We may be able to fool a lot of people but we can't fool our moms and we can't fool Yahweh. Our moms have been studying us since the hour we were born. She has watched over us while we slept, watched us while we ate, watched us while we played. She knows what every facial expression means. She doesn't listen to our words as much as the tone in which they are spoken, our expression and our body language. But as good as moms are they are limited to what they see and hear, they don't actually know our heart. Yahweh, our Creator, knows our heart.
Yahweh once told the prophet/judge Samuel something important that he repeated on several occasions and that Jesus also taught concerning:
“Do not look at his appearance or his stature, because I have rejected him. Man does not see what the Lord sees, for man sees what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)
This should be both encouraging and frightening. It is encouraging that even when we mess up Yahweh knows the sincerity of our love for him. This is why he continued to favour David even when he had to severely correct David, because David was whole heatedly in love with Yahweh. He desired to live to please him even though there were moments of colossal failure. That should teach us something concerning our relationship with Father and his love.
On the other hand, if we are faking it, Yahweh knows. We cannot mock him. If we are trying to live a good life with no real relationship with Jesus, he knows. Salvation isn't about being good or being kind; salvation is about accepting and receiving the sacrifice of Jesus for us. It is something born out of conviction and repentance. It is the most honest and real moment of our lives. Yahweh knows the difference between a sincere and insincere heart.
Jesus taught a great deal on the heart condition. He taught us that it is the place where we harbour sin before it is acted on. He taught us:
“What comes out of a person—that defiles him. For from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immoralities, thefts, murders, adulteries,greed, evil actions, deceit, promiscuity, stinginess, blasphemy, pride, and foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a person.” (Mark 7:20-23)
Along the same lines he stated:
A good man produces good out of the good storeroom of his heart. An evil man produces evil out of the evil storeroom, for his mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart. (Luke 6:45)
We may think we are fooling everyone but Yahweh knows and in the end he is the only one who matters. As much as our moms and dads love us, they cannot save us. As much as our friends may love us, they cannot save us. As much as the world may appreciate us, it cannot save us. Salvation is only through Jesus, who loves us more than everyone combined. But do you love him? Do you love him with all your heart? Do you love him enough to obey him? Even in your failings, do you desire to live exclusively for him? He looks for sincerity and he cannot be mocked. He knows your heart and by it he judges you.
Showing posts with label sincerity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sincerity. Show all posts
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Saturday, February 1, 2014
What Evil Lurks In The Heart Of ....
The more I study Scripture and put it in the context of today, the more disturbed I become. There is just something wrong with so many people claiming Jesus with no passion to live in his righteousness. I look around and see everyone doing what they think is best and their best is sometimes evil. By evil I mean that it is contrary to the character of Yahweh, who is holy. How can we say that we love Jesus and lack great passion for his name?
I know we all go to great churches and we sing loud, with great joy, and we feel in our hearts that we love Jesus. That is really great and I am glad for that passion but what about the passion to walk right before him, all the time? What about the passion to know what pleases our LORD and to do those things, all the time? What about the passion for his holiness and to live according to it, all the time? It is far too easy to know of Jesus, think we are okay and yet not be known by Jesus because we are not united with him.
There are many who call upon Jesus' name for all kinds of things and who do great things in his name, who will be rejected by Jesus on the day we stand before him. It is too easy to look like we are walking with him and yet in our hearts live an evil life; things contrary to his character. It reminds me of Eli's sons and later Samuel's.
These boys had great father's who served the LORD holding nothing back, but this passion and dedication was not passed on to the sons. This sort of thing cannot be passed on to someone else unless it is first birthed in their heart. Yet, these sons stood in positions of spiritual responsibilities and did evil. How is this possible?
Now the sons of Eli were corrupt; they did not know the Lord. (1 Samuel 2:12)
It was possible because they did not know the LORD. Their great sin was that they changed the regulations of the sacrifices to their own advantage. They took from sincere worshipers the sacrifices being made to Yahweh and used them selfishly. The end result was terrible:
Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for men abhorred the offering of the Lord. (v. 17)
Their actions turned people away from Yahweh; they made something of beauty and love very ugly and unattractive to the sincere worshiper. This is why it was very great before the LORD because they were interfering in the relationship. Remember Jesus' harsh words for those who would prevent the children of Yahweh from approaching him.
We don't get to do whatever we want. We have clear instructions to walk in the righteousness of our LORD. We need to be checking ourselves to see that our faith is sincere and understand that our Father does test the sincerity of that faith from time to time. It is better to be tested here then to find out as we stand before Jesus that it was not genuine.
We need to understand that any insincerity on our part can be a stumbling block to others. It is also important that we do not put anyone in authority who does not have a sincere faith. They may have all the words, know all the ceremonies, know the key Bible passages to quote but have a heart possessed by evil, selfish thinking, jealousies and pettiness; things contrary to the character of Yahweh.
The bottom line is that we should all have a constant desire and passion to increase in our maturity, to grow into the fullness of Jesus. There is never a time that we can afford to sit back and relax, to be entertained, to retire because there is no retirement for the children of Yahweh in this place. If we are not pushing forward we are losing ground. If we are not growing in our relationship then our passion is growing cold. We should have a growing desire to have more of Jesus and he should be our constant thought and motivation. Never should we see the blessings of the Lord simply for our use because they have been given to us as tools to do the work we have been given to do.
Lord Jesus, change our perspective and thinking. Change our heart that we would shake off the lullaby sung over us by this world as it tries to put us to sleep spiritually to rape us carnally. Open our eyes to you, that we would be caught up in such passion for your name that our great desire would be for your righteousness. Strengthen and encourage us to live for you and you alone, pouring all that we are and all that we have into your mission. Forgive us for our failures and help us to walk the highway of holiness where nothing can prevail against us.
I know we all go to great churches and we sing loud, with great joy, and we feel in our hearts that we love Jesus. That is really great and I am glad for that passion but what about the passion to walk right before him, all the time? What about the passion to know what pleases our LORD and to do those things, all the time? What about the passion for his holiness and to live according to it, all the time? It is far too easy to know of Jesus, think we are okay and yet not be known by Jesus because we are not united with him.
There are many who call upon Jesus' name for all kinds of things and who do great things in his name, who will be rejected by Jesus on the day we stand before him. It is too easy to look like we are walking with him and yet in our hearts live an evil life; things contrary to his character. It reminds me of Eli's sons and later Samuel's.
These boys had great father's who served the LORD holding nothing back, but this passion and dedication was not passed on to the sons. This sort of thing cannot be passed on to someone else unless it is first birthed in their heart. Yet, these sons stood in positions of spiritual responsibilities and did evil. How is this possible?
Now the sons of Eli were corrupt; they did not know the Lord. (1 Samuel 2:12)
It was possible because they did not know the LORD. Their great sin was that they changed the regulations of the sacrifices to their own advantage. They took from sincere worshipers the sacrifices being made to Yahweh and used them selfishly. The end result was terrible:
Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for men abhorred the offering of the Lord. (v. 17)
Their actions turned people away from Yahweh; they made something of beauty and love very ugly and unattractive to the sincere worshiper. This is why it was very great before the LORD because they were interfering in the relationship. Remember Jesus' harsh words for those who would prevent the children of Yahweh from approaching him.
We don't get to do whatever we want. We have clear instructions to walk in the righteousness of our LORD. We need to be checking ourselves to see that our faith is sincere and understand that our Father does test the sincerity of that faith from time to time. It is better to be tested here then to find out as we stand before Jesus that it was not genuine.
We need to understand that any insincerity on our part can be a stumbling block to others. It is also important that we do not put anyone in authority who does not have a sincere faith. They may have all the words, know all the ceremonies, know the key Bible passages to quote but have a heart possessed by evil, selfish thinking, jealousies and pettiness; things contrary to the character of Yahweh.
The bottom line is that we should all have a constant desire and passion to increase in our maturity, to grow into the fullness of Jesus. There is never a time that we can afford to sit back and relax, to be entertained, to retire because there is no retirement for the children of Yahweh in this place. If we are not pushing forward we are losing ground. If we are not growing in our relationship then our passion is growing cold. We should have a growing desire to have more of Jesus and he should be our constant thought and motivation. Never should we see the blessings of the Lord simply for our use because they have been given to us as tools to do the work we have been given to do.
Lord Jesus, change our perspective and thinking. Change our heart that we would shake off the lullaby sung over us by this world as it tries to put us to sleep spiritually to rape us carnally. Open our eyes to you, that we would be caught up in such passion for your name that our great desire would be for your righteousness. Strengthen and encourage us to live for you and you alone, pouring all that we are and all that we have into your mission. Forgive us for our failures and help us to walk the highway of holiness where nothing can prevail against us.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
On Being A Boss
A lot of people aspire to be a boss, a leader, someone in charge. When I was younger I always thought it would be the ultimate freedom with no one to tell me what to do. It isn't that I wanted power over other people but instead I wanted to be free from people having power over me. It wasn't until I became a boss that I realized a couple of things. First, being a boss is more about responsibility than privilege. Second, we always have someone to whom we have to answer.
Those to whom God calls and anoints for leadership, any leadership, in the Body of Jesus, he also holds to a greater accountability. We know that apostles, evangelists, prophets, pastors and teachers will all be judged more severely and will have to give account for everything God gave to them to invest for the Kingdom. But so too will each elder, deacon, Sunday School teacher, worship leader, band member and anyone else with any responsibility over anyone else. It is also true for any Christian given responsibility in the world:
And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him. (Ephesians 6:9)
When Paul says "in the same way" he is referring to what he just finished saying to the salves. There has to be an attitude that we are serving the Lord. There must be an attitude of respect, fear, and sincerity. We should be afraid to do any harm to anyone because, even if they are not saved, they are the objects of God's love. If an employee must show respect and serve sincerely, as if they are serving the Lord, how much more someone with responsibility over someone else?
We need to always keep in mind that we have to have Jesus' attitude and he said that he did not come to be served but to serve. Even when we are the boss we need to have a servant's heart, caring for those for whom we are responsible. If we saw them as Jesus would we act toward them any differently? This is even more so when you have responsibility over a fellow Christian.
Being the boss of a Christian is probably the hardest thing to do. We have such high expectations for each other and when we fail to meet those expectation it can affect they way we treat each other. It is hard not to judge. This is the verse I try to keep in mind:
Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. (Romans 14:4)
The Lord will get us all there in the end, no matter our level of maturity or revelation. Meanwhile we are to respect, fear, be sincere and love each other.
Bosses have to remember that we all serve the same Lord and he is Master of us all. It is good to remember that he has no favourites From the greatest evangelists to the worse sinner, God loves us all. It is because of that love that we must show respect to all human life. How can we mistreat the objects of God's affection? How can we have poor attitudes toward those for whom Jesus went to the cross? How can we allow something like being a boss interfere with our greater responsibility of being vessels of God's love?
It is a beautiful thing when it all flows together, slave respecting master and master respecting slave, but it doesn't always go that way. It doesn't matter. How a boss is treated cannot affect the responsibility of the boss to treat the employees well, showing them respect and love, serving them as if he is serving Jesus. We are all accountable to the same Master. Serve him well.
Those to whom God calls and anoints for leadership, any leadership, in the Body of Jesus, he also holds to a greater accountability. We know that apostles, evangelists, prophets, pastors and teachers will all be judged more severely and will have to give account for everything God gave to them to invest for the Kingdom. But so too will each elder, deacon, Sunday School teacher, worship leader, band member and anyone else with any responsibility over anyone else. It is also true for any Christian given responsibility in the world:
And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him. (Ephesians 6:9)
When Paul says "in the same way" he is referring to what he just finished saying to the salves. There has to be an attitude that we are serving the Lord. There must be an attitude of respect, fear, and sincerity. We should be afraid to do any harm to anyone because, even if they are not saved, they are the objects of God's love. If an employee must show respect and serve sincerely, as if they are serving the Lord, how much more someone with responsibility over someone else?
We need to always keep in mind that we have to have Jesus' attitude and he said that he did not come to be served but to serve. Even when we are the boss we need to have a servant's heart, caring for those for whom we are responsible. If we saw them as Jesus would we act toward them any differently? This is even more so when you have responsibility over a fellow Christian.
Being the boss of a Christian is probably the hardest thing to do. We have such high expectations for each other and when we fail to meet those expectation it can affect they way we treat each other. It is hard not to judge. This is the verse I try to keep in mind:
Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. (Romans 14:4)
The Lord will get us all there in the end, no matter our level of maturity or revelation. Meanwhile we are to respect, fear, be sincere and love each other.
Bosses have to remember that we all serve the same Lord and he is Master of us all. It is good to remember that he has no favourites From the greatest evangelists to the worse sinner, God loves us all. It is because of that love that we must show respect to all human life. How can we mistreat the objects of God's affection? How can we have poor attitudes toward those for whom Jesus went to the cross? How can we allow something like being a boss interfere with our greater responsibility of being vessels of God's love?
It is a beautiful thing when it all flows together, slave respecting master and master respecting slave, but it doesn't always go that way. It doesn't matter. How a boss is treated cannot affect the responsibility of the boss to treat the employees well, showing them respect and love, serving them as if he is serving Jesus. We are all accountable to the same Master. Serve him well.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Radical Teachings Of The Bible
We often use our circumstances as an excuse for our attitude or reaction to things. We feel justified in what we say or do when there is just cause behind it. It makes us feel better but it also prevents us from being accountable for our actions. The thing is, it doesn't work that way for Christians. Regardless of our circumstances we are to follow the direction of the Spirit and the Spirit always directs us in words and actions of love. No excuses.
What is the worse possible human condition you think you can be found in? How about when all freedom and rights are stripped away from you? Maybe, when you are treated like a possession, no better than a piece of furniture? We call it slavery and it is still going strong in this world. How would you react if you were found in that circumstance? Stolen off the streets, smuggled out of the country and sold to the highest bidder. What would you do? Well, here is how radical Christianity is:
Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. (Ephesians 6:5)
Yes, the attitude of submission goes even that far, regardless of your circumstances. Remember, when Jesus told us to love our enemy it was not just words he was speaking. Did you think he was just talking about kind thoughts you were to have? Love equals action. If as a slave we are to obey with respect and fear, emptying ourselves of self so we can obey with sincerity of heart, and have the same attitude as if we were obeying Jesus, how much more in every other circumstance of our life?
What about that teacher that always seems so hard on you? Everything in you wants to tell that teacher off. What about your parents who treat you so unfairly? How about that boss that keeps changing things and expecting so much out of you? What about that police office that always seems to pick on you? The flesh tells you to rise up in rebellion but the Spirit in you yells obedience with respect, fear and sincerity.
I have to be honest, these words are convicting me this morning. My church is small so to help take some of the financial burden off of it I work as a customer service professional from home. I am not always respectful in my attitude toward the company I work for. I often find their expectations to be unfair. There is a rebellion in my heart toward them and I am not sure I have always given my best effort. I have been robbing Jesus of his glory. I can't say that I have been in step with the Spirit with this:
Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. (Ephesians 6:6)
What is the will of God? Submission. That I would submit to the demands and expectations of the company I work for and do it with sincerity. This truth is hard when I examine my attitude toward different circumstances in my life. What is my attitude like to all authority in my life, from bus driver to Prime Minister? If this is what slaves were being told, how much more should we check our attitude. It's not about us; it is about the glory Jesus receives in our Christ-like attitude:
Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free. (Ephesians 6:7-8)
As if you were serving the Lord, not men. Yes, this applies to that teacher, boss, police officer who treats you unfairly. Is there anything more unfair in life than being a slave? If this is the expectation for a Christian slaves, how much more a person with freedom? The most radical thought out of all of this is that the riches of this world hold no value to us compared to doing the will of God, because our reward is coming. Our reward is not found here. We are not to seek things for our own benefit but always for the benefit of others. We are servants. Our reward is coming. Trust Jesus, live a life of submission and serve with sincerity of love.
What is the worse possible human condition you think you can be found in? How about when all freedom and rights are stripped away from you? Maybe, when you are treated like a possession, no better than a piece of furniture? We call it slavery and it is still going strong in this world. How would you react if you were found in that circumstance? Stolen off the streets, smuggled out of the country and sold to the highest bidder. What would you do? Well, here is how radical Christianity is:
Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. (Ephesians 6:5)
Yes, the attitude of submission goes even that far, regardless of your circumstances. Remember, when Jesus told us to love our enemy it was not just words he was speaking. Did you think he was just talking about kind thoughts you were to have? Love equals action. If as a slave we are to obey with respect and fear, emptying ourselves of self so we can obey with sincerity of heart, and have the same attitude as if we were obeying Jesus, how much more in every other circumstance of our life?
What about that teacher that always seems so hard on you? Everything in you wants to tell that teacher off. What about your parents who treat you so unfairly? How about that boss that keeps changing things and expecting so much out of you? What about that police office that always seems to pick on you? The flesh tells you to rise up in rebellion but the Spirit in you yells obedience with respect, fear and sincerity.
I have to be honest, these words are convicting me this morning. My church is small so to help take some of the financial burden off of it I work as a customer service professional from home. I am not always respectful in my attitude toward the company I work for. I often find their expectations to be unfair. There is a rebellion in my heart toward them and I am not sure I have always given my best effort. I have been robbing Jesus of his glory. I can't say that I have been in step with the Spirit with this:
Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. (Ephesians 6:6)
What is the will of God? Submission. That I would submit to the demands and expectations of the company I work for and do it with sincerity. This truth is hard when I examine my attitude toward different circumstances in my life. What is my attitude like to all authority in my life, from bus driver to Prime Minister? If this is what slaves were being told, how much more should we check our attitude. It's not about us; it is about the glory Jesus receives in our Christ-like attitude:
Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free. (Ephesians 6:7-8)
As if you were serving the Lord, not men. Yes, this applies to that teacher, boss, police officer who treats you unfairly. Is there anything more unfair in life than being a slave? If this is the expectation for a Christian slaves, how much more a person with freedom? The most radical thought out of all of this is that the riches of this world hold no value to us compared to doing the will of God, because our reward is coming. Our reward is not found here. We are not to seek things for our own benefit but always for the benefit of others. We are servants. Our reward is coming. Trust Jesus, live a life of submission and serve with sincerity of love.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Are You A Pretender?
There is more to Christianity than just words. There is more to it than just attending Church. There is more to it than being born to parents who are Christians. There is more to it than traditions and ceremonies. Anyone can claim to be whatever they want to be. I can claim to be a doctor. I can buy a white lab coat and carry around a stethoscope. I can read all the latest medical news on the internet. I can speak the right words and sound like a doctor. I can even carry some Tylenol in my pocket. But these things do not make me a doctor any more than claiming to be a Christian, doing the right things, saying the right words and going to church makes me a Christian.
This was Paul's concern with the Ephesians and the Spirit's concern with us. To be a Christian means to die and be raised to new life in Jesus. That means the old us is gone and replaced by the transformed and transforming us. Christianity means a totally transforming re-birth. Some people may try to fake it and may even fool a lot of people but they can't fool God. Understand this clearly: You may fool parents, friends and even your spouse but you cannot and will not fool God. Perhaps you get away with it right now but when it is time to enter eternity the truth will be known.
Let me ask you, what is more important, eighty or ninety years in this dying world or eternity with the one who loves us?
This is what Paul wrote to the Christians of Ephesus, not the people of the world:
For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. (Ephesians 5:5)
We read this as if it is a message for the world but is a truth for the Church, the Body of Christ. There will be no pretenders in the Kingdom of God.
We are not talking about those who are sincere in their faith and love for Jesus but instead of those who secretly live behind closed doors with sin. Sin can be hidden from man's eyes but not from God. Those who are sincere in their love gladly confess when they fall and trust God's love to provide the grace to cover those sins. We should not fall but if we do we don't hide it, we deal with it. Consider the great king David. God loved him because of his heart for him.
David was far from perfect and wasn't even the greatest king of Israel, The Word says the king Hezekiah was greater than any king before him and after. But David was sincere in his love and when he sinned he repented. Even if God had to draw it out of him through the words of a prophet, David responded from his love for God. This is what our Father wants from us; honesty, sincerity, faith, trust and love.
Our Father has no interest in punishing people. Did he not send his Son to save the world? But just because he does not want to judge the sins of the world does not mean he won't. He is a just God who had delayed justice for the age of grace to save as many as would desire to be saved by love. But justice is coming, even for those who worship him with their lips but their hearts remain hard and closed to him.
Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. (Ephesians 5:11)
Again, not about the world but about us. He is not talking about exposing the evil in this world but the evil we have tucked away in our heart. Confess it to God, bring it into the light so you can see it clearly for what it is, and allow the holiness of our God to destroy the power that thing has over you. Be free from the secret things that dominant you and allow the love of Jesus to reign freely. It is time for some honesty with our God who knows all things. It is time for our hearts to be fully devoted to our King. It is time to stop pretending and deal with it. Deal with it today.
This was Paul's concern with the Ephesians and the Spirit's concern with us. To be a Christian means to die and be raised to new life in Jesus. That means the old us is gone and replaced by the transformed and transforming us. Christianity means a totally transforming re-birth. Some people may try to fake it and may even fool a lot of people but they can't fool God. Understand this clearly: You may fool parents, friends and even your spouse but you cannot and will not fool God. Perhaps you get away with it right now but when it is time to enter eternity the truth will be known.
Let me ask you, what is more important, eighty or ninety years in this dying world or eternity with the one who loves us?
This is what Paul wrote to the Christians of Ephesus, not the people of the world:
For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. (Ephesians 5:5)
We read this as if it is a message for the world but is a truth for the Church, the Body of Christ. There will be no pretenders in the Kingdom of God.
We are not talking about those who are sincere in their faith and love for Jesus but instead of those who secretly live behind closed doors with sin. Sin can be hidden from man's eyes but not from God. Those who are sincere in their love gladly confess when they fall and trust God's love to provide the grace to cover those sins. We should not fall but if we do we don't hide it, we deal with it. Consider the great king David. God loved him because of his heart for him.
David was far from perfect and wasn't even the greatest king of Israel, The Word says the king Hezekiah was greater than any king before him and after. But David was sincere in his love and when he sinned he repented. Even if God had to draw it out of him through the words of a prophet, David responded from his love for God. This is what our Father wants from us; honesty, sincerity, faith, trust and love.
Our Father has no interest in punishing people. Did he not send his Son to save the world? But just because he does not want to judge the sins of the world does not mean he won't. He is a just God who had delayed justice for the age of grace to save as many as would desire to be saved by love. But justice is coming, even for those who worship him with their lips but their hearts remain hard and closed to him.
Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. (Ephesians 5:11)
Again, not about the world but about us. He is not talking about exposing the evil in this world but the evil we have tucked away in our heart. Confess it to God, bring it into the light so you can see it clearly for what it is, and allow the holiness of our God to destroy the power that thing has over you. Be free from the secret things that dominant you and allow the love of Jesus to reign freely. It is time for some honesty with our God who knows all things. It is time for our hearts to be fully devoted to our King. It is time to stop pretending and deal with it. Deal with it today.
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