When we are united in the Body of Christ we have a spirit of unity…a mindset of oneness, one with another. It’s aim is to glorify God. Our attitude of unity then must be one of humility, gentleness, and patience as we strive to make ever effort to keep unity among the Body. And as we personally make every attempt to endeavor towards unity…we must determine within ourselves to keep this bond through the Gospel Message…the Gospel of Peace.
Jude 17-19 ” But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, ‘In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.’ These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.”
In Jude 16 these scoffers are called grumblers and fault-finders and their goal is to create division among the Community of Faith they are part of. In I Timothy 4:1 Paul calls them hypocritical liars, and in II Peter 2:1 they are called false teachers that secretly introduce destructive heresies. Their mode of operation is covert murmuring…of passive aggressive disrespect towards the Pastoral Staff…and a politically correct world view of comprehensive inclusiveness of all views, whether the Bible agrees or not.
James 3:17 ” But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”
Wisdom is a divine gift from above… joined with purity of heart and life, it’s described by eight characteristics here. The first and most important is purity. Godly wisdom is like God’s Word…the absolute and unadulterated truth. The next seven are practical applications of wisdom in our everyday life with people we come in contact with. They are also the effects of wisdom in our own lives that bear witness by how we treat others. Proverbs 4:7 tells us that, “Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom.”…meaning wisdom is foundational or the cornerstone for our successful journey as Believers.
Micah 4:12 ” But they do not know the thoughts of the Lord; they do not understand His plan, He Who gathers them like sheaves to the threshing floor.”
We may think we know the mind of God, but we’re only kidding ourselves. God reminds us of this all the time. “My thoughts aren’t your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways.” (Isaiah 55:8) or “Who knows the mind of the Lord?” ( Isaiah 40:13) We humans perceive things through our senses…but our senses can’t accurately ensure that we truly understand the mind of God. So instead, we superimpose human emotions onto our vision of God in order to perceive Him a little better. But just when we think we have God’s plan and purpose for us pigeon-holed and neatly tied up in a bow…something happens that we didn’t see coming. And we’re left confused, frustrated, and even miffed at God for changing our plans. But God’s Will -His plan and purpose for our life – is far beyond our comprehension, and what we see as His goal for us isn’t nearly as important to Him as the process He takes us through towards that goal.
II Timothy 3:12 ” In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted…”
When we make the decision to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior …our life will suddenly not become all sunshine and rainbows. And as we grow in Him towards righteousness and holiness life gets harder not easier. Jesus reminded His disciples in John 15 of this hard truth, “If the world hates you, remember they hated Me first…If they persecuted Me they’ll persecute you also.” But as we journey through life we can take comfort in this, “Though there is suffering in this life, there is also assurance of future blessing.” (II Timothy 1:12) We can’t be dissuaded or discouraged when bad things happen to us. Rather, we need to take our eyes off the problem and place them on the promise keeper.
Acts 6:8-10 ” Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen – Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia. These men began to argue with Stephen, but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke.”
Stephen was not among the original twelve disciples. Rather, he was part of the seven appointed by them as the early Church grew. (Acts 6:5) But this obscure and little known man holds the distinction of being the first Christian to die for his belief. But why? Stephen boldly spoke God’s Message of a crucified Jesus Christ that was raised from the dead on the third day and would be coming back again someday. And with strength and favor found only in the Lord, he preached repentance and salvation to a hostile Jewish crowd that couldn’t handle the truth, let alone verbally outmaneuver him. So all they could do was falsely charge him with blasphemy. But Stephen never faltered in his faith, conviction, or obedience to the Lord…and so he was martyred for speaking the truth.
Psalm 20:7 ” Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the Name of the Lord our God.”
All throughout Biblical history the more horses and chariots a Nation had the more powerful and strong they showed themselves to others. These instruments of war were used to intimidate and show force to weaker Nations that they might surrender quietly. It was said, When peace comes over the land, the horses are put away. But in this verse it’s telling us that dependence on things created rather than in the Creator is just plain dangerous. Isaiah echoed this when he wrote that people rely on horses or trust in the multitude of chariots but don’t look to the Holy One or seek help from the Lord. The bottom line is that our trust can be in nothing else but the Lord, for it’s from Him that we receive deliverance and victory from all our battles.
Romans 12:3 ” For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.”
Paul was keenly aware of the gift of grace he had received on the road to Damascus…more so than a lot of the Believers he was writing to here. His life did a 360 on that dusty road as the Lord confronted him…and he knew without that divine intervention he would of been doomed. So Paul is exhorting his readers to not drag their gift of grace through the mud by using it as some kind of trophy with conceited pride, but to consider carefully and seriously what they would be like without the grace of God.
I Peter 5:5 ” All of you, clothe yourselves with humility towards one another…”
We are to cover ourselves with humility such that others only see Jesus. Being humble means submission to one another out of reverence to God…of voluntarily yielding our needs and desires in order to serve others. The humility talked about here comes from the deep realization of our own unworthiness in the face of God’s love, grace, and gift of salvation. For we’re just like a beggar, no better off than another, except that we’ve found some bread. Peter drove home this point when he wrote, “All of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.” (I Peter 3:8) Remember, we’re simply beggars telling other beggars where they can find bread.
Isaiah 35:8 ” A highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness.”
The Lord will never call you without first going before you to prepare the way. Case in point, His call to holiness, or sanctification here. This verse states that we have the path already in place for us to follow on that journey towards holiness…but most times we bristle at the thought of the long drawn out process. But God’s plan for your life is found embedded within that process. In Romans 6:19 Paul tells it like it is, “I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.” The only way to break old habits is to introduce new ones. And the only way to strengthen those new habits is to practice them until you are proficient. That’s why the “Way to Holiness” is a marathon not a sprint…a journey not a quick jaunt, and a life-long process not a one time application.
Safetypinlove 