His Will

On August 16, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Romans 12: 2

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

I heard the Father saying in my head to do today’s Word of the Day on Romans 12: 2. I responded, “Dad, I know what that verse says. I have written on it several times and I don’t have anything to say about it.” None the less, I went and read it again. It’s what you do when Yahweh speaks. And guess what, I do hear something to convey. He said, I want people to know my will and here is one of the ways I have taught you to know my will. Good point.

I usually think of this verse as “the” transformation verse. Of course, it is also about non-conformity with the world. I don’t meditate enough, apparently, on the proving His will part, but there it is, as plain as you like. Sure, the first direction is to avoid conforming to the ways of the world. Second, we accomplish that through transformation. Third, transformation is achieved through the renewal of our minds. By now we also know that the renewal of our minds comes through the Word. There is a fourth part, through transformation, you will know and prove the perfect will of God. How, though, how are we to prove the will of God in our lives?

The answer is that it is in this transformation process. As we renew our minds with the Word of God, we flush out the perfect will of God. We begin to see a pattern emerge in His Word.  Additionally, the transformation of ourselves makes us more sensitive to the Kingdom of God around us. We become more sensitive to God’s voice within us and the Holy Spirit’s guidance. We become tuned into our own spirits so that we perceive spiritual concepts, some of which come so naturally to us that we wonder why we didn’t see them before.

As long as we conform to the ways of the world, we are going to miss out on the perfect will of God for our lives. That is a huge statement. Conformity to the world subtracts from our lives. People often speculate what they will have to give up to become a Christian. They ought to be asking, what am I forsaking by living without Christ as my Lord. We Christians should ask ourselves a similar question, what do we forego by living in conformity to the world. Are we allowing ourselves to be transformed or do our lives pretty much look like the lives of our unsaved friends? What makes us any different from them apart from Sunday and Easter? Do we behave in similar ways? Do we have the same values? Do we solve problems the same way? Do we rely on our intellect or on our Father? Are we any more guided by God’s spirit than they? Here is the way I want to ask the question, and I hope it makes sense, “Is the fabric of our lives substantially different from an unsaved person?” It’s not a matter of going to church or even reading a daily devotional. It really is all about this personal, intimate relationship with the Father that comes through the transformation process. It is a management issue. How do you manage each minute of your day? Is it as a member of a partnership with God or are you a sole proprietor making all the decisions and bearing all of the responsibility?

God wants to wash your mind with His Word so that He can, with you, show His perfect will in and through your life. He wants people to know that you have a God of power and blessing who is constantly at work in your life. He wants to demonstrate His glory through proving His perfect will in you. You are His masterpiece but He has not completed the painting. His will is to finish His grand work by adding more color and glory to your life. Here is the rub, though. It comes through transformation. It is arrived at through non-conformity with the world. You are unique and rare and it is His will to show you off and to show off His glory on you.

Be transformed. Renew your mind and allow the good, acceptable and glorious will of the Lord be seen in you.

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Blessed Counsel

On August 13, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 1: 1

How blessed is the . . ..

Psalm 1, a very good place to start. Most of you realize the psalms are songs. As such they have a different tone and complexion from the rest of scripture. The psalms contain many special messages and they often minister straight to the heart, completely bypassing the intellect.

I am struck by the first words of the first Psalm. I participate in a conference call where we are learning about the blessing. How interesting that the first words of the first psalm are about the blessing. The songwriter is going to tell us how people live in the blessing of God. What comes next? How can we each be amongst the blessed of God?

Here is the first verse in its entirety: “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers!” The first thing we learn about walking in the blessing is what not to do. So, what is this bit of wisdom. First, don’t take your advice from the wicked. I used to think this meant not to take advice from non-Christians. So, I endeavored to hire Christians for everything. However, I made a dazzling discovery. Some of the non-Christians were more ethical than the Christians I was working with. Jesus said we will know the wicked by their fruit. So now I have learned to be a fruit inspector. I would prefer to work with Christians but sometimes my light is better displayed by its exposure to those who need to see Christ alive. Also, the salvation prayer does not include a transformation button. We all have to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2: 12). That means that our transformation isn’t automatic. Romans 12: 2 reads, “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Transformation is a process. It would be wonderful if there was an automatic transformation but there isn’t. Everyone has to work on becoming the Christ like person God ordained. Checking people’s fruit is a check on their journey so far and their ethics is a part of that journey. So, we are instructed not to take our counsel from the wicked which means we must be certain that the people we look to are worthy to lead us on a right path.

That is true of the next statement as well. Do not conspire or plan with sinners. Who are the sinners? Does that mean limit us to Christians? I wish. Don’t hang out with people who practice sin regardless of their Christian affiliation. Choose to be with people who are endeavoring to live above sin. Jesus gave us his life and victory so that we can be free of the chains of sin but not all who have asked Jesus into their lives have broken the chains of sin. Be wise. Check their fruit.

Last, do not be a scoffer nor associate with people who are. This is a pretty big deal, actually. Scoffers are those who jeer, mock, are contemptuous, and speak derisively. These are people you need to stay away from. I think also of people who are generally negative, contrary and critical. We all have a tendency towards being scoffers at times, but you know there is a difference between occasional slipups and a pattern of behavior.

This first psalm points us towards the blessing. In so doing it alerts us to some easy missteps. If you want to live in the blessing you can’t take your advice from wicked people, scoffers or sinners. Of course, this makes sense. These people cannot point you to the blessing. They cannot teach you or counsel you in how to walk in blessing. They can only teach what they know which is scoffing, wickedness, and sin. None of those are in the blessing. Don’t hire these people, don’t take their advice, don’t let them lead you – even if they do have a fish on their business card or are related to you. Take your counsel from people whose fruit would please Jesus.

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Pinocchio

On March 28, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Philippians 2: 12

Work out your salvation with fear and trembling.

Do you remember the Disney movie Pinocchio? I had it on last week and was struck, as never before, with the commonality between that little wooden headed boy and Christians.

The story goes that Geppetto, a wood carver by trade, made the little wooden puppet. He wished, though, that this little puppet could be a real boy. The blue fairy heard Geppetto’s wish and because he had given so much joy to other people she visited his house to grant his wish. She waved her magic wand and the puppet came to life. Hallelujah!

Do you see the parallel there with us and Jesus? When we were dead, nothing but inanimate wooden heads, he came and gave us life (John 10: 10). But wait, there is more to the story. The blue fairy explained to Pinocchio that it was because Geppetto wished for a real boy that she came to give him life. Upon hearing this, Pinocchio asked, “Am I a real boy?” The blue fairy told him, “No,” that becoming a real boy would depend upon him. He had to prove himself truthful, brave and unselfish, and to learn right from wrong to become a real boy. Interestingly, she didn’t say that he had to “do” right rather than “wrong”. That is implied. The key was in learning the right way from the wrong way. It is not instinctive. We, like Pinocchio, have to learn.

Pinocchio’s task was monumental, almost insurmountable, but the fairy didn’t leave him on his own to learn all of these important lessons. He would have been destined to fail. She gave him a helper. His name was Jiminy Cricket. We too have been given a helper. Jesus said, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever (John 14: 6). We have been told to be transformed (Romans 12: 2) but like Pinocchio, our task would be impossible if not for the Holy Spirit, our helper.

We have another similarity with Pinocchio. Jesus came and gave us life but it is up to us to become real Christians. We have the life, but we have to be transformed into “real boys” through our own walk with our helper. When we do not listen to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we end up in the same kind of trouble that Pinocchio found when he did not heed the advice of Jiminy Cricket. Because of his own actions, Pinocchio was being transformed into a jackass. I am afraid that comparison is far too close for comfort.

Many of us have thought that once we accepted Jesus as Lord, we were done. We concluded we could go on living like Pinocchio’s worldly friend, Lampley, without reaping the consequences. Wrong! The salvation prayer is akin to what happened when the blue fairy gave Pinocchio life. From there we should have received advice like she gave Pinocchio. It is up to you to become a real boy. Prove yourself truthful, brave and unselfish; learn right from wrong and you will be transformed into the very image that Geppetto, the Father, has for you.

We must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling but we are not alone in this or any other endeavor. God didn’t tell us to be transformed and then we would be saved. No! He saved us, gave us life and then gave us His very own Spirit to be our guide, our conscience, if you will. We will never be transformed without his help. We cannot do this work in our own strength or else we would have created a prettier version of ourselves long ago. But here’s the rub, he cannot do it without us either. This is always a cooperative effort.

I hope you take your own transformation seriously. I hope you seek the heart and mind of God to discover where He wishes to lead you. The road is far better when we follow the advice and leading of the Holy Spirit. If you don’t believe me, go watch Pinocchio and see how it turns out. Spoiler Alert: the secret is in learning to be unselfish.

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Feeble? NOT!

On March 21, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Joshua 14: 10 – 11

Now behold, the LORD has let me live, just as He spoke, these forty-five years, from the time that the LORD spoke this word to Moses, when Israel walked in the wilderness; and now behold, I am eighty-five years old today. I am still as strong today as I was in the day Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so my strength is now, for war and for going out and coming in.

I have told you how Moses accepted his divine calling at age 80, led the children of Israel for 40 years and then at 120 years of age, climbed Mount Nebo. Of course, you already know about Abraham and Sarah. Now look at the words of Joshua.

The link between the words “old” and “feeble” needs to be severed. The Bible says when Moses led the nation of Israel out of Egypt, “He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes,” (Psalm 105: 37 KJV). You know there were old people in that group. It was the entire nation of Israel. None the less, there were no feeble among them. We need to let that revelation sink into our brains and our hearts.

Romans 12: 2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Let me translate this for you, applying it to today’s message. You can either listen to and think like the world and be sick and feeble or you can be transformed in your thinking and live a long, healthy and prosperous life. Which do you want? You cannot listen to the “wisdom” of the world, which is constantly telling you how your body begins to fall apart at age 40 so they can sell you some drugs, and be youthful and vital. You’ve got to turn your ear to God. Your thinking must be transformed into God type of thinking. We need His mind on these things. Am I saying the world is wrong, that many doctors are wrong? Yes, that is exactly what I am saying. However, it will be true for you if you believe what they preach. Why don’t you show them a different model? Be the Joshua of your group. Climb mountains like Moses. Let the people in your church see what happens when someone dares to believe God.

I believe in doctors. I think God blessed us with them, but He never meant for them to take the place of Godly wisdom. Be wise, be strong, be youthful. Live immersed in the grace the Lord has given to His beloved kids.

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Who are We?

On March 5, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

1 Peter 1: 15 – 16

Like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

This has been weighing on my mind quite a bit lately, so I am compelled to write about it. Few people want to hear holiness preaching and few pastors want to preach it. None the less, God calls us to be a holy people. What does that mean and how does it apply to everyday life? Is God calling us to give up everything that is fun in order to be His? The answer to that is, “No,” but He is calling us into a life with and in Him and that necessarily means a life which is distinguishable from the world, a life which has been transformed.

Romans 12: 2 tells us not to be conformed to this world but rather to be transformed. This is one of the most important lifestyle verses in the New Testament. The more you meditate on this scripture, the more application you find for it in your life. Jesus came to give you an abundant life (John 10: 10). However, that does not mean that he came to increase your appetite for the things of the world. He doesn’t mind you owning things. He is not depriving you of the good things in the earth. He is, however, trying to save our lives from the pitfalls.

Everything we are and everything we do should be offered up to Him. We should be living a life in which we put our desires on the altar so that He is in charge of them. Anything can become an idol if it occupies space in front of God. So, that may be television, games, books, social events, food, drink, sports, literally anything. If you are a coffee drinker and you have never put coffee on the altar and sacrificed it to God, you should. That does not mean He is going to take it away. It means that you choose to put coffee behind your passion for God.

We are called to be a peculiar people (1 Peter 2: 9 KJV). That is a strange statement. What it means is that we are different from people of the world. Ephesians 1: 4 reads, “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.” That’s got to mean something. He has called us to be holy and blameless before Him. He provided the blood which cleanses us, but we have a role in this too. I don’t want to say it this way but . . . Jesus didn’t spill his blood so that we can run around like heathens. Do you agree? And yet, I find myself, my Christian friends and frankly, most Christians, looking no different than unsaved, unwashed, unredeemed Gentiles. I have to counsel myself that Jesus’ blood means more than that.

Can we get real for a moment? I have struggled with my weight, so, have I really and truly done as Romans 12: 1 commands, “Present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” What about alcohol consumption? I have never been one to preach abstinence, but I wonder, sometimes, if a beer with friends has become more important than the Word of God. Is our pleasure coming from the things of the world or the things of God? Only the things of God will satisfy. Things of the world tend to be addictive by which I mean, we always want another. That is why we binge watch TV. It’s fun but even after a weekend of watching television, we still want more. On drink, one piece of candy is rarely enough. We will never get satisfied and the more we try, the further God recedes into the background of our lives.

This is not about recrimination or condemnation. “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,” (Romans 8: 1). It is a call, however, to examination. Are we individually and /or collectively a people whose priority is God? Do we attempt to live lives which are holy before the Lord? Or have we been seduced by the world such that there is no distinguishing characteristic between the children of God and the children of the world? Have we put the pleasures and enjoyment of this world before our service to God? These are the questions we should be asking ourselves and praying about. I am convinced that the church needs a wake-up call but that will only come about as we join in praying for the body of believers we call Christians. Be united in holiness before the Lord. Worship Him with all you do. He is worthy.

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Mind Exchange

On June 26, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Romans 12: 2

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

I realize this is a familiar scripture to you but I want you to think about it again. Okay, we understand that Father is telling us that we are not supposed to be like the people in the world. I think we get that part but perhaps we even need a bigger revelation of this first phrase. Do you ever think that we fit in a bit too well? I know I struggled with this. I didn’t want to be different. I wanted to be cool. Now I don’t care so much but it was a challenge. I wanted to fit in. The truth is, we are not going to be giants in God and fit in with everyone else. He has called us to be unique, peculiar. He wants us moving in the power of His Kingdom but it does not operate by secular rules so we really have to be transformed. Our thinking needs a 180 degree revolution. How are we going to accomplish that? What are we doing to transform our minds and our thinking?

Have you ever really posed these questions to yourself? What can we do, what did God intend we do when He told us to renew our minds? Our thought life is going to determine the outcomes in the rest of our lives. As a person thinks in her heart, so she shall be (Proverb 23: 7). So, what are we thinking about? How are we thinking, like the world thinks? The bigger question, though, is, what are we going to do to facilitate this renewal of our minds. Clearly God is of the opinion that our minds need renewal. How is that accomplished?

One thing I have discovered is that the more time I spend with the Word, the more good ideas I get. Another tool that is so overlooked but incredibly valuable is reading books by Christian authors. There are fiction and non-fiction titles out there. I personally enjoy the non-fiction because they really stimulate my thinking and my conversation with God. Another great tool is Christian music. If you only listen to secular music, do yourself a favor and pepper your play list with some popular praise music. Just go to your Christian bookstore and ask what’s popular or turn on the Christian radio station. You are going to blessed. And, one of the best things you can do is to socialize with other Christians and talk about God and the Bible; talk about the things you have been thinking about. Listen to what God has been speaking to other Christians. A really great idea is to buy a Christian book and then get together with your friends weekly and discuss it. Go to your favorite coffee shop and have a great time over the Word. You will find this practice life changing. Is it transformative? Absolutely yes!

I humbly recommend using the Journey Through the Bible. It is perfect for discussion groups and book groups. You will have a very fun time while growing spiritually and also helping your friends grow in their insights.

Be transformed! It can only be accomplished through the renewal of your mind.

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Goodness Me!

On October 17, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

3 John 1: 11

Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.

The instruction John gives us in the beginning of this verse is pretty obvious; do good instead of evil. When we get to the second sentence we begin to see the deeper spiritual considerations.

One of the most frequent questions I get is about Christians who behave badly. Even though we are saved, this transformation that Paul wrote about in Romans 12 is a process. None of us always behave in the way we want to, that is a certainty, so we have understanding and forgiveness for others as they struggle to be the person they are destined to be. How is it, though, that Christians can do evil? The answer is here in this verse. They haven’t seen God.

Everyone needs a personal encounter with Jesus. That is the singular event which ignites the transformative process. We need to see God, to have a personal encounter with Him. It is this which will open the doors of our heart. Merely uttering a prayer of salvation does not fuel the furnace of change. It is the beginning of the quest but the quest is for Jesus, the Father and for intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit as well. Saying a salvation prayer is not an end all. It is the inception of this wonderful time of coming to know the Father and of having meaningful fellowship with Him. It is that doorway through which we walk so that we can encounter the Father personally. The one who sees God, who meets Him; the person who has a one on one encounter with the Holy One will forever be changed. That is why I so want you to seek the Father. He is the power to radically transform our lives. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Only when we see the Father and the Son face to face will we have the power to put evil and bad actions out of our lives. Even though we are not yet perfect, this resident power within us causes a metamorphosis so profound that we are barely able to recognize ourselves.

Do you want to “do good”? Goodness is in the Father. The more we pour our lives into Him and allow Him to be intimately close to us, the more His goodness is revealed through us. I want to encourage you to pursue the Father, Son and Spirit with all your strength and help others to find their way to a direct encounter with God. It will be all good.

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