Passage of the Day: Ephesians 5: 15 [note terms in bold] – [NIV] … 15 Be very careful, then, how you live — not as unwise but as wise, …
Ephesians 5: 15 [note terms in bold] – [NASB] … 15 Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, …
My Journal for Today: John MacArthur, in his Strength for Today devotional on this date, returns to Ephesians 5: 15 to emphasize the exhortation to Christians to “walk carefully” in Christ. I’ve added the NASB version of today’s key verse above because it uses the translated term “walk,” which is another translation from the Greek, rather than “live,” as in the NIV. I like the term “walk” paired with “be very careful” because, as MacArthur alludes in his devotional, they can create the word picture of a soldier being so very careful as he clears a minefield.
I’ll return to this mental image; but focusing on the Greek, term “akribos,” which has been accurately rendered in the NIV for Eph. 5: 15, “to be very careful;” and it’s a term which means to be hyper-vigilant to what is going on around us in the world. The second key term in today’s verse is “paripateo” in the Greek; and it refers to our ”daily living or walk,” especially those habits or disciplines which comprise our habitual walk in the world. Using these terms together, Paul was saying to the Ephesians, and to us [paraphrased], “As you walk everyday in this world, walk with extreme care and vigilance!”
And that’s why the mine-clearing soldier image is so apropos in this exhortation. Wouldn’t you agree that life, as we know it, truly is a minefield? And I’ve often asked this question of other Christians, “If you had to walk through a minefield, would you rather be first; or would you rather follow someone who knows exactly where every mine is placed?” The answer is a no-brainer, of course. And applied to Eph. 5: 15, Paul is saying that the wise Christian will do all he can to seek the perfect minefield walker; and that, my dear readers, is Jesus; and then we follow Him.
Christ commanded His disciples (in Matt. 16: 24, Mark 8: 34; and one which I probably quote more than any other in ministry, Luke 9: 23) to follow Him ever so closely by denying ourselves. Proverbs 3: 5 commands the believer to trust God’s way completely and not try to walk in life using our own ideas; and Prov. 3: 6 promises that if we do that, God will lead us carefully down His pathway of life. And God’s pathway, even if it’s fraught with “mines,” is always the safest path to follow. Hence, our need to be vigilant and disciplined in following our Lord rather than our own feelings and flesh-driven ideas.
To the world, a “careful walk” might mean using our head knowledge, gleaned from worldly education, science, or even from man-made religion, to avoid the dangerous circumstances of life. It might encourage the worldly warrior to take on the minefield alone by using modern technology or to follow religious positive thinking gurus to point out the mines of life; but the truth of such strategies would place us at the mercy of others who are simply trying to show us the way by man-created technologies or thought processes. When we follow the way of Prov. 3: 5 – 6 and/or Luke 9: 23, merely trusting and following Christ, we may not always avoid the dangers of life’s minefields; but we’ll always know that God will bring us through the minefields of life the right way! And I don’t know about you; but I’d much rather follow Jesus through life than risk doing it on my own.
My Prayer Today: Lead me, Lord, and I will walk where You walk. Amen
Showing posts with label daily discipline. Show all posts
Showing posts with label daily discipline. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Friday, December 17, 2010
2010 – December 17 – Working Out for an Eternity
Study from God’s Word… The entire letter from Paul to Timothy – 1st Timothy, Chapters 1 – 6 … Passage for Reflection: 1st Timothy 4: 7 - 8 [note highlight text in bold/underlined] … NIV 7 Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. 8 For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 9 This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance.
My Journal for Today: “No pain, no gain!” You’ve heard that trite, but true, old saying when it comes to physical exercise. And no one, who is intelligent, denies that all of us should be committed to maintain the physical temple that God has given each one of us. And Paul even recognized this when he was writing to the young evangelist/pastor of the church in Ephesus, Timothy, whom he regarded as his spiritual protégé. But Paul also exhorted Timothy to recognize, even more than the discipline of physical exercise, that all Christians, especially called leaders, anointed by God to lead His church, should put any even higher, eternal priority on maintaining the disciplines of the faith. Hence, we read Paul’s instruction to Timothy in today’s highlight passage to do all that it takes to maintain a regimen of spiritual discipline which models Christlikeness and exhibits the preparation with which all of us should be preparing for the heavenly life to come.
Dr. Smith is right-on today, when he writes, ”Considering that even the best toned bodies will eventually die and decompose, exercising the soul must surely take top priority.” And he says that when it comes to decisions we make on what we must do to maintain good bodily, emotional, and spiritual good health, we should prioritize those disciplines which give us eternal rewards above all other disciplines.
I often ask people whom I teach if they brush their teeth every day; and then I ask how many floss. Fewer people do the latter everyday; but almost everyone reports brushing their teeth daily. And everyone who does either discipline knows why they are doing it … to prevent tooth and gum decay. But when I ask how many – in a given class or audience – have a rigorous workout in God’s word and in prayer EVERY DAY, even though Christians know that this is a good and Godly thing to do, few report being committed to maintain this eternally important discipline of the faith. Dr. Smith asks, as his motivating application question, today: ”How can I hope to be fit for eternity if I shrink from the painful routine of stretching myself spiritually?” … Ugh! No pain, no gain!
Right now, at this very moment, as we close out 2010, I’m convicted that I need to be doing more to keep fit with regard to my bodily health by getting in the swimming pool and swimming laps more often than I’m currently doing. It’s an aerobic exercise I can do even though I have pretty bad hip arthritis. I need to remember and exercise more regularly and rigorously to maintain the physical temple God has given me (take note of 1st Cor. 6: 19 – 20 - linked).
But though I need to more finely tuned as to my prayer regimen daily, I can report here – for accountability purposes – and being regarded as a “Pastor,” Elder, Minister, and teacher in my church, that I do keep a rather rigorous daily discipline of maintaining my devotional studies in God’s word … EVERYDAY, … because I know just how vulnerable I am to spiritual lethargy and inertia when/if I were to break my discipline and “take a vacation” from my daily devotional routines.
Anyone who has followed me, by reading here, knows that I do prioritize my time to insure that I report my devotional journal daily by blogging what God has given me in my spiritual “exercise” for that day. And I’m bragging only here on my God, Who ALWAYS enables me to do what HE calls me to do.
So, as we close out 2010 and enter 2011, I will make a covenant commitment to God and anyone reading here that I’ll be rolling out every morning – usually early – to pray and to dive into God’s word, seeking the spiritual success God promised to Joshua (and to me) if he (and I) would meditate on God’s word day and night, i.e., everyday [see God’s promise for any/all of us in Joshua 1: 8 - linked].
I guess it’s a matter of whether we believe God will do what HE says, if we do what we should be doing in exercising our spirit. So, if we desire to be successful and prosperous in doing what God would have us do, the charge – by Paul to Timothy as well as God to Joshua and all of us – is out there for us to carry out. >>> BUT, … how many of us will do so?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I believe Your promise and have experienced its outcomes as I’ve read through Your word, cover-to-cover, this year; … help me to KOKO in the exercise of my Spirit-led disciplines this next year and beyond in the time You give me to prepare for eternity. Amen
My Journal for Today: “No pain, no gain!” You’ve heard that trite, but true, old saying when it comes to physical exercise. And no one, who is intelligent, denies that all of us should be committed to maintain the physical temple that God has given each one of us. And Paul even recognized this when he was writing to the young evangelist/pastor of the church in Ephesus, Timothy, whom he regarded as his spiritual protégé. But Paul also exhorted Timothy to recognize, even more than the discipline of physical exercise, that all Christians, especially called leaders, anointed by God to lead His church, should put any even higher, eternal priority on maintaining the disciplines of the faith. Hence, we read Paul’s instruction to Timothy in today’s highlight passage to do all that it takes to maintain a regimen of spiritual discipline which models Christlikeness and exhibits the preparation with which all of us should be preparing for the heavenly life to come.
Dr. Smith is right-on today, when he writes, ”Considering that even the best toned bodies will eventually die and decompose, exercising the soul must surely take top priority.” And he says that when it comes to decisions we make on what we must do to maintain good bodily, emotional, and spiritual good health, we should prioritize those disciplines which give us eternal rewards above all other disciplines.
I often ask people whom I teach if they brush their teeth every day; and then I ask how many floss. Fewer people do the latter everyday; but almost everyone reports brushing their teeth daily. And everyone who does either discipline knows why they are doing it … to prevent tooth and gum decay. But when I ask how many – in a given class or audience – have a rigorous workout in God’s word and in prayer EVERY DAY, even though Christians know that this is a good and Godly thing to do, few report being committed to maintain this eternally important discipline of the faith. Dr. Smith asks, as his motivating application question, today: ”How can I hope to be fit for eternity if I shrink from the painful routine of stretching myself spiritually?” … Ugh! No pain, no gain!
Right now, at this very moment, as we close out 2010, I’m convicted that I need to be doing more to keep fit with regard to my bodily health by getting in the swimming pool and swimming laps more often than I’m currently doing. It’s an aerobic exercise I can do even though I have pretty bad hip arthritis. I need to remember and exercise more regularly and rigorously to maintain the physical temple God has given me (take note of 1st Cor. 6: 19 – 20 - linked).
But though I need to more finely tuned as to my prayer regimen daily, I can report here – for accountability purposes – and being regarded as a “Pastor,” Elder, Minister, and teacher in my church, that I do keep a rather rigorous daily discipline of maintaining my devotional studies in God’s word … EVERYDAY, … because I know just how vulnerable I am to spiritual lethargy and inertia when/if I were to break my discipline and “take a vacation” from my daily devotional routines.
Anyone who has followed me, by reading here, knows that I do prioritize my time to insure that I report my devotional journal daily by blogging what God has given me in my spiritual “exercise” for that day. And I’m bragging only here on my God, Who ALWAYS enables me to do what HE calls me to do.
So, as we close out 2010 and enter 2011, I will make a covenant commitment to God and anyone reading here that I’ll be rolling out every morning – usually early – to pray and to dive into God’s word, seeking the spiritual success God promised to Joshua (and to me) if he (and I) would meditate on God’s word day and night, i.e., everyday [see God’s promise for any/all of us in Joshua 1: 8 - linked].
I guess it’s a matter of whether we believe God will do what HE says, if we do what we should be doing in exercising our spirit. So, if we desire to be successful and prosperous in doing what God would have us do, the charge – by Paul to Timothy as well as God to Joshua and all of us – is out there for us to carry out. >>> BUT, … how many of us will do so?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I believe Your promise and have experienced its outcomes as I’ve read through Your word, cover-to-cover, this year; … help me to KOKO in the exercise of my Spirit-led disciplines this next year and beyond in the time You give me to prepare for eternity. Amen
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