Holiness & Truth

On September 26, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ephesians 4: 25

Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth, each one of you, with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.

Now that we have put on the new self that Jesus bought for each of us, we are to interact with each other in the holiness that He has provided. Look, it is time we stopped acting like the devil, especially in our relations with one another. But, do you know what it takes for us to stop acting like the devil? It takes surrender. God, through Jesus and the Holy Spirit, has provided everything we need in order to overcome the world and the ways of the world, but we must receive it.

We need to bow our knees to our God. Yeah, He is my best friend, but He also is God Almighty, The Great I AM, the creator of heaven and earth. We need to humble ourselves and deal with our egos once and for all. Settle this question once and for all, who is going to be the God of your life, you or Yahweh? If you decide you are sincere about giving your life to the Lord, then you need to find humility and bow your knee and your ego to Him. When you sincerely yield to Him then He is able to help you to walk as Jesus did. But you are the one who must take the necessary steps. That is why Paul importuned the Ephesians to “put on the new self.” Even though Jesus had already bought and paid for the new self for each of us, Paul knew that it was going to take an act of will from each and every devotee of Christ to become Christ like.

Jesus will help you with every single thing in your life, but you must bury the old man. Let that old cuss die and quit digging him up each time someone bothers you a little or every time it is inconvenient to walk in truth and holiness. Make a commitment that you are going to live, walk, breathe and speak in holiness and truth.

Lastly, if we are in Christ Jesus, then everything you do to or for your brother, you have done to Jesus because we are all of one body, His. How then do you sin against yourself to your benefit? You cannot. And when you are kind and generous to your brother, you have blessed yourself. Let us put away the old self and begin to really see the world and each other through the eyes of our dear Lord.

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New Creature

On September 25, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ephesians 4: 24

. . . and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

You have been created a new creature. You have been created in righteousness and truth. Jesus said in John 14: 6 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” You have been created in the truth because Jesus is the truth and you are the righteousness of God because Jesus gave you right standing with God through his blood. That is what righteousness means, “right standing with God.”

In this passage Paul is trying to lead the church at Ephesus to put away their old man and old ways and to realize that they have been made new by the shed blood of Jesus Christ. He is showing them that their new selves have been forged in truth and righteousness not because of anything they did but by what Jesus did. He wants them to receive the gift of holiness and walk therein.

Jesus paid an enormous price so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. We have our part to play though. We must receive this gift and walk in it. It is not by works that we are saved or righteous, it is only by the price paid by Jesus. Now in humble gratitude we proclaim that we are new and glorious creatures because our Lord has made us so. It is not by our works but only by our faith in His sacrifice. Don’t make his sacrifice of nil effect though. As Paul says, “put on the new self.”

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Deceived

On September 24, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ephesians 4: 22 – 23

. . . that in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

Today we will begin a series on Ephesians. I think we can glean much more from these passages when taken together. Putting off the old man is where our Christian walk begins so a good place for us to begin this short study.

The devil has deceived us with the lusts of the flesh, whether that be material possessions, food, drink, or any of the other things that bring pleasure to our carnal selves. He has convinced us that those things will bring us happiness and he has convinced many people that the way of Godliness is a burden. These are lies. Deceit is the devil’s only real weapon, but it is a big one. Deceit is defined in Webster’s New World Dictionary (2nd Ed. 1982) as 1. the act of representing as true what is known to be false; deceiving or lying; 2. a dishonest action or trick; fraud or lie; 3. the quality of being deceitful.

God has told us to put off the old self; the deceit and the lusts of our flesh and put on our new selves through the renewing of our minds. You are a new creature in Christ Jesus, and you do not have to live under the regime of the devil any longer. Put aside the lies of the past and put on the new person by using your mind in new ways, by thinking new thoughts. Throw away the thoughts and behaviors of the past. You are no longer that old person. Why do you want to keep acting like him? You have been created anew. You have been created for life, truth and freedom in Christ Jesus. Be renewed in your mind and no longer let the lies of the enemy perplex and mislead you.

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Structural Integrity

On September 23, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 69: 31 – 33

For I know, Yahweh, that my praises mean more to you than all my gifts and sacrifices. All who seek you will see God do this for them, and they’ll overflow with gladness. Let this revive your hearts, all you lovers of God! For Yahweh does listen to the poor and needy and will not abandon his prisoners of love.

There is a lot of good news in this passage. David was tormented when he wrote this psalm, but he resolved into praise and praise boosted his confidence that Yahweh would, indeed, rescue him from his then present peril.

No matter how troublesome our present we, too, can have confidence that our God will never abandon us for we are bound to Him by His love for us. Though we may feel alone and that our prayers fall upon deaf ears, David confirms that Yahweh listens to us. Father hears our every whisper, every cry. His heart hears our prayers.

However, there is an important lesson we can learn from David. David might spend some time whining and even more complaining but when you read his psalm you discover that he never remains in the moaning stage. His victory is found in praise. He reminds himself of God’s love and might. When one combines the love of God with the power of God the only possible outcome is victory.

Our problem is that the construction of our prayers often fails to follow David’s. Sometimes you need to complain and grumble a little just to expunge your soul of despair. That is fine but it is not final. Eventually prayer needs to move to stage 2. Praise, then stage 3 confident statements about God’s grace for every situation.

I would encourage you to read this entire psalm and see for yourself the transition from despair to confidence. God continually showed up in David’s life and I believe his prayer composition is, at least, part of the reason why. Praise and confident expressions in the faith and loyalty of our God bring out the victory that is laying still within us.

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Receive

On September 20, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Galatians 3: 13 – 14

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us – for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”- in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

In the Old Testament when God promised that He would pour out the Holy Spirit He sometimes made the promise to the nation of Israel but more often said that He would pour out the Spirit on all mankind. You see, God already knew the future. He knew that through Jesus and His sacrifice all the world would inherit the blessing of Abraham through adoption into the family of God. It was God’s intent that we would all share in the blessing.

Paul, I believe, demonstrates how important this whole structure is. God put together a plan that would ensure that we received all the best He had. It was an elaborate plan and very expensive. It took the sacrifice of the unblemished lamb in order to extend the blessing of the chosen to those of us who were formerly outside the family. God gave His son as that sacrifice so that He could bring us under the umbrella of His protection and into His family. We are now children of the Most High. It cost God everything but through God’s sacrifice, we receive everything.

That is how important you are to the King. And that is how important the Holy Spirit is that God went through these elaborate measures to get the promise to you. The promise is for you.

Now, what do you do? You invite the Holy Spirit into your life. You ask Him to be a part of your daily life; everything you do. You talk to Him just like you talk to God because He is God. He, being the third part of the trinity, is God with you. Ask Him to come live in you. Ask Him to fill you up with himself. And as Paul wrote in the passage above, you must receive Him by faith. You certainly can study more about the Holy Spirit. There are many more verses about Him. They continue to show who He is and how He operates in this world. Many people in the New Testament received the baptism in the Holy Spirit when someone prayed for them so you can ask a pastor or other spiritually mature person to pray with you if you like. There are also plenty of people who have received Him while alone in their own prayers. There is no secret here. It is all in the scriptures. It boils down to acknowledging Him, asking Him into your life, asking Him to live inside of you, to fill you, and then receiving Him. That is really all there is to it. Don’t miss out on the third person of the Trinity. I believe today’s passage shows how important this part of our relationship with God really is. As Jesus said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20: 22).

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Fill ‘er up

On September 19, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Ephesians 5: 18

[B]e filled with the Spirit.

God does not only want you to have a little bit of His Spirit, He wants you to be full to overflowing. Well, that is His nature after all, isn’t it? In everything He does He likes to fill us and more so that our every need is met with plenty left over for others. He never leaves the smallest portion of us unfilled or unfulfilled.

After promising the Holy Spirit for many years, it is not a surprise to me that He wants to completely fill us with this promise. There is no part of us that God, our Father, does not want to inhabit with us. He wants to be a part of everything that is important to you, but He also wants to participate in all of the small things of life with you. To Him, they are all important because they are all a part of you and your life. That is why He wants to fill you to the utmost with Himself. And that is what His Spirit is, His inner being, and He wants to share that most intimate part of Himself with you. God is not a small God and He does not do things in a small way. He gives you His best and He gives you all you can hold and a bit more so that you will have some to share with others. It is God’s intention that you be filled with the Holy Spirit. Make it your ambition to be filled with His Holy Spirit until He, the Holy Spirit, bubbles out of you in your abundance.

For he will be great in the sight of the Lord and … he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, while yet in his mother’s womb.  Luke 1: 15

Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.  Luke 1: 41

And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit.  Luke 1: 67

And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan.  Luke 4: 1

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.  Acts 2: 4

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit …. Acts 4: 8

And when they had prayed the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.  Acts 4: 31

But select from among you, brethren, seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task.  Acts 7: 3

And the statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit.  Acts 6: 5

But being full of the Holy Spirit …. Acts 7: 55

[F]or he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.  Acts 11: 24

But Saul who was also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fixed his gaze upon him.  Acts 13: 9

And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.  Acts 13: 32

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Divine Wisdom

On September 18, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Acts 2: 32 – 33

This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.

This verse unites many of the themes we have seen in the scriptures we have looked at regarding the Holy Spirit. God, multiple times, made a promise to pour out the Holy Spirit upon all mankind. Jesus, then, told us that it was imperative for Him to leave so that He could send that which the Father had promised. Receiving the promise unto Himself from the Father, He then poured the Holy Spirit out to all.

It is done. God has done His part. Jesus has done His. The prophecies and the promises have been fulfilled. These are the days of glory that the Lord spoke about. So why aren’t we living in more victory and in more of that glory?

Just like it took some people a long time to recognize Jesus as the Messiah, even when He walked among them and they witnessed His miracles, we are only just beginning to recognize the Holy Spirit and His role. It is much easier to be wise when one can look back into history and see what others missed. It is quite a bit more difficult to be wise in the days of your own history. That is why we need the Holy Spirit. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would “teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you” (John 14: 26). Jesus also said that the Holy Spirit would take what He hears from the Father and will disclose it to you (John 16: 13). So, the Holy Spirit’s job is to lead us into this wisdom of the Father. We have been given the scriptures to help us learn about the Spirit. We have the wisdom to seek Him and to learn to work with him because the Holy Scriptures first taught us to expect Him and then informed us as to role in our lives. The Holy Spirit has the Word as one of His tools. He uses the Word to remind us of the things Jesus said and also to lead us in the way that we should go. The Holy Spirit also has the very thoughts of God to minister to us. What we must do is recognize Him. We must be wiser than those who did not recognize Jesus in His day. Then, having recognized the Spirit of God, we invite Him to take an active role in our lives. We invite him to indwell us, teach us and guide us all day every day. He can have as large a role in your life as you want but you must first ask Him into your life. Then let Him fill you up to overflowing.

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