To the world, the Message of the Cross is foolishness…and the Good News of the Gospel is only for those who need a crutch to make it through life. But to God, it’s the wisdom of the world that’s truly foolish. For the carnal wisdom of this age is more about seeking justification through our own efforts rather than seeking the truth…of putting our trust in mortal man rather than trusting God…and of failing the maturity to be able to distinguish good from evil. Spiritual maturity is something every Christian should be striving for…for with this maturity comes divine understanding of God’s truth and attainment of the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (Ephesians 4:13)
Month: January 2021
Proverbs 13:14 ” The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death.”
In my journey as a Christian, much of the wisdom I have gained has come from living with the circumstances of either bad decisions and mistakes I’ve made, or things that someone else did to me. But instead of taking this wisdom and sharing it with others who may be going through the same plight…I have walled it up and covered it over, pretending it never happen. I have denied this hard-gained insight to others because of two little words…shame and guilt. Now if when you read the words shame and guilt something popped up in your mind…something you’re not proud of…then these words are for you. Shame and guilt will effectively stop our voice and render us totally unusable for Kingdom purposes. Need an example? Think back to a low point in your life…now how could of it been different if someone had come up to you and shared how they had gone through the identical situation, how God had brought them through, and what they had learned from it? Wouldn’t their wisdom have helped you? Just to have someone say, “I’ve gone through what you’re now going through.” is such a comfort… that’s why Support Groups are so popular. So if the world has already figured it out with a Support Group for everything conceivable…why do we Christians still hide our mistakes from each other? To illustrate my point further, let’s go to a very familiar story in the New Testament, but look at it in a entirely different way. The story is about the paralytic being healed by Jesus, with Jesus saying to him, “I tell you get up, take your mat and go home. Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home. (Luke 5:24-25) So why did Jesus tell this man to pick up his mat and take it home with him? The mat would’ve been worn-out, dirty, stinky, and just plain nasty. It would of also been a sad reminder of his past hardships. But to Jesus, the mat represented the undeniable miracle that had taken place in this man’s life… a powerful testimony and witness to anyone who knew the man beforehand, for unquestionably he had been healed. To the paralytic though, the mat only characterized the shame and guilt of his difficult past. But the man obeyed and took the mat home with him…and every time someone asked about it, he could point to it …and then to Jesus. We all have a dirty mat thrown in the corner that we’d just like to forget about, and something shame and guilt would like us to keep hidden…but Jesus is telling us otherwise. For from that “mat” has come valuable wisdom you possess that He wants you to share with others. So never allow shame and guilt to stop you from telling others about your past…for I know there’s someone out there today who desperately needs to hear your story.
Mark 7:14-15 ” Again Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, ‘Listen to Me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can make him unclean by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him unclean.’ “
As opposed to the Jewish Leaders whose focus was only on the external, Jesus was addressing in these verses the internal man. And true to form, as He did many times, we then find Jesus explaining further to His disciples the truths of this notion of clean and unclean. Speaking to them in verses 21-23 Jesus said, “For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man unclean.” The lesson to be learned here is that our defilement does not come from the outside…it happens only when we allow it in.
Psalm 77:11-12 ” I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember Your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all Your works and consider all Your mighty deeds.”
Many times when we’re in the middle of a medical emergency, traumatic incident, or sudden personal peril…we know the Lord is with us, but it’s not until much later that we realize just what the Lord had done. It’s at that moment the Lord will bring into remembrance His extraordinary acts done on our behalf that we had no idea were happening around us. And as we ponder and meditate on these wondrous actions several things happen. First will be the profound gratitude we have for a God Who loves us so much He takes care of us when we can’t care for ourselves. Second will be the increased faith and trust we have for Him, knowing He works everything for the good of those who love Him. (Romans 8:28) And finally, as this Psalm attests, as we remember all these mighty deeds and works of the Lord, they become like stones piled up upon each other that we can stand on to boldly face the next calamity that will come into our life.
Romans 10:13-15 ” Everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord will be saved. How then, can they call on the One they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?”
Isaiah 52:7 expands on what Paul is writing about here, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!” In both Scriptures we find no specific group addressed…no one explicitly charged with carrying out the mission. That’s because it’s every Believer’s duty to tell others about Jesus. “But I’m not a Preacher!” you counter. I would then direct you to Matthew 28: 19-20 where Jesus gives the Great Commission to His disciples who were just like you. They held no Titles or Higher Education, yet changed the world. Finally, I would urge you to read Ephesians 6:10-18, the Armor of God…and focus on verse 15, “And your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of Peace.” We have all been sent forth to share with the world the Message of Salvation through Jesus Christ. All it takes is being ready, willing and able to do so.
Psalm 33:10-12 ” The Lord foils the plans of the nations; He thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He chose for His inheritance.”
Whatever you’re thinking about God today…He has not changed. Nor has His intentions been altered or diminished by man in anyway. “I am the Lord Who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, Who overthrows the learning of the wise and turns it into nonsense.” (Isaiah 44:25) God’s plans and purposes are eternal and everlasting – regardless of what man thinks he can do…”The Lord will carry out His purpose.” (Jeremiah 51:12) So today, take your eyes off the world and lift your face upward to the unchangeable God Who is still in control. For, “He thwarts the plans of the crafty, so that their hands achieve no success.” (Job 5:12) And remember to pray for our nation – Because, “Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord.” (Psalm 144:15)
Matthew 12:36-37 ” But I tell you that men will have to give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
At that final judgment day, we will all give a reckoning of everything we’ve ever spoken. Our own words will either vindicate or pass sentence on us. Every reckless slip of the tongue with no concern for the consequences or who we’re hurting will be examined. Every off-hand remark spoken in anger will be duly noted. But like-wise, every expression of faith and trust in Jesus Christ as evidenced in a ongoing personal relationship with Him will exonerate us. Careless words, spoken in haste, have always been the downfall of mankind. Proverbs 10:19 warns us, “When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.” Our careless words can never be taken back once they have left our mouth… and one day, we will have to give an account for them.
Zechariah 7:13 ” ‘When I called, they did not listen; so when they called, I would not listen,’ says the Lord Almighty.”
The notion of this verse is very sobering . For we assume God listens to our prayers and hears us when we call to Him…but this verse shows it can be otherwise. And it’s not the only place in the Bible we read of God repeatedly calling to His people, “Reform your ways and your actions”…calling again and again with the intention of eliciting a very specific response…the response of His people returning back to Him. We find this notion again in Micah 3:4, “They will cry out to the Lord, but He will not answer them. At that time He will hide His face from them because of the evil they have done.” The bottom line is…God is not obligated to listen to His people when they are habitually rebellious, disobedient, and corrupt… and refuse to listen to Him.
II Chronicles 36:15-16 ” The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent word to them through His messengers again and again, because He had pity on His people and on His dwelling place. But they mocked God’s messengers, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets until the wrath of the Lord was aroused against His people and there was no remedy.”
Mankind has always been a stiff necked and stubborn lot…while in contrast, our Lord has always been the One to try again and again to patiently bring us back. But as Jeremiah 11:7 sadly tells us, “I warned them again and again, saying, ‘Obey Me.’ But they didn’t listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubbornness of their evil hearts.” But make no mistake, God’s longsuffering has limits…His tolerance for disobedience only to a certain point. And as we see above, when that fateful point is reached, God’s anger will flare without remedy.
Galatians 6:3-4 ” If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else.”
Today would be a good time for all of us to examine our actions and conduct under the unyielding light of God’s truth. It starts with a sober assessment of our motives, followed by a solemn soul-searching of where we are faith-wise. It means asking ourselves questions like, “Am I listening to God or man?” or “Am I going along with men’s teachings without reading it for myself in the Bible?” So much deception is swirling around us now a days…we need to be careful, for “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.” (I Corinthians 8:2) This spirit of deception will cause you to think of yourself more highly than you ought…in other words, that you are beyond being deceived.
Safetypinlove 