Passage of the Day: Reference of Today’s Chronological Bible Study: Joshua, Chapters 22-24 … To study these chapters, go to this link -
Passage of the Day: Reference of Today’s Chronological Bible Study: Joshua 1: 1-9… To study these chapters, go to this link -
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Highlight Reference Passage : Joshua 22: 4-5 … 4 Now that the LORD your God has given them rest as He promised, return to your homes in the land that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you on the other side of the Jordan. 5 But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses, the servant of the LORD, gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, to keep his commands, to hold fast to Him and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
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Highlight Reference Passage #2 : Joshua 23: 6-8 … 6 “Be very strong; be careful to obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left. 7 Do not associate with these nations that remain among you; do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them. You must not serve them or bow down to them. 8 But you are to hold fast to the LORD your God, as you have until now.
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Highlight Reference Passage #3 : Joshua 24: 14-15 … 14 “Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
My Journal for Today: Today in my chronological reading plan, we’re closing out on the Book of Joshua – the last three chapters. And in reading and meditating through them, a theme resounded out of redundancy from words God gave Joshua right back in the first nine verses of Joshua’s book.
Remember God’s pep talk to Joshua in Joshua 1: 1-9, as the LORD was encouraging the leader of God’s chosen just before they were to cross the Jordan and enter the promised-land? If you don’t recall those words, I’ve provided a link to that passage above. But when you study that directive of encouragement from the Lord, you will read many of the same words/thoughts which Joshua used to commission and encourage the people to move forward in their lives after they had taken the promised-land.
Meditate on the three highlight passages I’ve copied for you above; and you’ll see how Joshua mirrored the instructions God had given to him before the land was taken. And when you study Joshua’s charge to the people, you realize that this is God’s bottom-line charge to all of us, just as it was (and IS) Jesus’ bottom-line instruction for us as we live in God’s promises today.
And isn’t it wonderful symmetry that Joshua’s name in Hebrew is “Yeshua,” which, of course, is the translated Hebrew name for “Jesus.” And here they both are giving us the same choices as we cross over the Jordan river of our lives, and in repentance, leaving behind the old life, we live in the promised-land which the LORD has for us.
Joshua laid it out very clearly for the people [in Joshua 22: 5] … “…be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses, the servant of the LORD, gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, to keep his commands, to hold fast to Him and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.” And then old Joshua, just before he died, told the people ever so clearly where he stood; and we quote him from one of the most oft-quoted passages in Joshua’s memoirs, … [written in Joshua 24: 15] "… choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, … But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
And that, my dear one and fellow follower of the LORD, it is our choice as well this day. Whom will we serve? And my friend … as for me, I choose to follow Joshua … Yeshua … Jesus!
My Prayer Today: … LORD, I follow You!!! Amen
Showing posts with label surrender. Show all posts
Showing posts with label surrender. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Monday, December 12, 2011
December 12, 2011 … Exaltation Follows Humility
Passage of the Day: Philippians 2: 9 - 11 [see highlight passage in bold/underlined] … 5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the Name that is above every name, 10 that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
My Journal for Today: In today’s entry of Strength for Today, John MacArthur helps those who pursue God through his devotional to see from God’s word (in the highlight passages from Phil. 2 above) that Christ’s humiliation in His incarnation, life, and death on the cross, as well as His exaltation (again, see today’s passage) are very powerful and practical examples of God’s economy of justice. It’s really a straightforward formula; but it’s also an infinitely challenging message for all mankind to accept and implement. THE FORUMULA is that when one humbles himself, he will be exalted. Jesus was our earthly model of humility [Phil. 2: 6 – 8]; and in today’s passage [Phil. 2: 9 – 11] we read of Christ becoming our heavenly and perfect example of God’s exaltation out of His earthly and perfect humility.
MacArthur reminds me [us] that the Apostle Peter [in 1st Peter 1: 10 – 12] had pointed to Christ fulfilling the prophesies of the ancient Prophets concerning the Messiah. And the Author of Hebrews wrote of Christ [in Heb. 12: 2], “… Who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” So, the Apostle Paul’s purpose in our passage from Phil. 2 was to illustrate, not only Christ’s humble emptying of His majesty in His Incarnation; but also to document His re-entry into heavenly glory as a result of His humiliation on the cross. So it’s worthy of repeating, … Christ, therefore, is not only our human example of humility, He is also our heavenly example of God glorifying anyone who is willing to humble himself and receive God’s Son as Lord and Savior.
That economy and balance of justice is also documented in James 4: 10, where we read, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.” And as I’ve documented before, that is the message that was also laid out by Solomon in Prov. 3: 34 and repeated by Peter in 1st Peter 5: 6 … that God gives His grace to the humble but resists the proud. So, Jesus was God’s model of His scale of justice; and His word repeats the lesson often. >>> BUT, do we get it?!
Unfortunately, all too often I’ve had to learn the lesson of God’s economy with regard to humility the hard way. I know the lesson in my head; but my deceitful heart [see Jer. 17: 9] brings me often to a place where God has to teach me humility in the face of my pridefulness. I have to be brought low because I’ve chosen to exalt myself rather than choose to humble self and surrender to my Savior [again see the truth of Jesus’ command in Luke 9: 23]. When will I see - from the heart - that it’s so, so, so much better for me to CHOOSE to be humble and let God exalt me for being like Christ?
Just like Christ, one day as a believing Christian, I (and all Christians) will be lifted up to be with my (our) Lord in Heaven, … not because of anything I will do in humility, … but because of what Christ has already done for me (us) in perfect humility. Oh how I (we) need to meditate on this at this time of year, especially letting this message encourage us in our trials. But as we do so in reading this, we can look forward this month to even more about our Lord; so, … yes, … stay tuned!
My Prayer Today: Blessed am I by Your exaltation, Lord. Amen
My Journal for Today: In today’s entry of Strength for Today, John MacArthur helps those who pursue God through his devotional to see from God’s word (in the highlight passages from Phil. 2 above) that Christ’s humiliation in His incarnation, life, and death on the cross, as well as His exaltation (again, see today’s passage) are very powerful and practical examples of God’s economy of justice. It’s really a straightforward formula; but it’s also an infinitely challenging message for all mankind to accept and implement. THE FORUMULA is that when one humbles himself, he will be exalted. Jesus was our earthly model of humility [Phil. 2: 6 – 8]; and in today’s passage [Phil. 2: 9 – 11] we read of Christ becoming our heavenly and perfect example of God’s exaltation out of His earthly and perfect humility.
MacArthur reminds me [us] that the Apostle Peter [in 1st Peter 1: 10 – 12] had pointed to Christ fulfilling the prophesies of the ancient Prophets concerning the Messiah. And the Author of Hebrews wrote of Christ [in Heb. 12: 2], “… Who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” So, the Apostle Paul’s purpose in our passage from Phil. 2 was to illustrate, not only Christ’s humble emptying of His majesty in His Incarnation; but also to document His re-entry into heavenly glory as a result of His humiliation on the cross. So it’s worthy of repeating, … Christ, therefore, is not only our human example of humility, He is also our heavenly example of God glorifying anyone who is willing to humble himself and receive God’s Son as Lord and Savior.
That economy and balance of justice is also documented in James 4: 10, where we read, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.” And as I’ve documented before, that is the message that was also laid out by Solomon in Prov. 3: 34 and repeated by Peter in 1st Peter 5: 6 … that God gives His grace to the humble but resists the proud. So, Jesus was God’s model of His scale of justice; and His word repeats the lesson often. >>> BUT, do we get it?!
Unfortunately, all too often I’ve had to learn the lesson of God’s economy with regard to humility the hard way. I know the lesson in my head; but my deceitful heart [see Jer. 17: 9] brings me often to a place where God has to teach me humility in the face of my pridefulness. I have to be brought low because I’ve chosen to exalt myself rather than choose to humble self and surrender to my Savior [again see the truth of Jesus’ command in Luke 9: 23]. When will I see - from the heart - that it’s so, so, so much better for me to CHOOSE to be humble and let God exalt me for being like Christ?
Just like Christ, one day as a believing Christian, I (and all Christians) will be lifted up to be with my (our) Lord in Heaven, … not because of anything I will do in humility, … but because of what Christ has already done for me (us) in perfect humility. Oh how I (we) need to meditate on this at this time of year, especially letting this message encourage us in our trials. But as we do so in reading this, we can look forward this month to even more about our Lord; so, … yes, … stay tuned!
My Prayer Today: Blessed am I by Your exaltation, Lord. Amen
Monday, October 17, 2011
October 17, 2011 … Yielding to God
Passage of the Day: Romans 6: 11 – 14 [note passage in bold/underlined] … 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with Him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, He cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over Him. 10 The death He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life He lives, He lives to God. 11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. 14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.
My Journal for Today: In this October study on sin, John MacArthur, from Strength for Today, has helped me to review the Apostle Paul’s passion for believers to “know” (see Rom. 6: 3, 6, 9) God’s truth and to “count [ourselves]” as being truly dead to sin and alive in Christ. And I have seen that we do that by our choices, as we read in today’s passage of emphasis. Paul says that this understanding and belief in the truth of Christ’s victory over sin must ultimately lead Christians to “offer” the parts of our bodies as instruments of righteousness under God’s grace. This, may remind you, as it did me, of Paul’s exhortation in Romans 12: 1 – 2, where the Apostle declared that believers become a “living sacrifice” with a life of living worship, being transformed by the renewing our or minds into Christlikeness. “Living sacrifice” is a 24/7 life of worship to our God which requires a life of choice after choice after choice, … action after action after action, which honor God with our lives.
We can also read the Apostle Peter, who echoed Paul’s teaching, as in 1st Peter 2: 11 he wrote, “Dear friends (i.e., my fellow Christians), I urge you, as aliens and strangers in this world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.” And Paul, with another thought in scripture, exhorting the believers in Corinth (and therefore, by extension, you and me) that the only way to avoid sin in this way was to discipline ourselves in our beliefs, like soldiers [see 1st Cor. 9: 27], i.e., to become effective warriors, wearing God’s full armor in the spiritual battles we face daily [see another passage inspired for all believers - Eph. 6: 10 – 18].
As MacArthur puts it, we have to surrender our choices to God’s will for others to confirm that we are believers and followers of Christ. As I’ve heard other say in observing a fellow Christian’s behavior, “I can see he’s (or she’s) as Christian by the fruit on their tree.” And as MacArthur writes to us Christian believers in his devotional today, “Yield to sin and experience chastening and sorrow; (or) yield to God, and experience joy and blessing.”
Choices!! … To me that’s a no-brainer choice. But I see so many of my fellow Christian warriors being felled in battle by choices which allow our enemies (Satan and the world) to pick them off like shooting fish, … BIG fish, … in a very small barrel.
My Prayer Today: Lord, I seek Your will; and I choose Your Way !!! Shine Your light brightly on my path as You have today through Your word. Amen
My Journal for Today: In this October study on sin, John MacArthur, from Strength for Today, has helped me to review the Apostle Paul’s passion for believers to “know” (see Rom. 6: 3, 6, 9) God’s truth and to “count [ourselves]” as being truly dead to sin and alive in Christ. And I have seen that we do that by our choices, as we read in today’s passage of emphasis. Paul says that this understanding and belief in the truth of Christ’s victory over sin must ultimately lead Christians to “offer” the parts of our bodies as instruments of righteousness under God’s grace. This, may remind you, as it did me, of Paul’s exhortation in Romans 12: 1 – 2, where the Apostle declared that believers become a “living sacrifice” with a life of living worship, being transformed by the renewing our or minds into Christlikeness. “Living sacrifice” is a 24/7 life of worship to our God which requires a life of choice after choice after choice, … action after action after action, which honor God with our lives.
We can also read the Apostle Peter, who echoed Paul’s teaching, as in 1st Peter 2: 11 he wrote, “Dear friends (i.e., my fellow Christians), I urge you, as aliens and strangers in this world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.” And Paul, with another thought in scripture, exhorting the believers in Corinth (and therefore, by extension, you and me) that the only way to avoid sin in this way was to discipline ourselves in our beliefs, like soldiers [see 1st Cor. 9: 27], i.e., to become effective warriors, wearing God’s full armor in the spiritual battles we face daily [see another passage inspired for all believers - Eph. 6: 10 – 18].
As MacArthur puts it, we have to surrender our choices to God’s will for others to confirm that we are believers and followers of Christ. As I’ve heard other say in observing a fellow Christian’s behavior, “I can see he’s (or she’s) as Christian by the fruit on their tree.” And as MacArthur writes to us Christian believers in his devotional today, “Yield to sin and experience chastening and sorrow; (or) yield to God, and experience joy and blessing.”
Choices!! … To me that’s a no-brainer choice. But I see so many of my fellow Christian warriors being felled in battle by choices which allow our enemies (Satan and the world) to pick them off like shooting fish, … BIG fish, … in a very small barrel.
My Prayer Today: Lord, I seek Your will; and I choose Your Way !!! Shine Your light brightly on my path as You have today through Your word. Amen
Friday, May 06, 2011
May 6, 2011 … Trial’s Lessons: Contentment
Passage of the Day: Hebrews 11: 24 - 27 … [Note verse 26 in bold] ... 24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. 26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered because he saw Him who is invisible.
My Journal for Today: In the 21st century, post-modern culture in which we live, most of us will do anything we can to circumvent trials or to prevent pain, especially when we’re in a position where we can take “the easy way” out or we can manipulate the circumstances in our favor to avoid pain and suffering. How many medication commercials, especially for pain killers do we see on TV?
Moses was also into such a culture of opulence, materialism, and power, being raised as a prince in the court of pharaoh. He had been insulated from the sufferings of his Hebrew birthright as a young man. But God showed Moses that he would have to participate in the trials and tribulations of his birth culture to appreciate his destiny and so that Moses’ trust would only be in the God Who would deliver His children from bondage (see today’s passage).
And that is the message that Jesus pointedly taught His people (see Matt. 6: 24) … that NO ONE can serve both Go and riches (including power or sensationalism). It is in our nature – our sin nature – however, to rely on position, power, money, or pleasure to avoid troubles or to dampen the pain or suffering in our lives. But it is only God who can give us the light and life we seek.
As I meditate on what Moses did in faith, following God’s leading, I’m drawn once again to the words of the old hymn, written by Helen Lemmel in 1918, … Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus; and as I do often during my morning devotionals, I’ve gone to listen to this old hymn on my Ipod with my earphones so that I won’t waken my dear wife, Elly, who sleeps so peacefully near me. What a song to bring contentment, especially in light of my love sleeping so peacefully near me. This is contentment; but nothing compared to that brought about by the same God who delivered Moses and God’s people from oppression. Oh, how I pray these thoughts on all who might read here.
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Turn your eyes upon Jesus, …
Look full in his wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, …
In the light of His glory and grace.
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It’s only when we, like Moses, come to focus all our life on our God that the trials and troubles of this world can be dimmed by the light of His love and grace.
My Prayer Today: You are my only Light, dear Lord. Amen
My Journal for Today: In the 21st century, post-modern culture in which we live, most of us will do anything we can to circumvent trials or to prevent pain, especially when we’re in a position where we can take “the easy way” out or we can manipulate the circumstances in our favor to avoid pain and suffering. How many medication commercials, especially for pain killers do we see on TV?
Moses was also into such a culture of opulence, materialism, and power, being raised as a prince in the court of pharaoh. He had been insulated from the sufferings of his Hebrew birthright as a young man. But God showed Moses that he would have to participate in the trials and tribulations of his birth culture to appreciate his destiny and so that Moses’ trust would only be in the God Who would deliver His children from bondage (see today’s passage).
And that is the message that Jesus pointedly taught His people (see Matt. 6: 24) … that NO ONE can serve both Go and riches (including power or sensationalism). It is in our nature – our sin nature – however, to rely on position, power, money, or pleasure to avoid troubles or to dampen the pain or suffering in our lives. But it is only God who can give us the light and life we seek.
As I meditate on what Moses did in faith, following God’s leading, I’m drawn once again to the words of the old hymn, written by Helen Lemmel in 1918, … Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus; and as I do often during my morning devotionals, I’ve gone to listen to this old hymn on my Ipod with my earphones so that I won’t waken my dear wife, Elly, who sleeps so peacefully near me. What a song to bring contentment, especially in light of my love sleeping so peacefully near me. This is contentment; but nothing compared to that brought about by the same God who delivered Moses and God’s people from oppression. Oh, how I pray these thoughts on all who might read here.
---------------
Turn your eyes upon Jesus, …
Look full in his wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, …
In the light of His glory and grace.
---------------
It’s only when we, like Moses, come to focus all our life on our God that the trials and troubles of this world can be dimmed by the light of His love and grace.
My Prayer Today: You are my only Light, dear Lord. Amen
Monday, January 17, 2011
January 17, 2011 … Gentleness (“Meekness”): Power Under Control
Passage of the Day: Ephesians 4: 2a … [See underlined and bold as highlighted verse] – As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
My Journal for Today: We return to the passage from Eph. 4: 1-2, the passage which launched us into this new year and our January devotions in John MacArthur’s Strength For Today. On Jan. 9, I covered one of the two attitude qualities Paul cited as necessary for the Christians to walk worthy in Christlikeness; and that was HUMILITY. Now today, we focus on the second of those two, MEEKNESS. By the way, in other translations, the concept of “meekness” is translated “gentleness” or “gentle” (see example in the NASB above).
Once again we remember that meekness and humility, are the only two character qualities that Christ used to describe Himself (see Matt. 11: 29). So, when one desires to be like Christ, these should be the two attitudes we focus on – first and foremost - to fulfill what Paul charged us to do in Phil. 2: 5…
>>> SCRIPTURE: Phil. 2: 5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: …
So, having covered the quality of “humility” on 1/9, let’s now focus on “meekness.”
In our world, unfortunately the term “meek” is equated with “weak;” and that is far from the quality of meekness biblically. The Greek term for meekness, “praos,” accurately means strength under control; and Jesus was certainly the model of that. All of Phil. 2: 6-11 describes our Lord emptying Himself of the glory and majesty of the Godhead to become a humble man by His choice, which is the embodiment of the strength under control in meekness. The word pictures used by “praos,” from the Greek were either bringing a wild animal, like a horse, under the control of a master or a powerful medicine being used to soothe pain.
In our culture, our self-centeredness is often a quality that leads one to use personal strength or power to control others. Here, we see that “meekness” is controlling one’s strength in order to be humble and helpful to others. This is a fruit of God’s Spirit (see Gal. 5: 22 - 23) that God can use to help calm others or to bring order in the midst of chaos. Meekness (or “gentleness”) is not “wimpiness.” It’s the tamed lion licking the face of its trainer. It’s human power being brought under the control of The Master, our Lord, Jesus. When human reactions like anger or revenge are submitted to Christ, such meekness is rewarded with the peace of God (see Phil. 4: 6, 7). Meekness could be a medicine that soothes the savage pain of a hurting world. But we’ve got to be willing to humbly surrender our humanity to God’s Spirit in order to allow God’s enabling grace to develop the meekness that can produce God’s peace in our world.
How about you? Is “meekness” a word that could be used to describe your attitude of Christlikeness; or do you, as I do, have a way to go in developing a habit of meekness?
My Prayer Today: Lord, help me to walk worthy of Your Name in meekness. Amen
My Journal for Today: We return to the passage from Eph. 4: 1-2, the passage which launched us into this new year and our January devotions in John MacArthur’s Strength For Today. On Jan. 9, I covered one of the two attitude qualities Paul cited as necessary for the Christians to walk worthy in Christlikeness; and that was HUMILITY. Now today, we focus on the second of those two, MEEKNESS. By the way, in other translations, the concept of “meekness” is translated “gentleness” or “gentle” (see example in the NASB above).
Once again we remember that meekness and humility, are the only two character qualities that Christ used to describe Himself (see Matt. 11: 29). So, when one desires to be like Christ, these should be the two attitudes we focus on – first and foremost - to fulfill what Paul charged us to do in Phil. 2: 5…
>>> SCRIPTURE: Phil. 2: 5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: …
So, having covered the quality of “humility” on 1/9, let’s now focus on “meekness.”
In our world, unfortunately the term “meek” is equated with “weak;” and that is far from the quality of meekness biblically. The Greek term for meekness, “praos,” accurately means strength under control; and Jesus was certainly the model of that. All of Phil. 2: 6-11 describes our Lord emptying Himself of the glory and majesty of the Godhead to become a humble man by His choice, which is the embodiment of the strength under control in meekness. The word pictures used by “praos,” from the Greek were either bringing a wild animal, like a horse, under the control of a master or a powerful medicine being used to soothe pain.
In our culture, our self-centeredness is often a quality that leads one to use personal strength or power to control others. Here, we see that “meekness” is controlling one’s strength in order to be humble and helpful to others. This is a fruit of God’s Spirit (see Gal. 5: 22 - 23) that God can use to help calm others or to bring order in the midst of chaos. Meekness (or “gentleness”) is not “wimpiness.” It’s the tamed lion licking the face of its trainer. It’s human power being brought under the control of The Master, our Lord, Jesus. When human reactions like anger or revenge are submitted to Christ, such meekness is rewarded with the peace of God (see Phil. 4: 6, 7). Meekness could be a medicine that soothes the savage pain of a hurting world. But we’ve got to be willing to humbly surrender our humanity to God’s Spirit in order to allow God’s enabling grace to develop the meekness that can produce God’s peace in our world.
How about you? Is “meekness” a word that could be used to describe your attitude of Christlikeness; or do you, as I do, have a way to go in developing a habit of meekness?
My Prayer Today: Lord, help me to walk worthy of Your Name in meekness. Amen
Sunday, August 29, 2010
2010 – August 29 – From the Depths of Despair to the Heights of Hope
Study from God’s Word… Lamentations, Chapters 1 and 2 … Passage for Reflection: Lamentations 1: 20 … NIV [Jeremiah, singing the lament of “Jacob”] “See, O LORD, how distressed I am! I am in torment within, and in my heart I am disturbed, for I have been most rebellious. Outside, the sword bereaves; inside, there is only death.”
My Journal for Today: As I read Jeremiah’s lamentation, I feel great empathy. I was once like Israel or Judah, ignoring my God and falling prey to my own selfish sinfulness. And I became captive to the consequences of my sin. Also like Israel and Judah, it took a cataclysm of brokenness for me to realize that I had to bring my brokenness to God and surrender to His will, living His way, and following His word.
And now, perhaps like Jeremiah, I see clearly the waste that comes from choosing to ignore God in disobedience; and I grieve, not only for all the years I lost, living in my own sinfulness; but I grieve for others whom I know will have to be broken to the core of their being before they realize the ramifications of their own personal disobedience. I feel some of the same grief Jeremiah must’ve felt, seeing God’s children languishing in the consequences of their sin and having to come to the place of confession and cleansing before their God.
But even though I identify with the grieve expressed in Lamentations, I have come to know and proclaim the hope and victory one can have when he’s willing to surrender self to the Savior and receive the free saving and sanctifying grace offered by our Messiah, Jesus Christ. From the depths of despair, any believer in Jesus Christ can be – and will be – lifted to the heights of hope if he (or she) is able to die to self and follow Jesus (see Luke 9: 23 and 1st John 1: 9). Taking our crosses to the foot of His is the only way to shed the grief of our past and to live in the hope of His future.
And no more need be said as the remedy of the grief expressed by Jeremiah than to look to The Messiah.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, Lord, You are the hope … and the only hope. Amen
My Journal for Today: As I read Jeremiah’s lamentation, I feel great empathy. I was once like Israel or Judah, ignoring my God and falling prey to my own selfish sinfulness. And I became captive to the consequences of my sin. Also like Israel and Judah, it took a cataclysm of brokenness for me to realize that I had to bring my brokenness to God and surrender to His will, living His way, and following His word.
And now, perhaps like Jeremiah, I see clearly the waste that comes from choosing to ignore God in disobedience; and I grieve, not only for all the years I lost, living in my own sinfulness; but I grieve for others whom I know will have to be broken to the core of their being before they realize the ramifications of their own personal disobedience. I feel some of the same grief Jeremiah must’ve felt, seeing God’s children languishing in the consequences of their sin and having to come to the place of confession and cleansing before their God.
But even though I identify with the grieve expressed in Lamentations, I have come to know and proclaim the hope and victory one can have when he’s willing to surrender self to the Savior and receive the free saving and sanctifying grace offered by our Messiah, Jesus Christ. From the depths of despair, any believer in Jesus Christ can be – and will be – lifted to the heights of hope if he (or she) is able to die to self and follow Jesus (see Luke 9: 23 and 1st John 1: 9). Taking our crosses to the foot of His is the only way to shed the grief of our past and to live in the hope of His future.
And no more need be said as the remedy of the grief expressed by Jeremiah than to look to The Messiah.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, Lord, You are the hope … and the only hope. Amen
Friday, August 20, 2010
2010 – August 20 – Longing for the Bad Old Days
Study from God’s Word… Chapter 23 of Ezekiel … Passage for Reflection: Ezekiel 23: 27 … NIV So I will put a stop to the lewdness and prostitution you began in Egypt. You will not look on these things with longing or remember Egypt anymore.
My Journal for Today: I’m sure that those of you who follow my journal entries here don’t often read through the entire passages which Dr. LaGard Smith has me read in my quest, with his guidance, to read through The Daily Bible in Chronological Order. You probably just read my devotional entry and let it be your way of vicariously letting me do your reading for you. I understand that; but today I’m asking more of you.
Today, I implore you to read what I’ve just read, … the entire 23rd Chapter of the book of Ezekiel; because it is one of the most troubling chapters – at least to me – in its word pictures and analogy of two sister prostitutes representing Israel, whom God named “Oholah,” the older sister, and Judah, the younger, whom God called “Oholibah.” Oh, I’ve read Ezekiel before, but not until now did I read this chapter with such personal intent and careful meditation, being led by Dr. Smith’s devotional; and I must say that I’m now reeling with self disgust and even a raging fear for two other prostituted sisters. One is an older sister who has slowly given herself as prostitute. We know here as “Europe.” And we, “America” are the younger sister who is now following in our older sister’s pattern of shame.
As I read Ezekiel, Chapter 23, the graphic sexual references first took me back to the many years I, personally, prostituted my Judeo-Christian values to live a hidden double-life into many forms of sexual sin. But now I see that what God led me out of, in repentance, has now become a cultural pattern, where our nation has fallen prey and moved far away from being the identified as the “Christian Nation” she once was, a nation which was founded by staunch believers in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and the nation who followed their seed, the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Now, I’m afraid I see our fate as a nation becoming much the same as the two prostituted sisters, Israel and Judah. What form of wrath will be visited upon us as a seriously prostituted nation? I don’t know; but I just don’t see how we can avoid it. Perhaps it will be falling prey to the clutches of Islam, which is slowly, but doggedly taking over our older, but prostituted sister, Europe, who has made herself a bed for her Muslim pursuers.
I’m not a prophet with enough vision to see where God is going to lead America, who is more resistant than Europe. Hopefully there is a Christian remnant who is holding on by our knuckles; but assuredly, if America, cannot refrain from lifting its skirts to allow Islamic radicalization into our loins, she will fall to them as our sister Europe, which is crumbling in shame to Islam as I write this. Go read Ezekiel 23 and see if you can’t see this as well.
And if you agree with me, one must ask, “What can I do to see the younger sister, America, be saved from the fate we have seen for a century in our older sister nation, Europe?” And the answer is found in that very pregnant charge of 2nd Chron. 7: 14 [linked], which I would hope you know by heart. And I also hope that you join me in this refrain of confession and commitment as the people of God’s Name, who are mentioned in this charge, become a unified force, pleading for repentance, restoration, and renewal as a nation.
My Prayer for Today: O, dear Lord, we are nation who has prostituted ourselves to grieve You and shame Your Holy Name. Have mercy on us, dear God; and whatever You do, we know you’ll do it because You love Your children who cry out for Your mercy. Amen
My Journal for Today: I’m sure that those of you who follow my journal entries here don’t often read through the entire passages which Dr. LaGard Smith has me read in my quest, with his guidance, to read through The Daily Bible in Chronological Order. You probably just read my devotional entry and let it be your way of vicariously letting me do your reading for you. I understand that; but today I’m asking more of you.
Today, I implore you to read what I’ve just read, … the entire 23rd Chapter of the book of Ezekiel; because it is one of the most troubling chapters – at least to me – in its word pictures and analogy of two sister prostitutes representing Israel, whom God named “Oholah,” the older sister, and Judah, the younger, whom God called “Oholibah.” Oh, I’ve read Ezekiel before, but not until now did I read this chapter with such personal intent and careful meditation, being led by Dr. Smith’s devotional; and I must say that I’m now reeling with self disgust and even a raging fear for two other prostituted sisters. One is an older sister who has slowly given herself as prostitute. We know here as “Europe.” And we, “America” are the younger sister who is now following in our older sister’s pattern of shame.
As I read Ezekiel, Chapter 23, the graphic sexual references first took me back to the many years I, personally, prostituted my Judeo-Christian values to live a hidden double-life into many forms of sexual sin. But now I see that what God led me out of, in repentance, has now become a cultural pattern, where our nation has fallen prey and moved far away from being the identified as the “Christian Nation” she once was, a nation which was founded by staunch believers in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and the nation who followed their seed, the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Now, I’m afraid I see our fate as a nation becoming much the same as the two prostituted sisters, Israel and Judah. What form of wrath will be visited upon us as a seriously prostituted nation? I don’t know; but I just don’t see how we can avoid it. Perhaps it will be falling prey to the clutches of Islam, which is slowly, but doggedly taking over our older, but prostituted sister, Europe, who has made herself a bed for her Muslim pursuers.
I’m not a prophet with enough vision to see where God is going to lead America, who is more resistant than Europe. Hopefully there is a Christian remnant who is holding on by our knuckles; but assuredly, if America, cannot refrain from lifting its skirts to allow Islamic radicalization into our loins, she will fall to them as our sister Europe, which is crumbling in shame to Islam as I write this. Go read Ezekiel 23 and see if you can’t see this as well.
And if you agree with me, one must ask, “What can I do to see the younger sister, America, be saved from the fate we have seen for a century in our older sister nation, Europe?” And the answer is found in that very pregnant charge of 2nd Chron. 7: 14 [linked], which I would hope you know by heart. And I also hope that you join me in this refrain of confession and commitment as the people of God’s Name, who are mentioned in this charge, become a unified force, pleading for repentance, restoration, and renewal as a nation.
My Prayer for Today: O, dear Lord, we are nation who has prostituted ourselves to grieve You and shame Your Holy Name. Have mercy on us, dear God; and whatever You do, we know you’ll do it because You love Your children who cry out for Your mercy. Amen
Monday, June 28, 2010
2010 – June 28 – Creeping Incrementalism
Study from God’s Word… 2nd Kings 15: 29 [1st Chron. 5: 23 – 26]; 2Kgs 15: 37; 2Kgs 15: 30-31; 2Kgs 17: 1-2; 2Kgs 15: 36, 38a [2Chron 27: 7, 9a]; 2Kgs 38b [2Chron 27: 9b, 28: 1a]; 2Kgs 16: 2b-4 [2Chron 28: 1b-4] … Passage for Reflection: 2nd Kings 15: 29 … NIV 29 In the time of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh and Hazor. He took Gilead and Galilee, including all the land of Naphtali, and deported the people to Assyria.
My Journal for Today: After reading through the OT history which Dr. Smith led me to in his directed chronological study of the Bible for today’s date, I was led to read about all the political and social intrigue which had transpired in over 200 years of Israel and Judah becoming split kingdoms, … God’s people, who, for the most part slowly wandered away from their devotion and worship of their God, … the God Who had made them His chosen people, led them out of captivity, and brought them into a land He had promised them.
It was well over 200 years of what Dr. Smith today calls ”Creeping Incrementalism.” And today’s highlight verse only captures a snapshot of some of these people being deported as Assyria broke them down into captivity. And here were God’s people being taken captive by pagan nations, just as a number of God’s Prophets had warned. No, it wasn’t because they were ignorant of truth or God’s will. It wasn’t because they hadn’t been warned and rewarned and rewarned … over and over and over again. God had been incredibly patient and forbearing; but slowly, … incrementally, … God’s people had become Satan’s pawns. How does it happen; as I think you recognize how powerfully it applies to our lives as well?
Creeping incremental sin certainly applied to my life. For over 22 years of my life, I chose to ignore the warnings and let my flesh choose sin and Satan over the Savior. And slowly, gradually I made one seductive choice after another, leading down the primrose path toward death. Fortunately, for me, as God’s word says it will happen for God’s people, I surrendered by will to the “hound of Heaven.” And ultimately the mind of man will surrender and hear the truth of the Gospel, especially when Christ, Who is God’s Redeemer, will come again to reclaim His Bride; and there will be rejoicing at the wedding feast of the Lamb of God. But in the meantime, we are now – again – seeing the effects of those who deny God, ignore His warnings, and try to mock Him with their sin.
However, as it began in history with today’s reading, God’s people and even more of the lost people who surrounded them in life, are going to experience the death-knell of God’s wrath as He will not allow even those He loves to perpetuate disobedience and fleshly ways of life. Sin always has consequences [!], even for those who are believers and most certainly for those who mock or deny God. And if it takes a season of separation, as it did for Israel and Judah, … well, so be it! And that’s what we read from today’s study of Hebrew history.
We cannot abide and choose to do things in the way of the flesh, especially knowing that we’re ignoring God’s way. Ultimately, God will leave us to our own sinful minds and hearts (and that’s the subject of one of the most sinister passages in the NT – meditate on Romans 1: 18 – 32 - linked). But if/when we can know God’s ways (through His word) and surrender to His will, God’s mercies are new every day (see Lam. 3: 22, 23 - linked]; and He will be there to save His surrendered children.
Oh, how I hope that any who read here are in surrender mode to God’s will for their lives; because if you are letting “creeping Incrementalism” with sin choices repeatedly taken you into captivity, at some point, God will simply turn you over to your self and let Satan have you for a season. OR, God could choose to take you home and not let you become a tainted witness of His love and mercy. But, make no mistake about it, we cannot continue to choose sin and self over our Savior. God will not be mocked!!!
My Prayer for Today: Lord, You know my heart; and You lift me up with Your strength to choose Your ways over the ways of my flesh. Help me to continue to walk in Your footsteps. Amen
My Journal for Today: After reading through the OT history which Dr. Smith led me to in his directed chronological study of the Bible for today’s date, I was led to read about all the political and social intrigue which had transpired in over 200 years of Israel and Judah becoming split kingdoms, … God’s people, who, for the most part slowly wandered away from their devotion and worship of their God, … the God Who had made them His chosen people, led them out of captivity, and brought them into a land He had promised them.
It was well over 200 years of what Dr. Smith today calls ”Creeping Incrementalism.” And today’s highlight verse only captures a snapshot of some of these people being deported as Assyria broke them down into captivity. And here were God’s people being taken captive by pagan nations, just as a number of God’s Prophets had warned. No, it wasn’t because they were ignorant of truth or God’s will. It wasn’t because they hadn’t been warned and rewarned and rewarned … over and over and over again. God had been incredibly patient and forbearing; but slowly, … incrementally, … God’s people had become Satan’s pawns. How does it happen; as I think you recognize how powerfully it applies to our lives as well?
Creeping incremental sin certainly applied to my life. For over 22 years of my life, I chose to ignore the warnings and let my flesh choose sin and Satan over the Savior. And slowly, gradually I made one seductive choice after another, leading down the primrose path toward death. Fortunately, for me, as God’s word says it will happen for God’s people, I surrendered by will to the “hound of Heaven.” And ultimately the mind of man will surrender and hear the truth of the Gospel, especially when Christ, Who is God’s Redeemer, will come again to reclaim His Bride; and there will be rejoicing at the wedding feast of the Lamb of God. But in the meantime, we are now – again – seeing the effects of those who deny God, ignore His warnings, and try to mock Him with their sin.
However, as it began in history with today’s reading, God’s people and even more of the lost people who surrounded them in life, are going to experience the death-knell of God’s wrath as He will not allow even those He loves to perpetuate disobedience and fleshly ways of life. Sin always has consequences [!], even for those who are believers and most certainly for those who mock or deny God. And if it takes a season of separation, as it did for Israel and Judah, … well, so be it! And that’s what we read from today’s study of Hebrew history.
We cannot abide and choose to do things in the way of the flesh, especially knowing that we’re ignoring God’s way. Ultimately, God will leave us to our own sinful minds and hearts (and that’s the subject of one of the most sinister passages in the NT – meditate on Romans 1: 18 – 32 - linked). But if/when we can know God’s ways (through His word) and surrender to His will, God’s mercies are new every day (see Lam. 3: 22, 23 - linked]; and He will be there to save His surrendered children.
Oh, how I hope that any who read here are in surrender mode to God’s will for their lives; because if you are letting “creeping Incrementalism” with sin choices repeatedly taken you into captivity, at some point, God will simply turn you over to your self and let Satan have you for a season. OR, God could choose to take you home and not let you become a tainted witness of His love and mercy. But, make no mistake about it, we cannot continue to choose sin and self over our Savior. God will not be mocked!!!
My Prayer for Today: Lord, You know my heart; and You lift me up with Your strength to choose Your ways over the ways of my flesh. Help me to continue to walk in Your footsteps. Amen
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
2010 – Mar. 10 – Crossing Our Own Jordan
Study from God’s Word… Josh 1: 1 – 9; Josh 3: 1; Josh 2: 1 – 24; Josh 1: 10 – 18; Josh 3: 2 – 17; Josh 4: 12 – 12, 13; Josh 4: 9 – 11; Josh 4: 15 – 18; Josh 4: 1 – 8; Josh 4: 19 – 24; Josh 4: 14; Josh 5: 1 – 15; … Passage for Reflection: Joshua 1: 9 [along with verse 8 for more context] … NIV 8 “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."
My Journal for Today: Today in my reading of The Daily Bible and the material provided by F. LaGard Smith in his devotional targeted for March 10, I am reading and meditating on one of my favorite passages in all of the Old Testament. It is the time when Joshua is handed the mantle of leadership of God’s people; and he takes them, at God’s command and with His careful instruction, across the Jordan river, once again be protected by another dry-ground crossing of a body of water, engineered by God to miraculously show the people just how powerful their God is and how following Joshua, His designated leader, is the only way to go.
And in today’s target verse (Chapter 1, verse 9) along with one of the most powerful instructions in all of the OT, Verse 8, we read exactly what a believer needs to remember and follow as each of us crosses our own “Jordan.” I don’t know what your “Jordan” might be. Perhaps you’re battling cancer; and you need to decide to cross the Jordan of trust in God and your medical treatment team. Maybe, like many of the men in the ministry I’m called to lead, you’ve had years of repeated sexual sin; and you need to cross the “Jordan” of confessing your sin to others, maybe including your wife or your Pastor. Perhaps, you’re facing the ultimate “Jordan,” and that is impending death, because you have a diagnosis of a fatal disease of some kind.
Actually, every human faces the latter “Jordan,” because we all have the fatal diagnosis of aging and 100% of us will cross our personal “Jordan” from this life into eternity. The question is not whether we will or will not “cross over,” … it is whether we will do so with faith in the same God, through the deliverance of His Son’s death on the cross, Who delivered God’s people across the Jordan, being led by Joshua.
How about you? Will you be crossing the “Jordan” of death, knowing that you’ll be delivered unto eternal life on the other side? And what about any other “Jordan” you might be facing. Do you have absolute assurance that you’ll have spiritual success in the march forward in life once you cross that “Jordan” in your life?
Well, my friend, in today’s passage you have God’s absolute promise of success as you contemplate crossing that “Jordan” in your life. If you get into and stay into God’s word [i.e., the Bible] – day and night – following all that is commanded therein, God’s word promises [see Josh 1: 8] that you’ll have success in the march forward, doing what Jesus has commanded you (again, as I refer so often, see Luke 9: 23). And when we cross the “Jordan” of decision, which God has lain before us for our life, we can know, as did Joshua, that we will enter into God’s Promised Land, with ultimately what Heaven itself has to offer.
And is that not worth following God across the “Jordan” in our lives today?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I crossed the “Jordan” to which You led me long ago; and now I claim the Promised Land in Your Name. Amen
My Journal for Today: Today in my reading of The Daily Bible and the material provided by F. LaGard Smith in his devotional targeted for March 10, I am reading and meditating on one of my favorite passages in all of the Old Testament. It is the time when Joshua is handed the mantle of leadership of God’s people; and he takes them, at God’s command and with His careful instruction, across the Jordan river, once again be protected by another dry-ground crossing of a body of water, engineered by God to miraculously show the people just how powerful their God is and how following Joshua, His designated leader, is the only way to go.
And in today’s target verse (Chapter 1, verse 9) along with one of the most powerful instructions in all of the OT, Verse 8, we read exactly what a believer needs to remember and follow as each of us crosses our own “Jordan.” I don’t know what your “Jordan” might be. Perhaps you’re battling cancer; and you need to decide to cross the Jordan of trust in God and your medical treatment team. Maybe, like many of the men in the ministry I’m called to lead, you’ve had years of repeated sexual sin; and you need to cross the “Jordan” of confessing your sin to others, maybe including your wife or your Pastor. Perhaps, you’re facing the ultimate “Jordan,” and that is impending death, because you have a diagnosis of a fatal disease of some kind.
Actually, every human faces the latter “Jordan,” because we all have the fatal diagnosis of aging and 100% of us will cross our personal “Jordan” from this life into eternity. The question is not whether we will or will not “cross over,” … it is whether we will do so with faith in the same God, through the deliverance of His Son’s death on the cross, Who delivered God’s people across the Jordan, being led by Joshua.
How about you? Will you be crossing the “Jordan” of death, knowing that you’ll be delivered unto eternal life on the other side? And what about any other “Jordan” you might be facing. Do you have absolute assurance that you’ll have spiritual success in the march forward in life once you cross that “Jordan” in your life?
Well, my friend, in today’s passage you have God’s absolute promise of success as you contemplate crossing that “Jordan” in your life. If you get into and stay into God’s word [i.e., the Bible] – day and night – following all that is commanded therein, God’s word promises [see Josh 1: 8] that you’ll have success in the march forward, doing what Jesus has commanded you (again, as I refer so often, see Luke 9: 23). And when we cross the “Jordan” of decision, which God has lain before us for our life, we can know, as did Joshua, that we will enter into God’s Promised Land, with ultimately what Heaven itself has to offer.
And is that not worth following God across the “Jordan” in our lives today?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I crossed the “Jordan” to which You led me long ago; and now I claim the Promised Land in Your Name. Amen
Friday, February 26, 2010
2010 – Feb. 26 – The Making/Keeping of Vows
Study from God’s Word… Deut. 23: 1-8; Num. 6: 1-21; Lev. 27: 1-34; Deut. 23: 21-23; Lev. 19: 1-2, 19; Deut. 22: 9-11… Passage for Reflection: Deut. 23: 23 … NIV 21 If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the LORD your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin. 22 But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty. 23 Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the LORD your God with your own mouth.
My Journal for Today: The making and keeping of VOWS has waned in our western culture. Certainly in the days I read about in today’s study, vows were considered very important; and that would be a definite understatement. When one made a vow to God in the days of Moses, under God’s law, he was expected to keep that vow as a sign of surrender to God and man’s attempt to be holy just as God is Holy (see Lev. 19: 2 or 20: 7 in today’s OT readings or 1st Peter 1: 15, 16, repeated in the New Testament]. Today, I’m afraid that our use of vows has become far too superficial, even such ceremonial vows as marriage, which we know, in commitment and reality, only last about half the time.
Under the Old Covenant, the making and keeping of vows was serious business; and Nazirite vows were good examples of that. When a Hebrew man took a Nazirite vow, he vowed to separate himself in holiness so as to be used by God. Examples of those who took Nazirite vows in the Bible were Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist; and in those days, these Nazirites vowed to let their hair grow and abstain from wine as signs of their intent and commitment to separate themselves unto holiness. Well, we know what happened to Samson, who definitely had trouble keeping his vows. Today, about as close to making vows as most of us get is in making New Year’s resolutions; and I think we know how often these fall by the wayside when it comes to keeping them.
This year, I have undertaken to make, and prayerfully keep, some commitments that are more like vows than resolutions. I began the year attempting to activate or maintain a series of behavioral commitments which I felt were those things which helped me to deepen my desire toward becoming a “living sacrifice,” as spelled out in Romans 12: 1-2. My initial surge was a 40 day commitment to maintain these habits and record these commitments to/for God; and I was able to go through those 40 days at the outset of this year, keeping – and even reporting my daily fulfillment. At the end of the 40 days, however, I realized that I needed to keep up the accountability and maintain my “vows” to God, which I felt were Spirit-led, anointed, and a calling to become more intimate in my relationship with my Lord. THEREFORE, I have surrendered myself to keep doing and reporting these vow-like commitments, at least for the remainder of this year. Those who are part of the ministry I lead [Battle Plan Ministries] see my logging of completion of these behaviors daily so that I might be accountable, somewhere, to someone, to document what I’m doing in surrender mode to God.
I don’t desire to be seen as being a “Nazirite” or something special because of my calling to pursue these commitments. I’m not doing these things to be seen as some kind of disciplined “Minister of commitment.” If anyone really knew me, they would know how far from that is from my normal, default, and very human mode of living. Bill Berry is naturally undisciplined, disorganized, and definitely selfish. Hence, this is my need to be more serious about going into and remaining in “surrender mode,” as I call it, to a Spirit-led life which allows me to deepen my relationship with Christ.
I know that only when I make habitual choices to follow Christ will I be able to receive His enabling grace and then to become fruitful for His Kingdom. Allowing myself to go into my default, natural mode of fulfilling my fleshly tendencies, I would become useless for God. And in the spirit of self analysis (which is exhorted by God’s word in 2nd Cor. 13: 5), I would charge you to take an inventory of your commitments to God (i.e., your vows of holiness); and decide which areas you might “tune up” for God’s glory. Then, write down those commitments (“goals,” if you will); and finally develop some way to be accountable for your commitments. And this needs to be far above any new year’s type resolutions. These need to be “VOWS” in the sense of today’s highlight verse; and I think you know which ones need to be made, recorded, and maintained for God’s glory.
I know that doing what I’ve been doing thus far this year has deepened my intimacy of relationship with Christ; and that is well worth any brief failures I’ve experienced during this year.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I pray that I can keep on keeping on in my desire and intent to be more holy and follow You. Amen
My Journal for Today: The making and keeping of VOWS has waned in our western culture. Certainly in the days I read about in today’s study, vows were considered very important; and that would be a definite understatement. When one made a vow to God in the days of Moses, under God’s law, he was expected to keep that vow as a sign of surrender to God and man’s attempt to be holy just as God is Holy (see Lev. 19: 2 or 20: 7 in today’s OT readings or 1st Peter 1: 15, 16, repeated in the New Testament]. Today, I’m afraid that our use of vows has become far too superficial, even such ceremonial vows as marriage, which we know, in commitment and reality, only last about half the time.
Under the Old Covenant, the making and keeping of vows was serious business; and Nazirite vows were good examples of that. When a Hebrew man took a Nazirite vow, he vowed to separate himself in holiness so as to be used by God. Examples of those who took Nazirite vows in the Bible were Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist; and in those days, these Nazirites vowed to let their hair grow and abstain from wine as signs of their intent and commitment to separate themselves unto holiness. Well, we know what happened to Samson, who definitely had trouble keeping his vows. Today, about as close to making vows as most of us get is in making New Year’s resolutions; and I think we know how often these fall by the wayside when it comes to keeping them.
This year, I have undertaken to make, and prayerfully keep, some commitments that are more like vows than resolutions. I began the year attempting to activate or maintain a series of behavioral commitments which I felt were those things which helped me to deepen my desire toward becoming a “living sacrifice,” as spelled out in Romans 12: 1-2. My initial surge was a 40 day commitment to maintain these habits and record these commitments to/for God; and I was able to go through those 40 days at the outset of this year, keeping – and even reporting my daily fulfillment. At the end of the 40 days, however, I realized that I needed to keep up the accountability and maintain my “vows” to God, which I felt were Spirit-led, anointed, and a calling to become more intimate in my relationship with my Lord. THEREFORE, I have surrendered myself to keep doing and reporting these vow-like commitments, at least for the remainder of this year. Those who are part of the ministry I lead [Battle Plan Ministries] see my logging of completion of these behaviors daily so that I might be accountable, somewhere, to someone, to document what I’m doing in surrender mode to God.
I don’t desire to be seen as being a “Nazirite” or something special because of my calling to pursue these commitments. I’m not doing these things to be seen as some kind of disciplined “Minister of commitment.” If anyone really knew me, they would know how far from that is from my normal, default, and very human mode of living. Bill Berry is naturally undisciplined, disorganized, and definitely selfish. Hence, this is my need to be more serious about going into and remaining in “surrender mode,” as I call it, to a Spirit-led life which allows me to deepen my relationship with Christ.
I know that only when I make habitual choices to follow Christ will I be able to receive His enabling grace and then to become fruitful for His Kingdom. Allowing myself to go into my default, natural mode of fulfilling my fleshly tendencies, I would become useless for God. And in the spirit of self analysis (which is exhorted by God’s word in 2nd Cor. 13: 5), I would charge you to take an inventory of your commitments to God (i.e., your vows of holiness); and decide which areas you might “tune up” for God’s glory. Then, write down those commitments (“goals,” if you will); and finally develop some way to be accountable for your commitments. And this needs to be far above any new year’s type resolutions. These need to be “VOWS” in the sense of today’s highlight verse; and I think you know which ones need to be made, recorded, and maintained for God’s glory.
I know that doing what I’ve been doing thus far this year has deepened my intimacy of relationship with Christ; and that is well worth any brief failures I’ve experienced during this year.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I pray that I can keep on keeping on in my desire and intent to be more holy and follow You. Amen
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
2010 – Day 13. Jan. 13 – Working Too Hard At Love
Study from Genesis 29 – 30; Passage for Reflection: Genesis 29: 34… NIV Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, "Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons."
My Journal for Today: When one reads of the ancient soap-opera-like story of Laban and Jacob deceiving one another; and then the two daughters of Laban, Jacob’s two wives, doing all they can to win a war of the womb, it illustrates what mankind will do in the so-called name of “LOVE.” And when I read Genesis 29 – 30 this morning, I harkened back to that old saying, “Oh the web we weave when we practice to deceive.”
And F. LaGard Smith’s self-inventory/application at the end of his devotional for today is one all Christians need to ask ourselves. He writes as a mirror into which I can see myself, ”Am I operating under the [self] deceptive premise that the more I work at pleasing God, the more He will love me?” Just recently I was led to launch a 40 day effort to develop or implant a number of disciplines [i.e., repeated behaviors] which I felt were God-led habits which could/would help me to go deeper into a more intimate relationship with Christ. However, I truly am not deluding myself to think that God loves me any more or less because I check off the behaviors/choices on my list or when I fail to do them. I truly hope that I’m not choosing to do these things to try to get God to love me any more as Rachel and Leah were competing for Jacob’s favor by having child after child.
No, my 40 days of purpose, here at the outset of the new year, is a pro-active surrender to those elements of good or Godly living which I believe will help me know my God more intimately, love Him more deeply, obey Him more readily, serve Him more willingly, and then to humbly receive His grace from this process. And I fully recognize that God’s grace (i.e., His love) will come; but I have no idea in what form it will take. It may even be in my Lord giving more challenges in life so that I can grow closer to my Lord rather than more “warm and fuzzies” to make me feel good. I seek my God’s blessing; but I know it will be there for me whenever I seek for His love in my surrender … not my performance.
I hope none of you, … any who may be reading here, are doing “religious stuff” or working overboard just to be good to show off your love to God. Or do we get the message from my sharing here today … that we cannot earn God’s love with the things we do? Nor can we drive God’s love away by what we don’t do or that we do selfishly. God’s love for us is always there; and His grace will be there when our obedience to His will in our humility opens His treasure chest of providence for us [I hope you know from your heart what the truth from Phil. 4: 19, 2nd Cor. 12: 9, James 4: 6, and 1st Peter 5: 6].
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I pray that what I do everyday, those choices I make which I truly believe YOU lead me to make, … that they are my living sacrifice for Your glory and are not carried out to earn Your favor. Amen
My Journal for Today: When one reads of the ancient soap-opera-like story of Laban and Jacob deceiving one another; and then the two daughters of Laban, Jacob’s two wives, doing all they can to win a war of the womb, it illustrates what mankind will do in the so-called name of “LOVE.” And when I read Genesis 29 – 30 this morning, I harkened back to that old saying, “Oh the web we weave when we practice to deceive.”
And F. LaGard Smith’s self-inventory/application at the end of his devotional for today is one all Christians need to ask ourselves. He writes as a mirror into which I can see myself, ”Am I operating under the [self] deceptive premise that the more I work at pleasing God, the more He will love me?” Just recently I was led to launch a 40 day effort to develop or implant a number of disciplines [i.e., repeated behaviors] which I felt were God-led habits which could/would help me to go deeper into a more intimate relationship with Christ. However, I truly am not deluding myself to think that God loves me any more or less because I check off the behaviors/choices on my list or when I fail to do them. I truly hope that I’m not choosing to do these things to try to get God to love me any more as Rachel and Leah were competing for Jacob’s favor by having child after child.
No, my 40 days of purpose, here at the outset of the new year, is a pro-active surrender to those elements of good or Godly living which I believe will help me know my God more intimately, love Him more deeply, obey Him more readily, serve Him more willingly, and then to humbly receive His grace from this process. And I fully recognize that God’s grace (i.e., His love) will come; but I have no idea in what form it will take. It may even be in my Lord giving more challenges in life so that I can grow closer to my Lord rather than more “warm and fuzzies” to make me feel good. I seek my God’s blessing; but I know it will be there for me whenever I seek for His love in my surrender … not my performance.
I hope none of you, … any who may be reading here, are doing “religious stuff” or working overboard just to be good to show off your love to God. Or do we get the message from my sharing here today … that we cannot earn God’s love with the things we do? Nor can we drive God’s love away by what we don’t do or that we do selfishly. God’s love for us is always there; and His grace will be there when our obedience to His will in our humility opens His treasure chest of providence for us [I hope you know from your heart what the truth from Phil. 4: 19, 2nd Cor. 12: 9, James 4: 6, and 1st Peter 5: 6].
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I pray that what I do everyday, those choices I make which I truly believe YOU lead me to make, … that they are my living sacrifice for Your glory and are not carried out to earn Your favor. Amen
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
2010 – Day 6. Jan. 6 – Commitment to Keeping Covenants
Study from Genesis 15 – 17; Passage for Reflection: Genesis 17: 7 … NIV I will establish My covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you [to Abram] and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
My Journal for Today: Do you realize what really happened when God made that covenant with Abram (whose name was changed to “Abraham” as a part of this one-way covenant God made with him? When you really look at it, especially from a human point of view, God’s covenant with old Abe really didn’t make much sense. Here was the Creator of the Universe lowering Himself to make a one-way deal with a very fallible man; and to make a commitment into an eternal relationship with that man and his progeny to come. Why would God do such a thing? Well, the reality and truth of God’s covenants in the Old Testament speak loudly of God’s desire to have a relationship with mankind; and He was willing to “stoop down” to man’s level, retaining all of His Deity, and using a concept of man’s culture of that time – i.e., the establishment of a “covenant” – to show man (in the persons of Noah, for example, or in this example with Abraham) just how committed He, God, was to have an eternal relationship with mankind. What a deal !!
And when we realize the true character of God, His Holiness, and His everlasting truthfulness and faithfulness, we have to see – if we’re willing to look – that this one-way deal God made with man is eternal; and it came from the Creator to the created. And that my dear one is truly mind boggling. And it was so mind boggling to Abram, who became Abraham, and his wife Sarai, who became Sarah, that they just couldn’t completely get it. Oh, they believed in their God; but they just couldn’t grasp the depth of the covenant God had made with them … to the point that they tried to devise a human solution to a dilemma, i.e., Sarah being able to conceive a child at her late age, which seemed, to them, even beyond God’s ability to solve.
And it’s that human failing of trustfulness in God’s covenant with His children which trips up Christians even today. We, as Christians, to whom I’m writing here, need to realize that the “New Covenant” is still a covenant with God; and in Christ, the New Covenant is a fulfillment of God’s “Old Covenant” to bring a Savior, a Messiah, Who is Christ, The Lord. But this new covenant with Christ is a two-way covenant; when God sent His Son to be the sacrificial Lamb and die for our sin, being raised to be the Lord of all is God’s part of the New Covenant. But our part of the covenant is a surrender to His Lordship and a commitment to worship Christ with our lives, surrendering our very being to His Spirit so that the Holy Spirit can mold us into the image of The Glorified Savior.
I really don’t think that many, who call themselves “Christian,” realize the depth of a COVENANT relationship as the Bible teaches this concept for our lives. And I’m afraid there are many who sit in the pews every Sunday, thinking that they have the fire-insurance of salvation, when they haven’t fulfilled their part of the New Covenant; and that is to surrender their lives to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. These people may believe that Jesus was and is their Savior; but they haven’t surrendered to Christ’s Lordship. And the Bible is clear that both parts of that reception formula are necessary for the completion of the New Covenant from Christ which brings salvation to the one who believes and receives Christ as BOTH SAVIOR AND LORD.
If you’re reading this, I pray that you recognize the depth of the concept of “covenant;” and I pray that you are sealed by God’s Spirit into an eternal covenant with Christ, recognizing and living in covenant worship of the Savior who has become your Lord.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I pray that my life is the working out of Your coming to live, die, and to be raised back into glory so that I can partake of Your New Covenant to the glory of Your Father, my Heavenly Father. You are my Savior AND Lord; and may my life reflect that covenant forever. Amen
My Journal for Today: Do you realize what really happened when God made that covenant with Abram (whose name was changed to “Abraham” as a part of this one-way covenant God made with him? When you really look at it, especially from a human point of view, God’s covenant with old Abe really didn’t make much sense. Here was the Creator of the Universe lowering Himself to make a one-way deal with a very fallible man; and to make a commitment into an eternal relationship with that man and his progeny to come. Why would God do such a thing? Well, the reality and truth of God’s covenants in the Old Testament speak loudly of God’s desire to have a relationship with mankind; and He was willing to “stoop down” to man’s level, retaining all of His Deity, and using a concept of man’s culture of that time – i.e., the establishment of a “covenant” – to show man (in the persons of Noah, for example, or in this example with Abraham) just how committed He, God, was to have an eternal relationship with mankind. What a deal !!
And when we realize the true character of God, His Holiness, and His everlasting truthfulness and faithfulness, we have to see – if we’re willing to look – that this one-way deal God made with man is eternal; and it came from the Creator to the created. And that my dear one is truly mind boggling. And it was so mind boggling to Abram, who became Abraham, and his wife Sarai, who became Sarah, that they just couldn’t completely get it. Oh, they believed in their God; but they just couldn’t grasp the depth of the covenant God had made with them … to the point that they tried to devise a human solution to a dilemma, i.e., Sarah being able to conceive a child at her late age, which seemed, to them, even beyond God’s ability to solve.
And it’s that human failing of trustfulness in God’s covenant with His children which trips up Christians even today. We, as Christians, to whom I’m writing here, need to realize that the “New Covenant” is still a covenant with God; and in Christ, the New Covenant is a fulfillment of God’s “Old Covenant” to bring a Savior, a Messiah, Who is Christ, The Lord. But this new covenant with Christ is a two-way covenant; when God sent His Son to be the sacrificial Lamb and die for our sin, being raised to be the Lord of all is God’s part of the New Covenant. But our part of the covenant is a surrender to His Lordship and a commitment to worship Christ with our lives, surrendering our very being to His Spirit so that the Holy Spirit can mold us into the image of The Glorified Savior.
I really don’t think that many, who call themselves “Christian,” realize the depth of a COVENANT relationship as the Bible teaches this concept for our lives. And I’m afraid there are many who sit in the pews every Sunday, thinking that they have the fire-insurance of salvation, when they haven’t fulfilled their part of the New Covenant; and that is to surrender their lives to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. These people may believe that Jesus was and is their Savior; but they haven’t surrendered to Christ’s Lordship. And the Bible is clear that both parts of that reception formula are necessary for the completion of the New Covenant from Christ which brings salvation to the one who believes and receives Christ as BOTH SAVIOR AND LORD.
If you’re reading this, I pray that you recognize the depth of the concept of “covenant;” and I pray that you are sealed by God’s Spirit into an eternal covenant with Christ, recognizing and living in covenant worship of the Savior who has become your Lord.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I pray that my life is the working out of Your coming to live, die, and to be raised back into glory so that I can partake of Your New Covenant to the glory of Your Father, my Heavenly Father. You are my Savior AND Lord; and may my life reflect that covenant forever. Amen
Sunday, December 20, 2009
2009 – Day 353.Dec 20 – Faith Reveals Goodness
Passage for Study: Genesis 22: 1 – 14 … Genesis 22 linked for study and context …
My Journal for Today: Chuck Swindoll closes out his short study into Abraham this morning by giving his readers (me) three short – but powerful – lessons we (I) can glean, which will help us (me) both live and die in a deeper relationship with The Lord. Here are the three, which were illustrated by Abraham and/or Isaac in their trek up to the mountain for the ritual, but very personal, sacrifice.
#1. God the Father showed us how to live when He released His dear Son. >>> My friend, I hope you know the truth of Romans 8: 32, which states [NKJV], He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? In the incarnation of His Son, God the Father, actually provided His most precious relationship completely for His children – that’s you and me. And His Son did all God the Father led Him to do, absolutely becoming the Lamb of God to save us from our sins. And in today’s scenario, Abraham illustrated, with great maturity of faith, as did Isaac, the son, just how far they were willing to go in life to faithfully follow God. How much are we willing to live and give for our Father?
#2. God the Son showed us how to die when He released Himself to the Father. >>> In this story, Isaac was a wonderful picture of God, the Son’s, i.e., Jesus’, total submission to the will of His father, Jesus willingly setting aside His personal relationship with His Father to humble Himself, even unto death, so that He could fulfill what the Father desired for Him. And so did Isaac to Abraham in our story. But, my friend, what are we doing in our lives to be a “living sacrifice” of worship, as it says in Romans 12: 1-2, so that we can prove, with our living, what God the Son proved by His dying?
#3. God the Spirit will show us how to live and die as we learn to release what has us in its grip. >>> And here is Swindoll’s charge related to that, which can also be seen in our proof text for today. Swindoll writes, “As long as we’re owned by whatever we’re clutching, we’ll never be given over completely to the Holy Spirit.”
And I don’t know about you; but that last statement has me wrapped up in conviction. For years I held tightly to a pattern of recurring sexual sin. Then God came into my life; and He showed me how, by living in His truth, I could let that go and walk in HIS victory. You can see this in John 8: 32 which documents God’s promise that if/when we capture and live in His truth, that Truth (with a capital “T”) will set us free. But, my friends, I still have human issues which I hold to and therefore have me in their grip.
For example, right now I’m dealing with the sin stronghold of gluttony in my life. God even allowed me to contract Type 2 Diabetes as a thorn to help pry this gripping selfishness from me. But I still do things all too often, such as eating things I shouldn’t; and as long as I choose my sin over my Savior’s leading, I will never be able to be given all God has for me in this life. What about you, … do you have something you need to release to God so that He can let you walk free from that gripping issue?
Swindoll’s absolutely right that God will, through his truth (i.e., His word) gently convict and direct us to follow Him as He states in Luke 9: 23; but when I resist and decide to partake of my selfish desires rather than use His power to resist my sinfulness, I will force God into a process, which is almost always very painful, to pry my fingers from the stronghold of my own sinfulness.
In other words, if I won’t do what God tells me I must do voluntarily, He will have to show me the price I will pay for my selfish resistance. How many times, do I have to see God’s banner headline, which reads like the words of that old car filter commercial, Pay me now or pay me later!
Okay, it’s another 2nd Cor. 13: 5 pop quiz, as we ask ourselves, “What must we (I) do to give ourselves (myself) over to God now, so that we (I) won’t have to pay ourselves, the world, or our Lord later?” And when we answer that question, will we be willing to pay God what He is due in discipleship now, or will He have to help us pay Him later … so very painfully?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, thank You again for mercifully showing me what I must do to be a living sacrifice for You. Amen
My Journal for Today: Chuck Swindoll closes out his short study into Abraham this morning by giving his readers (me) three short – but powerful – lessons we (I) can glean, which will help us (me) both live and die in a deeper relationship with The Lord. Here are the three, which were illustrated by Abraham and/or Isaac in their trek up to the mountain for the ritual, but very personal, sacrifice.
#1. God the Father showed us how to live when He released His dear Son. >>> My friend, I hope you know the truth of Romans 8: 32, which states [NKJV], He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? In the incarnation of His Son, God the Father, actually provided His most precious relationship completely for His children – that’s you and me. And His Son did all God the Father led Him to do, absolutely becoming the Lamb of God to save us from our sins. And in today’s scenario, Abraham illustrated, with great maturity of faith, as did Isaac, the son, just how far they were willing to go in life to faithfully follow God. How much are we willing to live and give for our Father?
#2. God the Son showed us how to die when He released Himself to the Father. >>> In this story, Isaac was a wonderful picture of God, the Son’s, i.e., Jesus’, total submission to the will of His father, Jesus willingly setting aside His personal relationship with His Father to humble Himself, even unto death, so that He could fulfill what the Father desired for Him. And so did Isaac to Abraham in our story. But, my friend, what are we doing in our lives to be a “living sacrifice” of worship, as it says in Romans 12: 1-2, so that we can prove, with our living, what God the Son proved by His dying?
#3. God the Spirit will show us how to live and die as we learn to release what has us in its grip. >>> And here is Swindoll’s charge related to that, which can also be seen in our proof text for today. Swindoll writes, “As long as we’re owned by whatever we’re clutching, we’ll never be given over completely to the Holy Spirit.”
And I don’t know about you; but that last statement has me wrapped up in conviction. For years I held tightly to a pattern of recurring sexual sin. Then God came into my life; and He showed me how, by living in His truth, I could let that go and walk in HIS victory. You can see this in John 8: 32 which documents God’s promise that if/when we capture and live in His truth, that Truth (with a capital “T”) will set us free. But, my friends, I still have human issues which I hold to and therefore have me in their grip.
For example, right now I’m dealing with the sin stronghold of gluttony in my life. God even allowed me to contract Type 2 Diabetes as a thorn to help pry this gripping selfishness from me. But I still do things all too often, such as eating things I shouldn’t; and as long as I choose my sin over my Savior’s leading, I will never be able to be given all God has for me in this life. What about you, … do you have something you need to release to God so that He can let you walk free from that gripping issue?
Swindoll’s absolutely right that God will, through his truth (i.e., His word) gently convict and direct us to follow Him as He states in Luke 9: 23; but when I resist and decide to partake of my selfish desires rather than use His power to resist my sinfulness, I will force God into a process, which is almost always very painful, to pry my fingers from the stronghold of my own sinfulness.
In other words, if I won’t do what God tells me I must do voluntarily, He will have to show me the price I will pay for my selfish resistance. How many times, do I have to see God’s banner headline, which reads like the words of that old car filter commercial, Pay me now or pay me later!
Okay, it’s another 2nd Cor. 13: 5 pop quiz, as we ask ourselves, “What must we (I) do to give ourselves (myself) over to God now, so that we (I) won’t have to pay ourselves, the world, or our Lord later?” And when we answer that question, will we be willing to pay God what He is due in discipleship now, or will He have to help us pay Him later … so very painfully?
My Prayer for Today: Lord, thank You again for mercifully showing me what I must do to be a living sacrifice for You. Amen
Saturday, December 19, 2009
2009 – Day 352.Dec 19 – Releasing Our Group
Passage for Study: Genesis 22: 10 – 14 … Genesis 22 linked for study and context …
My Journal for Today: Just a few days ago, Swindoll’s devotional (and therefore mine – see Day 348, Dec. 15) emphasized our tendency – from our default sin nature – to hold on too tightly to the things of this world, especially those things or relationships we hold most dear in our lives. The point, again from Genesis 22, has been illustrated again today by Abraham’s willingness to put his full and complete trust in God and being willing to sacrifice his only son on Mount Moriah, as God was seemingly irrationally demanding Abraham to do so.
Now in the larger context of the New Covenant, which we have in our New Testament, as well as the Old Testament story we’re into here, we know that this very same Mt. Moriah became the Holy City of God where God Himself was not only willing – but did – let His only begotten Son, Jesus, The Messiah, be sacrificed, which we’ve renamed Golgotha, as our Lord would become the perfect Lamb of God, shedding His blood, just as God provided that perfect lamb in the thicket as for Abraham to sacrifice to/for God that day.
We now know that this story in the Old Testament became a pre-picture of the Messiah being provided so that mankind could be saved from the sure death of sin. And we also learn from this that God can and will always provide the grace to save us when we’re willing to hold on loosely and give for His glory anything and everything He provides for us. We have to be willing to let go of the things of this world, … yes, even the ones we hold dearest, so that they can be – in faith – given over for God’s glory. And many times, if not most times, these giving scenarios become totally irrational to our human minds and hearts. Again, I think of a dear young couple, friends of mine, who recently lost their six hour old baby; or I think of a 65 year old man, a devout Christian friend, who sometime ago was fired in a downsizing, placing his family in a horrible financial crunch. Think of that entire study in the Book of Job, where Job (and we) had to learn that God is God and we are not, especially when we feel entitled to things in this world we’ve been provided and hold onto so tightly.
I think I’m getting the message clearly in my mind from these studies; and hopefully my faith is maturing to the place of a Job or an Abraham, where I don’t have to be tested in the extreme [Oh Lord spare me from that!] to see if my heart has learned the lesson of humility and sacrifice as well. So, let me pray for us, my dear one.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, may any who read here join me in the prayer of knowing, deeply in our hearts, that You loved us so much that You gave us Your only Son, Who was the perfect Lamb, provided on that Mount, so that we could be saved from our sin. Amen
My Journal for Today: Just a few days ago, Swindoll’s devotional (and therefore mine – see Day 348, Dec. 15) emphasized our tendency – from our default sin nature – to hold on too tightly to the things of this world, especially those things or relationships we hold most dear in our lives. The point, again from Genesis 22, has been illustrated again today by Abraham’s willingness to put his full and complete trust in God and being willing to sacrifice his only son on Mount Moriah, as God was seemingly irrationally demanding Abraham to do so.
Now in the larger context of the New Covenant, which we have in our New Testament, as well as the Old Testament story we’re into here, we know that this very same Mt. Moriah became the Holy City of God where God Himself was not only willing – but did – let His only begotten Son, Jesus, The Messiah, be sacrificed, which we’ve renamed Golgotha, as our Lord would become the perfect Lamb of God, shedding His blood, just as God provided that perfect lamb in the thicket as for Abraham to sacrifice to/for God that day.
We now know that this story in the Old Testament became a pre-picture of the Messiah being provided so that mankind could be saved from the sure death of sin. And we also learn from this that God can and will always provide the grace to save us when we’re willing to hold on loosely and give for His glory anything and everything He provides for us. We have to be willing to let go of the things of this world, … yes, even the ones we hold dearest, so that they can be – in faith – given over for God’s glory. And many times, if not most times, these giving scenarios become totally irrational to our human minds and hearts. Again, I think of a dear young couple, friends of mine, who recently lost their six hour old baby; or I think of a 65 year old man, a devout Christian friend, who sometime ago was fired in a downsizing, placing his family in a horrible financial crunch. Think of that entire study in the Book of Job, where Job (and we) had to learn that God is God and we are not, especially when we feel entitled to things in this world we’ve been provided and hold onto so tightly.
I think I’m getting the message clearly in my mind from these studies; and hopefully my faith is maturing to the place of a Job or an Abraham, where I don’t have to be tested in the extreme [Oh Lord spare me from that!] to see if my heart has learned the lesson of humility and sacrifice as well. So, let me pray for us, my dear one.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, may any who read here join me in the prayer of knowing, deeply in our hearts, that You loved us so much that You gave us Your only Son, Who was the perfect Lamb, provided on that Mount, so that we could be saved from our sin. Amen
Friday, November 13, 2009
2009 – Day 316.Nov 13 – Disappointing Results
Passage for Study: Acts 14: 1 - 20 … Linked for your study …
My Journal for Today: As we read in this Acts 14 passage as well as other accounts in the mission/ministry of the Paul, the converted Apostle didn’t experience missionary success everywhere he went. Certainly in this account, Paul was stoned and left for death because of his preaching. Rejection was often his close companion.
Swindoll also recounts the life of a dedicated missionary, James Gilmore, who is quoted by Pastor Chuck after years of missionary work to tribal peoples of Mongolia to have no converts. He came to Mongolia with great hope and enthusiasm; but by all worldly standards of ministry (i.e., the number of converts), after YEARS, there were none. And Swindoll uses the Acts 14 account, as well as the story about Brother Gilmore, to illustrate that missionary or ministry work should not be for the faint of heart.
When a couple of days ago I wrote, “God’s calling is God’s enablement,” I wasn’t saying that God will call you to the mission field or into a personal ministry and then make your success the head-count of souls or the numbers of people who flock into your ministry. Head counts are often the world’s way of measuring the success of His calling. When Pastors gather, one of the oft asked questions is “How big is your church?” But those sorts of data gathering methods are man’s way of seeing success … NOT GOD’S.
Take it from someone who, about 15 years ago, was called to found and build a ministry to help Christians walk free from habitual sexual sin. And at that time – as it is now – the field of ministry was “white unto harvest.” With over 50% of Christian men and over 25% of Full-time Ministers deeply hooked on porn, damaging their ability to be a husband or a father, or to have any power in personal ministry, I thought God would see hundreds, if not thousands, of men convicted and redirected to fruitfulness as Christians by coming into and through BattlePlan Ministries. >>> Well, after those 15+ years, there have been a number whose lives have been brought from sexual addiction to an abiding and productive relationship with Christ. However, the ministry of Satan in this area seems to be growing so, so much faster than the lives which Battle Plan Ministry touches – or all the ministries like ours in the country for that matter. Sometimes, I feel like God has led me to the task of trying to empty an ocean with a tea spoon.
But I’m not called to save the world. That’s God’s job. I’m not called to convict and redirect the lives of all sinners. I’m just called to be available, vulnerable, accountable, and ready to serve any Christian who comes to Battle Plan Ministry for help. And if I get discouraged or disheartened by encountering and being turned back by Satan’s super-weapons of sexual warfare, I would become no use to God in going up against Satan’s best or the world’s warfare.
My friend, … if you have a calling from God, the task may seem overwhelming. But rather than becoming discouraged by numbers or the lack of same, be like Abraham or Moses or Gideon or Nehemiah and just go, following God’s calling to do God’s work. Go with God and for God; and let God be God, remembering (and here it comes again), YOU ARE NOT! God is the One Who produces the “head count.” We do what we’re called to do, doing, to the best of our ability, what HE has called us to do, … no more, … no less. And we, who are called, if we are truly doing all we can do, must accept the harvest to be God’s.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me not to be into counting; but rather into commitment. Amen
My Journal for Today: As we read in this Acts 14 passage as well as other accounts in the mission/ministry of the Paul, the converted Apostle didn’t experience missionary success everywhere he went. Certainly in this account, Paul was stoned and left for death because of his preaching. Rejection was often his close companion.
Swindoll also recounts the life of a dedicated missionary, James Gilmore, who is quoted by Pastor Chuck after years of missionary work to tribal peoples of Mongolia to have no converts. He came to Mongolia with great hope and enthusiasm; but by all worldly standards of ministry (i.e., the number of converts), after YEARS, there were none. And Swindoll uses the Acts 14 account, as well as the story about Brother Gilmore, to illustrate that missionary or ministry work should not be for the faint of heart.
When a couple of days ago I wrote, “God’s calling is God’s enablement,” I wasn’t saying that God will call you to the mission field or into a personal ministry and then make your success the head-count of souls or the numbers of people who flock into your ministry. Head counts are often the world’s way of measuring the success of His calling. When Pastors gather, one of the oft asked questions is “How big is your church?” But those sorts of data gathering methods are man’s way of seeing success … NOT GOD’S.
Take it from someone who, about 15 years ago, was called to found and build a ministry to help Christians walk free from habitual sexual sin. And at that time – as it is now – the field of ministry was “white unto harvest.” With over 50% of Christian men and over 25% of Full-time Ministers deeply hooked on porn, damaging their ability to be a husband or a father, or to have any power in personal ministry, I thought God would see hundreds, if not thousands, of men convicted and redirected to fruitfulness as Christians by coming into and through BattlePlan Ministries. >>> Well, after those 15+ years, there have been a number whose lives have been brought from sexual addiction to an abiding and productive relationship with Christ. However, the ministry of Satan in this area seems to be growing so, so much faster than the lives which Battle Plan Ministry touches – or all the ministries like ours in the country for that matter. Sometimes, I feel like God has led me to the task of trying to empty an ocean with a tea spoon.
But I’m not called to save the world. That’s God’s job. I’m not called to convict and redirect the lives of all sinners. I’m just called to be available, vulnerable, accountable, and ready to serve any Christian who comes to Battle Plan Ministry for help. And if I get discouraged or disheartened by encountering and being turned back by Satan’s super-weapons of sexual warfare, I would become no use to God in going up against Satan’s best or the world’s warfare.
My friend, … if you have a calling from God, the task may seem overwhelming. But rather than becoming discouraged by numbers or the lack of same, be like Abraham or Moses or Gideon or Nehemiah and just go, following God’s calling to do God’s work. Go with God and for God; and let God be God, remembering (and here it comes again), YOU ARE NOT! God is the One Who produces the “head count.” We do what we’re called to do, doing, to the best of our ability, what HE has called us to do, … no more, … no less. And we, who are called, if we are truly doing all we can do, must accept the harvest to be God’s.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help me not to be into counting; but rather into commitment. Amen
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
2009 – Day 306.Nov 03 – Gentle Nudging
Passage for Study: Acts 12: 25 – 13: 3 … 25 And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their ministry, and they also took with them John whose surname was Mark.
Acts 13 1 Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.
My Journal for Today: This is an interesting, and, as Swindoll points out, telling scenario in today’s passage, which, I believe, has some difficulty translating into our modern day church life. Remember, the church at Antioch was firing on all cylinders, growing rapidly. But in the midst of this time of Spirit-led success, The Holy Spirit intervenes with a message of radical change, somehow getting the message to the leaders of the Antioch Church that Saul/Paul and his buddy, Barnabas, were to move out on a mission trip, a long-term mission trip. And so, here’s God, unexpectedly calling out 40% of the leadership of that church; and what was there reaction? Well, it was immediate and joyful. They surrendered to God’s Spirit and sent these two out for God’s glory.
Now I think about this. I just came from an Elder meeting at our church last night. I wonder what would happen if five of our Board of Elders [that’s 40%], including our Senior Pastor, came into the meeting and announced they had gotten God’s call to leave our midst and go to Africa together; AND what if they also said that didn’t know when, or if, they would be returning. Well, I think it would throw our church leadership into panic mode rather than the surrender mode seen by the Antioch church leaders in today’s passage.
What I’m trying to say here is that we Christians, even more mature Christians, have a tendency to get into a comfort zone and we do not react well to change, even if it comes from the gentle, or not-so-gentle, nudging of God, the Holy Spirit. What happened for the Antioch five was a radical change; but the way they responded was to do exactly what Jesus would one day instruct His disciples (in Luke 9: 23) to “… deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and follow Me.”
I just wonder if I could, as a leader in my church, be surrendered to God’s Spirit enough, and be mature enough in my faith, to do what the Antioch church leaders did or what Christ Himself commands of me as His disciple. I hope I could; but I also know that I like my comfort zone; and in my life, I’m not one who digs change all that well. How about you? Are you seeking and responding to the world, to your self, or to God, the Holy Spirit, as things change in your life?
I hope we all can learn from and apply the message of today’s passage and devotional application to our lives, genuinely seeking God’s leading; and when we get it, following it obediently.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I know that Your calling is Your enablement; but I pray that I will be obedient to Your lead and follow when You call. Amen
Acts 13 1 Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.
My Journal for Today: This is an interesting, and, as Swindoll points out, telling scenario in today’s passage, which, I believe, has some difficulty translating into our modern day church life. Remember, the church at Antioch was firing on all cylinders, growing rapidly. But in the midst of this time of Spirit-led success, The Holy Spirit intervenes with a message of radical change, somehow getting the message to the leaders of the Antioch Church that Saul/Paul and his buddy, Barnabas, were to move out on a mission trip, a long-term mission trip. And so, here’s God, unexpectedly calling out 40% of the leadership of that church; and what was there reaction? Well, it was immediate and joyful. They surrendered to God’s Spirit and sent these two out for God’s glory.
Now I think about this. I just came from an Elder meeting at our church last night. I wonder what would happen if five of our Board of Elders [that’s 40%], including our Senior Pastor, came into the meeting and announced they had gotten God’s call to leave our midst and go to Africa together; AND what if they also said that didn’t know when, or if, they would be returning. Well, I think it would throw our church leadership into panic mode rather than the surrender mode seen by the Antioch church leaders in today’s passage.
What I’m trying to say here is that we Christians, even more mature Christians, have a tendency to get into a comfort zone and we do not react well to change, even if it comes from the gentle, or not-so-gentle, nudging of God, the Holy Spirit. What happened for the Antioch five was a radical change; but the way they responded was to do exactly what Jesus would one day instruct His disciples (in Luke 9: 23) to “… deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and follow Me.”
I just wonder if I could, as a leader in my church, be surrendered to God’s Spirit enough, and be mature enough in my faith, to do what the Antioch church leaders did or what Christ Himself commands of me as His disciple. I hope I could; but I also know that I like my comfort zone; and in my life, I’m not one who digs change all that well. How about you? Are you seeking and responding to the world, to your self, or to God, the Holy Spirit, as things change in your life?
I hope we all can learn from and apply the message of today’s passage and devotional application to our lives, genuinely seeking God’s leading; and when we get it, following it obediently.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I know that Your calling is Your enablement; but I pray that I will be obedient to Your lead and follow when You call. Amen
Thursday, October 29, 2009
2009 – Day 301.Oct 29 – It’s Not About You
Passage for Study: 2nd Corinthians 12: 1 – 10 … Linked for study …
My Journal for Today: Yes, we’re hovering again here in the passage about Paul’s “thorn in the flesh;” and today Chuck Swindoll wants me to really see and internalize one of the bottom-line truths from this passage of Scripture. And that is related to what I wrote about yesterday – that life is not about comfort and accumulation and personal fulfillment. No, … dear one, … we simply must learn what Paul espoused in verse 10 of this passage … that life, no matter how challenging, is all about God; and we must learn that what Paul also taught in Romans 8: 28 and Phil. 2: 11-13 [look them up!]… that in all situations, all circumstances, and all struggles, God is in control and He ALWAYS has our good in His plan for us; … AND it is all for Him and not for me.
Paul got truly got it; as we can read in this passage, even boasting about … well, take a look at the list, which Swindoll helped me see today. Paul said he could BOAST about …
• What he had lost,
• In his weaknesses,
• In the face of insults,
• When he was slandered,
• When he was persecuted,
• As he faced any of the difficulties in life, … and …
• With any of the pressures the world presented.
Even after praying and praying and praying that God, in His sovereignty, would take away the “thorn” from his life, Paul came to realize that God had allowed this painful thing, whatever it was, into his life so that he could and would remain humble, therefore allowing him to receive God’s enabling grace and for him to be able to be strong in the face of his weaknesses. As I alluded to yesterday, it was as if the Apostle was saying, “Okay, Lord, if this thorn is what it takes for me to have Your strength; bring it on!” And by extension, it was also as if Paul was witnessing to the world by saying, “Hey, world, look at how God can deal with my weaknesses in the face of this pain … just like He will for you, if you let Him!”
And there is another Pauline truth that I thought of as I was reading Swindoll’s devotional this morning, which also came from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, in Phil. 1: 6. You probably know it. It says, “… being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” And so, as the title of my devotional for today says, my friend, “It’s not about you!” No, it’s all about God and HIS plan and purpose for our lives. And that was the opening (and really the closing) message of Rick Warren’s incredibly popular book The Purpose Driven Life, wasn’t it? Life is not about me; … it’s about God.
And so, trusting in the truth of what Paul learned via his “thorn,” and living in the reality of the truth of Paul’s admonition of Romans 8: 28, that ALL things work together for my good, I too can boast of all those challenges which come my way in life; because the truth is that God is using those “thorns” to be a staging ground for His work to make me just like Jesus. And isn’t that worth anything it takes? Isn’t that the bottom-line goal for all Christians … to become like our Savior? Of course it is. So, I pray – as I will below – that God allows me to share Paul’s “bring it on” attitude; and to let the world see God shaping me into the image of my Lord.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, it is with fear and trembling, Lord, that I come before Your throne of grace saying “THANK YOU” for all the weaknesses in my life, … all of which showcase Your strength and give You glory. Lord, it’s all about YOU! Amen
My Journal for Today: Yes, we’re hovering again here in the passage about Paul’s “thorn in the flesh;” and today Chuck Swindoll wants me to really see and internalize one of the bottom-line truths from this passage of Scripture. And that is related to what I wrote about yesterday – that life is not about comfort and accumulation and personal fulfillment. No, … dear one, … we simply must learn what Paul espoused in verse 10 of this passage … that life, no matter how challenging, is all about God; and we must learn that what Paul also taught in Romans 8: 28 and Phil. 2: 11-13 [look them up!]… that in all situations, all circumstances, and all struggles, God is in control and He ALWAYS has our good in His plan for us; … AND it is all for Him and not for me.
Paul got truly got it; as we can read in this passage, even boasting about … well, take a look at the list, which Swindoll helped me see today. Paul said he could BOAST about …
• What he had lost,
• In his weaknesses,
• In the face of insults,
• When he was slandered,
• When he was persecuted,
• As he faced any of the difficulties in life, … and …
• With any of the pressures the world presented.
Even after praying and praying and praying that God, in His sovereignty, would take away the “thorn” from his life, Paul came to realize that God had allowed this painful thing, whatever it was, into his life so that he could and would remain humble, therefore allowing him to receive God’s enabling grace and for him to be able to be strong in the face of his weaknesses. As I alluded to yesterday, it was as if the Apostle was saying, “Okay, Lord, if this thorn is what it takes for me to have Your strength; bring it on!” And by extension, it was also as if Paul was witnessing to the world by saying, “Hey, world, look at how God can deal with my weaknesses in the face of this pain … just like He will for you, if you let Him!”
And there is another Pauline truth that I thought of as I was reading Swindoll’s devotional this morning, which also came from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, in Phil. 1: 6. You probably know it. It says, “… being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” And so, as the title of my devotional for today says, my friend, “It’s not about you!” No, it’s all about God and HIS plan and purpose for our lives. And that was the opening (and really the closing) message of Rick Warren’s incredibly popular book The Purpose Driven Life, wasn’t it? Life is not about me; … it’s about God.
And so, trusting in the truth of what Paul learned via his “thorn,” and living in the reality of the truth of Paul’s admonition of Romans 8: 28, that ALL things work together for my good, I too can boast of all those challenges which come my way in life; because the truth is that God is using those “thorns” to be a staging ground for His work to make me just like Jesus. And isn’t that worth anything it takes? Isn’t that the bottom-line goal for all Christians … to become like our Savior? Of course it is. So, I pray – as I will below – that God allows me to share Paul’s “bring it on” attitude; and to let the world see God shaping me into the image of my Lord.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, it is with fear and trembling, Lord, that I come before Your throne of grace saying “THANK YOU” for all the weaknesses in my life, … all of which showcase Your strength and give You glory. Lord, it’s all about YOU! Amen
Saturday, October 10, 2009
2009 – Day 282.Oct 10 – God Wins
Passage of the Day: Acts 9: 5 - 9 … 3 As he [Saul of Tarsus] journeyed, he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” 6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7 And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. 8 Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
My Journal for Today: Theologically God’s goading is called “prevenient grace,” which is that so-called grace which “goes before,” calling the lost to Himself or maybe calling the found back into fellowship. And God’s prevenient grace is relentless. If you are one of the “called according to God’s purpose,” God is going to win. So, you might as well surrender today.
It took God’s goading, during the days when Saul of Tarsus was so resistant to Christ’s call, to bring this hard-headed Jew to this place on the road to Damascus where God could knock Saul off his high-horse of pride and show him Whom the real Lord of life is. But God won with Paul; and if you’ve been resisting God’s call of purpose for your life, you might as well give up voluntarily or you may have some road to Damascus experience in your future.
Maybe you even consider yourself to be a Christian; and I’m not here to judge your heart. But if you’ve been trying to control life on your own terms, you are in a fight with God, my friend; and you need to give it up and surrender to God’s will for your life. I doubt if you’re lost, however, if you’re reading this; but per chance if you are lost, you need to climb down off your high horse and surrender to Christ as The Savior and Lord of your life.
My friend, God is going to win … just as he did with Saul who became Paul. So, as Chuck Swindoll says in his devotional this morning, “Why wait for a storm” to declare that God wins. Why wait for Him to knock you for a loop? Take it from one who had to be knocked about severely to get the message. It’s so much less painful just to surrender quietly and allow God to be the Lord of your life.
God’s going to win, my friend; so, … just let Him. In a chess game you’d knock over your king to show God that He’s won the game. As the old Nike commercial says, “Just do it!”
My Prayer for Today: You win, Lord … every day of my life! Amen
My Journal for Today: Theologically God’s goading is called “prevenient grace,” which is that so-called grace which “goes before,” calling the lost to Himself or maybe calling the found back into fellowship. And God’s prevenient grace is relentless. If you are one of the “called according to God’s purpose,” God is going to win. So, you might as well surrender today.
It took God’s goading, during the days when Saul of Tarsus was so resistant to Christ’s call, to bring this hard-headed Jew to this place on the road to Damascus where God could knock Saul off his high-horse of pride and show him Whom the real Lord of life is. But God won with Paul; and if you’ve been resisting God’s call of purpose for your life, you might as well give up voluntarily or you may have some road to Damascus experience in your future.
Maybe you even consider yourself to be a Christian; and I’m not here to judge your heart. But if you’ve been trying to control life on your own terms, you are in a fight with God, my friend; and you need to give it up and surrender to God’s will for your life. I doubt if you’re lost, however, if you’re reading this; but per chance if you are lost, you need to climb down off your high horse and surrender to Christ as The Savior and Lord of your life.
My friend, God is going to win … just as he did with Saul who became Paul. So, as Chuck Swindoll says in his devotional this morning, “Why wait for a storm” to declare that God wins. Why wait for Him to knock you for a loop? Take it from one who had to be knocked about severely to get the message. It’s so much less painful just to surrender quietly and allow God to be the Lord of your life.
God’s going to win, my friend; so, … just let Him. In a chess game you’d knock over your king to show God that He’s won the game. As the old Nike commercial says, “Just do it!”
My Prayer for Today: You win, Lord … every day of my life! Amen
Friday, October 09, 2009
2009 – Day 282.Oct 9 – God’s Goads
Passage of the Day: Acts 9: 5 - 9 … 3 As he [Saul of Tarsus] journeyed, he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” 6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7 And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. 8 Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
My Journal for Today: Today Chuck Swindoll in his devotional does a little exposition of the phrase “kick against the goads,” which is not a very common expression in our language. But apparently a “goad” was an implement a 1st century farmer used to drive oxen, which would cause pain if used to direct the oxen and thereby direct the large beasts to move. However, when the oxen resisted the “goading,” they often “kicked against goad,” causing even more pain as they resisted.
I think we often think that Paul’s conversion happened all at once on that road to Damascus; and certainly that was a crucial moment in Saul/Paul recognizing Christ as his Lord. However, as Swindoll correctly points out, the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth had to be a “goad” to the young “bull,” Saul of Tarsus, who had likely seen/heard Jesus preaching in the countryside of His day. And it’s likely that it was a “goad” to see the people follow this man, many of them claiming that Jesus was “The Messiah.” So, when Jesus asked why Saul was “kicking against the goads,” the Lord was likely referring to why Saul had been resisting Christ as his Lord so strongly.
And here is another place where my identification with Paul goes so deep. For many years, I fought to resist Christ, even though for several of these years I recognized the spiritual weakness in my life, seeking strength in many “isms” of the day. But finally, after pushing Christ away from me for years, I had my own “Damascus Road” experience; and like Paul, I became broken to the core, recognizing that this Jesus Christ was my only way to lasting peace and strength.
Swindoll correctly teaches, I believe, that when you encounter someone like a Saul of Tarsus or a Bill Berry, … a resistant seeker, it is best just to encourage such a one to study the life of Jesus. Because when such a person really sees the truth of Christ, they are overwhelmed with the reality of just WHOM this God-Man truly was and is.
Think of those who came to Christianity from atheism by examining thoroughly the facts about Christ. There was Lee Strobel, the author of The Case for Christ; or before him, Josh McDowell, who wrote Evidence That Demands a Verdict, or even earlier, C.S. Lewis, who wrote the masterpiece of Christian apologetics, Mere Christianity. All of these brilliant men “kicked against the goads,” rejecting Christ as the Son of God for many years in their lives. But God pursued them and broke them; and they became some of our Lord’s greatest apologists and Christian teachers. And as I write this, though I may not be a C.S. Lewis, I truly identify with how these men had to become broken to self so that they could, like the Apostle Paul, find Christ as their Lord and Savior.
As I write this, I can only hope that any who read here are not “kicking against the goads,” fighting what Christ would have for the life of any of His children. Oh how God wants the best for His kids; and anytime we “kick against the goads,” we simply resist the wonderful and fruitful life God has for us. All He wants us to do is to surrender and quit “kicking against the goads.”
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I surrender all !! Amen
My Journal for Today: Today Chuck Swindoll in his devotional does a little exposition of the phrase “kick against the goads,” which is not a very common expression in our language. But apparently a “goad” was an implement a 1st century farmer used to drive oxen, which would cause pain if used to direct the oxen and thereby direct the large beasts to move. However, when the oxen resisted the “goading,” they often “kicked against goad,” causing even more pain as they resisted.
I think we often think that Paul’s conversion happened all at once on that road to Damascus; and certainly that was a crucial moment in Saul/Paul recognizing Christ as his Lord. However, as Swindoll correctly points out, the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth had to be a “goad” to the young “bull,” Saul of Tarsus, who had likely seen/heard Jesus preaching in the countryside of His day. And it’s likely that it was a “goad” to see the people follow this man, many of them claiming that Jesus was “The Messiah.” So, when Jesus asked why Saul was “kicking against the goads,” the Lord was likely referring to why Saul had been resisting Christ as his Lord so strongly.
And here is another place where my identification with Paul goes so deep. For many years, I fought to resist Christ, even though for several of these years I recognized the spiritual weakness in my life, seeking strength in many “isms” of the day. But finally, after pushing Christ away from me for years, I had my own “Damascus Road” experience; and like Paul, I became broken to the core, recognizing that this Jesus Christ was my only way to lasting peace and strength.
Swindoll correctly teaches, I believe, that when you encounter someone like a Saul of Tarsus or a Bill Berry, … a resistant seeker, it is best just to encourage such a one to study the life of Jesus. Because when such a person really sees the truth of Christ, they are overwhelmed with the reality of just WHOM this God-Man truly was and is.
Think of those who came to Christianity from atheism by examining thoroughly the facts about Christ. There was Lee Strobel, the author of The Case for Christ; or before him, Josh McDowell, who wrote Evidence That Demands a Verdict, or even earlier, C.S. Lewis, who wrote the masterpiece of Christian apologetics, Mere Christianity. All of these brilliant men “kicked against the goads,” rejecting Christ as the Son of God for many years in their lives. But God pursued them and broke them; and they became some of our Lord’s greatest apologists and Christian teachers. And as I write this, though I may not be a C.S. Lewis, I truly identify with how these men had to become broken to self so that they could, like the Apostle Paul, find Christ as their Lord and Savior.
As I write this, I can only hope that any who read here are not “kicking against the goads,” fighting what Christ would have for the life of any of His children. Oh how God wants the best for His kids; and anytime we “kick against the goads,” we simply resist the wonderful and fruitful life God has for us. All He wants us to do is to surrender and quit “kicking against the goads.”
My Prayer for Today: Lord, I surrender all !! Amen
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
2009 – Day 279.Oct 7 – Roadside Conversion
Passage of the Day: Acts 9: 1 – 4 … 1 Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”
My Journal for Today: This is the scene in Paul’s life for which I have the most identification. Some of you know my story, where on the morning of April 13, 1983, I was brought to a halt emotionally, driving to work that morning, while listening to a taped testimony from a young football player who had become quadriplegic from a football accident; but yet this young man found strength from Christ and saw his future through the eyes of God rather than through the eyes of his loss. This incident brought me to “my knees” spiritually; and on that morning I found Christ at the age of 39.
There’s more to the details of my story; but for me, like Paul, it was a Damascus Road turnaround for my life. That day I left for work with my agnostic attitude; and I came home with a new view of the world; and that’s what happened to Saul of Tarsus, who left for Damascus with hate in his heart for Christians but was suddenly bolted on his journey to finally see Christ for Whom He really was. And the life of Saul, who was to become Paul, was never the same again.
But isn’t that just the way of God sometimes? Maybe you’ve experienced it. That’s the way He works in life at times. You can be cruising along through life thinking that you’re in total control; and WHAM, a doctor tells you that you have cancer. Or maybe you had a relative die in the twin towers of the World Trade Center on 9/11. Or maybe a tornado sweeps in and destroys your home. Sometimes, we just cannot predict how or where God will intervene in our lives to show us that He’s in control. And when these life-changing incidents occur, we may try to deny God’s in the moment; but we will find that trying to ignore or deny them is simply trying to deny God Himself.
My friend, I hope we all are seeking and pursuing all God wants to tell us or all He wants for our lives. Saul of Tarsus certainly got his eyes opened (well, after they were blinded first) to the reality that God had much more for his life than the hatred he held for Christians. Saul was about to find out Whom he really served; and this Jewish leader would never see life the same way again after that day.
I know that after April 13th, 1983 my world view changed forever; and I hope that you are now doing all you can as well to see the world through the eyes of God rather than through selfish, human eyes. Because if you prefer looking at God’s world through selfish eyes, you may be in for a Damascus Road experience one day which will throw you into a posture where you cannot help but see God for Whom He is. I just pray for you that this happens by your choice rather than through some natural disaster one day.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, Lord, I pray your mercy to help me see the world in Your way rather than in my own. Amen
My Journal for Today: This is the scene in Paul’s life for which I have the most identification. Some of you know my story, where on the morning of April 13, 1983, I was brought to a halt emotionally, driving to work that morning, while listening to a taped testimony from a young football player who had become quadriplegic from a football accident; but yet this young man found strength from Christ and saw his future through the eyes of God rather than through the eyes of his loss. This incident brought me to “my knees” spiritually; and on that morning I found Christ at the age of 39.
There’s more to the details of my story; but for me, like Paul, it was a Damascus Road turnaround for my life. That day I left for work with my agnostic attitude; and I came home with a new view of the world; and that’s what happened to Saul of Tarsus, who left for Damascus with hate in his heart for Christians but was suddenly bolted on his journey to finally see Christ for Whom He really was. And the life of Saul, who was to become Paul, was never the same again.
But isn’t that just the way of God sometimes? Maybe you’ve experienced it. That’s the way He works in life at times. You can be cruising along through life thinking that you’re in total control; and WHAM, a doctor tells you that you have cancer. Or maybe you had a relative die in the twin towers of the World Trade Center on 9/11. Or maybe a tornado sweeps in and destroys your home. Sometimes, we just cannot predict how or where God will intervene in our lives to show us that He’s in control. And when these life-changing incidents occur, we may try to deny God’s in the moment; but we will find that trying to ignore or deny them is simply trying to deny God Himself.
My friend, I hope we all are seeking and pursuing all God wants to tell us or all He wants for our lives. Saul of Tarsus certainly got his eyes opened (well, after they were blinded first) to the reality that God had much more for his life than the hatred he held for Christians. Saul was about to find out Whom he really served; and this Jewish leader would never see life the same way again after that day.
I know that after April 13th, 1983 my world view changed forever; and I hope that you are now doing all you can as well to see the world through the eyes of God rather than through selfish, human eyes. Because if you prefer looking at God’s world through selfish eyes, you may be in for a Damascus Road experience one day which will throw you into a posture where you cannot help but see God for Whom He is. I just pray for you that this happens by your choice rather than through some natural disaster one day.
My Prayer for Today: Oh, Lord, I pray your mercy to help me see the world in Your way rather than in my own. Amen
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