You Gotta Serve Somebody

Romans 6:17-18 (NKJV) But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

I was thinking about the independence we have through the freedom that was secured for us through the work of Jesus on the cross.
Paul tells us in Romans 6 that we were slaves to sin and that when we were slaves of sin, we were free in regard to righteousness. (vs.20) Being free in regards to righteousness means that we were unrestrained and did what we wanted and in some cases what we did not want to do but we were slaves to sin.
But being free in Christ does not mean that we are no longer slaves. We just serve a different Master. We have a master that has redeemed us at a great price with an even greater motive….love.
Paul goes on to say in Romans 6:22 that … having been set free from sin, we have become slaves of God. We are slaves that have been bought with a price and that price was the precious blood of Jesus. Having been set free we choose to become slaves. We are bondservants …slaves of choice. Paul concludes vs.22 with, "you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life."
Because we have obeyed God; we have believed. Now we have the opportunity to live righteously, and so also, to begin to serve God with the same fervor and energy with which we were serving sin. Our motive needs to be love too. The love returned to God for His great gift of salvation to us through Jesus. Now it is our choice and that choice is not made out of obligation but response to God’s love. We need to let righteousness enslave us and let it become the bondage and habit of our life.
It is impossible to be neutral. Every person has a master—either God or sin. Bob Dylan wrote a song a long time ago called “You Gotta Serve Somebody” and in it he said, “You may serve the devil or you may serve the Lord but you gotta serve somebody. A Christian is not someone who cannot sin, but someone who is no longer a slave to sin. He or she belongs to God. Before we were converted we had to serve sin. As Christians we have the freedom to live independent of sin but completely dependent on God.

That I might know Him

JOH 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

If there was ever a character in the bible that knew God it would be Moses. The interesting thing about the relationship that Moses had with God and our relationship with God is that God initiated both.
For Moses it began at the burning bush when God called him to deliver His people from Egypt but for God it started before Moses was born but the whole life of Moses was known by God from the beginning. When he was called, Moses could have just done what he was told. He also had some opportunities to really advance his own personal situation but he didn’t. Exodus 33:11tells us that the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Moses wanted the friendship of God
Knowing God changed Moses. He went from doing things his own way to totally relying on God. He is known in the bible as a man who was meek. Being meek did not mean he was weak. The essence of the word meek (KJV) is translated humble. Strong’s translates the word as gentle. Moses quietly trusted God in every situation. He was confident in his calling from God. This was because of relationship. DEU 34:10 says, “And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,”
God desires a face to face relationship with us all. God can use us, He can speak to us and through us, but He desires most of all that we will walk with Him in a face to face relationship. He initiated the relationship by first sending the Holy Spirit to convict us of sin and by providing Jesus Christ as a sacrifice to atone for our sins so we could have fellowship. He goes on to give us gifts and callings and then provides everything to fulfill that calling.
Moses desired the relationship. His outward life showed his inward heart. He wanted to know what God said and he trusted what God said. Because he trusted, he obeyed what God said. Most of all, he desired God more than His promises. Moses wanted more than just the Promised Land. Sad to say too many people desire God's promises and His provision more than they desire Him.
We need to desire to know God, His purpose and His will. How? It’s found in Romans 12:1,2 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Our action is to surrender. It is to present our bodies to God and to not be conformed to this world but to be transformed into the image and likeness of God. The result will be that we progress in our understanding and relationship with God. We will be able to prove (test and know) what is good, what is acceptable and what is his perfect will is. Jesus' desire for us (John 17:21) is to be one with God like He was was. How can I do that? John 5:30, 12:49,50
Jesus said, “Can do nothing by myself. “I judge only as I hear from the Father. I don't seek to please Myself but Him who sent me. I don't speak for myself but what my Father commands me to say and how to say it. I know his commandment is life everlasting. This is speaking of a relationship where the very thoughts are God's thoughts and the very words spoken are God's words. Jesus was not led by dreams or visions but by the very thoughts and words of God. That should be our goal as well. It comes from relationship. That relationship is actively pursued by God. We in turn must pursue it as well. With all our heart.

Being "Others" Minded

Being "others" minded is often very hard. Many times we blame our lack of being "others" minded on being busy or having our own personal issues. Jesus is ever the example. I often kid about Jesus taking the apostles away on a picnic. There may well have been another reason. In Matthew 14 Jesus is told that John the Baptist has been killed. It is about this time that the disciples are coming back from having been sent out to preach and heal. They are excited and want to share with Jesus all about their adventures.At this point Jesus has a crisis in his own life. John was his cousin and though we don’t know how close they were he was still a relative. John was a forerunner of not only Jesus' ministry but of his suffering and death. He was also concerned about the apostles and what was going on in their lives. They had much to tell Him and know doubt He was anxious to hear what they said. But they had no privacy and that was the reason they went across the lake. Do you ever feel like there is no leisure time - not even to eat? No time for communication and fellowship? Jesus knows what that is like. His desire was to take them away with Him for a time of fellowship and rest. Just about the time they were pulling up to the shore a crowd started to gather. We don’t know how long it took but eventually there were 5000 men not counting women and kids, but Jesus was concerned about the crowd. It is said in the text of the passage that He had compassion on them. He saw their need. Do you see the need of others or are you stuck on your own needs? Jesus saw that they were like sheep without a shepherd. They were without direction, protection and they needed feeding. He desired to meet their needs. He began to teach them and then he healed (Matthew 14;14). Then He fed them again with physical food.
This is where He used the disciples. He wants to use you. The disciples come and ask Jesus to send everyone away - just get rid of the problem. Not, "can you fix it" but "get rid of it. Is it possible that they were tolerant just until they saw a good reason to get back to their original plan of rest and relaxation? Jesus said, "you feed them”. But they cannot see how. That is also like us too, isn’t it? We don’t see that we have the resources to do what Jesus asks. Then Jesus asked them (and us) “What do you have?” They had 5 loaves and 2 fish. Not much with a crowd like that. But little is much in the hands of Jesus. Jesus wants to use what little you have to make a difference. The apostles are involved. They directed the people to sit. They then set the food before the people and they collected the food again. Jesus then took a little and blessed it, broke it and gave it away. Are you willing to be the bread in Jesus hands? Will you be the bread to fill the needs of others, blessed - by blessing others, broken - to be given away and then brought back again? When we give out in Jesus name much is collected back to Jesus, far more than what is ever given out. He didn't have to do everything. He had the apostle serve and collect and he refused the accolades of the crowd. Instead He went to pray after a great move of God in preparation for the next. The next was walking on water! If we are willing to let our time and situations be God’s place of opportunity we may find ourselves in some marvelous occasions where we get to do some amazing things. We may not have much but in His hands we can be part of some very amazing things.

Captured for a Purpose

And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife. 3And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.2 Kings 5:2-4

Are you willing to be used by God? Whatever the cost? Consider this: Here is this little girl who was captured in some raiding party of the Syrians. She is ripped from her home, family and country and taken away to be a slave. Now no matter how well you have it you always know that you are a slave. Even in the most benevolent situations you still are aware that you are in this situation against your will. You have been taken from family and familiar situations against your will. The people you serve either captured you or bought you and you are a piece of property. You might get lucky and get a benevolent master but then again you might not. What will you do? You also might remember the story of Joseph who was sold into slavery…by his brothers! Then, even though he was doing his job he is falsely accused of attempting to rape the boss’s wife and ends up in prison. He works his way up in the prison, helps a couple of fellows close to the king but is forgotten for another couple of years.
The little girl’s sweetness, even in captivity brought a great man in touch with the living God. Though she was a captive she chose to show mercy instead of revenge. She could have said to herself, “Let the old man fall apart all over Syria.” Instead she shares a possible way out of his misery. It wasn’t so much that she wanted her boss to meet the prophet as it was to meet the prophet’s God…her God. God had placed her for a purpose, and she was faithful. Because of her faithfulness her boss, Naaman, eventually receives healing as well as faith in God.
Joseph was faithful to God. He had shown pride and arrogance (which seemed to be the reason that his brothers hocked him for thirty pieces of silver.) But the bible says that God was with him. When he was tempted to sleep with the boss’s wife (by the wife herself) he refused on two grounds. The first reason was good. My master has trusted me with everything and has kept nothing from me except you. But the second reason was the highest purpose for his faithfulness. “How can I sin against God?” That got him thrown into jail. Right there he could have questioned God, (and probably did though the bible doesn’t record it) got mad and quit. He could have lived like others, one moment at a time. But instead he honored God and God honored him. In due time God not only brought him out of jail but put him in charge of all of Pharaoh’s wealth. But that wasn’t the purpose God had in mind. Not only did he work some things out in Joseph’s mind but he dealt with the brothers as well. He also brought Israel and his family to Egypt, a place they would not have gone on their own, Here God would make a great nation and people that would be His People.
Where has God put you? No matter how humble or small your position, God can use you to spread his Word. Look for opportunities to tell others what God can do. There’s no telling who will hear your message!

A GIFT OF LOVE

John 12:1-50
Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. 2There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. 3Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 4Then one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said, 5"Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?" 6This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. 7But Jesus said, "Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. 8For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always."

In the book of John there is a wonderful account of a woman that gave a gift of love to Jesus. She was not the first woman to approach Jesus and pour out her love to Him. The first had been a woman with a bad reputation. Simon, the host of the dinner knew who she was and questioned in his heart how Jesus, if He was indeed a prophet, how could He let this woman touch Him. Jesus defended her and accepted her display of love as the repentance it was meant to be.
The second woman is unidentified by Matthew and Mark but John reveals that it is Mary, the sister of Lazarus.(12:3) This is not a woman that had a bad reputation. She had made it a habit to sit at the feet of Jesus. She did not come with a need for forgives but the need to express her love to Jesus. There are four things that we need to learn from her action and her expression of love to Jesus so that we can express our own love more effectively

First, it was daring. She comes into a room that was full of men. Women were only admitted to serve and then they were to leave. Mary is not concerned with what others thought. She was determined to show Jesus her love. It is possible, even probable that she was the only one in the room besides Jesus that understood that these were the last days that Jesus would spend with them. In order to be daring one must be Oblivious to self and to their reputation in the eyes of others. Mary let down her hair. (Matthew and Mark)This would be unheard of and there were those that were probably offended in her abandonment. But Mary chose to humble herself before Jesus and in front of others because she wanted to bless Him. This was between her and Jesus. No one else or what they thought mattered. The Bible says Humble yourself in the sight of the lord and he shall lift you up. Jam 4:10 Mary didn't have a towel and she didn't look for one. She wiped the feet at which she had sat at, with her hair. (vs.3)

Secondly it was costly. The price for the ointment she used was three hundred denarii (pence in Mat and Mark), almost a years wages.(vs5) It was a pound of this ointment and it was in an alabaster jar (Matthew and Mark). The alabaster jar was both precious and fragile. It was sealed in such a way that it could not just be opened and a little poured out. It was all or nothing and she broke it and poured it all out. She kept nothing back. Matthew and Mark say it was upon His head. (Mat 26/Mar 14) Joh.12:3 says that she anointed His feet. How do we reconcile the difference? She did both! Some believe that as she poured it out and it dripped (accidentally) onto his feet. Others believe she poured it out on his head and so much poured out that it dripped upon his feet. The point is... She did it!!! This was not a common gift and it did not just cost a little or nothing. It was one of sacrifice. We can hear the sentiment in the words of David,

“Then the king said to Araunah, "No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God with that which costs me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 2 Samuel 24:24 (NKJV)

Thirdly it was deliberate. It was something she chose to do whether the ointment was bought for this purpose or not is not known. It does not change the value, more or less. The point is that it was a decision on her part to give an offering of her love. This was not something that she had to do or was forced to do. It was not expected but in fact just the opposite. It was quite unexpected

Fourthly it was lasting. This is actually a result of the first three actions that Mary took. But consider this, because she poured out the whole gift on Him and it went over his head and upon his clothes and then on to His feet. It was at His feet where she wiped the excess away. There was an excess that covered Him. His hair and clothes bore the perfume of her love during the whole time …
• of His passion in the garden
• At his trials
• After his scourging
• All the way up the hill of Golgatha
• The terrible hours during his death
• Jesus was reminded of her love
Now let us consider the gift of our life to Jesus, because that is really what He is interested in.

First, is it daring or is governed by what others think? Do we not show our love or have any open display of it because of what other think? Or do we love Him with abandon and have little care of our own reputation? Is it oblivious to self and others and all we can think,

Second, is it costly? Is it our first and best or do we give what is leftover and not needed? Can we say that no price or service is too great or do we give God only what is left over, convenient and comfortable? We need to set aside our comfort and convenience and live out our love for the savior. We need to be less concerned about what we will get and be more concerned about what we can spend upon our Savior, simply because His love is worth it. Are you willing to sacrifice all for Him?

Third, is the gift of our life and love something deliberate or random and accidental? Is our love given freely and is our worship planned as well as spontaneous? People are deliberate about their jobs, their vacations and play times are thought out and executed with great care but their relationship with God “just happens.” Is our life given to Jesus with reluctance because everyone expects it? Or maybe because we feel like, well, we have to do something.

Fourth, is this life we are living and say that we are giving to God lasting or momentary? Is what we are working for lasting or will it only last and be remembered as long as we are there to perpetuate it. Are the things we give God eternal or temporal and only to appease Him. To do our duty so we can point to something and say, see “I love God”

Expect the Judas's (and other disciples) that will be there to question your motive and there will be those that will be quick to misrepresent your motive and love. Please my friend, let Jesus defend you and He will. Just as He stood for the woman with the bad reputation as well as the woman that was His friend He will stand for you. There will be those that will ask why you are wasting your time, your money and your life on Jesus. They will not understand and they will see it as a waste but Jesus will see it for the love it is and will remember it. And as you pour out your life as a fragrant gift of love as you give Him anything out of love you will find that the excess of your love for Him will remain on you. Your life will have the fragrance of love that people will notice. They will know that there is something different. And it will be lasting. Just as Jesus said of Mary may it be said of us…

I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her." MAT 26:13

Heat Exhaustion

Just recently I experienced what I believe to be heat exhaustion. Now admittedly, this is a self diagnosis. I am stubborn when it comes to going to the doctor and such. I watch myself pretty well and eat pretty well. I have become very conscious of my sugar intake and white flour and such. I have cut way down on eating candy and cookies and sweets. I am, what I would say, in pretty good shape. My one vice, if it is a vice, would be coffee and I have cut down how much I drink over the years but still drink about five cups a day. I love a good cup of coffee and I am quicker to drink coffee than water.

My problem all started with digging a hole in the back yard for a post. The place I chose turned out to be extremely rocky but I was working in evening and though it was hot the sun was down. I sipped at my coffee as I worked. When I went into the house my wife had come home and asked if I had listened to the phone. “It’s buzzing.” The last time the phone was buzzing was when I cut into the line when doing some work in the back yard. So the next morning I went out to see what I had done because the night before the hole was filled with water. I could not see any line so I dug out the sides. Still nothing and by now it was getting hot. We concluded that it must be the repair from last year gone bad. The next morning I began to dig where I thought the problem was and ended up digging a trench about two feet deep and about twenty feet long. I never found the line. We decided to call the phone company and it turned out to be a “carbon” (a fuse) in the box. Yikeballs! All that work and now I had to fill up the trench. As it happened I did it in the later part of Friday morning, went to work and then in evening at about five o’clock I went to help pack my daughter and son-in-law’s possessions into the back of a rented truck so they could leave for Oregon the next morning. Because I have a knack for packing, another fellow and I stayed in the back of the truck and the boxes were slid over to us to pack. We did this for several hours. This was all in a week when the temperatures were in the 100’s by eight in the morning and reached 120 by two in the afternoon and didn’t cool off to the 90’s until well after dark.

My problem was not so much the work but that I did not drink enough water. I sipped my coffee in the morning when I had been digging and filling the trench and had a glass or two of water but not much. When I was in the back of the truck I drank one or two twelve ounce bottles of water but did not think much about it. At about eight that evening most all the packing was done and I went home, had something to eat and went to dinner. The next morning I woke and read my bible and then worked on the computer for a while. About an hour after I woke up I began to shiver so I went to get a shirt on but by the time I got to the room I crawled under the covers and shivered uncontrollably until I fell asleep. I got up later feeling tire but I had a memorial service to go to and I had to finish my sermon for in the morning. As soon as I finished my work I went home and was soon in bed. The next morning, Sunday, I went to church, determined to preach and attend the staff meeting. I should have just let my assistant take the service because I was too sick. The staff shooed me out and I went home to sleep, off and on, for the next thirty hours. I went to work on Tuesday but had to go home by early afternoon. I had eaten very little because I had no appetite. I was miserable and even at this writing I still do not feel the way I should. So what is the point?

Just these, relating it spiritually, many Christians suffer from spiritual heat exhaustion. They are in the heat of battle or the heat of service (or both) and don’t drink enough Living Water to keep their bodies spiritually hydrated. They drink in other things like books and music and devotionals but they never spend time at the Well of Living Water and drink deeply or often, just glassfuls here and there. They have a glassful in the morning but if they miss they think they will be all right. They will just have one tomorrow morning but then tomorrow morning comes and they miss again. They might have a good long drink on Wednesday or Sunday morning but they get to the place where they are not drinking the water and just as water is what our physical bodies need to survive, flush toxins, replenish and refresh so our spiritual lives need the water of the Word and to drink deeply of the Living Water. They don’t allow the Holy Spirit to poor the Living Water into them at times of private prayer and fellowship.

So now we have little water in our “spiritual” systems and then we get into a heated spiritual warfare we don’t expect and our strength fails. We serve in our own strength for long times and we become exhausted. We find ourselves, shivering uncontrollably, huddled in a corner trying to figure out what is wrong with us. We have lost our strength, our appetite and our desire to do anything but sleep. We even isolate ourselves because we have no interest in fellowship. This happens all because we neglect regular, deep drinking of the Water of the Word. We have sweat it out and poured it out in tears. There is nothing there because we have not put it back

We need to visit the Well every day without fail. We need to drink deep and often. We cannot be satisfied with just the other spiritual “beverages.” They are fine, and like coffee have a place and a time but we cannot find our strength in that just like we cannot expect to have spiritual strength from just listening to music or reading devotionals, we must read the word. We also must spend time with Jesus and ask Him for the water that He gives.
Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water." John 4:10 (NKJV)
Let it hydrate your heart and replenish your spirit so that even in the unexpected times you will be able to enter into the heat of battle or the heat of service and not fail. But the way, it must be remembered that you cannot miss the drinking of Living Water while you battle or while you serve or you will find yourself exhausted. The day to day prepares you but when the battle or the service increases so must your intake of Living Water

John 7:37-39 (NKJV) On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." 39But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Rev. 22:17 (NKJV)
And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires let him take the water of life freely.

Looking Back at Mistakes and disappointment

My friend Deiana posted a quote from Mark Twain that caused me some immediate thoughts. I was going to just make a comment about looking back but one comment became two and then they grew too quickly and had to become this post. The quote was:

"Тwenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." Mark Twain

My first reaction to that thought was that it was curious how when I looked back that many of the things that I remember with joy, fondness, down right laughter, were things that were accidents, mistakes and at the time painful experiences.

When I was a much younger man I would take my family camping. I desperately wanted to be their hero and planned many things to prove to them I was. Many of the planned things backfired but some didn't. However it was in the unplanned situations I found myself having to be the hero and I was. But not only did I become the hero, those are the situations that we remember with the greatest fondness and have the deepest humor. This story is about one of those time.

We were camping in the mountains in northern California. We heard about a lake nearby and decided to pack an evening dinner and go fishing. The plan was that we would watch the time and get back in plenty of time. We found the place to park and the trail head to the lake and started up the trail. At one point the trail we followed took us by a lodge that we had eaten at and then went on to the lake where we were to enjoy the evening. While my family walked along and chattered about the birds and the trees and flowers, I watched the trail. They hoped to see deer and other animals and I concentrated on landmarks so that we could get back because the trail twisted and turned and intersected with other trails. I remembered boulders by the trail and broken branches on trees. I tried to remember the twists and turns.

Because it was summer the sun stayed up late but we left the little lake with plenty of time because the sunlight would quickly become lost in the shadow of the trees. I began to direct my family home. I was the guide and I thought I knew the trail. As you may have already suspected, I missed a turn or something, misread a landmark or went the wrong way when the trails intersected and we began to go around in circles. Even by this time in our marriage, my dear wife would explain to the children, "shush children, we are just on adventure." They were quieted by her words but for me is painfully meant, "Shush children, Daddy is trying to figure out this mess we are in." Now let me be very clear, that is not what she meant at all but that was the way I made it. No because of anything she said because of my own ill conceived perception of myself.

I was the guide but now all the things that I thought were so different to guide the way began to blend. What I thought was a peculiar little tree or an odd looking rock turned out to look like every other tree and rock along the trail. Then we began to see the same tree or rock and I looked down ahead of where we were walking and saw little tennis shoe prints in the dust of the trail. Then i noticed the markings of my own boots. I realized we were going in circles and so I took a fork at the next trail intersection. Suddenly we broke in to the clearing of the little lodge. Yay, we were safe! But our car was still about a half a mile away and we were not out of the woods yet. (The pun WAS intended!).

Now our choices were to walk along the two way road which would be OVER a half a mile or take a trail back into the woods. There was a fellow at the lodge that said it would be a straight trail and it would be LESS than a half a mile. Throw into the choice that the sun is almost gone. The trail was also supposed to follow the road. We had no flashlight but we decided to go the shorter trail, walk quickly, and get to our destination. (Sounds like a sin illustration coming on... but I will leave that to you to see). So we plunged back into the forest and quickly, into the darkness as well. For some time we did walk along the road but then the road went one way and we went the other. It was high above us and seemed impossible to climb to so we were committed to going forward. We had gone to far and it was too dark to go back. Boy, now we were really having an adventure. Finally we came to a place where we could see the road, again. It was still high above us but the fear that the darkness brought, tripping over things and the unknown things lurking about in the darkness caused us to scramble up the hill. After climbing and sliding back and climbing again we finally found our way to the higher road. We had wasted time and had experienced fear but now we were safe. Even though the sun had gone down we could now see clearly to walk. We checked everyone for scratches and bruises and continued on to the car. After what seemed like forever we came to the parking lot. There was our car, sitting all alone, and my son CJ went running up to it and kissed the bumper and said, We are saved! I'm so glad to see you, car!"

We were tired and we had been afraid, I had many personal feelings because of what I felt I had put my family through but when we all stood there at the car we all felt a sense of accomplishment. We had overcome our adversities. We had conquered the forest, well almost. At least we escaped from it.

We now look back at that time with a fondness, joy, humor and a place of growth. Each of us grew that night in our own way. I grew in humility and yet also in determination to learn to take better care of my family. My wife grew in her ability to lift me up at a time when she could have easily torn me down. She learned to encourage and even trust me though all the outward signs said, scream your head off and cry! My children learned to be brave and to submit and to trust. And we all grew in prayer! The mistake actually turned out to be the best memory of the trip. That was over twenty years ago.

We could have missed so very much together had we allowed that to be our last "adventure". It wasn't, but that will be for another time.We could have played things safe and never done that kind of thing again but we would have missed a lot. But as a I look back at that event and the things connected to it, I am not disappointed. But I am disappointed by the things that are not there to look back at, laugh at and remember because we never did them. I don't remember anything that we ever did that disappointed us. We have never been disappointed in the adventures we have taken or the adventures that have happened. Some have been better than others but they all have memories connected to them we would never give up. My wife has come to say that life is a journey but it is also a great adventure. Don't miss it by being afraid you will be disappointed.

As Mr. Twain pointed out you will be more disappointed by what you did not do than what you did.

I would rather do something and say, "Eh, it was not so good," than to say, "Gee,I don't know, I missed my opportunity to find out."

Get out of the harbor. It will always be there when you get back. go on an adventure. Don't fear the storms, enjoy them, Sail cautiously when you must but when you can, open you sails and let the wind blow. Even your shipwrecks will become part of the grand adventure...maybe even the best part.

Hunger for Righteousness

Matthew 5:6 (NKJV) Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.

Today there are many things on the market that say they are food but they are so filled with preservatives and other things that while it is listed as food it has very little “food” in it or what food is left it has no nutrition. Yet people are satisfied with it because it “tastes” good and looks good when in fact it has no nutritional value. This kind of food leads to sickness and even death but people still eat it. There is a whole industry built around it. Real food will cost more and it takes more to use it and prepare it but it brings health and provides nutrition that causes growth. Once you begin to understand its value and realize that fast foods and processed foods are not healthy you, you hunger for what is real. The same is true of true righteousness that flows from God and is worked out in our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Righteousness can be the same way. There is a lot out there that is seen and called righteousness but there is nothing in it that causes growth. It is preserved by ego and being content with how things look on the outside rather than spiritual health. We are told by Jesus that we are blessed when we hunger and thirst for righteousness. What does it mean to hunger and thirst for righteousness?
We might want to start by what it is not. There are those that are concerned about having righteousness around them. They, like the Pharisee’s are very concerned when someone that looks like a sinner or in their opinion is doing sinful things come near them. It might even be someone that is, in fact, a full blown sinner and there is no doubt as to the fact that they are “unclean.” They don’t want people or things that they don’t like in their near proximity. They want only “righteousness” around them. They grab up their things and avoid these people at all costs. They look at them with suspicion and even fear if they look at them at all.
Too often we only want to have righteousness around us because then we feel comfortable. That way there is nothing out of the ordinary. Everything “looks” good…including us. We also don’t have to do anything or say anything and at the same time we can be quick to point out and condemn anything we don't like or makes us uncomfortable. We do not want to be confronted by things we don’t like or things we don’t approve of. Having everything around us appear to be righteous will also give the illusion that we, ourselves are righteous so we can hide our secret sin. There are times when I can hide my judgmental spirit behind a desire for righteousness. But hungering and thirsting for righteousness is not about what is in others or how things appear but it means that you want it for yourself.
To hunger and thirst after righteousness means to have a starving, thirsty spirit in your own heart. It is a real hunger and starvation of soul. It means that your spirit longs for the righteousness of God to be worked out in your own life. But there is something more about it that needs to be understood. The hunger is for all righteousness. This hunger wants righteousness in every way and doesn’t pick and choose what it wants. It does not deem some righteousness palatable and other righteousness, well questionable. This hunger is not like the person that feels a little hungry and goes to the refrigerator and stands there, looking at all the food and then closes the door and says, “There is nothing in here to eat.” No this type of hunger means that it is a craving for righteousness. It wants to eat the whole thing. It is not satisfied with righteousness in tidbits. It does not pick and choose what righteousness it wants. It is not satisfied with things that look like righteousness but are not. It wants true righteousness.
In the Bible “righteousness” means two simple but profound things; it has a double meaning. It means to be right and to do right. It may be said another way: to be good and to do good. We cannot be good without doing good but doing good without being good has no value.
How then can a man become perfectly righteous? The answer is what Christ says: “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” What happens is this. God takes a person’s “hunger and thirst after righteousness” and counts it as righteousness. The person is not righteous, but God counts him righteous. This is the great love of God. A man hungers and thirsts after righteousness; therefore, God fills him. Now one might argue that they do want righteousness but they point more to the unrighteousness of others rather than seeking true righteousness in their own lives. They are like Simon the Pharisee that thought less of Jesus because Jesus allowed a woman to touch Him. Not just any woman but one that Simon judged a sinner by her appearance. He may have even knew her by her reputation but he could not see any way that she could ever be fit for God. Jesus, on the other hand was more concerned about the heart rather than the outward appearance. On the outside Simon looked righteous and the woman a sinner but to Jesus the woman‘s heart was seen, not by her outward appearance but how she showed her love to Jesus. The same was true of Simon. His heart was shown by his lack of giving to Jesus even the common courtesy given to strangers. The woman came in faith that Jesus would forgive her and Simon lacked faith and did not see his own need of Jesus in any way. The Bible uses the word faith to explain righteousness. Faith is believing God and trusting Him to take our faith and count it as righteousness. Hebrews 11:6 says it clearly: “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” That faith will result in a righteousness that begins to take place in every part of our life without our working at it. It will just happen.
Righteousness, the kind we must hunger for, involves the mind. Scripture says it involves being “renewed in the spirit of your mind” (Ephes. 4:23), and being “renewed in knowledge” (Col. 3:10).This means that the person who seeks after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” He “puts on the new man” and is “renewed in the spirit of [his] mind” (Ephes. 4:23). It means that the person who seeks after God has “put off the old man with his deeds; and [has] put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him” (Col. 3:9-10).
The Pharisees did not seek after God’s righteousness they sought after their own. They were more concerned about the outside than the inside. They thought that pleased God when in fact they only pleased themselves. But Jesus said that our righteousness was to exceed theirs! Jesus called them whitewashed sepulchers, filled with dead men’s bones. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. (Matthew 23:27-28) The Pharisee’s and the hypocrite disguise inner decay with an outward show of righteousness. They are very careful how they look on the outside but on the inside they have all the corruption of the sin that they hold on to. How does this apply to us? Let's consider a few things:
On the outside – we are still going to church...making a sure we can say point to our church attendance as a proof of our righteousness
On the inside we are still living to ourselves during the week.
On the outside - we may profess to be a Christian
On the inside -We are still living and thinking like an unbeliever.
On the outside -we may give thanks as a family at meals,
On the inside we are ungrateful and covetous of what others have. We are unsatisfied with the blessings God has already given us.
On the outside - we may agree with justice and mercy,
On the inside we are unforgiving and judgmental towards others in the church
On the outside we quote the word of God and say we believe it
On the inside we refuse to obey it, question it and don’t really live it.
On the outside we may walk humbly before our peers,
On the inside we are full of pride, criticism and self righteousness.
On the outside we are very generous and giving, towards God and others
On the inside we see it as a proof of our righteousness. We don’t give as an act or worship but as a proof of righteousness.
We often forget that even though Jesus spoke against the outward sins that people see as so terrible but He spoke just as strongly the inward sins of the spirit such as pride and greed, a judgmental heart or despising others because they don’t meet OUR standards of righteousness. Jesus spoke most harshly against those that trusted in their own righteousness and so easily judged others and brought them into condemnation. Instead of drawing them to God they force them away with blame and disapproval. The disapproval is theirs, not God’s. It is interesting that Jesus, who was perfect in His righteousness, was compassionate and caring. He did not wink at sin and did not ignore it, He simply told those that were bound to walk in freedom. That freedom, as well as righteousness, is found in trusting Jesus. To trust in our own righteousness is to not trust in His.

Spiritual Warfare - Where does it really take place?

Ephesians 6:12 tells us that warfare takes place in “high places” and that our struggle is not against flesh and blood. It is against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness and spiritual wickedness.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Ephes. 6:12 NKJV

In our own lives there is often a struggle Paul describes them in Galatians 5:17 “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that you cannot do the things that you would.” Each of us has a battle going on in our life that we may be attempting to fight on a human level. Consider the idea it could be (and probably is) a spiritual battle. Open up any new possibilities to handle it?

In the book of Daniel, Chapter 10, Daniel seeks to understand what is going to happen to Israel. He recognizes that time has gone by and that there are new things in store for Israel and has asked God for that understanding. In the first part of the chapter Daniel is in prayer and is fasting. He is seeking the Lord concerning issues he is concerned about. He asked for understanding. An angel appears to him and speaks to him. In verse 12 we find out that his prayers were answered the first day. Yet we see that it was three weeks before this angel had shown up. The angel said that Prince of Persia had withstood. You can understand from the context that this was no mere man but a ruler of darkness who must have had great authority over the things in Persia. Intervention by one described by the angel as “Michael, one of the chief princes,” had enabled him to get through.

Daniel had sought the Lord on the future of Israel. God had sent an angel to come immediately to answer him. Demonic forces held him back until Michael finally came and did battle. Michael, the one we know as the arch angel seems to have the second in command under Jesus. We have only a hazy picture of a country so filled with idolatry and wickedness and such a stronghold of satanic forces that the angel couldn't get through.

Using our weapons and knowing our forces

Are we powerless against the enemy? No! Notice what Daniel did. He used the weapons of warfare. First he used prayer. He sought God. He made his request know before the throne. This was something he could not get an answer for any other way. To the prayer he added fasting. He humbled himself before the Lord. Fasting (in the spiritual sense) is voluntarily giving up food to spend time with God. If you are just giving up food and not spending time in prayer and communication with God you will find little accomplished other than being hungry and maybe losing some weight. Humbling yourself before the Lord speaks of surrender of your wants, desires and your will to God. Although the battle is fought in the heavens what we do on earth is important. Notice what Daniel did not do. First, he did not stop praying. Often people get weary of waiting and stop praying and fasting (if they ever started). There are some folks who believe you only have to pray once and then just believe that you will get what you prayed for. Because of this idea they stop praying and never even think of fasting. I have no problem with believing for something and expecting an answer from God for something. But I do have a problem with those who stop talking to God about it and are no longer seeking His heart concerning the issue. Sometimes folks have bought into the false doctrine that God owes you and so they no longer look to God. They have “said it,” “they believe” it and so that is they end of it. It is as if they have given God a command and He must respond to it. Not only is this arrogance but totally unscriptural

Knowing your forces

In Spiritual warfare it is important to know you forces. Too often we try to depend on our own strength and resources to battle sin and satanic forces that seek to rule and control our lives. There are those that would have us believe that we can seek out the enemy and his devices and that we can destroy them. When we fail we can become discouraged. We begin to think the problem is too big or that the forces of the enemy are greater than anything we have. This is true if we try to accomplish the battle on our own. But we must realize that there are the forces of God, all around us, to protect us, to hold back the enemy and ultimately to subdue the enemy. We have a beautiful picture of this in 2 Kings 6:15-17 In this area of scripture our main character is Elisha. It is a bad time in Elisha’s life. It seems that the king of Syria is planning on invading Israel and Elisha keeps giving away his plans to the king of Israel. Now the king of Syria wants to know which one of his people is a traitor and he finds out that in fact there is no traitor but Elisha is giving away their secrets. The king wants him in custody, most likely to either kill him or at the very least keep him from passing on information to Israel. In the morning the whole city of Dothan is surrounded with Syrian troops and chariots. The servant of Elisha draws attention to the physical enemy. Elisha sees his fear and tells him not to worry that there are more with them than there was of their enemy. Now we have to hit the pause button here and consider what the servant might be thinking as he looked around. Okay Elisha, there are a few prophets and maybe some towns people but I don’t think we have more than they do. The math is just not adding up. This is where Elisha says, “O Lord, open his eyes so he may see." Then the Lord opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. No fear, our forces greater.

Do you see your forces as greater? The bible says greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world. (1 John 4:4) That alone says we have the greater advantage. There are angels all around. Jacob in Genesis 28:12 had a dream where he saw a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. He also saw the angels of God ascending and descending on it. It is here that God speaks to him and restates the promises he gave to Abraham. But the picture we see is that there is constant activity between heaven and earth. There angels constantly going and coming to the aid of the people of God. And there is only need one angel.

In another Old Testament situation Assyria had Jerusalem in siege. The chief of staff for the king of Assyria had come with a letter, not only to threaten Hezekiah, but to try and shake the faith in God's ability to deliver them. Isaiah tells us that over five thousand of the enemy was killed in one night by one angel (Isaiah 37:36)

When Daniel’s friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego refused to worship Nebuchadnezzer’s golden idol they were thrown into a fiery furnace (Daniel 3). An angel came to their rescue. Their ropes were removed and they moved about freely- but they were still in the furnace! Sometimes we are not delivered from the situation itself, only the results. When Daniel himself was thrown into a lions den for continuing to pray to God after a royal decree had been made than made it an offence punishable by death, an angel came to his rescue. (Dan 6). The angel shut the lions' mouths through the night so they did not hurt him. When those who had accused Daniel were thrown into the pit they were immediately eaten. (So it wasn’t like the lions were not hungry.)

Finally, one of my favorite stories is from Acts 12. It seems Peter is in prison. He doesn’t seem to be too worried because he is asleep. His sleep is so deep that the angel who wakes him has to punch him in the side. (Acts 12:7-11)

Too often we take the forces around us that we can see, too seriously and the forces we cannot see too much for granted unless they are from the satanic realm and are manifested in the physical realm. The main strategy is to trust in God. Trusting him, that he is in control and that as needed he will send his angels to minister to our needs and situations. Instead of looking to ourselves, to other flesh and blood or worldly answers for our problems, to overcome our sins or the enemy of our souls, we need to look to God. He is our Rock, our Fortress and our Deliverer.

Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice. Psalm 63:7 (NKJV)

I will lift up my eyes to the hills-- from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Psalm 121:1-2 (NKJV)

Walk of Trust

Psalm 37:1-3 A Psalm of David. Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

Psalm 37 is a psalm written by David. In his life time he saw evil men seemingly prosper. He saw Saul continue as king when those around Saul could see that he was wrong. He saw the likes of Nabal, "the fool" prosper while he and his men went hungry. David saw the Philistines prosper yet they served false gods. Here in this psalm he begins with and an admonition to his listeners not to become angry when the see the wicked prosper. He had already experienced the anger and worry that comes when your focus is on people instead of God.
The first part of this Psalm has some specific instruction about “fretting” and what we can do to keep from it and we can also see what often the cause of it is. Trusting in God prevents needless fretting and frustration in our live.
Aristotle believed that we had a special emotion implanted in our nature which causes us to "fret" at undeserved prosperity. We would all have to agree that it is a common feeling and it is found even in the best of characters.
The Hebrew word for fret is khaw-raw is from a primary word that means to glow or grow warm. Figuratively it is used to mean to blaze up with anger, zeal, jealousy or displeasure. It is used here of being angry. We associate the word fret with worry or to stew over something but that is usually because there is some degree of anger involved. It is generally because our anger causes the pot of worry to boil. In this Psalm we are told not to fret in verses 1,7 and 8 and specifically not to fret because of evildoers. We are not to be envious of the workers of iniquity even when they succeed in the wicked ways and are able to carry out their wicked schemes, (vs.7) . When we focus on what others do and we see that it is wrong but they come out with what looks like success we get angry. It drives the person who is trying to walk with the Lord nuts when he sees someone who has no interest in God prosper when in fact he is in open rebellion to God.
But we are still told…NOT TO FRET. It only leads to evil (v.8). There is a temptation to follow in the path of the wicked because of their prosperity. If we do not keep this emotion in check and under the control of the spirit we become envious.(v.1) if we give in to the temptation we find ourselves guilty of the very things that make us angry with them.
Anger and worry (what fretting is) are two very destructive emotions. They reveal a lack of faith that God loves us and is in control. We should not worry; instead, we should trust in God, giving ourselves to him for his use and safekeeping. What worries you can also master you and when you add anger to the mix you find yourself deeply in bondage. But if you focus on God and his goodness, you trust that He is in control, then you will find peace. We have to ask ourselves, “Where do I focus my attention? When we trust God we are able to have a righteous anger concerning the sin and wrong doing of others but it also keep us from jealousy of their prosperity.
Trust results in confidence in God. The word here for trust is a primary root word that means to hurry to a place for refuge. Do you rush to the Lord for refuge or do you seek to take things in to your own hands. Figuratively it means to trust, to be confident, to be sure or bold, secure, without care. An example would be when my grandchildren trusted me to catch them as the jumped into the pool they jump with confidence because they know I will, every time. Sometimes, they go under water for a couple of seconds but they come up, gasp for air and then smile because they know I’ve got them. Trusting God means that we jump into His arms and He catches us. We may go under the water for a bit but if we focus on Him we know He’s got us. We have confidence that He won’t let us go. And He won’t. Ever.
The greatest reward in trusting God is that, They shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace,(vs.11) Those that trust God may not have a lot of physical wealth but they will have something that is even better.
They will have an abundance of peace, inward peace and tranquility of mind and peace with God,

The Cross and the Resurrection in the Revelation of Jesus

“Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.--Revelation 1:18 (NKJV)


“Behold, I Am Alive Forevermore.” With those words Christ gives affirmation to the truth we gather to celebrate at this time each year.
All we can do in light of the Resurrection is to simply give thanks to God. We can certainly be grateful for the things Christ did, witnessed to in the Word: that He cleansed the lepers; that the deaf were made to hear; that sight was given to the blind; that the dumb could speak; that there was comfort for the sad, acceptance for the outcast, and hope for the hopeless.
But His sacrificial death and Resurrection are the things He did most worthy of our praise and thanks, for without a cross and a Resurrection; there would not even be a church.

“I Am He Who Lives, And Was Dead.” The cross is the center of our faith. It is where the Love of God was shown and our lives were redeemed. Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is the culmination of all that gave meaning to His life. His last words from the cross were, “It is finished.” We miss the mark if we fail to understand that His death was His greatest purpose in life. When we understand that, then we begin to understand why so many false teachings raise objections to Christ’s death and/or His Resurrection. The truth of the Gospel witness must stand or fall at these two points: 1) Did Jesus in fact die on a cross? 2) Was He in fact raised from the dead?
There are those that suggest that Jesus did not really die, but only swooned, or fainted, on the cross. This theory also suggests that He was revived by the coolness of the tomb, and got up, rolled away the stone, and walked out. That’s a pretty slick trick for a man who had been beaten half to death, lost large amounts of blood, had spikes driven through his feet, and had a spear thrust through His heart. No, His death was real. Not only was His death real, but it was the worst kind of death we can imagine. And this death was made even more hideous for Him, when we consider who He is. If this was the worst death that could happen to a human being then how much more gruesome for one that was the very Son of God, the King of glory. What a stark opposite there is between the glories of heaven and the place called Skull Hill. His death was not only real, it was more real than any death ever before. Not only was His death real, it was done voluntarily. When we finally understand the hideousness of this death and we understand it was done by Christ’s willing choice, we will finally understand the agony of Gethsemane. He willingly chose to take our sins upon Himself and die for us but that also meant He willingly allowed himself to be separated from His Heavenly Father. The literal meaning of our free translation of “I was dead” is “I BECAME dead.” There is voluntariness and willingness wrapped up within that idea of becoming. Christ Himself witnessed to His own voluntary offering of Himself beforehand, in His statement, “No one takes my life from me, but I lay it down of myself”; and on the cross, when His life is not taken away from Him, but He says rather, “Into your hands I commend my Spirit.”

“I Am Alive Forevermore” Not only do we have the certainty of the death of Christ here, but we also have the certainty of His Resurrection. They rolled a stone in front of the tomb—they put a seal on the tomb—they stationed soldiers—but the grave could not hold Him. There have been some objections that “Jesus wasn’t the first to come back.” The examples given are the Shunammite woman’s son, Jairus’s daughter, the widow of Nain’s son, and Lazarus. But the one significant difference between Jesus and all those others is that they all RETURNED to the grave. Jesus says in this text in Revelation, “I am alive FOREVERMORE.” His Resurrection to a heavenly existence with a glorified body is not to be confused with previous resurrections of earthly bodies to an earthly existence.

“I Have The Keys Of Hades And Of Death” Jesus is the Lord over death and the grave. We certainly have in this passage several powerful statements concerning the risen Lord. But not only does He say: “I am the first and the last”; “I am He who lives”; “I am He who was dead”; and “I am alive forevermore.” He also says: “I have the keys.” I am reminded of a game we used to play when I was a Boy Scout, called “Capture the Flag.” The object of the game was to sneak into the enemy’s territory and steal the flag and get back to your own territory without being captured. If captured, you would be placed in an area that served as a prison. The game ended when someone stole the other team’s flag and made it back safely. The inevitable shout at the end of the game was, “I’ve got the flag! I’ve got the flag!” All the prisoners would then be freed, and victory was declared. In a manner of speaking, that is exactly what Jesus did by His death and Resurrection. He went into the enemy’s camp, stole the keys, and came back. And here in this passage, He makes the proclamation of victory: “I have the keys!” The prisoners are freed, the grave is no longer a prison-house to which death holds the key and Death need no longer be feared.

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. Hebrews 2:14,15

Jesus Christ took the worst symbol of suffering ever known on earth—the cross—and made it a symbol of the greatest triumph. He took the thing that gives greatest fear—death—and made it the doorway to our greatest hope. Praise God for a risen, living Lord!

Living Hope

1PE 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

I love the fact that the believer has hope. This hope is given to us a gift from our heavenly Father. The grounds of the hope is because of his abundant mercy. It is in His mercy that we find hope. It begins with the hope of salvation that is found in the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
We can also see the character of that hope. It is a lively hope. This means that it is living and full of life. That in itself causes it to be bright, active, and filled with joy. It springs up like a fountain and it is continually fresh when we draw from it. The hope of unjust men dies... When a wicked man dies, his expectation will perish, and the hope of the unjust perishes. Proverbs 11:7 Hitler would be a prime example. He saw all that he had hoped to build fall apart around him. When there was no hope left for him he committed suicide. Our hope will never perish. The difference for us is the means by which we were begotten into the hope… the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Why does that bring hope? It is because we have a risen savior. Because our savior has risen we have a different life. “For our life is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ”: (PHI 3:20) and we are looking for Him, who is our hope. Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ. (TIT 2:13)
Because I have a risen Savior I can trust every word He says because He said He would be killed but also He would rise again. If he didn't He is a liar and can't be trusted. But He did rise and I can trust his words. Jesus said, “I am the way the truth and the life and no man comes to the father but by me.” (John14:26) The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. (John 3:16-17) I can trust in the hope that I have in Him.
This means that I have access to the throne of God. EPH 2:18 says that: ...through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. EPH 3:12 says that we have... boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him. HEB.4:16 tells us to… come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
It also means I am rescued from the wrath to come. Paul wrote: For they themselves declare concerning us what manner of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. (1 Thes. 1:9-10 ) He also said in the same letter, “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. (1 Thes. 4:14-16)
This is the hope we live in. Walk daily in that hope!

The Fathers Heart

Luke 15:20-24 And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. 21And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.' 22But the father said to his servants, 'Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 23And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 24for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' And they began to be merry.

This passage is from the very well know parable that Jesus told about the prodigal son. Many times the emphasis is placed upon the return of the son and the Father’s acceptance of him. This gives those that have been distant from God the hope of returning. They see that they can find forgiveness. It helps us in forgiving those that backslide.
What we really must take notice of is the Fathers Heart because in this we see the heart of the Father. Notice first that He was watching for him – While he was still a great way off his father saw him. God watches for our return. It is His desire. He employs the Holy Spirit to convince our heart to return to Him. And the Father had compassion for him. He had pity for His son. He saw his condition and had compassion. And so our heavenly Father saw our condition. We were lost and without hope and while we were yet sinners He sent Jesus to die for us. It hurts to see our kids goof up. Often the pain we feel is because of the condition they have brought upon themselves. In an even greater way God sees our condition and His heart hurts for us. This is why He is so persistent in bringing conviction by the Holy Spirit.
We also see that the Father ran to his son. No matter how far you go from God, the moment you turn towards Him, He is there, ready to forgive and restore. God is ready to embrace you. The father in Jesus Parable fell on his neck (which means that he threw his arms around his neck and embraced him, or as a friend of mines says, “hugged ya good”. And he kissed him! Hugs and kisses for this kid that just came from the pig parlor! The context of the sentence means to kiss earnestly or to kiss much. The kiss was used of the father to the prodigal as a sign of acceptance and reconciliation.
Now the son came back with a repentant heart. He did not come as a son but came with the desire of being a servant. His Father heard his confession and chose to forgive and restore him – beyond what he expected. His Father gave him the best and beyond what he expected. When we come back to God with a heart of repentance God does so much more than we ever expect. It is His delight to restore us, not as servant, but as children. He will accept our service but He sees us as His children.
When the father restored him he did not just let the son come home. He let the son know how he saw him. God does the same. The “robe” restored him to a position of son-ship and honor. For us, it is symbolized by being clothed with the righteousness of Christ. It reminds us of where we are now and calls us to holy living.
And the Father gave him a ring and shoes. The “ring” restored him to a position of authority. The son was now to represent the father and his kingdom. The “shoes” the father gave him immediately restored and elevated him above servanthood, which means he became a free man. The Father has given us shoes and as children we are now shod with shoes to carry the gospel of peace wherever we go. We are free, “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).“As free, and not using your liberty for a cloak of maliciousness, but as the servants of God” (1 Peter 2:16).
And finally there is the celebration. This pictures reconciliation, full acceptance, and the great joy of the occasion. The father fed the son and celebrated his son’s return. Both facts are important. All that a child of God needs is fed to him. He is fully accepted into the family; therefore, all the food of heaven is laid out before him. It is there to nourish him. But even more: there was celebration and great joy over the son’s return. The whole household celebrated in joy. But the greatest joy was the fathers. It is also the heavenly Father’s great joy when one returns. I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. Luke 15:7Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." Luke 15:10
The Father’s Heart is one of Compassion and Restoration. It is a generous heart that rejoices in giving mercy and grace. It is a heart that seeks to have the broken hearts return to Him and rejoices when they do. Let us seek to have that same heart and make sure that we do not take His Heart for granted.

Bridleing the Tongue

One of the cool things I see about James and the other writers of the New Testament is that they include themselves in their admonitions. James says, “For we all stumble in many things.” He does not exalt himself above his students or to the people he is writing to but stands, conscious of his own weaknesses. Yet he is ready to follow his own instruction.

We all stumble. No one is exempt. Everyone must heed these words. That is because we all stumble at many things…all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Everyone must be careful of their tongue and recognize the danger that they can do with it or they will continue to stumble and do damage if they don’t (or refuse to) see or acknowledge it.

There is a danger in justifying what is said or the tone in which it is said. Instead of using soft and healing words we can be guilty of using harsh and hurtful ones. Some folks want to call it being strong or honest but in fact they can be neither. Something can be said that is true but how we say it can reveal our motive for saying it. Gal 6:1 says if we see someone in a fault we should seek to restore them. All too often we want to punish them. We may use correct words but still with harshness. Many times our tone reveals our motive for saying anything.

In vs.3 and 4, James uses the visual of a bridle and a rudder of a ship to illustrate the need to get a handle on our tongue. The bridle is used to control the direction of the horse, the whole horse. The same is of the rudder with a whole ship. But a steady hand must be kept on both at all times or they can both drift or, in a sudden situation go in a direction that was not intended. If something startles the horse or a sudden squall comes up on the lake or the sea and there is no steady hand then things get out of control quickly. The same is true for the tongue. We need to be careful to “keep a hand” on our tongue at all times so that it doesn’t get out of control when we are in a sudden situation. We also need to be careful that it doesn’t drift into places it does not belong. We need to stay on course. This takes a watchful eye and a steady hand on our tongue at all times. Not ours…but the hand of the Captain of our soul. It takes listening to His direction and cautions to keep us on course and moving on the right path. He will let us know if our grip is too loose or too lax on our tongue. It doesn’t have to be tight or taut so much as it just needs to be firm and steady. If we look to Him we can learn to have just the right grip and move a little closer to being perfect.

Stricter Judgment

My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. James 3:1

So you want to be a teacher, huh? Are you ready for the judgment? This verse is part of the passage that speaks about the tongue and the use of it. The teacher uses words to instruct as well as counsel and minister to others. The one that would “teach”(on any level) must be careful of what he says because there is judgment on several levels
He is judged by those that he teaches. Does he live by the words that he uses to instruct? Does he pursue the direction that he points to? Those that hear his words will judge the validity of those words by how the teacher lives.
If his listeners are discerning then they will, by a good teacher’s own instruction, judge the teachers words against the bible. Not the verses that he uses but his explanation of them
He will be judged by his peers. Fellow teachers are also fellow students. They will judge his words by their own study of the bible. Some things may be opinion but another teacher will be quick to spot something out of context or a concept that is taught and has nothing to do with the passage being considered. If a teacher only concerns himself with the thought of being true to God’s word and the sense of it, if his goal is to please God first and foremost, then he has nothing to fear and will welcome the judgment of God. He can stand in the face of his peers or his students and hold his ground, if he must but he must also be willing to change it as well if he sees that he has been wrong and flawed in what he taught. He can be confident that what he teaches his “students” is correct and does not worry about acceptance or rejection because he pleases the Master. He has surrendered his own tongue to the one that has created it

Confidence

Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; Philippians 1:6

There are times when we just don’t seem to be making progress in our spiritual life. It is good to know that when God starts a project that He sees it to its completion.

God started something in our life. It was a new life, created in Christ Jesus and we are His workmanship.(Eph.2:10). He continues this work throughout the rest of our life until we are finished with our race and go to meet Him face to face.

The Life Application Notes say: “God’s work for us began when Christ died on the cross in our place. His work in us began when we first believed. Now the Holy Spirit lives in us, enabling us to be more like Christ every day. Paul is describing the process of Christian growth and maturity that began when we accepted Jesus and continues until Christ returns.”

God is working in each of our lives. He is causing us to grow in grace and faith. He is knocking off the rough edges, smoothing us out and polishing us up until the day His work in us is complete. Don’t be discouraged when things are not going fast enough. Just relax and stop working so hard and just allow the growth to just blossom. When was the last time you heard a flower grunting and groaning and working at trying to bloom? It just does. Even in the desert, in the harshest of circumstances a flower grows...and without working is beautiful, as God created it to be.

Remember that God won’t give up on you. He promises to finish the work he has begun. When you feel imperfect, inadequate, or painfully aware of your shortcomings, remember God’s promise and provision. Don’t let your present condition rob you of the joy of knowing Christ or keep you from growing closer to him.

Love..and Obedience

John 14:14-26 23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.

In this passage two things are connected for us by Jesus, Love...and Obedience. If a person loves Jesus, he will keep the commandments of Jesus. Literally, what Jesus is saying is, "If you keep loving me" you will keep my commands.
Obedience does not bring love; it is love that will bring obedience. In other words, continued love prevents disobedience. It seems that obedience is the indicator of our love for Jesus. I don’t know how many times I have heard it said...He (or she) really loves the Lord ...but…It is the conjunction but, that changes everything. It is a word that is used to indicate an exception. They love the Lord...but they are living together…violating His word. They love the Lord…but they refuse to forgive someone for having done something to them. They love the Lord…but they continue to live to themselves, their own way and doing their own thing. We often use this to describe a person that we like/or love and we don’t want to admit that by their lifestyle, they are in rebellion to God. Why is it that we say that we love Jesus…and we would do anything…even die for Him and yet we cannot or will not do what it takes to live for Him…do obey His word?
There are two things we need to understand about this obedience and love. The first is that obedience is not optional for believers. Jesus stated a simple fact that must be clearly understood: “If you love me you will keep my commandments.” This is the correct translation. Jesus is not giving an optional commandment, “If you love me, and it is comfortable, and it fits into your life style, then keep my commandments.” He is saying that the man or woman who truly loves Him will keep His commandments. To the believer, there is no option. He loves Jesus; therefore, he keeps His commandments. By doing this the believer is not claiming perfection, but he or she is claiming to love Jesus and to believe with all his heart that Jesus is the Son of God. The believer may fail, they may fall but it is not a life style. The believer doesn’t excuse sin and doesn’t ignore sin. Instead, the believer makes it a life’s goal to please Jesus in all that is said and done. It is the heart’s desire of the believer to please Jesus.
What it means to love Jesus must be clearly understood. To love Jesus is not an emotional thing. Don’t get me wrong. it involves emotions, but it is not based upon emotions. It is not about feelings. Otherwise my life becomes confusing and up and down. If I am feeling good today I am loving Jesus, and feeling bad tomorrow I am not loving Jesus. Loving Jesus is not a changeable experience and it is not an up and down emotion. It is not an emotional love that changes with feelings. To love Jesus is not just a rational or mental commitment. Of course it involves the mind, but it is not just deciding that Jesus is the Son of God and adopting His teachings and morality as one’s standard in life. It is not just living by His teachings and doing the best a person can. It is not a matter of the mind alone, not a matter of disciplining one’s life to keep the law and its rules and regulations.
To love Jesus is a matter of the heart and of the spirit: a matter of man’s most vital part, man’s innermost being, all that a man is. The heart is the seat of man’s affection and will (devotion). The heart attaches and focuses our affection and will and devotion to an object or a person. The heart causes a man to will to give himself either to good or bad. To love Jesus means that a man focuses his heart and affections and will (his devotion) upon God by giving and receiving the love of God. It means that a man gives his affection and will, all he is and has to Jesus Christ. It means he... freely accepts Jesus. If we freely accept Jesus, why is it that we fight Him so much for control?
To love Jesus means that we sacrificially give all we are and have to Jesus. But just giving worldly goods and giving of your time is not enough if you are going to hold back on the rest of your life and continue in your own sin and rebellion. Rebellion doesn’t necessarily always look like rebellion. At least we don’t think it does. If sin dominates our lives then it is the sin that is loved more than the Lord no matter how much we want to convince ourselves otherwise. Jesus told us what the greatest commandments were:
And to love Him (God) with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." Mark 12:33 (NKJV) All have sinned and fallen short,(Rom 3:23) but God’s grace is greater. But God’s grace should cause us to love Him all the more, not become an excuse to sin.