Everyone who really knows me knows how tight I am with money. I hold onto it and send it out to get more of its brothers and sisters. Here are some examples.
Many people believe that the few flights they take a year will never amount to enough miles for any benefit. I thought the same thing for years until I finally signed up for each airline's frequent flier program. Now, I get at least one free ticket each from two major airlines each year. With one airline I have enough frequent flier miles to go around the world. I have flown two of my children to South Africa on mission trips using frequent flier miles. I have taken trips for funerals for my wife's family with frequent flier miles. This is with no additional expense to me.
Last year Discover offered its card holders the opportunity to get an extra $500 back if they would use the card for $2000 per month for five months. That became my exclusive card for those months. I put gas, groceries, utilities and any bill I had on the Discover card. I didn't make any irregular purchases. I just put everything I had on the Discover card. They gave me my regular 1% back too so I got $600 for using the card for five months.
Instead of taking the money from the Discover card, I got gift cards. Discover often offers gift cards for restaurants at a discount if you get them instead of money back. Now, my wife and I go out to eat often at no expense to us. (By the way, I pay the total balance on every credit card each month so that I pay no interest each year.)
My wife and I have been using a Flexible Spending account for the past few years. A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) allows you to set aside pre-taxed medical expenses which come out of your pocket. This means that my co-pays, prescriptions, dental, glasses, physical therapy and lab work which would come out of my pocket will not be taxed by Social Security, the state or the IRS. I just got the reimbursement check from it this past week. (My wife and I fill it out once a year. You can do it all along but we like to see the big check.) We saved over $500 in taxes.
Of course, I drive used cars, cut out coupons and shop the sales too. I am a member of two wholesale clubs and make sure that I can't get a better deal on the internet or anywhere else before I buy. I actually do not know how much money I am saving each year. I would estimate it to be somewhere near $5000 (more if you consider how long I own a car!).
None of these things are huge. They just add up. They take a little more of my time. I must keep up with some records and I must be diligent if I want to reap the maximum benefit.
Now think of this with so many other things in life. Did you know that by gaining one pound a month that you will have gained sixty pounds in five years. That's less than two ounces per day! Did you know that by overspending $100 per month that you will be $6000 in debt in five years. That's overspending less than four dollars a day! (Makes going out for lunch seem like a bad idea. Huh?)
What about the non-quantifiable things? How about not telling your spouse of your love? How about not speaking to your children? How about not having a time alone with the Lord? These things all add up too.
Now, think about your life. You got where you are by taking a huge number of small steps. These small steps have either led you to a full meaningful life or they have led you to something less than you would like to have. I have found that the biggest step is turning around when you are going the wrong direction. Then, it is a bunch of small steps to get where you would like to be.
Believe me, it all adds up.
Proverbs 6:10-11 (NIV)
10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest-- 11 and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Don't Look Past Your Next Game
I have seen it happen often. A great team is beaten soundly by a lesser team because they looked past the lesser team to what they considered a more worthy opponent. They looked at the championship game without looking at their next game.
This problem will face each of the teams in basketball's final four in the next few days. They will have to focus completely on their next game without looking at who they may play for the championship. The fact that the men's final four has some very unlikely teams is evidence that some of the teams looked past their next game. Of course, this ensures that there is no next game when you get to the tournament. You win or you go home.
I find that people are often blown away in life because they did not look at what they had to do today. They want to start a business but they fail to do what they have to do today in order to get that business started tomorrow. They want to become doctors but forget that they must first finish their bachelor's degrees. They want to have meaningful marriages but do not treat their spouses lovingly today. These omissions add up to a terrible season for a great team.
Great victories have a tendency to create lofty thoughts. We win over a tough opponent and are surprised by the loss which should have been in the win column. Sometimes pastors work very hard to see their churches grow and have significant ministries but forget to have a daily quiet time with God. The result is a diminished ministry which rests upon its past rather than the power of the Living God. The results are failures in areas which should have been successes. The pastor finds himself wondering what went wrong after so many things have gone right.
Many people think that their wedding was such a success that it will carry them through all that days that follow. It won't. Each day must be played as if it is the championship if there is to be a final victory. You simply can't look beyond today to get to the fiftieth anniversary.
I suppose the mantra of AA must be ours as well: One day at a time. Yes, you must concentrate on the next game so that you can make it to the championship. You must see today as the day you must win. Let tomorrow take care of itself.
By the way, how many former athletes do you know who are overweight and out of shape today? They got that way one day at a time too. I guess both losing and winning are all about what you do today.
In the Old Testament, Joshua overlooked the small town of Ai after having the most amazing victory at Jericho. He didn't check to see if he and his people were in right standing before the Lord before entering the battle. They would be so easy to defeat that he didn't even check in with the Lord. One conversation with the Lord would have prevented this defeat. Joshua started looking at taking the Promised Land without knowing that each day needed to be treated carefully.
Maybe you should take a long hard look at today and ask what you need to be doing today. Victory can be yours but you must not look beyond your next game.
Joshua 7:4-6 (NIV)
4 So about three thousand men went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai, 5 who killed about thirty-six of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the stone quarries and struck them down on the slopes. At this the hearts of the people melted and became like water. 6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the LORD, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same, and sprinkled dust on their heads.
This problem will face each of the teams in basketball's final four in the next few days. They will have to focus completely on their next game without looking at who they may play for the championship. The fact that the men's final four has some very unlikely teams is evidence that some of the teams looked past their next game. Of course, this ensures that there is no next game when you get to the tournament. You win or you go home.
I find that people are often blown away in life because they did not look at what they had to do today. They want to start a business but they fail to do what they have to do today in order to get that business started tomorrow. They want to become doctors but forget that they must first finish their bachelor's degrees. They want to have meaningful marriages but do not treat their spouses lovingly today. These omissions add up to a terrible season for a great team.
Great victories have a tendency to create lofty thoughts. We win over a tough opponent and are surprised by the loss which should have been in the win column. Sometimes pastors work very hard to see their churches grow and have significant ministries but forget to have a daily quiet time with God. The result is a diminished ministry which rests upon its past rather than the power of the Living God. The results are failures in areas which should have been successes. The pastor finds himself wondering what went wrong after so many things have gone right.
Many people think that their wedding was such a success that it will carry them through all that days that follow. It won't. Each day must be played as if it is the championship if there is to be a final victory. You simply can't look beyond today to get to the fiftieth anniversary.
I suppose the mantra of AA must be ours as well: One day at a time. Yes, you must concentrate on the next game so that you can make it to the championship. You must see today as the day you must win. Let tomorrow take care of itself.
By the way, how many former athletes do you know who are overweight and out of shape today? They got that way one day at a time too. I guess both losing and winning are all about what you do today.
In the Old Testament, Joshua overlooked the small town of Ai after having the most amazing victory at Jericho. He didn't check to see if he and his people were in right standing before the Lord before entering the battle. They would be so easy to defeat that he didn't even check in with the Lord. One conversation with the Lord would have prevented this defeat. Joshua started looking at taking the Promised Land without knowing that each day needed to be treated carefully.
Maybe you should take a long hard look at today and ask what you need to be doing today. Victory can be yours but you must not look beyond your next game.
Joshua 7:4-6 (NIV)
4 So about three thousand men went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai, 5 who killed about thirty-six of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the stone quarries and struck them down on the slopes. At this the hearts of the people melted and became like water. 6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the LORD, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same, and sprinkled dust on their heads.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Should Church Simply Cater to the Desires of People?
The Church has certainly become a consumer oriented entity. Churches are surveying their areas and designing themselves to meet the expectation of those surveys. The membership's expectation drives the ministries of the churches. People stop attending one church and attend another based on "their needs" being met. Pastors rush from one current idea to another trying to keep up with the changing whims of people.
I know that churches are dying in significant numbers. Many of those still operating are on life support. Naturally, pastors are looking for something that will draw people. They see the mega-churches whose weekly attendance is in the thousands. They believe that this could be their churches if they would simply follow the lead of the mega-churches. They fail to see that their community doesn't match that of the mega-churches and their personality does not match that of the mega-churches' pastors. They think it is all about methods. It isn't, but that doesn't keep them from trying.
How did things get this way? Preaching the Bible and bringing people to know Christ for salvation are secondary to getting people to attend. It appears we are saying, "Come to our church. We don't care what you believe. In fact, we don't care if you ever believe?"
I suppose churches have always been somewhat consumer oriented. I am more likely to hear a complaint about the temperature of the sanctuary or the level of sound than I am to hear a member share how he or she has won someone to Christ. They are more likely to tell me of someone I didn't visit in the hospital than confess they haven't shared Christ with one soul all year long. This focus is across the board. Most of the older members aren't any more spiritually mature than the younger.
I wonder if most of the people really believe the gospel. Do they believe that Jesus truly sacrificed His life so that all who believed would be forgiven of their sins? Do they really believe that everyone who doesn't do this will go to hell? Do they know that it doesn't matter how good these people were in life? Do they know that the only hope we have is in Jesus? I don't think they do.
Either Christians believe the true gospel and will do whatever they can to see people come to know Christ or they have become as self-absorbed as their non-Christian friends. They believe that giving to the social ministries is as important as sharing the gospel. They fail to realize that every social ministry helps people during their time on earth. The gospel begins the day it is accepted and continues for eternity.
I, for one, am frustrated with the Christianity we have today. I am tired of trying to follow every idea presented by mega-churches so that my church will grow. I want to share the plain truth of the Bible without having to be concerned whether the consumers who hear it will come back. Don't get me wrong. I love having people attend worship. I love seeing them "get it" when I preach but I don't want their continued attendance to be the basis for my sermons. I want my own faithfulness to the gospel to be my basis for preaching. It seems that the number of people who want this preaching is shrinking.
Someday, I may be preaching in a building all by myself.
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (ESV)
1 And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
I know that churches are dying in significant numbers. Many of those still operating are on life support. Naturally, pastors are looking for something that will draw people. They see the mega-churches whose weekly attendance is in the thousands. They believe that this could be their churches if they would simply follow the lead of the mega-churches. They fail to see that their community doesn't match that of the mega-churches and their personality does not match that of the mega-churches' pastors. They think it is all about methods. It isn't, but that doesn't keep them from trying.
How did things get this way? Preaching the Bible and bringing people to know Christ for salvation are secondary to getting people to attend. It appears we are saying, "Come to our church. We don't care what you believe. In fact, we don't care if you ever believe?"
I suppose churches have always been somewhat consumer oriented. I am more likely to hear a complaint about the temperature of the sanctuary or the level of sound than I am to hear a member share how he or she has won someone to Christ. They are more likely to tell me of someone I didn't visit in the hospital than confess they haven't shared Christ with one soul all year long. This focus is across the board. Most of the older members aren't any more spiritually mature than the younger.
I wonder if most of the people really believe the gospel. Do they believe that Jesus truly sacrificed His life so that all who believed would be forgiven of their sins? Do they really believe that everyone who doesn't do this will go to hell? Do they know that it doesn't matter how good these people were in life? Do they know that the only hope we have is in Jesus? I don't think they do.
Either Christians believe the true gospel and will do whatever they can to see people come to know Christ or they have become as self-absorbed as their non-Christian friends. They believe that giving to the social ministries is as important as sharing the gospel. They fail to realize that every social ministry helps people during their time on earth. The gospel begins the day it is accepted and continues for eternity.
I, for one, am frustrated with the Christianity we have today. I am tired of trying to follow every idea presented by mega-churches so that my church will grow. I want to share the plain truth of the Bible without having to be concerned whether the consumers who hear it will come back. Don't get me wrong. I love having people attend worship. I love seeing them "get it" when I preach but I don't want their continued attendance to be the basis for my sermons. I want my own faithfulness to the gospel to be my basis for preaching. It seems that the number of people who want this preaching is shrinking.
Someday, I may be preaching in a building all by myself.
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (ESV)
1 And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Do You Want to Hear the Bad News?
The very title of this blog may have brought you here. For some reason we gravitate toward bad news. When given a chance between hearing good news or bad news first, most people choose the bad news first. Many people will admit that they go to car races to see the crashes. They turn on the television nightly news to watch the disasters. They love the news channels which depict the country going to hell in a hand basket.
Honestly, why would we want to receive bad news when there is much more good news going on? For every teen who takes a gun to school there are tens of thousands who would never do such a thing. For every day that presents a major disaster there are hundreds in which no disaster occurs. For every person who is unemployed, there are nine who are gainfully employed. Yet, the news focuses on the bad rather than the good.
Let's face it: Good news just doesn't sell very well.
A news cameraman for a tv station once told me the pattern of presenting the news. He said, "If it bleeds; it leads." The worst news comes first. The most graphic is sent to the front. This is how they grab those viewers who might channel surf beyond their station. And what would they be surfing to? Worse news!
Maybe this is why the gospel was preached as bad news for so long. Hell was at the forefront. God's love was diminished. Torment was magnified. People ran forward to keep from going to hell. They didn't see the good news of salvation which healed their relationship with God so that they could knew Him. All they knew of Him was His anger. They failed to see how good He is.
So, you may have come to this blog to hear the bad news but I want to disappoint you this time. The good news is that God loves you all the time. He seeks for you to know Him all the time. He wants you to come into His grace and mercy. He wants to see you love Him too. He wants to give you a purposeful life. He wants you to live with Him forever.
Unfortunately, I am afraid most people will click away from this blog as soon as they get to the "good news" part. Good news just isn't that appealing.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 (NIV)
21 Test everything. Hold on to the good.
Honestly, why would we want to receive bad news when there is much more good news going on? For every teen who takes a gun to school there are tens of thousands who would never do such a thing. For every day that presents a major disaster there are hundreds in which no disaster occurs. For every person who is unemployed, there are nine who are gainfully employed. Yet, the news focuses on the bad rather than the good.
Let's face it: Good news just doesn't sell very well.
A news cameraman for a tv station once told me the pattern of presenting the news. He said, "If it bleeds; it leads." The worst news comes first. The most graphic is sent to the front. This is how they grab those viewers who might channel surf beyond their station. And what would they be surfing to? Worse news!
Maybe this is why the gospel was preached as bad news for so long. Hell was at the forefront. God's love was diminished. Torment was magnified. People ran forward to keep from going to hell. They didn't see the good news of salvation which healed their relationship with God so that they could knew Him. All they knew of Him was His anger. They failed to see how good He is.
So, you may have come to this blog to hear the bad news but I want to disappoint you this time. The good news is that God loves you all the time. He seeks for you to know Him all the time. He wants you to come into His grace and mercy. He wants to see you love Him too. He wants to give you a purposeful life. He wants you to live with Him forever.
Unfortunately, I am afraid most people will click away from this blog as soon as they get to the "good news" part. Good news just isn't that appealing.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 (NIV)
21 Test everything. Hold on to the good.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Is Baptism All That Important?
She just showed up in a church I pastored. We hadn't reached out to her. She was just there one Sunday morning. She looked like she might be from Pakistan or India. She wore western clothes but I wondered if this was her normal way of dressing. Under her arm was a fairly new Bible. It was obvious that she knew nothing about church but she was very interested.
When I met her she told me of a strange experience she had on her birthday. She said she was mysteriously urged to buy and read a Bible. She bought the Bible and had been reading it ever since. After a while she felt she should attend church. Our church was simply close to where she lived.
The churches I pastor have always offered an invitation at the end of our worship services. We invite people to give their hearts to Christ, join the church or share a prayer request. During one of these worship services this lady walks forward and struggles with the decision to give her life to Christ. She shares how she wants to do so but can't because of her family's religion. They would not understand. I prayed with her and told her that this was a decision she must make. I can't make it for her. I can't assure her that her family wouldn't treat her badly. I could only tell her that Jesus had died for her and that this decision would be the most important one she would ever make.
A few weeks later she came forward again. She was in tears. She told me that her Lord had died for her and she could not deny Him her heart. She prayed to receive Christ. She then told me that she could not however be baptized because that would keep her from attending her daughter's wedding. I told her that this decision is one between her and the Lord. I can neither save people nor give them conviction.
It was a few months before she came forward again in a worship service. Again, she was in tears. She told me that she had been under conviction to be baptized. She somehow understood what Jesus was saying when he told people that they must hate their father, mother, children and their own lives if they wished to be His disciples. A few weeks later, I baptized her.
And, no, she was not allowed to attend her daughter's wedding.
Is baptism that important? Should this lady simply have continued as a believer without being baptized? Does the Bible make provision for that?
There is no evidence in the New Testament of someone who gave his life to Christ and then refused baptism if he had an opportunity to be baptized. This was the first act of faith after they believed. They knew that it would mark them as Christians. They knew that it put their lives in peril. Yet, they felt it was that important to be baptized.
Many people who call themselves Christian treat their faith in Christ as if it is fire insurance. They make a public statement of knowing Christ but have no other evidence in their lives. They treat baptism as a right of passage rather than an act of faith. They see it as something they will do when they get around to it. I often stand beside graves making statements of those who said they had faith but who were never baptized nor who attended church. These people may have had fire insurance but they have no salvation assurance.
Jesus said that those who love Him will obey Him. He told His followers to make disciples and baptize them. Doesn't it make as much sense that these new disciples must be baptized in order to be disciples?
I don't believe for a moment that baptism saves the individual. I just believe that those who know Christ will be baptized. It is so important that refusing to be baptized either indicates your lack of faith or your rebellion. I am not sure of the difference between these two.
I talked with a man yesterday that I baptized in the Jordan River. He told me that he didn't expect it to be that important to him but it was. He told me that it had made a significant difference in his life. His denomination believes that you are baptized and then profess faith. (They see baptism as a sign of the covenant with God. The previous sign was circumcision. This was done without the consent of the one being circumcised. It is done apart for his faith too. I understand this belief in baptism but I personally don't subscribe to it. However, I have found many of the people in this denomination strong Christians.) He had never been baptized as a result of his faith. I told him that I had a similar experience when I was baptized. It was more important than I imagined.
So, baptism is a very important step in your faith. In fact, I can't see how you can believe and refuse to be baptized.
You may be struggling with this the decision of whether or not to be baptized. This is a decision between you and the Lord. Have you asked Him about it?
Acts 8:36 (NIV)
36 As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?"
When I met her she told me of a strange experience she had on her birthday. She said she was mysteriously urged to buy and read a Bible. She bought the Bible and had been reading it ever since. After a while she felt she should attend church. Our church was simply close to where she lived.
The churches I pastor have always offered an invitation at the end of our worship services. We invite people to give their hearts to Christ, join the church or share a prayer request. During one of these worship services this lady walks forward and struggles with the decision to give her life to Christ. She shares how she wants to do so but can't because of her family's religion. They would not understand. I prayed with her and told her that this was a decision she must make. I can't make it for her. I can't assure her that her family wouldn't treat her badly. I could only tell her that Jesus had died for her and that this decision would be the most important one she would ever make.
A few weeks later she came forward again. She was in tears. She told me that her Lord had died for her and she could not deny Him her heart. She prayed to receive Christ. She then told me that she could not however be baptized because that would keep her from attending her daughter's wedding. I told her that this decision is one between her and the Lord. I can neither save people nor give them conviction.
It was a few months before she came forward again in a worship service. Again, she was in tears. She told me that she had been under conviction to be baptized. She somehow understood what Jesus was saying when he told people that they must hate their father, mother, children and their own lives if they wished to be His disciples. A few weeks later, I baptized her.
And, no, she was not allowed to attend her daughter's wedding.
Is baptism that important? Should this lady simply have continued as a believer without being baptized? Does the Bible make provision for that?
There is no evidence in the New Testament of someone who gave his life to Christ and then refused baptism if he had an opportunity to be baptized. This was the first act of faith after they believed. They knew that it would mark them as Christians. They knew that it put their lives in peril. Yet, they felt it was that important to be baptized.
Many people who call themselves Christian treat their faith in Christ as if it is fire insurance. They make a public statement of knowing Christ but have no other evidence in their lives. They treat baptism as a right of passage rather than an act of faith. They see it as something they will do when they get around to it. I often stand beside graves making statements of those who said they had faith but who were never baptized nor who attended church. These people may have had fire insurance but they have no salvation assurance.
Jesus said that those who love Him will obey Him. He told His followers to make disciples and baptize them. Doesn't it make as much sense that these new disciples must be baptized in order to be disciples?
I don't believe for a moment that baptism saves the individual. I just believe that those who know Christ will be baptized. It is so important that refusing to be baptized either indicates your lack of faith or your rebellion. I am not sure of the difference between these two.
I talked with a man yesterday that I baptized in the Jordan River. He told me that he didn't expect it to be that important to him but it was. He told me that it had made a significant difference in his life. His denomination believes that you are baptized and then profess faith. (They see baptism as a sign of the covenant with God. The previous sign was circumcision. This was done without the consent of the one being circumcised. It is done apart for his faith too. I understand this belief in baptism but I personally don't subscribe to it. However, I have found many of the people in this denomination strong Christians.) He had never been baptized as a result of his faith. I told him that I had a similar experience when I was baptized. It was more important than I imagined.
So, baptism is a very important step in your faith. In fact, I can't see how you can believe and refuse to be baptized.
You may be struggling with this the decision of whether or not to be baptized. This is a decision between you and the Lord. Have you asked Him about it?
Acts 8:36 (NIV)
36 As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?"
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
The Enemy Knows My Fears
Nehemiah 4:2-3 (ESV)
2 And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?” 3 Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building— if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!”
I suppose those reading this blog are believers. As believers we know that God has a purpose in our lives. We know that God gives us things to do that we can't do by ourselves. These things are like walking on water to us. We can only walk on water as long as we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. So, the enemy, who doesn't want us to have victory distracts us from our focus. He plays on the fears we have within us. He states the things that we believe if we are not strengthened by godly faith. His goal is to get us to sink in the water. His goal is to steal the glory we will give God with our victory.
Nehemiah set out to rebuild the walls and gates of Jerusalem. They walls were torn down and the gates had been burned. He wanted to bring a bunch of ragtag Jews together to embark on an amazing building program. He had little resources and plenty of opposition. The non-Jewish population was afraid of seeing Jerusalem restored. Two of the principle leaders were Sanballat and Tobiah. They opposed Nehemiah from the beginning.
Here is what I see Sanballat and Tobiah saying of Nehemiah and the Jews who are rebuilding Jerusalem's walls and gates:
1. You are too weak to win.
2. You simply can't do it.
3. You will never give God glory with a victory.
4. The work will take too long.
5. It is simply too hard.
6. It won't last anyway. You will just go back to the way things used to be.
I thought of everyone who has made a commitment to lose weight, stop smoking, restore their marriage or stop drinking. I considered everyone who wants to take their company global, start a new business or return to school so that they can get a job in the profession they were made for.
I then thought of myself. I am the pastor of a church whose membership is getting younger every day. I am losing the older members and gaining younger members every month. The church is losing revenue while increasing its expenses. The building is in need of repair and there is no visible means of repairing it.
I am afraid of every one of these statements. I think that anyone who endeavors to do something by God's mandate will fear these statements. That is why the enemy wants to tempt us by saying them in our presence. He wants us to take our eyes off of the victory so that we will fail.
You see, the enemy knows all of our fears and like a lion who wishes to scare us into submission, tempts us with our own fears.
Yet, I will have victory if I can focus solely on the Lord. Fear just seeks to get your eyes looking at the wrong destination. Peter looked at Jesus and walked toward Him. He looked at the waves and sunk in them.
So, my eyes and your eyes must be fully focused on the Lord if we are to have victory.
Lord, I know what to do. Please help me do it.
2 And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?” 3 Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building— if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!”
I suppose those reading this blog are believers. As believers we know that God has a purpose in our lives. We know that God gives us things to do that we can't do by ourselves. These things are like walking on water to us. We can only walk on water as long as we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. So, the enemy, who doesn't want us to have victory distracts us from our focus. He plays on the fears we have within us. He states the things that we believe if we are not strengthened by godly faith. His goal is to get us to sink in the water. His goal is to steal the glory we will give God with our victory.
Nehemiah set out to rebuild the walls and gates of Jerusalem. They walls were torn down and the gates had been burned. He wanted to bring a bunch of ragtag Jews together to embark on an amazing building program. He had little resources and plenty of opposition. The non-Jewish population was afraid of seeing Jerusalem restored. Two of the principle leaders were Sanballat and Tobiah. They opposed Nehemiah from the beginning.
Here is what I see Sanballat and Tobiah saying of Nehemiah and the Jews who are rebuilding Jerusalem's walls and gates:
1. You are too weak to win.
2. You simply can't do it.
3. You will never give God glory with a victory.
4. The work will take too long.
5. It is simply too hard.
6. It won't last anyway. You will just go back to the way things used to be.
I thought of everyone who has made a commitment to lose weight, stop smoking, restore their marriage or stop drinking. I considered everyone who wants to take their company global, start a new business or return to school so that they can get a job in the profession they were made for.
I then thought of myself. I am the pastor of a church whose membership is getting younger every day. I am losing the older members and gaining younger members every month. The church is losing revenue while increasing its expenses. The building is in need of repair and there is no visible means of repairing it.
I am afraid of every one of these statements. I think that anyone who endeavors to do something by God's mandate will fear these statements. That is why the enemy wants to tempt us by saying them in our presence. He wants us to take our eyes off of the victory so that we will fail.
You see, the enemy knows all of our fears and like a lion who wishes to scare us into submission, tempts us with our own fears.
Yet, I will have victory if I can focus solely on the Lord. Fear just seeks to get your eyes looking at the wrong destination. Peter looked at Jesus and walked toward Him. He looked at the waves and sunk in them.
So, my eyes and your eyes must be fully focused on the Lord if we are to have victory.
Lord, I know what to do. Please help me do it.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
When Love Truly Wins
God saved us for a purpose. He didn't save us just to go to heaven.
The Gospel is called the "good news." It is often said to be good news because God sent His Son to die a substitutionary death for our sins. Jesus paid the price for our sins. Therefore, our relationship with God has been healed. We can be in His presence because we have had our sins forgiven. Our sins kept us from God. We could not know spiritual things because we had no spirit to understand them. Our spirits were made alive because sin was removed. Our spirits could communicate with the Holy Spirit who is God.
Yes, this is good news.
Would this be good news if everyone was going to heaven anyway? What if it didn't matter whether or not you believed in Jesus? You would go to heaven without any belief at all. What if didn't matter if you could communicate with God? What if you never had the change in your life that comes from faith in Christ? Would that be good news too?
I don't think so. There would be no gospel because God has left us just as we are. Who loves somebody yet is quite alright with their present condition of depravity? Who loves somebody but doesn't try to keep the loved one from hurting himself? Is is really love if this gift of salvation is ineffective until you die?
God loved us so much that He sent His Son to die for us. He sent His Son so that we might be changed by faith. He gave us the faith necessary to believe. He also gave us works to do so that we would be changed. He gave us a purpose on this earth. That purpose is not merely waiting on our salvation from death. It is unique to each person so that he or she will conform to the image of God's Son.
Love truly wins when people walk in God's presence by doing the good works He has prepared for us before the beginning of time. Love truly wins when we are transformed by God's changing of our minds so that we can know these good works. These good works are God's will which we prove by walking in them and thus becoming like Jesus.
I wish everyone would trust in Christ. I wish I would see everyone in heaven. But there would be no love and no good news in a world in which everyone goes to heaven even if they never believed in Christ. God would be so ambivalent about us that we would be hard pressed to understand His love.
No one trusts in Christ because Jesus gave us an example of sacrifice on the cross. Each one of us trusts in Christ because we believe He is Someone who ends our estranged relationship with God. It is not salvation if we have to wait for it until death. Salvation saves us from being separated from God today.
Love truly wins when we are so changed that we cannot explain our change apart from God's love.
Ephesians 2:8-10 (ESV) 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
The Gospel is called the "good news." It is often said to be good news because God sent His Son to die a substitutionary death for our sins. Jesus paid the price for our sins. Therefore, our relationship with God has been healed. We can be in His presence because we have had our sins forgiven. Our sins kept us from God. We could not know spiritual things because we had no spirit to understand them. Our spirits were made alive because sin was removed. Our spirits could communicate with the Holy Spirit who is God.
Yes, this is good news.
Would this be good news if everyone was going to heaven anyway? What if it didn't matter whether or not you believed in Jesus? You would go to heaven without any belief at all. What if didn't matter if you could communicate with God? What if you never had the change in your life that comes from faith in Christ? Would that be good news too?
I don't think so. There would be no gospel because God has left us just as we are. Who loves somebody yet is quite alright with their present condition of depravity? Who loves somebody but doesn't try to keep the loved one from hurting himself? Is is really love if this gift of salvation is ineffective until you die?
God loved us so much that He sent His Son to die for us. He sent His Son so that we might be changed by faith. He gave us the faith necessary to believe. He also gave us works to do so that we would be changed. He gave us a purpose on this earth. That purpose is not merely waiting on our salvation from death. It is unique to each person so that he or she will conform to the image of God's Son.
Love truly wins when people walk in God's presence by doing the good works He has prepared for us before the beginning of time. Love truly wins when we are transformed by God's changing of our minds so that we can know these good works. These good works are God's will which we prove by walking in them and thus becoming like Jesus.
I wish everyone would trust in Christ. I wish I would see everyone in heaven. But there would be no love and no good news in a world in which everyone goes to heaven even if they never believed in Christ. God would be so ambivalent about us that we would be hard pressed to understand His love.
No one trusts in Christ because Jesus gave us an example of sacrifice on the cross. Each one of us trusts in Christ because we believe He is Someone who ends our estranged relationship with God. It is not salvation if we have to wait for it until death. Salvation saves us from being separated from God today.
Love truly wins when we are so changed that we cannot explain our change apart from God's love.
Ephesians 2:8-10 (ESV) 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
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