“[B]ut I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27).
Living in a world that has no concern for disciplined living makes it hard to be a Christian. And this difficulty is only compounded by people who call themselves Christians embracing this undisciplined philosophy. The Bible is a book of truth (John 17:17) written to reveal God’s purpose for ones He has drawn near to Him sojourning through this wilderness we call Earth. A worldly view of this inspired book will only lead one away from God and not draw them nearer.
Like anything in life in which we want to be good at, we must discipline our minds to focus on the things that bring success. It is the same with our spiritual life. Satan is in opposition to anything that leads us to God’s reward. God’s truth has illuminated His path of righteousness (Proverbs 6:23), but Satan uses our weakness in the flesh to lure us away from the path that is illuminated through truth. The result is the battle going on for our soul: “Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul” (1 Peter 2:11). Abstaining from fleshly lusts will take every bit of self-control we can muster, and even when we find ourselves ready to give in, we have God with us to strengthen us for success.
Without discipline being a disciple of Christ would be impossible: “Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24). These are the three steps of discipleship with each one of them requiring a disciplined mind to embrace. If Jesus wanted us to believe in an undisciplined theology then this statement could and would have been stricken from the Scriptures. Jesus knows this decision to follow Him will be extremely difficult. But He also knows that God will always be there to assist us in our times of trouble: “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5). The trials we face are meant to strengthen our faith in God (4). God wants us to rely on His power through obedient faith so He can give us victory to show the world that is failing in their own ability. To ignore the flesh and trust in God requires a disciplined mind.
Satan uses our weakness in the flesh to get us to grab onto something that will separate us from God. It will take a disciplined mind to let go of the ways we are comfortable with and grab onto God’s way which is not a popular decision: “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1). The author of Hebrews goes on to show that we do this by disciplining our minds to remain focused on Jesus. He also shows us that through this self-control we will find the same victory that Jesus found as He humbled Himself under the authority of God. He now sits and awaits our entrance.
An element of the fruit of the Spirit is self-control (Galatians 5:23). Fruit of the Spirit means proof that God is working in us. God sent His Spirit to guide us in a disciplined mind. Jesus left us an example of the treasure of living in submission to God’s will. To live in submission to God one must be humble and this requires discipline. Without self-control we are slaves to our flesh and not servants of God. We must make a daily decision to follow God at all costs and Satan is out to make this decision tough by tempting us with our own desires. Resist his efforts.
In His Grace,
Cub
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Being Taught
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7).
One of the greatest attributes of God is His faithfulness (1 Corinthians 1:9). He promises us many things that we can be fully assured of because of His integrity. But there is one thing that can hinder His promise of eternal life, and that is our own stubbornness. We are promised rest if we will come to Christ for His guidance (Matthew 11:28-29). We are blessed people because He is faithful to His promise and gives us rest when we respond to His plea.
The three promises in the Scripture above are based upon our desire for truth. Jesus taught, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6). The Greek words used here show a deep hunger and thirst, even to the point of death. In other words, if we don’t eat and drink we will die. But it also shows that only a certain “food” and “water” can satisfy these needs. Jesus shows us the food required to satisfy spiritual hunger: “Jesus said to them, ‘My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work’” (John 4:34). The sustenance of our spiritual life is the same as our Savior’s and that is living to fulfill the will of God.
David was a man devoted to God and His teachings. He knew that his life depended on the commands of God: “Make me know Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths” (Psalm 25:4). God’s paths are truth, faith and salvation, along which our feet must be guided (Psalm 119:105). As hard as we try and as bad as we want to be able to, we cannot direct our own steps in God’s path of righteousness (Jeremiah 10:23). Our own efforts will always fall short because of weakness in the flesh: “[F]or all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). If we are truly seeking God’s paths then we must recognize His voice and allow His words to change our heart and minds.
Many are in this world with a desire to find God’s salvation. But there are many who believe they have found it but have been deceived by Satan. They have accepted the opinions of men instead of “examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11). God is not “a God of confusion but of peace” (1 Corinthians 14:33). He has a desire for all man to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4) and He has never “forsaken those who seek” His ways (Psalm 9:10). His way is truth (John 14:6) and He has sent His truth to the world that the world might trust in Him and follow His lead.
There are also some in this world that have obeyed the gospel and have had their sins washed away. But it is there that they stop being obedient to the Lord’s love. They have forgotten how to die to self, to sin and to the old ways that only lead to death, doom and destruction. They have fallen back into the trap of self-abasement. They believe they are self-sufficient and do not deny fleshly pride. They forget about being humble enough to only listen to His word and come up with a “better plan” than what God’s truth offers. The difference is that those who are truly seeking His salvation can only be satisfied by the voice of God (John 10:27) because they know He is the only One that can lead them to the reward of His promises. They are looking to God to teach them His ways only.
In His Grace,
Cub
One of the greatest attributes of God is His faithfulness (1 Corinthians 1:9). He promises us many things that we can be fully assured of because of His integrity. But there is one thing that can hinder His promise of eternal life, and that is our own stubbornness. We are promised rest if we will come to Christ for His guidance (Matthew 11:28-29). We are blessed people because He is faithful to His promise and gives us rest when we respond to His plea.
The three promises in the Scripture above are based upon our desire for truth. Jesus taught, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6). The Greek words used here show a deep hunger and thirst, even to the point of death. In other words, if we don’t eat and drink we will die. But it also shows that only a certain “food” and “water” can satisfy these needs. Jesus shows us the food required to satisfy spiritual hunger: “Jesus said to them, ‘My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work’” (John 4:34). The sustenance of our spiritual life is the same as our Savior’s and that is living to fulfill the will of God.
David was a man devoted to God and His teachings. He knew that his life depended on the commands of God: “Make me know Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths” (Psalm 25:4). God’s paths are truth, faith and salvation, along which our feet must be guided (Psalm 119:105). As hard as we try and as bad as we want to be able to, we cannot direct our own steps in God’s path of righteousness (Jeremiah 10:23). Our own efforts will always fall short because of weakness in the flesh: “[F]or all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). If we are truly seeking God’s paths then we must recognize His voice and allow His words to change our heart and minds.
Many are in this world with a desire to find God’s salvation. But there are many who believe they have found it but have been deceived by Satan. They have accepted the opinions of men instead of “examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11). God is not “a God of confusion but of peace” (1 Corinthians 14:33). He has a desire for all man to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4) and He has never “forsaken those who seek” His ways (Psalm 9:10). His way is truth (John 14:6) and He has sent His truth to the world that the world might trust in Him and follow His lead.
There are also some in this world that have obeyed the gospel and have had their sins washed away. But it is there that they stop being obedient to the Lord’s love. They have forgotten how to die to self, to sin and to the old ways that only lead to death, doom and destruction. They have fallen back into the trap of self-abasement. They believe they are self-sufficient and do not deny fleshly pride. They forget about being humble enough to only listen to His word and come up with a “better plan” than what God’s truth offers. The difference is that those who are truly seeking His salvation can only be satisfied by the voice of God (John 10:27) because they know He is the only One that can lead them to the reward of His promises. They are looking to God to teach them His ways only.
In His Grace,
Cub
Monday, June 25, 2012
What’s That Smell?
“By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35).
One day a wise grandmother was spending the day with her young grandson. The little boy asked his grandmother about the tooth fairy. He said, “Grandma, is there such a thing as a tooth fairy?” Not wanting to disgruntle the young lad, she replied, “Well, when you lose a tooth there is always money under your pillow, isn’t there?” “Yes,” the smiling young boy said, “but the money still smells like Daddy’s billfold.”
The world has many different ways of defining the church, but God’s word is very definite about her description. In fact, in opposition to what the world believes, Paul wrote, “There is one body…” (Eph 4:4). In another passage he explains that Jesus is “head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18). The world’s acceptance doesn’t define truth. It is God Himself that defines truth (John 17:17). If one is going to be faithful to God’s truth they must belong to God’s church which is clearly defined in the Bible.
But with all the different choices in the religious world how do we know the church? The church, like the father’s billfold, has a distinct smell and true Christians will “smell” like their Father. His work in their hearts will reveal God-like characteristics. They will bear distinctive traces of His goodness, reveal marks of His transformation and they will reflect the pureness of His love. All these are reminders that the church smells like God.
The church has been separated from the world and its practices and they smell like God when they react to evil differently than the world (Romans 12:21). Relying on God’s truth to deliver His people is a unique distinction only shared by those of the faith. The world reeks of perverseness and immorality but Christians smell of the holiness of obedient children (1 Peter 1:15). Christians live a life of holiness so that the world may recognize them as people who have been bought and sent by God to tell of His glory.
Christians also have a distinct smell of godly love: "Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). The context of this passage is the completeness of God’s love. People will surely recognize the church by the completeness of their love for one another and those still in held in sin’s grip. Their lives are clearly defined by the sacrificial love God sent down through His grace to lead the church out of the captivity of sin. They share the same love that separated them from sin’s demise with those who are lost to help them find their way out of sin and its wages of death.
No matter what people may think, the world will always smell like the world, but the church will have a different aroma. The Christian’s character will be a reflection of the Father’s love because it originates in God. Their words and deeds will have a beautiful aroma. Their message will smell like the most beautiful incense, yet be clear and strong. The saints have been marked with the presence of God and the church will always smell like the One who called them out of the stench that is affixed to the soul without Christ.
In His Grace,
Cub
One day a wise grandmother was spending the day with her young grandson. The little boy asked his grandmother about the tooth fairy. He said, “Grandma, is there such a thing as a tooth fairy?” Not wanting to disgruntle the young lad, she replied, “Well, when you lose a tooth there is always money under your pillow, isn’t there?” “Yes,” the smiling young boy said, “but the money still smells like Daddy’s billfold.”
The world has many different ways of defining the church, but God’s word is very definite about her description. In fact, in opposition to what the world believes, Paul wrote, “There is one body…” (Eph 4:4). In another passage he explains that Jesus is “head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18). The world’s acceptance doesn’t define truth. It is God Himself that defines truth (John 17:17). If one is going to be faithful to God’s truth they must belong to God’s church which is clearly defined in the Bible.
But with all the different choices in the religious world how do we know the church? The church, like the father’s billfold, has a distinct smell and true Christians will “smell” like their Father. His work in their hearts will reveal God-like characteristics. They will bear distinctive traces of His goodness, reveal marks of His transformation and they will reflect the pureness of His love. All these are reminders that the church smells like God.
The church has been separated from the world and its practices and they smell like God when they react to evil differently than the world (Romans 12:21). Relying on God’s truth to deliver His people is a unique distinction only shared by those of the faith. The world reeks of perverseness and immorality but Christians smell of the holiness of obedient children (1 Peter 1:15). Christians live a life of holiness so that the world may recognize them as people who have been bought and sent by God to tell of His glory.
Christians also have a distinct smell of godly love: "Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). The context of this passage is the completeness of God’s love. People will surely recognize the church by the completeness of their love for one another and those still in held in sin’s grip. Their lives are clearly defined by the sacrificial love God sent down through His grace to lead the church out of the captivity of sin. They share the same love that separated them from sin’s demise with those who are lost to help them find their way out of sin and its wages of death.
No matter what people may think, the world will always smell like the world, but the church will have a different aroma. The Christian’s character will be a reflection of the Father’s love because it originates in God. Their words and deeds will have a beautiful aroma. Their message will smell like the most beautiful incense, yet be clear and strong. The saints have been marked with the presence of God and the church will always smell like the One who called them out of the stench that is affixed to the soul without Christ.
In His Grace,
Cub
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