October 7, 2017

Many writers have offered numerous suggestions on how we can achieve purity of heart and soul. Some people read these books looking for a simple formula, hoping to find a low-commitment path to holiness.

It's kind of like dieting. The experts lead us from fad to fad, creating as many side effects as they do success stories. But basically it always boils down to this: to lose weight, eat less and exercise more. It's a fairly simple formula.

For those who may be looking for simple steps to holiness, I'll give you just one: we experience holiness by being obedient to the Lord. This is because partial obedience is total disobedience. Delayed obedience is present-tense disobedience. Thus, full obedience is the only cure for disobedience.

I Know that many people today - many Christians, in fact - do not live consistently be the teachings of God's Word. Truth is, we all face a daily struggle to let His truth capture our affections and control our behavior. But obedience is the only proper response for a kingdom person.

Why obey? Because He has redeemed us. "For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.  It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,"  Titus 2:11-12

Why obey? Because He is holy. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” I Peter 1:15-16

Why obey? Because this is His purpose for us. "See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse— the blessing if you obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you today;" Deuteronomy 11:26-27

Obedience opens the floodgate for blessing, which enables us to be a blessing to others!

The Covenant Community

"On the first day of the third month after the Israelites left Egypt—on that very day—they came to the Desert of Sinai. After they set out from Rephidim, they entered the Desert of Sinai, and Israel camped there in the desert in front of the mountain. Then Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain and said, “This is what you are to say to the descendants of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel:  ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.”   Exodus 19:1-6

There is a subtle but significant change that happens during these verses. Did you catch it?

In verse 3 it refers to the "house of Jacob". You remember Jacob don't you? He was their troubled ancestor who manipulated his twin brother to get his inheritance, then tricked their father to steal his brother's blessing. Jacob was later tricked in turn by his uncle who required Jacob to work for seven years to get to marry his true love only to find after the wedding that he had been given the wrong sister for a bride. He had to commit to seven more years to get the woman he loved.

The Jacob wrestled all night with an angel, an experience that changed his life and his name. As the angel said to him at sunrise, "Your name will no longer be Jacob......It will be Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed." Genesis 32:28

Up until this point, the group of Jacob's descendants standing before God in Exodus 19 had only been known by their family name. They were of the "house of Jacob." Now they became the "sons of Israel". At this defining moment in their history, we witness in some ways the birth of the nation of Israel, God's people, a new day in their relationship with God.

This covenant community would no longer be known just for where they had come from.They would now be known for who they were- the people of God, His own unique possession created to carry out a crucial role in reaching the nations and to fulfill God's kingdom purposes.

The statement from the last part of Exodus 19:5 confirms this fact. When God said, "You will be My own possession out of all the peoples, although all the earth is mine," He was not simply affirming His ownership of the physical earth, His rightful claim as Creator. He was also using this phrase to describe His relationship with Israel - not to give them privilege and standing alone but to give them purpose. They were to be possession, not to be admired on a shelf but to be maneuvered full forces into the world.

Will you attempt today to serve God as His movable possession, seeing the world through His eyes of love wherever you go?

October 5, 2017

"If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." I John 1:9

If we were in a room together and I told you that there were two doors we could go through to exit the room,one door marked "blessing" and the other door marked "cursing," I doubt if either of us would rush to the door marked "cursing". Yet that is what we do every time we disobey God's Word.We choose cursing over blessing. We choose death over life. We place ourselves in spiritual danger and render our lives ineffective in god's service. We lose sight of the kingdom.

This doesn't mean that our salvation is based on our performance. But it does mean that our obedience can directly impact God's blessing upon us. Our obedience also affects how useful we are to Him for His kingdom work.

God calls His people to be steadfast and faithful. If we couldn't be obedient to him, He wouldn't expect it of us. If we couldn't do what He has said, He wouldn't expect it of us. If we couldn't do what He has said, He wouldn't have said it.Therefore, His "if-then" challenge should greet our ears with a note of encouragement.

Yes, we can keep His covenant.

Yes, we can be productive.

Yes, we can live as consistent kingdom citizens.

We know that God will keep His side of the bargain. And we are also sure that He will give us everything we need to hold our side as well.

Maybe you have been disobedient, but His covenant still stands. This kingdom still calls to you. This God who promised to the people of Israel still stands beside you this very day keeping His promise - drawing you back into fellowship, offering you freedom in place of failure.

He wants you close. He wants you near Him. He wants you to experience the fullness of the covenant every day. God has greater blessings in store for you. They hang in the balance of your balance.

If you will confess your disobedience to God and receive His full pardon as promised in I John 1:9 - "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us sins ans to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

The Virtue Of Perseverance

"For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance." II Peter 1:5-6

During a Monday night football game between the Chicago Bears and the New York Giants, one of the announcers observed that Walter Payton, the Bears’ running back, had accumulated over nine miles in career rushing yardage. The other announcer remarked, "Yeah, and that’s with somebody knocking him down every 4.6 yards!" Walter Payton, the most successful running back ever, knows that everyone --even the very best-- gets knocked down. The key to success is to get up and run again just as hard.

As an admirer of the late Walter Payton and an avid Bears fan I probably saw most of those yards he gained in his illustrious career. Just doing some rough math, if you figure that Walter gained over 14,000 yards at 4.6 yards per carry it means he  got tackled over 3,000 times. There were times that he got tackled for a loss behind the line of scrimmage. And each time he got up, ran back to the huddle and carried the ball just as hard the next time. Eventually, he would cross the goal line.

That is a good example of perseverance, a virtue recommended by Peter as a sign of spiritual maturity.

In the language of the New Testament the word used for perseverance is "hupomone" and it means "steadfast" or "endurance" and has the connotation of not just enduring but of turning a hurtful situation into helpful outcome.

Of course, the only way to turn pain into gain is through the power of God. But that power must be lived out by continuing to get back up each time you are knocked down and run just as hard as you did before.

Perseverance is the spiritual virtue of being determined to do the next right thing even when you don't feel like it. Perseverance is doing the next right thing even when you are being done wrong. Perseverance is doing the next right thing when everyone else is doing the wrong thing. Perseverance is doing the next right thing even when you know it will cause you more pain for doing it.

It was through perseverance that Jesus endured the cross. Jesus illustrated the essence of "hupomone" by suffering an extremely painful and unjust death BUT through that death He turned a very bad thing into the ultimate good thing. Enduring the agony of the cross allowed Him to experience the joy of the resurrection! THAT'S PERSEVERANCE!

Walter Payton became a Hall of Fame running back by persevering despite being knocked down thousands of times and getting back up each time to run again. He gained nine miles 4.6 yards at a time! THAT'S PERSEVERANCE!

Have you been knocked down? 

Are you hurting and wondering what to do?

Persevere! Get up in the power of God and do the next right thing!

October 3, 2017

"For in him we live and move and have our being. As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring." Acts 17:28

The Apostle Paul was preaching in Athens and noticed that they were very religious but did not know the One true God or His Son Jesus. In their shrines they had many idols to many idols and to make sure they did not miss a god or offend a diety they built an idol to "the unknown god".

Paul saw an opportunity to proclaim the Gospel and began to tell them about this God Who was knowable, Who wanted to be known, and Who "was not far from them."

What Paul told them about God, we could stand to hear. Let's examine it more closely:

The Centrality of Christ - "In Him....."

God will not settle for being "a" god. He must be "the" God. There is no god like our God. He is beyond compare. He created you for Himself. He put within you a "God-shaped" void that nothing else can satisfy. You were never designed to be happy or fulfilled without having God squarely in the center of His will.

The Vitality of Christ - "....we live and move......

When God identifies Himself as the "Alpha and Omega", the beginning and the end, He is acknowledging that all life begins and ends with Him. Since that glorious and ancient day when He commanded, "Let there be....", life has flourished on this beautiful planet. And He personalized life when He sent His only Son, Jesus, so that His life could flourish within us.

The Identity With Christ - "....and have our being."

Paul was speaking to men who were very religious and somewhat superstitious. They wanted to make sure that they covered their bases spiritually. If there was a god they needed to know - they wanted to know him. It was important for them to be right with their gods. I imagine that the Great Apostle was moved by their sincere desire to be right with a God they had yet to know. So he sweetens the deal by promising that this unknown God, his God, is One Who knows you, can be known by you, and wants to dwell in you. This God is so vast and so good that you can lose yourself in Him - and only when you lose yourself in Him do you find yourself! Some of them did!

Have you?

October 2, 2017

"And he said, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” Luke 9:22

When Jesus foretold his future He also predicts yours. That is, if you dare to be His disciple.

What a contrast to the attitude of many Christians today. Where did we get the idea that following Jesus is guaranteed to make you healthy, wealthy and generally bullet-proof? It certainly didn't come from Jesus.

When did happiness become our goal? When did possessions become our passion? When did health become the measure of our spirituality? And what have these misdirected values done for the state of our Faith or the strength of our churches?

Being a disciple will cost you something! No, actually, being a disciple will cost you everything! Jesus gave up everything for you and me. What makes you think you can get through life easier that your Lord? How can you expect to follow Him and get a free ride? When did Jesus become your Santa instead of your Savior?

I guess you must understand the purpose of discipleship if you are going to grasp the price. God is not interested in making you happy. Happiness is SO overrated in our culture and it has infested our churches. God is committed to your holiness, although holy people do end up happier! Holiness requires some pressure and some purging to purify your heart and mind and spirit of its selfishness.

Discipleship is about a series of deaths and resurrections that lead to your ultimate eternal resurrection. Death is painful. Nothing dies easily - wrong motives don't, impure thoughts don't, sinful habits surely don't and selfish desires will battle to the end.

So, you want to be a disciple? Prepare for some pain - pain that will prepare you for Paradise!

October 1, 2017

“Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.” John 10:7-15

Like the sheep in Psalm 23 you should be one satisfied sheep! I have spent the better part of this week reminding you of how good your Shepherd is! So, if there is still anxiety or discontent stirring in your soul it could be that you are not following Him as well as you should!

May I share a true story to further illustrate the blessings and benefits of following this Shepherd Who is a personal shepherd and a powerful shepherd and a promising shepherd?

Here it is:

In 1972, a shepherd had brought his sheep into a walled-off, enclosed area for the night, and he had just gone to sleep when he heard a commotion. He quickly rushed over to where the sound was coming from and to his horror he discovered that a wolf was in the process of dragging off one of his sheep through a hole in the wall. He was mauling this sheep and blood was flying.

The shepherd quickly began hitting the wolf, and the wolf turned on him and began attacking him. He bit him over and over while the shepherd was striking him with his staff, and finally with one final blow of his staff, he killed the wolf as he himself collapsed into a bloody heap.

He managed to crawl over to the half-dead sheep, and began to bandage its wounds.

He gave it some water, and then took it in his own bloody arms, and shepherd and sheep went to sleep together. The next morning the shepherd was found dead, his body literally draped over the sheep to comfort it and keep it warm. The following day the headline in the Jerusalem paper said, “Sheep Alive, Covered in Shepherd’s Blood.”

That is the testimony of every sheep and lamb who is under the care of the Good Shepherd. Why would you not follow Him closely? Why would you not completely trust a Shepherd like that?

Any other shepherd is a hireling who comes to steal, abuse, or kill the sheep. There is no comparison between the Good Shepherd and any other. There is really no comparison between sheep under the care of the Good Shepherd and those who are not. You can tell the difference by looking! There is a noticeable difference!

As the storm clouds gather and the threats increase and the world becomes significantly more dangerous, you cannot afford to be led or cared for by anyone other than the Good Shepherd because no matter how perilous the times that lay ahead - IF THE LORD IS YOUR SHEPHERD, YOUR FUTURE IS YOUR FRIEND!

Hallelujah!