October 17, 2017
God desires that all humanity would be saved. Yet, we know from the Scriptures that only those who believe will receive God’s salvation. The tension between what God “desires” for us and what humanity desires for itself is difficult to ease. We tend to overstate one side or the other, either making too little or too much of man’s free will. However, let us just consider the fact that God “desires” to save us, absent the doctrinal conundrum for a moment. This surely reveals to us something about God. He created us. He loves us. And He wants to save us and be known by us. That God “desires all men to be saved” reveals the loving heart of our God that would motivate Him to send His only Son, Jesus, to actually purchase what He Himself desired.
October 16, 2017
The apostle Paul was thankful to the Lord Jesus for changing him from a persecutor to a preacher. He spoke of the Lord’s enablement–– that it was the Lord who empowered him to preach. He spoke of his calling–– that it was the Lord who “counted” him worthy. In other words, Paul wasn’t really worthy. He wasn’t really “faithful.” But the Lord counted his confession of faith as righteousness. The Lord’s faithfulness was accounted unto Paul, so that it became Paul’s faithfulness. Finally, the Lord “put” Paul into ministry. The Lord had a specific purpose and place for Paul. And Paul was pleased and thankful to fulfill it.
I join the apostle Paul in thankfulness on this Monday morning. I am thankful to Jesus that he enables me, counts me faithful and that he put me into the ministry.
Want to join me and Paul in some Monday morning thankfulness today?
October 15, 2017
Solomon answers the question, “Can we ever have too much of a good thing?” In short, his answer is, “Yes.” Instead, we should practice moderation, “eating only what we need.”
Our problem: We’re all born with a sin nature that the Bible calls the “flesh.” The flesh always wants more. It is never satisfied. God gave Adam and Eve every tree and every fruit in the garden, but one. Yet, they had to have the one. We are their children. We eat too much, drink too much, sleep too much, say too much… we desire too much, always to excess. We always want more.
Be warned. We have a self-inflicted sickness. It comes from the sin nature, which is the flesh. It has an insatiable appetite. It always drives us to excess. What we need is a new nature, one born from above. We need a new nature that is born again by the Holy Spirit, so that we have the spiritual fruit of self-control. Then, we will be able to enjoy the good things of life… in moderation, “eating only as much as we need.”
October 14, 2017
This proverb describes how to persuade “a ruler.” In modern leadership parlay, this principle is called, “leading up.” Some may think it impossible to lead a boss or supervisor. Yet, Solomon taught how to do just that.
Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs to give his son wisdom on how to live. It is filled with practical instruction. In this proverb, he taught the importance of “forbearance” and “gentleness” when it comes to leading those who have authority over us. “Forbearance” is the art of patient, self-restraint in offering advice. Solomon called this “long forbearance,” because it takes patience to gain influence as an advisor to your boss. “Gentleness” is the second attribute that Solomon prescribed. It is the art of making sure your supervisor feels no challenge, nor rebellion in you. Being gentle in your feedback, your influence grows as the leader’s trust in you grows.
True leadership is more about influence than position. You don’t have to have a title to have influence. You only need wisdom like Solomon’s, which is ours in Christ Jesus. And He would have us use this influence, in forbearance and gentleness, to lead others to hear the gospel and follow Him.
As the apostle Peter wrote, “Always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15). When we share the gospel, we lead up, not down.
October 13, 2017
Paul prayed for the believers in Thessalonica. In all the things he prayed for them, he prayed that Jesus would get the glory for it. Three questions/observations concerning this glory:
1) What is glory?
Some synonyms are: Honor, credit, renown, praise, worship, beauty, splendor. What is this glory? It is about who gets the honor and who gets the praise.
2) How might Christ’s name be glorified “in you?”
It begins with your self-acknowledgement that all you are and all you have comes from Him. You glorify Christ in your heart. Then, it radiates outward into your words and deeds, so that the name of Christ is glorified in all you say and do.
3) How are you to be glorified “in Him?”
Is this true? Will we share in Christ’s glory? Yes, but not because of our own accomplishment, but “according to the grace” of God, accomplished in Christ. By faith we have become God’s children and “joint heirs” with Christ, so that all that is His, is now also ours, including His glory. As Paul wrote to the Romans, “And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory” (Rom. 8:17). So, this glory is part of our inheritance in Christ!
If we live for our own glory, we will not share in Christ’s. But if we live for His glory, according to His grace, then we will share in Christ’s glory forevermore!
October 12, 2017
Instructions to the people of God for the poor, the fatherless, the afflicted and the needy:
1. Defend them. They are among the least powerful in society. They need your defense. Stand with them when more powerful people and power centers mistreat them.
2. Do justice towards them. Treat them fairly and with dignity. Don’t join those who look down on them.
3. Deliver them. Give them the message of deliverance, which is the gospel. And with it, help deliver them from their physical needs for food, clothing and shelter.
4. Free them. Many of them are enslaved by addictions. Be involved in ministry to them that would break their changes.
Jesus taught that when we care for the hungry, the thirsty, the homeless, the naked, the sick and the prisoner, then we have cared for Him. Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me” (Matt. 25:40).
How will we involve ourselves in this ministry to the “least of these?”
October 11, 2017
Here we have worship instructions for God’s people. Six ways to get your praise on:
1) “Sing aloud.” Come on! Let loose. Really sing out to God for He is our strength.
2) “Make a joyful shout.” Shout it out. Not just any kind of shout, but a joyful shout. And this to the Lord.
3) “Raise a song.” Get others singing with you. Sing until others join in and raise the roof.
4) “Strike the timbrel.” Now we’re breaking out the percussion. The timbrel was either a tambourine or finger cymbals.
5) “…the harp. Today’s piano.
6) “… the lute.” Today’s guitar.
Worship the Lord. You were made for it. And He is worthy of it.
October 10, 2017
The apostle Paul wrote his first letter to the new believers at Thessalonica after hearing Timothy’s report concerning them. He was working in Athens when he felt compelled to send Timothy back to check on them. When Timothy returned to him with his great report of their continued faith in the Lord and their longing to see Paul again, he was overjoyed. He thanked God for them to such degree that he questioned how he might be even more thankful for them. Perhaps his thankfulness could be better expressed if he could only see them face to face and continue to “perfect” (“bring to completion”) their discipleship, he reasoned.
Paul was a firm believer in life on life discipleship. He always wanted to be face to face with those he was mentoring that he might “perfect” their discipleship, training them up to maturity in Christ. As he mentioned earlier in his letter, his discipleship included not only giving them the gospel, but also giving them himself because of his love for them (1 Thess. 2:8). This is the combination of spiritual and relational power that life on life discipleship brings to bear.
October 9, 2017
The Lord often gave the prophet Jeremiah physical assignments in order to illustrate His feelings about Israel and Judah. After Jeremiah would perform the assignment, the Lord would explain its significance. The “linen sash” was one such assignment. The Lord would later explain that, “as the sash clings to the waist of a man, so I have caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cling to Me” (Jer. 13:11).
The linen sash was to be worn about the waist. This would speak of the close intimacy with which God had joined Israel and Judah to Himself.
That it wasn’t to be “put in water,” may have referred to the normal bleaching and washing in water that linen cloth would be put through to make it clean and white. This symbolized Israel and Judah, whom by grace God had adopted as His own, even while still in a rough and unwashed state (Eze. 16:4).
After Jeremiah had worn the linen sash around his waist for a while, the Lord told him to go to the “Euphrates and hide it there in a hole in the rock” (Jer. 13:4). After several days, the Lord had him return and retrieve the sash. But it was ruined by its exposure to the elements, “profitable for nothing” (Jer. 13:7). Jeremiah could no longer wear it.
The Lord told Jeremiah that His intent was that Israel and Judah would have clung to Him. But instead, they had fallen into the “hole” of idolatry with the foreign peoples of the land. His desire was that they would have become His people, for renown, for praise, and for glory; but they would not hear” (Jer. 13:11).
Can you picture Jeremiah holding the ruined sash up over his head and preaching to Israel and Judah? Can you hear him saying, “You were meant to cling to the Lord for glory and praise, but you ruined yourself by choosing to cling to false gods instead!”?
To whom are you “clinging” today?
October 8, 2017
The Lord reminded Jeremiah that the Mosaic Covenant was conditional. It contained both blessing and curse that was conditional upon their obedience to the law. Obeying the law, they were under its blessing. Disobeying the law, they came under its curse. Israel was unable to obey the law, so they fell under the curse of the law.
However, the Abrahamic Covenant was unconditional. God gave it freely by His grace. It was based on God’s promise, not God’s law. This covenantal promise was given to Abraham that in his “Seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed” (Gen. 22:18). The apostle Paul said that this “Seed” is Christ (Gal. 3:16).
A promise must be believed to be received, but a law must be obeyed. Yet, both the promise and the law were fulfilled in Christ Jesus. For He who knew no sin, became sin for us and has “redeemed us from the curse of the law” by becoming accursed Himself (Gal. 3:13). Christ has taken our curse that we might receive His blessing.
The promise reveals God’s GRACE, but the law reveals our GUILT. So, let us rejoice and be glad that the blessing of salvation depends on God’s PROMISE, not our PERFORMANCE!