If We Lose Our Focus...

"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; and to perseverance, godliness;" II Peter 1:5-6

A mother came to visit her son at college in the first semester of his Freshman year. She was very excited to see him but her excitement turned to disappointment when she visited his dorm room and noticed their was a dozen or so posters of scantily clad young ladies posing in provocative positions.

Though greatly troubled by what she saw the mother bit her tongue holding her opinions to herself. On her way back home she prayed for her son and asked God for wisdom on how to address this concern.

About a week later her son received a package in the mail. When he opened it he found a beautifully matted and framed picture of Jesus. He took the picture and proudly hung it above his desk.

As he backed away to view the newly mounted picture he decided to take down the poster nearest the picture of Jesus. And over time, as he continued to gaze on the picture of the Savior, the posters continued to come down until the last one was thrown away and Jesus alone was displayed on his wall.

The mother knew she had put the right kind of stuff in her son as she raised him. She realized he had lost his focus on Jesus and believed that once he regained that focus he would begin to act more godly. She was right.

Peter reminds us that God put good stuff in the hearts of those who trust Him for salvation. But if we lose our focus on Jesus we can clutter our lives with sinful things that hinder the working out of what He put in. There are times that we have to take those things down out of our lives to let godliness be revealed through our attitudes and actions.

Is your focus fixed on Jesus or are you staring at things you shouldn't? Are there some things you need to take down off the walls of your life in order to allow to become more godly?

October 11. 2018

"Add to your faith.........godliness......" II Peter 1:6

Jesus is the reason we know what godliness looks like. He came to live out God's love and power in a fallen world.

Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all ; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” John 10:25-30

^"Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves." John 14:8-11

In His first public teaching, Jesus described what godliness looks like, how it acts and how it thinks. We know this teaching as The Sermon on the Mount.

Godliness is where eternity intersects with time.

Godliness is where God's holiness condemns mankind's sinfulness.

Godliness is where the God's power connects with man's weakness.

Godliness brings Heavenly truths to bear against earthly troubles.

Godliness allows God's healing to touch hurting hearts.

In short, godliness brings God's Kingdom to earth so His will can be done!

Godliness came through Jesus.

Jesus wants godliness to come through you!

Are You Godly?

^"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; and to perseverance, godliness" II Peter 1:5-6

I want to be godly!

You want to be godly!

Peter says that God has given us everything we need to live godly lives.

So, how do I know if I am godly?

I know I am godly if I enjoy His presence.

When there is ungodliness within me I feel very uncomfortable in His presence. I can't read His Word because it will make me feel condemned and guilty.

I know I am godly if I people are drawn to God through me.

Here's a fact, my life will either draw people closer to God or drive them further from Him. No one is neutral in their influence. You're not. I'm not. When someone interacts with me that person either walks away feeling more positive about God or less interested in Him. Which is true of my life? Which is true of yours?

I know I am godly if I find it easy to hear his voice.

In John 10, Jesus identifies Himself as "the Good Shepherd" and He said, "My sheep know My voice".

You can quickly recognize the voices of those you love. Do you recognize His voice?

I know I am godly when I have less fear and more fruit in my life.

One of the most frequently used phrases by Jesus was, "Fear not!"

John wrote, "There is no fear in love because perfect love casts out fear."

Godliness is possible!

Are you godly?

"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of  him who called us by his own glory and goodness."

October 9, 2018

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

Our guest missionary recently shared some amazing testimonies from his work in the Far East. In an area that is largely secular and atheistic sharing the Gospel ranges from difficult to dangerous. What religious practices that do exist in these places largely consist of ancestor worship.

As our guest reminded us, the demonstration of godliness in that dark area is usually evidenced in supernatural manifestations of God's power such as healings and deliverance from demons.

One of the people who sat in that service hearing about the miraculous healings done through the missionaries called me today and was having trouble processing all that he heard. He is a person I would consider to be a godly man but he was feeling a bit inadequate listening to how God used the missionaries to heal and deliver people from demons. He believed in miracles but wasn't convinced he had what it took to see them happen for him.

I put it in perspective for him like this - maybe it will help you, too!

First, as a believer he DOES have what it takes. Peter, in the beginning verses of this Chapter said this, "His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness."

What part of EVERYTHING do you not understand?

Everything means spiritual power and authority over evil in all of its forms.

Second, what our missionary actually was encouraging is four-fold:

1) Have a desire to reach lost people whatever it takes!

2) Expect God to speak to you!

3) Learn how to hear Him and recognize His voice.

4) Do whatever He tells you to do!

Signs and wonders and miracles happens like everything else in the walk of faith - one obedience at a time!

October 8, 2018

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

Recently I was honored when I read what one of my people had written about me. She referred to me as a "godly man".

That caused me to pause and asked myself, "Am I really a godly man? What does that mean? What does she see in me that brought her to that conclusion?"

Peter may have the answer in II Peter 1:6 - "For this very reason add to your faith.......godliness".

The word used for "godliness" conveys the idea of devoted worship of God. A godly person worships well.

But, it is more than that. As important as it is to worship well there is more to godliness. Godliness involves a disciplined witness or worshiping God so well that others notice.

Worship has a vertical relationship to it - from man to God. But it also has a horizontal relationship - from man to man. If you do not worship God well it will have a negative effect on how you relate to others. When your vertical relationship is strong it improves how you care about others. Likewise, if you are not treating other people well it will hinder your devotion to God.

Godliness then, is being devoted in both directions - upward toward God and outward toward others. If that is what she meant by  being godly, then I am deeply humbled and greatly encouraged.

I want to worship God well and I want to be a good witness for Him. That is the godliness I seek.

"Add to your faith........GODLINESS"!

October 7, 2018

"When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." I Corinthians 15:54-57

I Corinthians 15 is truly one of the great chapters of the Bible! It is great because it captures the spirit of a great man (Paul) and the essence of a great Truth (the Gospel).

Please allow me to summarize several of the great Truths it expresses:

1) God is stronger than the enemy!

Satan's two biggest weapons were sin and death. Through the grace of God in Jesus sin was defeated on the cross and death defeated when He walked out of the grave on the third day.

2) Salvation is stronger that sin!

Because Jesus became a man and proved that temptation can be resisted and that holiness is possible. As a result of His holy life He was able to assume all of the sins of humanity and become the atoning sacrifice for sin! He became like us that we might become like Him.

3) Life is stronger than death!

Jesus had to die in order to conquer death. We have to die in order to become eternal. The wages of sin is death - spiritual separation from God that can lead to eternal death. But because Jesus surrendered to death and then defeated it through the resurrection, we gain victory over death by living in His life!

4) Eternity is stronger than time!

During life, time is pretty much our enemy. We try to learn to use it to our advantage but as seconds become minutes and minutes turn into hours and hour add up into days and days mount into months which multiply into years - well, you know - time wears us down and we die. BUT, when we die in Christ we get the last laugh on time as we are born into eternity! There are no clocks or calendars in Heaven!

If you notice a victorious tone in I Corinthians 15 - you are right! We ARE victorious because Jesus won the victory for us!

Do you have that victory?

October 6, 2018

"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; and to perseverance, godliness" II Peter 1:5-6

My little dog can jump up on my bed even though it is about three times his height! And cats are able to jump from the floor to the top of the fridge though it towers above the cat's height.

Either one of those would be equivalent to you or I leaping up into a three or four story window. I really can't see that happening!

Perhaps that explains why ladders and stairs were invented for us humans. We can scale heights 10 or twelve inches at a time.

In the same way, I have never known anyone who could jump from becoming a new believer in Christ to becoming a fully mature spiritual giant in one big faith leap. Spiritual growth and maturity happens one faith step at a time.

Peter traces those steps for us in II Peter 1:5-7. We have been studying those steps recently but we have not yet tied each of those individual steps into a staircase to maturity. There is a significance to the order of these virtues.

Of course, it all begins with faith for faith initiates the personal relationship with God through Christ.

On the foundation of that faith relationship is to be added "Goodness". Goodness is the moral courage to apply your faith to daily challenges of living. As James declares in his epistle, "Faith without works is dead".

To moral courage is to be added Knowledge. Knowledge is the wisdom and insight that grows out of your relationship with Christ. Knowledge is knowing what pleases God and combined with Goodness, helps you to do what honors Him.

The third step on the way to spiritual maturity is Self-Control. Self-Control means "getting a grip" on your life. You must discipline the fleshly passions and desires so that the faith virtues can be unleashed through you.

Next is Perseverance, the ability to be steadfast in the face of sore trials. In fact, the original word "hupomone" means to endure difficulties in such a way as to turn it for good. Perseverance believes I Corinthians 10:13 and lives according to it - "No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it."

A fifth step to be added is "Godliness" or sincere worship of God that is evidenced by a godly witness.Godliness is the culmination of "faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control and perseverance" being active in your life. "Godliness" must be shown in your attitudes as well as in your actions.

Puppies can leap and cats can REALLY leap but Christians can't. But that doesn't mean we cannot make it the top in our spiritual maturity. It does mean that we must make steady progress step-by-step in our walk of faith.

How are you doing?

 Are you making steady progress? 

Which step do you think you are on?