Year: 2015

Love or Like?

JER 29:13 ESV
You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

PERSONAL COMMENTARY
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We all should know the difference between loving someone and liking someone.

If we love someone, we want to spend time with them, we want to get to know them, and we want to grow closer to them in a personal relationship. We want to see them or talk to them everyday and to share time together.

If we just like someone, we will see them occasionally when we get together with friends. We might hang out around them once a week when the crew gets together at the local hangout, and even then, our focus is only partly on spending time with them, because we have so many other friends around us.

The same is true with God. If we aren’t seeking time with Him, how can we say that we love Him – when our actions prove that we are more comfortable just liking Him?

Let me put it in another perspective – if the queen of a rich nation of the world made it known to me that she loved me and wanted me to come join her in marriage, wouldn’t I at least be intrigued and want to find out more about her, even if I didn’t yet know her well enough to love her? Or would I immediately dismiss her as some Nigerian scam trying to trick me into sending her money because my heart is hardened against the possibility that it could be true?

It is the same with God.

He came into this world as Jesus Christ, fully man, fully God. He did not come into the world to condemn us, but to save us. Because a price had to be paid, a sacrifice had to be made, a demonstration of His nature had to be performed so that we could understand and appreciate and accept those things of God that are His true nature and being.

Up to that point, man did not have a full revelation of God’s nature and being. Many men had seen the evidence of God in things on this earth and had tried to explain and worship this presence that they knew existed that surpassed themselves. But man’s perspective is limited to his own knowledge and emotions, so a lot of the opinion as to God’s nature was understood by man as wrath, judgement, and law by religions throughout time. They mistakenly saw God as operating in similar ways to men – bartering and trading good for good, bad for bad.

But God doesn’t need anything from us. He is the Almighty creator of all things in heaven and earth. He doesn’t need anything FROM you. But He does want something FOR you. So He offers this gift, almost like we would understand an engagement offering from a great ruler. And He does this because He loves us.

The question is do we love Him back?

Or do we just sort of like Him?

Or do we ignore Him thinking that it is preposterous that God could love me?

No matter how we have treated Him in the past, He is still faithful today, so you can call on the name of Jesus Christ, you can seek Him, and you will receive His gift of love for your life.

I encourage you to seek Him, and find Him, and love Him. Because there will come a day and a time that it is too late, and you will have missed out on this great opportunity.

If your heart is hardened and you can’t see truth in the things that I say, please just try paying to Jesus Christ and asking Him to soften your heart to know His love, to open your eyes to see His Truth, to open your ears to hear the Word of God, and to strengthen you to walk in a new life. This is the greatest healing of all, friend. It is a greater healing even than outward signs of God’s glory and power. So accept this offer of healing in your life, this healing that begins on the inside, and then touches ever part of your renewed life with healing that spreads outward into every area of your life, and even into the lives of those around you.

Be healed today, friend.

Be renewed in Christ.

If you know Christ already, are you in love with Him today? Or do you just like Him? I encourage you to spend time seeking Him today and every day. When you diligently seek Him with purpose and conviction, you will find Him. If you don’t have purpose and conviction, pay and ask Him for it. Ask to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide you, and ask that it be alive and stirred and active in guiding and teaching you. And once the fire is burning, keep tossing logs on the fire in prayer, time in the Word, time spent applying the Word in your life, time spent serving and loving others, time spent in fellowship with other believers, time spent praising God, and time spent spreading this Good News of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If that sounds like a lot of time spent with Good, YES IT IS! Isn’t that amazing how many ways He offers us to love Him in return? Because if we are seeking God, isn’t that what we are looking for, more time with Him, the one that we love?

Spend time with Him, and find Him faithful and trustworthy in His promises.

I love you, friend. Have a blessed day.

Unity not division in sharing this Good News

Matthew 7:12-14 ESV
So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

PERSONAL COMMENTARY
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It isn’t always easy to bridle our tongues when we feel an urge to say something that we know isn’t nice. In fact, when we compare many things that we say to the measuring stick of, “Does it glorify and honor God?” – we find that we fall short. But this is to be our goal, even though we know that we will fall short of perfection.

It also isn’t always easy to control our emotions when something happens that makes us want to lash out at someone in retribution or anger.

But one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is self control, and this is the fruit that is evident when we are in control of our tongues and our emotions.

Our emotions are helpful indicators in life, but they should not be what controls us. Just like our senses provide information to our brains so that we can make a decision about what to do, our emotions should be examined and considered as valuable input about what we should do next. But isn’t it clear that if we let our emotions go unchecked and unexamined, that the reactions that they produce will introduce all kinds of chaos and disorder in our lives?

So we should consider our words and our actions and how they might affect others. I should consider, “Would I like someone to say/do this to me? Would this hurt or help me if I was in their position?”

You hear the statement, “What would Jesus do? ” – and Jesus would say and do whatever is going to bring healing and positive change to a person and a situation.

And for us who share this good news (myself very much included) –

The times that Jesus’ words and actions were healing and gentle were when they were directed at the people. The times that Jesus’ words and actions were those of stern discipline were when He was dealing with the religious leaders of the day. It was the Pharisees who acted in the reverse of this pattern, who accused and judged and condemned the people, while holding themselves up as righteous and above examination.

Jesus Christ also warned his disciples against stopping others who are sharing the gospel and healing in His name:

Mark 9:38-42 NLT
John said to Jesus, “Teacher, we saw someone using your name to cast out demons, but we told him to stop because he wasn’t in our group.”
“Don’t stop him!” Jesus said.
“No one who performs a miracle in my name will soon be able to speak evil of me. Anyone who is not against us is for us. If anyone gives you even a cup of water because you belong to the Messiah, I tell you the truth, that person will surely be rewarded.
“But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone hung around your neck.

So let the greatest examination not be directed at other teachers who are different than ourselves – but the greatest examination should be of ourselves and why we feel that we must speak out against someone else. Because if we let evil slip into our hearts and our words and our actions, even in the name of protecting the gospel – we must decide whether we have bridled our tongue and controlled our emotions. Would we like those same things to be spoken about us? Would we say that they are loving and glorifying God of they were spoken about us?

This is a hard lesson for me, but I am learning. If you think that I have drawn my sword against you, I can promise you this is not pointed by me at any person. If it feels that way, ask if what you are feeling is conviction – because this was a convicting message for me to receive this morning.

Grumbling or Trusting?

Exodus 17:1-6 NLT
At the lord ’s command, the whole community of Israel left the wilderness of Sin and moved from place to place. Eventually they camped at Rephidim, but there was no water there for the people to drink. So once more the people complained against Moses. “Give us water to drink!” they demanded. “Quiet!” Moses replied. “Why are you complaining against me? And why are you testing the lord ?” But tormented by thirst, they continued to argue with Moses. “Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Are you trying to kill us, our children, and our livestock with thirst?” Then Moses cried out to the lord , “What should I do with these people? They are ready to stone me!” The lord said to Moses, “Walk out in front of the people. Take your staff, the one you used when you struck the water of the Nile, and call some of the elders of Israel to join you. I will stand before you on the rock at Mount Sinai. Strike the rock, and water will come gushing out. Then the people will be able to drink.” So Moses struck the rock as he was told, and water gushed out as the elders looked on.

PERSONAL COMMENTARY
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How often do we as Christians behave like the Israelites, grumbling and complaining and worrying about our circumstances, full of doubt instead of following faithfully believing His promises?

Also, how often do we as leaders and ambassadors for Christ encounter those who are:
– grumbling , complaining, and worrying
– questioning our own leadership and faith
– not believing and trusting God

And is our reaction like Moses, who realized that the issue at hand was not his own leadership, nor the power of God, but was the lack of belief and faith in the people. Because if we have this Holy Spirit in us and guiding us, and we are sharing and following His guidance, and giving to others what we are taught – they are either unveiled to hear His Word, or they ate veiled and resistant to hearing and applying His Word.

But we do not beat the sheep if they are blind to the path, nor do we beat the sheep if a stumbling block has been paved in front of them. No, if we are following the teachings of the Good Shepherd, we will grow to be like our teacher. So we gently and lovingly offer healing to the blind eyes of the lost sheep which comes with calling on the name of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, and believing, and following. For the sheep that encounter stumbling blocks, we offer instruction and guidance on how to recognize those stumbling blocks – to see that:

– every trial is an opportunity to bear the fruit of patience as a blessed assurance of our faith and of His promises

– tribulation and suffering is an opportunity to bear the fruit of long suffering as a blessed assurance of our faith and of His promises

– persecution is and opportunity to demonstrate kindness and gentleness to those who think themselves to be or enemies, knowing not that we love them as our neighbors and brothers and sisters

And what better witness is there to non-believers than this peace that passes all understanding? This peace that holds us firmly in those times that the world can see clearly that it is not our own strength or our own power that is at work.

So what is our stone today? What is that insurmountable object that people would not expect to see us overcome? That object that we ourselves even do not believe that we can overcome?

There is someone that can overcome that obstacle, and He will use it not only as a witness to our faith, but as a demonstration of His power and glory and honor.

So let’s take it to Christ, hand it to Him in prayer and in faith, and ask that He either strengthen us to overcome, or that He crush it under His power as a miraculous sign to unbelievers, out that He guide us into understanding of His will and direction and purpose for the future.

Help me to follow faithfully.
Help me to remember the blessings of this Grace surpass this displeasure of any trials I might face.
Help me to see and correct those areas in myself that need healing and refinement.
Help me to see and help those around me that I can love and serve.
Help me to stay humble and contrite in heart before the perfect example of Jesus’ life.
Help me stay stirred and aware of this Holy Spirit working inside me.
Help me stay bold in sharing what I am taught and convicted of by the Holy Spirit.
Help me remember that if it is your words and they resist hearing them, that some will hate me because they hated you.
Help me remember that I am still in the flesh and that I should be careful to bridle my own tongue, so that my words are not careless, so that no one will confuse my weak and imperfect words with the perfect message of the Word of God.

Let’s continue to remind and encourage each other and to pray for each other, friends. Have a blessed day, beloved.

Love does no wrong

All things work together for good

Grateful repentance