Holiness

Feb

2019

Forgiving From Your Heart

Do you remember the parable of the unmerciful servant? Peter wanted to know how many times he should forgive; the answer may not have been what he expected. Let’s check it out.

Matthew 18:21-25

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

“The servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

“But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

“His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’

“But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

This is a familiar parable, one that you have no doubt read many times. To put this in context, just prior to this parable, Jesus talked about what to do if a brother sins against you, and after hearing this brief teaching on dealing with a brother who sins against you, Peter comes to ask Jesus a rather interesting question.

“Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?”

I’m not sure, but I think Peter may have had a rather short fuse, and when it came to forgiving, he probably struggled a bit. When he asked the question, I think Peter was looking for a limit here. You know, “at what point can I refuse to forgive?” Jesus’ answer was not what Peter had expected!

To explain forgiveness to Peter, and to you and me, Jesus told a story. In this story, I think we can find a few truths that may help us, when it comes to forgiving from the heart.

This parable primarily has to do with forgiving a financial debt, but the application of this story applies to many different situations in which someone has trespassed, or sinned against you.

In the parable that Jesus told, the king wanted to settle accounts, and was calling in the debts owed.

When this particular man came before the king, he was unable to pay his debt. The fault was clearly with the man, and not the king. For whatever reason, the man could not clear his debt, and king, was now “stuck” with it.

Now there appears to be two problems:

The first is now the king is upset, and rightfully so. He has a debt that he should not bear. It was not his fault, and he has every right to demand it! He is frustrated, hurt, and betrayed, the trust he had toward his servant is broken.

The second is that the man, who failed in his obligation to the king, is now in danger of being, sold into slavery, even placing his whole family in jeopardy.

As the story goes, the man fell on his knees before the king, begging for patience, promising to pay it all back, just give me more time! The king looking at this display of emotion, felt compassion for the man, and forgave the whole debt! In one fell swoop, the king took care of both problems.

In forgiving the man his debt, the king released himself from the right to demand what was due, absorbing the cost of the debt, and the debtor was free from the need to repay something he was unable to.

We can learn two lessons here, which will help us not only to forgive, but also to be forgiven.

Granting Forgiveness

The first lesson has to do with granting forgiveness. The king saw the despair of the man who owed the debt. He seemed totally unable to repay what was owed.

Jesus said that the king had “compassion” on the man. Unless the king would have experienced compassion, I doubt very much that he would have been able to forgive this man his debt.

As you and I experience debts or, “SINS against us, it is very unlikely that we will ever truly forgive another for those sins, unless we have compassion. Without compassion for those who have sinned against you, the debt remains.

Sin has affected all of humanity. Not one person is exempt from it! Sin rears its ugly head in many, many forms; lying, stealing, cheating, murder, adultery, greed, lust; the list is long!

If you have lived longer than a day, someone has probably sinned against you, and if you are blessed to live another day, it will likely happen again. We live in a sinful world, and sin happens! When it happens to you, what will you do with it?

Recall the Lord’s Prayer:

Matthew 6:9-14

“This, then, is how you should pray: “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

The greatest temptation that any of us ever will face is the temptation to, not forgive.

We have been forgiven much by the Greatest King that ever lived! Our Great King, saw the terrible plight we were in, and while we were unable to correct the wrong we had done, He forgave us all our sin!

Remember, unlike the parable Jesus used, we were not going to be, sold for the debt we owed, we were going to die for it! The wages of sin is death! God has forgiven us much!

We must forgive those who sin against us, to hold their sin against them, is to negate our own forgiveness!

Receiving Forgiveness

The second part of this lesson has to do with receiving forgiveness. This part of the lesson is tied to the first part.

To receive forgiveness is to be willing to forgive.

The man in this story was no doubt thrilled with the cancelled debt. He was truly distressed before the King, and was on his knees begging for patience and mercy; the King had compassion, and forgave the whole debt! I imagine the man was so grateful!

However, not long afterwards, that man encountered someone who owed him far less than what he had owed the king, and he demanded the whole amount, even having the man arrested and put into prison!

Of course, when the King found out about it, He was furious! The King ordered the man who refused to cancel another debt, thrown in prison.

The problem was that this man did not recognize or remember how much debt the king forgave him. He was forgiven much, much more, than the man who owed him very little.

Any sin inflicted upon you by another, will pale in comparison with the sin you have inflicted against God.

Yet God has forgiven you of all your sins! Why would you hold something against another? Why would you throw away your own good fortune at the expense of another? How foolish!

If this man would have taken the time to remember the depth of his own forgiveness, he would not have demanded the small amount someone owed him, and the outcome of this story would have been quite different.

Have you ever sat down and considered what Jesus has done for you? I mean, have you considered what this Great King has done on your behalf?

How badly do you want God to forgive you of your sins, bad enough for you to forgive others from the heart?

Perhaps you struggle with compassion. Ask God to show you what He thinks of those you cannot forgive; ask Him how much value He places on them. Look at others from His perspective, and you will begin to get a sense of what is at stake.

Remember, if you cannot forgive from your heart, you have not forgiven, and you are still in your sins.

You will know that you have forgiven from the heart when you pray this way:

“Father, I forgive this person for the sin inflicted upon me; and please Lord, I am asking that you forgive them too.”

Feb

2019

Burning UP – Or Burning OUT

As I have been traveling and speaking; talking to different pastors, and leaders of various churches, I have been hearing some people talking about, and experiencing what they term “burn-out.”

Have you experienced this? It usually begins subtly; a growing dissatisfaction with the Christian service that you have been doing in and through the church. Passion for people begins to ebb and wane.

You may even begin to experience a slow, somewhat unnoticeable, hardening of the heart. It shows up when you find your eyes dry, during an experience that used to bring tears. You begin to notice a lack of compassion, your temper seems to quicken.

Your concern for the lost people of the world begins to weaken, passion for their salvation slips, and quite frankly, if they get Jesus, fine, if they don’t. . .Oh Well!

Love for God seems to cool as well, and love for others, is simply getting downright cold!

What I am talking about is, commonly called “burn-out.”

Some sobering statistics from Focus on the Family regarding pastors:

Fifteen hundred pastors leave the ministry each month due to moral failure, spiritual burnout, or contention in their churches.
Fifty percent of pastors’ marriages end in divorce.
Fifty percent of pastors are so discouraged that they would leave the ministry if they could, but have no other way of making a living.
Eighty percent of seminary and Bible school graduates who enter the ministry will leave the ministry within the first five years.
Seventy percent of pastors constantly fight depression.

If this is reflective of professional men and women who are in full time ministry, it certainly reflects those in laity as well! Those of you, who have families, jobs, and busy schedules, can easily fall into this “burn-out” category.

But what about Jesus? Did He experience this? Jesus certainly grew tired, even weary, but He did not experience “burn-out.”

There is a great difference between burning up and burning out!

If you light a lamp, and watch it burn, it will begin to “burn-out” when it gets low on oil. In order for it to continue to burn, there must be a replenishing of the oil, otherwise the lamp will “burn-out” and grow cold.

So it is with us; if we are not replenished, if we separate ourselves from spiritual renewal, and fellowship with the Holy Spirit, then our lamp will grow dim, and we will become dissatisfied with our service to God. It will become a duty, not a blessing, a chore, rather than an act of love.

We need to become more like Jesus, and less like the world we live in. The world is full of self-serving ideals, which in the end, come up short.

We often compare ministry results against the backdrop of the contemporary world in which we live, and we grow dissatisfied. We want results, and we want them now! We want fruit, and we want it now!

When we realize that our Christian service may take months, perhaps years, before we see the results, we get frustrated, and instead of trusting, and waiting upon God, we take matters into our own hands. Sometimes we will over extend ourselves to the point of exhaustion!

If we begin to operate in our own strength, and in our own wisdom, our “oil” begins to run low, and will eventually run out! The problem began when we took matters into our own hands. This “turning” from God happens so subtly, that it is almost unnoticeable!

It is time for the church, and those who have come to Christ, to return to Him, to learn from Him, and to become like Him. He found renewal in being with His Father. He took time to get away, and pray; we need to do the same!

If we spend time with God, the true God, then we will walk in a state of continual renewal, we will not have to go on special retreats hoping to “connect” with God, and be renewed. It will become a part of our life; we will “often” go away to lonely places and get rest, physical and spiritual rest.

Then, like Jesus, when the crowds come, and encroach upon your “retreat” your eyes will well up with compassion, you will feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and heal the sick, and it will not be a burden but a joy!

You will begin to burn up, not burn out. Passion will rise up! You will be a flame!

Listen to the words of John Wesley; when asked how he drew the crowds:

“I set myself on fire and the people come to watch me burn” (John Wesley)

And revival preacher and author Leonard Ravenhill says;

“You don’t have to advertise a fire.” (Leonard Ravenhill)

We need to get back to the basics of Christianity. Ours is a mission of faith, trust, and reliance on the Holy Spirit of God, and not on fancy programs, slick slogans, or our own wisdom and strength! When we operate on our wisdom, we reap what the Scriptures say we will reap:

Proverbs 16: 25

There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.

Jesus told us straight out. . .

John 15:4-6

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

The true source of “burn-out” is a lack of fellowship with our God. Take time, MAKE time, to sit with the Father, talk to Him, and let Him refresh you, replenish you, and send you!

I for one, refuse to burn out, I will however, do all I can to keep oil in my lamp, so that I will burn up, not out!

Feb

2019

Come Now, Let Us Reason Together

There seems to be, two different types of people emerging after an encounter with Jesus; one kind recognizes that the journey may get tough, sacrifices will need made, but the joy of following the Savior is greater, the rewards of a life spent following the master are worth any amount of sacrifice!

These folks find joy and peace in the midst of great pain and suffering. They always seem to be moving forward, gaining strength day by day, being built up in God’s holy Word! They begin to produce fruit for their labors, and people around them begin to come into the Kingdom of God too!

For the other group, they exhibit a “dragging” of the feet, so to speak, an unwillingness to obey the clear teachings of God. Jesus begins to take them on a journey, and they quickly realize that the way is steep, and they are carrying too much baggage, and He tells them to drop some of the “things” they carry, but they refuse!

Jesus decides to take a turn, and they realize that the way is unfamiliar, and out of fear, refuse to go!

For this group, service to God becomes a burden, rather than a joy. Obedience to God’s Word becomes frightfully difficult. It becomes a duty, and no longer done from a position of love.

It is unfortunate, but many people fall into the second category. For those who will resist the call of God on their lives, for those who refuse to obey the clear teachings of the Bible, the words from Isaiah seem quite appropriate!

Isaiah 1:5-6

“Why should you be beaten anymore? Why do you persist in rebellion? Your whole head is injured, your whole heart afflicted. From the sole of your foot to the top of your head there is no soundness– only wounds and welts and open sores, not cleansed or bandaged or soothed with oil.”

According to this verse, there are consequences for rebelling against God. You will wear yourself out! Your whole being will suffer!

It is not uncommon for those resisting God, who walk in rebellion to Him, to face increasing depression, fits of rage, anger, and could even become physically ill.

Yet God is patient, He waits for those who are in this “sea of rebellion” to come to their senses. When they do, God gives this incredible offer:

Isaiah 1:18-20

“Come now, let us reason together,”

says the LORD.

“Though your sins are like scarlet,

they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red as crimson,

they shall be like wool.

If you are willing and obedient,

you will eat the best from the land;

but if you resist and rebel,

you will be devoured by the sword.”

For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

I just love this Scripture; God says; “Come now, let us reason together.” It’s like God has just poured a cup of coffee for you, and invites you to the table, One on one, to see if there can be a solution. God is awesome!

So . . . which type of Christian are you?

Whatever the case may be, a sold faithful walk with Him, or a dragging of the feet; take time today to respond to His words; “Come now, let us reason together.”

Feb

2019

Do You Love Me?

Without a doubt, God has shown His love to us repeatedly! We can never wear out the Scripture in John 3:16; “For God so Loved. . .”

And what about these. . .

Ephesians 5:1-2

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

Colossians 3:12

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”

1 Thessalonians 1:4

“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you. . .”

1John 4:10

“This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

Through these Scriptures, and hundreds more like them, it becomes obvious; God loves us! Indeed, the whole of the Bible is a Book of love, an expression of God’s love towards us!

The question is not; “Does God love us,” but rather; “Do we love Him?”

I want to take you on a journey with a man called Peter, along with a couple of other men, James and John, commonly referred to as disciples, or the “inner three.”

These men walked with Jesus; actually walked with Him in the flesh, they shared meals together, and spent dozens of nights around the campfire talking with Jesus. If anyone knew the heart of Jesus, these men did, if anyone could love and obey His teaching, these men would.

The Disciples were very much like us. By that I mean, they were not stunning models of obedience and passion, but were quite human, and showed signs of their ‘humanness” all along the journey.

They were fishermen, physically strong, hard working, simple, yet very determined men. These men responded to the invitation from Jesus; “Follow Me.” It was at that point, that these men had an encounter with Jesus, and made a decision to follow Him; just like you did.

These men had many of the same struggles that you have.

Peter, James and John, were closest to Jesus, these men saw Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, they were there when Jesus raised dead girl, and they were there when Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane.

If anyone could get their walk right with Jesus, it would be these guys. Yet these men struggled understanding God’s will, and had trouble obeying Jesus, here are a few examples;

James and John wanted to call down lightening to destroy some people who did not welcome Jesus. Luke 9:53-55

“. . . but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?” But Jesus turned and rebuked them.”

James and John apparently got their mother to ask Jesus if they could sit at either side of Him in heaven . . . rather arrogant don’t you think? Matthew 20:20-22

“Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him.

“What is it you want?” he asked.

She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”

“You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?”

“We can,” they answered.”

While standing on the mount of transfiguration, at one of the holiest, and most reverent times in the Bible, as Jesus stands there with Elijah and Moses, Peter blurts out; “It is good that we are here, I will build a shelter for each of you.” What was he thinking! Matthew 17:1-4

“After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

At one of the most critical times in Jesus’ life, while He is about to be arrested, Peter pulls out a knife, and slices a man’s ear off! John 18:10

Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.)

In the Garden of Gethsemane James, John, and Peter fell asleep! Matthew 26:40-42

“Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”

Peter swore that he would die with Christ if need be, but in the end denied knowing Jesus three times! Matthew 26:69-75

Now Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came to him. “You also were with Jesus of Galilee,” she said.

But he denied it before them all. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.

Then he went out to the gateway, where another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

He denied it again, with an oath: “I don’t know the man!”

After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, “Surely you are one of them; your accent gives you away.”

Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!”

Immediately a rooster crowed. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.

As we can see by these examples, the disciples were anything, but stellar, and most of us are not either.

An interesting meeting took place after the resurrection of Jesus; found in John 21:1-19

Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”

“No,” they answered.

He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards.[b] When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”

Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?”

“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?”

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

In this remarkable story, Jesus reaffirmed His love for Peter by His actions. He could have criticized Peter, ridiculed him, and said; “I told you so!”

Sitting by that fire, Peter experienced what I call blazing, majestic, overwhelming, relentless love, coming from the risen Christ!

The issue that Jesus was trying to bring to Peter’s attention was not that He (Jesus) loved Peter; that was now very evident. The question was; Peter, do you love Me?

Today, Jesus gently lifts your gaze, to meet Him, and asks you; “Do you love Me, more than these.”

What is your response?

Feb

2019

Grace, Mercy and Peace to You

“To Timothy my true son in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord”. 1 Timothy 1:2

While reading the letters that the apostle Paul wrote, I noticed that almost every letter he wrote began with those words; “Grace and peace to you from God the Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.” In the letters written to Timothy, and to Titus, he includes grace, mercy and peace.

Like many of you, I have read these books written by Paul, dozens of times, and always seemed to overlook the opening greeting, as if it were not that important.

What jumps out at me, is the way Paul says these words. It is bold, and up front, like he was an emissary of God, coming to the people, as if he had just come from God himself. Kind of like an ambassador, proclaiming the heart of the kingdom represented.

I get this picture in my mind of a rider on a horse, riding feverishly through the night, with a message of hope for those in distress; perhaps soldiers, weary from battle, which may need some encouragement.

The rider dismounts, and comes to the people, and the first words out of his mouth are; Grace, Mercy, and Peace to you from your King! How very refreshing and encouraging to hear.

Paul gives us that kind of feeling when he begins his letters, regardless of the content of the letter, he set us as ease, with the reassurance that he has just come from God himself, and God has given a message to His people, “Grace, Mercy, and Peace from God our Father, and Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Paul chose these words, because he himself was the recipient of them. Paul was a persecutor of the church. He actually chased down Christians, and standing by as they were put to death.

He was actively destroying the very church that Jesus was trying to build. Paul was on a mission to destroy, what he thought was an abomination to God.

Paul knew that he deserved death for what he had done; no question about it; standing by, as saints like Stephen were being, stoned to death, cheering the crowd.

Paul knew that he was an enemy of God, but now, through God’s grace and mercy, he found peace; joy inexpressible! How could he contain it?

Paul was able to express this in almost every letter he wrote, because it was what he received, and it was so valuable to him. He wanted to express it every time he wrote.

Like Paul, you and I received Grace, Mercy, and Peace from God too, and like Paul, we have the authority to declare it to others as well.

So the next time you enter a room with your brothers and sisters in Christ be bold, and with confidence declare, Grace, Peace and Mercy to you from God our Father through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Feb

2019

“One Thing You Lack”

As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.”

“Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!” Mark 10:17-21

There are several other locations where this encounter is recorded as well. In Matthew 19:20 the man is identified as being young, and Luke 18:18 describes him as being a ruler.

So, from these three passages we can easily deduce that this was a young, wealthy, man of influence, perhaps he was training to become a Pharisee, or was the member of the Roman government; we really don’t know for sure.

Typically when we read this passage of Scripture we talk about money and the power that it can have over individuals; this passage reveals much, much more than we may have anticipated!

This passage reveals to us the characteristics of a person that did not qualify that person to be a Christian.

So let’s look at the characteristics of this young man that were not enough to constitute salvation.

Sincerity

It is easy to see that this man was sincere. Here was a wealthy young man of an elite background, and in full view of everyone, he ran to Jesus and knelt before Him. He did not care if anyone was looking. He must have thought that Jesus Himself held the answer to the question he was seeking.

It is quite possible that this young man believed that Jesus was the Messiah; why else would he risk his reputation by kneeling to Him.

Over the course of ministry I have seen hundreds of people kneel and pray to God for salvation; most are as sincere as this young man. They come risking everything, kneeling and asking God for the way of eternal life; but like this young man, sincerity is not enough; Jesus Himself asked for more!

Righteousness

This young man was a righteous man. Jesus reminded him of the commandments; You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.” yet this young man had kept them all!

He never committed murder by killing anyone; he honored his father and mother; was not a thief, nor did he give false testimony or defraud anyone! He was a young man who kept the commandments of God faithfully; what more could he do?

People today are no different; far too often we think if we just live a good life, then we somehow will gain access to heaven and eternal life; that is simply not true! It was not enough for this young man and it will not be enough for you either!

While living a righteous and good life is to be commended; and doing a lifetime of good works may get you a plaque on a wall; it will by no means cause you to have eternal life.

God’s Love

The Bible declares in this passage that “Jesus looked at him and loved him.” As Jesus was looking over this young man, kneeling in the dirt, hopeful eyes locked with His, He had compassion.

God also has compassion for us too. The Bible declares that God Himself is love; and the most quoted verse in the Bible; John 3:16 says it best:

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

However, God’s love for us; His amazing love for us, does not, in and of itself, bring about the salvation of our souls. God looks in love at this young man, and still there is something more required.

So, if being sincere; recognizing Jesus to be the One with the answer; and being a righteous, good and moral person, and sensing God’s own love for me is not enough for salvation to be complete; what am I missing?

Becoming a Christian, as evidenced in this story, is to believe Jesus to be trustworthy enough to surrender control of our life to. Not partial, or selective control, but ALL control.

To put it bluntly, a Christian is a person who believes in Jesus strong enough to follow Him!

This particular young man had considerable wealth, and it turned out to be his “one thing.”

Jesus said to him; “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Jesus knew that in order for this young man to find salvation, he would have to relinquish control of his wealth. Apparently it had quite a grip on his heart; and for this fellow, it was the “one thing” that prevented this young man from eternal life.

The conclusion of this story with the wealthy young ruler ended sadly, as the Bible says:

“One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

This story is not really about money, but about that which keeps us from following Jesus.

Jesus could easily say . . .

“How hard it is for the bitter to enter the kingdom of God!”

“How hard it is for the jealous to enter the kingdom of God!”

“How hard it is for the self-reliant to enter the kingdom of God!”

“How hard it is for the unforgiving to enter the kingdom of God!”

What “one thing” stands in the way of your salvation?

Perhaps it is time to get rid of it and start following Jesus!

Feb

2019

Ask, Seek and Knock – Do It!

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

“Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” Matthew 7:7-11

This is a very familiar Scripture that many of us have read dozens, if not hundreds of times. We often refer to this Scripture when talking about prayer, as we should!

This section begins with the admonition to ask, seek and knock. As we read this, we get the feeling that these are not simply suggestions; perhaps the words carry just a little more weight than that!

Jesus does not frame these words with any kind of condition associated with the request; He simply says to; ask, seek and knock! Therefore, these three words come with an expectation that you will do it.

Jesus further indicates that those who ask, seek and knock, will receive, find, and gain entrance. Again, there is no hesitation in Jesus very straightforward statement here.

He says that if you ask, you will receive, if you seek, you will find, and if you knock, the door opens for you. I find this to be very exciting indeed!

In the following verses, we get a partial idea of where the answers to the asking, seeking, and knocking are coming from. Jesus begins verse 9 by asking the crowd a rhetorical question:

“Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?

I can see the crowd laughing as he makes this statement; some parents are no doubt planning a practical joke on their kids later in the day!

Jesus then contrasts the crowd; sinful humanity, against a holy and righteous Father; by saying:

If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

We see that “good gifts” come from our Father in heaven. James echoes this truth in the Book he wrote:

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17

So, we see clearly that Jesus is saying if you ask, seek and knock, then God Himself will respond with good gifts.

I have heard it said by well meaning Christians that we need to be careful what we ask God for, we might just get it! I think that is an ugly statement, one in which we think that God our Father, who is incredibly good and holy, who has our best interest at heart, would somehow give us a bad gift!

I think that if I am knocking on a door that is going to lead me astray, God will not open it.

When God opens a door, gives a gift, or reveals Himself to His children, according to Jesus, it is going to be good!

Now to be sure, we can go beyond knocking, and go get a crowbar and force open a door that God is unwilling to open for us.

Remember, He knows what is best, and if the door will not open by knocking on it, it is best to leave it shut.

So go ahead; ASK, SEEK, and KNOCK . . . this is going to be good!

Feb

2019

Count the Cost

Jesus calls everyone who would follow Him, to count the cost; it is quite high. While the gift of salvation is free to receive, the cost of following is steep! One must consider the ramifications of following the Lord before jumping in.

Jesus said that those who choose to follow Him must deny themselves; this means putting others ahead of you, it means a life of service given to those who may or may not like you, much less, love you!

Jesus even went so far as to say that you must pick up your cross and follow Him.

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?” Matthew 16:24-26

A cross was the very instrument used to kill Jesus. The cross was the first century equivalent of the electric chair, only much, much crueler.

When they led Jesus away for crucifixion, the Bible says, He carried His own cross; and since He did, so must you!

Following Jesus will cause you to lay down your life; it is a willing decision on your part to place your life, your will, your preferences, and all your hopes and dreams, into His hands, trusting Him with the outcome, whatever it may be!

It is a requirement of following Him; for some it might mean laying down your wealth. For others it might mean that your reputation is, put on the line; yet for others it might mean serving somewhere obscure with little or no recognition; and yet for others, it may require your very life; the decision is His to make, and it is your cross to carry!

What is your Cross . . . everyone who follows Jesus, gets one!

If you don’t have one, then there is a pretty good chance, you don’t belong to Him!

Feb

2019

Watch Out For – Hypocrisy

Jesus never condemned sinners; He did however denounce and deplore hypocrites!

A hypocrite is a person who excuses his own sin, while condemning the sins of others.

The hypocrite does not see his own hypocrisy, because he cannot see, or refuses to see, the flaws in himself.

The one who cannot see their own flaws, rarely if ever, seek mercy. Since he does not seek mercy, he has no mercy to give; and since he is always under God’s judgment, he passes judgment on others.

If we are to be seekers of holiness, we cannot remain as hypocrites; or better stated; hypocrites cannot find holiness.

The first step in pursuing holiness is to admit that we are not as holy as we appear to be; this first step is called humility.

As we draw near to God, each one of us will become aware of the sins in our own heart. The Holy Spirit is not revealing these sins in order to condemn us, but rather to establish humility, and to deepen our knowledge of our own need for more grace.

Anyone choosing to follow God, will humble themselves before God, asking God for grace to deliver them from the sin that has entangled them.

For those who will try to excuse their sin, the title hypocrite is, justly deserved. Jesus used a parable to highlight this very issue.

“To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Luke 18:9-14

Holiness is not about obeying a set of rules and regulations; that only breeds more hypocrisy. Holiness is about getting rid of pride; which enables us to come to terms with the true condition of our heart.

Have you humbled yourself before God, lately?

Feb

2019

For the Love of God

The deepest need that we as humans have is to be loved. Love is something we search for and often spend our lives trying to find; thousands of love songs, written over the centuries, try to express this deep need.

For many, the search for love comes up empty; like a familiar song from the 1980’s by Johnny Lee; “Looking for Love in all the Wrong Places” they cannot find the deep satisfaction they long for. Many, searching for love in this broken world, come up hurt, mistreated and abused.

For some, the pain of being unloved causes them to turn to artificial treatments of the condition, drugs, alcohol and relationships without true commitment, anything to ease the pain of not experiencing true love.

In this broken world, love comes with strings attached, and our love is conditional.

God’s love is very different, and it is His love that we must understand and experience, if we are to, truly be able to love and be loved by others.

What is God’s love is like?

God is Love – “If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” 1 John 4:15-16

The Bible declares in this verse that God is love; His very nature exudes love. His love is strong, never ending.

God loves His enemies – “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

God’s love is so strong that even when we were in our sin, even when we despised Him, He still loved us; so much so, that He sacrificed his Son in order to provide a way to have fellowship with us, which leads us to the next . . .

God’s love is sacrificial – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17

Think of the most precious person in your life, think of someone who you are well pleased with, someone who is the apple of your eye. Now think of the most pure and loving individual in your life, your own child or even a grandson or granddaughter. What would it take for you, to initiate the loss of that child in order to rescue a group of people who really don’t care?

God’s Love is lavish – “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.” 1 John 3:1

The word we translate into “lavish” here indicates an over-abundance, or super abundant love. It is love we certainly do not deserve and we did nothing to warrant such love; simply that God pours it on and loves us so much!

God’s Love is Eternal – “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9

To sum it all up, the Bible gives a great description of what God’s love is like . . .

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

How different from the kind of love we are accustomed to in this world.

The greatest hindrance regarding God’s Love seems to be our inability to receive it! Since we have such a corrupted view of what love is, it becomes an obstacle to receiving God’s love!

For so many, the idea of someone loving you to this degree is simply not possible. Some feel so unworthy of this kind of love, and cringe at the idea of a Holy God desiring them this much!

We need to ask God to supernaturally, change our minds about Him, and about our relationship to Him.

We must learn to trust Him, with everything; holding nothing back. It is time to let go of your heart and give it entirely to Him . . . He loves you and has demonstrated it a thousand ways!

Will you receive His love today?

Feb

2019

Abide in Me

The word “abide” simply means to remain, or stay put; Jesus used the word in the context of vineyard work. The vine that remains grows, and that vine begins to produce fruit.

Abiding gives us the idea that we are continuing to grow and mature, and just like the vine needs to produce fruit, so do we!

If we don’t produce fruit, then we are not growing and are taking up precious resources from those who are, and we risk being cut off by the Master Gardener!

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. John 15:1-8

The first step in learning to abide has to do with faith. When we read the command “abide in Me,” and it is a command, not a suggestion; we know that this is something we can do! God never commands that we do something that we cannot do.

We see this command, and by faith, we begin to abide . . . we stay put in Christ, and as we do, we feel the love and security that comes from staying in Christ. Answers to prayer begin to abound.

As you continue to abide in Christ, you become even more aware of God’s Word, the authority, and power, associated with it, and you begin to realize that with this great gift, comes tremendous responsibility as well.

You will begin to find that something more is required than simple faith; obedience is required. Hear the words of Isaiah . . .

“Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.

If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” Isaiah 1:18-20

We need to be willingly obedient in order to “abide in Him.”

To remain in Christ is to live a life of obedience to His Word; doing anything less will cause you to be a vine that produces no fruit; and according to Jesus, you will be, cut off!

Feb

2019

Learn Compassion

In our endeavor to reach people for Jesus, we must become people of compassion. For some of us this does not come easy. God will grant compassion to those who earnestly seek it!

When we watch people constantly struggle and fall, sometimes we get into the “just get over it” mindset. That is NOT compassion! It is actually judgment. What we are really saying is; “I am frustrated, and not able to know how to help you, I got over it, so should you.”

These kinds of statements place shame on the individual you are speaking to. They will begin to avoid you at all costs!

Gently and compassionately lead them to Jesus; He is the ONLY one who can truly set them free!

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

Feb

2019

Beware of the Selfishness Trap

We need to be careful that we do not fall into the “Selfishness Trap” mentioned in the following passage of Scripture. As you go about your life in Christ, be generous. What people need the most, is your time and attention.

“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God– having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” 2 Timothy 3:1-5

As followers of Christ, the Scripture above ought to be, turned on its head!

We should be; selfless, generous with our money (tithe more, tip well) be humble, kind, obedient to our parents, grateful, holy, loving, forgiving, encouraging, self controlled, merciful, loving the good, honest, prudent, modest, loving God, and exemplifying Him in all things, walking in great power!

Make a fresh commitment to live this way today . . . and every day; you can be sure, the world around you will take note, and God will too!

Feb

2019

Watching You

Your words concerning God mean very little to the people around you, if your life does not reflect, what you say you believe. You are a living example of God’s grace and mercy, on display for all to see!

Anyone following Jesus, will exhibit a life of transformation; “the old is gone, the new has come.”

Your life is a constant witness to your master; who then has more control of your life, you, or Jesus; the world can tell in a heartbeat.

Listen to the words of Scripture. . .

“You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” 2 Corinthians 3:2-3

If you live and act just the same as those who are engaged in the sin of this world, then you will hardly qualify as a legitimate representation of the Living God, who was supposed to have set you free!

Make sure that you not only talk the talk, but that you walk the walk! The world is watching you!

Feb

2019

Learn the Word

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. Colossians 3:16

The Scriptures call us to become students of the Word of God. We MUST apply all of our abilities to this task. We live in a day and age of information; we have access to computers, bibles, books, commentaries, etc.

If there ever was a generation that is WITHOUT EXCUSE for learning the Word of God, it is this generation.

You MUST engage yourself in the study of God’s Word. To avoid this most elementary part of Christianity shows your lack of desire to, really know, the God you say you love!

Jan

2019

Martha, Martha

Martha’s idea to invite Jesus to her home was turning out to be a problem for her. This was supposed to be a good thing. The Son of God is in my home! We had better get the best dishes out, the choicest drink and food; prepared just right! Everyone had better be on their best behavior too!

Mary, Martha’s sister, knew what was most important, and was not about to be moved. She decided to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen to the Words of Life He would speak. She hung on every word! Martha was missing out, distracted by the busyness of preparations.

Martha was so distracted that she even complained to Jesus; “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” She now wanted her distraction to be everyone else’s distraction too, even Jesus!

Jesus was quick to set Martha straight, showing her that what Mary was doing was the best thing. Not that dinner preparations are not important, but sitting with Jesus is even better!

When faced with a distraction that threatens to pull your focus off Jesus, do what Mary did, and just sit still, and listen to Jesus. Rest assured that you are doing the right thing; the distraction will wait.

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41-42

Jan

2019

Godly Sorrow

“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” 2 Corinthians 7:10

“Godly sorrow” produces repentance. I have to ask; have you ever felt godly sorrow? Have you ever felt the need to repent, and then actually do it?

Because if you have not ever repented, you are NOT redeemed, and you are still in your sins, and are as lost as ever; even more lost, because you have deceived yourself into thinking you are redeemed, when in fact you are not.

Jesus said these stunning words . . .

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.” Matthew 7:21-23

The most revealing and frightening aspect of this passage is that the people were convinced that they knew Jesus; when in fact, He NEVER knew them!

Jan

2019

Be Filled

It is clear in the Scriptures, that the Holy Spirit is most certainly a Person. He is able to teach, comfort, console, lead, and convict. Without the power and presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we will be ineffective in all of our spiritual endeavors.

The Holy Spirit, being One with the Father, and the Son, empowers us to live victorious Christian lives. Apart from the Holy Spirit, we operate in our own strength, and are prone to frequent defeat. It is imperative that we are “filled with the Spirit.” How can we be filled; Jesus blazes the way, listen to His words . . .

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

“Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:9-13

Jan

2019

Roaring Lion

Satan has considerable influence in our society. His malevolent intentions are evident the world over.

It seems with each passing day, the darkness of the devil’s evil persuasion is poisoning the hearts and minds of humanity in ever increasing proportions.

We must remain vigilant and on guard, keeping our minds clear of distractions, otherwise we fall into sin, becoming ineffective in our prayer, and even becoming a tool in that hands of our enemy.

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

1 Peter 5:8

Dec

2018

Pray Upside Down Series

For many years I have been trying to put together a series of Bible Studies designed to help the Christian understand their true position in Christ.

Finally, I have set aside the time and put them altogether, The studies were born out of my own desire to understand the power of prayer, and how this meshes with our relationship to Jesus.

My experience in pastoral ministry took place in rural Pennsylvania; nestled in the mountains of Cameron County, the heart of the Pennsylvania Wilds.

A small community with big problems

Like many small rural communities, the one my wife, Sherri and I served, had its fair share of problems. Having lived in the community for many years, we knew in detail the problems associated with the town; problems of drug abuse, alcoholism, suicide and sexual abuse. These issues were far more common than folks there care to admit.

As pastors in this community, we saw firsthand the hurt and pain the devil had inflicted upon the community, and we began earnestly to pray for the deliverance of this town.

For many years, every Sunday morning, Sherri and I would head to an overlook that provided a stunning view of our little town, and we would pray there.

On one particular occasion, I went alone and began praying over the town; what happened that day would change my life forever!

An encounter with God on the mountain

I stood where I could see the whole town and began praying against the powers and principalities that had been enslaving the people in my community.

Determined to see a breakthrough, I was passionately praying aloud, fists punching at the sky as if pounding on the devil himself!

It was then the most unexpected thing happened; the Lord seemed to draw near, I could sense His Presence, and while I was praying, He asked me a question. To the best of my recollection, here is how the conversation unfolded.

The Lord said to me; “Rock, what are you doing?”

I was somewhat taken aback, it seemed obvious to me what I was doing, so I answered the Lord; “I am praying.”

He said in the kindest way possible; “Why are you praying like that, punching at the sky?”

I was not sure what He was getting at, and I really did not know how to answer, so I responded; “This is how I do it.”

There was a pause, and then he asked me another question; “Rock, where are you?”

I am getting even more confused now, and all I could do was to say; “I’m here, Lord!” There was another pause, and then He rephrased the same question,

“Rock, spiritually where are you?”

I responded by saying, “I’m with you, Lord.” It was then that the Scripture from Ephesians 2:6 (And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus) came rushing to my heart.

The Lord asked me again; “Rock, where are you?”

I responded; “I am seated with Christ in the heavenly realms” What the Lord said next would forever change my life and ministry!

The Lord said to me; “Rock, stop praying with your fists pounding at the sky, as if you were fighting an enemy that you are in subjection to. Start praying from your true position in Me.

God taught me to pray Upside Down

Instead of praying with a down-side up mentality, pray from the up-side down; from the heavenly realm where you are seated; the battle is not over your head, but is under your feet.”

Wow, stunned by what had just taken place, I realized that much of my prayer life took place without recognizing the authority with which one could pray.

I learned that I do have authority and that I can pray expecting powerful answers. That day on the mountain changed everything!

It was out of this encounter with the Lord on that mountain, the idea of Praying Up-side Down and consequently the name of our ministry; Faith Up-side Down came to fruition.

The Faith Upside Down Bible Study Series will help you to understand the truth of who you are in Christ and you will discover the powerful position you have, and your prayer life will take on new passion and power!

You can check out our new series at Pray Upside Down.

Sep

2018

Let it Shine

I have been watching with great interest, the ongoing vilification of proposed Supreme Court appointee, Brett Kavanaugh. It is breathtaking to watch, as these allegations of sexual misconduct seem to appear out of nowhere, just days before his confirmation; should his nomination derail; woe to the next one to be chosen!

I have also watched how many people; consumed with utter hatred toward the current president, Donald Trump and the party he represents, seem to have lost their minds. I have never seen such hatred and vile comments ever made toward anyone . . . ever, let alone a sitting president.

As I have pondered these things, I realize too, there is a growing hatred toward those of the Christian faith. We are mocked, ridiculed, vilified, silenced if possible, and are becoming nearly as despised as Mr. Trump!

I have concluded that all these things must come to pass, and what we witness playing out before our eyes, is simply confirmation of what Jesus said to expect.

None of this is new; it has happened before in every generation since Jesus was crucified, buried and rose again.

What we are seeing displayed is the very reason that Jesus went to the Cross in the first place, which was to make it possible for the very people who wanted to kill Him, to have life!

So I watch with curiosity, the brutal and vile hatred demonstrated daily, and I pray!

I pray for those unjustly considered guilty of crimes they never committed.

I pray for those with utter hatred and contempt for those who believe differently than they do.

I pray for opportunities to share the love of Jesus with those who will listen, and I pray for those who despise me because of that!

Finally, I believe this is the greatest time to be a Christian; as darkness settles across the land, those with the Light of the Gospel, which by the way, is the Glory of Christ, will find the light brilliantly showing the way to thousands who simply want to stop stumbling in the darkness!

The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them. Isaiah 9:2

So I think I will sing the little kid’s song which is familiar to many from Sunday School . . . sing it with me!

This Little Light of Mine

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

Let it shine,

Let it shine.

Hide it under a bushel? No!

I’m gonna let it shine

Hide it under a bushel? No!

I’m gonna let it shine

Hide it under a bushel? No!

I’m gonna let it shine

Let it shine,

Let it shine.

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

Let it shine,

Let it shine.

Don’t let Satan blow it out,

I’m gonna let it shine

Don’t let Satan blow it out,

I’m gonna let it shine

Don’t let Satan blow it out,

I’m gonna let it shine

Let it shine,

Let it shine.

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

This little light of mine,

I’m gonna let it shine

Let it shine,

Let it shine.

Aug

2018

A Stroll in the Woods – Lesson 2 – Stuck in Mid-Air

As I was walking through the woods on my way to the Red Moshannon Viaduct, I came across a rather odd-looking site; a leaf stuck in mid-air! I took a picture of the leaf, as it dangled in the air, four feet off the ground.

As I studied the optical anomaly, looking for the solution to the magical dangling leaf, I saw it, a single silky strand, barely visible to the naked eye!

The leaf, released from its lofty perch, sent on a mission to add to the beautiful tapestry of the forest floor. While en-route to the desired destination, a single thread captured it in mid-air, effectively ending the desired journey and the hopeful outcome.

A single spider thread is only about 10 microns thick, that is four ten thousandths of an inch! Yet, as small as that single thread is, it has great strength; a single spider strand is 5 times as strong as a strand of steel the same diameter!

As I stood there pondering this amazing sight, I realized that it only takes a little “sin” to stop a person’s spiritual journey with Jesus. Just as the little leaf stopped in mid-air, so too does the Christian’s journey suspend in time, until the minute thread, cut loose.

Only when we call out to Jesus, declaring we have made an error in judgment, does He stop and cut us loose. It is the confession of the deed, which sets us free. If we choose to ignore the issue at hand, we will remain stranded and more silky thread will be applied, and the bonds grow tighter and tighter, choking the very life out of us!

When walking through dangerous places with Jesus; it is best to keep your eyes on Him; you will be less likely to be enticed off the trail. The Good News; if you do fail, call out quickly to Him, even if you feel embarrassed, or ashamed, tell Him what you did, and how sorry you are. He will come quickly and free you from the snare.

1 John 1:9

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Aug

2018

Hornets’ Nest

I recall one hot summer afternoon when I was about 8 years old my dad, mom and me, went looking for some chokecherries so mom could make some chokecherry jam!

There were a few chokecherry trees not far from our property, so we took a couple of small buckets and off we went. We found a tree loaded with them, but the first few branches were high of the ground, so dad hoisted me up, then handed me the bucket, and I scurried up into the tree.

I was carefully plucking chokecherries, when suddenly; I felt a sting on the back of my neck, then another, and another! In a matter of seconds, I felt stung repeatedly!

I dropped the bucket and started yelling to dad as I made my descent as quickly as possible. When I got to the last branch, I jumped into dads arms and we ran away as fast as we could!

When we got home, mom attended to my stinging wounds; stung about a dozen times or more.

A hornets’ nest, tucked in the tree; unnoticed by us, and disturbed by my presence, the hornets attacked me!

Watch out for Hornets in the wild

I am so glad that my parents rushed me home and took care of my stinging wounds, applying pain-relieving ointments and cold cloths to the afflicted areas. I am sure the temptation was for my dad to knock down that hornet nest and make them “pay” for what they did to me.

The fact is, we have hornets in the wild, and when we get too close to their nests, they react. It is best to be a little more careful when investigating the great wilderness surrounding us, and when we locate a hornets’ nest, give it a wide berth.

It is an entirely different situation when the hornets decide to build near our home; we simply cannot permit it, so we take measures to ensure that does not happen. When we spy those aerial stinging insects, attempting to build a nest on our house, we knock it down and destroy it swiftly.

Furthermore, we remain diligent, keeping close watch, inspecting our homes and properties often, making sure they are safe from these stinging critters.

We are born with a fatal sting

While remembering this almost forgotten event from my childhood, it dawned on me, that we could make an important spiritual application from this story.

We know that, spiritually speaking, we are all born with a sting in our soul, a spiritually fatal sting; we know only one cure for this lethal condition, and that would be Jesus.

Jesus went to the Cross embracing every sting of every person; you could say on the Cross-, He was swarmed. The fierce stings of sin penetrated His flesh, burning deep.

Even after He had given up His Spirit to the Father, one last “sting” for good measure given, as they pierced His side! It was finished!

Of course, we know that the Father raised Jesus up; Praise God for that! The Bible now declares . . .

1 Corinthians 15:55-57

“Where, O death, is your victory?

Where, O death, is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

For those who have come to Christ Jesus, the “sting” of death, now erased, and all our “stings” forgiven; this is great news!

On a mission to remove the sting of death

Now, as followers of Jesus, we are on a mission to show people everywhere, how to get that “sting” of death out, and replaced with the River of Life!

Early in my Christian journey, as I wandered through our community, I noticed all these “hornet” nests established throughout our town; cults, bars, secret societies, and the like. I recall standing in front of these establishments praying against them, invoking the power of God to come and destroy these places of iniquity.

Almost every time I did this, I would feel swarmed by “demonic hornets” throughout the following week; some spiritual attacks were quite vicious and painful; I got the feeling the devil was out for blood!

I began to wonder what I was doing wrong, so I began to examine Jesus’ life and His tactics; and my eyes opened.

During the time of Jesus’ ministry, certainly one HUGE hornet nest, was the Roman Empire. The folks following Jesus, wanted Him to eradicate that nest; to tear it down and bring freedom, political freedom from the oppression everyone felt from that ungodly regime!

Jesus did not go to Rome, standing there praying against it; rather He went to people, offering to remove the “sting” of death from their heart. He knew advancing His Kingdom would happen, one heart at a time!

He focused on His mission; Isaiah 61:1-3

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.

His mission has become our mission; we would do well to follow it!

Do not permit hornets to build in your house

Jesus did not go to the “hornet nests” in the wild; rather He left them alone. However, He would NOT tolerate the building of “hornet nests” in His household; He tore them down quickly, and so should we!

It is one thing to encounter a hornets’ nest in the wild, and another thing to discover one in your house. The ones we find in the wild, we avoid, and give wide berth to; the ones we find in our home, we quickly exterminate, so it is in the Kingdom of Christ!

When Jesus encountered the money-changers, Pharisees, and false teachers of the Law, doing business in His Father’s house, He let them have it, and called them out; even driving them out with a whip!

In light of these truths, I have decided to change my tactics a bit; rather than looking for spiritual hornet nests in the wild, and standing there shouting at them. I have decided to concentrate on identifying hornet nests inside the church (His Body) exposing and knocking them down!

I intend to be intentionally helping persons remove the sting of death in their soul; then warning them to stay away from known hornets nests in the wild.

Now, don’t get me wrong here, if the Holy Spirit directs me to stand in front of a hornet nest and shout at it; I will do so without hesitation, fully expecting that the nest will fall, just like the walls of Jericho fell when the Israelite army shouted at it!

Meanwhile . . . there are stings to remove, soothing salve to apply, a Kingdom to advance . . . one soul at a time!

Get your gear, let’s get at it!

Jul

2018

Carnival Barkers

Every summer I recall my parents would take us kids to the Clearfield County Fair. As we wandered around, the sights and smells gave us a sensory overload!

We would start by walking through all the farm exhibits, cows, rabbits, chickens, hogs, horses; you name it, I think they had it! Mom would want to walk through all the exhibits that highlighted things like canned foods, knitting, quilts, paintings and the like.

While the animals and farm exhibits were interesting, I would catch glimpses of the Mid-Way; the rides, games, and cotton candy were beckoning me to come and see! I would tug on mom and dad’s hand, hoping they would get the hint.

Finally, we entered the Mid-Way . . . WOW what a site. Dad took me on the double Ferris-Wheel, and as we spun high above the clamor, we could see forever, or so it seemed! Getting a bird’s-eye view, we could see it all; and could even see mom; far below waving up at us.

As we began to walk through the gauntlet of games and attractions, some of the game operators began to call out to my dad, and I became a bit uneasy. They would say slightly demeaning things like; Hey you, why don’t show your boy how strong you are, take the hammer and ring the bell; make your boy proud!”

It seemed like every game we went by, some carnival worker would bark out stinging little slogans designed to get my dad to react and buy a ticket to play.

I recall stopping by a game where one of the players was having a dispute with the operator. The game looked simple; a pool ball placed in the center of a circle with a silver dollar on top of the ball.

The idea was to take a cue ball and knock the ball away, dropping the coin in the center of the circle, not touching the lines of the circle drawn on the table. One of the men who had been trying the game, declared it impossible to win; and the argument was heated.

Since we had a pool table at home, I knew I could do it! I asked dad if I could play. He was not too keen on the idea, since I had the money for the game, and he let me play.

I lined up the cue stick and put a hard spin to the left and hit the cue ball hard, it nearly missed the desired ball with the coin on top, but just nipped it, leaving the silver dollar drop perfectly in the center!

The carnival game operator made such a fuss about me accomplishing this task, that he gave me the largest stuffed animal he had; it was nearly as tall as I was! The man, who had been arguing, walked away in disgust!

The experiences at the carnival, reminds me of the current state of political unrest in our country. It’s as if the politicians have become nothing more than “Carnival Barkers” attempting to illicit emotional responses by shouting empty slogans, designed to get a quick reaction.

It seems both sides of the political spectrum are fully engaged with constant “Carnival Barking” hoping to gain the most attention in the shortest amount of time. The goal seems to be convincing those passing by, to join in the hate, and animus of the day.

How are we, as Christians, supposed to negotiate the constant clamor and confusing rhetoric coming from those elected to serve us?

First, we need to keep our “True” citizenship in perspective. Jesus reveals that we are not of this world anymore than He is! “They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.” (John 17:16)

When we decided to follow Jesus, and make our allegiance to Him, we became part of His Kingdom. The Apostle Paul declares in Colossians 1:13 “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love . . .”

Therefore, even though we love our country deeply, our first and strongest loyalty is to Christ and the advancement of His Kingdom!

So when the political “Carnival Barkers” shout demeaning slogans against people, created in the image of God, as you journey by, you can see it for what it is; an attempt to draw you out of the Kingdom of God and back into the kingdom of darkness.

Secondly, it is OK to get involved with the political system if you choose to. If you decide to jump in, be sure and do so with the prompting and leading of Jesus. Go in with a clear-eyed view of what you are doing.

Just like the little game I played and won; the training, confidence, and the backing of my dad, gave me everything I needed to do it and win; you need the same from your heavenly Father, and you will win too!

So, let the carnival barkers bark; it is what they do! Do not believe every word they shout; most of them are not true at all, it is only a ploy to get YOU off your game and into theirs. Enjoy the carnival . . . but be careful out there!

Jun

2018

Coffee with God

In an ever increasingly distracting world, it is easy to get off course. The constant chatter on TV, social media, radio, and a host of other venues, beckons us into the world of chaos.

Once distracted, we ramble on down a pathway we should never have embarked on and we get in trouble. Too often, once there, we begin to justify our stay, and our trouble only worsens.

Now confused and struggling, we wonder what to do; then God suggests an amazing solution . . .

One of my favorite passages in the Bible . . .

Isaiah 1:18-20

“Come now, let us reason together,”

says the LORD.

“Though your sins are like scarlet,

they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red as crimson,

they shall be like wool.

If you are willing and obedient,

you will eat the best from the land;

but if you resist and rebel,

you will be devoured by the sword.”

For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

I just love this Scripture; God says; “Come now, let us reason together.” It is as if God has just poured a cup of coffee for you, and invites you to the table, One on one, to see if there can be a solution. God is awesome!

Even though you have rebelled, God wants to forgive you, but there is a condition, you must be willing and obedient. You have to be both.

It’s not enough to be willing, and it’s not enough to be obedient, you must be willingly obedient.

Settle this one before you start the day!

Apr

2018

Take His Hand

I have learned that when it comes right down to it, most people when pressed, will admit they believe in God. I think that is a good thing, but simply believing is not enough, there needs to be a bit more.

One needs to believe enough to follow; in fact, that was the very challenge Jesus gave to those He encountered along the way; He said, “Come, follow Me . . .” and many did!

Do you believe enough to follow? Following Jesus may require leaving some things behind, and that may be just what you need! His invitation still stands . . . “Come, Follow Me . . .”

Put your hand in the hand of the Man from Galilee!

Apr

2018

Jesus + Humility = Friend of Sinners

1 Peter 5:5-7

In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because,

“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” ⁶ Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. ⁷ Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

There may be no other word used in the Bible that congers up more confusion and misunderstanding than the word holiness. The Bible declares that holiness is a very important component to the Christian faith; so important that without it . . . we are in big trouble!

Hebrews 12:14

Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness, no one will see the Lord.

In light of this, it is important to understand what this means, since so much depends on this! The word used for “holiness” is this:

Hagiasmos hag-ee-as-mos’

“Purification, a state of purity; to be consecrated, sanctification”

When the Hebrews established a system of sacrificing to God, they eventually built a large temple in Jerusalem. All of the temple equipment went through a ritual of cleansing and was consecrated to God; being made holy.

The best concise definition of holiness; set apart for God, for His purposes only. When we come to faith in Christ, we become holy, by His blood, which He shed for us!

Holiness is a product of Grace; none of us did anything to become holy. In and of ourselves there is nothing holy about us; but by faith and through grace, we came to Christ . . . and He made us holy!

Therefore, it makes sense that if we would experience more holiness in our lives, we need more grace. The road to experiencing more grace in your life is learning the way of humility.

Jesus said . . . “Learn from me; for I am humble and lowly in heart;“Jesus was a humble man. Remember the opening Scripture; “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” We need more grace! So today, we will explore what it means to be humble.

To begin, we must remind ourselves that Jesus did not come to condemn sinners.

John 3:17-18

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

It is interesting to note that Jesus never condemned sinners; He did however denounce and deplore hypocrites!

“A hypocrite is a person who excuses his own sin, while condemning the sins of others.”

The hypocrite does not see his own hypocrisy, because he cannot see, or refuses to see, the flaws in himself. One who cannot see the flaws in themselves rarely, if ever, seek mercy.

Since he does not seek mercy, he has no mercy to give! Moreover, since he is always under God’s judgment, he passes judgment on others.

As a person draws near to God, they become acutely aware of the sins in their own heart. The Holy Spirit is not revealing these sins in order to condemn them, but rather to establish humility and to deepen their knowledge of their own need for more grace.

It is at this critical point that people either humbles themselves before God, or become hypocritical.

Those who choose to follow God will humble themselves and ask God for grace to deliver them from the sin that has entangled them. For those who will try to excuse their sin, the deserving title is hypocrite.

Jesus used a parable to highlight this very issue.

Luke 18:9-14

To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: ¹⁰ “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

¹³ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

¹⁴ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Holiness is not about obeying a set of rules and regulations; that only breeds more hypocrisy. Holiness is about getting rid of pride, which enables us to come to terms with the true condition of our heart.

If we cannot see the depravity of our own sinful nature, we could become “Christian Pharisees” hypocrites full of contempt and self-righteousness.

Whenever we judge another, too often, we do it with a sense of self-righteousness. Whenever we criticize like this, we do it with contempt as the motivation.

Too often, when you get a group of people together, like those mentioned in Jesus’ parable, those who are confident in their own perceived righteousness, they look others with a sense of superiority.

The idea in their heart is that they are somehow a little more holy than the next one . . . this is in fact the very opposite of holiness, because they lack humility!

The holiness we seek must go beyond the living of proud lives, occasionally interrupted by brief moments of self-abasement; we need to allow meekness and humility to become a way of life; we must make a choice to walk in humility.

The hypocrite loves to judge, it makes them feel superior, and too many Christians fall into this category. Remember, Jesus came into this world not to condemn, but to save. Anyone can pass judgment, but who will promote salvation?

Will the critical one lay down their life?
Will they love the one they are condemning?
Can a critical person spend time fasting and praying for the perceived weaknesses in others?

That is what Jesus would do!

One act of Jesus’ love operating through us, would do more to warm a cold heart than all of our wonderful criticisms. So grow in love, give mercy, be humble in heart, and you will be sure to grow in holiness!

Examine your own heart . . .

Do you insist on finding fault in others?

Do you consider yourself to be spiritually superior?

Jesus’ standard of judgment is very high; remember Jesus said; “he who is without sin, cast the first stone.”

We need to speak out about sin, but our motivation needs to be one of love, with redemptive purposes in mind, not showing others our superficial spiritual superiority!

In the kingdom of God, unless you are first committed to die for people, you are not permitted to judge them.

Mar

2018

A Second Touch

There is a sense today that the church; the people of God, are somewhat weary, tired and maybe even a little confused as to what to do in the face of ever increasing evil in this world. We are certainly living in what the Bible declares to be, “the last days.”

It is easy to drift off and lose sight of our anchor; when this happens, we need help, so today we ask God for that help.

Mark 8:22-25

They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. ²³He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had spit on the man’s eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, “Do you see anything?”

²⁴He looked up and said, “I see people; they look like trees walking around.”

²⁵Once more Jesus put his hands on the man’s eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.

Before meeting Jesus, we were all very much like this blind man. Oh, we could see with our eyes all right, but spiritually speaking, we were quite blind! We may have known a thing or two about God; we may have known that Christ was God’s Son.

Most of us know about Christmas and Easter, for some of us, it was the only two days of the year, that we really stopped for a moment to consider Christianity; even going so far as to set foot in church on one of those two days!

For most of us, that was the extent of our knowledge of God! We were quite blind . . . and for good reason; the Bible declares that the god of this age (satan) had blinded our minds . . .

2 Corinthians 4:4

The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

You see, satan did a wonderful job of keeping us in the dark; while we were without Christ and in unbelief, we could not see the truth, no matter how many times we heard it!

Then something miraculous began to take place. We began to feel something stirring inside; our heart touched in ways, we could not understand. The mention of God and the work of His Son Jesus began to spark an interest in us.

Maybe you heard a message on the radio or TV, perhaps at one of those annual church events you reluctantly attended.

You heard the dramatic message concerning your sin, and about Jesus mission to come to this earth and give His life as a ransom for yours; offering forgiveness for your life of sin. Drawn to Christ, you could not explain it. The Bible reveals an interesting truth about this . . .

John 6:44

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

As God drew you in, you realized that you were a sinner, not in a generic sense, but you felt it and knew it, to the point where you wanted to hide from God, yet He kept pulling you near. The Bible declares to us . . .

Romans 3:23

. . . for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

This glaring truth stared you in the heart, and you knew that without some intervention you would be eternally lost and that there would be a high price to be paid for the sin you were enveloped in!

You became aware that if you persisted in this sinful state, you would be forever lost, with no hope of redemption! Again, the Bible reveals more truth . . .

Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It was at this crucial point that you decided to go “all in.”

You risked everything and trusted in Jesus! You went to Him burdened with guilt and perhaps shame for the way you lived your life. You fell at His feet, sorrowful for the way you lived your life, you told Him that you would repent and live for Him! You asked Jesus to come into your heart, into your life . . . and He did!

Romans 10:9-10

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

This you did, openly and freely, unashamed of your allegiance with Jesus. The people around you knew; there was no mistake, you changed, and not just a little, old habits discarded and new ways began to unfold!

The joy you began to feel was awesome; the reality that your sins, which were many; completely forgiven! You had fellowship and friendship with Jesus. You developed an unquenchable hunger for the words of God. You dove into the Bible like a starving man who just sat down for a Thanksgiving dinner!

Your hunger and passion to know more about this Jesus would cause you to skip meals, just so you could read, pray and learn more about Him! Nothing was about to come between you and Him!

Do you still have that desire?
Do you still hunger and thirst for His Word?
Have you lost any of that first love?

Does your heart still burn with the fire it once had, or are you like the man in the opening Scripture who saw people, but they looked like trees walking around. Is your vision blurred? If so, then you, like that man, may need a second touch from Jesus!

I know firsthand how this happens. At an early age, I came to believe in Christ; through a Sunday school, teacher my heart opened to the things of God, and I believed.

As God began to reveal Himself to me, I started reading the Bible daily. The Bible is not an easy Book to read, especially for an 11-year-old boy, but I was determined to know more about God.

As the years passed by and I became a teenager, I began to drift away from those moments with the Bible.It was not a sudden falling away, but a gradual, gentle slipping away; I hardly noticed it happening.

Then one day a handful of us, young teenagers at the time, decided to camp out one night. As we were getting ready to go camp, we decided that we would swipe a 6-pack of beer from my friend’s dad . . . and we did!

I recall with clarity, sitting under the train bridge in near the village we lived in, and as the sun was going down, we all guzzled down that 6-pack; it was awful, but we pretended that it was good! When I grabbed that beer, something stirred inside, there was a powerful voice beckoning me not to do it.

I realized later that it was the Holy Spirit of God who was trying to prevent the problems that were about to arise in my life! The peer pressure was too great and I gave in, just like the rest! That evening, I grieved the Holy Spirit of God!

As He gently tried to woo me back in His direction, I resisted. I wanted to spend my time the way I wanted, and I did not want God interfering! I wanted to be with my friends, I wanted to experience what they experienced!

Over the next few years, alcohol was not enough, and I found new and interesting friends, who had other things I could try . . . and I did! By the time I was 18 years old, I was a wreck!

However, even then, God was trying to get through to me, but I continued to resist Him. Each time I resisted, my heart would be hardened just a little bit more!

The farther from God I drifted, the worse I began to feel. The devil began to whisper in my ear, things like; “see, you are bad and God will never forgive you” or “you will never be good enough for God, so why try.” The Bible declares that satan is a liar . . .

John 8:44

“You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

Satan is a formidable foe, and he is always looking for ways to distract you from God. He will tempt you in a thousand different ways; his goal is to get your eyes off the things of God and onto the things of this world; if he can accomplish this, then he is well on the way to destroying your life.

There is great temporary pleasure in sin; the excitement and adrenaline it can produce are addictive. The spiritual side of sin is deadly. The feelings of guilt, shame and frustration can cripple you.

Sin is fun until you drink too much and while driving home, you hit a small child on a bike, taking a life. Sex is fun until you find out from the doctor that you have aids, or you find out you are pregnant and now you need to decide what your next steps are, taking a life, or allowing one to live! Drugs are fun until you see your friend lying dead from an overdose.

As I continued through life, I began to believe the lie that God was done with me. I can still vividly remember sitting in a bar Jamestown New York one night. The bar tender was flipping through the channels; he stopped briefly on a station long enough, for me to see Billy Graham with that striking pose of his; arms crossed and one hand under his chin, and he declared; “what you need in your live is Jesus.”

I remember running out of that bar in tears; as much as I wanted Jesus, I thought I had sinned too much and had resisted Him too long!

Do you feel beyond forgiveness?
Do you feel like you will never live up to His expectations?

If you feel this way, then I have some good news for you! You see, after 18 years of running from God, He kept drawing me back to Himself. When I finally stopped long enough to turn around, He was standing right there, arms open; ready to forgive . . . and boy did I need forgiven!

Just like the blind man in the opening Scripture, I received a second touch from Jesus and I could see clearly.

How about you . . . is your vision blurred?
Are your spiritual eyes seeing clearly?
Do you need a second touch?

Perhaps, the hand of Jesus has never touched you, if so; this is your Day! Maybe you can relate to my story; you wandered off, never intending to go too far, but you lost your way and now you are hurt, confused by life, wondering where God is, and if He even really exists; He is here and would love to have a conversation with you!

If you want salvation, if you want restoration, if you want healing, whatever the case may be, please take a moment and talk to Him about it; it will be a turning point for you!

Satan wants you to miss the opportunity, he wants you to believe his lies, he wants you to wait until the next time, today is not right, he wants you to believe that God will not forgive you, remember, he is a liar!

Listen to the words of God Himself from the Book of Isaiah . . .

Isaiah 1:18

“Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

Mar

2018

Unfurled

A sailor can never adjust the direction of the wind; it blows wherever it chooses to blow. However, a sailor can adjust his sails in such a manner that he collaborates with the wind, and together they can go far!

The Spirit of God moves in ways we do not always understand. He is relentless and many grow weary trying to divert His breath.

Perhaps it would be better to unfurl your spiritual sail to maximize your exposure to Him. In doing so, you may just begin the adventure of a lifetime!

“The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” ~Jesus

Feb

2018

A Distant Rumbling – Do You Hear It!

Hallelujah! Spring is in the air!

A smile came to my face the other day as I rounded a corner on the road and saw several hundred buckets collecting sugar maple sap from a grove of trees.

It seems like we have had a “real” winter this year, and I for one, am looking forward to the smells of flowers, and fresh cut lawns!

Living in the mountains of Northwest Pennsylvania, we sometimes get to witness an awesome event. If the winter is cold enough, the mountain streams ice over, and depending on how cold it is; the ice can get thick.

When the weather warms up enough, the rivers begin to melt and at just the right time; the ice begins to break up and go down the river. If you have never experienced the ice going out, you need to see it once in your lifetime; the power is incredible!

I remember growing up in the Village of Cameron, and one night, I believe it was during March, the ice went out. It had been raining off and on all day and the water was coming up over the top of the ice.

It was about 9:30 at night, and we heard the windows shake in the house, we could even feel the vibrations rumbling in the ground. Dad and I, along with a neighbor, grabbed flashlights and headed down to the river behind our house, which was only about 300 yards away.

When we reached the river, the sight was unbelievable! Behind our house, there is a long sweeping corner in the river, and the ice was jamming up. There are two big rocks back there, that are about 15 to 20 feet tall, and ice was going up over-top and crashing down on them.

We could feel the earth shake under the incredible crushing power, of about 6 miles of ice, pressing down around the corner. I will never forget the power and awe of that night!

Once that ice begins to move, nothing can stop it!

How crazy it would be if a person were to get in the way of such a powerful force. A person would be very crazy to go and stand on the ice in front of that flow. They would be ground to pieces!

Yet, today so many are resisting another incredible force; a power that is even stronger and mightier than any ice flow. I am amazed at the flagrant violations of God’s Holy Way that are taking place in our world, and I fear for those who do not know what is coming down the valley.

Some mock God openly, taunting Him to action, while others are just oblivious to the pending danger. We know that God is a God of love, but time is running out for many, and the time of God’s favor is ebbing.

For those of us who know God, we must remember that God is also a God of wrath! His wrath is not for us, but for those who will not inherit the Kingdom of heaven.

John 3:36

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.

There is a mighty power coming, and those who do not heed the rumblings, will be ground to pieces, I think it is time that we get serious about gathering in the lost, while we still have time.

To experience the wrath of God will be more terrifying than any ice flow. Let’s gently warn those around us of the pending danger, if they choose to get on board, praise God, if not, well then at least they were warned.

Luke 20:17-18

Then He looked at them and said, “What then is this that is written: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone’? “Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder.”

See you down by the river

Feb

2018

Lost Love

Today is Valentine’s Day and I thought it would be appropriate for us to talk about love. We are going to take a look at the Book of Revelation in just a moment, but first, for informational sake, St Valentine was a real person.

Who was St Valentine?

He was a Roman priest during the time of the emperor Claudius. This emperor had issued an edict that young people not be married. Due to his desire to have the strongest military, he felt it was important that ALL of his young soldiers be unmarried.

He reasoned that those who were married would be less likely to die for the Roman cause, since they would be worried about their families.

St Valentine would secretly marry these young couples. Eventually he was caught and was put to death for his actions.

“One of the men who was to judge him in line with the Roman law at the time was a man called Asterius, whose daughter was blind. Valentine was supposed to have prayed with and healed the young girl with such astonishing effect that Asterius himself became Christian as a result.”

In the year 269 AD, Valentine was sentenced to death; the story goes that the last words he wrote were in a note to Asterius’ daughter. He inspired today’s romantic missives by signing it, “from your Valentine.”

Today however, we are going to move past St Valentine to Another in Whom our love and affection needs to remain constant. To do this, we will take a look into the Book of Revelation.

Have you lost your first love?

In chapter 2, the risen Christ begins addressing the seven churches; the first of which is the church of Ephesus, and this will be our focus today.

Revelation 2:1-7

“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: ² I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. ³ You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

⁴ Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.⁵Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. ⁶ But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

The letter to the church of Ephesus begins with several affirmations; and they are:

deeds done
hard work
perseverance
intolerant of wicked men

After these 4 affirmations, the Lord now shares something that He is holding against them.

If you were the church in Ephesus, and just received this letter from a messenger sent from God, and heard those words; “Yet I hold this against you” you would get that nagging pit in your stomach, and the words following would cut to the heart; let’s look at what Christ had to say in greater detail.

Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

The word that is translated “forsaken” comes from the Greek word:

aphiēmi af-ee’-ay-mee forsake, lay aside, leave, let alone

It means to lay aside, or let alone.

The second word in this phrase is this:

prōtos pro’-tos foremost, best

The last word in the phrase is the word used for love:

agapē ag-ah’-pay love, that is, affection or benevolence

When we put these altogether, we begin to get an idea of what Christ was saying. A paraphrase of this verse might read;

“You have set aside your best and foremost, affectionate love.”

You might ask the question; how does a person get to this place of laying aside their foremost and first love? Does it happen overnight? What is the driving factor?

How does one go about losing their first love?

To begin, what was it like when you first fell in love with Jesus? For most there was:

Passion
Hunger for His word
Fearlessness
Unashamed
Joy unspeakable
Faithfulness
Relentless pursuit

Then, slowly, over time, the pressures of this world encroach. People change, Christians turn on each other, the ugliness begins to press hard and you become disillusioned.

You cry out to God for relief, yet sometimes He seems distant. The passion you once had begins to cool and you struggle.

Matthew 24 contains a clue to the mystery . . .

The disciples had asked Jesus what things would be like prior to His coming again.

Matthew 24:9-14

“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. ¹⁰ At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, ¹¹ and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. ¹² Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, ¹³ but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. ¹⁴ And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

One of the things we need to be on the alert to, is the increase of wickedness that is taking place today. This increase of wickedness has a numbing effect on our senses. It is a gradual thing, a gentle slide, if you will.

We live in a wicked world; evil is rampant!

In our society, wickedness is quite rampant, and because of the increase of technologies, we are able to see it in a moments notice. We hear of atrocities happening all around the world. Even today’s popular TV shows and movies invoke great evil.

We become desensitized to the wickedness around us, the faces of the people involved begin to blur, we lose compassion for the lost, we slowly enter into tunnel vision, and we tune out the reality of living in a lost, broken, evil world.

This coupled with painful experiences; some of which may have taken place in the context of “church-ianity”, can lead to the chilling affect that Jesus spoke of!

Those closest to Jesus, experienced this phenomenon too; do you recall James and John, nicknamed “sons of commotion” or “sons of thunder.” I do not suspect that you will get this kind of reputation by being gentle and easy going, but by being boisterous, loud, and perhaps even confrontational. In the Gospel of Luke we get an insiders look, let’s take a peek!

Luke 9:51-56

As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. ⁵² And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; ⁵³ but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. ⁵⁴ When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?” ⁵⁵ But Jesus turned and rebuked them, ⁵⁶ and they went to another village.

By the way, John who mentioned here is the same one who wrote the Book of Revelation!

What was going on here? James and John were beginning to go into what I might call an intolerant protective mode. By that, I mean they were getting the first hand view of how the increase of wickedness was affecting the world around them.

When Jesus was insulted, they took it personally; even having a desire to destroy those who would come against Jesus!

Peter really highlighted this! You will recall Peter, was the first of the disciples to “get it.” Recall the Scriptures . . .

Matthew16:13-19

When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” ¹⁴ So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” ¹⁵ He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” ¹⁷ Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

Peter knew who Jesus was; truth revealed to Him by God Himself. As Peter began to get an understanding of this reality, he became overly protective of Jesus. Recall Peter was the only disciple who had the nerve to rebuke Jesus.

Matthew 16:21-23

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must

go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. ²² Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!” ²³Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”

The fact Jesus mentioned that evil men would do bodily harm to Him, repulsed Peter; he (Peter) would never stand for it! Peter got angry at the mob came to arrest Jesus . . .

John 18:10-11

Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.) ¹¹ Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”

What was happening to Peter, to James and John? The increase of wickedness was “on.” They saw the hatred in the eyes of those coming against them; but more specifically, against Jesus, the only begotten Son of God!

These men began to lose their first love. Perhaps they had forgotten the joy of “agape love” when they provided thousands of men, women and children, a meal of fish and bread; looking into those eyes, hungering for sustenance that day.

Maybe they forgot the wonder of “agape love” as commanded by Jesus, to go out into the villages and towns, healing the sick, casting out demons; doing the work of a “sent one.”

Now, as the reality of living in an evil world begins to press in, they felt the need to protect God, as if God needs protecting! The love they once had for fallen humankind was waning, and they started to become part of the problem, instead of the cure.

Now we begin to get an idea of why Jesus places this rebuke right after He affirmed the church in Ephesus concerning their testing of false apostles.

They would have certainly put the false apostles out of the church, but perhaps they did so with a sense of pride. Maybe they began to take on the old attitudes that James, John, and Peter had.

Perhaps they forgot that behind the false prophet was man, a sinner in need of redemption. Maybe the fact that another human being could be eternally lost no longer broke their heart.

They had indeed lost their first love. The flame was dangerously low, if lit at all, and Jesus tells them; “Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.”

What a rebuke! A powerful warning to everyone who have ears to hear!

Love being restored

We will conclude our talk today by looking at an encounter that Peter had with Jesus after the resurrection. Remember, Jesus rebuked Peter; after trying to kill one of the crowd who came to arrest Jesus, and he had denied Jesus three times; in Peter’s estimation, quite a failure.

Let’s pull up a seat by the fireside chat, and listen in. . . .

John 21:1-19

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered.

He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

In this remarkable story, Jesus reaffirmed His love for Peter by His actions. He could have criticized Peter, ridiculed him, and said; “I told you so!”

Sitting by that fire, Peter experienced what I would call blazing, majestic, overwhelming love, coming from the Risen Christ! It must have been overwhelming!

The issue that Jesus was trying to bring to Peter’s attention was not that He (Jesus) loved Peter; that was now very evident. The question was; Peter, do you love Me?

Jesus simply asks you; “Do you love Me?”

Jesus calls us to repent, and do the things we did at first. I encourage you today, to renew your commitment, not only to Jesus, but also to the lost, wicked world around us. Recall the greatest commandment:

Matthew 22:37-39

‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.

Feb

2018

Get Up . . . It’s a NEW DAY!

It is easy to fall into a boring routine if we are not careful. I do not know how many times I have walked into the nearby convenience store to grab morning coffee and bump into an old acquaintance.

The standard greeting; “Hi, how are you doing today?” unfortunately the common reply is usually something like; “Same stuff, different day” or “another day, another dollar” or some other variation.

Have you ever felt like that? It is an easy trap to fall in. I would like to encourage you to think differently today as you begin the new week . . . it IS NEW!

Think of this; the day you about to embark on has NEVER been lived before; it is NEW. As you head out the door, look for it! Look for the blessing of God. Look for His fingerprints on the day ahead; you will find them!

Ask God to reveal Himself to you today; ask Him to give you a new vision and clarity of heart and mind; you will be surprised at what you see! Hang on . . . this is going to be good!

Lamentations 3:21-23

Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Jan

2018

Busted!

The day started with a doctor’s appointment, which set me back about an hour and a half from my usual scheduled work time. I am accustomed to starting my secular job, driving an 18-wheeler, at around 10 am.

The time for me to be working is not set in stone, so I can go in an hour earlier, or I could go a couple hours later if I needed to. Like many folks, I am a creature of habit when it comes to working, so I prefer to leave at a set time each day.

I am traveling a little faster than I should today, and I know it. Since I travel this road five days a week, I know the spots where police like to hide, running radar traps, so I am constantly on the lookout.

As I come down over this one hill, where I know the police are prone to wait for speeders, I’m watching my speedometer, I know I’m going a little too fast, but there’s fresh snow on the ground, certainly not a day anyone will be running radar.

Heading down this very familiar slope, the road drops sharply, followed by a nice wide-open area; you can see clearly in every direction. I knew I was going faster than I should, but again, I was sure no one would be running radar on a day like today. I let my car drift faster than normal, as I came down off that incline and into the sweeping corner at the bottom.

After I careened around the corner at the bottom of the hill, satisfied I made it undetected, I took a quick glance in my rear-view mirror, and there, approaching quickly, the familiar silhouette of a State Police car; a quarter-mile later, his lights came on and I pulled over.

The trooper was pleasant and all business, issuing me a ticket for $221, I was going 61 miles an hour in a 45 mile-an-hour zone. I told the officer I was guilty, I knew I was going too fast, no reason to argue with him, or make excuses.

I went on to work that day, an extra half hour later now, due to the stop, and a couple hundred bucks in fines that I would have to explain to my wife soon, Oh boy!

I began pondering what happened, it certainly was no accident. I did not have to be to work that soon, another couple of minutes would not have made any difference at all. I knew I was breaking the law, and I thought I could get away with it.

I was actively looking across the landscape, to see if I could find out where the police were. I was wrong and deserved the fine.

That got me thinking about my spiritual walk, my daily spiritual drive if you will. I wondered how many times have I broken God’s will, or how many times I tried to skirt one of His directives, knowing that I was wrong, sometimes trying to outwit God.

I wondered how many times I made lame excuses to God for my bad behavior. I wondered how many times I knew ahead of time I was going to do something God would disapprove.

I began to wonder what the consequences of those actions are going to be for me. Disregarding God’s commands is a very dangerous thing, and the consequences have eternal implications. You cannot just write a check to God and pay a fine.

I recalled the Scripture about giving an account for the actions we have done in this life, whether good or bad; a wave of conviction flooded over me!

2 Corinthians 5:10

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

The next scripture that came to my mind was the one where God declared that if we confess our sins to Him, he would forgive those sins; but more than that, He promises to purify us from ALL sin!

I spent the rest of the day talking to God as I drove my truck around my route. I remembered things I had said or had done, that I knew were displeasing to Him and I began confessing them.

His forgiveness washed over me that day, and since then, I am more aware of my actions and thoughts; keeping short accounts with God.

Perhaps the $221 fine had greater value than I thought. God was using this encounter with the police as a way of getting my attention, a way of reminding me that my Father in heaven always has His eye on me!

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

I wonder if I am alone in this endeavor, or if perhaps this rings a bell in your own Christian journey. If it does, then take time to think about your own life, avoid making excuses for the sin that you commit.

Do not ignore it, go straight to God and tell him what you have done, and perhaps He will show you grace and mercy and forgive you still; He did it for me that day.

Do it now, before it costs you more than you can pay!

Jan

2018

Holier than Thou

Early in my pastoral career, I felt I had a corner on what it meant to be a Christian. My views were set, or so I thought! As an evangelical Christian, I always found it difficult to listen to opposing views; perhaps more accurately, different views, and I would do my best, to keep “my people” away from those who saw Christianity through a different lens than mine.

Annually, in our small rural community, through the season of Lent, area churches would come together in a show of Christian unity and share pulpits.

We would invite guest speakers from the local ministerial association to speak in our home churches each week, as the Lenten season progressed.

It was great; a Baptist preacher would share the message at the Catholic Church one week, then a Pentecostal preacher would share a message in the Baptist church the next week. The Christian community traveled to different churches, meeting new friends and sharing times of fellowship following the services.

Some of the more evangelical pastors were skeptical of having a “non-evangelical” pastor preach in their church, so they would quietly ask evangelical pastors if they would speak in their church the week the community came to their place of worship. I was one of those pastors.

On one particular week of the Lenten services, a “non-evangelical” pastor, known for occasionally shooting down claims made by the more evangelical pastors, would soon preach at one of the churches.

As the week for him to speak approached, I purposefully “forgot” to announce the location of that week’s Lenten meeting; secretly hoping many of my people would “forget” too.

The night of the Lenten service arrived, and I felt obligated to go to the service. I went prepared for a message that would be high and lofty, with very little, if any mention of Jesus Name; I was not disappointed.

I found myself analyzing every word; glad in my heart that few of “my” people attended!

Following his message, a fellowship gathering in an adjacent room, separated by a narrow hallway was getting underway. As people began to make their way to the fellowship gathering, I decided I would join them for a moment and headed in that direction.

As I moved into the narrowing hallway, and kindly old woman, with a crown of white hair, came toward me, gently grabbing my arms, pulling me in. She looked at me, her eyes looking larger than life, through glasses with thick lens, fogged up as tears streamed down her cheeks.

As she drew me in, she said to me; “Pastor Rock, was that not the most moving message you ever heard?”

I was speechless; I mean . . . I had nothing, not a word! The best I could do was gently form a smile; she smiled too, then released her grip and ambled down the hallway.

I stood motionless for a moment, stunned by her words, and I distinctly heard the voice of God; “Rock, you missed it; you missed Me, I was there, where were you?”

I focused entirely on my own narrow view and my own self-righteousness; so much so, that I never noticed God’s Holy Spirit moving in that place. I Left quietly and went out to my car and sat there sobbing, sorry for my ignorance and pride.

God taught me, one of the most valuable lessons I ever learned, and that is He has far more grace than I ever will have.

He taught me that I do not have a corner on Christianity; others have a place at the table too. I have heard it said; “someone does not have to be wrong, for me to be right.”

A Scripture in the Gospel of Mark reveals an important truth . . .

Mark 9:38-41

“Teacher,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.”

“Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us. Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward.

I think the point Jesus was making to John was a simple one; just because they do not belong to your group, does not mean they do not belong to Me.

I have seen Jesus work miracles in ways I never dreamed of and He uses people that I never would! His grace is indeed great, and I for one am very glad; He even has space for someone like me!

Dec

2017

On Being a Christian

I have often heard it said that being a Christian is really hard to do. As I have pondered this for some time, I have concluded that “trying” to be a Christian is very, very, hard to do . . . in fact, it is impossible to do! Since it is impossible, I wonder why so many try to do it.

Perhaps it is that they want to have entrance into heaven, or perhaps have sins forgiven; who would not want that . . . right? Maybe they want God to bless them with good things, or to hear their prayers; perhaps they want some sort of eternal life insurance policy.

Whatever the case may be, there sure are many people trying hard to be a Christian. The unfortunate thing is this; how good they are, or how upright, nice, or generous they may be, no matter how hard they try, they will always come up short.

The truth is simple; you see no one is born a Christian.

I know, I know, there are those who believe that if we are born in a certain country, are members of a certain church that you are, by birth, Christians; well the Book, which Christianity is based on; the Bible says differently.

Jesus, the One who should know about these matters came right out and told a churchman (Pharisee) the true nature of becoming a Christian. The person’s name was Nicodemus; here is how it went down . . .

Nicodemus; not wanting to be seen by others, came to Jesus at night. When he saw Jesus, Nicodemus starting telling Jesus that he believed that he was from God, because no one could do the stuff Jesus was doing unless that was true.

Then Jesus rocks Nicodemus’ world by saying this;

“I’m telling you the truth, no one can enter the Kingdom of Heaven unless he is born again.”

WHAT! I am sure that is what old Nicodemus thought! He says to Jesus; “How can a man go back into his mother’s womb to be born again?”

Jesus then goes on to tell Nicodemus that this is not a physical rebirth, but a spiritual one. The Holy Spirit of God touches the heart of a man or woman and the spirit it reborn; that is the moment a person becomes a Christian.

It is kind of like this; the Bible says that we all have been “created in the image of God;” that means that there is a certain something of God, which is resident in us, a seed perhaps. It is significant that Jesus uses the illustration of being born again to describe what happens to us when we believe.

In the natural world, a seed from a man, finds its way to the female egg, when the two meet, in an instant, a new life begins. All the genetic information to produce another human being is locked up in those two parts; and when they meet . . . new life!

We keep seeking, searching and looking; we get closer and closer

In the spiritual world, our spirit is drawn to God by His spirit. We can sense it and it is real. We begin to explore the whole idea of God; we look at all that He created and we intuitively know there is more; something is missing, but it is hard to put our finger on it.

We keep seeking, searching and looking; we get closer and closer until we realize that we really need Him; we desire Him and with our whole heart and mind, we reach out to Him; and he reaches back.

When our spirit touches His Spirit; BAM new life; a spiritual life that is, and we are born again; it is new and it is exhilarating!

The Bible, that used to be dry and hard to read, now leaps off the pages into our heart; we begin to understand it. We start to see things through the eyes of God and we desire to be even closer to Him. We realize that he is our best friend and develop a relationship with Him and our life takes on new meaning.

Finally, when you are born again in the spirit; it is not hard to be a Christian; you realize that you are one; not because of what you do, but rather it is because of whom you know. It is ALL about Jesus; about what He did, His sacrifice, His great love for us!

Nope, being a Christian is not hard; it is what you have become; you were born into it spiritually. Living life as a Christian will be difficult, there WILL be trials, hard times, and just because you are a Christian does not exempt you from living in a dangerous world.

Here is one final illustration to help make the point. Imagine a farmer comes and plants an apple tree. He puts in the seed, waters it and it sprouts and grows into a huge tree. After a few years, it begins to produce fruit. The big, beautiful apple grows to maturity.

Now if the apple could talk; it probably would not say; “boy, it sure is hard being an apple.” Of course, not, it is what it is . . . an apple, and it does not have to struggle to be one, it was born that way.

Now to be sure; with lots of people eating apples these days, being an apple is rather dangerous, but being one . . . well, that comes naturally; so it is with those who have been born of the Spirit!

Oct

2017

The Dangers of Dabbling in Christianity

Matthew 7:13-23

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

One of the things I have a strong disdain for are the cute little so-called “Christian” bumper stickers that I have seen. One that comes to mind is the one that says; “Try Jesus.” Now I know that those who promote this sticker mean well, but the consequences of this flippant suggestion can be fatal!

Jesus is not a fad to be tried, He is not a passing idea, He is the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings; a better sticker might say . . . Have you considered Jesus? Let me explain . . .

Over the course of my life I have heard folks say things like; “Yes, I used to “dabble” in the stock market; or I “dabbled in the occult” or “I used to dabble in Buddhism” or some other religion.

Today I want to address a problem that exists in our culture that may be far more dangerous than anything we ever imagined. It is a mindset that can be fatal, if allowed to run its course.

I fear that many people, maybe even some reading this today, are “dabbling” in Christianity. Here is the definition of dabbling . . .

Dabbling – to work or involve oneself superficially or intermittently especially in a secondary activity or interest

Christianity is a very attractive way of living for those who have no real understanding of what being Christian entails. The hallmarks of a Christian from an earthly perspective might be things like:

Godly
Wholesome
Moral
Respected

What tends to happen, is that a person feels attracted to the “Christian lifestyle” and may even end up attending a church; checking things out to see if they can “fit in.”

After a season at the church, those folks who want this lifestyle learn all the Christian speak, they have the words down pat, and begin to look and act like a real Christian.

These folks have heard about Jesus, about the new birth, the need for baptism, and membership, they have taken communion and have done all the right things and are a bona fide member of the church community . . . yet there is a certain something lacking.

Could it be that this group is just “dabbling” in Christianity?

Could it be that the need to belong has superseded the need to be converted to Christ?

There are certain aspects of the Christian lifestyle that tend to be overlooked by the dabblers. Primarily those aspects are things that involve serving, money, and commitment.

It is hard to get a “dabbler” to consider the Biblical mandate to tithe on income they receive, or to give financially to any major project or missionary effort.

The giving is only done to the point where it is manageable and is rarely if ever, a true sacrifice. Money is far too important to the “dabbler” to squander it on Jesus and His efforts to reach the lost.

The “dabbler” often looks for ways around this mandate. Some will consider their acts of “service” to equate to a tithe. For instance, a “dabbler” may have some talent and will use that talent in the church, then consider that talent as a tithe, or benefit to the church and they placate themselves thinking that they gave something to God. The fact is, God gave them the talent in the first place and they are stealing from God.

The problem with that sort of thinking; trading service for tithe that is, is that the service given to God is then purchased, it is not service at all, there was no sacrifice, no true worship of God, but rather a deception and an ungodly attempt to steal from the Most High God! What a dangerous activity . . .

Along those lines, getting a “dabbler” to serve God is really hard. Just like those who try and trade tithe for service, the “dabbler” seldom serves unless there is a direct benefit to them.

If service means a few accolades from the church body; a pat on the shoulder, then they will go ahead and do it, after all, they need to stay in the lifestyle and service appears to be a part of that.

Yet, for the “dabbler” there are always excuses for not being able to serve, there are family issues, time constraints, and a host of other things that are far too important to allow service to Jesus to interfere . . . He will understand.

Even more difficult, is getting a “dabbler” to make a strong and abiding commitment to the church; it is almost impossible! The “dabbler” will find many reasons to avoid commitment to any lasting agreement.

Often a “dabbler” will make a commitment, then realize later on that the commitment was a mistake and will begin to find ways to get out of the commitment, often getting upset at the leadership for prodding or end up having problems with someone inside the church, which usually leads to that “dabbler” leaving the church and heading to another one.

The unfortunate end of those who “dabble” in Christianity, is that they end up lost and without Christ!

Most of these “dabblers” have convinced themselves that they are actually Christians and that they are saved, rescued from sin and Satan, but the sad reality is that they are not, and in the end, the stunning Words of Jesus will ring painfully in their ears . . .

Matthew 7:21-23

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

How terrible to hear these words of Christ after a lifetime of “dabbling.”

Self-deception is a powerful tool the enemy uses to keep people deluded right up to the end!

So what constitutes a real Christian anyway . . . let’s see . . .

First, back to the bumper sticker . . . “Try Jesus.” When we try and compel a lifestyle on someone, we could actually be leading them into a lifetime of self-deception that could be fatal to their soul!

You see, Jesus says in John 6:44

John 6:44

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them . . .

Unless you have been drawn by the Holy Spirit to come to Christ, you cannot be saved!

Too often we end up introducing people to a lifestyle rather than a Savior!

When this happens, the person begins “dabbling” in Christianity and they will suffer a terrible fate!

True Christians introduce people to Jesus, and He and them come to a decision about salvation! If the Holy Spirit has been drawing them to Himself, then there is a strong possibility that they will be redeemed and the new life of Christ will explode in them!

The person who has been drawn by the Holy Spirit to Christ, who then receives the Savior, who openly and honestly embraces the salvation granted through Jesus, will experience a new birth; Jesus called it “being born again.”

It is a spiritual birth, a new and amazing spiritual awakening that transforms everything.

The newly born Christian falls madly in love with the deliverer; they no longer live for themselves, but for Him!

The new spiritual babe is exceedingly hungry for God’s Word, and the first thing they ask for is a Bible; they will fly into it, devouring all they can!

You will find it hard to pull them away from God’s Word; often they will even give up meals so they can read it!

Unlike the “dabbler” when a person who has been born of the Spirit, comes across passages that speak about giving tithes and offerings, they rejoice, often giving way beyond the minimum of 10%. I have known those who have given everything they have and they did it with tremendous joy!

The true Christian will see the financial need within the Body of Christ and will sacrifice much to see those needs met, often going without so that others may not have to!

The true Christian does not think their needs outweigh the needs of others, but actually, see others as being infinitely more valuable than they are!

When it comes to service, to offering their talents to God, the true Christian will give it all. Like the prophet Isaiah who heard these words from God . . .

Isaiah 6:8

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

The true Christian is not self-centered, but rather God-centered. When an opportunity arises to serve the living Christ, they will not miss it!

When the Body of believers finds an occasion to serve Jesus, they will do all they can to be there, supporting anyway they can . . . and they will do it with a cheerful and happy heart, not grudgingly and sad!

The truly converted person will not only step up and serve when the occasion arises, they will also find new and creative ways to serve God!

For the true Christian, commitment is part and parcel of their life now. They are more than willing to step up and serve Christ in the church, making lasting commitments to the Body of Christ through the church.

Membership in the church is not taken lightly and they step up, making a difference to the organization that God is using to advance His Kingdom.

May I continue to draw a contrast . . .

Dabblers tend to complain a great deal; always seeing the negative side of things. The reason being is that they have very little experience of God.

They know that God is strong, or at least part of the Christian lifestyle is to say that God is strong and able; but the sad reality is that God is not very strong to them personally, so they tend to live in an attitude of defeat.

The true Christian knows God is strong; He has been delivered from death, hell and the grave and he knows it!

Whether life on earth is hard or easy really does not matter to him, because he knows the Master in an intimate way and the true believer will exude an air of joy, even in the midst of pain.

Finally . . .

After a great deal of consideration, I believe that “dabblers” are of the utmost importance to the enemy of God and that would be satan. Now hear me out . . .

I think it is a strategic decision on the part of satan to foist upon as many as he can the desire to “do” Christianity.

To be sure, this is risky business on his part, to send to the church interested people who are attracted to a Christian lifestyle, but historically, this seems to have worked for him.

Let’s say we have a church that is growing and people are truly coming to Christ. The word will get out, and those who are interested in the Christian lifestyle, are very much attracted to those moves of God. The real deal is amazing to watch and participate in.

The devil is very interested in any move of God, so he will do all he can to attempt to shut that down, and one of the best ways is to send “dabblers.”

The work of God begins to grow and those who “dabble” gently infiltrate the Body of Christ. The “dabblers” have preferences you know.

After time goes by they will want the worship styles to look and sound a certain way, the focus is no longer on God, but on their favorite way of singing or worshiping, squabbles over Bible translations may arise, along with a host of other things to nit-pick over; things that draw attention away from Jesus and on to man. Some will be very vocal about this and divisions begin.

The “dabblers” will step into positions of leadership and try and move the church in directions other than where the Spirit had intended.

Too often when “dabblers” do not get their way, they try and create little groups convincing these little clusters that the church is going in the wrong direction and we need to change it.

The powerful move of God is now beginning to wane; the attention is being shifted from a powerful God who is converting the lost, to the needs of the “dabblers” who never knew God in the first place.

The church slows even more; the newly converted are disillusioned and begin to drop away; by now even the “dabblers” see the church falling away too and the “lifestyle” they wanted to keep appears to be diminishing.

Since many of the “dabblers” remain, and they are not free to give of their time and resources, the church suffers and slows even further.

A new work in the area shows promise and word of a revival begins to spread, the “dabblers” quickly run to see and join into the work, only to be used by the enemy again.

In the end, dabblers will hear the stinging words of the Mighty Savior as He declares . . . ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ Jesus also said . . .

John 17:3

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

I think when we see Jesus; we will all utter those words . . . Lord. Lord! Let me ask you; do you know what His response will be when you say those words to Him?

Will He welcome you in, or send you away? If you are not sure of the answer, then please . . . settle it once and for all!

Have you been dabbling?

Are you being used by the enemy to put down a revival?

Is the Spirit calling you, drawing you?

Would you like to meet Jesus?

Why not now?

Oct

2017

A Form of Godliness

One of the things I love to do is preach! It seems to be the one thing that is always in my heart and has been burned into my spirit! I long to see the “church” come alive and experience all it should and could be! Indeed, anytime people of faith come together to hear the Word of God proclaimed; amazing things can happen.

There is however, an element of great danger for some who to meet like that . . . so much is at stake! Every time we come together and share the Word of God; which by the way the Bible says is sharper than ANY two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12), hardened as it may be; we have choices to make; some of those choices will determine the fate of our eternal soul!

I have a background in metal working and there is a process by which you can make iron very hard. First, you need to get it extremely hot; and when the conditions are right, you quickly quench the iron bar, either in water or oil, depending on the hardness desired.

There is a rather short window of time whereby the heated metal must be thrust into the cooling medium; once done, the metal becomes quite hard. Similarly, over hardened metal can be softened again by heating and allowing the metal to cool slowly; this process is called annealing.

The danger lies wherein the power of God, through His Word, is touching your heart. Often the heart is strangely warmed, heated by the Holy Spirit if you will, to the point of becoming altogether new; the composition is about to change.

Often it is at this critical point, the flesh rebels and quenches that fire; causing the heart to become excessively hard, brittle and even bitter.

1 Thessalonians 5:19-23

Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.

As with previous generations before us, the world once again is generating conditions that seem to indicate that the coming of our Lord is drawing near. No doubt when the First World War began, many within the Christian Community felt that Christ would soon come. The same was true with World War II and other worldwide conflicts; yet today it seems like the increase is feeling like; as Jesus said, “Birth Pangs.”

The Bible gives us a list of things to be alert to concerning the time right before Jesus` predicted return:

Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.” We are fascinated with the culture of death and evil.

“Jesus… said many false prophets and false teachings will abound

“Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.”

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.”

Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God

All of these things are happening right now, and will continue with ever increasing intensity; like birth pains, until the arrival of Christ.

In the midst of all of these forewarnings, there is one particular warning that continues to grow today, and it is the reason for the broken state of Christianity in our country; indeed our community. This warning is found in 2 Timothy 3 and will be the focus of this blog today.

2 Timothy 3:1-5

But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.

When we first read this passage we often think that Paul is referring to the world in which we live; yet this kind of behavior is typical of fallen mankind and is not new. The warning given here is that these types of persons have infiltrated the church!

It talks about a form of godliness which lacks power; could this be the problem the church is facing today? Have we succumbed to forms of godliness, yet have none of the Power of God?

We live in a broken world that is dying and swirling in an ever increasing state of despair. Hopelessness abounds and our own nation is getting angry, frustrated and on the brink of destruction! People in our country are calling for revolution; should we not cry out to God for a revolution in the Church!

We must ask . . . Where is the POWER of the Church!

Concerning the current state of the supposed Christian church in America, the Barna group, a statistical Christian research organization, did a study a few years ago examining the divorce rates in America. The divorce rate in America hovers at about 50%.

According to Barna, the divorce rate between alleged Christians was almost equal to that of the general population, and even more startling; the rate among fundamental Christians was slightly higher than the national average!

We must ask . . . Where is the POWER of the Church!

A study on the financial support of the local churches in America revealed startling results as well. The average Christian in America gives 2.3% of their income to the local church.

It is estimated if those pretending to love Christ actually did the bare minimum of 10%, an additional $165,000,000,000 (billion) would be made available to Jesus to use. It is estimated that . . .

$25 billion could relieve global hunger, starvation, and deaths from preventable diseases in five years
$12 billion could eliminate illiteracy in five years.
$15 billion could solve the world’s water and sanitation issues, specifically at places in the world where 1 billion people live on less than $1 per day.
$1 billion could fully fund all overseas mission work.
$100 – $110 billion would still be left over for additional ministry expansion.

We must ask . . . Where is the POWER of the Church!

In the American church, there has been a relaxation of the need to “count” conversions. While many denominations still require it, mine included, we do not place too much emphasis on those numbers anymore.

We often brush off the low conversion rates citing growth groups, relationships, church memberships, and baptisms instead. This is done, I fear, to placate the gnawing sensation that something is very, very wrong in our Americanized church!

When was the last time one of the town drunks, a drug dealer, or person of high or low esteem found Christ in your community! It would have been the talk of the town!

A broken, impetuous, unskilled speaker; a fisherman by the name of Peter preached in the power of the Holy Spirit one day and 3000 came to faith; they counted them! The Book of acts declared that daily people were added to their number.

We must ask . . . Where is the POWER of the Church!

It is evident that the warning Paul gave Timothy is at the heart of the problem we are facing today; a form of godliness, with no power!

The church body has become diluted with men and women who are simply not redeemed! There is no Spirit of Christ in them. They are religious impostors! How, you may ask, does this happen?

It did not happen overnight; but rather by many years of complacency and disregard for the demands of the Gospel. The church once held a position of high esteem; those who joined the ranks of the church were seen as upright and noble people, and getting your name on the rolls was important.

Church membership became the end goal, rather than a means to promote Jesus to the community. This has continued to this day!

It is easy to join a church; go down to the river and be baptized; tell everyone you love God and believe in Jesus, take communion when its offered; give 2.3% of your income and smile a lot; imagining that is well with your soul, do this and in most churches you will be viewed as a spiritual person.

You now have now successfully acquired a form of godliness; you have respect in the church and with your peers. The growing numbers of people, whom you see, are just like you. A sense of self-satisfaction grows, and you truly believe that you are quite safe and secure in Christ . . .

We must ask . . . Where is the POWER of the Church!

Listen to what noted Baptist preacher Charles Spurgeon; often referred to as the Prince of Preachers had to say about this subject:

I do not doubt that a form of godliness has come to many because it brings them ease of conscience and they are able, like the Pharisee, to thank God that they are not as other men are. Have they not been to Church? Have they not paid for their pew? They can now go about their daily business without those stings of conscience which would come of neglecting the requirements of religion.

These people profess to have been converted and they are numbered with Believers. But, alas, they are not of them. Of all people these are the hardest to reach and the least likely to be saved. They hide behind the earthworks of a nominal religion. They are out of reach of the shot and shell of Gospel rebukes. They fly among the sinners and they have taken up their quarters among the saints. Sad is that man’s plight who wears the name of life but has never been quickened by the Holy Spirit.

What then is the power of God which is lacking?

True godliness happens on the inside and works its way to the outside. The true power of God comes when a sinful wicked heart, infected with the curse of Adam, is “re-created” and made new, restored to its intended condition; now that’s the power of God!

Remember the promises of God to Ezekiel. . .

Ezekiel 11:19

I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:25-27

I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.

At the conclusion of Peter’s message in Acts 2, Peter gives the key to the Spirit-filled life, the way to be baptized in the Holy Spirit; it comes by repentance and baptism, and by baptism, I mean being immersed, covered with Jesus.

The key is repentance! Without it, there will be NO SALVATION and NO SPIRIT-FILLED life. None!

We all want “Godliness with Power” we all want to live victorious Christian lives, but we cannot unless we have repented. What produces repentance?

2 Corinthians 7:10

Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.

“Godly sorrow” produces repentance. I have to ask you if you have ever felt godly sorrow. Have you ever felt the need to repent, and then actually do it! Because if you have not ever repented, you are NOT redeemed, and you are still in your sins, and are as lost as ever; even more lost, because you have deceived yourself into thinking you are redeemed, when in fact you are not.

Jesus said these stunning words . . .

Matthew 7:21-23

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

The most revealing and frightening aspect of this passage is that the people we so convinced that they know Jesus; when in fact, they did not!

What can be said of you? Are you holding to a form of godliness, are you the real deal? Deep in your heart, you know the answer.

Will you resist still? Will you quench the Holy Spirit one more time?

This is your chance; for some . . . this is your last chance!

Dr. Martin Lloyd Jones puts it this way . . .

“You do not decide for Christ, the sinner FLIES to Christ in utter helplessness and despair.”

His arms are open wide . . . run to Him!

Aug

2017

HATE IS LIKE RABIES

Rabies is a life-threatening condition that causes thousands of deaths worldwide. It is caused by a virus that attacks the central nervous system. The virus is transmitted via bites and scratches from infected animals.

History reveals the gruesome fate of those infected. They literally go mad and insanity sets in; some have even reportedly begun frothing at the mouth!

Hate begins and ends in much the same way. It usually starts with nips and bites from infected people, and if left untreated ultimately it will destroy the host leading to frothing of the mouth and death of the heart.

There seems to be an awful lot of frothing-at-the-mouth going on these days, a clear indication that the disease of hate has spread to the heart; I pray it does not affect you.

The only cure for hate is love and true love is only found in one spot and that is in the heart of the Man we call Jesus.

If you think you may have been infected by this awful disease, there is a cure, but the time to receive that cure is short, so don’t hesitate. Seek out this Jesus and he will administer the Cure and you will be set free and filled with love.

Jesus said concerning this generation . . . “Because of the increase of wickedness the love of most will grow cold.”

Let it not be said of you!

A small community with big problems

An encounter with God on the mountain

God taught me to pray Upside Down

Watch out for Hornets in the wild

We are born with a fatal sting

On a mission to remove the sting of death

Do not permit hornets to build in your house

Who was St Valentine?

Have you lost your first love?

How does one go about losing their first love?

We live in a wicked world; evil is rampant!

Love being restored

The truth is simple; you see no one is born a Christian.

We keep seeking, searching and looking; we get closer and closer

Could it be that the need to belong has superseded the need to be converted to Christ?

Self-deception is a powerful tool the enemy uses to keep people deluded right up to the end!

We must ask . . . Where is the POWER of the Church!

What then is the power of God which is lacking?

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