August 13, 2013

"Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, "Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they eat!" Jesus replied, "And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, 'Honor your father and mother' and 'Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.'But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, 'Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is a gift devoted to God,' he is not to 'honor his father' with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:" 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.'" Matthew 15:1-9
 

I have to confess to a passionate love affair that has been happening in my life for a long time. I am madly in love with the local church. I have devoted my life to it. If I had a second life I would also devote that life. Healthy local churches are the hope of the world. If God is ever going to transform our world, it will happen through local churches. That is why I am still leading the charge in a local congregation after all these years.
 

However, true love never runs smoothly. The majority of heartbreaks I have experienced in my life have happened in the local church. I have seen it at its worst and grieved.
 

But, I have also seen it at its best and there is nothing like it! I have seen lives transformed through salvation, through being filled with the Spirit, and through miraculous healings and deliverance. When a church is unified and focused and Spirit-led, the gates of Hell cannot prevail against it. 

What makes the difference?
 

Primarily, it is this issue of hypocrisy. That is why Jesus was so hard on the religious leaders of His day. He had a vision of what the Church would become and their attitudes and actions were destructive to that.

Jesus summarized the problem of hypocrisy this way, "These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me." 
 

That is the climate which breeds hypocrisy. Where rules and rituals are allowed to trump relationships, there is an unhealthy atmosphere of judgmentalism and a noticable lack of love. The church degenerates into an organization rather than a living, breathing organism. Playing the part without having the heart will kill you and harm the church where you belong. Saying the right sounding things without sincerely believing them confuses people and hinders true fellowship. 
 

If healthy local churches are the hope of the world, as I believe. And if hypocrisy is an illness that infects a church and threatens its health. Then it is no wonder Jesus was so aggressive in attacking it. We should be, too.
 

Your local church is made up of people like you. If you want to improve the spiritual climate of your church stop giving lip service to your faith and give it life service. Surrender your heart to God and allow His Spirit to fill it. Seek Him passionately and serve Him humbly. When you do, suddenly relationships will be a priority and rules will become servants of love.
 

Hypocrisy is an issue of the heart. If you want to defeat hypocrisy, transplant your heart.

August 12, 2013

"Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like." James 1:23-24

 

Mirrors have something in common with truth. Can you guess what it is?

 

Both can be very cruel.

 

Sometimes I don't like what I see when I look in the mirror. But, if I want to know how I look I need to do it. The only way I can improve how I look is to get a realistic view of myself so that I can repair the damage.

 

My alternative is to try to image how I look or to wish I looked a certain way and let that fanatasy guide how I view myself. While I might fool myself with those false notions I would not fool anyone else. They would honestly see what I refuse to see.

 

Anyone who really cares about their appearance will stand before the mirror to get the truth and then adjust to that reality. Healthy well-adjusted people do that.

 

If that makes sense to you then you will understand what James is saying when he compares the Word of God to a mirror. Not a mirror to reflect our outward appearance but a mirror to reflect the condition of our spirit. That is not any easier. But, it is necessary for spiritual health.

 

Mirrors and Bibles are necessary tools for anyone who wants to live a healthy and successful life. The reason that is true is because each of them keep us in touch with reality. That is the purpose of faith. Faith brings us in touch with what is real in life - and beyond. The great irony here is that in order for us to connect with the spiritual and eternal reality that is God, we must be willing to deal with the truths that we can see and know.

 

I think the struggle is being willing to move into God's reality rather than stubbornly trying to shape God around our notions of what it real.

 

God is the Arbiter of what it real and what is true. He reveals that to us through His Word, the Bible. And that requires us to daily present ourselves before His Word to allow it to reflect our weakness or sins.

 

Each of us have a choice. We can live in the ugly fantasy world of our foolish pride and rebellion. Or we can humble ourselves before the truth of His Word and make the hard adjustments required to align with His eternal realities.

 

What is real to you depends on what you decide is true. If God is true then He should determine what is real in your life. If He isn't, then it is up to you to shape your own reality. The only way to really know is to a hard look in the mirror of His Word.

August 11, 2013

“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew 5:48

 

I don’t spend much time on Facebook but I am on it enough to be shocked by some of the things that get posted there. Often I shake my head and wonder what they were thinking when they posted.

 

That got me thinking, “What if your thoughts and desires were posted to Facebook at any given moment of the day?”

 

How would that work for you? Would there best any risk to your reputation or your job or your relationships?

 

What would you think if I told you it is possible to live in such a way you would never to worry about random postings of your innermost thoughts or desires?

 

It is possible!

 

It is called holiness. John Wesley called it Christian perfection. Wesleyans believe in it - not because John Wesley taught it but because the Bible teaches it!

 

Being perfect does not mean you are infallible or perfect in your performance. It DOES mean that you are perfect toward God! It means He is the Supreme love of your life and your chief desire is to please Him!

 

In the context of this verse, that is the only way you could possibly be holy like God!

 

Christian perfection is a result of being cleansed from sinfulness by the blood of Jesus and filled with the Holy Spirit. In that condition you are perfect like your Father is perfect and as you “walk in the light as He is in the light you have fellowship with one another and the blood of Christ cleanses you from all sins.” As you take each thought captive and think on things that please God you can maintain a pure heart and mind.

 

Any child of God should not be afraid of having your thoughts or desires publicly exposed at any time or anywhere.

 

Does that describe you?

 

Are you living with a pure heart and mind?

 

Does the driving motivation of your life come from loving God and demonstrating His love to others?

 

If not, why not?

 

If not, when?

August 10, 2013

“in all your ways acknowledge him”- “fear the LORD and shun evil.”  Proverbs 3:6a & 7b

 

Speaking of holiness, J. Sidlow Baxter said, "What God chooses, HE cleanses. What God cleanses, He molds. What God molds, He fills. What God Fills, He uses."

 

Holiness is being devoted to God!

 

Holiness is being dead to self!

 

Holiness Is being directed by the Spirit!

 

Devoting yourself completely to God through Christ brings you into relationship with Him! Dying to yourself allows the blood of Christ to cleanse you and the Spirit of God to fill you. Once you have been filled with the Holy Spirit you must follow His direction to remain in relationship with God.

 

Holiness being the important issue it is, the Apostle Paul wrote much about it to the Churches under his care. Here are several examples:

“This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.  But you have not so learned Christ,  if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus:  that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,  and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore, putting away lying, “Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor, ”for we are members of one another.  “Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil. Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need. Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:17-32

 

“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.  For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.  And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”  Galatians 5:16-26

 

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:7-9

 

Are you been made holy?

Are you walking in the Spirit?

 

August 9, 2013

“........and lean not on your own understanding” – “Do not be wise in your own eyes” Proverbs 3:5b; 7a

A man flew into Chicago & hired a taxi to take him downtown. As he was riding along they came to a red light & the driver went right on through the red light.

The man said, "Hey, the light was red. You’re supposed to stop." The driver said, "Yeah, I know, but my brother does it all the time."

Soon they came to a second red light & again he went right straight through. The passenger said, "You’re going to get us killed. That light was red. Why didn’t you stop?"

The driver said, "Don’t worry about it. My brother does it all the time."

Then they came to a green light & he stopped. The man said, "The light is green.

Now is the time to go. Why don’t you go on through?"

The driver answered, "I know it’s green. But you never know when my brother may be coming through."

By nature every one of us is wired to self-destruct. Lawlessness is our default position and left unchecked we will do ourselves in.

“All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23

“Behold, I was shapen in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me.” Psalm 51:5

“The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, who can know it?”Jeremiah 17:9

^“As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”Romans 3:10-12

So, the fact is, if you don’t ask God to help you die to yourself your self will destroy you!

The concept of “dying to self” is found throughout the New Testament. It expresses the true essence of the Christian life, in which we take up our cross and follow Christ. Dying to self is part of being born again; the old self dies and the new self comes to life (John 3:3-7). Not only are Christians born again when we come to salvation, but we also continue dying to self as part of the process of sanctification. As such, dying to self is both a one-time event and a lifelong process.

Jesus spoke repeatedly to His disciples about taking up their cross (an instrument of death) and following Him. He made it clear that if any would follow Him, they must deny themselves which means giving up their lives—spiritually, symbolically and even physically if necessary. This was a prerequisite for being a follower of Christ, who proclaimed that trying to save our earthly lives would result in our losing our lives in the kingdom. But those who would give up their lives for His sake would find eternal life (Matthew 16:24-25; Mark 8:34-35). Indeed, Jesus even went so far as to say that those who are unwilling to sacrifice their lives for Him cannot be His disciples (Luke 14:27).

The rite of baptism expresses the commitment of the believer to die to the old sinful way of life (Romans 6:4-8) and be reborn to a new life in Christ. In Christian baptism, the action of being immersed in the water symbolizes dying and being buried with Christ. The action of coming out of the water pictures Christ’s resurrection.

Paul explains to the Galatians the process of dying to self as one in which he has been “crucified with Christ,” and now Paul no longer lives, but Christ lives in him. Paul’s old life, with its propensity to sin and follow the ways of the world, is dead, and the new Paul is the dwelling place of Christ who lives in and through him. This does not mean that when we “die to self” we become inactive or insensible, nor do we feel ourselves to be dead. Rather, dying to self means that the things of the old life are put to death, most especially the sinful ways and lifestyles we once engaged in. “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires” - Galatians 5:24. Where we once pursued selfish pleasures, we now pursue, with equal passion, that which pleases God.

Dying to self is never portrayed in Scripture as something optional in the Christian life. It is the reality of the new birth; no one can come to Christ unless they are willing to see their old lives crucified with Christ and begin to live anew in obedience to Him. Jesus describes lukewarm followers who try to live partly in the old life and partly in the new as those whom He will spit out (Rev. 3:15-16). Those lukewarm followers characterized the church of Laodicea as well as many churches today. Being “lukewarm” is a symptom of unwillingness to die to self and live for Christ. Death to self is not an option for Christians; it is a choice that leads to eternal life.

If you want to be holy devote yourself wholly to God and die to your sinful self.

August 8, 2013

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.” Proverbs 3:5-7

 

Once upon a time in a nice little forest, there lived an orphaned bunny and an orphaned snake. Coincidentally, both were blind from birth.

 

As the bunny was hopping through the forest one day and the snake was slithering around, the bunny tripped over the snake and fell down.

 

"I'm sorry," said the bunny to the snake, "but I've been blind since birth. I can't see where I'm going. More than that, since I'm an orphan, I don't even know what I am."

 

"It's O.K.," replied the snake, "because I'm blind and orphaned too; and I don't know what I am either."

 

The snake paused and then said, "I've got an idea. I'll slither all over you and figure out what you are!"

 

So the snake slithered over the bunny and then said, "Well, you're covered with soft fur, you have long ears, your nose twitches, and you have a soft cottony tail. So I'd say you're a bunny rabbit."

 

"Thank you," said the bunny, "and now let me paw all over you and figure out what you are!"

 

So the bunny pawed over the snake and then said, "Well, you're very smooth and slick, you have a forked tongue, no backbone, and no strength. I'd say you must be a Liberal.

 

Adam and Eve were created by a Perfect God to be perfect and were placed in a perfect place!

 

God’s will was for this perfect pair to walk with Him and work with Him to tend this perfect paradise and reproduce a perfect race.

 

One selfish act of disobedience ruined all of that in a moment and though man lost his perfection in that moment he did not lose his desire for perfection.

 

So, for generations humanity has been haunted by the frustration of a Paradise lost and a perfection lost. Many have given up on the notion of perfection and consider it an impossible dream while others devote themselves to the dream of developing an earthly utopia.

 

It is quite obvious that, like the rabbit and the snake, we have been blinded to who we are and what we can become in Christ.

 

There IS a perfection that is possible and available! It is called holiness and it can be imparted to you by God’s Spirit through the redemptive work of Christ!

 

Holiness requires a consecration. You must set yourself apart wholly to a Holy God through Christ.

 

Holiness requires a crucifixion. You must die to yourself by crucifying the old, sinful nature.

 

Holiness requires a cleansing. You must plead the cleansing of your sinful nature by the blood of Jesus Christ.

Holiness requires an infilling. After the consecration and the crucifying and the cleaning you can then be filled with the Holy Spirit of God!

That’s holiness!

 

It takes some backbone to become holy – but it’s possible!                                      

 

 

August 7, 2013

Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God, you who have done great things. Who, O God, is like you?" Psalm 71:19

Indeed, who is like our God?
 

In my Bible reading I am in the Psalms for the O.T. portion and in Romans for the N.T. part. That is some good reading!
 

But, as I was reading this morning I kept coming back to verse 19 of the 71st Psalm. Sitting here at my desk and looking out at a clear blue cloudless sky, I am blessed by the knowledge that His righteousness reaches to the sky - and beyond! Even the vast universe is inadequate to contain His righteousness.
 

For someone who often gets it wrong it is comforting to remember His righteousness. He is always right! He can always show me the right way! He can even redeem the wrong I do and bring good from it!

For someone who has had wrong things happen to him, it is a blessing to know that his righteousness can make wrong things right.
 

In a world where so much seems to be wrong and where evil appears to be exponentially expanding, it is reassuring to know that His goodness is more powerful than all the badness that surrounds us. His rightness will have the last word in a world of wrong.
 

I want to take a personal privilege to testify to one of the right things God has done in my life. Today is the 38th birthday of my oldest son, Matthew. He is a great blessing to me.
 

Growing up without a dad, I wanted to have a son that I could be a father to. For awhile it looked like that might not happen. But they were wrong and God was right. He made a way for us to adopt a brand new baby boy. 
 

He was born on August 7, 1975 and we brought him home on August 10. We named him Matthew, which means "gift from God". Indeed he was - and is! For 38 years now he has been a source of great joy and pride. I couldn't have asked for a better son. God did it right!
 

Matthew deserved a better dad, but for the things I did right, I give glory to the God whose righteousness "reaches to the sky". For the things I did wrong, His grace and power have made them right. How did he do that? Today, Matt is a great dad to his four girls and his son. He is the dad I wished I would have been. I am sure he learned from the mistakes I made. He will raise his son, to be an even better man.
 

Matt lives in the Minneapolis area and I don't get to see him nearly enough, but through the miracle of electronics, we stay close. He is a good husband and a successful business man. He's doing a lot of things right!
 

Matthew James Snyder, I bless you on your 38th birthday! I love you very much! And I bless the God, who in His great rightness, gave you to me!