificing our lives for His kingdom. We refuse to give up things, aspirations, relationships rather than loving sacrifice and walking with the King. One of two things are happening here:
1) You haven't been born again. “And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:3-4).
2) You don't realize what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. “26 “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. 27 Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” (Luke 14:26-27)
You might say, “these are awfully harsh words Pastor.” Yes, but I didn't say them...I'm just a mailman delivering the mail. It's up to you to ponder and address what the Spirit is saying to you.
I recently heard a sermon by Alistair Begg where he said we American Christians have a soft, easy Christian life compared to most believers around the world. I know what Alistair was getting at in regard to our half-hearted, cushy, complacency, but I tend to disagree with the premise. I look at the fervor for Christ and His kingdom demonstrated by brothers and sisters living in poverty stricken nations...and then us...who live in affluence with so many opportunities to vest our lives in things and pursuits having nothing to do with God's kingdom. I say we have a huge challenge to “carry our own cross and come after Christ.” It means stripping down to the essentials of discipleship. Remember, I'm just the mailman delivering Christ's letter to you. My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, keep us focused on those things that have eternal value and not on those things that take us away from our commitment to You. Show us the worthlessness of so many things that grab our attention. Teach us Lord what it means to be a committed follower of Jesus Christ. Amen
Truth Matters 9-26-23
Resentment/unforgiveness/bitterness can keep the Christian from being what God has called him or her to be. It not only destroys relationships, but those characteristics can block the Christian's relationship with God. For example...God tells us, “Now to sum up, all of you be like-minded, sympathetic, brotherly, tender-hearted, and humble in spirit; 9 not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but giving a blessing instead, for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. (1 Peter 3:8-9)
What are some of the “blessings” for those who overcome “resentment/unforgiveness/bitterness?” The Christian's Christ-like character will strengthen their trust, love, and relationship with God, but even the Mayo Clinic has a list. In one of the Clinic's “Adult Health” articles it pointed out: “Letting go of grudges and bitterness can make way for improved health and peace of mind. Forgiveness can lead to: Healthier relationships; Improved mental health; Less anxiety, stress and hostility; Fewer symptoms of depression; Lower blood pressure; A stronger immune system; Improved heart health; Improved self-esteem.”
You've probably heard of the man or woman who was hitting themselves on their heads with a hammer, and then, they discover how much better it feels when they stop hitting themselves and put their hammers away. Silly illustration, but that's the way it is when we put our grudges and bitterness away and find the peace and joy God has intended for us. For some, it will be harder than others, but it will be self-destructive in our relationship with God and others if we don't. How is this possible? The Apostle Paul writing under the inspiration of God writes this:
Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 fulfill my joy, that you think the same way, by maintaining the same love, being united in spirit, thinking on one purpose, 3 doing nothing from selfish ambition or vain glory, but with humility of mind regarding one another as more important than yourselves, 4 not merely looking out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. 5 Have this way of thinking in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus.... 13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. 14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing, 15 so that you will be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast the word of life (Philippians 2:1-16)
My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, we are so prone to demand our rights, our respect, our entitlements, that we seem to easily develop resentment toward those who seem to have trampled on them. Instead of resentment, give us the kind of love demonstrated by our Lord Jesus Christ toward sinners like us. We pray for His humility and love to be seen in us. Amen
Walk with the King today and be a blessing.
Truth Matters 9-25-23
Dr. Jay E. Adams has arguably done more to clarify Christ-centered counseling than any of the modern attempts to integrate secular psychological theories with biblical truth. In one of his books, How to Help People Change, he writes:
“Substantial change requires the alteration of the heart. How can a Christian counselor facilitate such change? The answer, of course, may be found in Scripture, specifically in 2 Timothy 3:14-17.” That text says:
“...you have known the sacred writings which are able to make you wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is [a]God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for [b]training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be equipped, having been thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
The point is, if we are going to be of any help to another...that is, to help them change in God honoring ways...it must start with their relationship with Jesus Christ. The text of scripture makes it clear...we must be “wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” Personal trust in the gospel is where all effectual counseling must begin. Regeneration is the first step toward wholeness in relationships, personal/emotional issues, or battles with the destructive forces of the world, the flesh, and the devil.
The Christian counselor must understand that the starting point of joy and purpose must first be found in one's saving relationship with Jesus Christ. Apart from that, we are working with “bandages” not cures. The characteristics and commitments found in The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1-12) are impossible to experience or keep apart from the supernatural work imparted to everyone who puts their faith and trust in Jesus Christ. While the goals of counseling are found in those 12 verses, they are unattainable apart from first being changed by the power of the gospel. That's why the Apostle wrote: I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. (Romans 1:16) Let us never lose sight of the preeminence and centrality of the gospel in our attempts to help others. We can't do it...they can't do it..without they're first coming to Jesus humbly, repentantly, desperately in need of salvation from hell and from themselves (2 Corinthians 5:13-17) - “13 For if we [a]are out of our mind, it is for God, or if we are of right mind, it is for you...He died for all, so that they who live would no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf...17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” My prayer for you and me this day is this: Lord, never let us lose sight of how key and instrumental the saving power of the gospel is when we are called upon to help others. Remind us often about the power of the gospel. Amen
Truth Matters 9-20-23
Matthew chapter 7 is one of my favorite chapters because it addresses many of the fallacies and false assurances of today's contemporary “Christians.” I put Christians in quotes because so many church-goers are not born again but just label themselves as Christians. Many today equate being a Christian with doing good deeds... engaging in ”Christian” activities...or living a clean life. The warning Jesus gave should shock and demand evaluation:
21 “Not all who sound religious are really godly people. They may refer to me as ‘Lord,' but still won't get to heaven. For the decisive question is whether they obey my Father in heaven. 22 At the Judgment many will tell me, ‘Lord, Lord, we told others about you and used your name to cast out demons and to do many other great miracles.' 23 But I will reply, ‘You have never been mine Go away, for your deeds are evil.' (Matthew 7:21-23 TLB)
I have come to know one of the tell-tale signs of genuine regeneration is how the person relates to others. Tendencies toward fault-finding, resentment, jealousy, paranoia, thinking the worst of, holding grudges. When God changes the heart of a person these attitudes are replaced by being “very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, 5 never haughty or selfish or rude...does not demand its own way. It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong. (1 Corinthians 13:4-5 TLB) This is a significant test of true regeneration. Indeed, it is a supernatural change that takes place
Let me ask you this: Would you give up your son or daughter so that that “sinner” of yours could be saved? That's what God did (Romans 5:6-8). That's the character God gives to everyone who is regenerated and Spirit led. This becomes one of those “tests of life” found in 1 John. My prayer for you and me today is this: Lord, help us to love others as You have loved us. If we don't, let us examine ourselves: “to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! (2 Corinthians 13:5). Our attitude toward others is such a test. May we be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:48). Such lavish grace cannot be earned, so just receive it with gladness this new year.