Month: July 2023

In both Matthew 13:14 & Mark 4:12 Jesus is quoting this Scripture from the prophet Isaiah to explain why He spoke in Parables. Those who had already rejected Him didn’t have divinely enlightened minds in which to perceive spiritual truths – and no amount of explanation would make them understand. (I Corinthians 2:14) They could only watch & hear Jesus with their physical eyes & ears…not capable of understanding the truth He spoke about…their hearts hardened because of rebellion, pride, and self-will. (II Corinthians 4:3-4) But to those who had not hardened their hearts and were instead obedient & submissive, the Parables revealed, as Paul wrote in Ephesians 3:4 & Colossians 4:3, the Mysteries of Christ. So, “Today, if you hear His voice, don’t harden your hearts…” (Psalm 95:7)

“My faith rests not in what I am, or shall be, or feel, or know, but in what Christ is, in what He has done, and in what He is now doing in me.” Charles Spurgeon. Reread this quote from this great Puritan Preacher and ponder it for a moment. My faith & trust can’t be in myself. Why? Well, for one thing, I’m not trustworthy…even to myself. Countless times I have broken faith, not stood firm in my faith, and am guilty all the time of having little faith. And when I choose to put my faith & trust in myself rather than God…I’m placing myself on the throne of my life and opening up Pandora’s Box of self-serving, self-love, and self-reliance and allowing them to escape to reek havoc. Secondly, I can’t place my faith & trust in my emotions…for they are not always true & wise indicators. That’s because too many times I let emotions reign over my life, and it’ll get me into trouble every time. Again it’s because, as a human, I tend to be easily angered, readily offended, and freely allow fear to over-ride common sense. Next, I can’t place my faith in my own wisdom…for this is the very slippery slide of conceit, pride, and arrogance just waiting to happen. Thus, my trust must rest in God alone through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ…Who was the sacrificial lamb Who took onto Himself my sins in order that I may have eternal life and a right relationship with God the Father….saving my soul from hell and working His good purpose in my life everyday.

The early Church was totally united together in affection & Will…being of one heart & united in Spirit. (Ephesians 4:3) This wasn’t a mandatory requirement, but rather a result of the sheer joy of Divine grace being lavished on them. So much that they gladly & freely shared with each other as needs arose. They took the mandate of loving one another very seriously…ever vigilant of and sensitive to the physical needs of their fellow Believers. In other words, they took care of their own.

The push to be successful is powerful. We’re constantly being reminded to be goal-oriented, ambitious & always reaching for our dreams. That’s why Vision Boards are so popular…letting us visualize our aspirations, hopes & wishes. But what if I told you God isn’t the least bit interested in you reaching your goals. In fact, His objective may be that for the most part you may never reach that desired goal this side of heaven. That’s because with God, His purpose is the process, not the end goal. To Him, it’s of little importance if your goal is reached…but it’s of paramount importance in how you work through the process He’s placed before you. The plan & purpose for your life is divinely enabled by God’s Will and sovereign grace…with the process being the refining fire by which you come out as precious as gold. So in this process, what God only asks of you is obedience, dependence, & faithfulness to follow Him.

I had a friend many years ago that was a self-professing, “Church-Jumper & Conference Junkie”. Whenever she got wind of a great move of God in a Church, or a new charismatic Conference Speaker…off she’d go, leaving her old Church behind in search of the next new thing. Needless to say, she never got established in any Church…for she was happy as a consumer, but not as a server. We see this in the multitudes that followed Jesus. Sure, a few of them gave their hearts to the Savior, but most were just there to watch. In Luke 4:42, after a long evening of healing every sick person that was brought to Him, Jesus went out at daybreak to find a solitary place to pray…only to find the crowds already looking for Him to see what He was going to do next. And even in Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, the large crowd thronged into the city sure that this was the time that Jesus would take charge of the political landscape and they wanted to witness it firsthand. We humans will always chase after the next new thing…whether it’s spiritual or secular, for all we want is to be entertained, enthralled, and excited.

I’d like you to think about this quote from an unknown author…” Be the adult you needed as a child.” For only you know what would have made a difference in your childhood. And only then, with the Lord’s help, can you make a difference in some child’s life today. Maybe you lived in a home that was always in a state of confusion & chaos. Or you were told by word or deed that you were unwanted & lacked value… or you were left to fend on your own in a scary environment. Finally, maybe as a child you were filled with shame, guilt, and hopelessness because of the forceful actions of others. To become the adult you needed as a child, you first must take a hard look at what shaped you adversely…the neglect, pain, anxiety, or despair…and then determine to become, with the Lord’s help, a better version of yourself. Where there was confusion & chaos, become concise, clear, & organized. Where there was invalidation, show others they are loved & cherished. Where there was fear, shame, & hopelessness, be the person that is always there to provide emotional support… full of integrity, hope, and the love of Christ. You can become the adult you needed as a child…and you can change a child’s life for the better today because of it.

Paul made it plain to the Church in Corinth…”Christ didn’t send me to baptize, but to preach the Gospel – not with words of human wisdom, lest the Cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” That’s because, when man gets involved with the power of the Gospel Message, it will tend to become watered down in order to make it more palatable for the masses. The preaching may be eloquent, but it rings empty. In Revelation 3:15, John accused the Church in Laodicea of being “Lukewarm”…neither hot nor cold. And in II Timothy 3:5 we again hear Paul warning Timothy of the godlessness in the last days…of fellow Believers having a “appearance” of godliness but denying its power. Charles Spurgeon penned this about keeping our Spiritual fervor when sharing the Gospel Message with others, “We rob the Gospel of its power if we leave out its threatening of punishment.” The Gospel isn’t some sweet little fairy tale where love abounds without any consequences, there’s no accountability for our sinful actions, and in the end, “they all lived happily ever after.” But also gone are the days of the old hell, fire, and brimstone preaching from most pulpits…for heaven forbid, we don’t want to offend someone with the mention of going to hell…but hell is real and God’s final judgment is just real… and we need not be hesitant or slothful in telling others about it.

Jesus came not only to fulfill the types & prophesies by His actions and sufferings, but also to perform perfect obedience to the Law of God in His own person…by enforcing and explaining it fully in His Doctrine…The Gospel Message. In Him fulfilling the Law, Jesus didn’t alter, replace, or nullify any of the former commands…rather, He came to earth to establish their true intent and purpose by His teachings, and accomplished them perfectly in His obedient life to His Father. Paul taught on this in Romans 3:31 when he asked, “Do we, then, nullify the Law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the Law.” Paul agreed here that the principle of justification by grace through faith couldn’t be a contradiction of the Law…for the Gospel Message Paul preached upheld the Law not destroyed it.

Self-help books centering around mental health & wellbeing are very popular these days. Many instruct you in how to, “forgive yourself in 12 easy steps” or something like it. But the fatal flaw in all these types of books is this – you can’t forgive yourself…only God can. So instead, there’s an endless vicious cycle within you of declaring you’ve forgiven yourself…only to be bombarded with guilt, shame, and despair…because you really can’t. So things like, “I will never be able to forgive myself, or similar words, slowly become self-fulfilling prophecies as you struggle on. But stop for a moment – the Scripture here in Isaiah tells us that God Himself wipes away, and will never recollect or even mention our sins again … so it can’t be God that’s heaping shame & guilt on our heads for a sin that we’ve repented of and asked forgiveness for. No, rather it’s the accuser of the brethren, the devil, who doesn’t want us to have inner peace & the reassurance that God’s forgiveness is complete, total, case closed.

From the moment we say yes to Jesus, there’s a starting point of learning the ABCs of Christianity…of growing & striving daily towards the goal of maturity in Christ. But many times, as we grow in Christ, we start to see stark differences between the new Christian principles we’re learning about, and the standards & code of conduct we’ve come to accept from our old crowd of friends. This is where the rub begins. We love hanging out with our friends, but their behavior & ethics are going directly against what God teaches. Charles Spurgeon put it very well, “When you see no present advantage, walk by faith and not by sight. Do God the honor to trust Him when it comes to matters of loss for the sake of principle.” Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:48 that we are to be perfect, as our heavenly Father is perfect…and compromising our Christian principles in order to blend in with the crowd is not growing in the Lord. Sometimes we need to say, “No, I can’t do this anymore.”…trusting God for the sake of our own personal welfare, safety, and moral well-being.