Standing Firm

Is there a purpose in the trails we face as a Christian? Have you ever given it much thought I recently explained to a group of Christians that when I received Christ I was lied to by other Christians; salvation while it is a gift from God is not free, it costs you one thing above all else and that is your free will. As a Christian you are called to replace your wants and desires with that of Jesus Christ. It requires a sacrifice that many of us are not willing to make. We may have no problem surrendering a few hours on Sunday morning or even an hour on Wednesday night but how much more are we willing to give God. You see He wants it all. I am sure that while Paul was sitting in the Roman prison there were times when he had to remind himself of why he was there. We see it in his writings to the churches especially to Philippi.

¹² I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, ¹³ so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. ¹⁴ And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Philippians 1:12-14 (ESV)

Do our trials make us bolder for Christ? Do the things we endure provide an impact for the community around us? Paul declares that the every member of the imperial guard knew that his only crime was his belief in Jesus Christ. And while he was suffering in prison those who watched and were believers were strengthened in their own faith. Are we today having that impact on the community of believers we belong to? Jesus told us that if we chose to follow him it would not always be an easy path and that divisions would occur;

⁵¹ Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. ⁵² For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. ⁵³ They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.” Luke 12:51-53 (ESV)

And some of you know and understand this all too well. As personal desires fight for control we have seen problems arise within families about the stance we have taken for Jesus. However, Paul has given us a simple instruction today as he wrote to the Ephesians;

13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. Ephesians 6:13-18 (NLT)

Today are you standing firm for Jesus Christ? Do those you meet have any doubt about who you are or what God you serve? If so I pray you find the strength to take a stand before the world proclaiming that Jesus is Lord of your life. Have a blessed day as you live in the light of God’s Word.

Clinging to the Rock

Do you ever have doubts? I can promise you everyone does from time to time it is nothing to be ashamed of and if anything else it proves that you are a human being just like everyone else. I am sure that given enough time everyone feels this. I can say that because we see it in scripture:

"16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted." Matthew 28:16-17 (ESV)

Now here we have eleven individuals who for the previous three and a half years have been walking with a person so special that the bible records thirty-seven miracles that He performs. Let us not forget the forty-four prophecies that He also fulfills found in the Old Testament. We also know from John this is not all that he did:

"24 This disciple is the one who testifies to these events and has recorded them here. And we know that his account of these things is accurate.25 Jesus also did many other things. If they were all written down, I suppose the whole world could not contain the books that would be written."

John 21:24-25 (NLT)

However, there were those who still had doubts. You see doubt is not about a lack of faith but it comes from the way we view time. We grow impatient for an answer to our questions and then we start wondering if God has heard us or if he is ever going to answer. I have learned he always answers. However, His answer may not be what we want to hear. Yet, these individuals had received a promise like so many others found in scripture; that seemed impossible by man’s standard. However, God was faithful to deliver on them. We see Abraham and Sarah having their first child when Sarah is 90 years old. I am assured that they had doubts, because when Sarah hears that she will conceive and give birth to a son she laughs.

"12 So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”" Genesis 18:12 (ESV)

So as doubters go we find ourselves in a long list of people who God has chosen to use to make a difference in this world. While it may not make a whole lot of sense to you while you are going through life always remember that:

"24 But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.25 This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength."

1 Corinthians 1:24-25 (NLT)

Today if you are struggling with doubt let me assure you in time all things will be made new and what has made no sense to you here will be revealed to you one day in glory. I am sure that when the apostles who had doubts took their last breath in service to Jesus Christ they no longer had doubts about who he was or why they had endured all that they had. I want to leave you with one verse of scripture:

“Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.” Isaiah 26:4 (ESV)

Today no matter what doubts you may have about your life or the things going on around you I can tell you that when doubt creeps in God is still there and he is an unmovable rock that will weather every storm that the world can through at you. Maybe in your time of doubt you need to just reach out and cling to the Rock of your salvation. Be blessed as you walk in the Light of God’s Word.

The Rescue Squad

Good morning and God Bless, This morning have you ever realized that as a believer in Jesus Christ we have been given a responsibility to rescue people from death. When I look for wisdom from scripture I go to the book of Proverbs and this morning I was looking at Proverbs 24:11-12:

11 Rescue those who are being taken away to death; hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. 12 If you say, “Behold, we did not know this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it, and will he not repay man according to his work? (ESV)

The first verse makes it rather clear that those who are able are to do everything in their power rescue those who are stumbling towards death. However, the second verse warns us that if we try to say that we did not know this was going to happen God has basically called us to account for it and what we have done or not done will be held to our account in the end. I wanted to share that with you because today we have a choice to make are we going to do what we can to rescue those we meet who have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and shepherd or are we going to allow them to continue down the path that leads to destruction.

Now there is a particular way in which God has called us to do this it is found in John 13:34:35:

34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (ESV)

We are to love one another. If we look at the book of Isaiah we see an example of how we are to do this in action.

6 “No, this is the kind of fasting I want: Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. Let the oppressed go free, and remove the chains that bind people.7 Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help. Isaiah 58:6-7 (NLT)

Each of us can do something in order to help rescue those who are lost and headed towards death. It requires we allow God to show us were we can do the most good. Not that this will always be the most comfortable place. However if it is in God’s will it will be the most beneficial experience you will ever have. I pray God leads you to someone today that needs rescuing as you walk in the light of His Word.

Life Upside Down

I was reading this morning from the book of Isaiah and as I was looking at it these verses jumped out at me and I realized that in our world today many people have taken this position when  it comes to their relationship to God.

15 Ah, you who hide deep from the Lord your counsel, whose deeds are in the dark, and who says, “Who sees us? Who knows us?” Isaiah 29:15 (ESV)

Have you ever found yourself doing something that you felt was wrong. However, because at that moment in time you were in the privacy of your home or office with no one around that you could do it and get away with it and no one will be the wiser. It is my personal life I can live it anyway I see fit. Many well-meaning Christians hold to this very idea every day. Isaiah goes on from here though and makes a simple but true statement.

16 You turn things upside down! Shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say of its maker, “He did not make me”; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, “He has no understanding”? Isaiah 29:16 (ESV)

For many of us we believe we have placed ourselves either on an equal footing with God or that we are above God in certain areas of our lives. What we want is after all what we deserve and there should be no reason why we cannot have what we desire. The problem is that what we may desire is often not what God would have for us.

It has been a long time coming for me to see the truth in this whether it be in the church or outside the church our desires to have everything our way does not line up with the Christian calling. If our personal desires were the correct way to go through life; the story we find in the scriptures would probably look a lot different. Even from the beginning, if what we as individuals wanted out weighed God’s design for our lives Adam and Eve would still be in the Garden.

We have believed a lie and we all fall for it from time to time. We see that something that we want and even though we know we should turn around and run; we will do it anyhow. Temptation is an interesting thing it is not something God does to trap us; however, it is a measuring of our faith in Him. A friend recently said, “When we give way to temptation we show how little we trust God.”  

I have to ask you a simple question are you living life upside down? So whose life are you living; the one you have designed for yourself or the one created and established by God to bless you. Life is about choices be sure you’re your making the right ones as you walk in the light of God’s Word.

Living on Cash or Credit

As believers we are called to do more than sit on the pew or in-front of the TV or computer on Sunday morning or whatever day you take time to attend service in today’s culture. We see this modeled for us in the Gospels as Jesus sends out the 12 disciples. I chose to look at Luke’s account but it is also recorded in Mark and Matthew.

¹ And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, ² and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. Luke 9:1-2 (ESV)

One point you need to understand; Jesus did not just pick them to be his disciples one week and put them out doing his work the next. By most accounts Jesus has spent the better part of a year teaching and preparing these twelve men to be heralds of the good news that God’s Kingdom is close at hand. There was a time of preparation. They were equipped to perform miracles in the realm of healing and casting out demons. This served a two-fold purpose one it brought the end of suffering to those who needed it. However, it also showed the power of God among the people, it added credibility to the testimony they were sharing. This is the point that I want to touch on.

Today how creditable is your witness. Do your actions, attitudes and words reflect a relationship with Jesus Christ that has Him at the center to your life or do you have to announce that you are a Christian in every situation you enter into. There is no record in scripture about how any of these encounters went as the twelve went out so let us look at John 5:1:17 and the Healing at the Pool of Bethesda.

The Sheep gate was located off the northern side of the temple it was how the shepherds would bring the animals into the temple area in order to have them available for sacrifice. Here is located a pool that was believed had the ability to bring healing to the sick. However, this healing was only available when the waters had been stirred. In the case of the man Jesus heals he was never able to get to the water in time so he had laid here waiting all his life for someone to help him into the water. Jesus confronts the man with a question, “6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” John 5:6 (ESV)”. The man explains the problem of not having any help and Jesus responds, “8 Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” 9 And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked. John 5:8-9 (ESV)” Then the real action starts then people start to come to see what has happened. The purpose of the miracles was always to bring healing and end suffering but also to bring an opportunity to glorify God.

Now personally I believe that the God I serve is an unchanging God; who has promised to provide us a helper (the Holy Spirit), who convicts us of our sin and draws us to salvation through our relationship to Jesus Christ. With this same Holy Spirit being the one providing us the gifts of the Spirit to serve God as we walk in accordance to His Word. We to have been sent out to tell the world about the soon coming Kingdom of God, Matthew 28:16-20 shows this to be the truth.

So today what is missing in our walk with God that keeps us from being the witnesses he has called us to be? In our culture today we are a society built on credit. As Dave Ramsey says, “we are buying stuff we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we really don’t like.” It’s funny to me how true that is of our Christian walk just in reverse. As Christians we are using our energies, to try to win people who don’t really like us, because as Christians we have no credibility because we lack power to live the lives God has called us to. Today as Christians we are living on cash; our own ability and power, what we have is all we can spend on God. Meanwhile God has provided us an unlimited line of credit if we will just tap into His power through our surrendering to the Holy Spirit’s guidance. What will you do today depend on your ability or depend on God’s?  The question is CASH or CREDIT? Have a blessed day as you walk in the light of God’s Word.

Preparing for Rain

I was out cutting grass this evening and I was thinking about all the rain we have had here in the upstate so far this year. One thought I had while cutting grass was how this time last year we were in a drought that had been affecting the area for the past ten years. Then I began to think about when I was 14 or 15 that we had been in a drought that was so sever in the south east that farmers out west were sending hay to the upstate of South Carolina so people could keep their livestock feed. I can remember working in the back of a tractor trailer and it being100 degrees outside dragging square hay bales out and loading them in pick-up trucks. I remember churches and individuals all around the country praying for rain like they did during the dustbowl era.

I than had a thought about Elijah and how he had prayed and the rain stopped for 3 ½ years. (1 Kings 17:1)

1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand; there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” (ESV)

Then how he prayed for the rain to return (1 Kings 18:45).

41 And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.” 42 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel. And he bowed himself down on the earth and put his face between his knees. 43 And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” And he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go again,” seven times. 44 And at the seventh time he said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, lest the rain stop you.’ ” 45 And in a little while the heavens grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel. (ESV)

 Do you ever wonder if they were prepared for the rain? After ten years of drought conditions here at home; we were overwhelmed with the amount of water that came in the past eight months. The ground soaked up as much as it could and the water began to pool and run; the creeks overflowed and it took out bridges and roads, it left a path of destruction everywhere. The truth is water is the most powerful force in nature it controls life and death it can teardown mountains and build up islands only to tear them down later. We have seen the destructive power of water through the devastation of hurricanes like Katrina and Sandy. So I still wonder if they were prepared for the rain.

In scripture we see rain in two contexts in the Old Testament. The term mātar which can mean rain in the physical or metaphorical sense. It is either a blessing or a curse depending on the context of the scripture; to much rain is destructive while the right amount allows life to prosper. As I thought about this one of the things I have heard most of my Christian walk has been that if we praise God he will rain blessings down on us.

 The question I am asking myself tonight though is how prepared are we for those blessings (the rain)? Are we praying for something and feel as if we are in a drought? We ask God to deliver us from certain situations and bless us with certain things. However, when we get them do we know what to do with them?  There is a story I was told several years ago about an evangelist during the years of the dust bowl that was preaching a revival. The major issue at the time was prayer for rain. One night as they were preparing for the revival to start people were coming in and on the front row a young girl came in and sat down in her hand she held a red umbrella. The evangelist realized that she was the only one present who had one. He asked the people during the message if they were ready for it to rain. They all said they were, However, She was the only one who came prepared for God to answer her prayers. Are you prepared for rain to come into your life either as blessings or destructive? Tonight keep your umbrella handy and be prepared for God’s rain to come into your life as you walk in the light of God’s Word.

Do-Nothings

If you believe the Bible to be true than you should know work was something that God created we see it established Genesis;

 

15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and keep it.

Genesis 2:15 (ESV)

So from the beginning part of God’s plan was for man to work and take care of the creation that God made. I wonder how as a whole we are doing with that one. Now as we look at work with the understanding that God created it and calls us to it how should that impact our view of it?

First we need to adjust our thinking about our work. According to Paul in Ephesians we should approach our work in this manner:

5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, 6 not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, 7 rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, 8 knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. Ephesians 6:5-8 (ESV)

While we are not slaves per say some of us may feel like we are in our current jobs. In some ways we are; it’s not because we are physically chained to the job, but financial chains are no different. Most families work every day just to make ends meet trying to keep food on the table and provide for the basic necessities in life. We meet them every day in Wal-Mart or the restaurant you ate lunch in yesterday. They have no joy in their jobs but are doing what is required to make ends meet. Pray for them it’s the best thing we can do as the children of God. 

While we may see this every day in the outside world it may surprise you (not really) to know that it impacts the church as well. The church today has developed a problem that the only solution for it is to change how it approaches the idea of work and the issues of works.

 

First salvation is only found in one’s faith in Jesus Christ. The problem is we have spent so much time guarding that door and telling people that their works are not going to get them to heaven that we have filled our churches with do-nothings. You know what I am talking about if you have ever spent more than three Sundays in the same church. There are individuals who are in the sanctuary every time the doors are open. However, when you start talking about doing anything from working as an usher or greeter to teaching a Sunday school class or volunteering at the food bank they don’t have the time. Not to question the salvation of these individuals; however, my own experience with Christ tells me that when I accepted Him as Lord and master He had something for me to be doing.

 

Overtime I have learned that I can’t do everything; that is why God saves others to work with me to accomplish His goals. However, He did not save us just to sit on the pew waiting on the rapture. He has set before us a work just as He always intended as we saw in Genesis. Today I want to challenge you to apply the words of Paul to Titus in both your secular and church work: 

7 Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, 8 and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us. Titus 2:6-8 (ESV)

Today whatever you do; be sure to do it as if you were doing it unto Christ. There are individuals watching your every step just waiting for a chance to use you as an example of why Christians are fake. I challenge you today that whether it be inside the church, on your job or out in Wal-Mart; you let your words and deeds be a blessing to others as you walk in the light of God’s Word.