Yesterday at Compass Pastor Bobby gave an exhorting message on 1 Thessalonians 4:1-2 in which we read, ":Finally then, brethren, we request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God (just as you actually do walk), that you excel still more. For you know what commandments we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.
Why is it that so many people who claim to be Christians think they can be just mediocre and that making Christ your life is only for those "sold-out" Christians, those "fanatical" ones or those Christians who are just over-achievers so to speak?! That is not what the truth of Scripture teaches at all! In fact, the Bible teaches the exact opposite. The Bible teaches us that unless you are "fanatical" and all out, unless you have counted the cost and picked up your cross to follow Christ you aren't a Christian at all!!! There is no in between, there is no luke-warm, there is no mediocre. You see to be a Christian obedience is expected...it is not a bonus.
Now for those of us who are sold-out we too fall prey to a terrible tragedy which 1 Thessalonians reminds us of...that as "Christians" we cannot become complacent with where we are even when we are doing well and obeying the Lord! In fact, here we read in 1 Thess that we are to EXCEL still more. As Christians we need to pursue excellence for Christ.
Understanding grace should motivate us to live lives that are pleasing to Him. In Titus 2:11-14 we read, "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good."
So what do we do to excel more in our faith you may ask? We first need to evaluate where we are with the Lord. We need to ask ourselves some honest questions and give honest answers about whether or not we are conducting ourselves in a way that pleases Him. Are we working our hardest for the Lord? Are we receiving the truth of His word with joy? Are we sharing the Gospel with the lost? We need to take it to the next level. We may be doing "well" in our eyes but our standard isn't the Christian sitting next to us it is perfection...Jesus Christ.
So what next? We need to set a goal, a tangible and reachable goal to grow. How can we abound further for the Lord? Bobby brought up some challenging questions:
1. How can we give more time? 1 Corinthians 15:58
2. How can we give more money? 2 Corinthians 8:1-8
3. How can we give more love? 1 Thess 3:12-13, 4:10
We need to put the Lord first, others second instead of always thinking of ourselves. Philippians 3 talks about straining forward towards the goal, are we doing that?
Lastly, we need to increase our intensity in regards to our growth. We need to excel more and more and more and never stop. We need to continue on strong with our eyes on the prize. The olympic athletes train for hundreds upon hundreds of hours to prep for the Olympics, we need to train harder than that for the eternal reward after all they are only getting a piece of gold. We need to be willing to do whatever it takes to please Him. What a joyous day it will be when we hear the words well done good and faithful servant enter into the joy of your Master.
Remember where you are right now in your walk is not where you are meant to be...EXCEL STILL MORE!
Monday, August 18, 2008
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Perfection?
Philippians 3:12-14 " Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
Why is it that as Christians we often times are expected to be "perfect", "unstruggling", and "never sinning"? Is this the reality that the Bible speaks about or is this something that Christians have been pegged with by an unbelieving world? Unfortunately the term "hypocrite" is always tagged to the Christian faith because of the blatant hypocrisy within our churches today. However, there must be a realization among believers and non-believers alike that until we reach heaven and are glorified we have not achieved some form of perfection or are now not struggling with sin and this world. In fact our lives as Christians have now become even more complicated because we have a fleshly nature wanting and desiring to do what the flesh wants and the Holy Spirit indwelling us convicting us to abide by God's truth.
Throughout Paul's writings he often uses the analogy of a race in which runners are running to win a prize. As Christians we are on a race with a course marked out for us and it is the Lord who enables us to have the endurance and the perseverance to run that race, but it is a race and we have not finished quite yet. Paul himself admits here in Philippians earlier on that he wants to somehow be found with Christ in his death and attain to the resurrection of the dead...but immediately after he admits that he has not achieved this yet, he has not reached that point yet.
Paul in fact explains in 1 Corinthians 9:25-27 that he is in training, " Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." We see here that even Paul had to discipline his own body and make it a slave so that he would be faithful in fulfilling what Christ commanded. It didn't come natural to him despite the fact that he had been redeemed.
What we as believers need to realize is that our lives as "Christians" are not now perfect since we have been made new creations but they are now "purposeful". What I mean is that as believers we are still going to struggle with sin such as fear, worry, doubt and the list goes on but now we have the ability through Christ's conquering on the cross to overcome those sins. Our lives will still be marked by tragedy yet our response goes from a depressed mourning and sorrow and despair to finding hope in light of sadness knowing that our good God works all things together for His glory and our good because we are His kids. Our hearts will still be burdened at times through trial and yet we can now find joy as it says in James because we know that that trial is conforming us more into the image of Christ and preparing us for the good works that God has set forth for us to complete through Him. As Christians our lives are not perfect this side of heaven but purposeful because we are running a race marked out by a sovereign good God who is enabling our every move for His glory and our good and making us more like him so as Paul said in verse 14, we too can "...press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
(On a sidenote, as Christians we cannot use the excuse that we are not yet perfect to enable us to live lives that are not striving for holiness as God has commanded. We cannot use grace as a license to sin. Although we have not been made perfect we still have been called to live holy lives through His strength.)
In Acts 20:24 we read, "However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace."
GOD HAS GIVEN EACH OF US THE TASK OF SPREADING HIS TRUTH TO THIS LOST AND UNBELIEVING WORLD AND WE ARE TO BE FAITHFUL THROUGH HIS STRENGTH THAT ENABLES US TO DO THAT.
1 Corinthians 9:24 says, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize."
DO WE RUN THIS WAY? DO WE RUN TO WIN CHRIST?
2 Timothy 4:7 "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
MAY WE TOO BE ABLE TO SAY THIS
Why is it that as Christians we often times are expected to be "perfect", "unstruggling", and "never sinning"? Is this the reality that the Bible speaks about or is this something that Christians have been pegged with by an unbelieving world? Unfortunately the term "hypocrite" is always tagged to the Christian faith because of the blatant hypocrisy within our churches today. However, there must be a realization among believers and non-believers alike that until we reach heaven and are glorified we have not achieved some form of perfection or are now not struggling with sin and this world. In fact our lives as Christians have now become even more complicated because we have a fleshly nature wanting and desiring to do what the flesh wants and the Holy Spirit indwelling us convicting us to abide by God's truth.
Throughout Paul's writings he often uses the analogy of a race in which runners are running to win a prize. As Christians we are on a race with a course marked out for us and it is the Lord who enables us to have the endurance and the perseverance to run that race, but it is a race and we have not finished quite yet. Paul himself admits here in Philippians earlier on that he wants to somehow be found with Christ in his death and attain to the resurrection of the dead...but immediately after he admits that he has not achieved this yet, he has not reached that point yet.
Paul in fact explains in 1 Corinthians 9:25-27 that he is in training, " Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." We see here that even Paul had to discipline his own body and make it a slave so that he would be faithful in fulfilling what Christ commanded. It didn't come natural to him despite the fact that he had been redeemed.
What we as believers need to realize is that our lives as "Christians" are not now perfect since we have been made new creations but they are now "purposeful". What I mean is that as believers we are still going to struggle with sin such as fear, worry, doubt and the list goes on but now we have the ability through Christ's conquering on the cross to overcome those sins. Our lives will still be marked by tragedy yet our response goes from a depressed mourning and sorrow and despair to finding hope in light of sadness knowing that our good God works all things together for His glory and our good because we are His kids. Our hearts will still be burdened at times through trial and yet we can now find joy as it says in James because we know that that trial is conforming us more into the image of Christ and preparing us for the good works that God has set forth for us to complete through Him. As Christians our lives are not perfect this side of heaven but purposeful because we are running a race marked out by a sovereign good God who is enabling our every move for His glory and our good and making us more like him so as Paul said in verse 14, we too can "...press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
(On a sidenote, as Christians we cannot use the excuse that we are not yet perfect to enable us to live lives that are not striving for holiness as God has commanded. We cannot use grace as a license to sin. Although we have not been made perfect we still have been called to live holy lives through His strength.)
In Acts 20:24 we read, "However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace."
GOD HAS GIVEN EACH OF US THE TASK OF SPREADING HIS TRUTH TO THIS LOST AND UNBELIEVING WORLD AND WE ARE TO BE FAITHFUL THROUGH HIS STRENGTH THAT ENABLES US TO DO THAT.
1 Corinthians 9:24 says, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize."
DO WE RUN THIS WAY? DO WE RUN TO WIN CHRIST?
2 Timothy 4:7 "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
MAY WE TOO BE ABLE TO SAY THIS
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Who is The Master of My Fate??
Who is the master of my fate? That is a question that I think I would never utter because I "know" the truth, but often times I do not live like I "know" the truth.
Early a few mornings ago I was sitting on the edge of a cliff overlooking beautiful Lake Isabella admiring God's glory and thinking on many things I had been wrestling with in my own mind when the providence of God entered my mind and brought me much encouragement...it was almost like a light bulb going off in my head. As I was praying about some things going on in my life; for wisdom and discernment and direction and that God's will would be done and not my own God brought Proverbs 16:33 to the forefront of my mind, " The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD." All the worrying, all the questioning and all the uncertainity stopped at that very moment and I was able to rest in the comfort of knowing that my sovereign God had everything under control, had every step planned out and was going to prove Himself faithful forever.
Ironically or should I say providentially God spoke again to me on this very issue this weekend at church as Phil Johnson (Grace to You Ministries) brought a message from James. James, a book of wisdom in many ways tackles one of what can be the most depressing or encouraging topics in Christianity...God's sovereignty and providence.
James 4:13-17 "Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins."
Any truth from a human perspective seems bleak but from God's, the divine we see glory and goodness of our mighty King and can find great encouragement.
Verse 14a "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow..
From a human perspective, the future is not certain. The only things that are certain are things that are specifically spelled out in Scripture as promises that have been revealed. Although you may offer that the sun will rise tomorrow at a certain time, it is not certain and we cannot be certain that even if it does rise tomorrow that we will be there to view it. Mark 13:32 says "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." We do not know the hour that He will return. Deut 29:29 says, "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law." Here we see again that we really do not have any certainity about the future.
v14 "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."
Secondly, our lives are not constant. Life itself is a variable, it is brief and fragile. Throughout Scripture we find countless warnings and exhortations from many different books explaining this very idea...that life is a vapor. Psalm 39:5, Psalm 89:47, Psalm 90:5, Isaiah 40:6-7 says, "A voice says, "Cry out." And I said, "What shall I cry?" "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass."
, 1 Peter 1:24, Job 7:6-7, 9:25-26 and 14:1-2. We are insignificant in the eternal scope of things.
v15-16 "Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil."
Lastly, we are not sovereign. The rebuke we read in Scripture about planning here in James is not referring to planning but to leaving God out of your planning not planning relying on God's will or desiring that His will be done. There is no dependence shown towards God in this aspect. YOU CANNOT LEAVE HIM OUT OF IT!!! In our own pride there is often a tendency to think we know better or for us to plan things without seeking Him in prayer and with a desire that He will work it out. You can make all the plans you want but rarely does it, if ever, work out the way you think or want it to. The parables in the end of Matthew 24 and beginning of 25 show us that you must plan for life's uncertainities (from our perspective). We cannot control the future, even if we knew it we couldn't.
From the human perspective what we may be very discouraged. But take a look at it from the divine side of things and may you be encouraged. A simple definition of the providence of God is as follows, according to Phil Johnson " God's sovereign working in every detail of whatever happens to assure everything He created acheives the puprose He made it for!" What an encouragement in knowing that God is ultimately and intimately involved in every aspect of our lives.
v15 "Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."
The future is absolutely certain! God knows the future, He has planned it and He will carry it out! Everything that happens is God's will, Ephesians 1:11 "In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will..." In Isaiah 46:9-10 we read about God decreeing everything. In this we must also realize that evil is a part of God's plan although He is not the effectual cause of it, He planned for it. God was not surprised by it. He didn't create the world and stand back amazed that the fall occurred but instead He planned for it for His own glory and his wise and holy purposes.
v14"Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."
God is perfectly constant. Everytime I think about this attribute of God I find great comfort. Everything in life is changing constantly but we can find hope in the fact that He is the only being that never changes! He is always faithful, always true to His Word, and the same yesterday today and forevermore! James 1:17 and 1 Timothy 6:16
v15-16 "Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil."
God is utterly sovereign. Do you realize that to think of God as anything other than being sovereign is not ok, in fact it is a sin! We wouldn't pray to an unsovereign God...think about that, it wouldn't make sense. Do not rob God of His glory in thinking that somehow we have some control over our lives. Colossians 1:16-17 says this so clearly when we read
"For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." There are no what we would call "random" happenings, everything happens for a specific purpose. Romans 8:28 wouldn't make sense otherwise. Proverbs 16:33 reminds us that it is God who directs our pathhs. James 1:19 and Romans 8:29-20 clearly states that it is even God who is sovereign over our salvation in every aspect! Genesis 45:5 teaches us that God is even sovereign over evil acts (Job gives us a clear picture of this as well). Think about that for a second, it was the most evil act in the world that God used to bring him the most glory and for the greatest good...the cross of Christ!
So who is the master of our fate? Who gets to make the shots, who gets to decide? Who makes the decisions? Who works things out for good in the lives of those who love him and who brings glory to His name? Who works EVERY DETAIL in order to acheive a specific end? GOD!! God is the master of our fate, He is the one who has it all under control. Remembering this such bring us great encouragement, joy and hope!!!
As Oswald Chambers has said "Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading."
Early a few mornings ago I was sitting on the edge of a cliff overlooking beautiful Lake Isabella admiring God's glory and thinking on many things I had been wrestling with in my own mind when the providence of God entered my mind and brought me much encouragement...it was almost like a light bulb going off in my head. As I was praying about some things going on in my life; for wisdom and discernment and direction and that God's will would be done and not my own God brought Proverbs 16:33 to the forefront of my mind, " The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD." All the worrying, all the questioning and all the uncertainity stopped at that very moment and I was able to rest in the comfort of knowing that my sovereign God had everything under control, had every step planned out and was going to prove Himself faithful forever.
Ironically or should I say providentially God spoke again to me on this very issue this weekend at church as Phil Johnson (Grace to You Ministries) brought a message from James. James, a book of wisdom in many ways tackles one of what can be the most depressing or encouraging topics in Christianity...God's sovereignty and providence.
James 4:13-17 "Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins."
Any truth from a human perspective seems bleak but from God's, the divine we see glory and goodness of our mighty King and can find great encouragement.
Verse 14a "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow..
From a human perspective, the future is not certain. The only things that are certain are things that are specifically spelled out in Scripture as promises that have been revealed. Although you may offer that the sun will rise tomorrow at a certain time, it is not certain and we cannot be certain that even if it does rise tomorrow that we will be there to view it. Mark 13:32 says "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." We do not know the hour that He will return. Deut 29:29 says, "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law." Here we see again that we really do not have any certainity about the future.
v14 "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."
Secondly, our lives are not constant. Life itself is a variable, it is brief and fragile. Throughout Scripture we find countless warnings and exhortations from many different books explaining this very idea...that life is a vapor. Psalm 39:5, Psalm 89:47, Psalm 90:5, Isaiah 40:6-7 says, "A voice says, "Cry out." And I said, "What shall I cry?" "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass."
, 1 Peter 1:24, Job 7:6-7, 9:25-26 and 14:1-2. We are insignificant in the eternal scope of things.
v15-16 "Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil."
Lastly, we are not sovereign. The rebuke we read in Scripture about planning here in James is not referring to planning but to leaving God out of your planning not planning relying on God's will or desiring that His will be done. There is no dependence shown towards God in this aspect. YOU CANNOT LEAVE HIM OUT OF IT!!! In our own pride there is often a tendency to think we know better or for us to plan things without seeking Him in prayer and with a desire that He will work it out. You can make all the plans you want but rarely does it, if ever, work out the way you think or want it to. The parables in the end of Matthew 24 and beginning of 25 show us that you must plan for life's uncertainities (from our perspective). We cannot control the future, even if we knew it we couldn't.
From the human perspective what we may be very discouraged. But take a look at it from the divine side of things and may you be encouraged. A simple definition of the providence of God is as follows, according to Phil Johnson " God's sovereign working in every detail of whatever happens to assure everything He created acheives the puprose He made it for!" What an encouragement in knowing that God is ultimately and intimately involved in every aspect of our lives.
v15 "Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that."
The future is absolutely certain! God knows the future, He has planned it and He will carry it out! Everything that happens is God's will, Ephesians 1:11 "In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will..." In Isaiah 46:9-10 we read about God decreeing everything. In this we must also realize that evil is a part of God's plan although He is not the effectual cause of it, He planned for it. God was not surprised by it. He didn't create the world and stand back amazed that the fall occurred but instead He planned for it for His own glory and his wise and holy purposes.
v14"Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."
God is perfectly constant. Everytime I think about this attribute of God I find great comfort. Everything in life is changing constantly but we can find hope in the fact that He is the only being that never changes! He is always faithful, always true to His Word, and the same yesterday today and forevermore! James 1:17 and 1 Timothy 6:16
v15-16 "Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil."
God is utterly sovereign. Do you realize that to think of God as anything other than being sovereign is not ok, in fact it is a sin! We wouldn't pray to an unsovereign God...think about that, it wouldn't make sense. Do not rob God of His glory in thinking that somehow we have some control over our lives. Colossians 1:16-17 says this so clearly when we read
"For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." There are no what we would call "random" happenings, everything happens for a specific purpose. Romans 8:28 wouldn't make sense otherwise. Proverbs 16:33 reminds us that it is God who directs our pathhs. James 1:19 and Romans 8:29-20 clearly states that it is even God who is sovereign over our salvation in every aspect! Genesis 45:5 teaches us that God is even sovereign over evil acts (Job gives us a clear picture of this as well). Think about that for a second, it was the most evil act in the world that God used to bring him the most glory and for the greatest good...the cross of Christ!
So who is the master of our fate? Who gets to make the shots, who gets to decide? Who makes the decisions? Who works things out for good in the lives of those who love him and who brings glory to His name? Who works EVERY DETAIL in order to acheive a specific end? GOD!! God is the master of our fate, He is the one who has it all under control. Remembering this such bring us great encouragement, joy and hope!!!
As Oswald Chambers has said "Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading."
Friday, July 25, 2008
Do We Know Him?
Philippians 3:7-9 "7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith."
As I sat pondering these words for some time I began to realize a disheartening truth in Christianity today...Christians today are not like the disciple Paul describes of himself above. In fact many so-called Christians today have missed something, they aren't getting it, they have missed the mark and it is time to re-focus and re-train our thinking.
The term "Christian" is thrown around lightly especially in the United States. In fact it is almost cultural to be called a Christian. If you don't have a religious affiliation you are a "Christian", if you believe there is a greater power...God maybe, you are a "Christian", if you do good things for others, you are a "Christian"...and the list goes on. But what on earth are we thinking? How has American Christianity become so fruitless, so mediocre, and worse so wrong? Why do people no longer even know what a "Christian" is?
When I hear the word Christian I immediately think a disciple of Christ. I think of someone who is sold out for Him, who is passionately pursuing Him, who has their goal in mind and is striving whole-heartedly to gain the prize. I think of someone who is saturated in the truth of God's Word, who is actively serving the Lord and others, who is burdened with the desire for God's name to be glorified and who is living a life that is radically and when I say radically I mean RADICALLY different then those around them. But lets be honest here, is this what we see in modern Christianity? Does this even describe some of us...any of us who are claiming to know Him?
Something has gone terribly awry in this "Christian" culture and we as genuine disciples should be burdened with a desire to set it straight. In the beginning of this post I posted Philippians 3:7-9. This is a challenging set of Scripture where we find that Christians are to have counted everything...EVERYTHING a loss compared to knowing Christ!! What does that even mean? To know Christ...does it mean to know a lot about him? Well yes that is part of it but it means so much more...
1 John 2:3 says, "We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands." But wait a second, if we are to obey His commands we are going to have to know them and the only way to know them is to be in His manual for life...the Word and in it daily and as often daily as we can be. Do we claim to know him but fail to read fellowship with Him in His Word and in prayer? Is there even a desire for you as a "Christian" to be in the Word? I would beg to say that if there is no desire there is something radically wrong with your thinking.
1 John 2:15 says, "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." What does it mean to love the world? Idols of the heart are ANYTHING that takes precedent over Christ. Anything we love more, we value more, are unwilling to sacrifice etc. for Christ. How often do we place things in front of Christ...He MUST be number one in all things...number one in your school work or your job, number one in your relationships, number one in your daily chores, number one in your worship...etc. If you love the world, if it is so appetizing to you and you love saturating yourself in it how can you claim to know Him? How can you claim that as Paul writes in Philippians 3 that you have considered all those things rubbish? Bottom line...YOU CANNOT!
1 John 2:29 says, "If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him." The child of God desires to please His father...desires to do what is right. Do you? Do you desire to live a life that mirrors Him and reflects Him in all His glory? If you are living a life that is not marked by righteousness there is something wrong.
I could go on and on about what it means to know Christ, what it means to be His true disciple and so forth but it all comes down to do you really know Christ? Does He know you? Have you picked up your cross and followed Him? Are you living a life that is radically and i mean RADICALLY different then those around you...even those who claim to be "Christians". Are you seeking Him with your whole heart? Is your desire, your passion and your goal to see His name glorified? Are you in love with the Savior and in awe of His mercy and lovingkindness? Have you been transformed by the Work of His Son on the cross?
The church has fallen prey to watering down the truth and even the Gospel. There is no longer a passion for truth and what a sadness that brings to my heart. Many are blinded by the men standing behind pulpits who are preaching something that is far from what the Word teaches. As true believers we should seek not only in our own lives to live by truth and proclaim it but to seek to share that truth with all those around us. "Christians" are not necessarily "Christians"...in fact I would argue that many are not.
May the reminder found in 1 John 3:1 (" How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! ")inspire us, encourage us, and motivate us to take heed and be like Paul and like the disciple he describes in Philippians 3...a man or woman who has counted everything a loss compared to Christ who is the beginning the middle and the end of life, all satisfaction and joy!!!
As I sat pondering these words for some time I began to realize a disheartening truth in Christianity today...Christians today are not like the disciple Paul describes of himself above. In fact many so-called Christians today have missed something, they aren't getting it, they have missed the mark and it is time to re-focus and re-train our thinking.
The term "Christian" is thrown around lightly especially in the United States. In fact it is almost cultural to be called a Christian. If you don't have a religious affiliation you are a "Christian", if you believe there is a greater power...God maybe, you are a "Christian", if you do good things for others, you are a "Christian"...and the list goes on. But what on earth are we thinking? How has American Christianity become so fruitless, so mediocre, and worse so wrong? Why do people no longer even know what a "Christian" is?
When I hear the word Christian I immediately think a disciple of Christ. I think of someone who is sold out for Him, who is passionately pursuing Him, who has their goal in mind and is striving whole-heartedly to gain the prize. I think of someone who is saturated in the truth of God's Word, who is actively serving the Lord and others, who is burdened with the desire for God's name to be glorified and who is living a life that is radically and when I say radically I mean RADICALLY different then those around them. But lets be honest here, is this what we see in modern Christianity? Does this even describe some of us...any of us who are claiming to know Him?
Something has gone terribly awry in this "Christian" culture and we as genuine disciples should be burdened with a desire to set it straight. In the beginning of this post I posted Philippians 3:7-9. This is a challenging set of Scripture where we find that Christians are to have counted everything...EVERYTHING a loss compared to knowing Christ!! What does that even mean? To know Christ...does it mean to know a lot about him? Well yes that is part of it but it means so much more...
1 John 2:3 says, "We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands." But wait a second, if we are to obey His commands we are going to have to know them and the only way to know them is to be in His manual for life...the Word and in it daily and as often daily as we can be. Do we claim to know him but fail to read fellowship with Him in His Word and in prayer? Is there even a desire for you as a "Christian" to be in the Word? I would beg to say that if there is no desire there is something radically wrong with your thinking.
1 John 2:15 says, "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." What does it mean to love the world? Idols of the heart are ANYTHING that takes precedent over Christ. Anything we love more, we value more, are unwilling to sacrifice etc. for Christ. How often do we place things in front of Christ...He MUST be number one in all things...number one in your school work or your job, number one in your relationships, number one in your daily chores, number one in your worship...etc. If you love the world, if it is so appetizing to you and you love saturating yourself in it how can you claim to know Him? How can you claim that as Paul writes in Philippians 3 that you have considered all those things rubbish? Bottom line...YOU CANNOT!
1 John 2:29 says, "If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him." The child of God desires to please His father...desires to do what is right. Do you? Do you desire to live a life that mirrors Him and reflects Him in all His glory? If you are living a life that is not marked by righteousness there is something wrong.
I could go on and on about what it means to know Christ, what it means to be His true disciple and so forth but it all comes down to do you really know Christ? Does He know you? Have you picked up your cross and followed Him? Are you living a life that is radically and i mean RADICALLY different then those around you...even those who claim to be "Christians". Are you seeking Him with your whole heart? Is your desire, your passion and your goal to see His name glorified? Are you in love with the Savior and in awe of His mercy and lovingkindness? Have you been transformed by the Work of His Son on the cross?
The church has fallen prey to watering down the truth and even the Gospel. There is no longer a passion for truth and what a sadness that brings to my heart. Many are blinded by the men standing behind pulpits who are preaching something that is far from what the Word teaches. As true believers we should seek not only in our own lives to live by truth and proclaim it but to seek to share that truth with all those around us. "Christians" are not necessarily "Christians"...in fact I would argue that many are not.
May the reminder found in 1 John 3:1 (" How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! ")inspire us, encourage us, and motivate us to take heed and be like Paul and like the disciple he describes in Philippians 3...a man or woman who has counted everything a loss compared to Christ who is the beginning the middle and the end of life, all satisfaction and joy!!!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Learning from Job
This past weekend I had the privilege of going up to the Women discipling women conference at Grace Community Church. It was a great time of teaching and instruction from the Word of God on various issues in regards to biblical counseling. One specific message that resounded deep within was on the book of Job and how to counsel someone when the whole world seems to be caving in.
When we read the book of Job we quickly realize that God himself esteemed Job by calling him "blameless" and "upright"...in fact it is God who brings Job to the attention of Satan. We all know the story and how God grants Satan permission to try Job's faith in a sense. You see Satan's ideal is for us to be so stripped that we are doubting God's goodness and grace and curse his name. Then come the three friends and boy can we learn from them and the counsel they offer their dear hurting friend.
MISTAKES IN COUNSELING THE SUFFERING:
1. We miss the depth of God's wisdom and His counsel. We assume that God has the same plan for everyone and that is not true! All of us are legalists at heart and this is why we need the Gospel everyday. WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT GOD IS DOING!!!
2. We assume that there is a direct one-on-one correlation between suffering and righteousness. We soon see Job wonder why God is not working the way he always did in his life as his mentality was that if he lived an upright life he would have a blessed life.
3.We can assume wrongly that suffering is punitive rather then redemptive...in fact it is done in love.
4. We don't realize that God's perspective on justice differs from ours. If we are saved our suffering is not the wrath of God on our sins as that has been poured out on Christ and paid for. In adversity we learn "Here I am, see how wonderful I am" from the Lord.
5. We can fail to listen (Proverbs 18:2)
6. We can fail to love and thereby fail to believe the best (1 Cor 13:7)
7. We can fall into self-righteousness and pride (Job 15:9)...always comparing
8. We can assume that we know everything about God's providence (1 Cor 13:4-5a)
HOW TO AVOID THESE MISTAKES:
- We need to listen and learn (Job 19:21)
- We need to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep (Romans 12:15)
-If one part of the body suffers we all do (1 Cor 12:26)
-We need to bear each others burdens (Galatians 6:2)
-We must treat all with kindness (2 Tim 2:24)
-We must be ready to bow in humility..God is not obligated to tell us why something is happening, he is not obligated to vindicate
REMEMBER GOD IS NOT YOUR ENEMY BECAUSE HE MADE HIS SON HIS ENEMY (Zeph 3)
HOW DOES JOB GAIN VICTORY?
1. Finds solid and firm ground...HIS REDEEMER LIVES (Job 19:25-27)
2. He realizes God is not punishing him but teaching him about who He is
3. His faith has been approved!
GOD'S GOAL IN AFFLICTION:
1. HIS GLORY
2. Our Good (Romans 8:28)
3. Our affliction is always redemptive since judgment has been poured on Christ, His son
HOW TO COUNSEL THE SUFFERING:
1. No complaining against one another
2. Realize God uses certain people to set examples for His glory
3. Help one endure by serving in practical ways, reassuring one of God's character
4. All the Lord's dealings are full of compassion and mercy
AND REMEMBER SOMETIMES GOD'S PROVIDENCE IS MORE COMPLEX THEN WE THINK (1 Thess 5:14)
When we read the book of Job we quickly realize that God himself esteemed Job by calling him "blameless" and "upright"...in fact it is God who brings Job to the attention of Satan. We all know the story and how God grants Satan permission to try Job's faith in a sense. You see Satan's ideal is for us to be so stripped that we are doubting God's goodness and grace and curse his name. Then come the three friends and boy can we learn from them and the counsel they offer their dear hurting friend.
MISTAKES IN COUNSELING THE SUFFERING:
1. We miss the depth of God's wisdom and His counsel. We assume that God has the same plan for everyone and that is not true! All of us are legalists at heart and this is why we need the Gospel everyday. WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT GOD IS DOING!!!
2. We assume that there is a direct one-on-one correlation between suffering and righteousness. We soon see Job wonder why God is not working the way he always did in his life as his mentality was that if he lived an upright life he would have a blessed life.
3.We can assume wrongly that suffering is punitive rather then redemptive...in fact it is done in love.
4. We don't realize that God's perspective on justice differs from ours. If we are saved our suffering is not the wrath of God on our sins as that has been poured out on Christ and paid for. In adversity we learn "Here I am, see how wonderful I am" from the Lord.
5. We can fail to listen (Proverbs 18:2)
6. We can fail to love and thereby fail to believe the best (1 Cor 13:7)
7. We can fall into self-righteousness and pride (Job 15:9)...always comparing
8. We can assume that we know everything about God's providence (1 Cor 13:4-5a)
HOW TO AVOID THESE MISTAKES:
- We need to listen and learn (Job 19:21)
- We need to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep (Romans 12:15)
-If one part of the body suffers we all do (1 Cor 12:26)
-We need to bear each others burdens (Galatians 6:2)
-We must treat all with kindness (2 Tim 2:24)
-We must be ready to bow in humility..God is not obligated to tell us why something is happening, he is not obligated to vindicate
REMEMBER GOD IS NOT YOUR ENEMY BECAUSE HE MADE HIS SON HIS ENEMY (Zeph 3)
HOW DOES JOB GAIN VICTORY?
1. Finds solid and firm ground...HIS REDEEMER LIVES (Job 19:25-27)
2. He realizes God is not punishing him but teaching him about who He is
3. His faith has been approved!
GOD'S GOAL IN AFFLICTION:
1. HIS GLORY
2. Our Good (Romans 8:28)
3. Our affliction is always redemptive since judgment has been poured on Christ, His son
HOW TO COUNSEL THE SUFFERING:
1. No complaining against one another
2. Realize God uses certain people to set examples for His glory
3. Help one endure by serving in practical ways, reassuring one of God's character
4. All the Lord's dealings are full of compassion and mercy
AND REMEMBER SOMETIMES GOD'S PROVIDENCE IS MORE COMPLEX THEN WE THINK (1 Thess 5:14)
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