Beware The Dogs

I realize that dogs are much loved in our day and age, but it helps to realize that dogs were not thought of in that way at the time of the early church. They were held in contempt back then.

Have you ever found yourself clinging to something long after its usefulness has expired? Perhaps a belief or a habit that you’ve outgrown. This is a common human experience, one that even the early church grappled with.

Nostalgia can cause someone to hang on to something way past its expiration date. That is what was happening in the early church. Some Jewish believers struggled to let go of things that no longer applied to believers in Jesus, especially the Gentile believers.

It is why Paul wrote what he did to the Philippian church.

Philippians 3:2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation! 3 For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh,

The ones refusing to let go of the things Moses instituted for the Jewish people under the Old Covenant were trying to obligate all who followed Christ to observe the Law as proof of their salvation and dedication.  They were basing their confidence on the flesh, which simply means they thought they could observe the Law more perfectly now that they had been saved.

By having confidence in this, they put their confidence in their flesh to perform. They were carnally minded and not centered on Christ and His finished work on their behalf. In other words, they were robbing Jesus of His glory in a sense.  It is why Paul said in verses 4 - 6

“though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so:  circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee;  concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.”

These were the things Paul counted as rubbish and considered a loss.  Why?  So that he might gain Christ!  Why was this so important to Paul?  He explains it.

Philippians 3:9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

If you or I desire to really know Jesus, we must give up our quest to establish our own righteousness, based on keeping the Law, and instead rest all our hope and faith in who Jesus is and what Jesus did.  We must come to terms with the fact that Jesus imputed righteousness to us, which comes from God and is ours only by faith.

To draw confidence in being right with God from any other source is a huge mistake and an insult to the righteousness made possible through Christ. I do not wish to insult the very One I claim to love the most by setting out to establish my own righteousness and beginning to think I am in good standing with God based on something I have done rather than what Christ has done on my behalf. I not only wish to avoid the dogs in this sense, but I do not wish to become one myself.

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Getting To Know Him

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

As wonderful as that truth sounds, a deep level of trust isn’t produced by just hearing the truth through others. It is the fruit of getting to know Jesus and His love for you, personally for yourself. I can’t have a healthy marriage based only on what others tell me about my wife, Sheila. I have to know her for myself, and that leads me to invest myself in certain ways. It requires effort on my part to see her, hear her, and be with her in ways that advance my understanding of her. It is very purposeful and intentional on my end. It will also require me to get over myself at times so I can hear and see what is really going on and what she is really trying to say or do.

It is not that she established some difficult condition in order for me to be able to know her. It is me being very purposeful and intentional on my end to get to know her. She is not making me earn it. It is just how things work. It’s how we, as human beings, experience growth. I am not trying to earn anything from her. I am simply enjoying the journey of continually getting to know her and growing together in life. That cannot happen as a one-sided deal.  It can’t be that she is the only one invested.

I believe this is the understanding Paul was speaking from when he said,

Philippians 3:7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 Yet

indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. 12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

If I refuse to invest by faith in ways that lead me to greater discoveries of Jesus, I am being one-sided towards Jesus. Then, if He doesn’t meet my expectations of what I want Him to do for me, I may go away offended and claim that He or others have misled me concerning Him. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it is a common occurrence in many people's lives. Meanwhile, Scripture clearly testifies that God cannot lie. That means He is reliable and that His promises are sure. However, getting to the level of trust that takes Him at His word based on knowing His character is not easy, like snapping one’s fingers. That kind of trust comes from knowing Him and becoming familiar with His character and nature.  Are you getting to know Him more and more?

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Trustworthy

If you knew someone who knew everything, and you were convinced that they could not lie, how often would you seek their counsel? How would it impact your relationship with them?

Our nation’s history is filled with stories that have endeared our leaders to us. One such story is about our first president, George Washington. As a young boy, he cut down his mother’s cherry tree. When confronted, he bravely admitted his actions, saying, ‘Mother, I cannot tell a lie; I cut it down.’ This act of honesty, even at his own risk, has been a testament to his character for generations.

Recently, I was tasked with interacting with customer service representatives. During the conversation, I discovered several of them were either intentionally lying to me or at least only using programmed responses they had been trained to use that could not apply to what I was asking. Either way, it led me to mistrust their ability to help me and question their integrity in doing so.

Honesty and integrity are extremely important to our ability to trust others or for others to be able to trust us. That is why it is so important to understand the character of honesty and integrity that originates with God. After all, He is called the God of truth, and Jesus came to us in grace and

truth. The Holy Spirit is known as the Spirit of truth. In the Scriptures it says,

Titus 1:1 Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of JesusChrist, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, 2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began, 3 but has in due time manifested His word through preaching, which was committed to me according to the commandment of God our Savior; 4 To Titus, a true son in our common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior.

This passage clearly reveals that God cannot lie. It doesn’t say He does not lie simply because He is against doing so. It says, He cannot lie.

When you understand this accordingly, it can very powerfully feed your faith in what He speaks. Think about it. God, who cannot lie, has made certain promises to you, both in His word and in real-time interaction with you. If He cannot lie, that means you can count on what He promised you. God will be true to His word.

You become responsible for taking Him at His word and, of course, knowing what His word is. I cannot tell you how refreshing it was when I finally spoke with a customer service supervisor who was extremely honest with me, even at the risk of losing my business. I thanked him for his honesty, and he was the reason I remained with the service they offered.

Trust is not a given fruit in life. It is developed by knowing the character of the person you are expected to trust or at least having faith initially that they are good and trustworthy to start with. I am grateful to know that my God is the most trustworthy being who has ever existed. It has helped me immensely during strange and challenging times to stand firm on the promises He has made to me.

I encourage you today to examine God’s inability to lie and consider what He has spoken to you, both in His written word and when He has spoken to you as His own.  That is something you can take to the bank and rely on, even when it appears it might not be able to come to pass. Be patient and stand strong because God never disowns what He spoke; He upholds His word because He cannot lie!

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A Trustworthy Testimony

Psalm 119:138 Your testimonies, which You have commanded, are righteous and very faithful.

Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?

Whenever anyone comes to Christ for salvation, the Father speaks over them as His child. He identifies them as His own with the seal of approval, which is the Holy Spirit.

Being born again is a work of the Spirit having nothing to do with one’s flesh. It is very supernatural indeed. It is then that the Father marks us.

If a person believes the Father is marking them as not being good enough, not being favored, or always subject to trouble, they have not fully believed the good news of Jesus’s completed work.

God does not choose us, bring us to Jesus, fill us with the Holy Spirit, and then turn around and abandon us because He regrets His decision. His decision to rescue us and bring us to His Son for salvation was a confident one that wasn’t based on what we can or cannot do. It was based on what His Son could do.

Jesus said in John 6:44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, “And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore, everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.

No one came to Jesus on their own as though they possessed some superior wisdom above others. Anyone who comes to Jesus does so because the Father drew them. It is also important to notice that no one will raise themselves up on the last day. Jesus will do that!

That means none of us have any bragging rights regarding our standing in Christ, as though we did anything to obtain or merit the Father’s attention.

The way to know when a person truly hears from God is to pay attention to whether or not they are drawn to Christ and give credit for being right with God the Father to Christ. God did not set things up for men to take the credit. The Father directs men to Jesus because only Jesus can make a person worthy to stand before the Father confidently.

The Father knows the only way for a person to truly be made righteous with the right kind of righteousness is to be born again through faith in Jesus.

This has made everyone equal in God’s family. It strips away the need for comparison and competition among His own. No one is superior to another in the faith, as though they are special due to something they bring or some natural birthright.

Romans 3:21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;

God’s testimony regarding those who come to Christ is consistent and without regard for persons. His testimony of you is a reliable one, indeed. It is not healthy for anyone to compare themselves with others in the body of Christ to see if they are doing better or worse. Both conditions of comparison are unhealthy and unsupported in the Scriptures.

I encourage you today to enjoy being His, rejoice in being born again, and be made a part of the family without prejudice. You are His, and He is yours! You are greatly loved by the Father simply because you came to Him through Jesus when He drew you to Him at the start.

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Orphan Spirit?

Romans 4:14 For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect,

We know we have the Spirit working in us when our hearts are inclined towards God as a dear Father, as opposed to a harsh dictator or overbearing ruler.  God does not interact with us as a slave master but rather as a loving Father.  Suppose someone’s understanding has refused to allow them to go to the place of interacting with God as a dear Father who loves them and cares for them. In that case, it is most likely that they have succumbed to a religious idea of God that is contrary to the gospel’s idea of Him.  I call that an orphan spirit.

Hebrews 6:13 For when God made a promise to Abraham because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, 14 saying, “Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.” 15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. 16 For men indeed swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute. 17 Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, 18 that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us. 19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, 20 where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

I absolutely love the language in verse 16: "An oath of confirmation is for them an end of all disputes.”

When two parties believe that an agreement will stand firm, peace flows.  That is why God was willing to go to great lengths to secure the promise and give us a sure hope!  Jesus sacrificed to secure a sure hope!

I love how it says God determined!  What did God determine?  To show more abundantly to the heirs of promise!  What did He show? The immutability of His counsel.  In other words, His counsel will never change! How did he do this?  He confirmed it by an oath!  An oath that required two unchangeable things on His part. What are the two immutable things?  Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension, and the fact that God can’t lie. Why did He go to such great lengths to do all this?  So that we who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us might have a strong consolation! Why is this so important?  Because this hope is an anchor of our souls that is both sure and steadfast and enters the Presence behind the veil!  This is not a shallow, fleeting kind of hope that hangs by a thin thread!  This is a sure hope that has its roots in heavenly realities and goes into the Presence behind the veil in heaven itself!  If you want a healthy soul, you need this hope as an anchor!

THIS IS JESUS, THE AUTHOR AND FINISHER OF OUR FAITH AND THE HIGH PRIEST OF OUR CONFESSION!

It cannot get more secure than it already is because of Him! Because of what Jesus did, the way of becoming heirs of God as dear children greatly beloved by a loving Father has been opened to us.

Are you basking in the revelation that you are an heir of God and joint heir with Christ and thus are able to refer to God as a Dear Father?   If so, wonderful, rejoice and give thanks to Him!

If not, why not?

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Heirs Of God

The concept of being an heir of God is not just a passing thought but a profound idea that demands our deep contemplation.  It beckons us to delve deeper, beyond the surface, and explore its true significance. Several Scriptures shed light on this profound truth.

Romans 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

When someone comes to Christ, they are given new life in Him, and they receive a spirit that is alive and free of fear.  They are not given a spirit that is afraid to approach God.  Just as a small child is unafraid to run to a loving mother or father, a child of God is unafraid to run to its Father.  We have not been given a spirit of bondage again to fear.

When we experience true rebirth in Christ, it is not just a theological concept but a deeply personal reality. The Spirit within us testifies to our spirit, affirming that we are indeed children of God.  Just as we can identify our earthly parents, this spiritual rebirth enables us to recognize and connect with our heavenly Father. It is an inner knowing, a profound sense of belonging to God.

Here’s the big deal in all this.  If we are children, that means we are heirs!  We are heirs of God!  But what does that actually mean?  Have you ever really taken time to sit down and pray and ponder what it means to be an heir of God?

The Greek idea of being an heir is one of being a possessor, an inheritor, or a sharer.  We are partakers of God with Christ!  More than that, we are joint heirs with Christ!  This is a marvelous truth belonging to those who are His dear children.

Of course, it goes on to say, “If indeed.”  If indeed, what?  We suffer with Him.  Many embrace the idea that this is speaking of enduring physical maladies, sicknesses, and diseases.  My thoughts do not go there.  I believe this speaks of the rejection, misunderstanding, persecution, and opposition that are apparent whenever we take a clear stand on the true gospel of Christ and what it means to be dear children of God who are greatly beloved and favored.

Galatians 4:6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

We know we have the Spirit working in us when our hearts are inclined towards God as a dear Father, not a harsh dictator or overbearing ruler.  God does not interact with us as a slave master but rather as a loving Father.  Suppose our understanding has refused to allow us to go to the place of interacting with God as a dear Father who loves us and cares for us. In that case, it is most likely that we have succumbed to a religious idea of God that is contrary to the gospel’s idea of Him.

Because of what Jesus did, the way of becoming heirs of God as dear children greatly beloved by a loving Father has been opened to us.  Are you basking in the revelation that you are an heir of God and joint heir with Christ and thus are able to refer to God as a Dear Father?  If not, why not?  I challenge you to meditate on this truth until it overwhelms you with His love and goodness.

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Sons And Heirs

It would be quite enough just to be blessed with inheriting God!  But we inherit more! We inherit things here and now and things yet to come.

Romans 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father .” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified

together.

We became a joint heir with Christ. We inherit what Jesus inherited! We get the same body He had in His resurrection.  We are loved as He was loved by the Father!

Galatians 4:6 And because you are sons, God has sent for the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” 7 Therefore, you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

It is interesting to consider what we received when we became sons of God through faith in Christ. You see, we inherited something as sons.  What did we inherit? God Himself!

Before knowing Christ by faith and being born again by the Spirit, we were estranged from God. We were His enemies. As soon as faith appeared in the heart to believe in Jesus and confess Him as our Lord, we became God’s very righteousness, and God became our Father.

Galatians 3:26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Being absolutely convinced in faith of these truths produces a confidence that can withstand opposition, hardships, persecutions, false accusations, misunderstandings, and rejection by those of this world. It can withstand being rejected even by your own blood relations who oppose the truth.

That is what filling up the sufferings of Christ really is. It is what constitutes suffering with Christ. Christ did not suffer sickness, disease, starvation, and many of the other things so often labeled as the way of suffering. Jesus suffered ridicule, scorn, opposition, rejection, being misunderstood, falsely accused and opposition to all that He was seeking to offer so freely.

This world and all it has to offer pales in comparison to what is already yours through promise.  By faith, you get to live according to such promises because many are available to manifest in your life, here and now. You also get to live as though the ones yet to come are already yours because faith is not in seeing in the natural so much as it is by seeing by the Spirit that which cannot be seen in the natural.

It will prove difficult to enjoy the promises as yours if you are unconvinced of being a son and an heir. Being convinced of such things requires faith—not faith in having earned it, but faith in Jesus.

All this is yours only by faith in Jesus and the finished work of the cross and His resurrection and ascension. The promise of the Holy Spirit is yours by faith alone, not by any merit to speak of. This is the New Covenant Jesus spoke of. A covenant whereby, with simple faith in Jesus, you are made a son and heir!

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Life According To…

New Covenant life is life according to the Spirit. It is a way of life where the just live by faith.

Habakkuk 2:4 “Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith.

Romans 1:17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

Galatians 3:11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.”

Hebrews 10:38 Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”

In the New Covenant, things dramatically changed from what they had been under the Old Covenant of Law. Under the Old Covenant of Law people were given rules to live by. If they could avoid breaking any of those rules, they would be blessed. If they violated even one of those rules, they would be cursed.

Galatians 3:10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the

book of the law, to do them.”

Under the New Covenant, life with God is done by having the Holy Spirit as our guide and comforter who leads us according to the will of God and reveals Jesus to us in an ever-increasing way.

Galatians 2:16 knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.

Galatians 3:12 Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.”

Galatians 2:20 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.

A life lived according to the Spirit is a life lived by faith in the Son of God. Confidence doesn’t come from law-based obedience but rather from relationship-based surrender that is born of faith. It is a faith that flows and grows by means of the Holy Spirit’s revelation. It is a very relational faith indeed.

True New Covenant faith-based obedience will never outpace your relationship understanding and experience with Jesus. The closer you are to Him, the greater your surrender will be to His ways. This surrender transforms you into His image and leads you into greater adventures with Him. It’s a surrender that moves you to rely even more upon the Holy Spirit for help.

You can never really know and experience all that you were created for until you learn to lose yourself in Christ. Losing yourself in Him leads you to humble yourself and rely on the Holy Spirit, just as He humbled Himself, became a man, and relied fully on the Holy Spirit.

You are never more like Jesus than when you humbly and fully rely on the help of the Holy Spirit to know and do according to the Father’s will in your daily life.

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The Evidence Of Faith

Many years ago, when I asked Sheila, my wife, to marry me, and she said yes, I began to prepare and make plans for our wedding day, our honeymoon, and our life together. I altered my life to accommodate her becoming my wife and sharing a place with me.

I went out and rented a two-story, two-bedroom townhouse as the place where we would start our married life together.  I saved money for our honeymoon and reserved accommodations for it.

I did all these things even though we had not stood before witnesses and exchanged vows yet.  I did not wait until after the I do to make these preparations because I already believed we would be married just as she and I had promised each other.

She also made preparations. Our faith in each other’s promises moved us into action and preparation.

Faith is not dormant.  It is not lazy.  It is not inactive.

Faith activates, mobilizes, and moves people into action based on what they believe.

Jesus said something profound,

Luke 8:19 Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd. 20 And it was told Him by some, who said, “Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You.”  21 But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.”

When the word of God is heard and believed, it moves a person to act on what it is they have believed.

Merely talking about what one believes is not the same as acting on it. Faith opens the door of understanding to the next step. It lights the path of the will of God in the moment. It shines a spotlight on the opportunity and possibility before a person according to God’s desire and the aid of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus spoke of doing what was heard, not just hearing it and agreeing with it because it was too difficult to argue against in the first place.

Dead religion seeks agreement and is happy to hear someone parrot what they say is important. If there are discussions on it and everyone simply agrees, that is enough to satisfy dead religion. But real faith is never satisfied with mere agreement. Real faith has to do something about what is accepted as truth and believed to be right. Real faith will always act on it.

The evidence of faith is always the action that follows it. I believed and had faith that I would be married to Sheila, and it moved me into actions that altered my life. I believed and put my faith in Jesus, and it forever altered who I am and how I live. Faith changes a person from the inside out.  Faith will always provide more than enough evidence to prove it exists by what is done as a result of it.

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Last Days

With the recent 2024 solar eclipse, it appears that many all of a sudden had the last days on their minds.

There’s something about celestial events that stir up in people the idea that the end is drawing near.

I would agree that we live in the last days, even without a solar eclipse to consider.

The description Scripture offers us for knowing this has nothing to do with celestial events.

2 Timothy 3:1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!

I believe this sufficiently describes our generation today.  So I think it is safe to say we are in the last days.

It reminds me of the times when I was in school; the day for a test was drawing near, and we all began to press hard to prepare for it.  We didn’t want to fail.  To avoid failing the test, we prepared ourselves for what we knew was coming.

A sports team prepares for the upcoming opponent they know they will face.  They practice offensive and defensive game plans in a quest for victory.  They access the opposition and plan accordingly for them.

Finding ourselves in the midst of a generation that has lost its way while thinking it is finding it, we are wisely advised in Scripture.

Ephesians 5:15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, 16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.   17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

Redeeming time is by knowing God’s will so that we can participate in it. This is also called wisdom.

Is there any indication in Scripture regarding the will of God for the last days?

Acts 2:17 “And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,  That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams.

The outpouring of the Spirit occurs during the last days. It is God’s will that it be so because it is necessary to sustain His children in evil times and set them apart. For me, this reality of the Holy Spirit’s move in the lives of believers is important.  I want to be as prepared as I can be, so I humble myself and acknowledge my great need to be filled with the Holy Spirit all the time because in evil times, knowing His will matters.  It is His will that the Spirit is poured out on all flesh, meaning simply without respect of persons.  So whether you are male, female, young or old, rich or poor, and regardless of race, so long as you are His, the opportunity to experience an outpouring of the Holy Spirit in your life is always available.

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An Incorruptible Inheritance

1Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls. 10 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into.

I’m so glad that what Jesus did will not fade away and that the inheritance He secured for me is incorruptible and undefiled.

It can be good to know that the trials we face are meant to bring forth praise, honor, and glory to God as we stand in faith, unshaken in our testimony of His goodness and grace.

By continuing to believe in Him despite all the odds and circumstances the enemy desires to use to tell us it is of no use, we demonstrate our love for Him. Believers in Jesus experience many of the same things those who do not believe experience in this life. We live in a fallen world.

But believers know they have received something special when they are given new life in Christ—something so special that angels desire to look into it, and the prophets longed to see it in their day.

We have been brought into a living hope!  It is not a hope on life support.  It is a hope that lives and increases all the more.

When we believe as we should, it produces the fruit of joy, inexpressible, and full of glory!

All this is made possible through Jesus’s resurrection from the dead. His resurrection testifies to us that for those who are in Him, there is something to look forward to because just as He was raised from the dead, so also shall all who belong to Him be raised from the dead on the day of His return.  We have already been made alive again by means of resurrection when His story became our story by reason of our being placed in Him and He in us.  It is a grand story too good for some to believe, but for those who have it is wonderful and alive!  I hope you will rejoice today in your incorruptible inheritance given to you in Christ.

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Need Wisdom?

Life is filled with choices. How we make our choices determines whether or not we get to enjoy the benefits we’ve been given in Christ. The benefits are already there, and ours in Christ.  But the act of receiving what is already available is affected by our choices.

Faith can receive what has been secured by Christ, and it activates direction and the right course of action.  Life will bring situations and circumstances into a believer’s life that will put their faith to the test.

James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

In the walk of faith, we believe something that is not yet seen but is just as real as if it were seen. So we are equipped with the patience to conduct ourselves as though it is already ours, and that changes how we conduct ourselves towards God and towards others. It results in living in the completeness provided to us in Christ. Living in completeness brings the reward of contentment.

To live in that completeness requires wisdom beyond ourselves.  To receive that wisdom we need requires real faith.  A pretend faith will never be able to receive what is so freely offered to us in Christ just for the asking.

James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

The first step to receiving wisdom is realizing our need for it. We do not ask for something we think we can obtain all on our own.

The second step to receiving God’s wisdom, which is the highest and best wisdom, is the realization that it is to be treasured above all other wisdom.  There is no wisdom of earth that can compare to the wisdom of God.

The third step to receiving God’s wisdom is boldly asking Him for it from a place of believing that not only will He give it, but He will give it to you freely and generously without reprimanding you for why you asked for it to begin with.  He is not going to chide you about how you came to the place of needing to seek His wisdom to start with.  He is simply willing to offer you His wisdom.  He will give you more wisdom than you asked for to start with too!  Remember, according to James, this act of asking was precipitated by the trial of your faith.

But there’s something we all must understand if we are to get the wisdom we ask for. We must ask in faith. That means we ask with confidence that it is ours even before we can see it manifesting.  We do not act as though God did not come through on His end just because things do not turn around in that instant. We apply what we sense is being revealed to us as the course of action on our part, and we stay the course with patience, knowing that the seed of wisdom sown so quietly and inconspicuously will spring forth in its proper time.

But be mindful and aware.  A person who asks with a divided mind should not expect anything from the Lord, not because the Lord withheld it, but because that person is in no shape to receive it.  Everything Christ has done for us and made available to us can only be received by faith.  Doubt obstructs one’s ability to take advantage of what has been done.  When faith asks, faith receives!

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Not Knowing

I have traveled to quite a few nations in which I do not know the language or the customs. It can be a challenge to be in such situations without someone familiar with such things with you—someone who can speak the language and understand what is actually happening.

Not knowing can be a trying place to find oneself.  So it is when it comes to doing life as a disciple.  To not know God’s will is to be left in the dark about purpose and what steps to take.

We cannot respond to something we are not aware of, and we cannot show up to something we do not know is happening. Not knowing will often produce unrest in a disciple.

Confidence springs out of knowing with certainty.

When confidence in knowing is lacking in our own lives, we tend to rely on someone else’s knowing. This is why some people desire rules. It leads people to legalism and allows those who have a strong sense of knowing to lord over them.

There is no real freedom in not knowing.

But what are we to know, and who is supposed to make it clear to us?

Ephesians 5:17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

Jesus came to make us sons of the Father so that we could know the Father, who He is, and His ways based on our relationship with Him. Through our relationship, we can know His will for our lives. Knowing His will is another way of saying that we know His desires for us.

Being ignorant of His desires for us leaves us at the mercy of others and what they say we ought to be and do. It subjects us to a dependency on someone else’s knowing. I’m not shirking any accountability in a believer’s life in saying this.  We do not get to defy what is clearly revealed as God’s will for believers in Scripture.  But when it comes to our own very personal purpose in this life as one of His sons, that is for Him to reveal to us.

Jesus did not give His life to make us clones or subjects of some other man or woman. He gave His life to reconcile us to God and make it possible for us to know God intimately enough to know His will for our lives and be empowered by the Holy Spirit to pursue it.

When this relationship opportunity isn’t taken full advantage of, a person often slips into the rut of following after fads, celebrity personalities, or looking for someone who will tell them what they think they should be or do.  They tend to turn mentors into masters and then struggle when they eventually find flaws in the ones they rely on.

Not knowing can be a dangerous place to live.  No believer should ever have to live in a place where they do not know God’s will and are empowered by the Holy Spirit to pursue it.  Christ did not die to make us slaves of men or sin.  He died to set us free from sin and its dominion over us and to bring us to God with the freedom to know and pursue His will.  We are slaves of righteousness now!  That means we are slaves to being right with God and enjoy Him having the ability to hear His voice for ourselves.

I encourage you not to go one day “Not Knowing” Him and His will for your life.

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Confident Peace

It can be popular to speak of peace despite the circumstances, but what does it really look like to experience such peace?

Last night, local weather went on and on about the danger ahead with pending severe storms moving through our area.  They forecasted that much of it would happen near midnight.  I assume there were some, if not many, who stayed up to keep an eye on things based on the possibility forecasted.  That would mean they lost sleep over the speculation of what might happen.

What might happen seems to be a way of life for many. Decisions made based on speculation can be poor ones.

Jesus exhibited peace in every situation, and He faced some serious ones.  Jesus not only exhibited peace, He is peace and promised to leave His peace with us.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

There are all kinds of things in this world that wish to give us a reason to be anxious and unsure.

They come to us with good arguments for why we should let go of the peace Jesus promised and give way to worry and stress about them.

Jesus was so at peace that He could sleep in a boat in the middle of a storm at sea while His disciples panicked that they were about to sink.

Jesus was so at peace that He could appoint a man who He knew would betray Him and was a thief at heart to be the treasurer of His ministry.

Let that one sink in for a moment.  Money is often the number one source of worry for most people.  It is at the center of many a broken relationship.

Jesus knew something so concretely that He could go through all that He did without losing His peace.

Jesus has made certain promises to those who follow Him, and when those promises are truly believed, they provide comfort and confidence that bring out the fruit of peace.

When the disciples panicked about a raging sea, Jesus spoke to it and said, “Peace be still.”

What might there be happening in your life right now that needs “peace be still” spoken to it?

What has caused you to be anxious or stressed? Jesus cares about it. He offers His peace as a gift in its stead. Confident peace can be yours today. Here’s a closing tip straight from the Word.

Philippians 4:6   Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

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Resurrection Life

Ephesians 1:19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power 20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,

The Apostle Paul prayed this would be part of the understanding the Ephesians would possess.

God exhibited the exceeding greatness of His power towards us when He raised Jesus from the dead!

We need to grasp this according to the work of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand.

Resurrection is more than just a good story; it is meant to empower us!

Acts 4:33 And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.

By saying Christ was raised from the dead after saying that all the sin of the world was put upon Him at the cross and He took it with Him into the grave, we are saying that when He came out of the grave, the sin He carried with Him into the grave was no longer with Him coming out!

He was truly victorious over sin, which gave Him authority to take away the keys of hell and death from satan!

Revelation 1:17…………….“Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. 18 I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.

According to Romans 6, when Jesus died, we died with Him, and when Jesus rose from the dead, we were raised in newness of life with Him!  When Christ was seated at the right hand, we were seated with Him!  His story is now our story.  He has included us by placing us in Him!

At the cross, the sin of the world came upon Jesus, and He took it with Him into the grave.  When Jesus arose, sin was left behind in the grave, and He emerged from the grave in righteousness and true holiness.  When Paul speaks of our being in the likeness of His resurrection, this is what he is speaking about!

Because His story is now our story, His victory has become our victory! We are not victorious because of what we have done to make ourselves righteous. We are victorious because He has imputed to us His victory and righteousness.

Resurrection proves that the power of sin has been broken for you and me. Just as Jesus was raised righteous and holy from the grave, so we who have believed have been raised in righteousness and true holiness.

1 Corinthians 15:56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.

Jesus took the law out of the way for us when He brought us into His New Covenant!

Colossians 2:13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.

Resurrection life is intended to be our daily reality!  Rejoice today and always in the life you have been given in Him!

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Good Friday

Have you ever had high hopes for something, and just before it was, in your thinking, about to unfold, it just disappeared?

How would you feel if you had just watched the most significant person you had ever known be unjustly put to death in the cruelest of ways?

Just imagine for a moment that the one person you have admired more than any other person who has ever lived and with whom you have spent the last three years of your life doing pretty much everything together is killed in a whirlwind of drama. The one person all your hopes and dreams were built on was taken away from you in a moment, and your highest hopes disappeared like a fog once the sun arose.

It doesn’t sound like a Good Friday, does it?  Yet that is what we as believers celebrate every Friday before Easter, or as I like to call it, Resurrection Day comes.

If we follow the Biblical narrative, Jesus had already entered triumphantly into Jerusalem not too long before and later celebrated Passover with His disciples. Afterward, He needed to pray and went to Gethsemene to do so with three of His disciples. That is where Jesus determined to go through with what He knew was God’s will for Him. Then, the temple soldiers arrived and took Him away to be tried.

After a mock trial and being slapped and spit on, He was handed over to Pontius Pilot for trial, where His people turned against Him in favor of a thief and murderer.  With shouts of crucify Him, Jesus was betrayed by His won race and handed over for crucifixion.

His disciples were scattered; one had denied Him at His first trial just as Jesus said He would, and there was only one who hung around to see Him die on the cross.  On that cross, Jesus cried out, “Father, why have You forsaken me?” as the sin of the world came upon Him there.

This is the scene of what we call Good Friday.  But we see it in retrospect.  The men and women who had followed Jesus up to that point did not possess such a luxury.  They were faced with dire circumstances, having watched the one who raised the dead, healed the sick, made the lame to walk and the blind to see be killed by the hands of men, so it seemed.  Where was their faith?  Jesus had spoken to them to prepare them for this.

Those first ones in faith received and proved the text that promises,

2 Timothy 2:13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

Jesus remained faithful to those men and women. Three days later, He appeared to them and began the process of restoring them and their hope. You might be in what you perceive as the greatest struggle of your life right now. Your latest and best hope is shattered by the reality of circumstances like those first followers experienced. But is all hope lost? Could you be about to experience something amazing happen?

Good Friday screams at us, if we will, but listen—hope is never lost when it is placed on Jesus!  Good Friday teaches us to wait on the Lord, and He will renew our strength.  This story of hope lost and then recovered is why it is called Good Friday by the generations who now know based on retrospect.

I sincerely hope you have a Good Friday today and always!

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Hypocrisy?

If what you claim to know and are learning is not being applied to you personally and causing change, and then you seek to speak it to others as though you possess it, that is the definition of a hypocrite.

The first step to owning what the Holy Spirit is showing you is to share what He pinged you about with someone else and then talk about how you are applying it to your own life.

Revel in how you realize you needed it, be thankful the Holy Spirit revealed it, and then speak to others you respect about how you plan to take your first step, expecting that they will be lovingly willing to ask you later how you are doing with applying what you revealed.

This is discipleship 101 in the body of Christ, and if leaders can’t get it, imagine what the rest of the culture in the church will look like.

Matthew 23:15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

What was the issue here with Jesus?

The issue was that these leaders were hypocrites.  What made them hypocrites?

Matthew 23:1 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. 4 For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 5 But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 6 They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, 7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’ 8 But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.

Doing things to impress men and seeking to instruct others without first applying the truth to oneself out of embracing the will of God for oneself is hypocrisy. Religious leaders were guilty of this during Jesus’ time on earth, and many are still doing this today. They rejected His invitation and were threatened by the grace He was binging.

Seeking to teach others without any hint of the self-discipline to apply the truth to one’s own life and practice is hypocrisy.  Being too busy to allow the Holy Spirit to speak and to bring change into one’s own life before seeking to teach it to others is hypocrisy.  His love and grace bring change, and beholding Him brings transformation.

If I am unwilling to apply what I teach to myself and allow myself to be held accountable for what I teach, then I am behaving as a hypocrite.  I do not desire to behave as a hypocrite, and that leads me to ask for the Holy Spirit’s help in owning the truth He reveals to me regarding Christ and His ways.  I desire to move beyond the information stage to the practice stage, where a real disciple of Jesus is made.  That way, when I speak to others, I am speaking as a disciple, friend, and brother in Christ, not a holier than thou pharisaical do-gooder.  To me, this is real holiness expressed.  Hypocrisy is the opposite of true holiness.

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Disciple

Disciples are predestined to be conformed.  It is built into our spiritual DNA when we are born again!

Romans 8:29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.

This work of conformity is ongoing. It will continue as long as we draw a breath on this earth.

2Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Disciples desire to see Jesus, encounter Him, and engage with Him with purpose. The purpose is to become more and more like Him. The value of seeking Him and seeing Him is the yearning to be transformed into the same image, which results in ever-increasing glory.  This work requires the help of the Holy Spirit.

Valuing rooted in love is powerful.  Without love-based values, we remain stuck in our usual routines and patterns. Rules and regulations cannot change a person.  They can inform a person, but they cannot change them. Just having information that you agree with does not change you.  It must become a value that is rooted in love in order to move you to be willing to embrace change.  Until you are convinced in your soul that change is the way for you to express your love and, therefore, it is of utmost importance to you to do so, you will not even begin the process of transformation.

I have seen men so in love with a certain car that they would work more hours, sell certain things less important to them, and spend hours making sure they found that car and could purchase it. Once they get that car, they spend money and time doing things to it; they maintain and care for it; why? Because they love that car.

Love is the greatest motivator in all of the universe!

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

God placed a value on you out of love, and it moved Him to give His most precious thing, His own Son!  This is the reason love is activated in the life of a disciple.

1John 4:19 We love Him because He first loved us.

God is the great initiator because God is love.  Because God is love, this world and mankind were created by Him with a purpose.  When we are given a revelation from the Holy Spirit about His love for us, we are moved to do something about it.  That begins with believing in Jesus for salvation and a new life.  That moves us to follow Jesus by learning who He is and what He likes so that we can adjust to Him out of love for Him because He first loved us.  This is a disciple!

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Discipleship Lifestyle

I know a lot about the likes and dislikes of my wife, Sheila, and I can claim that my knowledge concerning her is proof of my knowing her and loving her. But is it really?

If my knowledge does not empower me to embrace who she is and respect her desires, then I will not be empowered to express my love to her.  For example, I may learn that she loves a certain color on the walls of a room in our house, but even though I possess the knowledge, if I go in and paint the walls a color she dislikes, have I communicated love to her?  If I disregard what really matters to her, knowing she feels very strongly about it, am I expressing my love for her?

If she were to plant a bed of flowers in our yard because they bring her great joy and satisfaction, and I observed her happiness with them, what if I went out one day and mowed in a hurry and just cut down her flowers?  Would I be expressing love to her?

Love is not about speaking words we’ve been taught to say.  It is not about songs that move us emotionally in a moment.  It’s not about warm and fuzzy feelings.  Love will always call for action.  Jesus knew this better than anyone, and that is why He said the following,

John 14:15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.

When we see a word like commandments we can get tripped up.  But what if we brought this statement forward into the way we talk today?

“If you love me, you will not just hear what I am saying; you will listen closely and embrace my values as your own, which will empower you to make choices and take action in step with what they are.”

True Biblical repentance is not merely changing your mind to agree with something you are incapable of arguing against.  It is changing your mind but it also involves an action.

Without action, it is not Biblical repentance.  It is a mental agreement.  Jesus never said to go and make converts who cannot argue with the truth and will agree but are never transformed.  Jesus said, Mt 28:18-20

“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Disciples walk in real repentance as a way of life because they are constantly seeking to know Jesus’ ways so they can adopt them as their own.  Disciples who love Jesus are not merely interested in knowledge for the sake of knowledge.  Their desire to know is rooted in a desire to conform to His image.  His image is not His physical appearance.  His image is His desires and actions, the things He cares about most.  Love moves us to admire, respect, and imitate Jesus according to who He is and how He acts.

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Not Of This World

Whenever I travel, I am keenly aware that I am away from my home.  My awareness is possible because of the change in culture I witnessed.  There is a certain flow, a certain way, even a particular language that occurs in the culture of my home area.

I remember visiting Detroit many years ago and going to a place to order some food. When it was my turn, I communicated as clearly as I knew how what I desired for a meal. The girl behind the counter asked me to repeat my order, and I did.  She then asked to wait a moment and left the counter.  She returned with a young man.  She then asked me to repeat once more what I wished to order.  I responded by telling her I had already given her my order twice, so why would she ask me again?  She said, I just wanted him to hear it.  Then they asked me where I was from, and I told them.  It appeared my accent was quite odd to them.  We all used the English language, but in Detroit, my use of it had a particular accent based on where I am from that was markedly different from the one they had in Detroit.

In other words, whenever I am away from my actual home, I stand out; it is not difficult for others to recognize I am not from around their parts.  I was raised in east Tennessee and, therefore, immersed in the culture and language of it.  It is obvious to those who are not from that area.

Jesus prayed a very important prayer right before He went to the Garden of Gethsemane and then on to the cross.  We find it in John 17

John 17:14 I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.

Believers are not of this world. In fact, they are created in Christ to be so different from this world and its culture that they stand out—just as I stand out whenever I travel.  If our making it to heaven was the only reason Jesus gave His life, then what He prays in verse 15 was an exercise in futility and uselessness.  He didn’t ask that we be taken out of this world as soon as we believe in Him, but He did ask that we be kept from the evil one.  Why?  He knows that the more we stand out, the more identifiable we become and that the enemy will desire to target us as a result.

We are not of this world, just as Jesus was not of this world.  When I travel, I usually do so with a purpose in mind.  Once that purpose is accomplished I am ready to return home.  That is how it was with Jesus.  That is how it is to be with His followers.  That is why Jesus prayed that we would be sanctified by the truth.  Not just any truth.  Jesus said to the Father, Your word is truth.

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

The truth we are sanctified by is Jesus.  Jesus is the truth.  It is His life given to us that sets us apart from all else in this world, and the more we are transformed into His image from beholding Him, the less like this world we become.  He rearranges all the things that are important to us in this life by giving us His desires and instilling in us what it is He values most.  It is true that I look forward to when I get home, but in the meantime, I more purposefully want others to see Jesus in how I live my life.  A man surrendered to the purpose he’s been given by His Father and submitted to the Holy Spirit just as Jesus was.  I know this will mark me as being different in this world, and as such, there will be those who aren’t pleased with me for it.  But I would much rather be in unity with God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) than to be well-liked and in unity with this world.  I am not of this world.

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