The definition of obsessed is: to have the mind excessively preoccupied with a single emotion or topic, to dominate or preoccupy the thoughts, feelings, or desires of.
What do you think about when you hear that someone is obsessed with Jesus? Do you think that they are a little different or off? Do you think that they are weird or stand offish?
My question is, what should we really look like? When the Holy Spirit is so alive and active in our lives we cannot help but to be as Christ put it, “the city one the hill.” In other words we shine so much with the glory of God that everyone around see’s it whether we like it or not!
This subject of obsessed with Christ came up while I was sitting in on a Bible study with some friends on a chapter in the book “Crazy Love” by Francis Chan titled “Profile of the Obsessed.”
The first section that he spoke about in the chapter was “Lovers.” Not what you think when you hear this word!! Chan brings up that fact we all too often believe that by being a NICE person people will see that and then want to know more about Jesus. This is not how it happens says Chan. We do all know people that are nice but they are not even close to believers!
Our real call to love is in Luke 6:32-36 2“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
How challenging is this really. If I am going to love someone that hates me I must first love them as Christ loves them and not with my own understanding. The question comes up in the chapter, “Can you love someone after they have hurt you?” I can say that my answer is yes but when I think about some of the things that the people of this world do and live I really am unsure sometimes! I do recognize that with this concept in mind I have to sit down and ask Jesus to help me see people as He sees them! This is the only way that I feel that I can truly love those that have/will hurt me!
Now why do we love and serve the way we do if we are true followers of Christ. Luke 14:12-14: 12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
What is this telling us? First that we are to love and serve others without thoughts of being repaid, Jesus said in Mark 2:17; Jesus said to them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” We have to understand that the things that we have are not our own. What we have been given are from God and should be used for whatever ministry we can. That does not mean that we should always have our homes open to have people to but if we do see that someone is in need and we are able that we step up in love those people and show them Christ!
The section that really stood out to me what the section about being risk takers! As Francis Chan put it we have all prayed from safety during travel and that no one gets hurt on this trip and bring us back safely. Why can we not pray, “God bring me closer to you during this trip, whatever it takes! We are all too often worried about what is going to happen to us that we then become blinded to the will of God in our lives. I can often forget what it means to be uncomfortable here and set in the kingdom! Sometimes pain and/or distress are going to come with the things of this world, especially if we are walking a life that is Obsessed with Christ!
We have to have a heart that is going to minister and want to minister to people that don’t know Jesus. We are called to a witness to the light as it says in John 1:7a, “7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light.” The definition of witness is to see, hear, or know by personal presence and perception and then this is the important part, to bear witness to; testify to; give or afford evidence of. Just of this definition alone if we are called to be a witness to the light which is Jesus should be self explanatory!
The final thought that I have is directly out of the book. Remember our definition of obsessed The definition of obsessed is: to have the mind excessively preoccupied with a single emotion or topic, to dominate or preoccupy the thoughts, feelings, or desires of.
Christians Obsessed with Christ are more concerned with obeying God than doing what is expected or fulfilling the status quo. A person who is obsessed with Jesus will do things that don’t always make sense in terms of success or wealth on this earth.
5.26.2011
5.24.2011
Live by the truth and Come into the Light!
Psalm 32:5 says, “Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
What is confession? To confess our sin is to agree with God, acknowledging that he is right to declare what we have done as sinful, and that we are wrong to desire or to do it. It is to affirm our intention of abandoning that sin in order to follow him more faithfully.
I had a close friend from college call me Sunday after our study. He was driving to the hospital in Madison hospital. He suddenly broke down in crying and said, “One of my good friends from college is dying tonight! He has had some swelling of the brain that started a couple weeks ago and doctors had to do surgery and open up his skull to relieve pressure. They told us that he was doing better! Then I just got a call today saying that things have taken a turn for the worse and he is not going to make it through the night!! Russ he is only 1 year younger than me (24), how can this be happening? Why is this happening? He’s too young to die!
This is not an easy thing for anyone to deal with. It does make me think instantly about the gospel! I had to ask, “Does he know Jesus as Lord and Savior?” Was this life a testimony to who God was in this young man’s life? and how to I use this situation to bring to light the truth of the gospel?
It’s interesting how and what we think about when we are faced with death, either our own or someone that is close to us. We suddenly have a realization that we are not invincible and that everything in this world is dying. We are struck with fear of potential unknowns and anger toward people or God.
After talking with my friend and praying for him and everyone in the situation, I almost feel that there is a sense of urgency to stand on the truth even more than I do! My devotions Monday morning was reading John chapter 3.
To start this chapter, Christ is talking with a Pharisee named Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a man of high stature and a member of the Jewish ruling council. He had come to Christ with the question in verse 4, “How can someone be born again when they are old?” Stop here for a second and think of what it means to be born. When I think of being born, I think of something new to the world around them. Their eyes are just opening they are hearing for the first time, and they are held in the arms of their parents and shown unconditional love. If we think of being born again, we should see that we are suddenly new in a world that we don’t understand. We need a parent to guide and teach us. We need Jesus Christ to show us His unconditional love!
Christ responded to Nicodemus’s question by saying in verse 5, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.” Jesus then goes on saying in verse 8, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” I believe the Jesus is saying that we can’t see the wind; we can only see its effect. Similarly, we can’t see any physical change in a person born of the Spirit, but we can see the effect of the Spirit at work in someone. We may not understand how the Spirit works, but the effect of the Spirit in the lives of believers is evidence of God at work.
I think to capitalize on the fact that there should be evidence of the working of Christ in our lives. In verse 21 Jesus capitalizes on this point! “But whoever lives by truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.”
How awesome is this to think about, “But whoever.” The word whoever is defined as, whatever person, or anyone or no matter who. So there is not getting out of this aspect of our faith in Christ! He is saying WHOEVER, everyone who “lives by truth comes into the light.” So once again truth is an actual statement of fact or reality, and Jesus says in John 14:6a, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” So we know that Christ is truth and now if you live by that truth, it says that you “come into the light.” John 1:1-5 says “1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Now we are not only believing that Christ is truth, but we are living in light that is Jesus Christ. One we are living by truth and have come into the light(Jesus) now we have no option but to allow, “it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” Now we are to the point that everything we do is in the light of Christ and that those things will be seen plainly by those around you that it is God who is at work in you!
So back to my starting point of a different devotion, Psalm 32:5 says, “Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
What is confession? To confess our sin is to agree with God, acknowledging that he is right to declare what we have done as sinful, and that we are wrong to desire or to do it. It is to affirm our intention of abandoning that sin in order to follow him more faithfully
If we confess our sins before God and we then come into the light of truth and our lives should show that God is at work in us!
My challenge to you! Do you believe in the truth of the gospel of Christ in such a way that the light of Christ is shinning out of you so much, that everyone around you sees that it is God that is at work in your lives?
We do not live but for a millisecond in the realm of eternity, and I cannot explain why someone is dying at 23 years old, except for we live in a dying world that has not hope without Jesus. If I can say for even that millisecond I am alive, that I strived to see God glorified and I strived to live a life worthy of the cause. Then God can say as he does in Matthew 25:23, “'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'
What is confession? To confess our sin is to agree with God, acknowledging that he is right to declare what we have done as sinful, and that we are wrong to desire or to do it. It is to affirm our intention of abandoning that sin in order to follow him more faithfully.
I had a close friend from college call me Sunday after our study. He was driving to the hospital in Madison hospital. He suddenly broke down in crying and said, “One of my good friends from college is dying tonight! He has had some swelling of the brain that started a couple weeks ago and doctors had to do surgery and open up his skull to relieve pressure. They told us that he was doing better! Then I just got a call today saying that things have taken a turn for the worse and he is not going to make it through the night!! Russ he is only 1 year younger than me (24), how can this be happening? Why is this happening? He’s too young to die!
This is not an easy thing for anyone to deal with. It does make me think instantly about the gospel! I had to ask, “Does he know Jesus as Lord and Savior?” Was this life a testimony to who God was in this young man’s life? and how to I use this situation to bring to light the truth of the gospel?
It’s interesting how and what we think about when we are faced with death, either our own or someone that is close to us. We suddenly have a realization that we are not invincible and that everything in this world is dying. We are struck with fear of potential unknowns and anger toward people or God.
After talking with my friend and praying for him and everyone in the situation, I almost feel that there is a sense of urgency to stand on the truth even more than I do! My devotions Monday morning was reading John chapter 3.
To start this chapter, Christ is talking with a Pharisee named Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a man of high stature and a member of the Jewish ruling council. He had come to Christ with the question in verse 4, “How can someone be born again when they are old?” Stop here for a second and think of what it means to be born. When I think of being born, I think of something new to the world around them. Their eyes are just opening they are hearing for the first time, and they are held in the arms of their parents and shown unconditional love. If we think of being born again, we should see that we are suddenly new in a world that we don’t understand. We need a parent to guide and teach us. We need Jesus Christ to show us His unconditional love!
Christ responded to Nicodemus’s question by saying in verse 5, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.” Jesus then goes on saying in verse 8, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” I believe the Jesus is saying that we can’t see the wind; we can only see its effect. Similarly, we can’t see any physical change in a person born of the Spirit, but we can see the effect of the Spirit at work in someone. We may not understand how the Spirit works, but the effect of the Spirit in the lives of believers is evidence of God at work.
I think to capitalize on the fact that there should be evidence of the working of Christ in our lives. In verse 21 Jesus capitalizes on this point! “But whoever lives by truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.”
How awesome is this to think about, “But whoever.” The word whoever is defined as, whatever person, or anyone or no matter who. So there is not getting out of this aspect of our faith in Christ! He is saying WHOEVER, everyone who “lives by truth comes into the light.” So once again truth is an actual statement of fact or reality, and Jesus says in John 14:6a, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” So we know that Christ is truth and now if you live by that truth, it says that you “come into the light.” John 1:1-5 says “1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Now we are not only believing that Christ is truth, but we are living in light that is Jesus Christ. One we are living by truth and have come into the light(Jesus) now we have no option but to allow, “it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” Now we are to the point that everything we do is in the light of Christ and that those things will be seen plainly by those around you that it is God who is at work in you!
So back to my starting point of a different devotion, Psalm 32:5 says, “Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
What is confession? To confess our sin is to agree with God, acknowledging that he is right to declare what we have done as sinful, and that we are wrong to desire or to do it. It is to affirm our intention of abandoning that sin in order to follow him more faithfully
If we confess our sins before God and we then come into the light of truth and our lives should show that God is at work in us!
My challenge to you! Do you believe in the truth of the gospel of Christ in such a way that the light of Christ is shinning out of you so much, that everyone around you sees that it is God that is at work in your lives?
We do not live but for a millisecond in the realm of eternity, and I cannot explain why someone is dying at 23 years old, except for we live in a dying world that has not hope without Jesus. If I can say for even that millisecond I am alive, that I strived to see God glorified and I strived to live a life worthy of the cause. Then God can say as he does in Matthew 25:23, “'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'
5.19.2011
5.18.2011
The Harvest
Psalm 19:2-4 says, “2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. 3 They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. 4 Yet their voice[a] goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.”
This is a quote from my devotion this morning, “The apostle Paul referred to this psalm when he explained that everyone knows about God because nature proclaims God's existence and power. This does not cancel the need for missions because the message of God's salvation found in his Word, the Bible, must still be told to the ends of the earth. While nature points to the existence of God, the Bible tells us about salvation. God's people must explain to others how they can have a relationship with God. Although people everywhere should already believe in a Creator by just looking at the evidence of nature around them, God needs us to explain his love, mercy, and grace. What are you doing to take God's message to the world?”
We again see this statement that God is known by all in Romans 2:8. “8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil.” Then we move onto see that God again has said that He has made himself known. Romans 1:19-23, “19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.”
I feel that this is a call that we should all really take hold of. What is this garbage that we keep replacing God with? We say that we are ok and that we are walking a good life with Christ but we really know what is going on. There are idols in our lives that have replaced the one TRUTH!
Because of the truth of Christ the following is what we should really be doing. God has called us to explain his love, mercy, and grace to people that do not know understand the salvation message of the gospel. What are you doing to take God's message to the world?”
There are people out there that live in such a fear of death that they do now know or understand the message of salvation of Christ. We have people that are trying to predict the end of the world and there are some that are saying it is soon. But we are not to live like that. As a friend pointed out to me, Jesus tells a story in Luke 19 that speaks of him and his return in v13, he says “engage in business until I come” when he returns, we are to be found with our hand on the plow, not sitting on a hilltop waiting around.
We tend to look at the now and worry about how things will end or how we should live but Jesus tells us that we do not need to know and that only God the Father knows when Christ will return, Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32 both times Jesus says "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." Now we look in Acts where Christ is raised from the dead and is addressing the disciples again after the disciples had asked Jesus, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6) Jesus responds in verses 7 and 8, “7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Christ not only shows us that we are not to be concerned with when the end will come but then, “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” Mark 1:17. After we have dedicated out lives to following Christ he then says in Luke 10:2, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Not only are we called to follow Jesus but now he is telling us that there are few people out there that can help spread the gospel “the workers are few” and that we should be asking the Lord to send out His workers because the harvest is plentiful and God has made himself know to everyone.
When we think about going out to witness because that is what this is telling us to do here, “Go and witness to all mankind” but he speaks on John 4:35 about how we truly feel about going out witness to the gospel, “Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.” I feel like this is our true response to the call of being “fishers of people.” Basically we are not trusting in God to help with the harvest that he is calling us to be working for. We get such a fear in us (failure, embarrassment, etc.) that we say to God, “it is still four more months until the harvest” in our words, “I am not ready to be out there Lord, I don’t know enough scripture to be challenged” or “ I am scared of what people will think of me or do to me.”
This is Gods response to our petty wimping out. Acts 18:9-10 “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” The call to trust and follow God and as it says about John the Baptist, John 1:6-8; “6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.” We also are not to be or try to be the light but as it says be a witness to testify to the light! What is this light, John 1:9-14; “9The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
My final challenge to myself and to everyone who follows Christ as Lord and Savior is this. Can we be a witness to the light that is Jesus Christ to the world that has replaced the truth of God with a lie? Are we so confident in God that we can be that witness knowing that God has called us not to be silent, not to be afraid and trust that he will speak through us. The harvest is plenty, the harvest is ripe, it is not 4 months away, and it is now!
This is a quote from my devotion this morning, “The apostle Paul referred to this psalm when he explained that everyone knows about God because nature proclaims God's existence and power. This does not cancel the need for missions because the message of God's salvation found in his Word, the Bible, must still be told to the ends of the earth. While nature points to the existence of God, the Bible tells us about salvation. God's people must explain to others how they can have a relationship with God. Although people everywhere should already believe in a Creator by just looking at the evidence of nature around them, God needs us to explain his love, mercy, and grace. What are you doing to take God's message to the world?”
We again see this statement that God is known by all in Romans 2:8. “8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil.” Then we move onto see that God again has said that He has made himself known. Romans 1:19-23, “19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.”
I feel that this is a call that we should all really take hold of. What is this garbage that we keep replacing God with? We say that we are ok and that we are walking a good life with Christ but we really know what is going on. There are idols in our lives that have replaced the one TRUTH!
Because of the truth of Christ the following is what we should really be doing. God has called us to explain his love, mercy, and grace to people that do not know understand the salvation message of the gospel. What are you doing to take God's message to the world?”
There are people out there that live in such a fear of death that they do now know or understand the message of salvation of Christ. We have people that are trying to predict the end of the world and there are some that are saying it is soon. But we are not to live like that. As a friend pointed out to me, Jesus tells a story in Luke 19 that speaks of him and his return in v13, he says “engage in business until I come” when he returns, we are to be found with our hand on the plow, not sitting on a hilltop waiting around.
We tend to look at the now and worry about how things will end or how we should live but Jesus tells us that we do not need to know and that only God the Father knows when Christ will return, Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32 both times Jesus says "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." Now we look in Acts where Christ is raised from the dead and is addressing the disciples again after the disciples had asked Jesus, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6) Jesus responds in verses 7 and 8, “7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Christ not only shows us that we are not to be concerned with when the end will come but then, “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” Mark 1:17. After we have dedicated out lives to following Christ he then says in Luke 10:2, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Not only are we called to follow Jesus but now he is telling us that there are few people out there that can help spread the gospel “the workers are few” and that we should be asking the Lord to send out His workers because the harvest is plentiful and God has made himself know to everyone.
When we think about going out to witness because that is what this is telling us to do here, “Go and witness to all mankind” but he speaks on John 4:35 about how we truly feel about going out witness to the gospel, “Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.” I feel like this is our true response to the call of being “fishers of people.” Basically we are not trusting in God to help with the harvest that he is calling us to be working for. We get such a fear in us (failure, embarrassment, etc.) that we say to God, “it is still four more months until the harvest” in our words, “I am not ready to be out there Lord, I don’t know enough scripture to be challenged” or “ I am scared of what people will think of me or do to me.”
This is Gods response to our petty wimping out. Acts 18:9-10 “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” The call to trust and follow God and as it says about John the Baptist, John 1:6-8; “6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.” We also are not to be or try to be the light but as it says be a witness to testify to the light! What is this light, John 1:9-14; “9The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
My final challenge to myself and to everyone who follows Christ as Lord and Savior is this. Can we be a witness to the light that is Jesus Christ to the world that has replaced the truth of God with a lie? Are we so confident in God that we can be that witness knowing that God has called us not to be silent, not to be afraid and trust that he will speak through us. The harvest is plenty, the harvest is ripe, it is not 4 months away, and it is now!
5.10.2011
5.09.2011
From Idolatry to LOVE!
Idolatry, it was a challenging subject to address! Last night in our Young Adults study, we really got challenged as to what the idols are in our lives. A definition was shared, "anything that takes the place of God in your heart!" With this they listed of so many different things that can be an idol and most I had never thought of. When we look at these idols that are in our lives we really must come to reality and not let selfishness get in the way or there will be no truth behind what you are looking at. We must get to the root of the problem and not just talk about it and say we have addressed it. If we are doing that we are just putting this issue on a back burner and never really seeing what the root cause of the problem is. We have to take this things to Jesus and let him help us see how to replace the lie we have embedded in our hearts with the truth of the gospel!
This video is one that was posted on the blog before but worth posting again. It is of Mark Driscoll (Pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle) speaking and ABC news about this same subject "Idolatry" which I though was good to watch!
This morning while getting ready for work and making breakfast I was overly joyed to hear music in the background! I felt the joy of the Lord instantly! Then I stopped and looked at my bible and it was open to Galatians 5:1 that says, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and don not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." How awesome of a message is this to get in the morning! After last nights study I was weighed down a little by the strength that we often pull with idols in our lives! I can feel the burden on my heart of effects that idols can have on us! As i read on jumping to Galatians 5:6b, "the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love." What does this mean i think to myself all morning? What does faith do for us? The Bible says that we are saved through faith! (Gal 2:15-16, Rom 3:22, Eph 2:8-9). This saving faith is a living faith in a living Savior and thus is the expression of love-motivated deeds. Talk about love, what is that word mean, John 3:16 says, "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." I can't even fathom that concept. Is true love is giving up everything for those have nothing? What is it?
True love is what Christ did for us First we have to look at who we are in this mess of a world! Titus 3:3, "At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and ency, being hated and hating one another." This is who we really are. Also in Rom 1:21-25, as we have talked about before, we are a wicked people who have suppressed and replaced the truth of God for a lie!
Now we go back to Titus to again understand what this love is. Titus 3:4-8, "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, who he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal live. This is a trustworthy saying.
What a picture of this love that God has for us! As it says and Titus and I fell that we should emphasize the love of God appeared first then HE saved us and again not because of our righteousness but because of his MERCY. How did he save us? as it goes on the say, "through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit." Again think about what a baby is covered with when first born. They are covered with blood and yuk from the birthing process. so the be saved through a washing of rebirth, God comes to us and cleans the yuk off so that when he looks at us we are seen and clean and a new creation in Christ Jesus. Sometimes this is symbolic through baptism of believers who have committed their lives to Christ! Then comes the renewal by the Holy Spirit, which is a leading, or a conviction, and consistent imparting of divine life to believers as they surrender their lives to God (Rom 2:2).
Now that we have been saved through faith in Christ alone, and washed clean, and renewed by the Holy Spirit, we have been been justified by His grace so that we might have eternal life! Paul goes on to finish this bold statement but saying, "This is a trustworthy saying." in other words we can trust in the fact that through faith in Christ alone are we saved and can have hope and a life in eternity in heaven with our Lord and Savior Jesus!
This video is one that was posted on the blog before but worth posting again. It is of Mark Driscoll (Pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle) speaking and ABC news about this same subject "Idolatry" which I though was good to watch!
This morning while getting ready for work and making breakfast I was overly joyed to hear music in the background! I felt the joy of the Lord instantly! Then I stopped and looked at my bible and it was open to Galatians 5:1 that says, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and don not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." How awesome of a message is this to get in the morning! After last nights study I was weighed down a little by the strength that we often pull with idols in our lives! I can feel the burden on my heart of effects that idols can have on us! As i read on jumping to Galatians 5:6b, "the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love." What does this mean i think to myself all morning? What does faith do for us? The Bible says that we are saved through faith! (Gal 2:15-16, Rom 3:22, Eph 2:8-9). This saving faith is a living faith in a living Savior and thus is the expression of love-motivated deeds. Talk about love, what is that word mean, John 3:16 says, "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." I can't even fathom that concept. Is true love is giving up everything for those have nothing? What is it?
True love is what Christ did for us First we have to look at who we are in this mess of a world! Titus 3:3, "At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and ency, being hated and hating one another." This is who we really are. Also in Rom 1:21-25, as we have talked about before, we are a wicked people who have suppressed and replaced the truth of God for a lie!
Now we go back to Titus to again understand what this love is. Titus 3:4-8, "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, who he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal live. This is a trustworthy saying.
What a picture of this love that God has for us! As it says and Titus and I fell that we should emphasize the love of God appeared first then HE saved us and again not because of our righteousness but because of his MERCY. How did he save us? as it goes on the say, "through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit." Again think about what a baby is covered with when first born. They are covered with blood and yuk from the birthing process. so the be saved through a washing of rebirth, God comes to us and cleans the yuk off so that when he looks at us we are seen and clean and a new creation in Christ Jesus. Sometimes this is symbolic through baptism of believers who have committed their lives to Christ! Then comes the renewal by the Holy Spirit, which is a leading, or a conviction, and consistent imparting of divine life to believers as they surrender their lives to God (Rom 2:2).
Now that we have been saved through faith in Christ alone, and washed clean, and renewed by the Holy Spirit, we have been been justified by His grace so that we might have eternal life! Paul goes on to finish this bold statement but saying, "This is a trustworthy saying." in other words we can trust in the fact that through faith in Christ alone are we saved and can have hope and a life in eternity in heaven with our Lord and Savior Jesus!
5.05.2011
“The Parable of the Lost Sheep and The Parable of the Lost Coin.”
Can you picture it…Jesus has been reaching out to your grandma for 80 years with no response. One day while you and grandma were having a cup of coffee she collapsed of a heart attack. She was rushed to the hospital and there they brought her back to life. Grandma then started to share with you how her brother had become a Christian and had been preaching the Gospel to her and praying for her until his death 13 years ago. But she had never really listed to him and thought that she was ok just the way she was. She then goes on to say that now after almost dying she can see that there is more to what her brother was saying, there is more to this Jesus then a mere man that people perceive as a god. She now understands that Jesus is real that there is life and hope after death! Hope that can only be found in Him. Two days after this conversation grandma dies! But she leaves a letter for you that says the following,
“I was a lost sheep and a lost coin. I was the sheep that wandered off to be alone and see what the world had to offer because I did not see a need to have help from anyone! I lived a life of drinking and promiscuity, and gambling. I had no understanding of right from wrong and my morals where nonexistent. My brother for as long as I can remember tried to get me to hear the gospel message of Jesus and I refused thinking in my own regard that I have no need for someone like him, my life is great. Now that time is coming to an end, this heart attack has nearly killed me. I think that I understand why he preached for so long on the faithfulness of Christ. Before he passed 13 years ago he asked me to read Luke 15:1-10! I can see now that Jesus does not give up on anyone! When we are lost he will leave to come and find us! He will search and search until we are found. Then once we are found He will rejoice with the angles and all of heaven when we are saved! I pray now as I am on my last hours here on Earth before I meet our father in heaven that you forgive me for not accepting this gift of salvation earlier so that I could also share this good news with you! I love you, now go and as my brother told me go my dear and read Luke 15:1-10 and find the heart of Christ!
_________________________________________________________________
While listening to a sermon yesterday during my workout Mark Driscoll was teaching on two parables out of the Gospel of Luke. The teaching of parables by Christ has the primary focus is the coming of the kingdom of God and the resulting discipleship that is required. This is why it is so important for us to follow and learn from to them today.
It was Luke 15:1-10 “The Parable of the Lost Sheep and The Parable of the Lost Coin.”
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
What do we think of when we read this passage? All that I can think of is why if you have 99 sheep left are you looking for that 1 that got lost? Then I realize that this is probably the most selfish thing that I could do! Just because I have 99 left that are just as good as the 1 that I lost does not mean that I should not care for them all and leave the 1 to die alone!
God has a different plan that often exceeds our understanding and way of doing things. Jesus is speaking of himself here and when there is 1 of us that have wondered off that He will come looking for us because it is not the righteous person who needs to be found but the wayward sinner who has wondered into the wild. Then there is a rejoicing that is done because the 1 has been found!
At the time that we are found and Christ has saved us from our sins it says in verse 7, “in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents.” Picture how happy you are when you find something that has been missing and it was something important to you and your family. This rejoicing is only a fraction of what the rejoicing in heaven is like when just one of us commits our life to Christ!
Then we look at Luke 15:8-10: The Parable of the Lost Coin
8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
How much of a bigger picture is this of the rejoicing that goes on in heaven. Not only are the angels and heaven rejoicing but it appears that God himself is rejoicing! When I heard this I was intrigued so I looked up the Greek for, “in the presence” I found the meaning and word in Greek for “in the presence” is “enopion” {en-o'-pee-on} and the meaning: 1) in the presence of, before 1a) of occupied place: in that place which is before, or over against, opposite, any one and towards which another turns his eyes.
Can you see it, do you understand now why it is so important for us to not just live our lives in a Christian bubble surrounded by Christian friends and family. We have to be out there living a life that glorifies and honors Jesus with everything that we do! There needs to be an emphasis on our lives and a priority to spread the Gospel to all who do not know it!
There are so many different forms of evangelism that we could be using to minister to people. The one that I most recently read was a section from Timothy Keller in his book, “Gospel in Life”. He called it “Oikos” Evangelism, “household” evangelism. When we are begin to look at this form of evangelism we see that: 1. Our lives are under observation by those who don’t believe. 2. Your life is the attractor and evidence for the truth of the faith. People should get a carry good view of how Christianity works in a life. 3. The other person is “in the driver’s seat.” they get to raise questions and determine the speed of the process, and 4. The humbling nature of the gospel leads us to approach people without superiority and with deep respect.
Is your life showing the Gospel of Christ to those around you when they are watching and you do not know it? Can you say that you are the image of Christ? What can we do to change if we are not that Holy image that God has called us to be?
“I was a lost sheep and a lost coin. I was the sheep that wandered off to be alone and see what the world had to offer because I did not see a need to have help from anyone! I lived a life of drinking and promiscuity, and gambling. I had no understanding of right from wrong and my morals where nonexistent. My brother for as long as I can remember tried to get me to hear the gospel message of Jesus and I refused thinking in my own regard that I have no need for someone like him, my life is great. Now that time is coming to an end, this heart attack has nearly killed me. I think that I understand why he preached for so long on the faithfulness of Christ. Before he passed 13 years ago he asked me to read Luke 15:1-10! I can see now that Jesus does not give up on anyone! When we are lost he will leave to come and find us! He will search and search until we are found. Then once we are found He will rejoice with the angles and all of heaven when we are saved! I pray now as I am on my last hours here on Earth before I meet our father in heaven that you forgive me for not accepting this gift of salvation earlier so that I could also share this good news with you! I love you, now go and as my brother told me go my dear and read Luke 15:1-10 and find the heart of Christ!
_________________________________________________________________
While listening to a sermon yesterday during my workout Mark Driscoll was teaching on two parables out of the Gospel of Luke. The teaching of parables by Christ has the primary focus is the coming of the kingdom of God and the resulting discipleship that is required. This is why it is so important for us to follow and learn from to them today.
It was Luke 15:1-10 “The Parable of the Lost Sheep and The Parable of the Lost Coin.”
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
What do we think of when we read this passage? All that I can think of is why if you have 99 sheep left are you looking for that 1 that got lost? Then I realize that this is probably the most selfish thing that I could do! Just because I have 99 left that are just as good as the 1 that I lost does not mean that I should not care for them all and leave the 1 to die alone!
God has a different plan that often exceeds our understanding and way of doing things. Jesus is speaking of himself here and when there is 1 of us that have wondered off that He will come looking for us because it is not the righteous person who needs to be found but the wayward sinner who has wondered into the wild. Then there is a rejoicing that is done because the 1 has been found!
At the time that we are found and Christ has saved us from our sins it says in verse 7, “in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents.” Picture how happy you are when you find something that has been missing and it was something important to you and your family. This rejoicing is only a fraction of what the rejoicing in heaven is like when just one of us commits our life to Christ!
Then we look at Luke 15:8-10: The Parable of the Lost Coin
8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
How much of a bigger picture is this of the rejoicing that goes on in heaven. Not only are the angels and heaven rejoicing but it appears that God himself is rejoicing! When I heard this I was intrigued so I looked up the Greek for, “in the presence” I found the meaning and word in Greek for “in the presence” is “enopion” {en-o'-pee-on} and the meaning: 1) in the presence of, before 1a) of occupied place: in that place which is before, or over against, opposite, any one and towards which another turns his eyes.
Can you see it, do you understand now why it is so important for us to not just live our lives in a Christian bubble surrounded by Christian friends and family. We have to be out there living a life that glorifies and honors Jesus with everything that we do! There needs to be an emphasis on our lives and a priority to spread the Gospel to all who do not know it!
There are so many different forms of evangelism that we could be using to minister to people. The one that I most recently read was a section from Timothy Keller in his book, “Gospel in Life”. He called it “Oikos” Evangelism, “household” evangelism. When we are begin to look at this form of evangelism we see that: 1. Our lives are under observation by those who don’t believe. 2. Your life is the attractor and evidence for the truth of the faith. People should get a carry good view of how Christianity works in a life. 3. The other person is “in the driver’s seat.” they get to raise questions and determine the speed of the process, and 4. The humbling nature of the gospel leads us to approach people without superiority and with deep respect.
Is your life showing the Gospel of Christ to those around you when they are watching and you do not know it? Can you say that you are the image of Christ? What can we do to change if we are not that Holy image that God has called us to be?
5.03.2011
A Change of Kingdoms
Romans 6:6-7 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.
Again for devotions I have started to read “The Pursuit of Holiness.” Talk about a book that makes you think. As so many of us desire to live the Holy life that models Christ even at the basic level to many of us have concluded that we cannot do it. Although we are not living in massive amounts of gross since we have settled in a life of moral mediocrity of which neither God nor ourselves are pleased.
The question that comes to mind was from my reading yesterday. Directly from the book, “Are we truly willing to scrutinize all our activities, all our goals and plans, and all of our impulsive actions in the light of this statement: “I am doing this to please God.””
At this point if we are truly living a life that is pleasing to God then we will not have this dilemma of living in moral mediocrity. But if any of you are like me…human. Then we can all have times like this of moral weakness and allow Satan to confuse us on the issue of what God has done for us and what we must do ourselves!
God has indeed made provision for us to live a holy life. Romans 6:12 says; “Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.” This is clearly a call to something that WE have to do. We are responsible for disciplining ourselves in holiness so that “sin does not reign!”
The key word in verse 12 is “therefore.” so we must conclude that something prior to vs.12 must give us some leading as to why we should not let sin reign.
Romans 6:1-11: 1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.
8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. 11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Romans 6:1-11: 1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.
8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. 11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
A couple things to point out as we read in vs.2 “We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” We can see first that our dying to sin is the result of our salvation in Christ! The second fact as stated in the book, “out dying to sin is a fact whether we realize it or not. Because Christ died to sin, all who are united with Him died to sin.” We have to come to the realizations that if we are one with Christ then our sins are gone, they have been forgiven and we are no longer under the kingdom of darkness as we once where. Paul said it best, “we followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air(the devil)” Eph. 2:2. We were under the power of Satan (Acts 26:18), and the dominion of darkness (Colossians 1:13)
BUT through our union with Christ through SALVATION in Christ we have died to this realm of sin, and we are delivered into the kingdom of God and the realm of righteousness! We have been set free from sin (Rom. 6:18, rescued from the dominion of darkness (Col 1:13), and turned from the power of Satan to the power of God (Acts 26:18).
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