"If you listen to these case laws and follow them carefully, the LORD your God will keep the covenant and display the loyalty that he promised your ancestors. He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will bless the fruit of your wombs and the fruit of your fertile land." (Deut 7:12-13a)
"You will be more blessed than any other group of people. No one will be sterile or infertile - not among you or your animals. The LORD will remove all sickness from you." (Deuteronomy 7:14-15a)
He promised healthy wombs and healthy land and healthy bodies in the same way he said they would use abundance to have healthy relationship. He said earlier that there would be no poor in Israel because people must share their abundance.
It is Father's heart that we live a life of Kingdom abundance, that we would live a life of abundance, a life with much fruit, so that the world would know him. The resurrection should be manifested in a life lived properly in the Spirit.
The Kingdom still functions according to the commandments. We need the commandments and we need God's voice.
I am still chewing over the four offices Yahweh set up in Israel - the priest, the judge, the king and the prophet. Jesus fulfills all these offices but he also uses us in these offices. Many of us handle the priest (the commandments) but we often forget the authority of the King. The place of the judge will come later but also plays a role in the discernment in our lives. The one we neglect the most is the Prophet - the voice of God.
If we want to move in the abundance of the Kingdom we need to learn obedience to the Voice in our walk of righteousness.
Still thinking through most of this.
Showing posts with label faithfulness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label faithfulness. Show all posts
Thursday, March 22, 2018
Tuesday, March 20, 2018
Even In The Law Obedience Was A Sign Of Love
"Know now then that the LORD your God is the only true God! He is the faithful God, who keeps the covenant and proves loyal to everyone who loves him and keeps his commands - even to the thousandth generation! He is the God who personally repays anyone who hates him, ultimately destroying that kind of person. The LORD does not waste time with anyone who hates him; he repays them personally." (Deuteronomy 7:9-10)
Not all scripture is comfortable. The fact is that Yahweh does not take kindly to the disloyal. These are the ones who have accepted Yahweh as God and have pledged themselves to him. For those who start off but turn their back, we have warnings such as:
"It’s scary to fall into the hands of the living God!" (Hebrews 10:31)
Even Jesus warned:
“No one who puts a hand on the plow and looks back is fit for God’s kingdom.” (Luke 9:62)
But there is no way that anyone who has tasted of the Lord and the Holy Spirit could possibly deny him, could they? I really depends upon what we set our eyes and what thoughts we entertain. Following Jesus is not a simple matter. The righteousness of relationship between us and Father is definitely the work of Jesus. He did it on the cross. But we have also been called to a walk of righteousness, which is a journey of progress and depends on us seeking it and surrendering to it.
Jesus told us:
Instead, desire first and foremost God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33)
Although we are not held to the penalty of the Law, we have been adopted into a relationship of love. If our love is a sincere reflection of Father's love, then our great desire will be obedience to his will. Righteousness is living according to Father's heart. Jesus also told us:
“Whoever loves me will keep my word. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them." (John 14:23)
Not all scripture is comfortable. The fact is that Yahweh does not take kindly to the disloyal. These are the ones who have accepted Yahweh as God and have pledged themselves to him. For those who start off but turn their back, we have warnings such as:
"It’s scary to fall into the hands of the living God!" (Hebrews 10:31)
Even Jesus warned:
“No one who puts a hand on the plow and looks back is fit for God’s kingdom.” (Luke 9:62)
But there is no way that anyone who has tasted of the Lord and the Holy Spirit could possibly deny him, could they? I really depends upon what we set our eyes and what thoughts we entertain. Following Jesus is not a simple matter. The righteousness of relationship between us and Father is definitely the work of Jesus. He did it on the cross. But we have also been called to a walk of righteousness, which is a journey of progress and depends on us seeking it and surrendering to it.
Jesus told us:
Instead, desire first and foremost God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33)
Although we are not held to the penalty of the Law, we have been adopted into a relationship of love. If our love is a sincere reflection of Father's love, then our great desire will be obedience to his will. Righteousness is living according to Father's heart. Jesus also told us:
“Whoever loves me will keep my word. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them." (John 14:23)
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Closed To The Good News
You can choose not to believe. That is the interesting thing about the human mind, we can convince ourselves of our own reality and no one can convince us otherwise. We believe to be truth what we choose to believe. We can also limit the truth by choosing not to believe. So, many people choose to limit themselves to what they see. What a dull existence if all that exists is what we perceive with our sight.
It is possible to limit Jesus by either choosing not to believe everything the Word tells us or not to believe anything at all. If you choose not to believe in God he will leave you in that non-belief. He has called many of us to fight for you, to pray and to be instruments of his glory and grace so that you can see if you choose to see but if you harden your heart toward him, he will leave you there.
We see this demonstrated in many places in the Word but the one that stands out for me is found in the history of the beginning of the Church:
Some people had closed their minds, though. They refused to believe and publicly slandered the Way. As a result, Paul left them, took the disciples with him, and continued his daily interactions in Tyrannus’ lecture hall. (Acts 19:9)
Yes, that tends to be the results of people closing their minds to Jesus; they don't just walk away, they attack. Often it is not enough not to believe, people also attack what they choose not to believe to justify their non-belief. Strange how that works. As we see more of society being taken in by the lies of the enemy, choosing not to believe the acts of our loving God, they are becoming hostile toward those who do believe. From their position of imperfection they demand perfection from a people saved, not by their righteousness but, by the grace of Yahweh.
By closing their minds many people are unable to understand the message of Jesus, his actions, the Word or the purpose of the Church. We must not be surprised by their actions toward us because they have closed their mind to understanding. However, that does not excuse us from our responsibility to share the good news of Jesus Christ to anyone who is willing to listen. Like Paul, we must move from the hard soil to the fertile soil leaving the others to the mercy of Yahweh. We need to pray that more minds would be open to receiving the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Remember, we are not in the fight of our lives but of those who have not received Jesus. We are well saved and have received all that we need, but now we are involved in a battle that must put others ahead of ourselves, as inconvenient as that may seem. Apostle Paul encouraged us to work hard for the benefit of others so let's get to it and may those closed minds be opened.
It is possible to limit Jesus by either choosing not to believe everything the Word tells us or not to believe anything at all. If you choose not to believe in God he will leave you in that non-belief. He has called many of us to fight for you, to pray and to be instruments of his glory and grace so that you can see if you choose to see but if you harden your heart toward him, he will leave you there.
We see this demonstrated in many places in the Word but the one that stands out for me is found in the history of the beginning of the Church:
Some people had closed their minds, though. They refused to believe and publicly slandered the Way. As a result, Paul left them, took the disciples with him, and continued his daily interactions in Tyrannus’ lecture hall. (Acts 19:9)
Yes, that tends to be the results of people closing their minds to Jesus; they don't just walk away, they attack. Often it is not enough not to believe, people also attack what they choose not to believe to justify their non-belief. Strange how that works. As we see more of society being taken in by the lies of the enemy, choosing not to believe the acts of our loving God, they are becoming hostile toward those who do believe. From their position of imperfection they demand perfection from a people saved, not by their righteousness but, by the grace of Yahweh.
By closing their minds many people are unable to understand the message of Jesus, his actions, the Word or the purpose of the Church. We must not be surprised by their actions toward us because they have closed their mind to understanding. However, that does not excuse us from our responsibility to share the good news of Jesus Christ to anyone who is willing to listen. Like Paul, we must move from the hard soil to the fertile soil leaving the others to the mercy of Yahweh. We need to pray that more minds would be open to receiving the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Remember, we are not in the fight of our lives but of those who have not received Jesus. We are well saved and have received all that we need, but now we are involved in a battle that must put others ahead of ourselves, as inconvenient as that may seem. Apostle Paul encouraged us to work hard for the benefit of others so let's get to it and may those closed minds be opened.
Friday, October 17, 2014
Jesus Is All I Need
Things are changing quickly in our society. The social norms I grew up with are fading under the pressure for individual rights to choose what each person considers to be right and wrong. In this age of social media, it seems one week of pressure can bring about a wave of changed opinion. Obviously people do not have deep convictions and will change with the changing wind. So I wonder, if everyone changed their mind about Yahweh and stopped believing, would he cease to exist?
Perhaps a dumb question but it is the attitude of those who are trying to do away with faith in Yahweh from our society They want us to be our own gods, to make up our own morality, to redefine everything, throwing away the commands of our Creator. What is happening isn't new but it may be new to the age in which we live. So if they were to succeed, would Yahweh cease to be?
For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. (Romans 3:3-4)
Those who would destroy all faith on earth fail to understand our response to Yahweh's faithfulness. Even if they are successful in convincing those who are sitting on the fence right now, there are those of us who will never turn our back on the One who is always faithful to who he is. If he did not exist, was not faithful, was not every day present, was not involved with us every day, was not compassionate, merciful, overflowing with love, perhaps then they would have a chance to do what they want to do. But to us who deeply believe, Yahweh is all this and more.
It sure seems that the world is falling apart and the Church is being destroyed but the world is going as Jesus said it would choose to go, and the weak believers are doing exactly what Jesus said they would do. There are no surprises for Yahweh. He's seen it all and he has laid down his plans and we are in those plans. We are a people of great hope and joy because of Jesus Christ. This hope and joy are real because Yahweh is faithful.
Faith will exist at Jesus' return because Yahweh is faithful. There will be dark days and we may question a lot but none of it will change Yahweh's faithfulness. None of it will keep him from being him. We do not cling to the Church, we cling to Christ. We do not find hope in the world, we find hope in Jesus. We serve Christ through the Church and we serve Christ in the world, but it will always be Christ's faithfulness that will keep us going through it all. Stand firm.
Perhaps a dumb question but it is the attitude of those who are trying to do away with faith in Yahweh from our society They want us to be our own gods, to make up our own morality, to redefine everything, throwing away the commands of our Creator. What is happening isn't new but it may be new to the age in which we live. So if they were to succeed, would Yahweh cease to be?
For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. (Romans 3:3-4)
Those who would destroy all faith on earth fail to understand our response to Yahweh's faithfulness. Even if they are successful in convincing those who are sitting on the fence right now, there are those of us who will never turn our back on the One who is always faithful to who he is. If he did not exist, was not faithful, was not every day present, was not involved with us every day, was not compassionate, merciful, overflowing with love, perhaps then they would have a chance to do what they want to do. But to us who deeply believe, Yahweh is all this and more.
It sure seems that the world is falling apart and the Church is being destroyed but the world is going as Jesus said it would choose to go, and the weak believers are doing exactly what Jesus said they would do. There are no surprises for Yahweh. He's seen it all and he has laid down his plans and we are in those plans. We are a people of great hope and joy because of Jesus Christ. This hope and joy are real because Yahweh is faithful.
Faith will exist at Jesus' return because Yahweh is faithful. There will be dark days and we may question a lot but none of it will change Yahweh's faithfulness. None of it will keep him from being him. We do not cling to the Church, we cling to Christ. We do not find hope in the world, we find hope in Jesus. We serve Christ through the Church and we serve Christ in the world, but it will always be Christ's faithfulness that will keep us going through it all. Stand firm.
Friday, August 15, 2014
The Inconvenience Of Love
What is your reaction when someone hurts you? You probably forgive them because that is what we are suppose to do as followers of Jesus, but will you still love them? Will you open your heart to them, trust them, hang out with them, treat them as if nothing happened? We may want to because we know it's what Jesus desires of us but sometimes our flesh makes it difficult.
We find a great example of this in Samuel. He was the last of the Israelite judges because the people demanded a change in the system. He was also prophet and priest, speaking to the people the will of Yahweh. But the people wanted a king to replace Yahweh's system of governance. We can imagine the sting of rejection Samuel would have felt after generations of judges. However, Yahweh encouraged Samuel by pointing out that the people were not rejecting him as judge as much as they were rejecting Yahweh as king.
The people did not fully understand what they had done until after Yahweh had agreed to it. When they did realize it they came to Samuel in repentance. I am sure you can appreciate what the temptation of our flesh would be, but not Samuel. In fact, read his graceful words:
Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way. Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. (1 Samuel 12:23-24)
That is great leadership for you. It doesn't matter how a leader is treated by the people for whom they are responsible, they must continue to lay down their lives for them. A Christian leader is not leading in their name but in the name of the Lord and to the Lord he will have to be accountable for that leadership. Jesus has not told us to lead only when people love us and show us appreciation. I don't only write and preach when it is popular; it has been given me to do not matter how it is received. I know you can think of other things where the same rule must applied such as parenting. A leader must lead.
Serving the Lord is not a popularity contest or a feel-good thing. It is a responsibility, plain and simple. It is not dependent on anything other than obedience provoked by our love for Jesus. Some days that will be the only motivation you have to go on but it will be enough. So love people no matter how they treat you.
We find a great example of this in Samuel. He was the last of the Israelite judges because the people demanded a change in the system. He was also prophet and priest, speaking to the people the will of Yahweh. But the people wanted a king to replace Yahweh's system of governance. We can imagine the sting of rejection Samuel would have felt after generations of judges. However, Yahweh encouraged Samuel by pointing out that the people were not rejecting him as judge as much as they were rejecting Yahweh as king.
The people did not fully understand what they had done until after Yahweh had agreed to it. When they did realize it they came to Samuel in repentance. I am sure you can appreciate what the temptation of our flesh would be, but not Samuel. In fact, read his graceful words:
Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way. Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. (1 Samuel 12:23-24)
That is great leadership for you. It doesn't matter how a leader is treated by the people for whom they are responsible, they must continue to lay down their lives for them. A Christian leader is not leading in their name but in the name of the Lord and to the Lord he will have to be accountable for that leadership. Jesus has not told us to lead only when people love us and show us appreciation. I don't only write and preach when it is popular; it has been given me to do not matter how it is received. I know you can think of other things where the same rule must applied such as parenting. A leader must lead.
Serving the Lord is not a popularity contest or a feel-good thing. It is a responsibility, plain and simple. It is not dependent on anything other than obedience provoked by our love for Jesus. Some days that will be the only motivation you have to go on but it will be enough. So love people no matter how they treat you.
Saturday, July 19, 2014
How Do We Measure Success?
How do we measure success in the Kingdom of God? We know how it is measured in the world: position, fame, wealth. There are not many accolades for the faithful mother and wife who successfully raised her children and supported her husband. Neither are there accolades for the faithful father and husband, who worked all his life in the mines to provide for his family. But oh how the tributes pour in for the actor, singer, dancer who accidentally took too many drugs and died. Any death is a loss to those who loved them but consider our reaction to understand how we measure success.
Success in the Kingdom looks much different than success in the world. It must when the Bible celebrates the success of a prisoner while in prison. Of course I am referring to Joseph. I think sometimes we need to put the Bible heroes in the context of today to appreciate Yahweh's methods of growing and developing individuals. We look at Joseph and we appreciate the story, we recognize the injustice, we note his attitude but we miss some significant things.
The greatest thing about Joseph was that he blossomed wherever he was, in whatever situation he faced. In each stage of his journey he met with success. He wasn't considered successful only at the top but in every moment of his life. His brothers sold him into slavery. He had every right to moan and complain but Joseph gave himself to his situation. His was faithful in his relationship with the Lord, he obeyed his master and he worked hard. Due to his attitude the Lord prospered him so that whatever he put his hand to was successful. He earned the trust and appreciation of his master. But that didn't prevent bad things from happening.
Through no fault of his own, Joseph found himself in jail. Another injustice, another opportunity to moan and complain, but instead Joseph submitted himself to his situation. Because of his incredible attitude the Lord was with him and whatever he touched prospered during the many long years of his imprisonment:
The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper. (Genesis 39:23)
Joseph did not wait for circumstances to be favourable. He did not use any excuses. Joseph understood his relationship and responsibility to the Lord and gave himself to it. Is it any wonder that the Lord trusted him with the physical salvation of nations during the great famine? Joseph proved himself faithful in whatever circumstances he was in so the Lord was able to trust him with greater things. His heart was tested and he proved faithful.
Some people would look at this and say that Joseph was successful because he became a great and important man but that is not how we are to measure his success. Joseph was successful because of his obedience; everything else was just window dressing or the fruit of his obedience. Success in the Kingdom is not measured by our accomplishments or the prosperity of our projects. Success in the Kingdom is measured by our obedience to the Lord. It is by this obedience that the sincerity of our heart is measured.
Our obedience is not dependent on the right circumstances or the perfect opportunities. Our covenant relationship with Jesus means we vowed to love him in all situations, circumstances and opportunities. Our love is proved sincere in our obedience, no matter how hard it is to obey. The Lord is testing our heart, looking to see if we will be faithful with the small things to know if we can be trusted with the greater things. What is important is that we remain faithful and obedient in all things so that we are available to him at all times. Obedience equals success in the Kingdom of God.
Success in the Kingdom looks much different than success in the world. It must when the Bible celebrates the success of a prisoner while in prison. Of course I am referring to Joseph. I think sometimes we need to put the Bible heroes in the context of today to appreciate Yahweh's methods of growing and developing individuals. We look at Joseph and we appreciate the story, we recognize the injustice, we note his attitude but we miss some significant things.
The greatest thing about Joseph was that he blossomed wherever he was, in whatever situation he faced. In each stage of his journey he met with success. He wasn't considered successful only at the top but in every moment of his life. His brothers sold him into slavery. He had every right to moan and complain but Joseph gave himself to his situation. His was faithful in his relationship with the Lord, he obeyed his master and he worked hard. Due to his attitude the Lord prospered him so that whatever he put his hand to was successful. He earned the trust and appreciation of his master. But that didn't prevent bad things from happening.
Through no fault of his own, Joseph found himself in jail. Another injustice, another opportunity to moan and complain, but instead Joseph submitted himself to his situation. Because of his incredible attitude the Lord was with him and whatever he touched prospered during the many long years of his imprisonment:
The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper. (Genesis 39:23)
Joseph did not wait for circumstances to be favourable. He did not use any excuses. Joseph understood his relationship and responsibility to the Lord and gave himself to it. Is it any wonder that the Lord trusted him with the physical salvation of nations during the great famine? Joseph proved himself faithful in whatever circumstances he was in so the Lord was able to trust him with greater things. His heart was tested and he proved faithful.
Some people would look at this and say that Joseph was successful because he became a great and important man but that is not how we are to measure his success. Joseph was successful because of his obedience; everything else was just window dressing or the fruit of his obedience. Success in the Kingdom is not measured by our accomplishments or the prosperity of our projects. Success in the Kingdom is measured by our obedience to the Lord. It is by this obedience that the sincerity of our heart is measured.
Our obedience is not dependent on the right circumstances or the perfect opportunities. Our covenant relationship with Jesus means we vowed to love him in all situations, circumstances and opportunities. Our love is proved sincere in our obedience, no matter how hard it is to obey. The Lord is testing our heart, looking to see if we will be faithful with the small things to know if we can be trusted with the greater things. What is important is that we remain faithful and obedient in all things so that we are available to him at all times. Obedience equals success in the Kingdom of God.
Monday, January 13, 2014
The First Step Toward Spiritual Maturity
Disbelief is both ugly and sad. It results from a short memory. I am not referring to the disbelief of non-believers but of those who made the choice to accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour. How many great things has he done in your life? How many times has he saved you from the brink of disaster? How many times has he provided for you when you had no provision? How many times has he quieted your troubled Spirit and been there to carry you through impossible times?
Yahweh is good and he is good all the time. He is faithful even we are not. Yet we doubt.
Israel should be a constant reminder of how ugly disbelief is to Yahweh. With a mighty hand he rescued them from Egypt. He practically carried them to the edge of the promised land, defending them, feeding them, guiding them. The entire time they complained, rebelled and caused as much difficulty as possible. Now here they were on the edge of the land Yahweh had been promising them since the time of Abraham. His command was a simple one: Go and take the land.
They sent spies in to test the waters and 10 of the 12 came back with a bad report. The people refused to enter. The people are too big, too mighty, the cities are fortifies, they would all be killed. This they spouted off in the face of the one who used force, never seen before, to bring them out of Egypt. They said this in the face of the one who parted the seas to rescue them. They said this in the face of the one who brought water from rock and fed them every day with food direct from heaven. They said this in the face of the one who gave them the might to defeat every enemy they had faced. And Yahweh's response:
How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the signs I have performed among them? (Numbers 14:11)
How long? How long must we learn the same lesson time and again? How long does he have to show us his love and compassion before we believe? Ho long will it take before we start trusting him with today, tomorrow and our eternity? What is wrong with our memory that we start every day as if we have had no experience at all with Jesus? How long?
A lack of trust means we are stuck drinking milk instead of eating steaks. It means we have to continue wearing diapers until we trust enough to learn our lessons. It means we will be 8o years old and still not have obtained the spiritual maturity Jesus wants for us. Yahweh sent Israel back into the desert because they were not ready to receive the Promised Land. He will also keep us at this stage until we have learned to trust because without trust we cannot grow. He desires us to have more and be more but he will not allow us to progress until we have gained the lesson of faith. We need better memories.
Yahweh is good and he is good all the time. He is faithful even we are not. Yet we doubt.
Israel should be a constant reminder of how ugly disbelief is to Yahweh. With a mighty hand he rescued them from Egypt. He practically carried them to the edge of the promised land, defending them, feeding them, guiding them. The entire time they complained, rebelled and caused as much difficulty as possible. Now here they were on the edge of the land Yahweh had been promising them since the time of Abraham. His command was a simple one: Go and take the land.
They sent spies in to test the waters and 10 of the 12 came back with a bad report. The people refused to enter. The people are too big, too mighty, the cities are fortifies, they would all be killed. This they spouted off in the face of the one who used force, never seen before, to bring them out of Egypt. They said this in the face of the one who parted the seas to rescue them. They said this in the face of the one who brought water from rock and fed them every day with food direct from heaven. They said this in the face of the one who gave them the might to defeat every enemy they had faced. And Yahweh's response:
How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the signs I have performed among them? (Numbers 14:11)
How long? How long must we learn the same lesson time and again? How long does he have to show us his love and compassion before we believe? Ho long will it take before we start trusting him with today, tomorrow and our eternity? What is wrong with our memory that we start every day as if we have had no experience at all with Jesus? How long?
A lack of trust means we are stuck drinking milk instead of eating steaks. It means we have to continue wearing diapers until we trust enough to learn our lessons. It means we will be 8o years old and still not have obtained the spiritual maturity Jesus wants for us. Yahweh sent Israel back into the desert because they were not ready to receive the Promised Land. He will also keep us at this stage until we have learned to trust because without trust we cannot grow. He desires us to have more and be more but he will not allow us to progress until we have gained the lesson of faith. We need better memories.
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Overcoming The Spirit Of Quitism
I learned a long time ago that my faithfulness to Jesus is not dependent on someone else's decision. What does this mean? Jesus did not tell me that my reward would depend on how many people I got to heaven. I am not responsible for someone else's decision, only my faithful application of obedience to my Father's will. If I present the gospel to someone and they refuse Jesus, they are responsible for that decision but I have been faithful to my responsibility of presenting Jesus.
This is important to understand in a society that measures success by numbers and not faithfulness. A pastor is considered successful if he can grow is church large, even if he is forced to leave his responsibilities for whatever reason. Yet, the pastor who has faithfully attended to his duties in a small town to a small congregation, is completely ignored. We are the Church of the rising stars not the faithful warriors.
The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers. (Luke 12:42-46)
Faithfulness to the will of the Master is what is highly prized in the Kingdom. We are not responsible for the results; that's God's thing. I have been made more acutely aware of this recently.
I am a pastor. My desire is to tell about, and teach concerning, Jesus Christ. I am happiest when writing, studying, reading and talking about Jesus. I preach, not because I want to but because I have to. I am compelled by the love of Jesus. So what am I doing here, running a restaurant, planning menus, flipping burgers and delivering pizza; a business that looks like it is failing? I have asked myself this question every day for many months but here I am. The answer, I am discovering, is not far from what I have pointed out above.
When I was a young boy I decided to quit hockey in order to watch cartoons on Saturday morning. My father warned me at that time that if I decided to quit I would become a quitter all my life. What my father was wisely saying to me was that if I quit over something as unimportant as cartoons, I would seed a spirit of quitting into my future, and he was right. Any time something becomes difficult or messy my first impulse is to quit. And we all know how difficult and messy life and ministry can get.
I have since discovered that whatever I stick to, no matter the cost, succeeds, or at least I have personal success in it. The trick is not to quit. The trick is to seriously consider my responsibility to the will of the Father and stand by him, no matter the appearance of things. It has become the anthem of my life as of late.
I don't know what else our Father is doing through this business, or is going to do, but I know what he is doing in me. As I come close to completing yet another 15 hour shift, I feel the spiritual muscles growing. I hear my Master's voice saying "steady on" and I feel the strength he lends me which allows me to go to the end of the matter. I am not responsible for the success of this business, my Father is. I am not responsible for anything beyond my all. All my heart, all my soul, all my mind, all my strength poured out in love to my Father. I will not give in to the temptation of quitting, even though it seems the most attractive option right now. I won't quit on the 15 adults and 10 children in my church, even though I can't see what God is doing.
My only responsibility is to say to the Father, tell me your will that I may be faithful to it. I don't need to be a rising star to receive my reward, only to have a faithful and obedient heart.
This is important to understand in a society that measures success by numbers and not faithfulness. A pastor is considered successful if he can grow is church large, even if he is forced to leave his responsibilities for whatever reason. Yet, the pastor who has faithfully attended to his duties in a small town to a small congregation, is completely ignored. We are the Church of the rising stars not the faithful warriors.
The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers. (Luke 12:42-46)
Faithfulness to the will of the Master is what is highly prized in the Kingdom. We are not responsible for the results; that's God's thing. I have been made more acutely aware of this recently.
I am a pastor. My desire is to tell about, and teach concerning, Jesus Christ. I am happiest when writing, studying, reading and talking about Jesus. I preach, not because I want to but because I have to. I am compelled by the love of Jesus. So what am I doing here, running a restaurant, planning menus, flipping burgers and delivering pizza; a business that looks like it is failing? I have asked myself this question every day for many months but here I am. The answer, I am discovering, is not far from what I have pointed out above.
When I was a young boy I decided to quit hockey in order to watch cartoons on Saturday morning. My father warned me at that time that if I decided to quit I would become a quitter all my life. What my father was wisely saying to me was that if I quit over something as unimportant as cartoons, I would seed a spirit of quitting into my future, and he was right. Any time something becomes difficult or messy my first impulse is to quit. And we all know how difficult and messy life and ministry can get.
I have since discovered that whatever I stick to, no matter the cost, succeeds, or at least I have personal success in it. The trick is not to quit. The trick is to seriously consider my responsibility to the will of the Father and stand by him, no matter the appearance of things. It has become the anthem of my life as of late.
I don't know what else our Father is doing through this business, or is going to do, but I know what he is doing in me. As I come close to completing yet another 15 hour shift, I feel the spiritual muscles growing. I hear my Master's voice saying "steady on" and I feel the strength he lends me which allows me to go to the end of the matter. I am not responsible for the success of this business, my Father is. I am not responsible for anything beyond my all. All my heart, all my soul, all my mind, all my strength poured out in love to my Father. I will not give in to the temptation of quitting, even though it seems the most attractive option right now. I won't quit on the 15 adults and 10 children in my church, even though I can't see what God is doing.
My only responsibility is to say to the Father, tell me your will that I may be faithful to it. I don't need to be a rising star to receive my reward, only to have a faithful and obedient heart.
Friday, June 28, 2013
No Compromise
One of the first signs that we are slipping away from Jesus is when righteousness takes less of a priority for us. It starts to become easier to compromise on those things we considered to be of importance. I stated a couple of days ago that when I start feeling that I have begun to compromise I refresh myself in the Psalms, Proverbs and the gospel of John. I find it interesting how both Psalm 1 and Proverbs 1 are similar in direction and tone.
Solomon wanted to leave nuggets of wisdom to guide his sons and the first thing he starts with is the need to have the desire to turn away from evil. Evil is a powerful force that held all of us in captivity for a long time and it doesn`t give up just because it lost possession. It will take every opportunity to try to separate us from the love of Jesus. When we understand God`s grace we know that evil holds no power over us but there are times of weakness, tiredness, busyness, distraction when the presentation of evil can be very attractive. It can even present itself as wise. Solomon warned his sons:
My son, if sinful men entice you,
do not give in to them. (Proverbs 1:10)
Recall Psalm 1:
Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers. (Psalm 1:1)
The problem is that we do not recognize evil as evil until we see it in the light of God`s righteousness. This is the reason the world is becoming hard to the message of the gospel; it doesn`t want to see. People do not want to hear that their actions are an offense to God. They don`t want to hear that they will be held accountable for their decision to deny Jesus. They do not want to be told that their life is a lie that leads to death. So they marginalize any who would present the truth.
Unfortunately, when we start getting distracted in our relationship with Jesus we do the same thing. Evil stops looking so evil because we are no longer seeing it through God`s righteousness. Compromise is so easy when we have allowed our relationship to wain. There is no good thing in us apart from what Jesus has done for us and to walk in constant obedience requires a constant growing relationship in Jesus. Without it sinful men will entice us and we will give in to them. Before we realize what is happening we will walk in step with the wicked, stand in the way that sinners take and mock our Father. Without a growing and vibrant relationship in Jesus compromise is an easy thing.
Look for the signs. Are we paying more attention to the opinion of people over the Word of God? Are we starting to set aside the Word, no longer convinced of its truth? Have we set aside prayer for other activities? Is stress increasing? Is fear in greater abundance? Are our thoughts more to our own needs? Is grace a little harder to find? Is forgiveness harder to give? Do we see the Church differently? Are we more judgmental of believers? Are we beginning to side with society? Are we beginning to lift up the logic of man?
Compromise is easy. Too easy. Paul had one answer:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:12-13)
In faith there is no compromise, no middle ground. Either you believe or you don't. Either you trust or you don't. Either you obey or you don't. There is no room for doubt, fear, or worry. These things are only produced when we are compromising in our walk in Jesus. There cannot be compromise. It has always been about Jesus and it will always be about him. If your life is not all about him then none of it is about him. It is not a part but the whole thing. If it is any less then we have to yell at our soul to rise up and praise our God, get our eyes back to where they need to be and stop living a lie.
The only answer to a compromised life that has abandoned God's righteousness is a heart response to God's grace: To love God with all your heart, all your soul and all your strength.
Solomon wanted to leave nuggets of wisdom to guide his sons and the first thing he starts with is the need to have the desire to turn away from evil. Evil is a powerful force that held all of us in captivity for a long time and it doesn`t give up just because it lost possession. It will take every opportunity to try to separate us from the love of Jesus. When we understand God`s grace we know that evil holds no power over us but there are times of weakness, tiredness, busyness, distraction when the presentation of evil can be very attractive. It can even present itself as wise. Solomon warned his sons:
My son, if sinful men entice you,
do not give in to them. (Proverbs 1:10)
Recall Psalm 1:
Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers. (Psalm 1:1)
The problem is that we do not recognize evil as evil until we see it in the light of God`s righteousness. This is the reason the world is becoming hard to the message of the gospel; it doesn`t want to see. People do not want to hear that their actions are an offense to God. They don`t want to hear that they will be held accountable for their decision to deny Jesus. They do not want to be told that their life is a lie that leads to death. So they marginalize any who would present the truth.
Unfortunately, when we start getting distracted in our relationship with Jesus we do the same thing. Evil stops looking so evil because we are no longer seeing it through God`s righteousness. Compromise is so easy when we have allowed our relationship to wain. There is no good thing in us apart from what Jesus has done for us and to walk in constant obedience requires a constant growing relationship in Jesus. Without it sinful men will entice us and we will give in to them. Before we realize what is happening we will walk in step with the wicked, stand in the way that sinners take and mock our Father. Without a growing and vibrant relationship in Jesus compromise is an easy thing.
Look for the signs. Are we paying more attention to the opinion of people over the Word of God? Are we starting to set aside the Word, no longer convinced of its truth? Have we set aside prayer for other activities? Is stress increasing? Is fear in greater abundance? Are our thoughts more to our own needs? Is grace a little harder to find? Is forgiveness harder to give? Do we see the Church differently? Are we more judgmental of believers? Are we beginning to side with society? Are we beginning to lift up the logic of man?
Compromise is easy. Too easy. Paul had one answer:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:12-13)
In faith there is no compromise, no middle ground. Either you believe or you don't. Either you trust or you don't. Either you obey or you don't. There is no room for doubt, fear, or worry. These things are only produced when we are compromising in our walk in Jesus. There cannot be compromise. It has always been about Jesus and it will always be about him. If your life is not all about him then none of it is about him. It is not a part but the whole thing. If it is any less then we have to yell at our soul to rise up and praise our God, get our eyes back to where they need to be and stop living a lie.
The only answer to a compromised life that has abandoned God's righteousness is a heart response to God's grace: To love God with all your heart, all your soul and all your strength.
Friday, May 10, 2013
A Crown To Cast Down At Jesus' Feet
It is a shame that most people do not know much about their own faith, beliefs and practices. It is a shame that they stick to the highlights, the cheat notes version of the Bible. They know key passages but they don't know the wonderful depth. It is usually these people who treat God like a genie in a bottle, believing he is just here to support us in our living. Precious few Christians understand that Jesus has given us a task and we are to be found faithful in it.
It is not a game we are playing. There is a goal and we are moving toward it. Along the way we have battles, victories, learning opportunities, spiritual growth, but it is all in a forward motion. Our task as we move along is to present Jesus to as many people as we can, and for those who accept him, we are to teach them, helping them to be disciples of Jesus. We don't need to attend formal classes and get our degree in theology. We need only be part of the Church, study the Word and walk in the Spirit.
Most people do not even understand that there is a reward for our faithfulness. The reward is not salvation. If it was then salvation would not be by faith and grace but by works. Salvation is the work of God that is given to us freely in a divine act of grace. However, salvation is not the end of it. After salvation we become members of the body with the task of making disciples and when we walk in this faithfulness we will receive a crown:
I have fought well. I have finished the race, and I have been faithful. 8 So a crown will be given to me for pleasing the Lord. (2 Timothy 4:7-8)
Not a crown because I accepted Jesus but a crown because I pleased him. Other passages talk about the jewels that will be placed in the crown, and yet another passage speaks about how each of us will cast our crowns at Jesus' feet. I don't know about you but I want something of value to cast at his feet. I don't want to be the one walking around without a crown, demonstrating that I accepted Jesus but was not faithful in my task. And I don't want to have a jewel-less crown. When I cast it at Jesus`feet I want it to have value; not for prestige but because Jesus deserves my very best to be placed at his feet.
That means in this world nothing can touch my faith. It means in this place I will pay whatever price I must pay to remain determined to go all the way in my race. Not only must I finish this race but I must fight with style, doing all things well, to the best of the ability of the Spirit in me. No short cuts. No cheating. No quick fixes. I want to say with my last breath and say it in truth, "I have been faithful".
If you say "I don't need a crown, I only want Jesus", I applaud your love for Jesus and mourn your ignorance. The crown is a fact. It is how Jesus will set apart those who truly understood that love meant obedience. I will gladly receive the crown, not because I want a crown, but because it will please the Lord to reward his faithful servants. And those who understood what Paul meant by running the race will certainly be counted in the faithful.
We have a purpose. We are moving toward a goal. We have tasks to complete. Jesus told us to be faithful to these tasks. He told us if we really love him we will obey what he has commanded. Will you have a crown to cast at his feet?
It is not a game we are playing. There is a goal and we are moving toward it. Along the way we have battles, victories, learning opportunities, spiritual growth, but it is all in a forward motion. Our task as we move along is to present Jesus to as many people as we can, and for those who accept him, we are to teach them, helping them to be disciples of Jesus. We don't need to attend formal classes and get our degree in theology. We need only be part of the Church, study the Word and walk in the Spirit.
Most people do not even understand that there is a reward for our faithfulness. The reward is not salvation. If it was then salvation would not be by faith and grace but by works. Salvation is the work of God that is given to us freely in a divine act of grace. However, salvation is not the end of it. After salvation we become members of the body with the task of making disciples and when we walk in this faithfulness we will receive a crown:
I have fought well. I have finished the race, and I have been faithful. 8 So a crown will be given to me for pleasing the Lord. (2 Timothy 4:7-8)
Not a crown because I accepted Jesus but a crown because I pleased him. Other passages talk about the jewels that will be placed in the crown, and yet another passage speaks about how each of us will cast our crowns at Jesus' feet. I don't know about you but I want something of value to cast at his feet. I don't want to be the one walking around without a crown, demonstrating that I accepted Jesus but was not faithful in my task. And I don't want to have a jewel-less crown. When I cast it at Jesus`feet I want it to have value; not for prestige but because Jesus deserves my very best to be placed at his feet.
That means in this world nothing can touch my faith. It means in this place I will pay whatever price I must pay to remain determined to go all the way in my race. Not only must I finish this race but I must fight with style, doing all things well, to the best of the ability of the Spirit in me. No short cuts. No cheating. No quick fixes. I want to say with my last breath and say it in truth, "I have been faithful".
If you say "I don't need a crown, I only want Jesus", I applaud your love for Jesus and mourn your ignorance. The crown is a fact. It is how Jesus will set apart those who truly understood that love meant obedience. I will gladly receive the crown, not because I want a crown, but because it will please the Lord to reward his faithful servants. And those who understood what Paul meant by running the race will certainly be counted in the faithful.
We have a purpose. We are moving toward a goal. We have tasks to complete. Jesus told us to be faithful to these tasks. He told us if we really love him we will obey what he has commanded. Will you have a crown to cast at his feet?
Monday, May 6, 2013
How Do You Measure Up?
I have heard people say that they wish they could have served with apostle Paul. They wish that they could have had the opportunity to be with him, to learn from him, to see him in action. No doubt that he was an incredible man who God gave a great vision for the Church and trusted him with the gospel of grace. But I don't think many of us would have been comfortable around him. I don't think many of us would have been comfortable around many of the great men and women of the faith; not with what passes as Christianity these days.
Paul worked tirelessly in faithful obedience to Jesus, to complete the task he was given. He was a man driven by love, dedicated to the only one who mattered to him. For Paul it was all about Jesus. He was not divided in heart and mind. He was not overburdened by the cares of this world. He wasn't trying to save for retirement. He wasn't trying to make the Church relevant to society. Paul's only concern was presenting Jesus to a world that needed to know him.
People like this are hard to be around. The expect much of themselves and anyone who is associated with the mission. If you were going to be on Paul's team you were going to have to take Jesus and your calling very seriously. He would expect you to adhere to Jesus' words when he told us that to follow him was all or nothing. I don't think many of us would have lasted with Paul because we just don't understand this singleness of purpose. We have too many desires and concerns in this world. We are divided in heart and mind.
If you were told that your life would end tomorrow could you say along with Paul:
Now the time has come for me to die. My life is like a drink offering being poured out on the altar. I have fought well. I have finished the race, and I have been faithful. (2 Timothy 4:6-7)
Can you describe your life as a drink offering, being poured out in an act of sacrificial love? Have you set aside all concern and all desire for yourself and dedicated every day to the will of the Father? Is the salvation of others always on your mind so you are always looking for opportunities? Or are you hoping simply to arrive on that Day with your salvation in tact? Are you only concerned with your own condition and lot in life?
Are you fighting well? Do you stand in the face of evil and proclaim Jesus? Do you pray for the lost? Do you fight for your friends, family and neighbours? Do you proclaim the gospel and teach people about the love of Jesus, taking every opportunity to share your testimony? Does this describe you?
Are you faithful? Are you obedient in love to what Jesus has commanded? Are you following his example? Is he what you measure your life against? Are you still running the race that has been set before you; the path that Jesus put you on? Are you faithfully following his direction for you, no matter the cost or difficulty? Are you going all the way with Jesus, no matter what?
I don't think many of us would be comfortable in the presence of the great warriors who have gone before us, but that really shouldn't be our concern. Our real concern should be: Will we be comfortable in the presence of Jesus on the day we are called home, or will we stand in shame for a life wasted and an opportunity lost?
Paul worked tirelessly in faithful obedience to Jesus, to complete the task he was given. He was a man driven by love, dedicated to the only one who mattered to him. For Paul it was all about Jesus. He was not divided in heart and mind. He was not overburdened by the cares of this world. He wasn't trying to save for retirement. He wasn't trying to make the Church relevant to society. Paul's only concern was presenting Jesus to a world that needed to know him.
People like this are hard to be around. The expect much of themselves and anyone who is associated with the mission. If you were going to be on Paul's team you were going to have to take Jesus and your calling very seriously. He would expect you to adhere to Jesus' words when he told us that to follow him was all or nothing. I don't think many of us would have lasted with Paul because we just don't understand this singleness of purpose. We have too many desires and concerns in this world. We are divided in heart and mind.
If you were told that your life would end tomorrow could you say along with Paul:
Now the time has come for me to die. My life is like a drink offering being poured out on the altar. I have fought well. I have finished the race, and I have been faithful. (2 Timothy 4:6-7)
Can you describe your life as a drink offering, being poured out in an act of sacrificial love? Have you set aside all concern and all desire for yourself and dedicated every day to the will of the Father? Is the salvation of others always on your mind so you are always looking for opportunities? Or are you hoping simply to arrive on that Day with your salvation in tact? Are you only concerned with your own condition and lot in life?
Are you fighting well? Do you stand in the face of evil and proclaim Jesus? Do you pray for the lost? Do you fight for your friends, family and neighbours? Do you proclaim the gospel and teach people about the love of Jesus, taking every opportunity to share your testimony? Does this describe you?
Are you faithful? Are you obedient in love to what Jesus has commanded? Are you following his example? Is he what you measure your life against? Are you still running the race that has been set before you; the path that Jesus put you on? Are you faithfully following his direction for you, no matter the cost or difficulty? Are you going all the way with Jesus, no matter what?
I don't think many of us would be comfortable in the presence of the great warriors who have gone before us, but that really shouldn't be our concern. Our real concern should be: Will we be comfortable in the presence of Jesus on the day we are called home, or will we stand in shame for a life wasted and an opportunity lost?
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Success In God's Eyes
What is success to you? Think about it for a few minutes and write it down. At the end of your life, as you lay on your death bed, what would cause you to feel that your life was a success? Some people do not worry about success and live their life with no direction, no compass. Others have their life goals planned out in great detail and have definite measures of success in their life. Many struggle with depression, anxiety and a sense of lose because they failed in their goals.
Imagine, facing death knowing that something you had worked so hard on and that had met with great success, was suddenly destroyed. Maybe in other circumstances you would have rushed in and rescued the situation but your time is up. There is no more working. What is done is done. It is lost. How would you feel? A life wasted? This was the situation apostle Paul was in.
From the beginning Paul had wanted to get into Asia Minor but the Spirit had blocked him. When the time was right he was allowed in and when he was things happened. Paul spent years in this region, based in Ephesus. He had a great team who would go and preach in every corner of that region. In Acts we are told that there was not a person who did not hear about Jesus. It was a busy time but also very fruitful.
Paul was now in Rome, under house arrest, going through a trial before the world's most powerful man. He could receive visitors and send people with letters but he could not leave. It is while he was there, during his last days that he wrote this letter to Timothy and he states this:
You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes. (2 Timothy 1:15)
Could you imagine how that must have felt.? He had invested some much time and energy, made so many friends, considered them family, and here he was abandoned when he needed the most support. But Paul was not like this and neither should we by this. Paul did not find his worth in what he did. He did not consider it a success to have the biggest ministry. Paul did not require a following of people to give him a sense of well being. There was only one thing that Paul knew God measured as success, faithfulness.
Yes, it must have hurt, but this abandonment was not devastating to Paul because his worth was found elsewhere. Paul knew he had done everything the Lord had asked. He faced trials and persecutions. He faced some terrible circumstances, but Paul always pressed on, determined to serve in great joy. Some of his last words penned reveal Paul's motivation:
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day. (2 Timothy 4:7-8)
May these words convict us of a need for an attitude change. Is Jesus really our everything? Is obedience and faithfulness to him our motivation in what we do? How are we measuring a successful life? Even if everything we do comes to nothing, is it enough that we were faithful to the end? Is saying those three things enough to to cause our heart to sing: I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Will that be success to you?
Imagine, facing death knowing that something you had worked so hard on and that had met with great success, was suddenly destroyed. Maybe in other circumstances you would have rushed in and rescued the situation but your time is up. There is no more working. What is done is done. It is lost. How would you feel? A life wasted? This was the situation apostle Paul was in.
From the beginning Paul had wanted to get into Asia Minor but the Spirit had blocked him. When the time was right he was allowed in and when he was things happened. Paul spent years in this region, based in Ephesus. He had a great team who would go and preach in every corner of that region. In Acts we are told that there was not a person who did not hear about Jesus. It was a busy time but also very fruitful.
Paul was now in Rome, under house arrest, going through a trial before the world's most powerful man. He could receive visitors and send people with letters but he could not leave. It is while he was there, during his last days that he wrote this letter to Timothy and he states this:
You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes. (2 Timothy 1:15)
Could you imagine how that must have felt.? He had invested some much time and energy, made so many friends, considered them family, and here he was abandoned when he needed the most support. But Paul was not like this and neither should we by this. Paul did not find his worth in what he did. He did not consider it a success to have the biggest ministry. Paul did not require a following of people to give him a sense of well being. There was only one thing that Paul knew God measured as success, faithfulness.
Yes, it must have hurt, but this abandonment was not devastating to Paul because his worth was found elsewhere. Paul knew he had done everything the Lord had asked. He faced trials and persecutions. He faced some terrible circumstances, but Paul always pressed on, determined to serve in great joy. Some of his last words penned reveal Paul's motivation:
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day. (2 Timothy 4:7-8)
May these words convict us of a need for an attitude change. Is Jesus really our everything? Is obedience and faithfulness to him our motivation in what we do? How are we measuring a successful life? Even if everything we do comes to nothing, is it enough that we were faithful to the end? Is saying those three things enough to to cause our heart to sing: I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Will that be success to you?
Saturday, February 9, 2013
No Timidity In Jesus
There are some things we have to get right if we are ever going to live up to our potential in Jesus. Too often we rob ourselves of the joy of serving with all our heart because we get the foundation of our understanding wrong. The one thing I keep going on about is the fact that our service to our King does not depend on our abilities It does not depend on our desires, likes, wants, fears or our lack of anything. There are only two things that we need to bring to the table: faithfulness and obedience.
When you come to Jesus you come stripped of everything. You come empty handed. You have nothing to offer and what you think you had is taken from you. The whole reason we needed Jesus to die for us is because we had nothing to offer our God. So God did it all. It is no different in our service. God does not need anything we can do for him. What he is looking for is empty vessels that he can pour himself into.
Let's get this right: God does not need your opinion or your ideas. A private does not express his opinions to a general; he obeys what he is told. God loves us as his children, but as servants he is only looking for obedience. This is vital to understand so that when God speaks and gives us direction we are not like Moses, giving our excuses. If God said it don't philosophy over it; just do it.
This is the idea of what Paul was writing to Timothy. He just told him to fan into flame the gift that was given to him when Paul laid hands on him. In other words, God had equipped Timothy with his own power so Timothy could be obedient in the tasks he was given. Timothy did not have the ability but God did through him. So now Paul encourages him to not allow anything to prevent him from being obedient and faithful:
For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. (2 Timothy 1:7)
If you are serving God in your strength and ability, stop it! You are serving God with your limitations and he can't use what you are offering. It will be of no eternal value. He wants us to serve him with his limitlessness.
We have no excuse for hanging back; no excuse for disobedience. We can't say it isn't our personality. We can't say it is out of our comfort zone. We can't say we are afraid of failure. We can't say that we are too timid. If we do then we better wake up to the fact that we are trying to serve him in a manner that does not honour him. We do not have a spirit of timidity but of boldness in Jesus Christ.
By the Spirit we have been given to serve him we are filled with his power. Do you understand that? Not our ability and power but God's infinite power to overcome all things, to do all things, to be all things. We cannot serve him in our limited love but we have been given his love through the Spirit to serve him in the attitude of love. If we do not feel the love and compassion of God for all people, how can we serve him in this world?
By this same Spirit we have been given self-discipline. It means there are no excuses. When we are tired we lean on Jesus and we serve in his energy. When we feel lazy we put that lazy spirit under our feet and serve him in his strength. If we lack self-disciple in anything in our life it is because our life does not belong to Jesus. Are you understanding the point here?
My fear for Christians is that we do not understand this foundation matter. We are disciples of Jesus Christ. We have died to ourselves and our lives are now empty of ourselves and the only reason we have for living is Jesus. He is not interested in our opinions; we is looking for our faithfulness and obedience. It doesn't matter if you think it is a bad idea; if the Spirit told you to do it then do it and let God work it out. I realize this is hard, especially when we are young, middle aged or old. Get the point? It is always hard to remain submitted to Jesus, but we must if we are going to live up to our potential in him. Trust. Obey. Allow the Spirit to work through you. No excuses.
When you come to Jesus you come stripped of everything. You come empty handed. You have nothing to offer and what you think you had is taken from you. The whole reason we needed Jesus to die for us is because we had nothing to offer our God. So God did it all. It is no different in our service. God does not need anything we can do for him. What he is looking for is empty vessels that he can pour himself into.
Let's get this right: God does not need your opinion or your ideas. A private does not express his opinions to a general; he obeys what he is told. God loves us as his children, but as servants he is only looking for obedience. This is vital to understand so that when God speaks and gives us direction we are not like Moses, giving our excuses. If God said it don't philosophy over it; just do it.
This is the idea of what Paul was writing to Timothy. He just told him to fan into flame the gift that was given to him when Paul laid hands on him. In other words, God had equipped Timothy with his own power so Timothy could be obedient in the tasks he was given. Timothy did not have the ability but God did through him. So now Paul encourages him to not allow anything to prevent him from being obedient and faithful:
For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. (2 Timothy 1:7)
If you are serving God in your strength and ability, stop it! You are serving God with your limitations and he can't use what you are offering. It will be of no eternal value. He wants us to serve him with his limitlessness.
We have no excuse for hanging back; no excuse for disobedience. We can't say it isn't our personality. We can't say it is out of our comfort zone. We can't say we are afraid of failure. We can't say that we are too timid. If we do then we better wake up to the fact that we are trying to serve him in a manner that does not honour him. We do not have a spirit of timidity but of boldness in Jesus Christ.
By the Spirit we have been given to serve him we are filled with his power. Do you understand that? Not our ability and power but God's infinite power to overcome all things, to do all things, to be all things. We cannot serve him in our limited love but we have been given his love through the Spirit to serve him in the attitude of love. If we do not feel the love and compassion of God for all people, how can we serve him in this world?
By this same Spirit we have been given self-discipline. It means there are no excuses. When we are tired we lean on Jesus and we serve in his energy. When we feel lazy we put that lazy spirit under our feet and serve him in his strength. If we lack self-disciple in anything in our life it is because our life does not belong to Jesus. Are you understanding the point here?
My fear for Christians is that we do not understand this foundation matter. We are disciples of Jesus Christ. We have died to ourselves and our lives are now empty of ourselves and the only reason we have for living is Jesus. He is not interested in our opinions; we is looking for our faithfulness and obedience. It doesn't matter if you think it is a bad idea; if the Spirit told you to do it then do it and let God work it out. I realize this is hard, especially when we are young, middle aged or old. Get the point? It is always hard to remain submitted to Jesus, but we must if we are going to live up to our potential in him. Trust. Obey. Allow the Spirit to work through you. No excuses.
Friday, February 8, 2013
Fanning Into Flame
I think I will sit here until God speaks to me so I will know what to do. He did say "Be still and know I am God". Well, at least that is the attitude that many of us have. We fail to understand that God has already given us our instructions and none of it involves inaction. The "be still" part is in our relationship with him. We can quiet our spirit, no fear, no worry, only peace as God continues to pour into our lives everything we need to serve him.
We often fail to understand that we have a responsibility "to do" in this service to our King. It is great that we worship. It is great that we study the Word. It is great that we have fellowship with each other, but we can't forget that we have been left here with a mission to complete. We have been given our instructions, to go and make disciples. With such instructions comes equipping. But we don't just receive so we can be blessed; we receive so that we can do.
We have a responsibility to put what we have been given into action. Such gifts will lay dormant in us unless we use them. Paul reminded Timothy that because he was a man of faith he had a responsibility to "fan into flame" the gifts he was given by the Spirit:
For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. (2 Timothy 1:6)
There is no excuse for not using what the Spirit has given you. It has nothing to do with whether you want to or not. It has nothing to do with it being something you enjoy. It has nothing to do with your personality. It all comes down to obedience and faithfulness. It comes down to all or nothing.
You do not get to serve Jesus on your own terms. He made it clear to us that it is all or nothing. It is all of our heart or none of it. All of our being or none of it. All of our passion. All of the gifts he has given to us. We can't even serve him properly unless he equips us and if our King equips us we had better not waste what we have been given.
So we have the responsibility to take what we have been given and use it for Jesus' glory. We have the responsibility to fan it into flames. We have the responsibility to get off the "sofa" of our life and be faithful and responsible with our calling and mission. Because we are people of faith we have no excuse. Faith means we trust God with the instructions we have been given. We trust he will give us the ability to do what he has told us to do. We trust him for the faith and strength we lack. We trust him for the energy we need. We trust him for health, peace and joy. So let's get to work.
We often fail to understand that we have a responsibility "to do" in this service to our King. It is great that we worship. It is great that we study the Word. It is great that we have fellowship with each other, but we can't forget that we have been left here with a mission to complete. We have been given our instructions, to go and make disciples. With such instructions comes equipping. But we don't just receive so we can be blessed; we receive so that we can do.
We have a responsibility to put what we have been given into action. Such gifts will lay dormant in us unless we use them. Paul reminded Timothy that because he was a man of faith he had a responsibility to "fan into flame" the gifts he was given by the Spirit:
For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. (2 Timothy 1:6)
There is no excuse for not using what the Spirit has given you. It has nothing to do with whether you want to or not. It has nothing to do with it being something you enjoy. It has nothing to do with your personality. It all comes down to obedience and faithfulness. It comes down to all or nothing.
You do not get to serve Jesus on your own terms. He made it clear to us that it is all or nothing. It is all of our heart or none of it. All of our being or none of it. All of our passion. All of the gifts he has given to us. We can't even serve him properly unless he equips us and if our King equips us we had better not waste what we have been given.
So we have the responsibility to take what we have been given and use it for Jesus' glory. We have the responsibility to fan it into flames. We have the responsibility to get off the "sofa" of our life and be faithful and responsible with our calling and mission. Because we are people of faith we have no excuse. Faith means we trust God with the instructions we have been given. We trust he will give us the ability to do what he has told us to do. We trust him for the faith and strength we lack. We trust him for the energy we need. We trust him for health, peace and joy. So let's get to work.
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Will The Real Super Stars Please Stand Up
Maybe you're not a famous rock star or an admired actress but you can be something of far greater worth. Our society is crazy over idols; people we lift up above others, considering them to belong to a group that we can only stand at a distance and admire. They require security guards to protect them, secretaries to keep them organized and agents to look out for their personal interest. We hang on their every word as if it is gold. Yet most of their lives are so messed up they look like soap operas. Still, they are our idols.
The funny thing is, the grocery clerk contributes more to our lives than these over rated stars. It's nice to be entertained and we can appreciate the skill level of some of them, both acting and music, but where would we be without food? There are a lot of unsung heroes out there who faithfully show up to do a job that no one thanks them for but without them we would not survive. Think of the farmer. When is the last time you saw a farmer walk down the red carpet to the cheers of adoring fans. Yet, who do we need more than our farmers? When you think about the people we consider to be worthy of our adoration it is crazy
There are a lot of unsung heroes who remain invisible and under appreciated, who contribute to our lives every day. They don't have bank accounts worth millions of dollars and they don't get to go home to a luxury house. In fact, most struggle to survive but we need them more than we need over paid actors and musicians. I'm not saying that we don't need music, because we do. Music is an important part of our life, but so is food. Why do we idolize one and look down on the other?
The same thing happens in the Church. There are some who we idolize, lifting them up to be of greater value than others. We hang on their every word, follow them on FaceBook, rush to read their tweets. Yet, our pastors, in smaller churches, faithfully preach every week, serve their communities and contribute to our lives more than these others. Our local worship leader faithfully gives of himself for the building up of the body. The prayer warriors in our churches faithfully petition the Lord on our behalf. It is our local elders who pray over us when we are sick or listen to us when we are hurting and who faithfully teach us from the Word of God.
What about the ones who faithfully clean the church every week, or the ones who walk the streets to feed the homeless? What about the family who takes every Saturday to cook meals for the shut ins or who take the time to drive the elderly to their doctor's appointment? There are a lot of unsung heroes in the Church who go unnoticed but who are great contributors to the Body of Christ. We should not have super stars in the Body who risk becoming idols. We should not have super star musicians. We should have faithful servants who thrill at being considered faithful. We should long to hear ourselves referred to as Paul often referred to those he served with:
You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. (Colossians 1:7-8)
"A faithful minister of Christ". If we are looking to become famous in the Church we have missed the point entirely. The greatest position in the Body of Christ is the humble servant and the greatest accomplishment is faithfulness. Our goal should be to hear those words from Jesus, "Well done my good and faithful servant". That's what it is to be a superstar in God's books and that is the only thing that should matter to us. We are no different, you and me; I am not more important than you and neither are you of greater worth than me. We both are servants to the Body and warriors in the King's army. We are called to be faithful in our role which is vital for the Body of Christ. So let us serve together and encourage each other to the end. It is a pleasure to serve with you and I appreciate all you do to contribute to the lives of others, even if you are not a super star to this world..
The funny thing is, the grocery clerk contributes more to our lives than these over rated stars. It's nice to be entertained and we can appreciate the skill level of some of them, both acting and music, but where would we be without food? There are a lot of unsung heroes out there who faithfully show up to do a job that no one thanks them for but without them we would not survive. Think of the farmer. When is the last time you saw a farmer walk down the red carpet to the cheers of adoring fans. Yet, who do we need more than our farmers? When you think about the people we consider to be worthy of our adoration it is crazy
There are a lot of unsung heroes who remain invisible and under appreciated, who contribute to our lives every day. They don't have bank accounts worth millions of dollars and they don't get to go home to a luxury house. In fact, most struggle to survive but we need them more than we need over paid actors and musicians. I'm not saying that we don't need music, because we do. Music is an important part of our life, but so is food. Why do we idolize one and look down on the other?
The same thing happens in the Church. There are some who we idolize, lifting them up to be of greater value than others. We hang on their every word, follow them on FaceBook, rush to read their tweets. Yet, our pastors, in smaller churches, faithfully preach every week, serve their communities and contribute to our lives more than these others. Our local worship leader faithfully gives of himself for the building up of the body. The prayer warriors in our churches faithfully petition the Lord on our behalf. It is our local elders who pray over us when we are sick or listen to us when we are hurting and who faithfully teach us from the Word of God.
What about the ones who faithfully clean the church every week, or the ones who walk the streets to feed the homeless? What about the family who takes every Saturday to cook meals for the shut ins or who take the time to drive the elderly to their doctor's appointment? There are a lot of unsung heroes in the Church who go unnoticed but who are great contributors to the Body of Christ. We should not have super stars in the Body who risk becoming idols. We should not have super star musicians. We should have faithful servants who thrill at being considered faithful. We should long to hear ourselves referred to as Paul often referred to those he served with:
You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. (Colossians 1:7-8)
"A faithful minister of Christ". If we are looking to become famous in the Church we have missed the point entirely. The greatest position in the Body of Christ is the humble servant and the greatest accomplishment is faithfulness. Our goal should be to hear those words from Jesus, "Well done my good and faithful servant". That's what it is to be a superstar in God's books and that is the only thing that should matter to us. We are no different, you and me; I am not more important than you and neither are you of greater worth than me. We both are servants to the Body and warriors in the King's army. We are called to be faithful in our role which is vital for the Body of Christ. So let us serve together and encourage each other to the end. It is a pleasure to serve with you and I appreciate all you do to contribute to the lives of others, even if you are not a super star to this world..
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Stand
Could you imagine being an athlete preparing for the Olympics. All those years of eating well, sleeping properly, training hard. All those days of forcing your will to submit to that one goal. Those days when you just don't feel like it, forcing your body to submit. Doesn't matter the other circumstances in your life, everything must submit to this one goal. You have to admire the dedication and hard work of athletes. But imagine being that athlete who puts in all those years of training and then doesn't bother showing up for the Olympics.
Imagine the student who has put in over 2,280 hours of homework in their time as a student. Who has attended 13,680 hours of classes. Who has written a few thousand books of notes. Who has been taught by at least 42 different teachers. Who has gained knowledge and learning skills. Who has used the resources of his parents to go through 348 pencils, 87 pens, hundreds of trees worth of paper, countless rulers, compasses, protractors lunch boxes and other various school supplies. Imagine the students how has put in all this time, throwing away his last year of High School.
Imagine the Christian who has spent their lifetime believing. Who has spent decades in training, learning, being shaped. Who has spent years studying the Word and applying it to his life. Who has spent countless hours in conversation with God. Who has had a deep fellowship with the Holy Spirit. Who has learned to wear the Armour of God. Who has been trained in spiritual warfare and is prepared for battle. Who has learned what it is to trust, to have faith. Imagine such a Christian walking away when the battle is upon him.
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:13)
The whole purpose of our training and equipping is so that we will stand. What is the sense of all the training and preparation to prepare us to stand if, on that day of battle, we walk away? That would be a very sad life and one I would not want to live.
But truth be told, those who are active in their training and preparation never walk away. It is those who forget to train, who forget to prepare, who get distracted by other things, who end up falling away. It doesn't take long and it doesn't take much. In the end, we are very weak creatures, prone to failure and defeat. Our success is found in our source of all things. Our strength is never found in us but in Jesus Christ. It is when you unplug from that source or neglect the relationship that things begin to fade away quickly and we forget. Then when the day is upon us, we fold and are blown away with all those who are without Jesus. It is sad.
I have put in too much time to give up now. I have invested too much to walk away. This relationship is far too valuable for me to throw away. There is nothing of any greater value in this world and I must remind myself of that constantly. Every day is a training day, a day of preparation. When that day of evil is upon us I will stand because I have been trained to stand. What about you, mighty warrior of God? Have you settled the matter in your heart? Are you going all the way? Are you prepared to stand?
Imagine the student who has put in over 2,280 hours of homework in their time as a student. Who has attended 13,680 hours of classes. Who has written a few thousand books of notes. Who has been taught by at least 42 different teachers. Who has gained knowledge and learning skills. Who has used the resources of his parents to go through 348 pencils, 87 pens, hundreds of trees worth of paper, countless rulers, compasses, protractors lunch boxes and other various school supplies. Imagine the students how has put in all this time, throwing away his last year of High School.
Imagine the Christian who has spent their lifetime believing. Who has spent decades in training, learning, being shaped. Who has spent years studying the Word and applying it to his life. Who has spent countless hours in conversation with God. Who has had a deep fellowship with the Holy Spirit. Who has learned to wear the Armour of God. Who has been trained in spiritual warfare and is prepared for battle. Who has learned what it is to trust, to have faith. Imagine such a Christian walking away when the battle is upon him.
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:13)
The whole purpose of our training and equipping is so that we will stand. What is the sense of all the training and preparation to prepare us to stand if, on that day of battle, we walk away? That would be a very sad life and one I would not want to live.
But truth be told, those who are active in their training and preparation never walk away. It is those who forget to train, who forget to prepare, who get distracted by other things, who end up falling away. It doesn't take long and it doesn't take much. In the end, we are very weak creatures, prone to failure and defeat. Our success is found in our source of all things. Our strength is never found in us but in Jesus Christ. It is when you unplug from that source or neglect the relationship that things begin to fade away quickly and we forget. Then when the day is upon us, we fold and are blown away with all those who are without Jesus. It is sad.
I have put in too much time to give up now. I have invested too much to walk away. This relationship is far too valuable for me to throw away. There is nothing of any greater value in this world and I must remind myself of that constantly. Every day is a training day, a day of preparation. When that day of evil is upon us I will stand because I have been trained to stand. What about you, mighty warrior of God? Have you settled the matter in your heart? Are you going all the way? Are you prepared to stand?
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Weeping May Remain For A Night, But Rejoicing Comes In The Morning.
There appear to be a lot of things going on in the world these days, from revolutions, to wars, to earthquakes, floods, draughts and solar flairs. There are other things looming on the horizon that the average person is not even aware of. Crops have fail in Brazil due to flooding, Mexico due to the cold, Australia due to flooding, China due to draught. An unprecedented famine is knocking on our door and all most people can see is higher grocery prices. Disruptions in the northern African countries are sending oil prices higher. If these revolutions spread to Saudi Arabia we could be looking at incredible disaster as the higher prices push us into an economic world depression. We also know that scientists are expecting the next big pandemic to strike, which we could also refer to as the plague. Yet, people do not have the eyes to see and the ears to hear or the heart to understand.
We haven't even touched on the huge changes in the climate, resulting in the growing natural disasters that are hitting. Natural disasters are normal but the size of the disasters are getting larger. Haiti was devastated, New Orleans drowned, Christchurch crushed, Australia and Brazil flooded, the largest hurricane recorded and now it is reported that the earth is changing its axis. Yet people do not have the eyes to see and the ears to hear or the heart to understand.
Then we have the changing morality of our societies. Parental rights are being superseded by the state. Sins of the past are being accepted as normal in the present. Homosexuality is being embraced, the laws against polygamy are being challenged and will likely fall, people have dropped marriage and simply live together, changing relationships like they change socks, millions of babies are being killed every year. Solid Biblical teaching is disappearing, demonic teaching is replacing it, false prophets are a dime a dozen, there are people claiming to be Jesus, others giving us the exact date of his return, prominent Christians claiming there is more than one way to God. In simple terms, there is a lot of confusion going around. Yet people do not have the eyes to see and the ears to hear or the heart to understand.
With all this going on in our day, we still have the nerve to look back in the gospels and ask "Could they not see?" Don't fool yourself, they knew who Jesus was as he stood before them, hands tied and accused by false witnesses. Take note that they were trying to find false witnesses that would agree because they needed at least two that would agree, and they had to be false because Jesus, the Son of God, stood innocent before them:
The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward. (Matthew 26:59-60)
It was happening just as Jesus told them it would and Peter was there in the shadows as a witness to this mockery of a trial. He told his disciples plainly that he would go to Jerusalem, be arrested and then killed, but on the third day he would rise again:
Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.” (Luke 18:31-33)
They did not have the eyes to see and the ears to hear or the heart to understand. Jesus did not tell them these things to scare them but instead to prepare them. He wanted them to know what was happening while it was happening so that they knew something better was coming. Those were very dark days for those disciples as they coward in the dark in various places in the city, too afraid to even move. For them it was the end of the world, everything that was familiar to them was no more, changed forever. Jesus spoke these words so that when it all went wrong they had something to hold on to; hope.
What we see going on in the world today has already been told to us, not to frighten us but instead to prepare us. We know that it is going to get a lot worse before it gets better. Entire economies are going to crash, disasters will increase, famine will spread, disease will set in. We know that the United States has to fall because she does not have a role in the end times power struggle. When she falls the world will really take on a new shape. We can look at these things and be very afraid or we can look at them and rejoice for what is coming. Jesus told his disciples that what he had to go through had a purpose and hope would be realized on the third day. Jesus and the prophets have also told us that these days have a purpose and we need to keep an eye, not on the storms, but on what comes after; the return of the conquering Messiah, our Lord, our King, our God, our friend, our brother and our Saviour.
We have some rough days ahead and we need to be praying for wisdom, discernment and strength. We need to be busy with the Father's work, reaching out to a world that will become more and more confused. They will turn on us and hate us but that does not remove from us the responsibility to reach out in love with the gospel of Jesus Christ. If we become fearful and concerned with our own welfare how will they ever know the transforming power of Jesus? More than ever we need to be selfless and seek the best for our neighbour and we know that the best is Jesus. So hold on my friends, we are in for a bumpy ride which is going to require a great deal of faith and trust, and for which we need to keep our eyes on the goal which is our salvation. Let's run this race in style and cause Jesus to smile at our tenacity as we sing his praises in the darkest hours. To God be the glory.
We haven't even touched on the huge changes in the climate, resulting in the growing natural disasters that are hitting. Natural disasters are normal but the size of the disasters are getting larger. Haiti was devastated, New Orleans drowned, Christchurch crushed, Australia and Brazil flooded, the largest hurricane recorded and now it is reported that the earth is changing its axis. Yet people do not have the eyes to see and the ears to hear or the heart to understand.
Then we have the changing morality of our societies. Parental rights are being superseded by the state. Sins of the past are being accepted as normal in the present. Homosexuality is being embraced, the laws against polygamy are being challenged and will likely fall, people have dropped marriage and simply live together, changing relationships like they change socks, millions of babies are being killed every year. Solid Biblical teaching is disappearing, demonic teaching is replacing it, false prophets are a dime a dozen, there are people claiming to be Jesus, others giving us the exact date of his return, prominent Christians claiming there is more than one way to God. In simple terms, there is a lot of confusion going around. Yet people do not have the eyes to see and the ears to hear or the heart to understand.
With all this going on in our day, we still have the nerve to look back in the gospels and ask "Could they not see?" Don't fool yourself, they knew who Jesus was as he stood before them, hands tied and accused by false witnesses. Take note that they were trying to find false witnesses that would agree because they needed at least two that would agree, and they had to be false because Jesus, the Son of God, stood innocent before them:
The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward. (Matthew 26:59-60)
It was happening just as Jesus told them it would and Peter was there in the shadows as a witness to this mockery of a trial. He told his disciples plainly that he would go to Jerusalem, be arrested and then killed, but on the third day he would rise again:
Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.” (Luke 18:31-33)
They did not have the eyes to see and the ears to hear or the heart to understand. Jesus did not tell them these things to scare them but instead to prepare them. He wanted them to know what was happening while it was happening so that they knew something better was coming. Those were very dark days for those disciples as they coward in the dark in various places in the city, too afraid to even move. For them it was the end of the world, everything that was familiar to them was no more, changed forever. Jesus spoke these words so that when it all went wrong they had something to hold on to; hope.
What we see going on in the world today has already been told to us, not to frighten us but instead to prepare us. We know that it is going to get a lot worse before it gets better. Entire economies are going to crash, disasters will increase, famine will spread, disease will set in. We know that the United States has to fall because she does not have a role in the end times power struggle. When she falls the world will really take on a new shape. We can look at these things and be very afraid or we can look at them and rejoice for what is coming. Jesus told his disciples that what he had to go through had a purpose and hope would be realized on the third day. Jesus and the prophets have also told us that these days have a purpose and we need to keep an eye, not on the storms, but on what comes after; the return of the conquering Messiah, our Lord, our King, our God, our friend, our brother and our Saviour.
We have some rough days ahead and we need to be praying for wisdom, discernment and strength. We need to be busy with the Father's work, reaching out to a world that will become more and more confused. They will turn on us and hate us but that does not remove from us the responsibility to reach out in love with the gospel of Jesus Christ. If we become fearful and concerned with our own welfare how will they ever know the transforming power of Jesus? More than ever we need to be selfless and seek the best for our neighbour and we know that the best is Jesus. So hold on my friends, we are in for a bumpy ride which is going to require a great deal of faith and trust, and for which we need to keep our eyes on the goal which is our salvation. Let's run this race in style and cause Jesus to smile at our tenacity as we sing his praises in the darkest hours. To God be the glory.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Don't Fall Asleep Now! The Storm Of All Storms Is Approaching!
There is no doubt that hard times lay ahead for the disciples of Jesus. For many years the Church has enjoyed freedom to worship God and serve humanity. Even if some people did not adhere to the teachings of Jesus they maintained a level of respect for those who did. However, like any segment of society, the Church's history is filled with the abuse of power by men who had no interest in faith but only in the power that they could exert over people. Much of this is now coming back in the face of the Church, which failed to deal with these abusers. But the dangerous times ahead come from many sources and people should be aware of the polarization that is happening in the world and our society at this moment.
I think most of us have seen what is happening in the news in the Islamic states of our world. People are calling for the reform of the governments and are using protests and violence to bring it about. This is a natural thing to happen in places where people feel mistreated and abused for decades. If a better government results from this we see it is a natural way that is repeating history. Some countries, such as Canada, achieved these changes by peaceful means, whereas others, such as the United States and France ended up going a more violent route. Nonetheless, in recent history we have seen that governments that are formed from such action are not necessarily better governments, as we consider Iran. That is the fear right now, that the extremist element of Islam would take a tighter grip in these places. However, there is also something else resulting from these events.
As more and more stories come across our computer screens and television sets concerning the more extreme actions of Islamic believers, all faiths are being scrutinized. There is a growing protest in the grass roots that all religion is bogus and should be done away with. More and more people are referring to the "fairy tale" stories of Jesus, calling him a fictional figure. They refer to the Bible as a collection of errant fairy tales passed down to our society, where it is now molded and used to abuse others. Any good that the Church has done in the past, from the abolition of slavery to the development of medical systems, are all being washed away by people who haven't even looked into the matter. There is a rising tide of protest against faith, with reason being lauded as the only real choice for people, as if faith-people had no reason about them at all, just a bunch of brainless fools. Is anyone else seeing this? Read Matthew 24 and understand what lies ahead for us. But this is not the reason I am writing today.
I am writing to encourage you in your faith, that no matter what happens you need to hold on to Jesus. We need to remember what our God has done in the past, what he has done for our forefathers and what he has done for us:
We have heard it with our ears, O God;
our ancestors have told us
what you did in their days,
in days long ago.
With your hand you drove out the nations
and planted our ancestors;
you crushed the peoples
and made our ancestors flourish.
It was not by their sword that they won the land,
nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was your right hand, your arm,
and the light of your face, for you loved them. (Psalm 44:1-3)
This psalm expresses the important thing for us to remember; what has been done for us in the past was not done in our strength but by God's will. If we think we can save ourselves we are doomed to destruction. It is only when we realize that the strength we have is found in Jesus Christ. The world will call it foolishness at best, delusional and a mental illness at the worst. Is this not what Jesus taught us, that in order for us to see God we must have faith? Is this not what he constantly questioned people on, evening pondering whether he would find any faith in this world on his return? Faith is the hardest thing for people of this age to understand and even many of those who claim it don't truly understand it and so struggle to live it. Can we understand what has saved us?
It was your right hand, your arm,
and the light of your face, for you loved them.
We need to understand who our enemy is. It is not the sinner or the secularist or the Muslim. God made it clear for us that the enemy is not found in bodily form:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)
We must always remember that Jesus told us to love our enemy. So those whom the enemy works through are not our targets but instead we are against the forces that control these people. The people themselves we must love because they are the objects of our Father's affection. We are told exactly how we are to fight against this rising tide of persecution that is knocking on our door:
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. (Ephesians 6:13-18)
If you have been neglecting the Word now is the time to get back into it. If you have been neglecting prayer now is the time to re-establish it. If you have allowed your relationship with Jesus to fade now is the time to return to worship with all your heart. Do not wait until the day of evil is upon you, be fitted for the battle today because it is going to be a battle over your heart and mind. We need to do as the psalmist did and declare who our God is:
You are my King and my God,
who decrees victories for Jacob.
Through you we push back our enemies;
through your name we trample our foes.
I put no trust in my bow,
my sword does not bring me victory;
but you give us victory over our enemies,
you put our adversaries to shame.
In God we make our boast all day long,
and we will praise your name forever. (Psalm 44:4-8)
We will soon be able to relate to this psalmist as he continues to write, expressing their confusion over God's apparent lack of help during some dark days of trials:
But now you have rejected and humbled us;
you no longer go out with our armies.
You made us retreat before the enemy,
and our adversaries have plundered us.
You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
and have scattered us among the nations.
You sold your people for a pittance,
gaining nothing from their sale. (Psalm 44:9-12)
This may be our cry very shortly as we wonder how long we will have to put up with the coming storm. Our neighbours will hate us, our own children will turn against us, society will devalue us, false teachers will offer to guide us, fake messiahs will pursue us, everything we thought we had will be taken from us until we are only left with one question: do I believe?
It is good to read this Psalm because, even though the psalmist questions God about what is going on, he does not let go of his faith and trust. He knows that he cannot save himself. He knows the odds are against him. He knows the future looks very bleak but he also knows what God has done in the past. Now we must look at all of this through the lens of Jesus. God has done something greater for us than he every did for the psalmist or his forefathers. Our Father pursued us with his love, he gave his best so that we could be reconciled to him, he has pursued us to complete us not to destroy us. None of what he did was because we had any worth; he did it all because of his unfailing love. In the years to follow we must remember that he did everything he did because of his unfailing love. That was the basis of the psalmist plea for help:
Rise up and help us;
rescue us because of your unfailing love. (Psalm 44:26)
Jesus warned us these days were coming and many have prayed over the years that he would return for us. That day is approaching but all these other things must come with it. Jesus referred to them as birthing pains because God is birthing a new thing. After a baby is born a mother quickly forgets the pain because of the overwhelming joy and love of that baby. Paul reminds us:
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)
So my friends, get equipped before the day of evil hits with all its fury. Get equipped, be madly in love with Jesus and stand your ground. No matter the personal cost, do not give up the ground you have been told to occupy which is your heart and your mind. Be strong and courageous; do not be terrified or discouraged because the Lord our God is with us wherever we go! Stand firm in the faith, hope and love of Jesus!
I think most of us have seen what is happening in the news in the Islamic states of our world. People are calling for the reform of the governments and are using protests and violence to bring it about. This is a natural thing to happen in places where people feel mistreated and abused for decades. If a better government results from this we see it is a natural way that is repeating history. Some countries, such as Canada, achieved these changes by peaceful means, whereas others, such as the United States and France ended up going a more violent route. Nonetheless, in recent history we have seen that governments that are formed from such action are not necessarily better governments, as we consider Iran. That is the fear right now, that the extremist element of Islam would take a tighter grip in these places. However, there is also something else resulting from these events.
As more and more stories come across our computer screens and television sets concerning the more extreme actions of Islamic believers, all faiths are being scrutinized. There is a growing protest in the grass roots that all religion is bogus and should be done away with. More and more people are referring to the "fairy tale" stories of Jesus, calling him a fictional figure. They refer to the Bible as a collection of errant fairy tales passed down to our society, where it is now molded and used to abuse others. Any good that the Church has done in the past, from the abolition of slavery to the development of medical systems, are all being washed away by people who haven't even looked into the matter. There is a rising tide of protest against faith, with reason being lauded as the only real choice for people, as if faith-people had no reason about them at all, just a bunch of brainless fools. Is anyone else seeing this? Read Matthew 24 and understand what lies ahead for us. But this is not the reason I am writing today.
I am writing to encourage you in your faith, that no matter what happens you need to hold on to Jesus. We need to remember what our God has done in the past, what he has done for our forefathers and what he has done for us:
We have heard it with our ears, O God;
our ancestors have told us
what you did in their days,
in days long ago.
With your hand you drove out the nations
and planted our ancestors;
you crushed the peoples
and made our ancestors flourish.
It was not by their sword that they won the land,
nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was your right hand, your arm,
and the light of your face, for you loved them. (Psalm 44:1-3)
This psalm expresses the important thing for us to remember; what has been done for us in the past was not done in our strength but by God's will. If we think we can save ourselves we are doomed to destruction. It is only when we realize that the strength we have is found in Jesus Christ. The world will call it foolishness at best, delusional and a mental illness at the worst. Is this not what Jesus taught us, that in order for us to see God we must have faith? Is this not what he constantly questioned people on, evening pondering whether he would find any faith in this world on his return? Faith is the hardest thing for people of this age to understand and even many of those who claim it don't truly understand it and so struggle to live it. Can we understand what has saved us?
It was your right hand, your arm,
and the light of your face, for you loved them.
We need to understand who our enemy is. It is not the sinner or the secularist or the Muslim. God made it clear for us that the enemy is not found in bodily form:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)
We must always remember that Jesus told us to love our enemy. So those whom the enemy works through are not our targets but instead we are against the forces that control these people. The people themselves we must love because they are the objects of our Father's affection. We are told exactly how we are to fight against this rising tide of persecution that is knocking on our door:
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. (Ephesians 6:13-18)
If you have been neglecting the Word now is the time to get back into it. If you have been neglecting prayer now is the time to re-establish it. If you have allowed your relationship with Jesus to fade now is the time to return to worship with all your heart. Do not wait until the day of evil is upon you, be fitted for the battle today because it is going to be a battle over your heart and mind. We need to do as the psalmist did and declare who our God is:
You are my King and my God,
who decrees victories for Jacob.
Through you we push back our enemies;
through your name we trample our foes.
I put no trust in my bow,
my sword does not bring me victory;
but you give us victory over our enemies,
you put our adversaries to shame.
In God we make our boast all day long,
and we will praise your name forever. (Psalm 44:4-8)
We will soon be able to relate to this psalmist as he continues to write, expressing their confusion over God's apparent lack of help during some dark days of trials:
But now you have rejected and humbled us;
you no longer go out with our armies.
You made us retreat before the enemy,
and our adversaries have plundered us.
You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
and have scattered us among the nations.
You sold your people for a pittance,
gaining nothing from their sale. (Psalm 44:9-12)
This may be our cry very shortly as we wonder how long we will have to put up with the coming storm. Our neighbours will hate us, our own children will turn against us, society will devalue us, false teachers will offer to guide us, fake messiahs will pursue us, everything we thought we had will be taken from us until we are only left with one question: do I believe?
It is good to read this Psalm because, even though the psalmist questions God about what is going on, he does not let go of his faith and trust. He knows that he cannot save himself. He knows the odds are against him. He knows the future looks very bleak but he also knows what God has done in the past. Now we must look at all of this through the lens of Jesus. God has done something greater for us than he every did for the psalmist or his forefathers. Our Father pursued us with his love, he gave his best so that we could be reconciled to him, he has pursued us to complete us not to destroy us. None of what he did was because we had any worth; he did it all because of his unfailing love. In the years to follow we must remember that he did everything he did because of his unfailing love. That was the basis of the psalmist plea for help:
Rise up and help us;
rescue us because of your unfailing love. (Psalm 44:26)
Jesus warned us these days were coming and many have prayed over the years that he would return for us. That day is approaching but all these other things must come with it. Jesus referred to them as birthing pains because God is birthing a new thing. After a baby is born a mother quickly forgets the pain because of the overwhelming joy and love of that baby. Paul reminds us:
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)
So my friends, get equipped before the day of evil hits with all its fury. Get equipped, be madly in love with Jesus and stand your ground. No matter the personal cost, do not give up the ground you have been told to occupy which is your heart and your mind. Be strong and courageous; do not be terrified or discouraged because the Lord our God is with us wherever we go! Stand firm in the faith, hope and love of Jesus!
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Who Do You Say Jesus Is?
If only the world knew Jesus! That sums up the desire of all of us doesn't it? But what Jesus do we want the world to know? There seems to be so many different versions of him kicking about, depending on who you talk to and what their angle is. No wonder the world is so confused about Christianity. I think we all agree that there should only be one Jesus and he should be the one revealed to us in the Bible. The real challenge we all have is how to get to him with all the personal filters we have in place. It is hard for us to strip down all of our preconceived ideas, our opinions, our perspective, even our culture to see the Biblical Jesus.
Do you recall the time when Jesus asked his disciples who people were saying he was? They gave him a number of answers:
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” (Matthew 16:14)
Everyone was talking about Jesus but they were getting it wrong because they had it fixed in their mind what the Messiah would be like. In fact, they thought John the Baptist was more the Messiah type then Jesus was. But in fairness, these people were not spending every waking moment with him, getting to know him like the disciples had come to know him. You see, the only way to truly know him is to spend time with him. So Jesus turned to disciples and asked:
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:15)
Don't dismiss that question so readily as if you know the answer. One day you may find yourself stripped of everything you know and be left with only Jesus. How it turns out for you will depend on how you answer this question. Is he who he said he is? Are his promises real? Is he faithful to them? Can you trust him when everything else is gone?
Remember the crowd that escorted Jesus into Jerusalem. They had picked up the praises that the disciples had begun:
Sounds really great but they had no idea who they were praising. It is what a crowd mentality does to us; we just go along with everyone else. But when the people in the city asked who this was, they did not call him the Christ, the Son of God:
The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” (Matthew 21:11)
Is it any wonder then that, not knowing Jesus, these same people, a few days later, were in another crowd calling for him to be crucified? They only knew and understood what people were saying about Jesus; they knew nothing of him personally. This is the reason why they were swayed so easily. And what about you; who do you say that he is?
Ask yourself if you know Jesus or if you know of him? Are you relying more on what people tell you about Jesus or do you know him personally? If you know him personally, does he match the Jesus we find in the Bible? It does not take much to distort our understanding and knowledge but it is hard to distort a relationship. And this is really important because if you find yourself in a situation where your life seems to be coming to an end, you will soon see if you have the real Jesus or not. But don't wait for a crisis to find out. Seek him now in the Word, in prayer and in worship. Remember Paul's desire and determination:
I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3:10-11)
If we had that determination, the world might start seeing Jesus as we worship him in the most terrible moments in our life. It is great to praise God in the sunshine but it's when we praise him in the darkness that the world begins to see the real thing. Make sure that your faith is a genuine faith and don't let go. Whatever you do, don't let go.
Do you recall the time when Jesus asked his disciples who people were saying he was? They gave him a number of answers:
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” (Matthew 16:14)
Everyone was talking about Jesus but they were getting it wrong because they had it fixed in their mind what the Messiah would be like. In fact, they thought John the Baptist was more the Messiah type then Jesus was. But in fairness, these people were not spending every waking moment with him, getting to know him like the disciples had come to know him. You see, the only way to truly know him is to spend time with him. So Jesus turned to disciples and asked:
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:15)
Don't dismiss that question so readily as if you know the answer. One day you may find yourself stripped of everything you know and be left with only Jesus. How it turns out for you will depend on how you answer this question. Is he who he said he is? Are his promises real? Is he faithful to them? Can you trust him when everything else is gone?
Remember the crowd that escorted Jesus into Jerusalem. They had picked up the praises that the disciples had begun:
The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9)
Sounds really great but they had no idea who they were praising. It is what a crowd mentality does to us; we just go along with everyone else. But when the people in the city asked who this was, they did not call him the Christ, the Son of God:
The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” (Matthew 21:11)
Is it any wonder then that, not knowing Jesus, these same people, a few days later, were in another crowd calling for him to be crucified? They only knew and understood what people were saying about Jesus; they knew nothing of him personally. This is the reason why they were swayed so easily. And what about you; who do you say that he is?
Ask yourself if you know Jesus or if you know of him? Are you relying more on what people tell you about Jesus or do you know him personally? If you know him personally, does he match the Jesus we find in the Bible? It does not take much to distort our understanding and knowledge but it is hard to distort a relationship. And this is really important because if you find yourself in a situation where your life seems to be coming to an end, you will soon see if you have the real Jesus or not. But don't wait for a crisis to find out. Seek him now in the Word, in prayer and in worship. Remember Paul's desire and determination:
I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3:10-11)
If we had that determination, the world might start seeing Jesus as we worship him in the most terrible moments in our life. It is great to praise God in the sunshine but it's when we praise him in the darkness that the world begins to see the real thing. Make sure that your faith is a genuine faith and don't let go. Whatever you do, don't let go.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
A God Thing
Come discover what a God thing really looks like and then get ready; Jesus wants you to experience it every day of your life.
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