Luke 21:34-36
King James Version (KJV)
34And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.
35For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.
36Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.
Do not be fooled by the wiles of a world without Christ. Care and circumstance conspire to draw our time and attention away from Him, and that is no coincidence. The only way for mortals to prevail, in a spiritual battle, is to pray for the Lord's will to be done. His will must be our focus, because only He is strong enough to win.
What is it that the enemy seeks to distract us from that is the will of God concerning us? To believe and then to tell others His good news! These are the tasks appointed to us!
A famous evangelist once voiced the opinion that so called christians who do not give voice to the faith by telling others, are not so much christians as they are frauds. What is a watchman good for, except to warn others of the coming judgement and give them the information they need to escape it? If others do not believe, then their destruction is on their own heads, but the one told to watch would be guilty of an even greater crime in failing to warn them. This watchman is quite obviously not convinced of the truth or urgency of the message! He has not kept watch as instructed!
Friday, October 14, 2011
Friday, September 23, 2011
A Form of Godliness......
"But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but… http://bible.us/2Tim3.1.NIV"
First you must study the authentic before you will know what is counterfeited. What does godliness look like? Obviously, as the name itself implies, it is having God's character. God is love. Love is trusting, giving, sharing, supporting, empowering. It is self sacrifice. Even bruised, battered and bloody, love is forever unconquered but conquering. Love returns good for evil and the truth for a lie. Love maintains gentleness in the face of mistreatment. Love is the ultimate in patience, waiting for reciprocation as an occasion for celebration.
How is it possible to falsify such profoundly beautific character? What could possibly manifest the outward signs of godliness, yet be corrupt, hateful, and unloving at it's core? What has deceived supposed christians into falling into line to achieve it's goals?
Tolerance is the catchword of today's society, the sole principal upon which is built all that has the appearance of morals, yet remember, tolerance means how much pain you can stand and how well you can hide your hatred. It speaks of how we must allow the evil, no matter how murderous, to remain beside us, permitting it's pride to stay intact. This is not love, where we conform to other's expectations out of fear. It is not love to keep silent while death and destruction work their whims. Look closely and see that tolerance is only an empty shell, loudly proclaiming a worthless, fruitless mimicry of the gold standard which is the character of God.
First you must study the authentic before you will know what is counterfeited. What does godliness look like? Obviously, as the name itself implies, it is having God's character. God is love. Love is trusting, giving, sharing, supporting, empowering. It is self sacrifice. Even bruised, battered and bloody, love is forever unconquered but conquering. Love returns good for evil and the truth for a lie. Love maintains gentleness in the face of mistreatment. Love is the ultimate in patience, waiting for reciprocation as an occasion for celebration.
How is it possible to falsify such profoundly beautific character? What could possibly manifest the outward signs of godliness, yet be corrupt, hateful, and unloving at it's core? What has deceived supposed christians into falling into line to achieve it's goals?
Tolerance is the catchword of today's society, the sole principal upon which is built all that has the appearance of morals, yet remember, tolerance means how much pain you can stand and how well you can hide your hatred. It speaks of how we must allow the evil, no matter how murderous, to remain beside us, permitting it's pride to stay intact. This is not love, where we conform to other's expectations out of fear. It is not love to keep silent while death and destruction work their whims. Look closely and see that tolerance is only an empty shell, loudly proclaiming a worthless, fruitless mimicry of the gold standard which is the character of God.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
What Have You Done!
The anger has taken over. It has seized a life all it's own.
A harvest of bitterness, for selfish seeds we have sown.
A litany of accusations, follow us into our dreams
when weariness is no longer the refuge, from reality, that it seems.
For our collective failures, none of us want the blame.
We seek to defer, to others, the misery of our shame.
So, willfulness, or self expression, by any other name,
the excruciating results of them remain the same.
This morass of condemnation has no escape and no way past.
"Who would even choose to be a part of it?" incredulously asked!
If we could but lift our eyes, we could see, His sympathy and sorrow,
in the eyes of the One, whose image we have borrowed.
The first thing we see, is that He, is familiar with shame and condemnation.
His rejection and His sacrifice, in history, was done.
He voluntarily suffered the ultimate in pain
to which we cry "What have you done? What did you hope to gain?"
THIS is the logical conclusion, of our choice, made stark and bare.
It was the death, of God Himself, that He accomplished there!
So grim our loss, of the Source, of all love and gentleness!
If we can, or will, survive His ending, is anybody's guess!
But how else could such Mighty Majesty descend to the depths of our hell?
Burst open the doors of our prison, with the good news, of our deliverance, to tell?
A destiny of death and dark despair are all that we have lost!
When He showed disdain to count our shame and rained contempt on anger's cost!
This is a God without barriers. save the will of His loves object!
He can change the foulest violator, if he is but willing, HIS love and mercy to reflect!
By which we cry, "Most Precious One! Look what You've done!
Our darkest destiny, exchanged, for the inheritance of favored sons!"
A harvest of bitterness, for selfish seeds we have sown.
A litany of accusations, follow us into our dreams
when weariness is no longer the refuge, from reality, that it seems.
For our collective failures, none of us want the blame.
We seek to defer, to others, the misery of our shame.
So, willfulness, or self expression, by any other name,
the excruciating results of them remain the same.
This morass of condemnation has no escape and no way past.
"Who would even choose to be a part of it?" incredulously asked!
If we could but lift our eyes, we could see, His sympathy and sorrow,
in the eyes of the One, whose image we have borrowed.
The first thing we see, is that He, is familiar with shame and condemnation.
His rejection and His sacrifice, in history, was done.
He voluntarily suffered the ultimate in pain
to which we cry "What have you done? What did you hope to gain?"
THIS is the logical conclusion, of our choice, made stark and bare.
It was the death, of God Himself, that He accomplished there!
So grim our loss, of the Source, of all love and gentleness!
If we can, or will, survive His ending, is anybody's guess!
But how else could such Mighty Majesty descend to the depths of our hell?
Burst open the doors of our prison, with the good news, of our deliverance, to tell?
A destiny of death and dark despair are all that we have lost!
When He showed disdain to count our shame and rained contempt on anger's cost!
This is a God without barriers. save the will of His loves object!
He can change the foulest violator, if he is but willing, HIS love and mercy to reflect!
By which we cry, "Most Precious One! Look what You've done!
Our darkest destiny, exchanged, for the inheritance of favored sons!"
Monday, August 1, 2011
Winning by Weakness
I was touched recently, by a song by Guns N Roses. I felt the man's pain and sadness when he pleaded, "Look at the world we're killing, look at the blood we're spilling, just like we've always done before." Unfortunately, his conclusion and answer to the dilemma was simply "I don't need your civil war!" Did he think that there would be no dying if he did not fight? Does he think that evil will not fill any vacuum left by cowardice? Violence always reigns supreme in this world, this culture, and this mind set of entitlement. It will attempt to swallow up, and still not be satisfied, anything not already committed to God. Fear and anger seek to overwhelm rational thought and be our primary motivators. They demand our obedience!
There is something, not of this world, that is stronger and more compelling than both. Faith is our desire for, and trust in, Jesus. It endures, no matter the test, for His love is our motivation. Love is not something that can be forced. It surrenders willingly that which is needful for the sake of another. That is what Jesus meant when He said, "No man can take my life. I lay it down willingly." The greatest courage of all is demonstrated when we turn away, by our free choice, from self gratification to choose giving up to His love. It may cost us everything, even our life, but it will proven to be worth it!
Choosing to face fear with meekness and vulnerability just seems so counter intuitive, but everyone has had the experience of the "lump in the throat" because of a demonstratively genuine gift of love. (DO NOT try this without God's help!)
I have seen true love, proven through self sacrifice, and have had that reaction of identifying with the giver and receiver. So it is that we will conquer, if we humble ourselves and become weak, to surrender to Love!
There is something, not of this world, that is stronger and more compelling than both. Faith is our desire for, and trust in, Jesus. It endures, no matter the test, for His love is our motivation. Love is not something that can be forced. It surrenders willingly that which is needful for the sake of another. That is what Jesus meant when He said, "No man can take my life. I lay it down willingly." The greatest courage of all is demonstrated when we turn away, by our free choice, from self gratification to choose giving up to His love. It may cost us everything, even our life, but it will proven to be worth it!
Choosing to face fear with meekness and vulnerability just seems so counter intuitive, but everyone has had the experience of the "lump in the throat" because of a demonstratively genuine gift of love. (DO NOT try this without God's help!)
I have seen true love, proven through self sacrifice, and have had that reaction of identifying with the giver and receiver. So it is that we will conquer, if we humble ourselves and become weak, to surrender to Love!
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Crossing the Line
There are so very many ways of expressing the concept of what it takes to become a christian. The label is, of course, inadequate representation of what exits inside of a person(and is used as a default label). There is a line that must be crossed, a change that is made, an acceptance (and action) upon certain truths. Jesus called the change being "born again", when His richness has reached all the way down to our foundation to conceive that new life in us which is our down payment on eternal life.It is called "believing in Him" that dawning realization of the absolute veracity of who He is and what He has said. The change is being saved from the destruction of our prior path, saved from being condemned to the second death, called hell. Jesus also called it "entering by the gate", such gate which is Christ Jesus. He said there is no other entrance for He is the Truth, the Way, and the Life.
How can you tell when you have crossed over the line, the demarcation that makes the difference, between life and death? Regrets and remorse are not the magic ticket to the movie called heaven. The next progression, the desire to change, to do better, is still not sufficient to push us over the edge into freedom. Everyone goes through these sorts of things. The effort to improve ourselves is (literally) a dead end road. That point where we see our overwhelming need and also our helplessness to effect a change is where our spiritual transformation begins.
"In that day, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." It is when we are so far down into the hole that we throw up our hands in surrender, and plead with Jesus to fix it, that the salvation of our God seizes hold of us and generates the seed of the image of Him within us. His likeness grows and flowers within us through His guidance.
Symptoms manifest themselves of this permanent and incurable condition (of new life in Christ). The first sign of it is that we call Him our Lord to His face and in the presence of others. We feel a compelling love of Him that places His will and desire above our own. His gentle benevolence is revealed in our character so that we, amazingly, love our brother, enough so that we want good for him, even in the face of his abuse. We are willingly and eagerly obedient to His commands out of gratitude for His goodness. He has become, for us, the God of the gap, overcoming and conquering even the gulf which separates us from Him, and making our sin of no effect. He is not beyond our reach anymore. He is just a prayer away.
There are many in this day and age who call themselves Christians. Our Lord said many would use His name who do not know Him. The greatest tragedy in this world is those who do not make the transition from knowing about Him to knowing Him personally.
How can you tell when you have crossed over the line, the demarcation that makes the difference, between life and death? Regrets and remorse are not the magic ticket to the movie called heaven. The next progression, the desire to change, to do better, is still not sufficient to push us over the edge into freedom. Everyone goes through these sorts of things. The effort to improve ourselves is (literally) a dead end road. That point where we see our overwhelming need and also our helplessness to effect a change is where our spiritual transformation begins.
"In that day, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." It is when we are so far down into the hole that we throw up our hands in surrender, and plead with Jesus to fix it, that the salvation of our God seizes hold of us and generates the seed of the image of Him within us. His likeness grows and flowers within us through His guidance.
Symptoms manifest themselves of this permanent and incurable condition (of new life in Christ). The first sign of it is that we call Him our Lord to His face and in the presence of others. We feel a compelling love of Him that places His will and desire above our own. His gentle benevolence is revealed in our character so that we, amazingly, love our brother, enough so that we want good for him, even in the face of his abuse. We are willingly and eagerly obedient to His commands out of gratitude for His goodness. He has become, for us, the God of the gap, overcoming and conquering even the gulf which separates us from Him, and making our sin of no effect. He is not beyond our reach anymore. He is just a prayer away.
There are many in this day and age who call themselves Christians. Our Lord said many would use His name who do not know Him. The greatest tragedy in this world is those who do not make the transition from knowing about Him to knowing Him personally.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
From Sinner to Saint (In 3.2 seconds)
The difference between free will and predestination is only the measure of the gap between our understanding and His. They are the same thing, just seen from opposite ends of the spectrum. God already has the game planned. The course is plotted and laid in. Time is but the gage of how long it takes us, to be brought up to speed, on what He will have us understand. If we were already perfect, we wouldn't need the time to learn the game. To "wait on the Lord" is to keep the heart faithful during that period our version of reality is catching up with His ultimate reality.
This is HIM of whom there is none and nothing greater. This is HE who's reach extends to the lowest hell. The hardened will of the sinner is broken "without hand" by the featherlight touch of grace and mercy. The crushing results of criminal activity is what strips away his resistance. Granted, we are vessels which do not have the capacity for submission to the Divine prerogative, but this fact only underscores the miracle of His grace. What a work of artistry are the gifts of His salvation and sanctification! These gifts are only given to the willing! He creates the willingness, Himself! He develops His wisdom in us for the purpose of turning selfish rebellion into obedience, honored with the privilege of serving His cause. This is the serene security of knowing all His will is accomplished and the joyful gratitude of realizing His unqualified acceptance and our freedom of choice in being delivered from our slavery.
This is HIM of whom there is none and nothing greater. This is HE who's reach extends to the lowest hell. The hardened will of the sinner is broken "without hand" by the featherlight touch of grace and mercy. The crushing results of criminal activity is what strips away his resistance. Granted, we are vessels which do not have the capacity for submission to the Divine prerogative, but this fact only underscores the miracle of His grace. What a work of artistry are the gifts of His salvation and sanctification! These gifts are only given to the willing! He creates the willingness, Himself! He develops His wisdom in us for the purpose of turning selfish rebellion into obedience, honored with the privilege of serving His cause. This is the serene security of knowing all His will is accomplished and the joyful gratitude of realizing His unqualified acceptance and our freedom of choice in being delivered from our slavery.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
What makes YOU so right?
What one good thing do you wish that you could accomplish in this world? And what is holding you back from doing it? "The cost of our vitality (ability to live life to the fullest) is the sum of all our fears." Our lack of faith holds life itself hostage. By keeping ourselves safe, we lose all of what is most precious.
Life is not about us. The Lord is attempting to teach us to not hoard our treasures for ourselves. In God's workings, what we wish to keep must be given away. The Lord develops our "leadership" by using us to serve and to give. It's what His authority is.
People hide behind their fear and anger, wishing that things could be different. It is only an excuse when they say that what little they could give would not make a difference. There is no peace in this hoarding of grudges. They are trying to wrest some control out of the situation, hoping to salvage it.
We were never in control. Only God is. He uses our emotions to propel us and motivate us. Only God can give the increase and a harvest from our sacrifices. So again I ask, what good would you do, if you could? Faith throws the bread upon the waters. It will return to HIM exactly how He wants it to! So what have we got to lose?
Life is not about us. The Lord is attempting to teach us to not hoard our treasures for ourselves. In God's workings, what we wish to keep must be given away. The Lord develops our "leadership" by using us to serve and to give. It's what His authority is.
People hide behind their fear and anger, wishing that things could be different. It is only an excuse when they say that what little they could give would not make a difference. There is no peace in this hoarding of grudges. They are trying to wrest some control out of the situation, hoping to salvage it.
We were never in control. Only God is. He uses our emotions to propel us and motivate us. Only God can give the increase and a harvest from our sacrifices. So again I ask, what good would you do, if you could? Faith throws the bread upon the waters. It will return to HIM exactly how He wants it to! So what have we got to lose?
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