Same Snake, Same Sin, Same Result.....

“Do not think in your heart, after the LORD your God has cast them out before you, saying, “Because of my righteousness the LORD has brought me in to possess this land…..  (Deuteronomy 9:4a)

   I see a pre-publication copy of “salvation by faith” in this verse. Seventy souls went to Egypt during a famine, and centuries later God has brought out and redeemed a million or more from that small start, and is preparing them to cross the Jordan. The river serves as a point of demarcation between their rebellion and His Promise. He has saved them, kept them, fed them, tolerated their rebellious hearts, walked them until a generation passed and now is walking hand in hand with them to give them what they did not earn. As I look at them, God inserts me into His scripture picture. As I hear the call of God and He stokes the flames of faith in my trembling heart, a dangerous self deception crouches nearby hoping to distract me.

   Why does the Lord think it’s important to remind me at this moment of initiation — “Do not

think in your heart…..Because of my righteousness…? Before pride is revealed by my mouth or my actions, I have to think prideful thoughts in my heart. Thinking I am righteous precedes an attitude of self righteousness which reveals fundamental rebellion against God and ignores the work of Christ in my life.

   There have been many moments in my walk with Christ when I actually wanted to be glorified. It’s a continuing and dangerous theme in my ministry life. If I pray for someone and the Lord heals them, my prideful heart wants credit as if Because of my righteousness… they were healed. When I preach or write and someone compliments me, I want to bask in the glory that is God’s alone. Satan always stokes the applause trying to convince me as he did Eve, For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”(Genesis 3:5). Each time I am tempted back to the Tree in the center of the garden, he appeals to my desire to be worshiped. It is the sin that caused the Devil to be cast to earth like lightning.

   Same snake. Same sin. Same result.

  So a spiritual conundrum exists for me. When I want the glory, the power that reveals itself as authentic Glory is withdrawn from me. When I humble myself and have a right perspective on God’s greatness, it returns. For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. (Galatians 6:4) The great reformer, Martin Luther, focused sharply on this subject in his Commentary on Galatians – Again the Apostle takes the authors of sects to task for being hard-hearted tyrants. They despise the weak and demand that everything be just so. Nothing suits them except what they do. Unless you eulogize whatever they say or do, unless you adapt yourself to their slightest whim, they become angry with you. They are that way because, as St. Paul says, they “think themselves to be something,” they think they know all about the Scriptures.

Paul has their number when he calls them zeros. They deceive themselves with their self-suggested wisdom and holiness. They have no understanding of Christ or the law of Christ. By insisting that everything be perfect they not only fail to bear the burdens of the weak, they actually offend the weak by their severity. People begin to hate and shun them and refuse to accept counsel or comfort from them.

  This defines my pride in its worst moments. It is the antithesis of what my heart wants to be in Christ. By Grace, Jesus is guiding me from this dangerous paradigm, forgiving my failures and returns trips to the tree, and making me nothing in His name.

   Same snake, same sin, same result. My flesh wants what it wants when it wants it, and is often tempted by the admiration of others. 

   Lord let me live this day walking in Your Spirit, guided by Your Word, and deflecting all glory to You. Amen. 

Copyright 2014 Mission of the Master Ministries, Inc. May be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission if a link is provided to http://wordworkswednesday.blogspot.com

Satan's Wagging Tail....

.

   Therefore, when we could no longer endure it, we thought it good to be left in Athens alone, and sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God, and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith, that no one should be shaken by these afflictions; for you yourselves know that we are appointed to this. (1 Thess 3, 1-3) 

   At first glance this seems an ordinary passage, perhaps even shallow. But a deeper look at two words it contains illuminates a deeper view. 

   When Paul described Timothy as a minister, what did you think? We use the word  minister as a 
title of leadership, and we know Paul has trained Timothy as a leader so it's easy to deduce that Paul is telling us he sent Timothy to lead as the Ordained Minister at the church in Thessaloniki. The Greek word translated as minister has a much more humble origin. 

   Originally the word denoted the service of a table waiter, and from that it came to signify lowly service of any kind. It was often used by the early Christians to give expression to the service that they habitually were to render to both God and to man. Where a word like 'slave,' which is often used of Christians, puts the emphasis on the personal relation, this word draws attention to the act of service being rendered." (Morris) 

   Paul sent Timothy to serve the church. Only servant leadership produces servant leaders. When the Lord sent you to your church, did you go to lead or to serve?

   Paul follows this with the expression that no one should be shaken by these afflictions; Some afflictions shake us up, they frighten us. But the Greek word chosen by the Holy Spirit here has subtle implications easily missed when translated into English. Trapp explains it like this -- 

 The ancient Greek word translated shaken, came from the idea of a dog wagging its tail. "Flattered, as a dog flattereth, by moving his tail; the devil, by flattering you, with promise of more ease by a contrary course, will but do as a dirty dog, defile you with fawning." (Trapp)

   Oh, has the Satan wagged his flattering distractions before my eyes a thousand times! What is his hope? To turn me from servant leadership to desiring the prideful ownership of a Christian position of authority. He hates a humble heart as much as the Lord loves one. 

   Children of God, there is a battle for our hearts. If Satan's tail is wagging the benefits of religious position before your eyes, turn your heart back to the Lord and serve Him with humility.

   For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. (John 6:38)

   Copyright 2014 Mission of the Master Ministries, Inc. 

Walking in the Spirit... (or in a Cloud of Fruit Flies)

     But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified  the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. (Galatians 5:16-23 NKJV)

       Ignoring context in scripture may lead me to a mild case of Christianity — maybe enough to get into heaven, but without any real Christ image formed in me. Most of us have heard a message series regarding Galatians 5:22, the fruits of the Spirit. We've been told of the wonderful fruit that will grow once we are en-grafted into the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus. Today, let’s take a look at some of the context, and see what is required for that fruit to appear and ripen. 

     God always sees the end of things, the outcomes, and then somehow still has the grace, mercy, and patience to walk though our mess with us toward that end result. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.  If we live??? That’s right. When God looks upon His creation He sees many dead people. Anyone who refuses His offer of Grace through Jesus is dead. To become alive, we need to get connected to Jesus so we can live by the Spirit...... Paul says if we live…let us also walk by the Spirit. Apparently, it is possible to be brought to life by the Spirit, but to refuse to walk by the Spirit. 

  

     I once saw a guy walking along in my hometown. Although I hadn't seen him in twenty five years, I recognized him from behind and from a great distance by the way he walked. If the Holy Spirit lives in me and my life is fully influenced Christ, then the Holy Spirit will be made completely evident in my walk. The Holy fruit bearing Spirit influences every believer through His Word, through His presence in other believers as they reflect Him in their walk, and through His inner witness in our hearts.

     Commentator David Guzik states it simply — How can you tell if someone walks in the Spirit? They look a lot like Jesus! 

     Paul uses Hebrew parallelism here to contrast the fruits that we love to hear about from verse twenty-two with their counterparts a few verses prior, the flesh blights of immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these…  Then, under the inspiration of the same Holy Spirit of whom he is speaking he issues me an ominous warning -- …I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 

      If you follow me, will you see the footprints of Jesus where I have walked? If I am walking in the Spirit of life, you will. If my flesh is in control, you’ll just see the crooked path of crooked flesh. 

     If you see flies over a bowl of fruit, something is rotten. People are following me, looking for Jesus. Will they see Him in my walk today, or just a cloud of fruit flies?  

Copyright 2014 Mission of the Master Ministries, Inc. May be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission if a link is provided to http://wordworkswednesday.blogspot.com 

Too Tired to Find Rest.....

   Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it...... For we who have believed do enter that rest. ........ There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. (excerpted from Hebrews 4:1-10 NKJV) 

 

   Rest? What's that? 

 We Christians today often lead a haggard, anxiety filled existence while quietly reassuring ourselves that we can rely on Christ -- if we can just find time to get around to it.  We conceive that rest is an inactivity only to be engaged when no possible activity can replace it. Even church activity can overwhelm our capacity. Do we really think this is what Jesus meant when He said, Come to me all of you who are weak and heavy burdened and I will give you rest?

   John Owen, bible commentator, cited five attributes of resting in Christ:

1-  Rest means peace with God.

         

      We should find great rest when the Lord lifts our sin burden. Knowing the eternality of our peace with God should be a fountain of daily peace.

2-  Rest means freedom from a servile, bondage-like spirit in the worship and service of God.

       Paul often repeated that he was a bond servant to Christ, but meant an indenture induced by his love for his Savior rather than at the hand of a tyrant God.  

3-   Rest means deliverance from the burden of Mosaic observance.

      This should be a no-brainer for every Christian, but it is not. It is very easy to drift into a mindset of law abiding works, where our service becomes erroneously a pleasing payment that tries to earn the gift that Jesus has already given us.

4-  Rest means the freedom of worship according to the gospel.

      How often have we stood in worship on the brink of exuberance, only to tamp it down out of concern what some other Christian might think of us? Oh, if we would only worship with childlike abandon!

5-   Rest means the rest that God Himself enjoys.

    

      God never experiences anxiety or worry. Ever. As animators of Christ's attributes in and to a hurting world, we need only to receive His rest to animate it visibly in our lives. This takes first a restructuring of our priorities. There will be no peace without sufficient daily prayer and time spent in the Word. While seemingly obvious Christian solutions, these are often supplanted by human busyness. We need to relive ourselves of the mistaken view of Christianity as a state of constant doing, and replace it with a view of our constant awareness of our eternal peace with, in, and from the Lord. 

        We have submitted to His authority. Why do we find it so hard to submit to His rest?

Psalm 116  -- Return to your rest, O my soul,For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.

Copyright 2014 Mission of the Master Ministries, Inc. May be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission if a link is provided to http://wordworkswednesday.blogspot.com 

Have We Become a Church of Spiritual Leeches?

 "If there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, in any of your towns in your land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand from your poor brother; but you shall freely open your hand to him, and shall generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks. (Exodus 

     I've had many conversations with Christians over the years regarding giving. These conversations tend to yield an endless list of self justifications for not giving. If you had overheard some of them you might have thought we were discussing a business plan, deciding which expenses had priority over the others, or a household budget. People often get stuck in a pattern of not giving, reluctant giving, or miserly giving because their thoughts about giving are totally centered on money. Jesus said a lot about giving, and little of it was about money, although He did mention it. 

   ...Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’” (Matthew 25:34-40 NKJV)

   But wait, if we are discussing giving, shouldn't money be the central focus of the conversation? Absolutely not!  Giving has nothing to do with money. It's all about faith. If you have sufficient faith that the Lord will supply your needs, you'll give as He instructs. Your alternative is to trust the strength of your own hand. Few Christians tithe as the bible instructs. Often those who do perceive it as sufficient giving, while the bible sees it as the beginning of giving. Weak faith produces weak giving. Profound faith produces profound giving. 

   I fear we've become a selfish church, claiming to serve a selfless Lord. Our discussions about our primary weekly services focus on how adequately we are served. I like the kids ministry.

The message really spoke to me this week. People at our church are so friendly. The music was awesome. None of these are bad things, but shouldn't we enter the sanctuary of God with a stronger desire to give than to receive? Have we become a church of leeches, sucking up the spiritual lifeblood of our gatherings? When is the last time you attended a Sunday service asking yourself -- How can I give to this service? All my bills are paid, so how can I help someone who is struggling? Who can I share the Gospel with? Is there a way I can serve here each Sunday? For too many Christians, these thoughts never cross their minds, and the poor struggle, the lost remain lost, and good churches seek to fill their weekly staffing needs. 

   Imagine a church where our thoughts were focused primarily on the needs of others, and how we could help satisfy those needs, where a faith induced burning desire to serve drove our giving paradigm, where the words Paul wrote to the Galatian church  were visibly obvious every Sunday morning -- I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

Copyright 2014 Mission of the Master Ministries.  May be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission if a link is provided to http://wordworkswednesday.blogspot.com 

Master the Ordinary.

Isaiah, inspired by Holy Spirit, wrote (55:11) So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

   I know two men who the Lord saved later in their lives, more than a year ago. I've encouraged both to begin reading their bibles, suggesting that they read the Gospel of John first. One has made multiple commitments to begin, the other has begun reading the New Testament at a rate of just a chapter or two a day. The first continues to promise himself he's about to begin reading, but is stalled without ever starting. The man reading daily is growing and thriving in the Lord, the other is stuck -- an inch past saved.

   When I observe the diverse group of Christians I know, this pattern repeats itself en mass. Those who have mastered the simple feeding strategy of daily bible reading and daily prayer prosper. Their peace increases, their humility increases, and they begin to become a living image of the scriptures they've been reading and the Lord they've been talking with in prayer. Those who attempt to rely on fellowship activities and Sunday messages plateau, stall, then drift back toward submission to their flesh. This occurs in my life too -- when I let my spiritual routine breakdown for any reason.

    John Spurgeon wrote -- Remember, Christ's scholars must study upon their knees.

   When we view God's Word as a book to be intellectually conquered or prayer as a required ritual, neither will open a pathway to fellowship with Christ. But when we view both as conversations with a loving Father, Friend, Savior, and Counselor  our faith is multiplied and our hearts prosper as God understands prosperity. It's almost too simple and it seems to require too little, and yet God's Grace eludes so many. 

   The formula for spiritual growth is very simple. Master the ordinary. Ingest scripture and spend time with the Lord in prayer daily. 

   

Copyright 2014 Mission of the Master Ministries, Inc. May be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission if a link is provided to  http://wordworkswednesday.blogspot.com    

   

 

 

 

Four, Three, Two, One....Easter!

Matthew 27:50 -- And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

Mark 15:37 -- And Jesus cried out with a loud voice and breathed His last. 

Luke 23:46 -- And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit. Having said this, He breathed His last. 

John 19:30 -- So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished." And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. 

     The bible is unique among literature. It is an anthology that took over fifteen hundred years to write, contains the work of 40 writers from three continents, and was written in three languages. An anthology with these attributes would certainly contain divergent messages and many inconsistencies, but the bible does not. How is this possible? 

   The writers of the four Gospels quoted above also differed greatly. Luke and John were disciples from a Jewish heritage who had walked in the dust of the Lord's footsteps for several years. Mark was a scribe who got much of what he wrote through Peter's recollection, and Luke was a gentile physician. Although three were Jewish, their cultures extended from Galilee to Jerusalem, making them as disparate as Americans from Brooklyn and New Orleans. The thread that kept their accounts unified is named Holy Spirit. By His inspiration all wrote. 

    Four left us witness accounts. The only one we know was close enough to hear Jesus' words was John (see John 19:26-27) whom He assigned, immediately prior to His own death, the job of caring for His mother, Mary, who was also present. John was an eyewitness. The others may have been in the group of followers watching from a distance (Luke 23:49), but we aren't clearly informed. Only John informs of of the Lord's final words, It is finished. Maybe only John stood near enough to hear them. While the accounts differ in details, they never conflict. 

   Three recall His loud cry. I wonder if it was startling to see the man who had commanded the wind to quiet, the demons to flee, and the dead to live cry out like one of us. He was like one of us, fully human, and he was nothing like us at all, fully God. 

   Two saw Him breath His last breath. I wonder if, until that moment, the were expecting Him to instead suddenly free Himself, heal Himself, lower Himself from the cross and begin to reign as King of the Jews. 

   One spirit was yielded or given up -- His spirit. Yielding and giving reflect intended decisions. Diminishing the focus on His final breath, and rather refocusing on His decision to let that breath be final, a decision that rescinded his physicality and returned Him to spirituality. Death is often imposed by sickness, or accident or bad human intention or error. This was imposed by a loving Father, watching one child suffer as He saved millions of others. For me, that One saved this one. One Holy God saved one unholy Steve. And while His Spirit was yielded, that decision yielded for humanity the constant presence of Holy Spirit. 

   As we enjoy our Easter traditions, remember that Emmanuel, God with us, initiated Easter not for family dinners, chocolate rabbits or Easter egg hunts but as the day of the final Passover sacrifice of the lamb of God so that Holy Grace can reign over darkness, and to initiate a new exchange, Holy Grace for human faith, joining the hearts of heaven to the hearts of humanity forever. 

   Happy Easter.