September 2, 2017

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires."  II Peter 1:3-4

When I was a kind we used to sing a chorus in Sunday School that went something like this:

"Every promise in the Book is  mine - every word, every letter, every line."

Looking back on it I believe my teacher was trying to instill the same truths in me that Peter is affirming to these Christians - GOD HAS GIVEN US GREAT AND PRECIOUS PROMISES!

These promises are great because of Who has given them!

These promises are great because of what they give to you!

These promises are great because of what they will give you in days to come!

And, these promises are great because they are TRUE and their truth is guaranteed in Jesus Christ, Who is both the fulfillment of every promise and is the proof that every promise will be fulfilled!

His promises that have been given to you are precious because He made them!

His promises are precious because what they promise is precious!

His promises are precious because of the price that was paid to guarantee them -the life blood of Jesus.

God, through His power, has given you great and precious promises!

Will you believe them?

Will you receive them?

Strange Math

"One day the angels came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came with them. The LORD said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the LORD, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it." Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil." Job 1:6-8

I was never real good in math, but math is nice and tidy, very predictable. When you add one and one you always get two. Always. When you subtract 5 from 10 you get 5. Always. That is nice That is comfortable. That is so unlike life.

But somehow we take a mathematical approach to life. We think that if we do this good thing and combine it with that good thing we will get a good result. Maybe. Maybe not.

That is a huge part of the problem with suffering. It doesn't always add up. In the Bible some of the men who suffered the most lived the best. So here's the math: righteous living + faithful obedience = severe suffering. God's math is strange!

There weren't many who were more moral than Job. He was so righteous that God bragged on him to the Devil! Of all the people I want to impress, God is THE ONE! So what did Job's stellar resume get him? Deep sorrow and suffering. How does that add up?

David had a heart like God's. When God chose him to be King his life was constantly threatened by Saul the reigning king. He spent years running from Saul even though David was totally blameless. Several times he could have killed Saul and ended the period of exile, but he chose to honor Saul because Saul still occupied the throne. David suffered and suffered longer than he needed to because his heart was right and he chose to wait on God. How does that add up?

And then, of course, there was Jesus. He was sinless and remained sinless for one reason. So He could become sin for us and suffer our judgment. The very Son of God died a horrifying excruciating shameful death for one reason - He was the only One holy enough to do it! There is no worse suffering than death on a cross. God's best took our worst. How does that add up?

This brings us back to the problem that has no mathematical solution, a holy all powerful loving God Who could prevent all suffering doesn't. No one has ever been able to balance that equation. That has caused many to abandon faith or to choose not to believe.

What do you do when life doesn't add up?

What are you to believe when God subtracts from your comfort rather than adding to it?

Will you factor in God's goodness and love when the math doesn't seem to work?

Can you trust your problem to be His solution?

August 31, 2017

"Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ," II Peter 1:1a

What Peter describes as his role, a “slave” of Jesus Christ, is also your role and it is my role. But just exactly does that mean?

It means to surrender to Him! Offer yourself with all your hopes and ambitions.

Billy Graham tells the story about a little child who was playing with a very valuable vase. He put his hand into it and could not withdraw it. His father too, tried his best to get it out, to no avail. They were thinking of breaking the vase when the father said, “Now my son, make one more try. Open your hand and hold your fingers out straight as you see me doing, and then pull.” To their astonishment the little fellow said, “O no, dad, I couldn’t put my fingers out like that because if I did I would drop my dime.”

It means to serve Him! Offer to do His will.

When Joseph Ton was a pastor in Romania he was arrested by the secret police for publishing a sermon calling for the churches to refuse to submit to the Communist government’s demand for control over their ministries. When an official told him he must renounce his sermon, he replied, "No, sir! I won’t do that!"

The official, surprised that anyone would respond so forcefully to the secret police, said, "Aren’t you aware that I can use force against you?"

"Sir, let me explain that to you," Ton said. "You see, your supreme weapon is killing. My supreme weapon is dying. . . . You know that my sermons are spread all over the country on tapes. When you kill me, I only sprinkle them with my blood. They will speak 10 times louder after that, because everybody will say, ’That preacher meant it because he sealed it with his blood.’ So go on, sir, kill me. When you kill me, I win the supreme victory." The secret police released him, knowing his martyrdom would be far more of a problem than his sermon.

It means to satisfy Him. Obey Him in love.

I recently did a wedding. During the wedding rehearsal, the groom pulled me aside and made me an offer.

He said "Look, I’ll give you $100 if you’ll change the wedding vows. When you get to me and the part where I’m to promise to ’love, honor and obey,’ I would appreciate it if you’d just leave that part out." He gave me a $100 bill and walked away.

The day of the wedding the bride and groom were in front of me and we were to that part of the ceremony where the vows are exchanged. When it came time for the groom’s vows, I looked at the young man and said "Will you promise to bow down before her, obey her every command and wish, serve her breakfast in bed every morning of your life and swear eternally before God and your lovely wife that you will not ever even look at another woman, as long as you both shall live?"

The groom gulped and looked around, and said in a tiny voice, "Yes." Then He leaned in and asked “what happened I thought we had a deal."

So I gave him his 100 dollars back and told him that she had made a better offer.

Are you choosing to be obedient to God or are you looking  for a better deal?

HERE’S A BETTER DEAL:  Give Yourself To God As A Slave And He Makes You A Son!

If You Want Your Salvation To Work

“…for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” Philippians 2:13

Paul is teaching us how we can make sure our salvation works for all our days on planet Earth. His key thought is "obedience IS the work of salvation because it allows God to work out the completion of your salvation"!

If you want your salvation to work:

Obey faithfully!

Obey fearfully!

AND obey fruitfully!

You know salvation is working out when His will and His purpose happens through your life!

You know your salvation is working out when God is pleased by your obedience.

Salvation works when you are committed to obeying His will and purposes. It doesn't work when you disobey. It is that simple!

When you are committed to obeying His will and purpose your life will bear spiritual fruit. When disobey his will and purpose there will be not fruit.

Charles Finney noted this about obedience and sacrifice, “Revival is nothing more or less than a new obedience to God!”      

“Joy is the byproduct of obedience”  - (Unknown)

D. L. Moody has expressed it so well: “. . .Joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows on through the dark; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows all through persecution and opposition. It is an unceasing fountain bubbling up in the heart; a secret spring the world can’t see and doesn’t know anything about. The Lord gives His people perpetual joy when they walk in obedience to him”

Patrick Morley’s book “Walking with Christ in the Details of Life.” It is a book of meditations that includes one called “Revival: The Gospel of Addition.” In it, he said the following, “The American gospel has evolved into a gospel of addition without subtraction. It is the belief that we can add Christ to our lives, but not subtract sin. It is a change in belief without a change in behavior… A changed life is one that has added Christ and subtracted sin, that attracts a world weary of worn-out words. Obedience is the proof.”

"Have you noticed how much praying for revival has been going on of late - and how little revival has resulted? I believe the problem is that we have been TRYING TO SUBSTITUTE PRAYING FOR OBEYING, and it simply will not work. To pray for revival while ignoring the plain precept laid down in Scripture is to waste a lot of words and get nothing for our trouble. Prayer will become effective when we stop using it as a substitute for obedience." A.W. Tozer

You are more likely to OBEY YOURSELF INTO PRAYING than you are to pray yourself into obeying!

HOW’S YOUR OBEDIENCE? ARE YOU SEEING FRUIT IN YOUR LIFE?

HOW IS YOUR SALVATION WORKING OUT?

I AM GOING TO GUESS IT IS WORKING OUT IN DIRECT PROPORTION TO YOUR OBEDIENCE.

August 29, 2017

"Every day they continued to meet together......." Acts 2:46a

In a recent post I talked about the importance of doing small things well. Small things done well over time make a big difference. The tendency is to value the spectacular events and the exciting efforts. But unless someone is paying attention to the details nothing lasting will result from the big things.

Today I want to talk about the value of one particular small thing - the importance of showing up!

Just showing up almost sounds too abvious to mention. But it was one of the things that the Church in Jerusalem did best. They were consistent in their Christian disciplines. Consistency equates to commitment. Not much happens without commitment.

Cal Ripken is a cinch for the Hall of Fame because he developed the discipline of showing up. His career statistics are borderline for Hall of Famers. On the basis of his stats he would have been considered for Cooperstown, but the fact that he played in a record-setting 2,632 consecutive games make his selection a no-brainer. Ripken shattered the record of a previous Hall of Famer, Lou Gehrig by almost games!

I think of Betty Darling. Betty was a tiny little lady from the hills and hollows of West Virginia who was extremely shy - but amazingly faithful. Betty worked in the nursery at Heritage Wesleyan Church, one of the largest churches in our denomination. She was there when the church ran 25 people and she only had one infant to care for. She was still there when the church topped 2,000 and had more babies in the nursery than they used to have people in the church. Betty was so shy she had trouble looking you in the eye. She would slip into the nursery and out the back door. But you could count on one thing - if Sunday came, Betty would be there.

For nearly 30 years she cared for several generations of little ones. There are young men in ministry that Betty rocked and burped. She is now in God's Hall of Fame, otherwise known as Heaven. By the way, the church now runs 3,000+ because of a lot of faithful people like Betty who just show up on a regular basis.

Can I remind you that God promised that "where two or three people are gathered together, I am in their midst"?

In other words, God promises that if we show up He will!

Commitment trumps talent every time. Don't discount the value of just showing up. Showing up is far more powerful than showing off. Obviously, the real deal is when talented people show up!

Churches don't happen without people who are committed to showing up and doing their best. How committed are you? How good are you at showing up?

August 28, 2017

"You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."  Matthew 5:14-16

"A well-known Bible teacher has just finished speaking to a large class of business people on the Christians' responsibility to be light in the world. He had emphasized the as believers we all have the obligation to reflect the Light in the world, the Lord Jesus. 

The person relating the story said, "When I saw that, I thought, I may not a preacher or a teacher with the ability to expound Scripture, but a least I can be a copper kettle catching the rays of the S - O - N and reflect His light to someone."

It is instructive to realize when Jesus calls His disciples to be "the light of the world" He is not calling them to produce light but to reflect His light like the copper kettle did in the story.

Here are some practical truths that are illuminated by this shiny kettle:

Christians are called to be in the light. This kettle was hung near a basement window where it could be exposed to the light during the day.

You cannot be a follower of Christ unless you are in the light because He IS the light and He dwells in His believers.

Christians are to keep their lives clear and shiny. Though the kettle was positioned in the light, if it had been all tarnished and dull it would not have reflected sufficient light to give life to the potato.

Is your life dulled by the tarnish of sin and unable to reflect His light or is it pure and polished to brightly reflect God's light to others?

Christians are expected to be positioned between His light and the darkness of the world so they can strategically and effectively penetrate the darkness with God's light and life.

Are you remaining close enough to the darkness that you can impact it with the reflection of God's light?

When Jesus says, "You are the light of the world" He could have said, "I am the light and you are to be the reflector of My light into a dark and dying world."

August 27, 2017

Before I post the devotional thought this morning, I want to wish my youngest son, Marcus, a happy birthday. My baby boy turns 39 today. He is a great dad and hard-working young man. I am proud of him and love him very much!

"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." James 5:16

Let me ask you a question. Is there something more important than healing in the church?

I guess it matters what your priorities are.

But, if I understand what James is telling us here, God values spiritual health above physical health. And if I am understanding the Scriptures correctly (and that's my job) God is saying that is easier for Him to heal your body than it is to give you spiritual health.

What are you talking about, Brad?

Let me explain it this way. Were I to ask, "How many of you would like physical healing?" I would imagine I would receive unanimous agreement.

Were I to ask, "How many of you want to be spiritually healthy" I am not so sure I would get such an enthusiastic response.

See, God can heal you physically because He is able and you are willing. But for you to be spiritually healthy you must surrender your will completely to Him and humbly obey Him. The same will that would allow Him to heal you physically might prevent Him from blessing you with spiritual health.

Spiritual health requires personal prayer. When you are troubled you share it with God in prayer. When you are happy, you praise Him with prayer and rejoicing. Essentially, what James is saying is that you and I must take personal responsibility for our personal spiritual health. Your spiritual and mental and emotional health is your responsibility (in cooperation with God).

Spiritual health also requires powerful prayer. What is powerful prayer? According to James, powerful prayer is the result of believers being completely honest before God and transparent with each other. Submitting to confession and accountability is the price for powerful prayer and spiritual health. Oh, by the way, something else happens too - physical healing!

Finally, spiritual health requires prevailing prayer. 

Prevailing prayer? James urges us to pray for those who are spiritually drifting and separated from God. You might call it intercessory prayer and you would be correct. But I want to tell you that when you combine personal prayer with powerful prayer you get prevailing prayer and God's Spirit moves on people! Especially, lost people!

So, physical healing is easier than spiritual health. They are related but they are not the same. Fortunately, you can have both!

If we can have both why then do churches often have neither?

Frankly, it is because we would rather be happy than holy. We would rather be comfortable than committed. We don't want to hold others accountable to be holy because their sins and shortcomings make us feel more comfortable with our own. Honestly, we are more comfortable with our sins than we are with His Spirit. We are more comfortable with our secrets than with His sanctifying presence.

So, you wonder why there are so many struggling Christians and unhealthy churches?

Go figure.....