Hold On

"Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of our epistle. 16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, 17 comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work."
2 Thessalonians 2:15-17


Paul is telling us here, that we ought to hold on to the things we were taught, Biblical things, the life-lessons, that come to us from either the written Word, or from the encouragement and teaching of friends and pastors. We are to stand fast, and to hold on. But what does it mean to stand fast? I believe that standing fast involves having the faith in the midst of terrible adversity, to keep you feet planted in one place, even though they really are wanting to run the other way. What can help us in standing fast, is knowing to whom you belong. We, as believers, belong to the King of kings and Lord of lords. David knew this when he went out to face Goliath. Elijah knew this when he faced the prophets of Baal. So too, you and I can have this assurance. What makes us weak and feeble, in my mind, is that our quiet time with the Lord isn't what it should be. We aren't spending time in the Word. We aren't spending time in prayer like we should. The lack of these things in our lives makes us weak and anemic spiritually. Standing fast is standing upon the Word of God, taking it at face value, and what it says is true, and in the face of odds that seem to not be in our favor, to continue to believe and to stand upon the Word. So when the dust settles, and the smoke clears, we are still standing.

And then Paul tells us to hold on. Sometimes, the best way to get through something is just to fasten your seat belts and hold on. Paul is telling us to hold on to things that were taught to us, by the Word or by teachers. When things don't seem to make sense logically, you need to hold on to the things you have been taught. Pilots are taught to trust their instruments, because sometimes we lose our bearings and up seems down and down seems like it is up. So we hold on to what we are taught. Things like, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Or, "All things work together for the good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose." Those are promises that we can stand fast upon, and hold on to, in the face of perilous times in our lives. Beloved, stand fast, and hold on. Shalom.

All This Talk

"For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies."
2 Thessalonians 3:11

Nothing can destroy or divide a church like gossip. Paul knew this. Many times in his letters, he mentions the fact that we are not to be gossips. The fact of fishing for information, and then repeating it, is a form of gossip. The Greek word for "busybodies" means "to meddle." To be nosy. To be all up in somebody's business. To pump people for information, so that you can be "in the know." The root of this problem is basic. It is pride. To know something about you that you didn't think they knew. All of this energy spent fishing for information and talking to others could be spent doing something for the furtherance of the kingdom of God, not the kingdom of man.
In the context of the local church, that is what Paul is saying here. You are not working. Instead you are spending all your time gossiping.

In the book of James, he speaks of the tongue set on fire by hell. The tongue can ignite things and destroy them, which is exactly what the enemy wants. The thing is, people in the church either don't realize this, or ignore it. And that is the tragic thing. We have come to be inebriated over the gathering of information about our fellow man, which consumes time and energy better spent elsewhere.

Beloved, let us, all of us, take care to watch our tongues. No one wants to be guilty of destroying or dividing a church with our gossip. We have taken on a distorted view of gossip in the church, and it needs to be corrected, and the talk needs to stop. I have had people talk to me, in the church, about things which to them I have never spoken. I scratch my head and think, "How did they find out about that?" But then I realize who their friends are, and realize they run in the company of gossipers. How sad. Gossip hurts. It not only hurts the ones being talked about, but it hurts the ones you talk to, and it hurts people's opinions of the gossipers. A gossip is not the most esteemed person in the land. So beloved, let us stop all of this talk, and be about the business of the kingdom. Shalom.

Be Diligent

"Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for it you do these things you will never stumble; 11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
2 Peter 1:10-11

In the Merriam Webster dictionary, the word "diligent" means, "characterized by steady, earnest, and energetic effort." Now, to bring that definition into today's text, it would mean that to be diligent to make our call and election sure, that there would be some kind of effort on our part, as Christians. In other words, it isn't going to just "fall out of the sky" and happen to us. We must make some sort of effort. In fact, Peter tells us that if we do "these things" we will never stumble. But what is he talking about? Someone once said, when you see a "therefore" in the Scripture, you should go back and read the verses before it to see what the "therefore" is there for. Poor grammar but you get the idea. So, looking back on the preceding verses, it goes back to the things we talked about yesterday, the adding to our faith these qualities and characteristics listed in v v.5 - 9. Add to your faith virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. Peter is telling us that if we do this, and if we are making an earnest, steady, and energetic effort to make our call and election sure, we will never stumble. Wouldn't it be great if we would never stumble? Never saying something we shouldn't; never having that wrong attitude about something or somebody. To never stumble would be a great thing.

Peter tells us here in the text, that we will never stumble, and an entrance into the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be supplied to us. Peter tells us to make our call and election sure. Paul tells us to examine ourselves to see if we are found in the faith. It is diligence of introspection. It is a looking at ourselves and not looking at others. My mom used to tell me as a child, that if I just took care of myself, then I wouldn't have much time to "take care" of my brothers and sister, referring to our quarrelling, if I remember correctly. But that is so true for us Christians. If we are being diligent about ourselves, we won't have time to say, in the words of Peter in John 21:21, "What about him?" We let the Lord deal with others. We make sure OUR call and election is sure.

Beloved, God so loves you, and has given us His Word to get to know Him, and by which to guide our life. Let us add to our faith virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. And let us make a steady, earnest, and energetic effort to do these things and make our call and election sure, so that we will not stumble, and be supplied an entrance into the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen? Amen.

Adding to Your Faith

"But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins."
2 Peter 1:5-9

It is one thing to be a participant in a sporting event, such as a football game. It is entirely another to be a spectator from the sideline. From the youngest player in a youth football league, to the oldest player in the NFL, everyone understands this fact: no one wants to go home with their uniform clean. Why? Because that means that they didn't get into the game. They didn't play. In the Christian realm, it is the same thing. You don't want to go home with a clean uniform. That means you didn't get into the game. Translated into the spiritual world, it means that you just came to church on Sunday (maybe not even every Sunday), and you just listened and went home. You might have even sang a few songs, but probably you just listened. You don't read your Bible, because it is there on the shelf, gathering dust. You might have prayed for Jesus to save your soul, but you are a spectator.

The Christian walk is not a spectator sport. We must be active in our daily walk. And Peter is telling us that today. He says to us that we must add to our faith. Now faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17), so that means that to have faith, we must be reading our Bibles and spending time with God in His Word. That is not a passive thing. And then, Peter tells us, that to be partakers of the divine nature, we must be actively adding to our faith virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. These are qualities that don't just come "by osmosis," but rather, by spending time in the Word of God, and being obedient to what we read there (the key). All of that is not passive. Last night in our Old Testament study, in the last two chapters of 1 Chronicles, we saw David telling, rather charging, his son Solomon, in front of the entire assembled nation of Israel, to keep the commandments of the Lord, but also to seek the commandments of the Lord. Both of those words have nothing passive about them. Not only are we to be keepers of the Word, but we are to be seekers of a closer walk with God.

Someone once said, that we are as close to God as we want to be. How true this is. God wants to have a very very close relationship with you. The question is, how close do you want to be with Him? The Christian walk is not a spectator sport. So, beloved, get in the game. Get your uniform dirty. Your fellow Christians need you, your encouragement and your presence. Your church needs you. Your pastor needs you. And remember, God not only loves you, He likes you, too. So go out there today and engage your world with the love of Christ. Shalom.

A Transformed Life

"Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."
2 Peter 1:2-4

When you think back on the life of Peter, and how he was when Jesus first called him to be a disciple, and then you see Peter in the book of Acts, preaching that first sermon, something noticeable and noteworthy has taken place in his life. It is a remarkable change, one that gives me inspiration and encouragement as I study. Peter was such a man's man. He was so earthy, so full of life and yet so guided by his flesh. But as you read about Peter in the gospels, and then see him Acts, standing up to preach that first sermon on the Day of Pentecost, you know without a doubt, that something magnificent has happened in his heart, to allow this man to transform this way.

When I read these two short epistles that Peter wrote, placed in our Bible near the back, I can see and hear the tenderness of Peter's heart, and the work that the Lord has done in him over the years, and I pray that that same work can be accomplished in me. Through the divine power of Jesus Christ, He has given us, you and me, all things that pertain to life and godliness. It is through the knowledge of Him. It is always about Jesus. It always has been. It always is, and always will be. Through our knowledge of Him, as we increase in it, we become closer to Him, and our life becomes more and more conformed to His. As we get into His Word, and allow His Word to get into us, we are washed pure by the water of the Word, and our lives day-by-day are conformed to His image. He has given us this through the knowledge of Him, so that we can be partakers of the divine nature. Not something to observe from the sidelines, watching others live this, but we too, can be partakers of the divine nature.

Beloved, Jesus our Savior and our Lord has given us many precious promises in His Word that allow us to trust Him in our lives, even for the small stuff, building our faith in Him and in His Word. This day, go out into the world, and allow that divine nature that we partake of to shine through to the dark world around us. Yes there are cynics. Yes there are scoffers. But do not be daunted by them. Be strong and courageous, for the Lord our God is with us! Walk closely to the Lord, depending upon Him to provide for you this day. He is our sufficiency. Peter's life was transformed in an amazing way. Allow the Lord to transform your life today, and allow Him to use you today. Perhaps even to preach a sermon like Peter's on Pentecost! Amen.

A New Heart

"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh."
Ezekiel 36:26


I have been thinking a lot about personal revival lately. I need it in my life. I was just reflecting on the richness and the fullness of a heart renewed in the Lord. Sometimes, when my focus gets fuzzy, and the distractions seem to crowd into my priorities, it is good to just come to the Lord for a renewal, a fresh pouring out of His Spirit upon a very dry and parched heart. The water of God's Word pouring over the dry, parched surface of a heart that has turned to stone by the world and its ways and its people - only God can do that for us.

Beloved, God can, and He promises He will, take out the heart of stone that has been make hard by the world system, and replace it with a tender heart of flesh that only comes from the pouring out of the living water upon our souls. We need to personally develop a hunger and a thirst for the Word of God, and His presence in our lives,
and a fresh outpouring of the power of His Holy Spirit into our lives. That is how we are going to change the world.

I sometimes get all caught up in what people think, and trying to please this one and that one, when really, and too often I forget this, but the one I need to please is Jesus. He is the one who is the giver of my life. He is the one who holds my name in the palm of His hand. He is the one who orders my steps and knows my days, even before I was born. He is the one and only one I serve. He is the only one I must worry about pleasing. If we all just lived for the Lord instead of other people, what a place the church would be in. We would truly be attractive to the world, because we are pleasing the Lord.

I am making it my aim to begin personal revival in my heart today. To not just settle for a status quo walk with God, one that is powerless and unfulfilling. Would you join me on this journey? Beloved, you will experience God as never before if you covenant to start a personal revival in your hearts, starting today. Shalom.

Revival

"I know your works, you labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; 3 and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake and have not become weary. 4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place - unless you repent."
Revelation 2:2-5

In this letter to the church at Ephesus, Jesus is telling them that He knows their works, their labor, their patience while doing the work of the kingdom. He sees all of that. It is a good church it seems, from all outward appearances. They have all the programs, all the different classes for each age level, and have all the big resources and big productions. Everything seems to be great. And yet, as Jesus looks into the heart of the matter, what He sees does not please Him. Here is this church, with the parking lot full of cars every Sunday, and the offering till running over, with lots of big buildings, heralding the favor of God. And still, Jesus says that He has something against this church. They had forgotten something. With all this flurry of religious, yes, spiritual activity, they forgot the most important thing. They forgot to take care of their own personal walks with the Lord. They had left Him back there somewhere, waiting for them by the side of the road, if you will, while they rushed off to "be about the Lord's business." Jesus tells these people, that they have left their first love. They have left that passion and thirst for the Lord and His Word that they had when they first came to know Him. They needed a revival.

When I was younger, growing up in the church, when we had revival in our denomination, it meant that there was going to be a special speaker, and that there would be church service every night of the week. Everyone was supposed to go out and invite all their neighbors and other heathens that they knew, to come with them to revival, in the chance that they might get saved. Now, while there is something to be said for having special meetings as a break from the routine, true revival doesn't happen with special meetings and special speakers in special places. True revival begins when we look into our own hearts and see that we hunger and thirst for that hunger and thirst that we once had, for the Lord, and for His Word. If things have gotten stale in your life, if things are routine in your walk, if you are feeling parched and dry in your heart, chances are, you need a revival.

Jesus gives these people the way back to closeness with Him. He gives three things that we must do for personal revival. The first one is to remember. Remember. Remember from where you have fallen and do those things again. Remember the things you did at first, and do them again. Remember how you used to pray about everything? When you first got saved, there was no issue that was too small to take to the Lord in prayer. "Lord, what color of socks should I wear today?" Or, "Lord, should I have the meatloaf or the chicken for dinner?" But once we get farther down the road, we realize that we can handle some things on our own. We don't need to go to the Lord with everything. Pretty soon, we are handling more things on our own than we are taking to the Lord in prayer. And we can get away from Him that way. Remember how you used to read your Bible and study His Word all the time when you first got saved? We carried our Bibles with us everywhere just in case we had a moment or two where we could read some of God's Word. Today, some people don't even take a Bible to church, let alone read it at home or on their own. Those are the first works that we are to remember and to do again.

The second thing is to repent. Repent. To stop doing whatever it is that we are currently doing, and to start doing something else. It means to do a complete 180 degree turn. If we are walking away from God, even doing church work we can do that, and turn and walk toward Him. It doesn't matter what we are doing, if Jesus isn't in the center of it, then it is no good. So we must repent of leaving Him out of things. This leads to the third thing.

The third thing is return. Return to the things you did at first. The first works. Remember them, repent of what you were doing instead of them, and then return to doing them. Beloved, for revival to start in our land, it must first start in our own hearts. In my heart, as I look at me. In your heart as you look at you. Revival must start in our individual hearts, before it will ever catch on anywhere else. Shalom.

Reflectors or Deflectors?

"And their scribes and the Pharisees complained against His disciples saying, 'Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?' 31 Jesus answered and said to them, 'Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.'"
Luke 5:30-32


There are those in our world, who are reflectors, and there are those who are deflectors. A reflector is one who takes what is being faced, and sends a like-image out around him. It means "to bend back." It is to exhibit as an image. True believers are reflectors. We take the image of our Savior, and exhibit it to the world around us. At least, that is the idea. We are lights set on a hill, not hid under a basket. We are to take the light of His love to the world around us, to the "least of these." I was thinking the other day about the homeless people we have here in the town where we serve. And I began to think about if Jesus were to come to this earth today, He would probably hang out with the prostitutes and the homeless street people about whom in our hearts we so often feel disdain. Jesus was a lover of the underdog, the downcast, the lame and the cripple, the AIDS patients and the homeless street people. It isn't the church people He came to save. It is our pride that tells us that. Jesus came to save sinners. And we are to be reflectors of that love.

But then there are other people in our world who are deflectors. Nothing seems to stick to them. The have it all together, and have been doing it longer and better than anyone around them. Oh, they may not say it quite like that, and certainly not out loud, but you can see it in their actions and in their attitude of heart. Sin? Why in the world would I think that they have sinned? It was the religious leaders who were put out with Jesus eating with the prostitutes, tax collectors, and sinners. But those are exactly whom Jesus came to save - sinners. Not the church goers. Not the religious leaders. Not the conservative right wing. He came for sinners, of which I am one. But deflectors don't consider themselves sinners. After all, they are the "good guys." The guys in the white hats. But all of that is outward show, Jesus tells them. They are just whitewashed tombs. Deflectors deflect their need for a savior, and instead reflect legalism and religion. Both will weigh you down so heavily that you will buckle under the guilt and the pressure to conform.

So my beloved, focus on Jesus, and live like He is coming soon. Because He is! And love those around us who are the "least of these," because in so doing, we are doing it unto our beloved Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ the Son of God. Amen.

A Response

"And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, 25 in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, 26 and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will."
2 Timothy 2:24-26

I have written over fifty blogs, and the only one I have received any comments on is the one titled "The Glimpse." And they have all been anonymous. It is to the point that I want to respond to the criticism. Evidently, I did not articulate it well enough, or correctly portray with my words, the other individual being written about. As a pastor, I must encourage, admonish, to convince, rebuke, and to exhort, and I try to do this with gentleness and patience, in being obedient to the Word of God and the calling He has placed on my life.. I am the first to admit that I don't have it all together yet. Paul used the words "not that I have arrived." Just because I am a teacher of the Word, because that is what God has called me to do, doesn't mean that I have arrived, that I have it all down. I am a human being just like the rest of us. I have a whole list of faults that God is working out of me, but I am pretty much a diamond encased in an ugly lump of coal. Little by little, God is knocking off the rough edges.

I come across many kinds of people in my line of work. The human being is by far the most interesting of God's creation. There are those in the Body of Christ who are the most lovely, who display the love of Christ in their lives, and it just flows out of their lives because it runs over in their hearts. I truly want to be around those people. I even have a couple of those people as my friends. They have earned the right to speak into my life, for one of several reasons. Either they are close to me, personally as a friend, or we have been friends for a long time (more than one or two years) and they know my history, or I have given them permission to speak into my life, such as the pastor friends I have to whom I am accountable. I even have a "life coach" whom I have given permission to point out my blind spots, to critique my teaching, to give me encouragement and exhortation when and where needed. These people I have given permission to speak into my life. When these guys say something to me, and bring Scripture to my attention, I listen. They have earned the right to speak into my life. Now, I know that comment will perhaps prompt more response from those of you out there who are legalists. So be it. It is hard to put down in words the emotion and facial expressions that are called non-verbal communication, and make up at least eighty percent (80%) or our verbal conversations

Occasionally, there are those who come along who do no wrong, who think they have it all together, who call themselves Christians, yet are not receptive to the very Word of God. This individual about whom I am writing in "The Glimpse" was one such person. Any time there would be a situation where I would have to sit down and have conversation with them, the Word was not received, and would try to be used back in my direction, trying to avert the focus on their own life. Perhaps even now my words fall short in trying to describe the situation. It was like, "Here is the Word of God and how it applies to your life," and "Well, you never...," or "You are the one who needs to receive this." This always causes me to look inward, regardless of the source. When God's Word is aimed at me, I don't just brush it off, but evaluate the Word, and look at my life, to see if there is application. Paul says to "examine yourself" and that is what I try to do.

What I think it is, is that today there is such a glut of information in our world, even in our Christian world, that we perhaps think that because we have the knowledge, the information, we have the practice. We think that because we know how to do it, that equates with doing it, or practicing it, or having that Word manifest in our lives. And I am the first to admit that is not true.

I guess what I am trying to say, is yes I do want to be accountable (and am - to God and to certain others), and yes I truly believe that as iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. But there has to be an allowance in the relationship. I have so many things that the Lord through His Word is working on me, and my close friends point out, with gentleness and encouragement, that if you come up to me with a megaphone and start yelling "Repent! Repent!" at close range, I will probably turn you off. Perhaps that is what I did to this individual. I don't think so, but perhaps because of their defensiveness at being called to meet with me, that is how it was perceived. Anyway, my intent was not to come across as one who cannot receive from anyone, and as one who has it all together. No way! (Just ask my wife) My intent was to illustrate the lack of reception not only in this individual, but I see it across the board in the Body. It is a failure to be responsible for one's own actions. It is prevalent in our world today. Shalom.

Prayer

"Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving...."
Colossians 4:2

The encouragement here is to continue something that we are already doing. What is that you may ask? Praying. It is the power of our Christian life. The depth of your daily walk is directly related to the depth of your prayer life, I am convinced. There are pastors and teachers out there that say your power is in how much faith you have, or in the naming the thing you want and then claiming it in Jesus' name. Not so. The power for the Christian's daily walk comes from prayer. Perhaps we have a misconception of what prayer is, and that is the reason that we are so weak in our walk.

Prayer is not some "grocery list" of all the things we want God to do for us, and then trying to manipulate Him into giving them to us. "Lord, I really need that Mercedes, because I can put a 'Jesus' license plate on the front and use it as a witnessing tool." That kind of prayer, while making you feel good about yourself, is not aligning your will with God's will. Prayer is the aligning of our hearts and lives with the heart of God, and the offering of our day, our time, and our self to Him, and let Him tell us what we should do, and where we should go. Yes, there are prayers of intercession, where we intercede for someone else. Yes, there are prayers of supplication, where we bring our needs to our Father. I am not the last word on prayer. But I do know this: prayer is the key, not the last resort.

I have heard people say, and have caught myself at times saying, "All I can do is pray." Have you ever said that? Prayer should be the first course of action, not the last resort. So Paul is encouraging us to continue praying in earnest. And then he says something very interesting to me. He tells us to be vigilant about it. That means to be "sleeplessly watchful; alert and awake." Our prayers should be up to the minute, not yesterday's news. Pray for those you love. Pray for those who persecute you. Pray for His will to be manifest in your life. Pray for your needs. Pray to communicate with the God of the universe. And don't forget to let Him speak to you. The Word says to "Be still and know that I am God." Allow God to speak to your heart as you pray. Let your hearts be filled with thanksgiving unto God during this Thanksgiving Day celebration. Amen.

Good Enough

"And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ."
Colossians 3:23-24

It is so easy to just coast. Ever notice that? The easiest thing to do is just be mediocre, to just go along with the flow, to blend in. To just meet the standard, to just do what is required and no more. To reach the quota and then shut down. When I was working in the marketplace, I found that it was so easy to just do my job and go home. Day in and day out. A life of being "good enough." It wasn't especially fulfilling, but hey, it was good enough. It was what was required of me at my workplace. The thing is, that has never been in me, to just do what was required and leave. God has put something in me that drives me to do that little extra, to put in a little extra effort, to rise above the standard. Because whatever I do in my life, I am not doing for me, but for the Lord, because it is Him whom I serve.

Living our lives for the Lord can be much more fulfilling than the mediocrity that we label as "good enough." We were not created for mediocrity. In fact, Pastor and Bible teacher Chuck Swindoll was inspired to write a book entitled "Living Above the Level of Mediocrity." We are called to be so much more than mediocre. The rest of the world can be mediocre if it wants to, but not believers. Why? Because we serve a risen Lord, and it is for Him that we work, and live, and breathe, and have our being. When we come to Him, we lay down ourselves, and our rights, and our pride, and our lives, and we submit to Him. He is our Lord! And it is a wonderful thing. It is Him whom we serve. We are called to rise above the level of mediocrity that the world would have us buy into. We are created to soar high above all of that, because what we do is not for us or for man, but for our Lord.

I have had the opportunity to work with a lot of different people in the local church setting since I have been a Christian, and still to this day, it amazes me how many Christians do something according to the standard of the world, just good enough. Beloved, let me encourage you, and remind you, that whatever we do, we don't do it for ourselves, we do it for Jesus Christ our Lord. We are to do it heartily unto Him. For me, that raises the standard a little, because out of a heart of love for Him, I want to do the best that I can possibly do for Him. I don't want to present something to Him that is just "good enough." I want to present to Him the best that I possibly can. Not because it will earn me something, but because I love Him so much that I want to be and do the best. As the slogan for one of the branches of our armed services said, I want to be all I can be. Not for me, but for Him. Amen? Amen.

The Umpire

"And let the peace of God rule in your hears, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."
Colossians 3:15-17

Many people come to me seeking my counsel about what the will of God is for their life. And I tell them the same thing. What they have on their hearts must line up with Scripture, and do they have peace about it. The word in v. 15 there is "rule." Let the peace of God rule.... The word for "rule" there means umpire. The peace of God is to be the umpire in your hearts and minds about whether or not something is God's will or not. If you don't have peace about it, then you shouldn't do it. God will give you peace about it if it is from Him. But don't be like some people I know. They want to do something so badly, that they don't have peace about it, but they want to do it so bad that their "want to" supersedes God's peace. So they do it anyway, then have to suppress the guilt that the conviction of the Holy Spirit brings. Let the peace of God umpire in your hearts.

Secondly, Paul writes to us here about letting the Word of Christ dwell in us. At our church, and you can ask anyone who attends, I am forever encouraging people to get into the Word, and to let the Word get into us. The peace of God is an umpire about God's will in your heart, and so is His Word. As we get into the word, and the word gets into us, then the Word will give us wisdom, and teach us, as well as admonish us. And we are to do that for each other, by psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, with grace...God's grace, in our hearts. We all need lots of God's grace. We get that from Jesus Christ, and as we grow closer to Him, by spending more time in His Word, and letting His Word dwell in our hearts.

Finally, Paul writes encouragement to us, to let everything that we do, whether it is the words we speak, or the very actions of our lives, whatever we do, we are to do in the name of Jesus Christ. And we are give thanks to God the Father through Him. So beloved, let us live our lives worthy of the walk to which we have been called. Let us let our sound doctrine effect our conduct, so that it is good, and brings glory to God the Father. And let the peace of God be the umpire in our hearts. Amen.

Putting Off and Putting On

"Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. 14 But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection."
Colossians 3:12-14

This passage holds a special place in my heart. The first sermon I ever preached that was worth anything (it was probably the second or third time I ever preached) was from this passage, these three verses. When I say "worth anything," I'm not necessarily speaking of content either. I am speaking more about the length of time I spoke to those good people. The first time I ever spoke was amazing. I had all of these notes, pages and pages of them. But no one had explained to me that there is a law in the universe that the first time you speak your notes are reduced in time unequal to the amount of paper you have before you. So it lasted about ten minutes, if that. So by the time they let me speak again, God had matured my walk with Him a bit, and matured my studying of His Word, so that when I came to this passage, it truly spoke to my heart first, so that I could then in turn teach it to others.

Paul has been telling us to put off the old man, put off the ways of the world, put off, put off, put off. Now he tells us that we get to put on some things. It is like taking off old dirty, soiled clothes, having a bath, and putting on brand new clean clothes. Paul tells us that we are holy and beloved of God. Did you know that? Do you accept that? It doesn't matter who you are, where you've been, or what you have done in the past, when you come to Jesus Christ and believe in Him and receive Him as your Lord and Savior of your life, you are placed in Christ, so that God sees you as holy. What a deal that is! You are beloved of the Father, a joint heir with Jesus Christ, making us all sons and daughters of God. Wrap your mind and heart around that one for a minute. God the Creator of the universe, loves you as a son or daughter. It is an amazing fact.

The first thing that Paul tells us to put on is tender mercies. Our God is a merciful God. David understood this to be true. Just read through some of his psalms that he wrote, and you can see it right there. He understood the mercy of God. And now, as true believers, we are to put on tender mercies toward others. Yes, I know that it is difficult sometimes. There are those in our lives who have hurt us. Believe me I know. But as I read His Word more, and live my life, and study His Word, I see a God who is loving, and gracious, and merciful to me, and to His people. Yes I fail. Yes I mess up. No I don't take for granted God's grace and mercy. But that doesn't change His nature. He is a loving and gracious and merciful God. Yes He is a God of justice and wrath as well. But He did not appoint us to wrath but to salvation (1 Thessalonians 5:9). So, because He is merciful to us, we in turn are to be merciful to each other. Yes, I saw that guy who cut you off in traffic (could have been me). No, I don't know all the details of how she hurt you, or any of that stuff. I only know what the Word says. And it says, that as a true believer, I am to put on tender mercies, regardless of past junk.

I could go through each one of these things, and this posting would be as long as the day. So consider this. We are also to put on kindness, even to that grump in the checkout line at the supermarket (that too, could be me). We are to put on humility - putting others first ( a concept that by itself could revolutionize our world), meekness, which means that even though you could, you won't. Paul then tells us to put on longsuffering, which means patience with one another. We are to bear with one another, which means to put up with one another, yes, even with a good attitude.

And we are to forgive one another. Keep in mind that Paul is writing to believers here. You know, I read an article years ago, that is still true today. It said that the Christian army is the only army in the world that shoots its own wounded. We don't forgive one another like we should. And we need to. After all, think about your own life, and the things you have done, your own sin, and what Christ has forgiven you. Now we in turn, are to forgive others with that same forgiveness. Paul gives us a command here. As true believers, we are to forgive one another. Period.

Finally, above all these other things, we are to put on love. Not physical love, not brotherly love, but agape love. It is a love that sees all these faults that our neighbors have, and loves them anyway, looking through the eyes of Christ. Paul says that this love is the bond of perfection. Jesus says that by our love for one another, that's how the world will know we belong to Him. So let me ask you, are you putting on these things? Tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, bearing with one another, forgiving one another. These are what we are to put on. And like an overcoat when it rains, over all these things, we are to put on love. How loving are you today? How are you showing the world that you belong to Jesus Christ? By your words? The world doesn't want to hear you talk. The really, really want to see you walk. So let us preach the gospel to the world, and as Francis of Assisi said, "use words if necessary." Amen.

Compromise

"Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, 11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all."
Colossians 3:9-11

It seems to me, that in today's society there is a belief that it is okay to not tell the truth. Kind of an "everybody does it" approach to things. The believer must not be caught up in this worldly belief. Paul is writing to the church at Colosse to encourage them, and to correct the false teaching of gnosticism that had invaded the church. The world and its practices were invading the church, and Paul is warning them to beware and not let it happen. So it is with not telling the truth. Believers should not have to be told this truth, and yet, I just spoke with a woman who told me that lying was rampant in the small town in which we live, a place where there is a church on every corner.

Paul is telling us that we have put off the old man, and that we have put on the new man, and that we have been renewed in Christ. We have been created in Him, we are a new creation. We no longer walk in the ways of the old man that we used to be. We are new. Not a Gentile, not a Jew, not anything else, but a Christian.

We once walked according to the ways of this world, before we were born again. We allowed ourselves to be blown around by everything the world wanted us to be and do. But now we have been changed. We have been given a new heart. We are created anew and afresh in Christ Jesus, to walk not as the world walks, but to walk with Him, to put off the old man and put on the new man which is found in Christ.

Beloved, it tells us in the book of Ephesians, in chapter 2, that we are God's workmanship. We are His creation, His poem, if you will. Let us walk a walk that is worthy of the calling which we have received. Let us live a consecrated life, a life dedicated and set apart for service unto God. Shalom.

Things Above

"If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory."
Colossians 3:1-4

It is so easy for a believer to get caught up in the things of this world, and to allow ourselves to set our minds on "things on the earth." After all, we live here don't we? The encouragement from Paul here, is not a question of "if" you have been raised with Christ. The original language renders it "since" you have been raised with Christ, or "because you are" raised with Christ. So the encouragement, the exhortation, is that because we are raised with Christ, let us seek the higher things, the noble things, the things that are right and true; holy things, if you will.

When I think about or try to imagine what the throne room of heaven is like, the place where Christ is sitting at the right hand of the Father, it is hard to actually put into words, because words do it little justice. I think of a lot of bright light, which does not bother anyone, since there is nothing to hide in heaven, in that holy place. I think of the holiness of God. The purity and holiness of God. What a thing to imagine. What a greater thing it will be when we behold it with our own lives. And there we will be, in the very physical presence of Jesus Christ, who gave His life for me, and you - for us. And we can stand there in that purity, in all of that holiness and righteousness, because our life is hidden with Christ in God. What a truly amazing thing to wrap your mind around.

Therefore, my beloved, as believers, we are to seek after the good things, the noble things, the things that are true, and not be caught up in this world. This world seeks after its own. The things that are self-important, that make one self-righteous, and self-ish. The person we used to be, that was tied to this world, has died with Christ, and we now live our lives in Him. So we live pure lives; we live holy lives. Perfect lives? No way. But a life submitted to Christ; a life that is led by the Holy Spirit, who teaches us all things, and convicts us of sin. It is a walk of humility, a forgiven walk. It is a life that is lived in daily submission to the One who died for us. It is a life of abandonment to our old ways, and to the ways of this world - the ways of thinking and living according to this world. Beloved, let us seek those things which are above, where Christ is. Imagine yourself in the throne room of heaven. What would you seek after there? What would you do there? How would you think there? It leaves me speechless at times. And then, when He appears, we will appear with Him in glory. What a wonderful, glorious thought! Amen? Amen.

Legalism

"Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God. 20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations -- 21 'Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,' 22 which all concern things which perish with the using -- according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh."
Colossians 2:18-23

Paul is speaking to us today, about legalism. There are those who, by false humility, do things that would make one think that they are a wonderful and glorious saint. And when you say anything to them, they falsely say, "Ah, it was nothing." When in reality, that is exactly what they want. They want the applause of men. He is ignorant and proud, and is living by the flesh. Paul tells us that person is not holding fast to the Head, who is Jesus Christ. The body, the Body of Christ, the church, is nourished by Christ, knit together in Christ, and grows from the increase that only comes from Christ. Beware beloved, of those who give the appearance of promoting unity in the body, but are really promoting their own agenda, which is to make themselves look good, regardless of the cost.

Let me encourage you, that if you died with Christ, crucifying the old man, the flesh, to the cross, then don't live according to the world's wisdom, subjecting yourself to regulations of men, concerning your daily walk with Christ. It is not by rules and regulations and religion that we walk, but by faith in Jesus Christ. When we subject ourselves to legalism, that set of rules imposed upon us by the traditions of men, we are putting ourselves back under bondage, from which Christ freed us by dying on the cross. We were under bondage to sin, before we became born again, and by subjecting ourselves to legalism, the "keeping of the rules," we are again placing ourselves back under bondage, except this time it has a different name. But it is binding just the same.

Legalism makes our walk with Christ something of a show, and makes men feel good about themselves. But beloved, we walk by faith, and that faith is in Jesus Christ, who from the cross said, "It is finished." There is nothing more to do. Nothing I can do to complete the work. This is something that some North American Christians have a problem with. "You mean there is nothing that I can do to help?" The answer is a resounding "No." Jesus did it all on the cross. He died for all, and nothing further needs to be done. That is why He cried, "It is finished." No more rules, regulations, and religion. You cannot keep them. And none of them will save your soul. Only Jesus can save your soul. So don't be bound by legalism and religion. Have a relationship with the Living God, through His Son Jesus Christ, and walk free. "When the Son sets you free, you are free indeed." Amen.

Cheaters

"Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ."
Colossians 2:8

We have all experienced the emotion that accompanies being "duped" and then one day realizing the truth. There is embarrassment, hurt, sometimes shame, anger, and foolishness. There is a whole gamut of emotions that come flying at you all at once, and you just want to lash out, to get even, to make the person who perpetrated this upon you to pay for what he/she did. The closer the person is to us, the stronger that desire seems to be, "Make them pay!" But that is not how Jesus would have us react. "'Vengeance is mine. I will repay,' says the Lord" (Romans 12:19). There have been times when I have been wronged, that I so badly wanted to lash out. But I remember that vengeance belongs to the Lord, so here is what I do. I begin praying that the Lord would revenge my name. That the Lord would take His vengeance out upon the person who perpetrated this pain in my life. It is the prayer of David in many of the psalms, for all you "nay-sayers" out there. Then I don't have to worry about it anymore. The Lord can deal so much more effectively than I ever could. So I just pray the Lord's vengeance upon the people, and that I would be vindicated.

Now, at the risk of sounding like a holy assassin, or someone out there on the lunatic fringe, I also react in a way that is inward. I take a good hard look at myself, and what I should have done, or could have done, to make this person treat me like this. Again, I react in prayer. "Lord, is there something in my life that needs correction? Holy Spirit teach me to be better in this area." And then I ask myself, "How was I led astray so easily?" Then answer to that one is usually this: By taking my eyes off of Jesus, and from following Him, and being led by the influence of man.

Beloved, Paul writes to the Colossians that they not be led astray, and let anyone cheat them through the wisdom of man, which is far inferior to the wisdom of God. Paul writes that they not be cheated through persuasive words or ideas that come from man. The people who were doing this in the church at Colosse, were spreading heresy, which came to be known as Gnosticism, from the Greek word gnosis, which means knowledge. It is in the world today, in many forms. There is even a form of it that has invaded the church, so beware, my beloved. It is an exaltation of the intellect and the experience over the Word of God. Don't let anyone cheat you out of your walk with the Lord. Don't let anyone cheat you out of taking your eyes off of Jesus. And don't let anyone in the church cause you to start focusing on doing things, or being a part of the right group. Focus on Jesus, and you will never be cheated. Amen.

The Beautiful Rhythm of Living

"As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving."
Colossians 2:6-7

Today is another beautiful day that the Lord has made. There is a beautiful rhythm to it. The alarm goes off, the coffee is made, time spent with the Lord. Prayer. Then time on the computer for emails and blogs. Breakfast. By then it is time to shower and get ready to go. And the day begins. The beautiful rhythm of living.

The trouble I have with all of this, is my reluctance to keep up the momentum. For some unknown reason, I can put on the skids, and interrupt the beautiful rhythm of living with my laziness and disobedience. That beautiful rhythm with which I began the day can be stopped by poor decisions I make to do what is easy and entertaining rather than what is noble and wholesome. This in turn, stops the momentum that had been built into my day before breakfast. And then I look around and wonder how i got to the place where I am, not having accomplished what I set out to do. Again, the beautiful rhythm of living life, and the beautiful rhythm of loving the Lord, are interrupted by laziness and disobedience. Not to suggest that one stops loving the Lord by these things. But the flow is interrupted. And that allows room for our enemy, the devil, to get a foothold, or to plant a seed of doubt or bitterness. This must not be, and Lord help me when I am tempted to continue in the flesh what You have begun in the Spirit (sometimes I feel just like a foolish Galatian).

Paul writes to the Colossians, and us, that as we "have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him." It is a simple thing. We received Christ simply, and we are to walk in Him simply. It too has a rhythm about it. Spending time with the Lord. Prayer. Obedience. Kindness. Gentleness. Humility. Putting others first. It seems so simple, this beautiful rhythm of living life, and the beautiful rhythm of loving the Lord. The two are connected. They have a flow to them. They are intertwined and have a flow through the life of a believer. There is no separation between living life and loving God. Because we are rooted and built up in Him. He is our life. And if we simply walk in Him, and allow Him to work and move through us, we can be sure that we are doing what He wants us to do.

Paul writes here, that we should be rooted in Him, built up in Him, and established in the faith through Him, and that we are to abound with thanksgiving. Most believers have a pretty good understanding about what it means to be rooted in Him, and built up in Him. But what does established in the faith mean? When something is established, it means that it was started, that it grew, and that it remains as something that is there now and is going to last. It has the feel of withstanding the test of time.

So too with being established in the faith. It had its beginning in our lives, and has grown, and is growing, and it is there now and is going to last. A faith that withstands the test of time. And abounding in it means it keeps going and going until it is over the top. The only detriment to this is us. Neglecting our quiet time. Not doing those good and wholesome things, and replacing them with things that can weigh us down, and get entangled around our legs and trip us up. It is a mystery why we humans do this, intentionally. But we come to the Lord with humility of heart and repentance, and receive this grace, His grace, into our lives, so that we can go out and face today, with a heart full of love and thanksgiving. And continue on in the beautiful rhythm. Shalom.

The Deal

"And by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. 21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight - 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister."
Colossians 1:20-23

There are many times that I hear of, or read of, or actually experience first hand, people knocking the cross of Jesus Christ. People wear it as a piece of jewelry around their necks, some of whom I wonder if they have any idea what it stands for or the work that was done there. Rock stars wear large crosses with glittering chains as an accessory, because it is cool. I find it interesting, to say the least. Because a cross in Biblical times was to the people of that time the same thing as an electric chair is to us in our day. How many people would wear an electric chair necklace? It is all very interesting indeed.

What Christ did on the cross was a very amazing thing. He paid the penalty, which is death, for our sins. The Bible says, "For the wages of sin is death...." The ultimate payout for our sins is death. Someone has to die, namely us. But Jesus came and went to the cross to die in our place, so that we wouldn't have to. He gave His life so that we may live. He has reconciled us to God the Father "in the body of His flesh through death" so that we can be presented "holy and blameless" before the Father. What a deal. To exchange this life of sin and darkness and hopelessness, for a life that is holy and blameless before the Father, a life of light and full of hope. What a deal.

So beloved, be encouraged. The work that Jesus Christ did on the cross, was the only work that needed to be done. There is no list of rules to check off. There are no regulations to follow in fear of messing up. It is not religion. What Jesus did on the cross He did once and for all. He didn't say from the cross, "It's almost done!" No. He said, "It is finished." There is nothing else that we can do for our salvation. We have been reconciled to God through Christ in His death on the cross. We just believe and accept that by faith.

Yes, we try to keep doing things that we think in our own minds, will make us "acceptable" to God. We try doing good deeds. People who don't really know Jesus have this concept that there is this great big Cosmic Scale in the Sky, that, if they do enough good deeds that outweigh the bad deeds they have done, then they will go to heaven. Beloved, don't get all caught up in that thinking, or in any thinking that says you have to "do" something to be good enough to go to heaven. Jesus reconciled us to God through His death on the cross; through His body being broken, and through the shedding of His blood. Sin doesn't have to have dominion and power over our lives any more. No longer do we have to live our lives in chains, in bondage to our sin. We are made free in Jesus Christ. Do you want to be truly free today? Turn to Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He set aside His glory in heaven, to come to earth to die, so that you and I could live and be free. I get to trade my life of sin which is deserving of death, for a life that is presented to the Father as holy and blameless. What a deal!

The Supremacy Of Christ

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. 18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have preeminence. 19 For it pleased the Father that in all the fullness should dwell."
Colossians 1:15-19

So many times we treat Jesus one of two ways. Either we treat Him like He was "one of the boys," that He was a great teacher, a prophet, a peace-maker, and we keep Him so human that we lose the essence of His deity. Or we dismiss His sinless of life to the comment, "Oh, He was God." Both of those views are so far on each end of the spectrum. He was fully human. He could experience what we experience. He identifies with what we are going through. He was tempted like we are, with the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. He went through temptation and trials, so that we can know He understands. He could feel the pain of a whip, thorns, a spear, and He could feel the pain of when a friend betrays us, or the disappointment and sadness when friends walk away.

And yet, He was fully God. Paul is writing the Colossians here, to do away with the false teaching of Gnosticism which had infiltrated the church there, as to some degree has today. Paul is telling us about the supremacy of Jesus Christ over everything, physical of spiritual. When he writes to us and tells us that Jesus is the "image of the invisible God," he is telling us, that if we want to know what God is like, look at Jesus. Jesus is the image of God. In John 14:9, Jesus tells Phillip, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father." To know God is to look at Jesus. And then, Paul tells us through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that Jesus is the "firstborn over all creation." "Wait a minute," you might say, "I thought Jesus wasn't born until the New Testament. You are correct. But that is a chronological birth. What we are talking about here, is that Jesus was the first born in priority. He wasn't the first person ever born, but He is the most important person ever born. We will come back to this.

If you have any doubt about whether or not Jesus was around at creation, verse 16 should clear that up for you, because it tells us that all things were created "by" Him. All things that were created were created by Him. "All things were created "through Him and for Him." He created all things, and they were created for Him. Not for us. Beloved, when you read the headlines, when science is trying to shoot our beliefs out of the water, take heart, and know that all things, even science, was created by Him. He was in existence before all things, and it is by Him that all things exist.

He is the head of the church, which is the body of Christ, and He is the firstborn from the dead. There is that word again. It wasn't that He was the first person ever raised from the dead, because He wasn't. But He was the most important person ever raised from the dead. It was His resurrection that broke the power of sin and death once and for all in our lives. He is preeminent.

And God the Father was pleased that in Him all the fullness of the Godhead dwelt (Colossians 2:9). Everything that we can ever want or need, emotionally, physically, spiritually, can be found in the person of Jesus Christ. Beloved, today, call on Him when you are in need, any kind of need, and He will hear, and He will answer. Amen.

Prayer

"For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light."
Colossians 1:9-12

There are many good books out there today on the subject of prayer. Some are classics, written by men who have walked with the Lord longer than I have been alive. There are a couple of books on prayer that I have in my library, and a couple more I would like to add. That being said, it is my belief that the greatest book on prayer that anyone could read, is the Bible. While reading books about prayer is good, I think the best way to learn to pray, is to spend time in God's Word, and then to actually pray. The best way to learn to pray is to do it. I am not knocking books on prayer. As I said, I have a couple in my library and there are one or two more I would like to read and add someday. But I am convinced that the greatest how-to book in the world is the Bible, the Word of God.

There is more to Paul's prayer here then for just more "stuff" to make his life more comfortable. There is no asking here for God to materially prosper the Colossian church with this world's riches. There is not a word that the church's budget would be met and the rent paid. Look at what Paul prays for.

First, he prays that they would be "filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding." The first thing that we need, is to be heading down the same track with the Lord. So we need to make sure we know what the will of God is for our lives. God will do that through wisdom and spiritual understanding. Prayer is about aligning our will with God's will, not the other way around. Then when that happens, we will know without a doubt God's will for our lives. Next, the prayer is to "walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him." In other words, if you are going to call yourself a Christian, then act like one. How does a Christian act? He walks worthy of the Lord (the key is in reading God's Word and allowing the Holy Spirit to teach us). This will be pleasing to the Lord. Thirdly, Paul prays that the church at Colosse would be "fruitful in every good work." When God is working in our lives, we will bring forth fruit. A tree is known by its fruit, Jesus tells us. And as we spend more time in the Word, we will be, fourthly, "increasing in the knowledge of God." I do not know too many true believers who do not want to increase in their knowledge of God. We will never come to the end of God. We will never know all there is to know about our God. But we can always increase in our knowledge of Him, and that's a good thing.

The next thing that Paul prays for, is that they would be "strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power." We have, beloved, the power of God in our lives - the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. The trouble is, we believe the lie of the devil that we are power-less. If the devil can keep you from realizing the power you have over him, then he has won the battle. Beloved, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Stand against the devil. Fight the good fight. And when the dust settles and the smoke clears, we are standing, with our feet firmly planted on the Rock.

Paul then prays that we have "all patience and longsuffering with joy." This is patience and longsuffering with each other, as we walk with the Lord. I have not "arrived." I don't have it all "down." And neither do you. So as we have patience and longsuffering with each other, we will have joy in our walk. In 1 John 1:7 it says, "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." Did you get that? If we walk with Him and have fellowship with one another, that is the key. It is by our love that the world will know we belong to Him, and conversely, it is by our lack of love that the world will see that we aren't any different from them.

Finally, know that the Father qualifies us to be partakers, not to be bystanders. We are to be involved, not sitting on the sidelines afraid to get into the game. Beloved, it is a war in which we find ourselves, with battles being fought in our lives everyday. Let us be partakers, and not be ineffective by sitting on the sidelines. In a football game, the players who make a difference and can effect the score are the ones on the field. Something to consider. Shalom

Three Things

"We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints; 5 because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as it has also in all the world, and is bringing forth fruit, as it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth; 7 as you also learned from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf, 8 who also declared to us your love in the Spirit."
Colossians 1:3-8

Paul begins this letter by telling the church at Colesse that he is praying for them. Paul was a man of prayer. Even from prison; even in the most difficult of circumstances, he was a man of prayer. This is such an encouragement to me, as well as a word of exhortation. Sometimes, as believers, we relegate prayer to the last thing we can do, instead of it being the first and most important thing we can do. Prayer is a powerful thing. It aligns our hearts with the heart of God, and allows us to be in tune with God's will.

The church at Colosse had three qualities that Paul mentions here, that should be not only in the life of a fellowship, but in the life of the individual believer as well: faith in Jesus Christ, love for all the saints, and the hope of reward in heaven. As a believer, sometimes we take for granted our faith in Jesus Christ. It sounds far-fetched, I know. But once we come to Christ, born again, that is only the beginning. Our salvation is not the end, it is the beginning. Too many times believers get caught in laziness or apathy, thinking that everything is taken care of once they are born again. In one sense, that may be true, as far as destination is concerned. But throughout the New Testament, the principle is taught of serving the Lord, doing the work of the kingdom until the King returns. Jesus did the will of His Father while here on earth. We too, must be about the Lord's business, until He returns.

The second thing Paul gives thanks for, is the Colossians love for the saints. Do we have love in our lives? It is the fruit of the Spirit. Love. Jesus said that the world will know that we belong to Him, by the love we have for one another. In our world, the philosophy that the only thing that matters is me, seems to be the prevailing attitude. Society used to be governed by the Biblical principle that putting others first was what mattered. But we went from that, to the philosophy that I am more important than others, so I should go first, to what we see today: I am the only thing that matters. And it is to this world, that God calls us to love. The world sees so little of it, so I guarantee that when you begin loving your brother and sister, and your co-worker, and the people you meet on the street, and in your neighborhood, when you start loving these people, the world will notice. Paul was in prison and he heard of the love that the church at Colosse had for the saints.

And finally, Paul gives thanks for the hope that the church at Colosse had in their reward that awaited them in heaven. This hope wasn't the kind of hope that isn't sure of something but there is a chance that it might be true. No. This is the kind of hope that says that what awaits is a sure thing, I just can't have it yet. That is the hope of all the saints in Jesus Christ. Our citizenship is heaven. Our hope is in heaven. Not on this earth. So beloved, don't get so entangled in this world. We are just passing through. So take heart, beloved. One of these days, we are blasting out of here, to be finally joined with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

These three things were evidence that the church at Colosse was maturing in their walk with Christ. Paul notes that they were bringing forth fruit in their fellowship, and in their individual lives. And that is where we want to be, beloved. We want to stand in our faith in Jesus Christ. We want to be examples of love for the saints, and have our hope in heaven and not this world. That will produce fruit in my life, in your life, in our lives, and will be something the world will see. And we can be lights to a dark world around us. Be encouraged brothers and sisters. The Holy Spirit will teach us all things. It says so in His Word. Allow Him to work in your life today. Amen.

Riches

"And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:19

It seems to me, that the main goal of individuals and nations these days, is the accumulation of riches. Now, you can make your own definition of what riches are just by reading the headlines of the paper. Hollywood actors and actresses going in and out of rehab, indicating many things, the search for and accumulation of riches included, as well as a huge need in their lives. We hear of normal, average people everyday tearing apart their families, because the man or the woman all of a sudden chooses career or extra-curricular activity over their families. We read of countries imposing economic sanctions if they don't do this or if they do that. And all of this leads me one conclusion: Man, the world has a need, people have a need, and that need is met by Jesus Christ.

Now, while this isn't going to be about that "God-shaped hole" that is inside of each one of us, I do want to talk about our need. I think that it is interesting that Paul didn't write the plural, "needs," but rather used the singular form of this world, "need." This indicates to me, that there is a need in the lives of human beings which is greater than any other need in our life. It is greater than the need for water. It is greater than the need for food. It is greater than the need for shelter. It is greater than our need for each other. Yes, those are needs. But what is the one need in our lives that surpasses any other need we have? It is the need for Jesus Christ, and to experience the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives on a daily basis.

For me, I need to go to the Holy Spirit every day, and ask Him to fill me with His power that I need again for this day. The story is told of D. L. Moody preaching on the Holy Spirit, and he was preaching on this very thing: the daily filling of the Holy Spirit in our lives. And after the service a woman come up to him to ask him, "You are D. L. Moody. Why do you need to be filled every day with the Holy Spirit?" And Moody replied, "Because, Ma'am, I leak." And that is all of us. We are all leaky vessels, and need to be empowered by the Holy Spirit every day. I know there are some out there who will argue that with me about the Holy Spirit's working in our lives. I know. But keeping the main thing the main thing, that Jesus Christ is Lord, and it is He who will supply all our need (and needs), we must look to Him for our strength, for our sustenance, for our provision. It is in Him we live and breathe and have our being. I encourage you, beloved, to continuously be in the Word, and in prayer, and allow the Holy Spirit to work through you today, to be a minister to others of us out there. Amen.

All Things

"Not that i speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content; 12 I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
Philippians 4:11-13

What a statement to make, since Paul is writing this letter from prison. "I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content." If we could only say that today. Amazing. For most people, we complain if it doesn't rain, and then when it rains, we complain that we haven't seen the sun in days. If it is hot, we long for cooler days. When it gets cool, we can't wait for it to be hot again. If only I could learn to just be content. And I am learning, praise God. He teaches me this in many ways throughout the day. He allows a variety of situations to come into my life, so that I can learn to just be content in whatever the situation.

Paul was one who knew what it meant to go without, and yet, he also knew what it was to have more than plenty to meet his needs. But Paul had learned something. He had learned that regardless of his physical state, he could be content in the Lord. And that is where we need to be. Just looking to the Lord for our contentment, regardless of the circumstances or situations we find ourselves in. We need not be dictated by those exterior things. But we can just look to the Lord, and be content in Him. Was teaching out of 1 Chronicles 15 - 17 last night, and looked at David, worshipping before the Lord, and how central worship is to the life of the believer. Even when the Lord told David no, to a real desire he had in his heart, David didn't whine about it. He sat before the Lord and worshipped. Why? Because He is God, and we are not. And knowing that, we can find contentment in Him.

And notice, Paul writes that famous and often quoted verse: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. He doesn't say that he can do most things through Christ, and handle a few on his own. No. He says that whatever is put before him, whether it is his job, or his family, or the difficult boss, or that nasty neighbor; he can do all things through Christ. It is Christ who gives him his strength. Beloved, that is for us. Today. We too, can find our strength in Christ to enable us to do whatever is in our path this day. So be encouraged. The one who knows us best, loves us most. Just think about that one for a moment. We can look to Christ to strengthen us to do all things. Not just some things. But all things. This is a big encouragement to me, because sometimes I look at what is set before me in my life, and I think to myself, "Self, you cannot do this. It is impossible." It much the same as the children of Israel being led by Joshua 6 times around the city of Jericho, to get a good look at those walls, to be convinced that it was an impossible thing for them to do in their own strength. That is why they went around it so many times. So there was not a doubt in their mind that what was before them was impossible. But with God, all things are possible. And on the seventh time, just as God promised, those walls came crashing down.

What are you going through that seems like the walls of Jericho in your life? What in your life looks impossible right now? Know this. God makes things possible that seem impossible. And as we look to our Lord Jesus Christ, it is He who strengthens us, to enable us to do all things that are before us. Did you get that? I (we) can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (us). So be encouraged beloved, for the Lord our God is with us. Amen? Amen.

These Things

"Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praise worthy -meditate on these things. 9 the things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you."
Philippians 4:8-9

Paul is writing to the believers at Philippi. They have had false teachers come in and try to lead them astray. They had taken a collection for Paul, and were sending it to him in Rome, where he was in prison. Paul is trying to encourage them, and to remind them that it isn't the keeping of the rules, regulations, and rituals that makes us Christ's. It is being born again, and putting away the former things, the old ways, and putting on the new man, and allowing Christ to work in us and through us. So he comes to the end of this little book, and speaks of the peace of God that goes far beyond human wisdom and understanding. And now, he is reminding us of the kinds of things with which we need to fill our minds and hearts, to exemplify godly character.

We as believers, even in the year in which we live, with all its technological advances and "intellectual prowess," are to think, to meditate, to reason on what is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, and of good report. If there is anything of virtue, or if anything is worthy of praise, those are the things we are to think upon, to meditate upon. The world's tendency, and even in the church, our tendency is to think about what is lowly, the latest gossip, getting even, how to cut corners and not get caught, things not so lovely, believing and taking part in character assassination, and it is no wonder we are not making a difference out there. As believers, we need to be different than the world. So much so that there is a marked difference, not just a difference on the inside. The way we act needs to be different. The way we speak needs to be different. We need not be gossiping, because the world does that (not to mention that the Bible warns against it). We need not be conniving and sneaking behind peoples backs. We need not be letting words come out of our mouths that are not seasoned with peace. And we all have been guilty of this. But it is time for Christians to be Christians in more than in name only. It is time to realize that the church is not for us, but that we are the church, and that we exist for God.

So my encouragement this morning, beloved, is to make it a point in our lives as believers, to ignore the tendency to believe the worst about someone, and look for the positive. Look for the higher purpose, the thread or glimpse of God's truth in a situation, how we can keep our hands out of and off of a situation and allow God to work His justice. Let us make it a point to focus our gaze on the purity of God, not the impurities of men, and let us allow the goodness of God to reach into our hearts as we go through the darkness, and allow Him to touch us in the deepness and softness of our hearts. Let us concentrate on perpetuating the goodness of fellow believers, instead of looking for the bad to make ourselves feel better. Let us look for the virtue in people, not their faults, and then let us give praise to God for that.

Here is the thing. When we meditate on these things which Paul lists here: what is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, having any virtue, anything praiseworthy, the focus moves from human beings, to the Creator of human beings. Our focus shifts from "Look what he did to me" to "Wow, God! You are so awesome!" And that is the better thing anyway. Is it hard work? Sometimes. Will it take effort on my part? You bet. Will I get burned in the process? Perhaps. But as Paul writes to these Phlippians from his jail cell, he can rejoice in the Lord, because his circumstances are not his focus; people are not his focus. He is focused on Jesus Christ. And when we do that, beloved, all the pettiness that this world and the devil wants us to get caught up in, just fades away, because when it is all about Christ, then it is for sure not about us. Amen? Amen.

Peace

"Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:4-7

The world in which we live is in turmoil. There is a constant cry for peace. Peace in the Middle East seems to be the focus these days. But there will not ever be peace in that region, until the Lord Himself comes to set up His kingdom on earth. Russia aligning itself with Iran, setting the stage for the fulfillment of prophecy (see Ezekiel 38 and 39). Nations threatening to wipe Israel off the map. Oil, the currency of our age, being used to set up the one world economy. The revived Roman Empire being established and gaining prominence. Israel getting ready to strike out at someone, be it Syria or Iran, no one knows for sure. The United States diminishing on the world stage as a super-power, and Russia beginning to fly tactical missions in the Bering Straights. All of this upheaval in the world today. Where is the peace?

Beloved, I know this is not the most comforting way to start a day, a daily devotional, but I do this to illustrate that we can never find our peace in this world, or in the things of this world. Our peace comes from knowing the gentle one, the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul is encouraging us here to, in spite of everything that goes on around us, to rejoice in the Lord. He says it twice for emphasis. And as we rejoice in the Lord, our focus is on the Lord, and His gentleness can be seen in our lives. Sometimes, we have to make a conscious decision to be gentle, when our flesh, and the world around us is telling us to lash out, to not be gentle, to show just how aggressive and war-like we can be. But beloved, the Gentle One is coming soon. The Lord is at hand.

So when the world around us is going crazy, and the events of the world seem out of control, and the circumstances of our individual lives seem to be following the same pattern, and our daily schedule seems to be ruling us, instead of us in control of it, take heart beloved, and be anxious for nothing. Let me say that word again: nothing. It is all inclusive and means everything with none left out. Cut backs on the job? Be anxious for nothing. Daycare closed its doors without warning? Be anxious for nothing. How can you say this? you ask. Because we commit these things to prayer and supplication to God, and turn it over to Him, and let Him take the load, the burden. Our "job" is not to carry the burden. Our "job" is to bring it to the Lord in prayer and supplication, and let Him carry the burden. He will work it out. And if we let our requests be made known to God, the One who created the universe and all the worlds and the stars and the planets and atoms and molecules and cells; if we do that, turn it over to Him, then beloved, we can have peace, because we know that He is in control and we are not, and that is the best thing that could be for our lives. And the peace we experience will be far beyond anything that the world can manufacture, give, or even understand. It is the peace of God in our lives.

Beloved, walk today in the peace of God, because we have taken our requests and burdens to the Lord, and we have left them there. Shalom.