Month: August 2024

 

You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.
James 4:2

How many times have we heard or said these words: “All you had to do was ask”? What keeps us from asking? Fear of being denied, not wanting to impose or intrude, or thinking we are asking for too much?

The apostle James pointed out the same irony in his epistle: “You do not have because you do not ask.” In his case, his words were a rebuke to his readers because they were using carnal means for getting what they wanted or needed instead of asking God (James 4:1-2). And when they did ask, God didn’t provide because their motives in asking were worldly (James 4:3). Jesus talked about asking God in a more positive light: “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you…. For everyone who asks receives” (Luke 11:9-10). And don’t just ask once; the Greek form of “ask” is literally “keep on asking.”

If you need something today, bring your request to God—with confidence you will receive His answer (Hebrews 4:16).

Most Christians expect little from God, ask little, and therefore receive little, and are content with little.

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This concept is both easy and hard for me. God knows what I need, when I need it, and how much I need of it. God knows! And yet, Scripture tells us we do not have because we do not ask. We don’t want to ask for that which is not in line with God’s purpose and plan for our lives. However, we don’t know God’s exact purposes and plans for us today save whatever we do in thought, words, and actions we do for the honor and glory of Jesus Christ. When it comes to worldly possessions (a house, car, appliances, and other stuff I think it is ok to ask God about it and then open your hearts and minds to how the Holy Spirit will speak to you about it.  It is good for us to ask and wait and listen and see God’s hand in it. We should ask with a heart that leaves room for God’s plans and purposes for our lives. “God, I am thinking and would like to have or need ????.  I do not want to ask this outside of your will.  Give me eyes to see and a heart of understanding in this matter and I will be content with what You do and how You do it.”

When it comes to matters of financial, relational, and physical health, of course, these are matters and concerns we should bring before our Lord God.  We are concerned about our needs or the needs of others and it is very good for us to seek our All-Powerful God. In this seeking and asking we are communicating with our heavenly Father. It keeps us ever mindful of His presence, it honors Him, it builds our faith, and it gives us peace to have it in the hands of God.

When the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, on the third day in the wilderness, they grumbled about the need for water and food. They saw all that God had done to get them to this beginning of their exodus and yet they said it would be better to return to Egypt than die out here.  They did not ask God for water and food. They grumbled.  How much better would it have been to ask? “Dear God, You are awesome in power and might. You are the Creator of all there is. We seek Your help and supply of water and food and thank you in advance for what you will do and wait to see your mighty hand at work.”

I think the problem with asking for things from God has to do with when we prosper or lack much.  Do we go shopping and ask God to lead us on our thoughts and show us how to spend wisely? Do we ask to see the specials? Do we ask to limit our purchases to essentials and not be tempted to buy what we don’t need? Do we ask to be led to purchase something to be given away to someone in need?

We do well to desire to be in communion with God at all times and for all reasons. Choosing to be in the presence of God at all times will affect our lives in ways that honor and glorify Jesus Christ. Choosing to go about your days and weeks with little to no desire for the presence of God will also affect our lives and leave us void of purpose and satisfaction.

 

Hebrews 3:7-11

 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years. Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; they have not known my ways.’ As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’”

Frankly, turning your heart away from Jesus has very real implications not just for eternity, but for your life here on earth as well. If you look at Hebrews 3:7-19, you’ll see four serious consequences of turning your back on Christ.

Each consequence is actually a step in a progression leading you further and further from God:

Step 1

Separation from God (v. 12). God is truth, and when we fail to believe truth, then we follow a lie. And a lie—by its nature—is separate from the truth. In a very real sense, our sin separates us from God.

Step 2

We fall victim to sin (v. 13). As we allow sin to separate us from God, we begin to fall victim to the “deceitfulness of sin.” Simply stated, sin is tricky. Sin masks itself and never presents itself as it truly is. Because we are separated from Christ, our hearts become cold and we allow ourselves to be deceived by sin.

Step 3

Our hearts grow hard (v. 15). As sin’s poison cuts to our soul, our hearts—which may have once been soft and tender—become spiritually calloused, like hard, dead skin. When we allow ourselves to be deceived by sin over and over again, and we wander far from God, we are no longer able to sense His prompting or guidance in our lives.

Step 4

We become rebellious against God (v.15). When we allow our calloused hearts to go unchecked, embracing sin rather than being convicted of it, we are actually in a state of rebellion against God (v. 15). This rebellious heart causes us to further sin against God, and God will not tolerate it. The result is spiritual death.

You see, my friends, there are ramifications and consequences for our disobedience to Christ, both in this world and in eternity. But there’s Good News! You don’t have to live a life of callousness and rebellion. We serve a God of second chances, and even today your heart can be softened. Regardless of where you’ve been or what you’ve done, you can surrender your life over to Him and begin a relationship with Jesus. He’s ready to welcome you with open arms!

 

Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.
Deuteronomy 31:6

Toddlers love to launch out on walks by themselves. They walk ahead of their parent without looking back—except when they do look back. Without fail a toddler will glance backward or even stop and turn around as if to say, “Are you still with me?” Once assured of the parent’s presence, he forges ahead.

We are like toddlers in that we need to be assured of God’s presence, especially during difficult times. We can’t turn around and see Him, but we can read the promises of His presence in Scripture. When the Israelites were about to invade the Promised Land, Moses assured them that God would be with them (Deuteronomy 31:6). The psalmist David wrote that God was with him even in “the valley of the shadow of death” where “goodness and mercy” were always following him (Psalm 23:4, 6). And Jesus said, “I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20).

You are never alone if you belong to Christ. He is there to share your burdens and guide your steps.

I would rather walk with God in the dark than go alone in the light.

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How many times do we walk alone each day without giving a single thought to the presence of God, listening for the Holy Spirit’s leading, or being concerned with honoring and glorifying Jesus Christ in all our thoughts, words, and actions?

We may be thinking about not doing something or doing something that seems right in our own eyes for the purpose of being made right before God. In some way, we think we can do enough good or not do enough bad to help out our standing before God.

We are justified, cleansed, purified, adopted, born again, made new, and filled with the gift of the Holy Spirit by and through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross for our sins. We can’t add to this. This free gift is by God’s grace, mercy, and love. We can easily agree to this, yet we attempt to add to our worth before God by what we do or not do.

I think the root cause of this has to do with being neglectful and complacent with God’s Word and conversely mindful of our purpose on this side of eternity, to honor and glorify Jesus Christ in all thoughts, words, and actions. This lukewarm path makes the light of justification in Jesus Christ grow dimmer and dimmer to the point where we think we need to add to it. Not only does this light grow dimmer, but the sanctifying growth in our lives by and through the Holy Spirit’s leading fades into nonexistence. Self-examination without the influence of God’s Word and the Holy Spirit will lead us to think about doing or not doing certain things as a means to being more worthy of being justified before God.

If we are to walk in the presence of God, let us keep our eyes on Him. Let us read His Word with desire and hunger to know more and more about His grace, mercy, and love. Let us grow in this understanding and learn to discern the quiet whispers of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Let us purpose deep within our hearts and minds to honor and glorify Jesus Christ in all thoughts. words, and actions.

 

[God] canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

–Colossians 2:14

In New York City, there’s a huge display called the National Debt Clock. It calculates our national debt in real time ($34 trillion and counting, as of this writing). You can stand there and watch our national debt increase every second. The Bible says each of us is indebted like that to God–not for money but for the payment of our sins. Romans 2:5 says we are “storing up wrath for [ourselves] in the day of wrath.” Every time we sin, we add to our obligation to God.

But by God’s grace, we are debt-free. Look at Colossians 2:14: “[God] canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.”

Imagine you owed a debt of $34 trillion with interest compounded daily. The person you’re indebted to says, “The debt has to be paid, but I have good news: my son will pay your debt in full if you allow him to.” Would you puff up with pride and refuse the offer, determined to pay off the debt yourself? You would die still in debt. Your only hope would be to accept the payment the son was willing to make for you.

One day, the debt we owe to God is going to have to be paid. We can say, “God, I don’t need Your Son to pay my debt for me. I will pay for it myself.” If we reject the grace of God, then we will die in debt and spend eternity in hell trying to pay off that debt ourselves. Or we can accept the payment that’s been made through Christ Jesus.

When Jesus was nailed to the cross, there was a sign placed above his head that read “King of the Jews” (John 19:19). That was the offense He committed, at least in human terms–Jesus claimed to be the Messiah, the King of the Jews. But there was another placard on that cross: a certificate of debt listing not the offenses of Jesus but the offenses of you and me. Who nailed that placard to the cross of Jesus Christ? Colossians 2:14 says it was God. He “canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, . . . having nailed it to the cross.”

When Jesus died, He died not for His sins but for our sins. In the final moments of His earthly life, Jesus cried out, “It is finished!”–literally, “paid in full” (John 19:30). By God’s grace, Christ has paid your sin debt in full.

 

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
John 14:6

The world is searching for answers, and those searches usually happen on Google, the world’s biggest search engine. Last year, the top searches had to do with the war in Israel with Hamas, the imploded submarine looking for the Titanic, Matthew Perry, NFL star Damar Hamlin, and actor Jeremy Renner.

Google can certainly help answer some of our questions, but for the most important questions in life we need to open our Bibles. Jesus answered a lot of questions in the Gospels, and His answers are always wise, correct, and valuable to us. For example, in John 14:6, Jesus answered the three greatest questions of the human heart: (1) How can I be saved? He said, “I am the way.” (2) How can I be sure? He said, “I am…the truth.” (3) How can I be satisfied? He said, “I am…the life.”

Jesus is the Answer to everything we really need in the depths of our lives. Look to Him for your greatest needs, deepest desires, highest hopes, and fullest blessings.

Christ is not one of many ways to approach God, nor is He the best of several ways; He is the only way.

Act 2:42-43    And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.  And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.

The evidence of Jesus’ entrance into their welcoming hearts was clear to all—steadfast in doctrine and fellowship and a shared concern for others fueled by the Holy Spirit. Biblical doctrine, learned in humble submission to God’s Spirit is always the right order for spiritual effectiveness and power.

More Bible in you equals more power, yet many Christians today are ineffective in reaching the world. Why? Because they’ve abandoned pursuing God in exchange for other religious interests. Yet, no self-help book, conference, or religious system will ever satisfy a craving for God. And as holy and lofty as the doctrines of the Bible are, they are not the person of God. Sound doctrine should act as a fence around our passion for God, but it is not a replacement for His presence.

There can be no substitutes for the child of God who belongs to what A. W. Tozer describes as “the fellowship of the burning heart.” They must be with God daily. They must pursue Him in the Word. Nothing else will do. Such believers have learned that even well-meaning encouragement or advice can be ill-fitting or come up short. They understand that times of holy bankruptcy are vehicles to drive them to the Lord.

I urge you to spend time with God. Ask Him to reveal Himself through the Word. Plead with Him to infuse Himself into your being and transport you into a dying world so that you might reach others. Do that, and you can be confident that He will empower you from on high.

 

Matthew 6:8.  “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.

A big house on several acres with multiple cars in the driveway. A prosperous life full of comfort and free from suffering. The opportunity to plot your own course and achieve your dreams through hard work and diligence.

These are a few examples of what some consider the American Dream, that national ethos which was summarized in the Declaration of Independence: “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

On the surface, this is almost all you could ever ask for—the opportunity to choose your own way and have the freedom to pick your path to happiness. It’s certainly something that is not promised in other parts of the world. Many would give everything they have to come to the United States and pursue the American Dream.

I must ask, though: How’s your American Dream going? Are you finding the happiness you’re free to pursue, or has your American Dream become a nightmare?

You see, I love the idea of the American Dream. I love the belief that we all have opportunities in this great country, and if we’re willing to work and sacrifice, we can reap the benefits. With that said, there’s a bit of an inherent risk with that attitude. When it’s all about me (I’m working hard, I’m making my way, I’m going to do what I need to get ahead), it leaves very little room for the One who has promised that He has a plan for us.

I believe in the American Dream and agree that we should all work hard, for the Bible has plenty to say about downfalls of laziness. But I also believe that it’s impossible to find true and lasting peace and happiness through simply chasing prosperity and comfort.

Jesus said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21, ESV).

I don’t think I’m going too far out on a limb by assuming that many of you reading this are struggling with something in your lives. Maybe the American Dream has come true for you and you have all the money that you could ever need, but you’re finding that the material possessions aren’t buying you any happiness. Or maybe you’ve worked hard every day of your life but nothing has come easy, and it feels like you’re spinning your wheels with little hope of ever catching up, let alone getting ahead.

Regardless of where you are in the journey, I’d humbly suggest that you examine your life and see if everything you’re amassing—both your successes and struggles—are bringing you happiness and hope. Truly consider if you’ve allowed Jesus to consume your life. Are you following His path and calling, rather than your own?

The American Dream is fine—incredible, in fact—but don’t forget that for Christians “our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20, ESV). By turning your eyes to Jesus, you not only find joy here on earth, but have hope for eternity as well.

 

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.

–Colossians 2:8

Karl Valentin, a clown from Munich, Germany, once performed a scene on a darkened stage that was illuminated by a single streetlamp. The clown walked around the circle of light with a frown on his face, desperately looking for something. A policeman entered the scene and asked what the clown had lost. He said, “The key to my house.” So the policeman joined the clown in walking around and around the circle of light, to no avail. Finally, the policeman asked the clown, “Are you sure you lost it here?”

The clown said no and pointed to a darkened area of the stage. “Over there,” he said.

“Then why on earth are you looking for it here?” the policeman asked. The clown replied, “There is no light over there.”

Many people are like that clown. They’re searching not for their keys but for answers to life’s most important questions: Who am I? Why am I here? Is there a God? If there is a God, what does He want from me? But instead of looking in the right place for answers, they’re looking at the most appealing philosophies of the day–philosophies that promise to offer light but are based on darkness. In Colossians 2, Paul reminded us that the answers to life’s most important questions are not found in human philosophy; they are found in the person of Jesus Christ.

The Colossian church was being infiltrated by false teachers who said Jesus is not sufficient for every need you have in life–you need Jesus plus something else. So Paul reminded the Colossians not to be lured away by other philosophies, experiences, or religions. He didn’t buy into an idea that is prevalent among Christians today: that you should never criticize anybody else’s beliefs but instead just be positive about your own religion. Paul recognized that as a spiritual leader, his job was to help protect God’s sheep by warning them about false teachings that were leading them astray.

One thing Paul warned against was human philosophy. He wrote, “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ” (v. 8). Human philosophy can lead you away from God.