Friday, July 31, 2020
"It Is the Lord Who Sends The Thunderstorms"
This morning I thought I would spend some time in Zechariah. Again, not my normal reading choice. I opened up chapter ten and saw the following verse - Zechariah 10:1 NIV:
"Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime;
it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms. He gives showers of rain to all people, and plants of the field to everyone."
For those living in KC, this past day was pretty much non-stop rain, so this might not be our hearts cry right now. :-)
Also, reflecting on the natural weather, at day in the 70s with 24 hours of rain in July is definitely not what one would expect, living in Kansas City! The Lord, while He put into place the seasons and changes, can certainly supersede such seasonal norms and provide relief from heat and dryness in the middle of what is normally a hot and dry period, in response to the prayers of His people.
I was thinking how asking God for springtime rains, doesn't make much sense, as in our normal year, we experience plenty of ran in the spring. Our logical mind would say that there is no need to ask for that which is expected, and will by nature be provided, and almost seems a bit unnecessary.
I would say that turning our mind and heart to our creator is never a bad thing. Understanding that His creation has order and follows a predictable seasonal pattern is the foundation of our scientific exploration and thought. It was in recognizing that there was order, that things seemed to follow consistent patterns, that gave man his earliest awareness of God's involvement.
However, this morning, my heart and mind aren't moved by the natural seasons, but rather by the spiritual indications. These verses from Zechariah would be the second time in the last few days that I have been reflecting on the rains, and I believe that rain is symbolic of God's favor, presence and Word being poured out on His sons and daughters.
I am reminded of a set of verses from Isaiah 55:10-11 NIV:
[10] "As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, [11] so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."
Lord, I pray for an outpouring of Your Word, of Your Presence and of Your Favor over Kansas City, and over all Your people! We pray that Your Presence would saturate us and overflow onto all around us. We pray for Your heavenly power to be unleashed and that all the peoples would see and respond to You. We pray that the fruit of Your word would be seen, and that it would accomplish Your purposes. We pray that the land and the people would be revived by the rain of Your presence!
Amen and Amen!
Wednesday, July 29, 2020
God's Mountain, Higher Than Every Other
This morning I felt like I should read from the Prophet Micah, definitely not my normal routine, chapter four to be specific. It is interesting that Micah was a prophet prior to the Babylonian exile, and while I am not going to quote the verses related to that in chapter four (See Micah 4:10), the Lord was clearly giving them direction as a nation, and telling them what would soon happen. He wrote his letter in 800 BC, and the first Babylonian exile occurred in 597BC, so roughly 200 years after Micah wrote these words. I am just so aware this morning of God's bigger picture, and His deeper plans, they are so much more than we can comprehend, even when He tells them to us ahead of time.
In that light, I am confident none of what is happening today in our country caught God by surprise. He has plans and purposes that we cannot fathom. He speaks through His prophets, but often the prophets don't know His timing either. I am sure that Micah thought their was an immediacy to his words, yet the fulfillment was much later. In that light, I wanted to reflect on some of Micah's prophecy that has clearly not come to pass yet, and relates to the final days. It is quite different than the present situation, and should provide us some perspective to pray towards.
Here are the verses - Micah 4:1-4 NIV:
[1] "In the last days
the mountain of the Lord's temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and peoples will stream to it.
[2] Many nations will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
[3] He will judge between many peoples and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.
[4] Everyone will sit under their own vine and under their own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid, for the Lord Almighty has spoken."
It would be interesting to see how many times the phrase "In the last days" is used in scripture. That would be a very interesting study. We are clearly closer to those days than Micah who spoke of them 2800+ years ago.
Clearly this overall prophecy has yet to come about fully, for we do not see a world without war or strife. We do not see the Mountain of the Lord's temple established as the highest. By this I believe He is talking about the reign and rule of the Kingdom of God, established as the highest mountain. There is an understanding today of the Seven Mountains of Influence and they are Religion, family, education, government, media, arts, & business. When I read these words from Micah, that is what I think of, and in this case it would be indicative of God's Kingdom, His rule, being higher than all and influencing all the other mountains.
We have seen verse 2 somewhat fulfilled, as the word of the Lord has gone out from Jerusalem to the whole world, and some people from most every nation turn to the Lord. I pray for the day when we will see most most if not all nations turning to God, looking to understand His ways, His reign and rule. Oh for the day of Lord's rule and reign!
In reading verses 3 & 4, I am wondering if this is a picture of the millennial reign of Christ, or if we will see this reality in our present world, prior to Jesus' return. Regardless, it is something to pray for, something to look towards.
It is good for me to be reminded that God has plans and purposes that we only slightly understand. He is fully in charge, fully engaged and we are moving in the direction He has planned. Our present difficulties, stress and uncertainty will be resolved one day. We can ask for His wisdom in understanding our times, like the sons of Issachar who understood the times and knew what to do (1 Chron 12:32).
Lord, we know You and trust that You have plans we don't understand, but we know and trust You. Help us to understand these times, and help us to know what we should do! We want to be a part of all You are about on this earth.
Amen.
In that light, I am confident none of what is happening today in our country caught God by surprise. He has plans and purposes that we cannot fathom. He speaks through His prophets, but often the prophets don't know His timing either. I am sure that Micah thought their was an immediacy to his words, yet the fulfillment was much later. In that light, I wanted to reflect on some of Micah's prophecy that has clearly not come to pass yet, and relates to the final days. It is quite different than the present situation, and should provide us some perspective to pray towards.
Here are the verses - Micah 4:1-4 NIV:
[1] "In the last days
the mountain of the Lord's temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and peoples will stream to it.
[2] Many nations will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
[3] He will judge between many peoples and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.
[4] Everyone will sit under their own vine and under their own fig tree, and no one will make them afraid, for the Lord Almighty has spoken."
It would be interesting to see how many times the phrase "In the last days" is used in scripture. That would be a very interesting study. We are clearly closer to those days than Micah who spoke of them 2800+ years ago.
Clearly this overall prophecy has yet to come about fully, for we do not see a world without war or strife. We do not see the Mountain of the Lord's temple established as the highest. By this I believe He is talking about the reign and rule of the Kingdom of God, established as the highest mountain. There is an understanding today of the Seven Mountains of Influence and they are Religion, family, education, government, media, arts, & business. When I read these words from Micah, that is what I think of, and in this case it would be indicative of God's Kingdom, His rule, being higher than all and influencing all the other mountains.
We have seen verse 2 somewhat fulfilled, as the word of the Lord has gone out from Jerusalem to the whole world, and some people from most every nation turn to the Lord. I pray for the day when we will see most most if not all nations turning to God, looking to understand His ways, His reign and rule. Oh for the day of Lord's rule and reign!
In reading verses 3 & 4, I am wondering if this is a picture of the millennial reign of Christ, or if we will see this reality in our present world, prior to Jesus' return. Regardless, it is something to pray for, something to look towards.
It is good for me to be reminded that God has plans and purposes that we only slightly understand. He is fully in charge, fully engaged and we are moving in the direction He has planned. Our present difficulties, stress and uncertainty will be resolved one day. We can ask for His wisdom in understanding our times, like the sons of Issachar who understood the times and knew what to do (1 Chron 12:32).
Lord, we know You and trust that You have plans we don't understand, but we know and trust You. Help us to understand these times, and help us to know what we should do! We want to be a part of all You are about on this earth.
Amen.
Tuesday, July 28, 2020
Waiting for Rain (Revival)
This morning I felt led to read from the fifth chapter of James. I had to reread the chapter a couple of times to see what was resonating with my spirit. My reading is often like that - I read and wait and ask the Lord to highlight or begin to speak about a particular subject. It is like I am sitting at the feet of Him as if He is a teacher, waiting for Him to speak about the verses and bring enlightenment.
This morning He highlighted the following verses - James 5:7-11 NIV:
[7] "Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. [8] You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near. [9] Don't grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
[10] Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. [11] As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy."
My thoughts upon reading these verses were a bit all over the place. I know several farmers, and have family that are farmers, and the first thing I thought was that no farmer I know just waits patiently for the rains, they are working every day, constantly working to make things ready for either planting or harvesting, depending on the season. If they have planted then they are out working the field to minimize the weeds, working on the harvesting equipment, preparing storage facilities or agreements to sell the harvest, etc. If they have harvested, they begin preparation for the next season of planting, in a never ending cycle of preparation and daily work.
My second thought was that many farmers, even in Jesus' day figured out that they could irrigate the land and water the crops, even if there wasn't any rain. I have seen the giant irrigation systems of the Midwest USA, read about the irrigation systems of the Kibbutz's in Israel that allow rich harvests from the dry lands there. In ancient days, they devised systems to flood fields, and these same type of systems are used today in many places.
So what's my point? Its not that man can accomplish the same thing through hard work and irrigation, but rather that James is speaking about something that we cannot work up, or bring about, he is speaking of the return of the Lord! Secondly, as I was reading this I felt like the autumn and spring rains represented waves of revival, poured out on the earth through the Holy Spirit. This is where I felt my spirit start to jump! We have been praying for many years for the Lord to pour forth revival, and have recently been pressing in more and more praying that a wave of revival would pour over our land! Regardless of how much we pray, the revivals of the Lord are sovereign acts of God. Our job is preparation.
As I engaged with this idea, I realized that all the thinking about the farmers work, was related to the church's ability to prepare for and benefit from the rain of revival. The farmer spends much of his time thinking about and working to bring the soil to its proper preparation to receive the seed and then to absorb the rains when they come. In hilly country the farmers terrace their farms so the rain that comes doesn't run off, but instead is absorbed into the soil. They break up fallow ground, they plow and disk and prepare the soil. They plant and then work the soil to best support the growing plants. All of this is support work, for its the rains of the Lord that bring life!
In today's farming, it is amazing how large of a farm a single farmer can work and prepare, sometimes thousands of acres. In the same way, some of the recent revivals were prepared for by relatively small groups of people. The New Hebrides Revival (started in 1949 in the New Hebrides Islands off Scotland) seemed to have been prepared for by a couple of old sisters who had been praying for a sovereign move of God. The Azusa Street Revival (started in 1906 in Los Angeles) was largely prepared for by a small group of believers.
The preparations these two small groups made were done through prayer. They prayed and prayed, seeking the Lord of the Harvest to send forth rain upon their lands. There were churches in both locations and those churches were doing the best they could to plant and water, but they produced nothing like the rain of revival! With local irrigation the only that beenfits is the local farm, but with the rains the whole regiuon benefits. The thing about the rain of revival is that it produces abundant fruit, even on soil that was seemingly never touched or prepared, other than general prayer over a the region. What I mean is that there were massive outpourings of salvation, of people who had never heard the Word or darkened the door of a church, coming to Jesus. There are great stories of the presence of God overwhelming people as they walked by, completely unaware of what was happening in the nearest church. Revival is not the result of well oiled ministry programs, excited singing, or powerful preaching, it is birthed only out of the sovereign move of the Holy Spirit.
Our job, in preparing for revival rains, is to pray, first and foremost. Secondly, we need to have hearts and minds prepared to recognize the move of the Holy Spirit. Thirdly, we need to be ready to jump in with both feet, for when the rains of revival fall, the harvest is immediate! Next, we need to wait patiently, but expectingly! The farmer doesn't just sit and wait, they are actively preparing for the expected rains. Patiently waiting does not mean doing nothing.
Finally, we need to cultivate our love for one another. I think its so interesting that James adds that encouragement against grumbling against one another. The Greek word is "stenazo", and it means to groan or sigh, and the root is "stenos" which means the narrows or straits in a river. In other words, it is the result of the sides pressing in, or circumstances pressing in, or just pressure. When there isn't any rain, and things get dry, people start to complain. When pressure mounts, we start looking around and comparing our situation to others and complaining about how much better someone else has it... (At least that is how I operate). One wonders if James is commenting on the fact that there was a competitive spirit in the churches he saw, where they were constantly comparing themselves to one another, bad-mouthing others for things they didn't agree with??
I recently watched a sermon where a preacher was explaining why he was directing his church to stop using worship songs from different well known churches, because they taught things that he didn't agree with, and he didn't want to support anything that might have the slightest deviation from what he held to be the truth. Rather than looking at and celebrating the good that was coming out of them, he could only look at the one little difference and warn his people to have nothing to do with them. One wonders if there wasn't a bit of jealousy over the success of these other ministries. I don't know anything about his ministry, so I am not saying anything about his motivation, only that he spent much of the sermon grumbling against his brother and sisters.
We are not going to agree with everything that is being taught by every other church, but we are in the same Body of Christ, as there is only ONE. We need to get over ourselves, our pride, and our opinions and learn to love one another! When revival hits, it affects the whole region, regardless of denomination and/or affiliation!
In summary, let us press into the Lord, preparing for the autumn and spring rains, the rain of revival. Let us not stop patiently waiting by actively engaging in prayer and preparation of our hearts for the coming of the Lord! Let us lay down our opinions and bitter disagreements and let us chose to love one another and be for one another!
Amen, come quickly Holy Spirit, we need Your rain!
This morning He highlighted the following verses - James 5:7-11 NIV:
[7] "Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. [8] You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near. [9] Don't grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
[10] Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. [11] As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy."
My thoughts upon reading these verses were a bit all over the place. I know several farmers, and have family that are farmers, and the first thing I thought was that no farmer I know just waits patiently for the rains, they are working every day, constantly working to make things ready for either planting or harvesting, depending on the season. If they have planted then they are out working the field to minimize the weeds, working on the harvesting equipment, preparing storage facilities or agreements to sell the harvest, etc. If they have harvested, they begin preparation for the next season of planting, in a never ending cycle of preparation and daily work.
My second thought was that many farmers, even in Jesus' day figured out that they could irrigate the land and water the crops, even if there wasn't any rain. I have seen the giant irrigation systems of the Midwest USA, read about the irrigation systems of the Kibbutz's in Israel that allow rich harvests from the dry lands there. In ancient days, they devised systems to flood fields, and these same type of systems are used today in many places.
So what's my point? Its not that man can accomplish the same thing through hard work and irrigation, but rather that James is speaking about something that we cannot work up, or bring about, he is speaking of the return of the Lord! Secondly, as I was reading this I felt like the autumn and spring rains represented waves of revival, poured out on the earth through the Holy Spirit. This is where I felt my spirit start to jump! We have been praying for many years for the Lord to pour forth revival, and have recently been pressing in more and more praying that a wave of revival would pour over our land! Regardless of how much we pray, the revivals of the Lord are sovereign acts of God. Our job is preparation.
As I engaged with this idea, I realized that all the thinking about the farmers work, was related to the church's ability to prepare for and benefit from the rain of revival. The farmer spends much of his time thinking about and working to bring the soil to its proper preparation to receive the seed and then to absorb the rains when they come. In hilly country the farmers terrace their farms so the rain that comes doesn't run off, but instead is absorbed into the soil. They break up fallow ground, they plow and disk and prepare the soil. They plant and then work the soil to best support the growing plants. All of this is support work, for its the rains of the Lord that bring life!
In today's farming, it is amazing how large of a farm a single farmer can work and prepare, sometimes thousands of acres. In the same way, some of the recent revivals were prepared for by relatively small groups of people. The New Hebrides Revival (started in 1949 in the New Hebrides Islands off Scotland) seemed to have been prepared for by a couple of old sisters who had been praying for a sovereign move of God. The Azusa Street Revival (started in 1906 in Los Angeles) was largely prepared for by a small group of believers.
The preparations these two small groups made were done through prayer. They prayed and prayed, seeking the Lord of the Harvest to send forth rain upon their lands. There were churches in both locations and those churches were doing the best they could to plant and water, but they produced nothing like the rain of revival! With local irrigation the only that beenfits is the local farm, but with the rains the whole regiuon benefits. The thing about the rain of revival is that it produces abundant fruit, even on soil that was seemingly never touched or prepared, other than general prayer over a the region. What I mean is that there were massive outpourings of salvation, of people who had never heard the Word or darkened the door of a church, coming to Jesus. There are great stories of the presence of God overwhelming people as they walked by, completely unaware of what was happening in the nearest church. Revival is not the result of well oiled ministry programs, excited singing, or powerful preaching, it is birthed only out of the sovereign move of the Holy Spirit.
Our job, in preparing for revival rains, is to pray, first and foremost. Secondly, we need to have hearts and minds prepared to recognize the move of the Holy Spirit. Thirdly, we need to be ready to jump in with both feet, for when the rains of revival fall, the harvest is immediate! Next, we need to wait patiently, but expectingly! The farmer doesn't just sit and wait, they are actively preparing for the expected rains. Patiently waiting does not mean doing nothing.
Finally, we need to cultivate our love for one another. I think its so interesting that James adds that encouragement against grumbling against one another. The Greek word is "stenazo", and it means to groan or sigh, and the root is "stenos" which means the narrows or straits in a river. In other words, it is the result of the sides pressing in, or circumstances pressing in, or just pressure. When there isn't any rain, and things get dry, people start to complain. When pressure mounts, we start looking around and comparing our situation to others and complaining about how much better someone else has it... (At least that is how I operate). One wonders if James is commenting on the fact that there was a competitive spirit in the churches he saw, where they were constantly comparing themselves to one another, bad-mouthing others for things they didn't agree with??
I recently watched a sermon where a preacher was explaining why he was directing his church to stop using worship songs from different well known churches, because they taught things that he didn't agree with, and he didn't want to support anything that might have the slightest deviation from what he held to be the truth. Rather than looking at and celebrating the good that was coming out of them, he could only look at the one little difference and warn his people to have nothing to do with them. One wonders if there wasn't a bit of jealousy over the success of these other ministries. I don't know anything about his ministry, so I am not saying anything about his motivation, only that he spent much of the sermon grumbling against his brother and sisters.
We are not going to agree with everything that is being taught by every other church, but we are in the same Body of Christ, as there is only ONE. We need to get over ourselves, our pride, and our opinions and learn to love one another! When revival hits, it affects the whole region, regardless of denomination and/or affiliation!
In summary, let us press into the Lord, preparing for the autumn and spring rains, the rain of revival. Let us not stop patiently waiting by actively engaging in prayer and preparation of our hearts for the coming of the Lord! Let us lay down our opinions and bitter disagreements and let us chose to love one another and be for one another!
Amen, come quickly Holy Spirit, we need Your rain!
Monday, July 27, 2020
Jesus, Raised For Our Justification
This morning I was reading in Romans and a couple of lines grabbed my attention. Paul often times writes very concise sentences that contain massive truths, these verses are an example. Here are the verses - Romans 4:23-25 NIV:
[23] "The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, [24] but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness---for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. [25] He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification."
Paul is laying the foundation of the Gospel of Grace in this chapter, and he bases much on the story of Abraham, to whom righteousness was credited because of his belief. This happened prior to the Law, so it sets the stage for any man of faith to be credited righteous by God.
His last statement is what caught my attention this morning, the fact that the Resurrection was for us justification (being called righteous) by God. In other words, Jesus' death paid our sin debt, but it was the Resurrection that won for us righteousness through faith. I don't comprehend that truth nearly enough, Lord, please open my mind and heart for greater revelation and wisdom.
Here is what David Guzick says concerning these verses:
4. (23-25) Abraham's justification and our own.
Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.
a. It was not written for his sake alone: It wasn't only for Abraham's benefit that God declared him righteous through faith; he is an example that we are invited to follow - it is also for us. Paul's confidence is glorious: It shall be imputed to us who believe; this wasn't just for Abraham, but for us also.
b. Who believe in Him who raised up Jesus: When we talk about faith and saving faith in Jesus, it is important to emphasize that we mean believing that His work on the cross (delivered up because of our offenses) and triumph over sin and death (raised because of our justification) is what saves us. There are many false-faiths that can never save, and only faith in what Jesus accomplished on the cross and through empty tomb can save us.
· Faith in the historical events of the life of Jesus will not save
· Faith in the beauty of Jesus' life will not save
· Faith in the accuracy or goodness of Jesus' teaching will not save
· Faith in the deity of Jesus, and in His Lordship will not save
c. Jesus died because of our offenses, but was raised up because of our justification. The resurrection has an essential place in our redemption because it demonstrates God the Father's perfect satisfaction with the Son's work on the cross, proving that it was in fact a perfect sacrifice made by One who remained perfect, even though bearing the sin of the world.
i. Delivered up because of our offenses: The ancient Greek word translated delivered (paradidomi) was used of casting people into prison or delivering them to justice. "Here it speaks of the judicial act of God the Father delivering God the Son to the justice that required the payment of the penalty for human sin." (Wuest)
ii. "Jesus' resurrection always includes his sacrificial death but it brings our the all-sufficiency of his death. If death had held him, he would have failed; since he was raised from death, his sacrifice sufficed, God set his seal upon it by raising him up." (Lenski)
iii. "Christ did meritoriously work our justification and salvation by his death and passion, but the efficacy and perfection thereof with respect to us depend on his resurrection . . . This one verse is an abridgement of the whole gospel." (Poole)
d. In this chapter, Paul has clearly demonstrated that in no way does the Old Testament contradict the gospel of salvation by grace through faith. Instead it is in fulfillment of the Old Testament, and Abraham, justified through faith, is our pattern.
[23] "The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, [24] but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness---for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. [25] He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification."
Paul is laying the foundation of the Gospel of Grace in this chapter, and he bases much on the story of Abraham, to whom righteousness was credited because of his belief. This happened prior to the Law, so it sets the stage for any man of faith to be credited righteous by God.
His last statement is what caught my attention this morning, the fact that the Resurrection was for us justification (being called righteous) by God. In other words, Jesus' death paid our sin debt, but it was the Resurrection that won for us righteousness through faith. I don't comprehend that truth nearly enough, Lord, please open my mind and heart for greater revelation and wisdom.
Here is what David Guzick says concerning these verses:
4. (23-25) Abraham's justification and our own.
Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.
a. It was not written for his sake alone: It wasn't only for Abraham's benefit that God declared him righteous through faith; he is an example that we are invited to follow - it is also for us. Paul's confidence is glorious: It shall be imputed to us who believe; this wasn't just for Abraham, but for us also.
b. Who believe in Him who raised up Jesus: When we talk about faith and saving faith in Jesus, it is important to emphasize that we mean believing that His work on the cross (delivered up because of our offenses) and triumph over sin and death (raised because of our justification) is what saves us. There are many false-faiths that can never save, and only faith in what Jesus accomplished on the cross and through empty tomb can save us.
· Faith in the historical events of the life of Jesus will not save
· Faith in the beauty of Jesus' life will not save
· Faith in the accuracy or goodness of Jesus' teaching will not save
· Faith in the deity of Jesus, and in His Lordship will not save
c. Jesus died because of our offenses, but was raised up because of our justification. The resurrection has an essential place in our redemption because it demonstrates God the Father's perfect satisfaction with the Son's work on the cross, proving that it was in fact a perfect sacrifice made by One who remained perfect, even though bearing the sin of the world.
i. Delivered up because of our offenses: The ancient Greek word translated delivered (paradidomi) was used of casting people into prison or delivering them to justice. "Here it speaks of the judicial act of God the Father delivering God the Son to the justice that required the payment of the penalty for human sin." (Wuest)
ii. "Jesus' resurrection always includes his sacrificial death but it brings our the all-sufficiency of his death. If death had held him, he would have failed; since he was raised from death, his sacrifice sufficed, God set his seal upon it by raising him up." (Lenski)
iii. "Christ did meritoriously work our justification and salvation by his death and passion, but the efficacy and perfection thereof with respect to us depend on his resurrection . . . This one verse is an abridgement of the whole gospel." (Poole)
d. In this chapter, Paul has clearly demonstrated that in no way does the Old Testament contradict the gospel of salvation by grace through faith. Instead it is in fulfillment of the Old Testament, and Abraham, justified through faith, is our pattern.
Saturday, July 25, 2020
The Energy of Partnership in the Body of Christ
This morning I am spending some time reflecting on a few verses from Paul's letter to Philemon. I don't often read this short letter, but today felt led to spend some time reading and reflecting on it. The verses that stuck out to me were the following - Philemon 1:6-7 NIV:
[6] "I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake of Christ. [7] Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord's people."
This is an interesting statement that Paul makes, praying that their partnership in the faith may be effective in deepening Philemon's understanding of that which they share, of every good thing, for the sake of Christ Jesus.
There is something about being in partnership, in joining ourselves to a body of believers that is supposed to help us deepen our understanding of that which we share. I guess this makes total sense, in that the only real way we experience the wonder, love and fullness that is supposed to be evident in the Body of Christ, is to actually join ourselves to it, entering into a sort of partnership.
The NASB translation reads slightly different - Philemon 1:6-7 NASB:
[6] "and I pray that the fellowship of your faith may become effective through the knowledge of every good thing which is in you for Christ's sake. [7] For I have come to have much joy and comfort in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother."
While the NASB is closer to the original Greek, I like what the translators of the NIV brought out, namely the sense of being joined together in their common faith. Paul goes on in the letter to appeal to Philemon because of their relationship, and I think the NIV translation captures that more effectively.
Going back to my reflection, the partnership aspect is included in the definition of the Greek word Koinonia, which is defined as follows:
1) fellowship, association, community, communion, joint participation, intercourse
a) the share which one has in anything, participation
b) intercourse, fellowship, intimacy
1) the right hand as a sign and pledge of fellowship (in fulfilling the apostolic office)
c) a gift jointly contributed, a collection, a contribution, as exhibiting an embodiment and proof of fellowship
There is definitely belonging that is understood in this word. Its not a random gathering, but one in which people have a part, and do so willingly.
Thus, we find Paul, reminding Philemon of his partnership, and pointing to the fruit of that partnership, namely a deepened understanding. Paul says that the partnership, the Koinonia is effective in deepening the understanding or knowledge. That word is the Greek word "energes" which is defined as effective or powerful. I like the word powerful, for clearly the Greek word "energes" is where we get our word energy from, and energy is encapsulated power! In other words our willingly joining ourselves to the Body of Christ, to the fellowship of a group of believers, is supposed to energize our knowledge and understanding of our faith, of our purpose and calling!
No wonder we are encouraged to not forsake the gathering of believers (Heb 10:25). Without this joining, without our active participation, our depth of understanding, our common purpose will not be fully experienced or enjoyed.
What a great encouragement! Lord, I pray that all in the Body of Christ, might experience this deepening of understanding, this shared experience for the sake of Christ Jesus, in whose name we gather.
Amen!
Friday, July 24, 2020
Freely Received, Freely Give
This morning, and truthfully for the last few days, I have been feeling pretty disconnected from the Lord, thinking about my future and a bit concerned that things are not working the way I had hoped they would with my new job. I find that often times like these, bring with them a season of finding it difficult to connect to the Lord. It is like the dry season financially leads to a dry season spiritually. As I think about this, I realize I am not that different than the Israelites being led through the desert. As soon as things got a little tense they started turning away from God. I am trying desperately to not turn away from God, instead doubling down, but still feeling that dryness.
Lord, You know everything, You led me down this path, and You know our need. I am asking that You help me to stand firm, to trust, to have faith, to continue to press into You in spite of my concerns and worries. I have done everything I can, that I have felt You asked me to do, to surrender my life to You.
As I wrote that last sentence, I felt like there were two things that came to mind. 1) I haven't been reaching out to pray for people who need it...effectively holding back any blessing that He wants to pour on them (mostly out of unbelief and fear of man). 2) I have something I felt like the Lord asked me to do, and I haven't moved it forward yet.
Of the two, the first really just resonated with me. How can I withhold something the Lord wants to give away. It's similar to what Bruce Wilkinson describes in his Book, "You Were Born For This:", where he describes setting aside money in your wallet that is God's money, to be spent only on those or what He tells you to do, most often people. For those who haven't read this book, it is a great practical primer on how to be more involved in dispersing the blessings of God. Anyway, I liked this idea of having God's dedicated money in my wallet, because this involves already having made the decision to dedicate it to God, and now its just a matter of timing and learning to listen to how He wants to spend His money.
In the same way, I saw this as applying to the prayer for people, to taking a moment to pray for that need which was just described. Rather than just saying I will be praying for them, instead taking a moment right then to pray and release God's blessing over them. These verses come to mind from Matthew 10:7-8 NIV: "As you go, proclaim this message: 'The kingdom of heaven has come near.' [8] Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give."
I think there is a bit of a log-jam on my side, and I am holding back things the Lord wants to release through me, and I am doing so out of fear of man. Its not like I need to start with complete stranger, I have enough friends in need, that I talk to regularly, that could use a touch from the Lord, and a touch from a caring brother. Compassion was often times a precursor to the miracles that Jesus performed! Six times, it specifically says that Jesus had compassion for the people in Matthew and Mark's Gospel, and each time, ended up performing miracles and healings, either himself or through His Apostles.
Looking at the first mention of this is Matthew's Gospel we find the following story - Matthew 9:35-38 NIV:
[35] Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. [36] When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. [37] Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. [38] Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
Jesus then goes on in the very first bit of Chapter 10 (These times are not separate, they are just separated into chapters for readability) to send out the 12 Apostles, to proclaim the Good News as quoted above. His compassion for His people is endless, and at present we are the ones He is sending. We have been given the same authority, for we minister out of the power of the Holy Spirit, just as He did, just as the Apostles did.
Lord, help me to decide today to be ready to actually pray for someone today. Help me to have the Holy Spirit enflamed courage to stop and take time to pray right then. Help me to leave the effectiveness of the Prayer up to you, for I can do nothing on my own, other than join my compassion to Yours. Lord, I surrender my fear of man to You, and I choose to give freely, for I have freely, through Your grace, received so much!
Amen, help me Lord Jesus.
Lord, You know everything, You led me down this path, and You know our need. I am asking that You help me to stand firm, to trust, to have faith, to continue to press into You in spite of my concerns and worries. I have done everything I can, that I have felt You asked me to do, to surrender my life to You.
As I wrote that last sentence, I felt like there were two things that came to mind. 1) I haven't been reaching out to pray for people who need it...effectively holding back any blessing that He wants to pour on them (mostly out of unbelief and fear of man). 2) I have something I felt like the Lord asked me to do, and I haven't moved it forward yet.
Of the two, the first really just resonated with me. How can I withhold something the Lord wants to give away. It's similar to what Bruce Wilkinson describes in his Book, "You Were Born For This:", where he describes setting aside money in your wallet that is God's money, to be spent only on those or what He tells you to do, most often people. For those who haven't read this book, it is a great practical primer on how to be more involved in dispersing the blessings of God. Anyway, I liked this idea of having God's dedicated money in my wallet, because this involves already having made the decision to dedicate it to God, and now its just a matter of timing and learning to listen to how He wants to spend His money.
In the same way, I saw this as applying to the prayer for people, to taking a moment to pray for that need which was just described. Rather than just saying I will be praying for them, instead taking a moment right then to pray and release God's blessing over them. These verses come to mind from Matthew 10:7-8 NIV: "As you go, proclaim this message: 'The kingdom of heaven has come near.' [8] Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give."
I think there is a bit of a log-jam on my side, and I am holding back things the Lord wants to release through me, and I am doing so out of fear of man. Its not like I need to start with complete stranger, I have enough friends in need, that I talk to regularly, that could use a touch from the Lord, and a touch from a caring brother. Compassion was often times a precursor to the miracles that Jesus performed! Six times, it specifically says that Jesus had compassion for the people in Matthew and Mark's Gospel, and each time, ended up performing miracles and healings, either himself or through His Apostles.
Looking at the first mention of this is Matthew's Gospel we find the following story - Matthew 9:35-38 NIV:
[35] Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. [36] When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. [37] Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. [38] Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
Jesus then goes on in the very first bit of Chapter 10 (These times are not separate, they are just separated into chapters for readability) to send out the 12 Apostles, to proclaim the Good News as quoted above. His compassion for His people is endless, and at present we are the ones He is sending. We have been given the same authority, for we minister out of the power of the Holy Spirit, just as He did, just as the Apostles did.
Lord, help me to decide today to be ready to actually pray for someone today. Help me to have the Holy Spirit enflamed courage to stop and take time to pray right then. Help me to leave the effectiveness of the Prayer up to you, for I can do nothing on my own, other than join my compassion to Yours. Lord, I surrender my fear of man to You, and I choose to give freely, for I have freely, through Your grace, received so much!
Amen, help me Lord Jesus.
Monday, July 20, 2020
Will We Follow Him?
This morning I was reading from John 10 and 11 and saw something I hadn't seen before, and thought it worth noting. In Chapter 11, which is all about the death and raising of Lazarus, which is both a very painful and glorious bit to read, there is a verse that caught my eye as follows - John 11:16 NIV:
"Then Thomas (also known as Didymus ) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
Thomas's statement caught me off-guard, as I had forgot that prior to this that Jesus had been threatened and had moved His base of operations to the wilderness because of the threats. I went back and read the last bit of John 10 to refresh my knowledge of the time before the raising of Lazarus.. It turns out that the threats were more than just a bunch of grumbling guys, saying they need to kill Jesus, they actually had stones ready to stone him! Here is the end of John's tenth chapter, starting with the statement that really got the crowd going.
John 10:30-42 NIV:
[30] "I and the Father are one.”
[31] Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, [32] but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”
[33] “We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”
[34] Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, 'I have said you are “gods” ' ? [35] If he called them 'gods,' to whom the word of God came---and Scripture cannot be set aside--- [36] what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, 'I am God's Son'? [37] Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. [38] But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”
[39] "Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp. [40] Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days. There he stayed, [41] and many people came to him. They said, “Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.” [42] And in that place many believed in Jesus."
Going back to Thomas's statement, I believe that he was talking about dying along with Lazarus, knowing full well the violence that Jesus had avoided the last time He had been in Jerusalem. Again these weren't empty threats, they actually had tried to stone Jesus, but he had evaded or escaped their grasp. In other words they were actually trying to kill him, but they weren't able to grab him and hold him or bind him. This was very real and Thomas, who apparently was a bit of a pragmatist, recognized the danger. That being said, he didn't shy away from the danger, but instead followed Jesus' lead.
I found this whole bit interesting, for John clearly chose to include this one verse in the midst of the story of Lazarus, for it was important to him, and more importantly, it was important to the Holy Spirit.
In retrospect, looking at the story of the raising of Lazarus, its all glorious and wonderful, and was clearly one the events that absolutely convinced many of His followers that Jesus truly was the Messiah. However, I believe the Holy Spirit wanted it noted that environment in which that great miracle occurred was anything but quiet and peaceful! It was into the midst of that turmoil, into the area where He had been threatened that Jesus, by the direction of the Father, went to minister to Mary, Martha and Lazarus. While His love for them was evident, and clearly a motivating factor, He was aware of the threats, the increasing conflict and the soon to be fulfilled prophesies of His death. Equally interesting was the fact that the Apostles were also aware of the danger, and yet entrusted themselves to the leadership of Jesus, choosing to follow Him, even to their own deaths.
The question this raised in my mind today was whether I would be willing to follow Jesus into a situation that I knew was dangerous? Am I willing to follow Him to my own demise? That is a pretty dark question, and yet it is one that million of our Christian brothers and sisters answer every day, for Christianity is definitely under attack and illegal in many countries, and yet those countries are where the church is growing faster than anywhere else!
We have not really had to contend with this question in most of our western church for many years, and for many of us, the idea of persecution for our faith is a vague idea, and one we don't want to see or experience. However, we are not promised easy lives, and a welcoming attitude by the spirit of the world, rather it is the exact opposite.
Peter wrote the following - 1 Peter 4:12-14 NIV:
[12] "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. [13] But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. [14] If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you."
Paul wrote this in his letter to the Romans 8:35-39 NIV:
[35] "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? [36] As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
[37] "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, [39] neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
They wouldn't have written these things, if this wasn't their present reality, nor the future life of their fellow Christian's. They were looking around them, seeing those things that were coming against them, and speaking of them as something they would be able to conquer, through the power of Christ Jesus in them.
Finally Jesus said the following - John 15:18-21 NIV:
[18] “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. [19] If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. [20] Remember what I told you: 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. [21] They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me."
Wow, such light and easy promises from Jesus, Peter and Paul! The point is that as times become more difficult, and dark, as societal opinion and voice moves farther from Christianity, those of us who choose to follow Jesus will be given opportunities to choose to continue to follow Him or not. We are already seeing the beginnings of persecution break out in America against Christians, and the forces of this world, identified by Paul, certainly are not going to stop in their effort to silence Christians. The question for myself this morning is whether or not I will continue to follow Him, even if the going gets tough, and my beliefs unpopular or even hated or reviled?
I am encouraged by the story of the raising of Lazarus, that it is into those very times of darkness and threats that the Glory of God will be seen in its Greatest Expression! I am encouraged that the light shines brightest in the darkness (Is. 60:1-3). I am encouraged because Jesus has all power and all authority and He has called us to walk in the same ministry, doing the same and even greater works (John 14:12)! One should note that Jesus made that statement (John 14:12) after He had raised Lazarus from the dead! Wow!
So this morning, my prayer is that the Lord would help me and encourage me! My prayer is that He would help and encourage the church world-wide. My prayer is that we might put our trust in Him, following Him into darkening days, knowing the danger, but expecting Him to be Glorified! May the Name of Jesus be lifted High!
Amen!
"Then Thomas (also known as Didymus ) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
Thomas's statement caught me off-guard, as I had forgot that prior to this that Jesus had been threatened and had moved His base of operations to the wilderness because of the threats. I went back and read the last bit of John 10 to refresh my knowledge of the time before the raising of Lazarus.. It turns out that the threats were more than just a bunch of grumbling guys, saying they need to kill Jesus, they actually had stones ready to stone him! Here is the end of John's tenth chapter, starting with the statement that really got the crowd going.
John 10:30-42 NIV:
[30] "I and the Father are one.”
[31] Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, [32] but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”
[33] “We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”
[34] Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, 'I have said you are “gods” ' ? [35] If he called them 'gods,' to whom the word of God came---and Scripture cannot be set aside--- [36] what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, 'I am God's Son'? [37] Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. [38] But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”
[39] "Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp. [40] Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days. There he stayed, [41] and many people came to him. They said, “Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.” [42] And in that place many believed in Jesus."
Going back to Thomas's statement, I believe that he was talking about dying along with Lazarus, knowing full well the violence that Jesus had avoided the last time He had been in Jerusalem. Again these weren't empty threats, they actually had tried to stone Jesus, but he had evaded or escaped their grasp. In other words they were actually trying to kill him, but they weren't able to grab him and hold him or bind him. This was very real and Thomas, who apparently was a bit of a pragmatist, recognized the danger. That being said, he didn't shy away from the danger, but instead followed Jesus' lead.
I found this whole bit interesting, for John clearly chose to include this one verse in the midst of the story of Lazarus, for it was important to him, and more importantly, it was important to the Holy Spirit.
In retrospect, looking at the story of the raising of Lazarus, its all glorious and wonderful, and was clearly one the events that absolutely convinced many of His followers that Jesus truly was the Messiah. However, I believe the Holy Spirit wanted it noted that environment in which that great miracle occurred was anything but quiet and peaceful! It was into the midst of that turmoil, into the area where He had been threatened that Jesus, by the direction of the Father, went to minister to Mary, Martha and Lazarus. While His love for them was evident, and clearly a motivating factor, He was aware of the threats, the increasing conflict and the soon to be fulfilled prophesies of His death. Equally interesting was the fact that the Apostles were also aware of the danger, and yet entrusted themselves to the leadership of Jesus, choosing to follow Him, even to their own deaths.
The question this raised in my mind today was whether I would be willing to follow Jesus into a situation that I knew was dangerous? Am I willing to follow Him to my own demise? That is a pretty dark question, and yet it is one that million of our Christian brothers and sisters answer every day, for Christianity is definitely under attack and illegal in many countries, and yet those countries are where the church is growing faster than anywhere else!
We have not really had to contend with this question in most of our western church for many years, and for many of us, the idea of persecution for our faith is a vague idea, and one we don't want to see or experience. However, we are not promised easy lives, and a welcoming attitude by the spirit of the world, rather it is the exact opposite.
Peter wrote the following - 1 Peter 4:12-14 NIV:
[12] "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. [13] But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. [14] If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you."
Paul wrote this in his letter to the Romans 8:35-39 NIV:
[35] "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? [36] As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
[37] "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, [39] neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
They wouldn't have written these things, if this wasn't their present reality, nor the future life of their fellow Christian's. They were looking around them, seeing those things that were coming against them, and speaking of them as something they would be able to conquer, through the power of Christ Jesus in them.
Finally Jesus said the following - John 15:18-21 NIV:
[18] “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. [19] If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. [20] Remember what I told you: 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. [21] They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me."
Wow, such light and easy promises from Jesus, Peter and Paul! The point is that as times become more difficult, and dark, as societal opinion and voice moves farther from Christianity, those of us who choose to follow Jesus will be given opportunities to choose to continue to follow Him or not. We are already seeing the beginnings of persecution break out in America against Christians, and the forces of this world, identified by Paul, certainly are not going to stop in their effort to silence Christians. The question for myself this morning is whether or not I will continue to follow Him, even if the going gets tough, and my beliefs unpopular or even hated or reviled?
I am encouraged by the story of the raising of Lazarus, that it is into those very times of darkness and threats that the Glory of God will be seen in its Greatest Expression! I am encouraged that the light shines brightest in the darkness (Is. 60:1-3). I am encouraged because Jesus has all power and all authority and He has called us to walk in the same ministry, doing the same and even greater works (John 14:12)! One should note that Jesus made that statement (John 14:12) after He had raised Lazarus from the dead! Wow!
So this morning, my prayer is that the Lord would help me and encourage me! My prayer is that He would help and encourage the church world-wide. My prayer is that we might put our trust in Him, following Him into darkening days, knowing the danger, but expecting Him to be Glorified! May the Name of Jesus be lifted High!
Amen!
Thursday, July 2, 2020
A Heart Health Assessment
This morning I woke up thinking about Paul's statement in Philippians 3, where he is talking about how he considers everything else so much garbage compared to Christ Jesus, and how he essentially left all that behind.
Here are the verses - Philippians 3:7-16 NIV:
[7] "But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. [8] What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ [9] and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ---the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. [10] I want to know Christ---yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, [11] and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead."
[12] "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. [13] Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, [14] I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
[15] "All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. [16] Only let us live up to what we have already attained."
The reason this has been bouncing around in my mind and heart lately, is that the Lord asked the question as to whether or not I would be willing to leave everything for the sake of Him? The question actually is meant to be considered on many levels. Where I have been focused lately is around things that I have come to enjoy, things that I prefer, things that I consider part of who I am. The question is whether there is anything I don't want to release or lose, given the invitation from the Lord to do so? If there is, then I have a case of idolatry in my heart, for I am worshipping that thing, that idea or way of being more than I am worshipping Christ Jesus.
I don't have a strong sense that the Lord is going to ask me to lose all things, but that He is asking me to conduct a heart health assessment. What is in my heart? What do I treasure? Have those treasures become a sort of idol?
Good questions, and deep questions.
I know my desire, deep down, is to be able to say what Paul said, but I think the reality is that I can't, at this point. I am living out verse 15 at present, where I think the Lord is making clear to me things that need to change. Notice, its always an invitation to greater intimacy, to deeper relationship, to greater participation in the things of God. My deep heart says yes! My flesh, not so much!
Lord, I pray that You will help me to see those things that are limiting my hearts response to you. Help me to put things in their proper place, that You might the only exalted and worshipped person in my life! I pray that one day I will be able to say that which Paul said in these few encouraging verses, that I might live up to what I have already attained in Christ Jesus.
Amen!
Here are the verses - Philippians 3:7-16 NIV:
[7] "But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. [8] What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ [9] and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ---the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. [10] I want to know Christ---yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, [11] and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead."
[12] "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. [13] Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, [14] I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
[15] "All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. [16] Only let us live up to what we have already attained."
The reason this has been bouncing around in my mind and heart lately, is that the Lord asked the question as to whether or not I would be willing to leave everything for the sake of Him? The question actually is meant to be considered on many levels. Where I have been focused lately is around things that I have come to enjoy, things that I prefer, things that I consider part of who I am. The question is whether there is anything I don't want to release or lose, given the invitation from the Lord to do so? If there is, then I have a case of idolatry in my heart, for I am worshipping that thing, that idea or way of being more than I am worshipping Christ Jesus.
I don't have a strong sense that the Lord is going to ask me to lose all things, but that He is asking me to conduct a heart health assessment. What is in my heart? What do I treasure? Have those treasures become a sort of idol?
Good questions, and deep questions.
I know my desire, deep down, is to be able to say what Paul said, but I think the reality is that I can't, at this point. I am living out verse 15 at present, where I think the Lord is making clear to me things that need to change. Notice, its always an invitation to greater intimacy, to deeper relationship, to greater participation in the things of God. My deep heart says yes! My flesh, not so much!
Lord, I pray that You will help me to see those things that are limiting my hearts response to you. Help me to put things in their proper place, that You might the only exalted and worshipped person in my life! I pray that one day I will be able to say that which Paul said in these few encouraging verses, that I might live up to what I have already attained in Christ Jesus.
Amen!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)