Behave yourself

May 27, 2012

Ps. 146, Num. 32, Joel 1, 1 Tim. 3

 

I Timothy 3:14-15… I hope to come to you soon but I am writing these things to you so that, if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of truth.

            The church is a pillar and buttress of truth… the place where truth is heralded and guarded. Once again, Paul gives priority to the gospel message but not just any version of it; he is specific about truth. The church is more than a gathering of saints, more than a Christian club, and more than safe harbor for those who are hurt and afraid. It is the church of the living God, assigned to the defense and promotion of truth.

            Paul is giving instruction to Timothy, his son in the faith and a pastor. I wonder if Paul ever thought about anything but Truth. Since the assignment of the Holy Spirit is to lead us to Truth, and Paul was led by the Spirit, one can see why he is occupied with thoughts of Truth. We should, against all opposition, stand firm in the Truth. It is there that the Holy Spirit is active and possibly even aggressive. He is not involved in half truths or falsehoods. He is active in the real deal.

            No wonder Paul was adamant about this subject. Why have we lost the compelling urgency about Truth? The longer a man gets away with a lie, the more he believes it. The church has been living with lies since its early days. From time to time, she adjusts and comes back to the Word of God but after a season, she slips into compromise and then defilement.

            A friend of mine used to say, “There is only one Truth.” Compromise and tolerance have created many “truths.” It is a completely unstable environment that we find ourselves in. But, the Word of God is consistent and ever with us. If we can turn our hearts away from the comfort of interpretations and look into the Word honestly, the Holy Spirit can lead us into the Truth. He will lead us with knowledge and obedience together. He will not lead with knowledge only. Can we trust Him? Can you?   

Think!

May 26, 2012

Ps. 145, Num. 31, Oba. 15-21, 1 Tim. 2

 

Psalms 145:5… On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.

            In Philippians 4:8 Paul gives this exhortation… Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

            David and Paul join their voices in exhortation telling us to think… meditate… on God and his works. Paul expands the list to include anything that has merit. He is also the one who told us in Colossians 3:2… Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

            This is a tall order. I have wondered at times why we are so fascinated with the works of the devil. I notice that I can entertain unhealthy thoughts for quite awhile. What is that about? That is like eating something with poison in it. Why do I continue to chew and chew on a thought that is ugly? Why do I think bad thoughts about another individual? I understand why they come into my mind but why do I entertain them?

            The advice of both David and Paul is essential to being transformed. We are transformed from the inside out. We are transformed by the work of Jesus on the cross and the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit leading us. I have been pondering this dilemma for so long now, I think I need to re-categorize it from pondering to wrestling.

            We, as humans, can’t generate healthy thoughts. The Holy Spirit does. We can, however, resist them and push them behind unhealthy ones. God gave us free choice when He created us. He has not changed that. Thoughts come from Him and thoughts come from the dark side. Which ones we meditate on is our choice. In the thick of the battle, on any given day, it can be tough to think of a “wondrous work” of the Lord. But, on those same days, we can think of something that is worthy of praise. That is the process of transformation.

Get up

May 25, 2012

Ps. 144, Num. 30, Oba. 1-14, 1 Tim. 1

 

1 Timothy 1:12-13… I thank Him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because He judged me faithful, appointing me to His service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted in unbelief.

            Paul, before he was saved, was killing Christians because he did not believe they were speaking the truth. He believed, with many of the Jewish leaders, that Jesus was an imposture. When God called Him into service, Paul heard the truth and switched sides. He began defending and teaching Christians.

            Paul’s story is one of hope and grace. No matter who we might be when we don’t believe, we can be brought into relationship with God through grace. His example teaches us that God can reach into darkness and rescue sinners. When you consider the condition of people you know, always remember the grace of God reaching into the darkness and rescuing Paul.

            Paul considered his conversion an assignment. He said, “He judged me faithful and appointed me to His service.” We are all saved into service. We are saved out of darkness, yes; but we are also saved into the kingdom of light. We are saved to function.

            What is your function? Have you even considered it? What has God appointed you to do? One of the lies of the past 2 centuries is the lie that saving people is the sum total of Jesus’ work on the cross. The whole thing about living for God has been minimized in favor of simply enjoying the escape from hell.

            God is calling us into service. He is preparing to wrap up this whole scenario. The end of time will be the most glorious and frightening moment of all eternity. He is asking us to step into the fray with Him and function as He desires. It is exhilarating, and at the same time debilitating, to consider being involved in the events of the kingdom of God. It is the enemy who wants us to stay on the sidelines believing that we are undeserving of such a task. Paul, more than any, was undeserving of the task God gave him. Report for duty.     

Idleness

May 24, 2012

Ps. 143, Num. 28-29, Isa. 66, 2 Thes. 3:6-18

 

 Thessalonians 3:6… Now we command you brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.

            Why did Paul consider this such a problem? He commands the church, not in his own name, but in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. That was Paul’s highest stamp of approval. He invoked Jesus and everything He stood for.

            Paul was not idle. He busied himself with spreading the gospel, nurturing the churches, and clarifying the Truth. When he found himself without necessities, he worked with his hands making tents to sell. He was not idle.

            One would wonder, though, why he would tell the church to dis-fellowship idle brothers. That is a strong rebuke and a dis-unifying act.

            There are times in this world when jobs are hard to find. Many have gone through those times. Some are going through it right now. What does Paul say to that? A couple years ago I asked a man who lost his job if he had found a job yet. He replied, “Yes. My job is to find a job.” Being without work is not the issue. How one handles that time is the issue. The Bible is consistent about idleness.

            Entitlement encourages idleness. A man can sit on his couch and watch T.V. while drinking beer. The government is “supposed to” provide him with food and medical care… and some spending money. After all, he is a citizen.

            Entitlement plus idleness encourages laziness. Laziness is a state of mind. It is not just the act of doing nothing, it is the attitude of doing nothing.

            God is not dead. He is alive. He is moving. He is not lazy. We are His servants. God’s servants ought to be diligent, not lazy. Every morning we should lift our voice and ask “What would you have me to do today Lord?” What kind of servant hides in a room playing games? A slothful one. Idleness is a reaction to no vision. “Without vision, the people perish.” God, though His word, has given us great vision. We need never be idle.            

Inside out

May 23, 2012

Ps. 142, Num. 27, Isa. 65, 2 Thes. 2:13-3:5

 

2 Thessalonians 2:16-17… Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

            “May God comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.” God comforts us. He gives peace when there is no reason for peace. He works from the inside out. Satan works from the outside in. He tempts us to find comfort in doing something or consuming something.

            Sometimes we put expectations on other people to help us feel better about life. Often, the first persons we lean on are those who are closest to us. We even lash out at them for not helping. Some people pay another person to help them feel better. I am not speaking against the various systems that are in place to help people cope; I am merely pointing out that God is our source of comfort.   

            When we seek comfort that comes from the outside, rather than comfort that comes from the inside, the stuff of this life can interfere. When we are comforted by the Holy Spirit, nothing from the outside can shake our comfort.

            True to form, Paul does not exhort us to seek personal blessing for the sole purpose of personal blessing. He continues… “and establish them in every good work and word.”

            Initiation and response. That is a pattern in life. From the time a child is very young, parents relate to him or her to get a response. Often, the response desired is a particular action. As we grow, we learn that if we do an exceptional job at our employment, we can expect, or at least hope for, more money from our superiors. It’s how we are wired.

            We respond to God. Considering His offering of comfort, what should be our response? Should we ignore Him? Should we look elsewhere for comfort? Paul says that our hearts should be established… or in other words, our hearts should abide in God. Our hearts live where we store our treasures.  

Do you swear?

May 22, 2012

Ps. 141, Num. 26, Isa. 63 & 64, 2 Thes. 2:1-12

 

2 Thessalonians 2:9-10… The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and be saved.

            Desire for the supernatural is dangerous. That sounds so wrong since God works supernaturally, but, when we desire supernatural but do not let truth guide us, we are ripe for deception. The lawless one will produce false signs and wonders and those who are just looking for the supernatural will be deceived.

            I used to watch courtroom shows when I was a kid. One of our favorites was the Perry Mason show. On every show the witness was called to take the stand and then asked, “Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?” The witness would always answer, “I do.”

            I wonder if preachers and teachers could answer that question affirmatively. I have heard a great deal of partial truth from the mouths of preachers. I told a pastor one time that a certain book was a really bad book to read and I recommended that he warn the people about it. His response was, “I can find the good in any book.” Really? Are we that arrogant? Are we really that blind to the enemy’s tactics?  

            Paul warns that the deceived are perishing because they refused to love the truth. We should have a desire in our hearts for truth. We should be disgusted with, and alarmed by, lies. We should fix our eyes on truth and not let it become tainted with the lies of the enemy. That will be one of the ways we love the truth.

            God’s word is truth. All of it. We must love the whole truth. We cannot pick and choose what we love according to our senses. This is a strong warning. Paul is asking us, “Do you solemnly swear to love the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?” If not, we are prime targets of the lawless one.

The real Jesus

May 21, 2012

Ps. 140, Num. 25, Isa. 61 & 62, 2 Thes. 1

 

Isaiah 61:1-3… The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has appointed me to bring good news to the poor; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor; and the day of vengeance of out God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion… to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning; the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord that He may be glorified.

            This amazing prophecy has often been held up as the consummate identifier of Jesus. He spoke this very prophecy in the temple and then said, “This day has this prophecy been fulfilled.” It is definitely about Jesus.

2 Thessalonians 1:7(b) – 8… When the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction.

            This statement is also about Jesus. So which one do you like? When you think of Jesus do you think of the Lamb of God who came to bind up the brokenhearted and release those who are bound? Or, do you think of Jesus, the Lord of Glory, who is coming to bring judgment on all who do not obey the gospel?

            As the old T.V. show used to end… “Will the real Jesus please stand up.” Jesus is probably the most misunderstood person of all time. We must be careful to not select which Jesus we like and disregard the rest. He is God, and as God, He possesses the characteristics of God which are inviting, but also the ones that are frightening. One of the crimes of the church is that she has not preached the whole gospel of Jesus. She has tried to make Him a sweet, loving, tender hearted shepherd who wouldn’t hurt a flea. Wake up; He returns.  

To do list

May 20, 2012

Ps. 139, Num. 23 & 24, Isa. 60, 1 Thes. 5:23-28

 

I Thessalonians 5:23… Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus.

            Paul just gave the church a “to do” list: verses 12-22. He follows that list with the above statement. The “to do” list engages us in the process of serving God faithfully, but it does not sanctify us. Only God does that.

            We must guard out hearts that we do not become spiritually proud of what we do. As we work through our “to do” lists, our human tendency will be to become rather smug about our obedience and begin to take credit for our sanctification. Paul is in our face about that.

            This is another of those warnings about not reading a few verses and drawing conclusions. If we were to read verses 12 – 22 and not read verse 23, we could make a strong case for living a diligent life of obedience and making that the important contribution to our personal sanctification. Or… we could skip those verses and read verse 23 only. From that we could make the case it is God, only, who sanctifies us, so we have nothing to do.

            The picture that Paul gives us in the ending comments of this letter is one of a diligent servant, doing all his master desires of him and being blessed by the master with whatever the master wishes to bless him with. The master, in this case, is God and He is gracious and generous. He provides for the needs of the servant but, as a bonus, He also takes care of his eternity.

            Jesus told a parable about a servant who came in from doing all that he was instructed to do. Jesus asks a rhetorical question, “Will his master say to him, ‘Come and recline at the table and eat with me?’” He answers His own question by saying, “No, the master will tell him to prepare dinner, set the table and feed the master.” (Luke 17:7-10)

            The servant does not earn God’s grace; the servant stays focused on the “to do” list. God grants grace and sanctification as He will.

Your turn God

May 19, 2012

Ps. 138, Num. 22, Isa. 59, 1 Thes. 5:12-22

 

I Thessalonians 5:19… Do not quench the Spirit.

            This section of the letter is so unlike Paul. His writing style is wordy. Here, he gives concise commands, without the typical list of adjectives. I suppose he assumed a certain maturity in his readers. When writing to immature or misinformed people, he used many words to steer them.

            This command has been quoted many times in Pentecostal churches. Often, it is used to encourage the leaders to leave time for the “moving of the Spirit” in meetings. The well-meaning person might say something like this, “We need to leave more time for the Spirit to move… we dare not quench the Holy Spirit.”

            This type of thinking finds support in an episode in Acts 13:2… “And while they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said unto them…” It is interesting the Luke chose to write that they were fasting. He goes on to say that with fasting they sent Paul and Barnabas off to do what the Lord commanded.

            Because of man’s limited interpretation of “worship” we have assumed that this event occurred during a meeting. If we understand the true meaning of worship which includes obedience and complete surrender, all day every day, and we add in the fact that fasting takes time, we can see that this did not necessarily happen in a meeting.

            Why do I strain at this gnat? When we assign a time for the Holy Spirit to speak to us, we effectually quench His voice the rest of the time. We begin to consider “God time” as being separate from “our time?” It has been my experience, and the experience of the early church, that the Holy Spirit speaks in situations. He was sent to lead us to Truth. How can He do that if He is only allowed to speak on Sundays and Wednesdays? I take nothing away from the times of gathering together. But, I want to make sure we don’t put God in a religious box. He won’t fit!

Belonging to God

May 18, 2012

Ps. 137, Num. 20&21, Isa. 58, 1 Thes. 4:13-5:11

 

Isaiah 58:1-2… Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God.

            This is the Lord, God of heaven, speaking to the people He had chosen… the Israelites. Isaiah is instructed to speak loudly and clearly. “Declare to my people their sins and transgressions.” The people, in the midst of living selfishly for themselves and with very little obedience to God, nonetheless, seek God daily and delight to draw near to Him.

            Notice the two differing phrases: “They seek me daily and delight to know my ways.” And “They delight to draw near to God.” Hebrew scholars note that in the first phrase the word “me” is emphatic in the text. That was done to stress the irony of the statement. In the second phrase the word “God” is used. The understanding of this sentence is that God is chiding them. It could red like this… “They seek me daily, or at least they pretend to; they speak of delighting in ‘drawing near to God.’” Notice the disconnect.

            The people were saying the right things but were not obedient to God whom they claimed to honor. God, who cannot be mocked, calls them out, declaring their sins. “Wow, God… Can’t you see I am doing the best I can? Surely you can see that I am doing better than many other people.”

            God often addresses groups of people as one. Such is the case in this prophecy. One would hope there were at least a few people who were honesty and diligently doing the will of the Lord. Yet, He addresses the whole congregation with the same exhortation. I have noticed that the “spiritual attitude” of a crowd is often more influential than the Truth. We get caught up in the status quo. If you are in a “church crowd” that talks the talk but is not obedient to the Word, get out and find one that seeks Him honestly.