Faith… Growing up, I heard a lot of sermons about the impossibility of being saved by ‘faith alone’…..
Still today, it’s a hot topic. The questions of ‘works’ enters into the equation. It is argued that one can be saved then loose that salvation….or one might not have in fact BEEN saved in the first place.
The writer of Hebrews defined faith as ‘being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.’ (Heb. 11:1) We all live by faith. We believe that when we stand up, we will be anchored to the earth beneath us, even though we can’t see the force of gravity. We believe the little gadget we all carry around everywhere we go, will enable us to speak to someone miles away, even though we can’t see the digital signal that cellular phones work off of.
There is a beginning point in faith. I believe in gravity because I’ve learned to walk and have never floated off the planet doing so. I believe in cell phones because I’ve experienced the convenience of owning one…(however, they are much more convenient now than that first bag phone I had !!)
What is the beginning point in faith in God? What is it the hope as far as He is concerned?
My beginning point was fear. I had no love for Him, I had lots of respect for His authority, even though I resented it. I resented it for years….but I’m thankful for it now.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Ps. 111:10, Pro. 1:7, & Pro. 9:10)
My fear kept some pretty tight boundaries around me. We call it legalism these days. I no longer live with those fences, but I believe those fences kept me safe, kept me from making mistakes I might have made if I’d had the freedom I now enjoy. Some people don’t do well fenced in that way, they break down the fences in rebellion. Thank You God, fear kept me from doing so.
I’m no longer fearful of Him. The rest of those promises are true too… “..all who follow His precepts have good understanding.”(Ps. 111:10) “…fools despise wisdom and discipline.”(Pro. 1:7) “..knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” (Pro. 9:10)
God is to be revered and respected, and He is certainly to be feared if not found to be in His Son, Jesus Christ. He IS Who He says He is…and He WILL do what He says He will do.
I have complete faith in that.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Monday, April 26, 2010
Self-control
Self-control.. It is a very personal subject. All of us have areas where we lack in controlling our habits, attitudes, and appetites..
Felix did. Paul was in Felix’s jail, and Felix considered him an interesting way to spend an afternoon, so he sent for him in order to listen to him again. But Paul’s conversation got a bit personal. “Paul continued to insist on right relations with God and His people, about a life of moral discipline and the coming judgment.” (Acts 24: 25 The Message)
Paul was talking about living life by God’s rulebook. He was getting too personal, you see, Felix had no control of self. He had met a woman he wanted, and took her…even though she was another man’s wife. Felix saw no problem with doing whatever he felt like doing and whatever he was big enough to do.
I feel sure he felt good about that….I’m sure he thought he was a big bad guy, very strong and powerful. But he couldn’t even master himself.
Today, we are the same. How often we are deceived by the enemy!! Strength is NOT displayed by doing whatever we feel like doing. Strength is displayed in self-control. And the opposite of that….? No control of self displays a weak and vulnerable area. How will we ever be able to defeat the enemy when we can’t defeat our own fleshly impulses?
Self control is in one of those lists in the Bible. “…make every effort to add to your faith goodness, and to goodness, knowledge, and to knowledge, self control….”(2Peter 1:5)
I think of it as bricks in the wall of my temple. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, Whom you have received from God?”(1 Cor.6:19)
God has given a ‘measure of faith’ (Romans 12:3) The seed of faith must be planted, nurtured, and acted upon…and it grows. (Luke 17:6, 13:19) If it is not…it does not grow, and even perhaps dies. (James 2:14-17)
The brick added to faith is goodness or virtue. The word in the original language is ‘arete’ and it denotes an attribute of excellence, what in a moral sense gives man his worth, goodness of action. The next brick is knowledge, the participation in becoming aware and comprehending about something.
So we have this bit of faith, we build on it by choosing ‘good’ over wrong/evil, then we make it our business to know what we need to know….and then this thing of self-control.
It is foundational. We can have the conviction of faith, we can have the information and knowledge…but if we don’t proceed to have the control over personal choices in behavior…the wall never gets any higher. Self-control is not optional. It is absolutely necessary….
Felix did. Paul was in Felix’s jail, and Felix considered him an interesting way to spend an afternoon, so he sent for him in order to listen to him again. But Paul’s conversation got a bit personal. “Paul continued to insist on right relations with God and His people, about a life of moral discipline and the coming judgment.” (Acts 24: 25 The Message)
Paul was talking about living life by God’s rulebook. He was getting too personal, you see, Felix had no control of self. He had met a woman he wanted, and took her…even though she was another man’s wife. Felix saw no problem with doing whatever he felt like doing and whatever he was big enough to do.
I feel sure he felt good about that….I’m sure he thought he was a big bad guy, very strong and powerful. But he couldn’t even master himself.
Today, we are the same. How often we are deceived by the enemy!! Strength is NOT displayed by doing whatever we feel like doing. Strength is displayed in self-control. And the opposite of that….? No control of self displays a weak and vulnerable area. How will we ever be able to defeat the enemy when we can’t defeat our own fleshly impulses?
Self control is in one of those lists in the Bible. “…make every effort to add to your faith goodness, and to goodness, knowledge, and to knowledge, self control….”(2Peter 1:5)
I think of it as bricks in the wall of my temple. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, Whom you have received from God?”(1 Cor.6:19)
God has given a ‘measure of faith’ (Romans 12:3) The seed of faith must be planted, nurtured, and acted upon…and it grows. (Luke 17:6, 13:19) If it is not…it does not grow, and even perhaps dies. (James 2:14-17)
The brick added to faith is goodness or virtue. The word in the original language is ‘arete’ and it denotes an attribute of excellence, what in a moral sense gives man his worth, goodness of action. The next brick is knowledge, the participation in becoming aware and comprehending about something.
So we have this bit of faith, we build on it by choosing ‘good’ over wrong/evil, then we make it our business to know what we need to know….and then this thing of self-control.
It is foundational. We can have the conviction of faith, we can have the information and knowledge…but if we don’t proceed to have the control over personal choices in behavior…the wall never gets any higher. Self-control is not optional. It is absolutely necessary….
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Storms
Storms… Thirty minutes ago, it was hailing. The rain was pouring down, thunder was booming, lighting flashing…power flickered off and on, interrupting the routine of my morning….
Now, the sun is shining, the sky is a bright blue, the birds are singing… The storm is past.
There is a song I like to sing, “I will praise You in this storm…” Life has so many storms. My will is to praise Him… even in the middle of those storms. But it’s hard. My will often crumbles when life’s storms come. It’s hard to hear that still small voice over thunder. It’s scary when it’s dark and threatening….and I am unsure of what He is doing to calm the storm…or if He will….or even if He is close by.
I choose to believe, yet often pray like the father in Mark 9:24. “I do believe…help me overcome my unbelief!” I know what He has said, over and over… “Never will I leave you..”(Heb.13:5) “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid of terrified …for the Lord your God goes with you, He will never leave you or forsake you”(Dt. 31:6) “The Lord Himself goes before you..”(Dt. 31:8) “No one will be able to stand up against you…I will never leave you or forsake you..”(Joshua 1:5)
The power for my survival is HIS power, provided to me thru The Holy Spirit. That power never flickers, it never has an outage or shortage…but sometimes I’m prone to yank the plug, disconnecting myself. It is never Him who deserts me, “..The Father will give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever…” (Jesus, in John 14:16)
I continue to be tutored, learning that just because I don’t understand, or ‘see’ His Hand at work…just because I don’t recognize His activity, just because I don’t see what I expect to see…never ever means that He isn’t at work.
I continue to submit myself to Him, learning more absolute trust of Him, and committing myself time and time again to be obedient to what He says. He is always right…I’ve learned that by experience, some of them very painful.
When it seems like the storm looms so threateningly close, and I don’t sense Him, I continue to choose…gritting my teeth sometimes…that He is God, and He is faithful to His promises to me. Even when I’m scared to death of the storm…His love for me is beyond measure.
The storm will pass. And even if it leaves a path of destruction, I am safe.
For I am His.
Now, the sun is shining, the sky is a bright blue, the birds are singing… The storm is past.
There is a song I like to sing, “I will praise You in this storm…” Life has so many storms. My will is to praise Him… even in the middle of those storms. But it’s hard. My will often crumbles when life’s storms come. It’s hard to hear that still small voice over thunder. It’s scary when it’s dark and threatening….and I am unsure of what He is doing to calm the storm…or if He will….or even if He is close by.
I choose to believe, yet often pray like the father in Mark 9:24. “I do believe…help me overcome my unbelief!” I know what He has said, over and over… “Never will I leave you..”(Heb.13:5) “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid of terrified …for the Lord your God goes with you, He will never leave you or forsake you”(Dt. 31:6) “The Lord Himself goes before you..”(Dt. 31:8) “No one will be able to stand up against you…I will never leave you or forsake you..”(Joshua 1:5)
The power for my survival is HIS power, provided to me thru The Holy Spirit. That power never flickers, it never has an outage or shortage…but sometimes I’m prone to yank the plug, disconnecting myself. It is never Him who deserts me, “..The Father will give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever…” (Jesus, in John 14:16)
I continue to be tutored, learning that just because I don’t understand, or ‘see’ His Hand at work…just because I don’t recognize His activity, just because I don’t see what I expect to see…never ever means that He isn’t at work.
I continue to submit myself to Him, learning more absolute trust of Him, and committing myself time and time again to be obedient to what He says. He is always right…I’ve learned that by experience, some of them very painful.
When it seems like the storm looms so threateningly close, and I don’t sense Him, I continue to choose…gritting my teeth sometimes…that He is God, and He is faithful to His promises to me. Even when I’m scared to death of the storm…His love for me is beyond measure.
The storm will pass. And even if it leaves a path of destruction, I am safe.
For I am His.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Stretch
Stretch… In the verb form, it is to spread, to be extended without breaking…
There are times I’ve felt stretched so thin that I would indeed break. I have even had pity parties about it…invited others to the party to pity me, pity with me…and if I got no takers, I’d just go alone to the party.
We are all stretched. Mothers are stretched with responsibilities of the home, cooking, cleaning, homework, laundry, grocery shopping… Men and fathers are stretched to be the bread-winner, shoulder the responsibilities of maintaining the home and rearing children. Stretching in our workplace…whatever your role is, there are times of stretching.
The enemy will present escapes for those times. He is lying about them, but they may seem like a good idea at the time. People turn their backs on spouses, leaving, buying into the lie that there is no stretching in some other relationship. Greener pastures must be mowed as well. Sometimes, even more so ! People turn to alcohol and drugs. Partying or gambling…the list could go on and on. What might you add to it?
“…God will never let you down. He’ll never let you be pushed past your limit…He’ll always be there to help you come through it.” (1Cor. 10:13 The Message)
We have all heard that. It’s repeated so often that it sounds like an old cliché. But most of the time I hear it quoted, what I believe is the most important teaching in this verse is overlooked or omitted.
“HE provides a way out…” ( v.13 NIV)
Never will we be stretched in a way that we cannot bear it with His Help. Never… He is GOD ! This teaches us that when those times come, it is true that we can bear them…WITH HIM, with His help !! Not just alone, but with Him…
There IS a limit to our power. There IS a place where we can not stretch any further. When that time comes, when we feel like we are going to snap…He is there, and He is able. The question always is…do we ask? And when we ask, do we accept His answer and the provisions He makes? Do we follow the instructions He gives us in those times?
I confess, I don’t always. Often, I’m so involved in my pity party I am not listening. But He waits til I’m thru whining…after I’ve stretched to my limit and found out I can go no further. Then I sit and listen..when I’ve exhausted all other avenues…
What an insult to Him.
Father forgive me. Help me to seek YOUR counsel first. Help me to tune my ears to hear YOU…and give me a heart to trust what You say. You are always right. Even when the accuser comes against Your Word…he lies…for You are always right. Always…
There are times I’ve felt stretched so thin that I would indeed break. I have even had pity parties about it…invited others to the party to pity me, pity with me…and if I got no takers, I’d just go alone to the party.
We are all stretched. Mothers are stretched with responsibilities of the home, cooking, cleaning, homework, laundry, grocery shopping… Men and fathers are stretched to be the bread-winner, shoulder the responsibilities of maintaining the home and rearing children. Stretching in our workplace…whatever your role is, there are times of stretching.
The enemy will present escapes for those times. He is lying about them, but they may seem like a good idea at the time. People turn their backs on spouses, leaving, buying into the lie that there is no stretching in some other relationship. Greener pastures must be mowed as well. Sometimes, even more so ! People turn to alcohol and drugs. Partying or gambling…the list could go on and on. What might you add to it?
“…God will never let you down. He’ll never let you be pushed past your limit…He’ll always be there to help you come through it.” (1Cor. 10:13 The Message)
We have all heard that. It’s repeated so often that it sounds like an old cliché. But most of the time I hear it quoted, what I believe is the most important teaching in this verse is overlooked or omitted.
“HE provides a way out…” ( v.13 NIV)
Never will we be stretched in a way that we cannot bear it with His Help. Never… He is GOD ! This teaches us that when those times come, it is true that we can bear them…WITH HIM, with His help !! Not just alone, but with Him…
There IS a limit to our power. There IS a place where we can not stretch any further. When that time comes, when we feel like we are going to snap…He is there, and He is able. The question always is…do we ask? And when we ask, do we accept His answer and the provisions He makes? Do we follow the instructions He gives us in those times?
I confess, I don’t always. Often, I’m so involved in my pity party I am not listening. But He waits til I’m thru whining…after I’ve stretched to my limit and found out I can go no further. Then I sit and listen..when I’ve exhausted all other avenues…
What an insult to Him.
Father forgive me. Help me to seek YOUR counsel first. Help me to tune my ears to hear YOU…and give me a heart to trust what You say. You are always right. Even when the accuser comes against Your Word…he lies…for You are always right. Always…
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Force
Force… Webster says that force is energy that may be exerted. That property which may produce action in another body is force. I’ve wanted to force lots of things….
I’ve wanted to force people who have addictions to just STOP. I’ve wanted to force people who refuse to consider the Message of Christ to just HEAR. I’ve wanted to force those who cause hurt to others to SEE. I’ve wanted to force those who won’t bear their own personal responsibilities to GROW UP.
Can’t be done. Personal choice is just that....a personal choice. I can only choose for myself.
“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you….” (Joshua 24:15)
Serving the Lord does seem undesirable at times. Our enemy still deceives us and lies to us. His MO hasn’t changed….(method of operation) In the garden, he caused Eve to question whether doing what God said was really in her best interest. Genesis 3 tells us how that devil questioned what God ‘really’ said….and why. “…God knows that when you eat….you will know what He knows…”, the serpent hissed. And Eve considered what he said, believed him, and the story continues.
Today, the enemy still will cause us to consider what God has said and why. IF we give him even a moment …if we stop to consider his lies….he still wants us to choose to know evil. (..that tree was knowledge of good AND evil…remember?)
God always always always says what He says for a reason.
God will never never never force us to comply.
Force is certainly within His power. He is the most powerful force that exists. But He has chosen to give us choice. There is and can be…no evil in Him.
He longs for us to choose Him. “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable…..then choose for yourselves..whom you will serve..”
Who do you serve? What do you serve? What is it that controls your choices?
Father forgive me when I consider the enemy’s lies. Forgive me the times I’ve even for a moment questioned if what You ask of me is good. Help me to see the choices when they come…protect me from deception and enable me to choose You in every situation.
“…for me, I choose to serve You.”
I’ve wanted to force people who have addictions to just STOP. I’ve wanted to force people who refuse to consider the Message of Christ to just HEAR. I’ve wanted to force those who cause hurt to others to SEE. I’ve wanted to force those who won’t bear their own personal responsibilities to GROW UP.
Can’t be done. Personal choice is just that....a personal choice. I can only choose for myself.
“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you….” (Joshua 24:15)
Serving the Lord does seem undesirable at times. Our enemy still deceives us and lies to us. His MO hasn’t changed….(method of operation) In the garden, he caused Eve to question whether doing what God said was really in her best interest. Genesis 3 tells us how that devil questioned what God ‘really’ said….and why. “…God knows that when you eat….you will know what He knows…”, the serpent hissed. And Eve considered what he said, believed him, and the story continues.
Today, the enemy still will cause us to consider what God has said and why. IF we give him even a moment …if we stop to consider his lies….he still wants us to choose to know evil. (..that tree was knowledge of good AND evil…remember?)
God always always always says what He says for a reason.
God will never never never force us to comply.
Force is certainly within His power. He is the most powerful force that exists. But He has chosen to give us choice. There is and can be…no evil in Him.
He longs for us to choose Him. “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable…..then choose for yourselves..whom you will serve..”
Who do you serve? What do you serve? What is it that controls your choices?
Father forgive me when I consider the enemy’s lies. Forgive me the times I’ve even for a moment questioned if what You ask of me is good. Help me to see the choices when they come…protect me from deception and enable me to choose You in every situation.
“…for me, I choose to serve You.”
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Offerings
Offerings… There’s a Christmas song I like, ‘What can I bring Him, poor that I am’….
Voluntary giving something to God …what can I possible give to God? Everything I have comes from His Hand in the first place. Everything in my reality is His. Yet, He has given me dominion over the realm of my life.
What can I possibly add? What God might lack, He could speak into existence just as He spoke into existence every single thing you and I have ever known. What He might want, He could certainly have.
But would it all be worth having?
Again, I marvel at the love of God for me…..and I marvel that the only thing He wants that He can not ‘make’……is my choosing Him over all else.
The blessing of our 36 year marriage has been the freely given commitment to each other. I’ve never forced my husband to stay. I’ve never manipulated circumstances ‘so that’ he will love me. He chooses to do so. And I am secure in that. I daresay he would say the same thing.
God loves us, wants our love in return…but will not force our choice. It grieves Him that some do not choose Him. He is sorrowful that they will suffer because of it, and has gone to great measures to be sure we know WHAT we are choosing when we do not come to Him.
“…tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: See, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death…’ …” (Jer. 21:8)
“ ..I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may life, and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His Voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life….” (Deut. 30:19,20)
“I am the way and the truth and the life…” ( words of Jesus in John 14:6)
Good or evil. Life or death. Those are the only two choices.
“…as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” ( Joshua 24:15)
Voluntary giving something to God …what can I possible give to God? Everything I have comes from His Hand in the first place. Everything in my reality is His. Yet, He has given me dominion over the realm of my life.
What can I possibly add? What God might lack, He could speak into existence just as He spoke into existence every single thing you and I have ever known. What He might want, He could certainly have.
But would it all be worth having?
Again, I marvel at the love of God for me…..and I marvel that the only thing He wants that He can not ‘make’……is my choosing Him over all else.
The blessing of our 36 year marriage has been the freely given commitment to each other. I’ve never forced my husband to stay. I’ve never manipulated circumstances ‘so that’ he will love me. He chooses to do so. And I am secure in that. I daresay he would say the same thing.
God loves us, wants our love in return…but will not force our choice. It grieves Him that some do not choose Him. He is sorrowful that they will suffer because of it, and has gone to great measures to be sure we know WHAT we are choosing when we do not come to Him.
“…tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: See, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death…’ …” (Jer. 21:8)
“ ..I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may life, and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His Voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life….” (Deut. 30:19,20)
“I am the way and the truth and the life…” ( words of Jesus in John 14:6)
Good or evil. Life or death. Those are the only two choices.
“…as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” ( Joshua 24:15)
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Temple..
Temple… I have seen pictures of temples, read about temples…but a temple is not ordinary in our culture, so it takes effort to think about it. “You are the temple of God” Paul told the Corinthians, (1 Cor. 3:16)
All those who are disciples of Jesus Christ are temples of God. The Old Testament has many object lessons for us about this temple language. Solomon built a temple that had been long in coming. His Father began the project with the planning and gathering of materials to be used. “Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord..”(2 Chron. 3:1)
Every single part of the temple has meaning, but recently, God called my attention to the Most Holy Place, the place where the Presence of God would come.
“Solomon built the Most Holy Place….and overlaid the inside with ..fine gold.” (vs.8)
When I read this, the accuser asked me where the gold was in my heart. (He won’t be able to do that always…(Rev. 12:10) He got me thinking and searching, sorrowful that there was none that I saw..
Then I found another altar, the Tabernacle that was the first one, the temporary, portable one, the one where God manifested Himself to the wandering Hebrews in the wilderness.
The structure was put together in great detail by Divine instructions. There would be sacrifices, and even the manner in which that was done was stipulated. “Make all the utensils….pots to remove the ashes…” (Ex. 27:3)
Ashes !! Imagine ashes being anywhere around anything overlaid in gold. Disgusting ! We have a wood stove, I know about ashes. The killing of animals and dealing with blood…that, I’ve thought about. Not the ashes though…
And then I realized…I’ve brought all these needless sacrifices into the altar of my heart, and they are just burned up ! Nothing I can ’DO’ is of any consequence to remove my guilt. The only sacrifice I need offer is a ’sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His Name’ (Heb. 13:15)
That doesn’t mean I no longer ’DO’ good things…’do not forget to do good and to share with others’ (vs.16) ..but all those things are to be done in praise of Him and what He has accomplished in me. Else….they are just burned to ash…creating a black veil that keeps me from seeing the overlay of gold on the altar of my heart…put there by Jesus Christ when He cleansed this temple and made me fit for His Presence.
It is finished.(John 19:30)
“There is no longer any sacrifice for sin.”(Heb. 10:18)
‘My body is a temple of the holy Spirit…I am not my own, I was bought at a price. Therefore, I will honor God…”(1Cor. 6:20 personalized by me)
All those who are disciples of Jesus Christ are temples of God. The Old Testament has many object lessons for us about this temple language. Solomon built a temple that had been long in coming. His Father began the project with the planning and gathering of materials to be used. “Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord..”(2 Chron. 3:1)
Every single part of the temple has meaning, but recently, God called my attention to the Most Holy Place, the place where the Presence of God would come.
“Solomon built the Most Holy Place….and overlaid the inside with ..fine gold.” (vs.8)
When I read this, the accuser asked me where the gold was in my heart. (He won’t be able to do that always…(Rev. 12:10) He got me thinking and searching, sorrowful that there was none that I saw..
Then I found another altar, the Tabernacle that was the first one, the temporary, portable one, the one where God manifested Himself to the wandering Hebrews in the wilderness.
The structure was put together in great detail by Divine instructions. There would be sacrifices, and even the manner in which that was done was stipulated. “Make all the utensils….pots to remove the ashes…” (Ex. 27:3)
Ashes !! Imagine ashes being anywhere around anything overlaid in gold. Disgusting ! We have a wood stove, I know about ashes. The killing of animals and dealing with blood…that, I’ve thought about. Not the ashes though…
And then I realized…I’ve brought all these needless sacrifices into the altar of my heart, and they are just burned up ! Nothing I can ’DO’ is of any consequence to remove my guilt. The only sacrifice I need offer is a ’sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His Name’ (Heb. 13:15)
That doesn’t mean I no longer ’DO’ good things…’do not forget to do good and to share with others’ (vs.16) ..but all those things are to be done in praise of Him and what He has accomplished in me. Else….they are just burned to ash…creating a black veil that keeps me from seeing the overlay of gold on the altar of my heart…put there by Jesus Christ when He cleansed this temple and made me fit for His Presence.
It is finished.(John 19:30)
“There is no longer any sacrifice for sin.”(Heb. 10:18)
‘My body is a temple of the holy Spirit…I am not my own, I was bought at a price. Therefore, I will honor God…”(1Cor. 6:20 personalized by me)
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