December 6
Some people believe that though there is indeed a Creator God who fashioned the universe, He is not involved in the affairs of His vast creation today. They subscribe to the theory that He made everything, wound it up and then pretty much left it to itself.
This erroneous notion flies in the face of all the evidence and defies the words of Jesus who said, "I am the same yesterday, today and forever," Hebrews 13:8. We who have prayed and received answers to our prayers would be among those who would testify to His profound involvement in the affairs of men.
There is the young woman who was told she had a deteriorating kidney and the treatment required to save her life would kill her unborn baby. After prayer, that dire prospect was totally reversed. The young woman was well and she delivered a perfect child.
Modern-day miracles abound because Jesus said, “The works that I do, you shall do, and even greater works than these because I go to be with the Father,” John 14:12. The only condition to the fulfillment of the promise is that we “ask in faith, nothing wavering…” James 1:6.
Although He can reward anyone, in any way He elects to do so, most of His miracles are for those who, “…believe that He is and that He is a rewarded of those who diligently seek Him,” Hebrews 11:6. In fact, the beginning of that verse states, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him.”
But beyond the realm of our personal experiences that evidence His supernatural involvement in our daily lives at the point of our needs, many scientists understand that concepts like gravitational pull would fail without His keeping power.
If physical evidence in the natural realm is not sufficient to convince us that God sees and hears and cares about what is going on in the universe He fashioned, we have the words of Jesus in John 5:17 that attest to the fact that the One who made us endeavors continually to accomplish His plan for His people. Here the Lord says, “My Father is still working and I am working also.”
The primary work that God is striving to complete is the salvation of souls. That is the great scheme of Heaven—to bring as many as will believe home to glory. The Holy Spirit that stirs in your heart is striving to lead you home—God’s great and glorious work then, the work that was established in Heaven (Revelation 13:8) and completed by Jesus on the cross—is to share heaven with you, with me, with everyone who will embrace our Christ as Savior and Lord.
Friday, December 6, 2013
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Count the Cost
December 5
Sometime there’s just no point in arguing. We’ve all put ourselves through the ordeal of trying to justify our words or our actions. We’ve put ourselves through the wringer in order to clarify something said or done that another individual simply didn’t grasp as we’d intended it.
Though we may count ourselves to be skilled wordsmiths, we have to acknowledge that we have, at times, been unable to make our point. The one who did not understand initially, still didn’t ‘get it’ when we’d gone through our hoops of attempting to explain, to clarify.
Jesus must have felt the same way at His mockery of a trial when Pontius Pilate inquired of Him, “’Don’t You have an answer to what these men are testifying against You?' But He kept silent and did not answer anything,” Mark 14:60, 61.
Jesus did not argue before His accusers. He knew the futility of debate and He knew that in order for the plan of salvation to be implemented, this moment had to come.
But, beyond that, He knew that if these people had seen His miracles—blind eyes that were opened, deaf ears that were unstopped, demon-possessed lives that were set free from oppression—and yet did not believe Him, there was no point of further clarification that He could state that would change their hearts.
Like Him, we must sometimes allow the living epistle of our lives stand for itself. Abraham Lincoln once said in response to someone who urged him to argue his position when it was challenged, “It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt.”
Certainly, no one would accuse our Sixteenth President of being a fool. His words were wise and precisely to the point, but the fact remains that much attempt at validation of our position or persuasion of another to it will be, for the most part, futile.
It will be much to our advantage if instead we, “Count the cost,” as Jesus advises in Luke 14:28. Here He is counseling that one assess his resources fully so he will know whether he can successfully complete a project. If we have counted the cost and know our position is a good one, if we have laid it out clearly, then we must allow it to stand on its own merit.
Sometime there’s just no point in arguing. We’ve all put ourselves through the ordeal of trying to justify our words or our actions. We’ve put ourselves through the wringer in order to clarify something said or done that another individual simply didn’t grasp as we’d intended it.
Though we may count ourselves to be skilled wordsmiths, we have to acknowledge that we have, at times, been unable to make our point. The one who did not understand initially, still didn’t ‘get it’ when we’d gone through our hoops of attempting to explain, to clarify.
Jesus must have felt the same way at His mockery of a trial when Pontius Pilate inquired of Him, “’Don’t You have an answer to what these men are testifying against You?' But He kept silent and did not answer anything,” Mark 14:60, 61.
Jesus did not argue before His accusers. He knew the futility of debate and He knew that in order for the plan of salvation to be implemented, this moment had to come.
But, beyond that, He knew that if these people had seen His miracles—blind eyes that were opened, deaf ears that were unstopped, demon-possessed lives that were set free from oppression—and yet did not believe Him, there was no point of further clarification that He could state that would change their hearts.
Like Him, we must sometimes allow the living epistle of our lives stand for itself. Abraham Lincoln once said in response to someone who urged him to argue his position when it was challenged, “It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt.”
Certainly, no one would accuse our Sixteenth President of being a fool. His words were wise and precisely to the point, but the fact remains that much attempt at validation of our position or persuasion of another to it will be, for the most part, futile.
It will be much to our advantage if instead we, “Count the cost,” as Jesus advises in Luke 14:28. Here He is counseling that one assess his resources fully so he will know whether he can successfully complete a project. If we have counted the cost and know our position is a good one, if we have laid it out clearly, then we must allow it to stand on its own merit.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Therein Lies Our Contentment
December 4
There is a verse in scripture (II Corinthians 10:12) that says, "They who compare themselves among themselves are not wise.” The Bible is quite clear that if we believe in Christ, have settled in our hearts and minds that we are His and we will follow wherever He leads, there is no place in us for second guessing His choices for us..
There is no place for negotiation for a ‘better deal.’ If He calls us into a mission field in some far-flung corner of the world, we must trust that it is because He knows His plan for us will be best accomplished there and His plan for that part of the globe will be best accomplished because of our presence there.
If He tells us to remain in our hometown and share our faith with the people among whom we grew up, we cannot lament the lack of adventure in our lives. Again, He knows where we will be most effectively discipled and where we will be best equipped to draw new disciples to Jesus.
Even Peter wrestled with the question of where he was to go in order to serve the Kingdom of Christ—and where his fellow Apostle John would go, and how he would die. Jesus had described Peter's martyrdom in John 21:18, 19, so in John 21:21, Peter asked, "And what shall this man (John) do?"
As we so often do, Peter was trying to reconcile in his mind how ‘fair,’ how ‘proportionate’ would be his lot in life compared to that of someone close to him. Can we not hear ourselves saying, ‘But, Jesus, why did he get the promotion? Don’t I work harder than he does? Lord, why is their marriage thriving while ours is chugging along after several years of less-than-marital-bliss?’
Our questions could go on to include those about other relationships and other people whose lives touch ours, but the point is that we are to trust the Lord in all circumstances of life. As Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”
We may question ourselves—‘How can I do better?’ ‘What can I do more effectively at work to attain the goals I seek?’ ‘How can I love my spouse more fully to have the joy in marriage that seems to be missing?’ Assessing our effort can be quite productive, but interrogating our God is as unproductive for us as it was for Job. (See Job 38:4 as the Lord begins His response to Job’s challenge of His dealing with him.)
The Lord’s answer to Peter when he asked Him to outline John’s fate as compared to his own silenced him. It should silence us, too, when we ponder the role of fellow believers in His Kingdom. In John 21:22, Jesus said, “If I want him to tarry until I come, what is that to you?”
This was His polite way of saying that another person's life and ministry and fate are none of our business; and His answer should effectively shut us up, as it did Peter. Can we ask Him to help us improve ourselves while trusting Him with the things we cannot change? If we can, therein lies our contentment.
There is a verse in scripture (II Corinthians 10:12) that says, "They who compare themselves among themselves are not wise.” The Bible is quite clear that if we believe in Christ, have settled in our hearts and minds that we are His and we will follow wherever He leads, there is no place in us for second guessing His choices for us..
There is no place for negotiation for a ‘better deal.’ If He calls us into a mission field in some far-flung corner of the world, we must trust that it is because He knows His plan for us will be best accomplished there and His plan for that part of the globe will be best accomplished because of our presence there.
If He tells us to remain in our hometown and share our faith with the people among whom we grew up, we cannot lament the lack of adventure in our lives. Again, He knows where we will be most effectively discipled and where we will be best equipped to draw new disciples to Jesus.
Even Peter wrestled with the question of where he was to go in order to serve the Kingdom of Christ—and where his fellow Apostle John would go, and how he would die. Jesus had described Peter's martyrdom in John 21:18, 19, so in John 21:21, Peter asked, "And what shall this man (John) do?"
As we so often do, Peter was trying to reconcile in his mind how ‘fair,’ how ‘proportionate’ would be his lot in life compared to that of someone close to him. Can we not hear ourselves saying, ‘But, Jesus, why did he get the promotion? Don’t I work harder than he does? Lord, why is their marriage thriving while ours is chugging along after several years of less-than-marital-bliss?’
Our questions could go on to include those about other relationships and other people whose lives touch ours, but the point is that we are to trust the Lord in all circumstances of life. As Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”
We may question ourselves—‘How can I do better?’ ‘What can I do more effectively at work to attain the goals I seek?’ ‘How can I love my spouse more fully to have the joy in marriage that seems to be missing?’ Assessing our effort can be quite productive, but interrogating our God is as unproductive for us as it was for Job. (See Job 38:4 as the Lord begins His response to Job’s challenge of His dealing with him.)
The Lord’s answer to Peter when he asked Him to outline John’s fate as compared to his own silenced him. It should silence us, too, when we ponder the role of fellow believers in His Kingdom. In John 21:22, Jesus said, “If I want him to tarry until I come, what is that to you?”
This was His polite way of saying that another person's life and ministry and fate are none of our business; and His answer should effectively shut us up, as it did Peter. Can we ask Him to help us improve ourselves while trusting Him with the things we cannot change? If we can, therein lies our contentment.
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
No Spiritual Pecking Order
December 3
Perhaps in your field of endeavor there is a ‘pecking order.’ The most discernable evidence of such will be the salaries of the individuals employed at your place of work. The CEO or the superintendent or the president or the manager will be paid more than the lower echelon employees.
If you are one of the ‘underlings,’ you probably don’t even know what your upper management officials make. Although you’re probably convinced that they’re out of touch with the nuts and bolts of what keeps the wheels of the organization turning and the importance of the ordinary folk who keep them greased, you know in spite of that, they make way more than you do!
Sometimes there is even a pecking order in families. Some members seem to ‘click’ while others are like the poor child at the candy store who can only stand outside with his nose pressed against the glass. Some people have a knack for making friendships while others lack the social skills that are required to attract and maintain friendships.
As the old saying goes, ‘Life ain’t fair. Get over it.’ But, in spite of the discrepancies that abound everywhere you turn—at work, at home, and in virtually every area of interaction with other individuals, there is one place where you will find absolute equity; and that is with God. He has no favorites.
The Word states very clearly, “He is no respecter of persons,” Acts 10:34. He has given His gifts, including the gift of His indwelling Holy Spirit, to all men equally. In Matthew 5:45, Jesus Himself says that “He causes the rain to fall on the just and on the unjust; He allows His sun to shine on the just and on the unjust.” His provision is available to all men without regard to their status or their abilities or their worthiness to receive them.
In the spiritual realm, He values every individual’s contribution to the furtherance of the Kingdom of Christ. Whether you’re Billy Graham or an obscure usher at the corner church, He values you. In I Corinthians 3:8, we’re told, “The one who plants and the one who waters are equal; each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.”
There is no vying for favor, and no need to impress the Boss. He has no pecking order that promotes one above another; He simply requires each believer to do what he has been called to do in the field to which he has been called to serve. As Luke 3:17 says, “His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather the wheat into His barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
The one who has turned his back on Christ will be without reward, but all who have faithfully served in the place where they have been called will find their reward to be great when they hear the words, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant,” Matthew 25:21.
Perhaps in your field of endeavor there is a ‘pecking order.’ The most discernable evidence of such will be the salaries of the individuals employed at your place of work. The CEO or the superintendent or the president or the manager will be paid more than the lower echelon employees.
If you are one of the ‘underlings,’ you probably don’t even know what your upper management officials make. Although you’re probably convinced that they’re out of touch with the nuts and bolts of what keeps the wheels of the organization turning and the importance of the ordinary folk who keep them greased, you know in spite of that, they make way more than you do!
Sometimes there is even a pecking order in families. Some members seem to ‘click’ while others are like the poor child at the candy store who can only stand outside with his nose pressed against the glass. Some people have a knack for making friendships while others lack the social skills that are required to attract and maintain friendships.
As the old saying goes, ‘Life ain’t fair. Get over it.’ But, in spite of the discrepancies that abound everywhere you turn—at work, at home, and in virtually every area of interaction with other individuals, there is one place where you will find absolute equity; and that is with God. He has no favorites.
The Word states very clearly, “He is no respecter of persons,” Acts 10:34. He has given His gifts, including the gift of His indwelling Holy Spirit, to all men equally. In Matthew 5:45, Jesus Himself says that “He causes the rain to fall on the just and on the unjust; He allows His sun to shine on the just and on the unjust.” His provision is available to all men without regard to their status or their abilities or their worthiness to receive them.
In the spiritual realm, He values every individual’s contribution to the furtherance of the Kingdom of Christ. Whether you’re Billy Graham or an obscure usher at the corner church, He values you. In I Corinthians 3:8, we’re told, “The one who plants and the one who waters are equal; each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.”
There is no vying for favor, and no need to impress the Boss. He has no pecking order that promotes one above another; He simply requires each believer to do what he has been called to do in the field to which he has been called to serve. As Luke 3:17 says, “His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather the wheat into His barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
The one who has turned his back on Christ will be without reward, but all who have faithfully served in the place where they have been called will find their reward to be great when they hear the words, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant,” Matthew 25:21.
Monday, December 2, 2013
The Same Promise of Victory
December 2
God’s expectation of Abram, that he would make the things of the Lord his top priority, is also His expectation of us. Scripture is replete with examples of the men and women who were used of God who had to first be willing to lay their own reason, their own goals, aside to simply trust the Almighty.
Some of the things they were asked to do are mind boggling.
When Gideon was told that his army was too big, that he would have to whittle it down (Judges 7:2-7), it required profound faith for him to trust that the great army of the Midianites could be defeated by the 300 men that God allowed Gideon to keep. The reality is that the victory came in spite of Gideon’s extremely small army. The victory came because of the Lord, and He had no intention of sharing His glory with an army of any size!
When we are asked to dispense with human reason, with our own prior experience and our finite understanding of how things work and how problems can best be resolved, God has a plan that exceeds our very limited scope. He has a plan that will not disappoint us, if we will but trust in His power—if we will but trust in His love.
As He demonstrated to Gideon, whatever small resource we possess becomes more than sufficient to overcome whatever force confronts us because it isn’t our ability or our resources that achieve the victory—it is, as in the case of Gideon, God Himself!
Abraham trusted God in every matter of importance—from leaving his homeland to believing for his promised heir when he and his wife were beyond child-bearing years (Genesis 21:2), to being willing to sacrifice his long-awaited son (Genesis 22:6).
The Word says in Hebrews 6:11, “We want each of you to demonstrate the same diligence for the final realization of your hope.” God wants us to evidence Abraham’s level of faith, trust and obedience in our lives. He wants us to rely on Him for our victories as Gideon did. If we will, we, like them, will not be disappointed.
He will Himself provide a sacrifice as He did for Abraham. He will Himself rout the enormous foe that stands before us as He did for Gideon. He is “the same yesterday, today, and forever,” Hebrews 13:8, and “He will never fail or forsake us,” Hebrews 13:5. His people today have the same ability to trust as did these heroes long ago—and believers today have the same promise of victory that they received.
God’s expectation of Abram, that he would make the things of the Lord his top priority, is also His expectation of us. Scripture is replete with examples of the men and women who were used of God who had to first be willing to lay their own reason, their own goals, aside to simply trust the Almighty.
Some of the things they were asked to do are mind boggling.
When Gideon was told that his army was too big, that he would have to whittle it down (Judges 7:2-7), it required profound faith for him to trust that the great army of the Midianites could be defeated by the 300 men that God allowed Gideon to keep. The reality is that the victory came in spite of Gideon’s extremely small army. The victory came because of the Lord, and He had no intention of sharing His glory with an army of any size!
When we are asked to dispense with human reason, with our own prior experience and our finite understanding of how things work and how problems can best be resolved, God has a plan that exceeds our very limited scope. He has a plan that will not disappoint us, if we will but trust in His power—if we will but trust in His love.
As He demonstrated to Gideon, whatever small resource we possess becomes more than sufficient to overcome whatever force confronts us because it isn’t our ability or our resources that achieve the victory—it is, as in the case of Gideon, God Himself!
Abraham trusted God in every matter of importance—from leaving his homeland to believing for his promised heir when he and his wife were beyond child-bearing years (Genesis 21:2), to being willing to sacrifice his long-awaited son (Genesis 22:6).
The Word says in Hebrews 6:11, “We want each of you to demonstrate the same diligence for the final realization of your hope.” God wants us to evidence Abraham’s level of faith, trust and obedience in our lives. He wants us to rely on Him for our victories as Gideon did. If we will, we, like them, will not be disappointed.
He will Himself provide a sacrifice as He did for Abraham. He will Himself rout the enormous foe that stands before us as He did for Gideon. He is “the same yesterday, today, and forever,” Hebrews 13:8, and “He will never fail or forsake us,” Hebrews 13:5. His people today have the same ability to trust as did these heroes long ago—and believers today have the same promise of victory that they received.
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Addendum
December 1
Dear Reader...we have arrived at the final month of the year of 2013. In much of the world it is a hauntingly beautiful time of year when snow falls and wind blows and the feeling of excitement is in the air because of the conclusion of the family-oriented holiday of Thanksgiving and the movement toward the Christ-oriented holiday of Christmas.
Wherever you are as you read this, I pray you are moving toward Christ; not just the celebration of the birth of the Babe of Bethlehem but toward the King of kings and Lord of lords Himself (Revelation 19:16); toward the One who desires to reign in your heart and to glorify Himself in every promise the Word of God holds out to you.
Dear Reader...we have arrived at the final month of the year of 2013. In much of the world it is a hauntingly beautiful time of year when snow falls and wind blows and the feeling of excitement is in the air because of the conclusion of the family-oriented holiday of Thanksgiving and the movement toward the Christ-oriented holiday of Christmas.
Wherever you are as you read this, I pray you are moving toward Christ; not just the celebration of the birth of the Babe of Bethlehem but toward the King of kings and Lord of lords Himself (Revelation 19:16); toward the One who desires to reign in your heart and to glorify Himself in every promise the Word of God holds out to you.
Contingent upon Compliance
December 1
God’s promises are conditional. Much like a contractual agreement, they are contingent upon the compliance of both parties with the terms stipulated. Because God will never renege on any aspect of His word, we understand that any departure from the terms of the promises comes from man. To the degree to which we are faithful to uphold our end of the deal, the fullness of the offer extended by God is available to us.
One of the big qualifiers for receiving the fulfillment of any promise we claim is our own faith. If we do not believe, if we do not trust God in a matter, He is no longer under any obligation to fulfill the promise we claim. Hebrews 11:6 states clearly that we cannot please God without faith.
As Paul states in Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for any man coming to God must believe that He is—and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Another very clear requirement set forth in the Word regarding our receipt of the benefits the Bible says are ours when we ask in faith is that we step out when God calls us. He does not require the same degree of compliance from every individual but He does expect that when we are asked to leave our comfort zone to follow Him in faith, we will do it.
As early as Genesis 12:1, Abram is called to, “Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land I will show you.”
Here Abram demonstrated the faith that God expects from all who believe. He left all that was familiar, he left the inheritance that was his as the son of his father in order to receive the inheritance his heavenly Father, his God, had for him. So must we.
God’s promises are conditional. Much like a contractual agreement, they are contingent upon the compliance of both parties with the terms stipulated. Because God will never renege on any aspect of His word, we understand that any departure from the terms of the promises comes from man. To the degree to which we are faithful to uphold our end of the deal, the fullness of the offer extended by God is available to us.
One of the big qualifiers for receiving the fulfillment of any promise we claim is our own faith. If we do not believe, if we do not trust God in a matter, He is no longer under any obligation to fulfill the promise we claim. Hebrews 11:6 states clearly that we cannot please God without faith.
As Paul states in Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for any man coming to God must believe that He is—and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Another very clear requirement set forth in the Word regarding our receipt of the benefits the Bible says are ours when we ask in faith is that we step out when God calls us. He does not require the same degree of compliance from every individual but He does expect that when we are asked to leave our comfort zone to follow Him in faith, we will do it.
As early as Genesis 12:1, Abram is called to, “Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land I will show you.”
Here Abram demonstrated the faith that God expects from all who believe. He left all that was familiar, he left the inheritance that was his as the son of his father in order to receive the inheritance his heavenly Father, his God, had for him. So must we.
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