Month: June 2024

 

 

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!

–Psalm 1:1

Our thoughts control our actions, and our actions control our destiny. So how do we strengthen our minds to obey God? Let me share some practical principles for strengthening our minds.

Principle number one: avoid ungodly input. In Matthew 12:34, Jesus said, “The mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart”—that is, what fills the mind. Your brain is like a supercomputer, storing for future use all the sights, sounds, tastes, and experiences you input into it. That’s why advertisers spend billions of dollars every year—they know that what you store in your mind eventually affects your actions. If you’re serious about obeying God, you won’t fill your mind with things that lessen your resolve to follow Him.

Principle number two: avoid ungodly people. Psalm 1 is a great passage to memorize if you want your life to be characterized by productivity and stability. The psalmist began, “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!” (v.1). Notice the three things that a person blessed by God refuses to do:

• “Walk in the counsel of the wicked.” In Hebrew, the word translated as “wicked” literally means to loosen oneself. A wicked person has loosened himself from God to do whatever he wants to do. If you want to be blessed by God, you won’t allow your value system to be shaped by those who have loosened themselves from God.

• “Stand in the path of sinners.” Jesus taught in Matthew 7:13–14 that there are two paths in this life: a broad path that leads to destruction and a narrow path that leads to eternal life. If you want to be blessed by God, you won’t go in the same direction as the people on the broad path. Your actions should never be confused with those of ungodly people.

• “Sit in the seat of scoffers.” A scoffer is somebody who ridicules the things of God. It doesn’t have to be an unbeliever—there are some Christians who have become so cynical about the church or the things of God that everything is a big joke to them. If you hang around people like that, their cynicism will rub off on you.

The Bible says if you want to remain strong in your faith, you’ll avoid ungodly input and ungodly people.

Principle number three: read God’s Word regularly. Psalm 1:1–2 says, “How blessed is the man . . .  [whose] delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.” One reason Christians fall into sin is they are so spiritually malnourished that they don’t have the strength to say no to temptation. If you’re suffering from spiritual starvation, don’t try to gorge yourself with God’s Word; start small. Read a single psalm or a paragraph from a practical book such as James or Philippians. You’ll discover that the more you read God’s Word, the more you’ll develop a hunger for it.

Principle number four: make regular deposits in your spiritual bank account. Not long ago, I found my first bank book from an account I opened when I was seven years old. All the deposits I made to that account are gone now. I don’t have a clue where that money went. But I’ve made another kind of deposit through the years that continues to pay dividends: depositing God’s Word in my heart. It’s amazing how sections of Scripture I memorized years ago have come to mind at the right time. I encourage you to make Scripture memorization part of your routine as well. And if you’re a parent, teach your children to memorize God’s Word. Psalm 119:9, 11 says, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping it according to Your word. . . . Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You.”

Principle number five: confront wrong thoughts with the truth of God’s Word. You can’t control all the thoughts that come into your mind, but you can control what you do with those thoughts. You can allow them to linger in your mind until they metastasize into sin, or you can confront them with the truth of God’s Word. In 2 Corinthians 10:5, Paul said, “We are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” God’s Word is like a spiritual lasso that allows us to capture wrong thoughts, subdue them, and dismiss them.

That’s the reason we read and memorize Scripture. We are in a struggle against evil that is being played out on the battlefield of our minds, and the only way to win is by strengthening our minds with God’s Word.

 

 

Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.

–Philippians 4:8

When you hear the term positive thinking, you might think about self-help gurus or “health and wealth gospel” preachers. Nowhere in the Bible does God promise that believers will be healthy and wealthy in this life. But the Bible continually extols the importance of right thinking.

For example, in Romans 12:2, Paul wrote, “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.” In Philippians 4:8, he said, “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

Several years ago, a church member told me he watched cable news every night, but it made him so anxious that he had trouble sleeping. So he stopped watching the news and started listening to sermons instead. He said, “Pastor, I’ve been listening to your sermons at night, and after five minutes, I am out like a light.” I’m not sure what that says about my sermons, but it demonstrates the importance of controlling what you put into your mind. The mind is command central for everything we do. Our thoughts determine our actions.

We see the connection between mind and actions in the first sin ever committed. Long before the garden of Eden, the archangel Lucifer (now known as Satan) decided he was tired of playing second fiddle to God. So he rebelled against God, and he and his followers were cast out of heaven. In Isaiah 14:13–14, God pinpointed the cause of Lucifer’s rebellion: “You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God. . . . I will make myself like the Most High.’” Notice that the seed of rebellion began in Lucifer’s heart. Remember, in the Hebrew culture, the heart was the center of thought. Lucifer’s rebellious actions began with a rebellious thought. And that rebellious thought ultimately led to every other sin in history.

That’s why Paul prayed that the Colossians’ hearts—in other words, their minds—would be encouraged (Colossians 2:2). If you want to remain steadfast in your faith, you have to strengthen your mind with the Word of God.

 

We live in a sin-sick and dark world. This statement shouldn’t come as a surprise to you, especially if you’re reading it as a follower of Jesus Christ. All around us are people—from family to co-workers to celebrities—trying to push a sin-filled, post-Christian worldview.

Sadly, many in our churches are also falling for the lie that there are no consequences to our sin. After all, if Christ died for our sins, why can’t we just go on sinning? The price has been paid.

Of course, sin does matter. Our sin—yours and mine—is what drove Jesus to the cross. It’s hard to consider the suffering He endured on our behalf and not recognize the gravity of sin.

The first chapter of Jonah is a prime example of the consequences of our sin. We all know the story:

God commanded the Prophet Jonah: “Arise, go to Ninevah, that great city, and cry out against it” (Jonah 1:2).

Nineveh was at one time considered the largest city in the world. However, it is not called “great” simply because of its size, but also because of its sin. The city was notorious for its violence. It’s no wonder that when Jonah got the message, he went in the opposite direction.

Was he scared? Maybe, but we also know that he did not want Nineveh to experience God’s forgiveness (Jonah 3:10, 4:1-2). Instead Jonah ran away from Ninevah, ultimately ending up on the sea and being tossed overboard, finding himself in the “belly of the fish” (Jonah 1:17).

What can we learn from Jonah’s tumultuous journey?

First, sin causes us to flee from the Lord. Twice in verse 3 alone, we are told plainly that Jonah was trying to escape the “presence of the Lord.” It is alluded to again in verse 10. Jonah went to Joppa, paid the fare, and got on the boat.

It’s interesting that this prophet, who conversed with Almighty God, thought he could escape the presence of the Lord by physically moving from one place to another. How often, however, do we do the same thing spiritually? Sin causes us to spend less time studying the Bible and less time in prayer, moving away from the presence of God in our lives.

Second, our sin will affect others. Jonah’s sin so impacted the experienced sailors that they were scared to death. They had never seen a storm such as this, and they were forced to throw their cargo (i.e. their income) into the sea as the ship was breaking apart. Further, when they learned that Jonah was the cause of the storm, they were forced into the position of having to make a heartbreaking life-or-death decision.

Similarly, you may think that your sin isn’t harming anybody, but that’s not the case. Your spouse, children, colleagues, or church are likely being impacted, whether you or they realize it.

Third, sin can bring a false sense of peace. Even in the midst of the huge storm—as the sailors frantically unloaded their ship and cried out to pagan gods—Jonah slept soundly in the bottom of the boat.

One of the worst things we can do is to use “peace” as a determining factor in judging if we are in the middle of God’s will. You may feel like you’re getting away with sin, or that it’s no big deal, but it will eventually rear its ugly head.

Finally, sin will take us where we don’t want to go. Because Jonah disobeyed God, he found himself in the midst of a storm in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. Ultimately he was thrown overboard into the sea, and—by verse 17—he was in the belly of a fish. Not good.

I have a friend who says that sin will take you where you don’t want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you can afford to pay. When we stay in sin, sin tightens its grip on us and makes it harder for us to get away. Consider this: If we never have our sins forgiven, then it will be our sins that will take us to hell—a place where no one wants to go.

The city of Ninevah was infected by sin, but once Jonah proclaimed God’s message, they immediately repented and cried out to God. “Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it” (Jonah 3:10).

The same can happen for us. Rather than taking pride in our sin or minimizing its impact, we must see the gravity of it and repent as well. When that happens, the chains and bondage of sin can and will be broken through Jesus, our Savior.

 

I was recently asked, “when Jesus healed people and told them not to tell anyone, and they did, was this a sin?”  I was a bit upset by the question coming from a friend who had been a Christian for close to 60 years. I should not have been, but I was. I could understand it coming from a new believer who always has questions like this. However, coming from a long time Christian upset me. What difference would it make to know the answer? Why would this be important to know? How would knowing the answer grow and mature you?

Paul admonished people when he said; “Though you ought to be teachers you are in need of being taught”, “You are babies eating baby food and should be eating solid food”, “You need to be continually growing and maturing”. Jesus spoke to the church in Revelations, “you are lukewarm”.

I was wrong by getting upset and my expectation of this man in this regard. He has many fine examples of being led by the Holy Spirit in gentleness, kindness, generosity, love, mercy, and grace. He is an example of living in the presence of God and listening to and following the leading of the Holy Spirit.

I guess the question I would have expected was, “Why did Jesus tell them not to speak?” I want my friend’s desire to grow in God’s Word. He could easily look at me and want me to grow in being led by the Holy Spirit more.

We all have gifts for the growth of each other so as to spur each other on in this life. I did no good getting upset with my friend.

However to answer the question, “Why would Jesus tell those healed no to speak of it?” I found these comments.

Mrk 5:41-43  Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” And immediately the girl got up and began walking (for she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement.  And he strictly charged them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.

Mat 9:27-31  And as Jesus passed on from there, two blind men followed him, crying aloud, “Have mercy on us, Son of David.” When he entered the house, the blind men came to him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” Then he touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith be it done to you.” And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, “See that no one knows about it.” But they went away and spread his fame through all that district.

Mrk 1:40-45  And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.”  Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. And Jesus sternly charged him and sent him away at once, and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places, and people were coming to him from every quarter.

Mrk 7:31-36  Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue.  And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it.

Today’s question has to do with the methodology of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Why did Jesus tell those whom He healed to remain quiet and not to tell anyone about what He did? Why would the Lord want us to proclaim the Gospel now but those who were made well back then to be quiet? What is going on with this methodology of the Jesus’ ministry? Although we don’t have a direct answer in Scripture, there is some solid evidence that we can look to in Scripture in order to understand the Lord’s methodology.

Before we can get a grasp on this question, let’s take a look at the cultural expectations in Israel during the ministry of Jesus. Most of the nation was looking for a political revolutionary as Messiah. This expected king would free Israel from Roman rule and establish a dynasty that looked like a lot like Solomon and David’s kingdom. Distracted by this expectation, Israel looked past the clear prophecies about the Messiah that point to salvation accomplished through the atoning death of the Christ (Is. 53, Ps. 22). Since the political and religious environment in Israel was saturated with this kind of anticipation for the Messiah, Jesus was very careful to distinguish the real work and message of the saving work of the Christ from the populous’ way of thinking.

The first thing we observe about the practice of the Lord in the matter of commanding those who were healed to remain quiet is that the Lord didn’t mean to keep people away from coming to Him to hear Him preach the gospel. In fact, Jesus desired for the people to come to Him and hear the Word of God in His preaching and teaching (Luke 4:18). So why not advertise His power to heal? Because the primary purpose of the Lord Jesus was not healing but preaching the good news of the gospel (Mark 6:34). The fame of Jesus due to His compassionate healing ministry actually served to make it difficult for the Lord and His disciples to preach the gospel because of the crowd’s frenzied focus on healing and miracles. We get this kind of flavor from Jesus in John 6:26, “…you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.” The people became more interested in the immediate benefits of being healed or fed than hearing and obeying the Word of God.

His acts of healing that the individuals tell no one what had happened, because He was performing those acts out of love and mercy, and not for the purpose of publicizing or bringing glory to Himself

Surprisingly, observing supernatural miracles did not typically lead people to repent and follow Jesus’ teaching. Throughout his ministry, Jesus showed annoyance with crowds who flocked to see a popular leader do something supernatural. He wanted from the spectators not applause, but commitment. 

When we notice in the gospels, gradually, Jesus relied more and more on parables, which he explained to his disciples in private.

In the course of His ministry, however, Jesus did use miracles simply because He had compassion on people. But physical healing is always a temporary matter. Knowing the truth of the gospel has eternal consequences. The teaching was always the point. Unfortunately, sometimes the miracles got in the way of the teaching. Such was the case when He healed the leper who told so many people Jesus couldn’t even teach in town anymore. Humans are shallow creatures who often choose the immediate good over the eternal great. While a few individuals called on Jesus specifically to hear His teaching, mobs came to Him seeking healing. Some stayed to hear His teaching. But the vast majority who heard of Jesus’ miracles betrayed Him in the end because He didn’t perform the one miracle they wanted—independence from Roman rule. 

This situation has direct application to us today. Many ministries feed on stories of the miraculous. Accounts of healing, wealth, and deliverance draw people to the door. But all the healing in the world is useless if the people refuse to listen to how they can be spiritually healed for eternity. When we experience miracles in our own lives, we must be careful. Sometimes telling others will encourage them to find out the truth about Jesus for themselves. But sometimes it will lead to bitterness when God doesn’t give them exactly what they want. We need to have the wisdom of Jesus to know the difference.

 

Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” (Genesis 11:3-4)

After the flood humanity began to multiply quickly. God told Noah and his descendants to be fruitful and multiply (Genesis 9:1), and they did. Instead of spreading over the earth, people stayed close, settling in southern Mesopotamia, near the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The area was called Shinar (11:1), also known as Babylon (Genesis 10:10). All this was in disobedience to another command God gave in Genesis 9:1 – the command to fill the earth, instead of sticking close together.

We could say that humanity was determined, ready to build and to accomplish things. Unfortunately, they didn’t surrender that determination to God. Speaking one language (Genesis 11:1), man advanced quickly in technology and organization. They used their determination, potential, technology, and organization to rebel against God and God’s will.

Because we are made in the image of God, people have a lot of potential – especially when they work together. First, they built themselves a city. Then, they built a tower. Using the technology of well-baked bricks and asphalt for mortar, they started building a tall tower.

Allow me to suggest something. It’s not my original thought, and we don’t have enough information to be certain. Yet, I think they made the Tower of Babel out of well-baked bricks and asphalt for mortar to make it strong and waterproof. The Bible says that Noah used the same material in waterproofing the ark (Genesis 6:14). The mother of Moses used the same material in waterproofing Moses’ basket (Exodus 2:3).

If this is true, then Babylon and the Tower of Babel were not only expressions of disobedience to God’s command to fill the earth (Genesis 9:1). The Tower of Babel means that man did not believe God’s promise to never again flood the earth. A waterproof tower was made to protect mankind against a future deluge.

The top of the tower was intended to be in the heavens. It is doubtful they thought they could build a tower all the way to heaven. It is more likely they built the tower as an observation point of the heavens; it was built “unto the heavens.” Most astrological and occult practices have a history back to Babel. This tower was real. The ancient Greek historian Herodotus said the remains of the Tower of Babel still stood in his day and he had seen it.

Disobeying God and doubting His promise didn’t do them any good. God easily defeated their plan by confusing their languages and scattering them over the earth.

You are made in God’s image and capable of amazing things. Don’t waste all that potential in disobedience and unbelief.

 

Romans 13:14. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

“Putting on” the armor of God (Ephesians 6:11), while found only in Ephesians, employs imagery found throughout the New Testament: putting on clothing. We do that every morning as we prepare ourselves for the day. We dress ourselves in a manner that will carry us through the day depending on the tasks we have to accomplish. While Paul explains in detail what it means to put on the armor of God, we are also told to put on various things that provide similar spiritual protection. We are told to put on “the armor of light” (Romans 13:12), Christ (Galatians 3:27), the “new man” (Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10), “tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering” (Colossians 3:12), and love (Colossians 3:14). In essence, to put on the armor of God is to put on Christ Himself and all His attributes. Living each day in obedience and submission to the Lord Jesus Christ will find us totally protected against “the wiles of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11).

Begin each day by clothing yourself in Christ and His truth. In doing so, you will be clothed in the armor of God.

The reason we must put on the whole armor of God is to withstand evil.

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We would never leave our houses without clothes. It is obvious to all that we would be naked. How many times do we leave our homes and are not clothed in faith, truth, salvation, righteousness, readiness, and the sword of the Holy Spirit which is the Word of God?  Oh that we were trained early in life to never leave our homes naked of these.

 

We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ.

–Colossians 1:28

How do we share Christ with a world in need of hope? Paul said in Colossians 1:28, “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom.” The word “admonishing” in this verse means to warn people. Let’s face it: there are negative aspects to the gospel message. We’ve all sinned. We all deserve judgment. And hell awaits those who reject or neglect Jesus Christ. If we’re going to share the gospel message, we have to talk about those things. We have to warn people about what awaits them if they die without Christ. But we also get to share the hope that awaits everyone who trusts in Him.

Notice with whom we are to share this message: “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ” (v. 28; emphasis mine). There’s a reason Paul repeated the phrase “every man.” Remember, the Colossians were being invaded by false religions, including Gnosticism. The Gnostics claimed to have a secret revelation about God that was available to only a few super-spiritual people. But Paul said no—true revelation from God is for every person.

You might say, “What about predestination? Doesn’t the Bible teach that God elects people for salvation?” Yes, that’s true. But it is also true that every individual has a responsibility to accept Christ as Savior. And you and I have a responsibility to share the gospel with every person.

Rowland Hill, a Calvinist pastor in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, believed strongly in the sovereignty of God. But he was criticized by his fellow Calvinists for not preaching only to those people whom God had predestined to be saved. Reverend Hill responded, “I don’t know them, or I would preach to them. Have the goodness to mark them with a bit of chalk, and then I’ll talk to them!” It’s our responsibility to preach the gospel to everyone.

What is the goal of sharing the gospel? Verse 28 says, “So that we may present every man complete in Christ.” Our goal is not just to save people from hell but also to help them learn to follow Christ in every part of their lives. Jesus did not commission us to go and make converts; He said, “Go . . . and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19). Our mission is to present every person complete in Christ.