Month: December 2024

 

All of heaven is interested in the Cross of Christ, all hell terribly afraid of it, while men are the only beings who more or less ignore its meaning.

This “enemy” thrives on the chaos, division and negativity perpetuated through social media platforms. It symbolizes the harmful outcomes of collective engagement in fear, misinformation and distraction, leading you on paths away from honoring and glorifying God.

Jesus explained what He meant by the days of Noah. It means life centered around the normal things: eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. In other words, life will be business as usual; reprobate perhaps, but usual.

Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect: We must not escape the emphasis. We must be ready, because His coming for us is without warning. 

We should also remember that the days of Noah were also marked by violence and demonic oppression (Genesis 6:1-5).

Hiebert compares this trumpet of 1 Thessalonians 4 and the seventh trumpet of Revelation 11:15: “The subjects are different: here it is the church; there a wicked world. The results are different: here it is the glorious catching up of the church to be with the Lord; there it is further judgment upon a godless world. Here ‘the last trump’ signals the close of the life of the church on earth; there the ‘seventh’ trumpet marks a climax in a progressive series of apocalyptic judgments upon the living on earth.”

Why therefore do we not reject every care of earthly actions and prepare ourselves for the meeting of the Lord Christ, so that he may draw us from the confusion, which overwhelms all the world? (Written between 4th and 6th century)

Nothing discredits God more than when His children, who bear His name, disobey what is in His Book. 

Never doubt in the dark what God told you in the light.

The US Constitution is based on the words of men, and it can change. But the Bible is based on the Word of God, and it never changes. We are never to set aside God’s Word to follow human tradition.

Take courage. We walk in the wilderness today and in the Promised Land tomorrow.

 

Job 42:1-6.  Then Job answered the Lord and said: “I know that You can do everything,And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Listen, please, and let me speak;You said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’ “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear,But now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself,And repent in dust and ashes.”

Besides being beautiful literature, the book of Job addresses one of the world’s greatest problems: the problem of suffering. Job was a righteous man (Job 1:1) who nonetheless experienced tremendous tragedy and suffering—seemingly without any obvious reason. Job spends most of the book defending his innocence while his friends attempt to convince him that he must have done something to deserve his suffering. While Job’s friends’ theology is not always well-informed, one of them encourages Job to appeal to God “Who does great things, and unsearchable, marvelous things without number” (Job 5:9), which are detailed in verses 10-16. Surely the ways of such a God can be trusted.

Job is not convinced by the words of his friend, but he changes his mind when God Himself speaks (Job 38–41). Listening to God, Job realizes that God is greater than his problems and that God can be trusted with whatever happens in his life. After God describes His wondrous works to Job, his eyes and ears are opened, and he repents of his lack of faith (Job 42:1-6).

Meditating on the unfathomable works and wonders of God can inspire us to trust Him with our unanswered questions.

 

Philippians 2:3-4    Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Romans 14:19.  So then, let us pursue [with enthusiasm] the things which make for peace and the building up of one another [things which lead to spiritual growth].

Psalm 34:14   Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

Romans 12:18    If it is possible on your part, live at peace with everyone.

Romans 15:1    We who are strong ought to bear with the shortcomings of the weak and not to please ourselves.

Philippians 2:21   For all the others look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.

But every man also on the things of others – It is the duty of every man to do this. No one is at liberty to live for himself or to disregard the wants of others. The object of this rule is to break up the narrow spirit of selfishness, and to produce a benevolent regard for the happiness of others. In respect to the rule we may observe. (Barnes)

Christian duties; to like-mindedness and lowly-mindedness, according to the example of the Lord Jesus. Kindness is the law of Christ’s kingdom, the lesson of his school, the livery of his family. Several motives to brotherly love are mentioned. If you expect or experience the benefit of God’s compassions to yourselves, be compassionate one to another. It is the joy of ministers to see people like-minded. Christ came to humble us, let there not be among us a spirit of pride. We must be severe upon our own faults, and quick in observing our own defects, but ready to make favourable allowances for others. We must kindly care for others, but not be busy-bodies in other men’s matters. Neither inward nor outward peace can be enjoyed, without lowliness of mind. (Henry)

Let each esteem other better than themselves; not as to the things of the world, in respect of which one man may be a better man than another, and he must know and think himself so; nor with respect to the endowments of the mind, and acquired abilities, which one man may have above another; and the difference being so great in some, it must be easily discerned, that one is more learned and knowing, in this or the other language, art, or science; but with regard to, grace, and to spiritual light, knowledge, and judgment: and where there is lowliness of mind, or true humility, a person will esteem himself in a state of grace, as the great apostle did, the chief of sinners, and less than the least of all saints; one in whom this grace reigns will pay a deference to the judgment of other saints, and will prefer their experience, light, and knowledge, to his own; and will readily give way, when he sees such that are of longer standing, of greater experience, and more solid judgment, as he has reason to think, than himself, are on the other side of the question; and so peace, love, and unity, are preserved. (Gill)

It is easy to see kindness and humbleness because it is so far removed from our society and culture. Pride, arrogance, boastfulness, greed, hate, anger, self-worth, self-reliance, self-importance, self-pleasing, and selfishness rule the hearts of this world and far too often creeps into our lives as a “normal” response to something in our lives. We are bombarded with these worldly conditions of the heart of man everywhere we turn. I recently read an article about the rudest cities in the US. This was a secular article and what I found interesting was that even in the secular world these actions of people are viewed as a negative to society. 

We in and of ourselves have no ability to overcome our sinfulness and the natural outpouring of unholiness, unrighteousness, and that which honors or glorifies Jesus Christ. Left to ourselves this is our lot in life and how we would express our thoughts and actions. 

Praise be to God. He reached out to us, to redeem us, forgive us, save us, give us a new birth, fill us with His Holy Spirit, lead us, instruct us, to give us hope, joy, happiness, kindness, peace, grace, mercy, love, and eternal life. In light of this, we surely should be humble, kind, generous, joyful, and thankful. It is then our hearts and minds will discern every thought, word, and action allowing us to confess it, repent of it, and learn to take every thought captive before our sinful nature rears its ugly head.

 

Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.

–Colossians 3:18

I love the story about a man who was at the airport, and he asked a stranger what time it was. The stranger set down the two large suitcases he was carrying and looked at his watch. He said, “It’s 5:09 p.m. and 73 degrees. In London, the forecast is clear all week, and the barometer is 29.14 and falling. It’s raining in Singapore. . . .”

The man interrupted, “Your watch tells you all that? Where did you get it?” The stranger replied, “I actually made it. I’m kind of an inventor.”

Impressed, the man said, “I’ll give you $2,000 for that watch.” They haggled back and forth and finally agreed on a price of $10,000. The stranger gave his watch to the man, and the man paid him and began to walk away. “Wait!” the stranger said, handing him the two heavy suitcases. “Don’t forget the batteries!”

We have a tendency to take simple things and make them unnecessarily complex, don’t we? That’s certainly true when it comes to the family. As a pastor, I’m grateful for the plethora of books, sermons, and videos on how to have a successful family. But I think we’ve given people the idea that having a successful family is very complex. The truth is, having a successful family is not easy, but it’s not complicated either. In just four short verses, Paul gave us the ingredients for a successful home.

We’ve come to the final section of Colossians 3. In this chapter, Paul talked about how to be a heavenly minded Christian–in other words, how to become like Jesus Christ in your attitudes, actions, and affections. In verses 18–25, Paul gave two litmus tests to determine whether you’re a heavenly minded Christian: how you behave at home and how you behave at work. The home and the workplace are the crucibles that test whether you’re becoming like Jesus Christ.

In verses 18–21, Paul said, “Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them. Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord. Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart.” This week, we’re going to look at the first of these simple commands, including what it means–and what it does not mean–for wives to submit to their husbands.

 

 

Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.
Ephesians 5:1-2

One of the most successful commercials of all time was originally broadcast on August 8, 1991. The product was a sports drink, and the star of the commercial was legendary basketball player Michael Jordan. The commercial showed Jordan playing basketball and consuming the sports drink, ending with “Be like Mike.” And it worked! Sales of the sports drink took off.

the apostle Paul tells us to “be imitators of God.” It is because God is love (1 John 4:8) and has demonstrated His love toward us (Romans 5:8). If our goal is to be a good basketball player, we should “be like Mike.” But if our goal is to be like Christ, we should imitate God by walking in love the way Christ did.

Imitation requires intimate knowledge. Spend time with God in His Word daily in order to imitate Him.

 Luke 16:1-3   He also said to His disciples: “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods.  So he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’  “Then the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg. 

Throughout Scripture we are commanded to serve God, as well as our brothers and sisters. Further, we’re shown examples of what selfless service looks like, from Joseph to Paul and Timothy.

But what does a bad steward look like? What can we learn from one who is called into service, but responds poorly?

Let’s look at the parable of the dishonest manager in Luke 16:1-13.

To summarize, there was a rich man who was told that his steward (the manager of his assets) was doing a poor job with the resources entrusted to him. The rich man decided to fire the steward, and asked him to provide an account of the money he had handled.

The man—knowing that he had no other skills and would soon be out on the street—decided to cozy up to the debtors at the expense of his master, in the hopes that they would take care of him after he was released from his role.

There are always consequences for the decisions we make, and we see a few in this parable.

Loss of Testimony: When we are unfaithful, we will be discovered and our testimony will be lost. We’re told in verse 1 that “charges were brought to [the rich man] that this man was wasting his possessions.”

In other words, people knew that the man had been given much, but that he had been wasteful. The problem reached such a point that someone had to step forward and alert the rich man, who quickly did away with his manager.

Loss of Reputation: The steward couldn’t have gotten where he was without having some success. Yet, while his entire job was handling money, he was disorganized and unaware.

He had to summon each debtor and ask them how much they owed. His reputation was damaged as one-by-one he showed that he hadn’t kept track of his accounts.

Loss of Stewardship: The dishonest man probably thought that he would never get caught and would stay in favor. However, when we are wasteful, God will remove us as stewards.

This man shrewdly knew that his time was up, and furthered the damage by going to his master’s debtors and cutting their bills. He hoped they would feel indebted to him and welcome him into their homes when he was thrown out of the master’s house.

That’s a lot of damage for a man who was lazy at best, criminal at worst.

What About Us?

What about the resources that God has placed in your charge? Your family, your finances, your ministry, your church?

Are you being faithful? Is your work showing your heart for the Lord, or are you hurting your testimony and reputation by cutting corners, pointing fingers, or avoiding service altogether?

Like the steward, who placated others while hurting his employer, perhaps you have one foot in your Master’s business but the other in the world. It might even sound nice to get away from the stress of ministry and let others handle the burden.

The problem is that once ministry is removed due to your unfaithfulness, the loss is significant and long-term.

The lesson of this entire parable can be summed up in verse 10:

“He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.”

As Christians we need to be faithful with what God has entrusted to us, as we are merely His stewards. Examine what He’s given you, be faithful in your dealings and ministry, and allow Him to work through you as you serve!

 

 

But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us.” … And He went in to stay with them.
Luke 24:29

When Jesus was born, there was no vacancy in the inn, but later many people opened their homes to Him. He attended a wedding in Cana in John 2. Peter’s home became His headquarters in Capernaum. In Matthew 9, Jesus dined in the home of Matthew, who became the author of the first Gospel. Mary and Martha entertained our Lord in Luke 10, and Simon the leper held a dinner for Him in Matthew 26. Jesus visited Jairus’ home in Luke 8, where He raised a little girl from the dead. On the night before His crucifixion, our Lord enjoyed the hospitality of a home with a large upper room. Three days later He sat down for supper with a family from the village of Emmaus (Luke 24).

If you knew Jesus would visit your house, you’d prepare for Him. Although He cannot now physically come, we’re able to serve Him by inviting others needing help, encouragement, provisions, or fellowship.

Jesus always blesses the homes He enters—and He will bless your hospitality this season too.

 

 

Jas 3:13-18  Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.  For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.  And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

 Psalms 107:43      Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the LORD.

 Ecclesiastes 8:5      Whoever keeps a command will know no evil thing, and the wise heart will know the proper time and the just way.

 Jeremiah 9:23     Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches,

 Matthew 7:24     “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

 Psalms 25:9      He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way.

 Psalms 149:4     For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation.

 Zephaniah 2:3     Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land, who do his just commands; seek righteousness; seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the anger of the LORD.

 Matthew 5:5     “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

 Matthew 11:29      Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

 Ephesians 4:2      with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,

 Colossians 3:12     Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,

 1 Peter 3:4     but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.

 Job 28:28     And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”

 Daniel 2:21     He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding;

He who thinks well, or he who talks well, is not wise in the sense of the Scripture, if he does not live and act well. True wisdom may be know by the meekness of the spirit and temper. Those who live in malice, envy, and contention, live in confusion; and are liable to be provoked and hurried to any evil work. Such wisdom comes not down from above, but springs up from earthly principles, acts on earthly motives, and is intent on serving earthly purposes. Those who are lifted up with such wisdom, described by the apostle James, is near to the Christian love, described by the apostle Paul; and both are so described that every man may fully prove the reality of his attainments in them. It has no disguise or deceit. It cannot fall in with those managements the world counts wise, which are crafty and guileful; but it is sincere, and open, and steady, and uniform, and consistent with itself. May the purity, peace, gentleness, teachableness, and mercy shown in all our actions, and the fruits of righteousness abounding in our lives, prove that God has bestowed upon us this excellent gift. (Henry)

Who is a wise man. Meaning, not in things natural and civil, or merely moral, but in things spiritual: and he is a wise man, who is both wise to do good, and wise unto salvation; who has learned to know his own ignorance, folly, and stupidity; for the first lesson in the school of spiritual wisdom is for a man to know that he is a fool: and he is a wise man who considers his latter end, thinks of a future state, and what will become of him in another world; and who builds his faith and hope of eternal salvation on the sure and only foundation, the rock Christ Jesus; and who takes up a profession of religion upon principles of grace, and with views to the glory of God, and, upon mature deliberation, reckoning the cost, and what he must expect to meet with; and which he holds fast, without wavering, and yet does not depend upon it; and who walks circumspectly, and with wisdom, towards them that are without; and who observes both providences and promises, for the encouragement of his faith; and keeps looking to the mark for the prize, preferring heavenly things to earthly ones.

And endued with knowledge amongst you? as he is, who is endued with the knowledge of himself; of the impurity of his nature, and the plague of his heart; and of his impotency and inability to do any thing that is spiritually good of himself; and of the imperfection and insufficiency of his righteousness to justify him before God; and of his lost state and condition by nature, how deserving of the wrath of God, and obnoxious to the curses of the law; and how miserable he must be without the grace of God and righteousness of Christ: and who is also endued with the knowledge of Christ, so as to see a fulness, suitableness, and ability in him as a Saviour; so as to love him, approve of him, as such, and trust in him; which knowledge is always practical and soul humbling; and the least degree of it saving; and though it is imperfect, it is growing, and will at last come to perfection. (Gill)

The more my heart and mind are matured through God’s Word and the Holy Spirit’s leading, the more I am humbled by God’s grace, mercy, and love toward me, the more I am aware of my own sinful nature, the more I recognize how unworthy, unholy, and undeserving I am. How can I claim any part of my life as worthy of God’s love? I can’t. How can I claim any of God’s blessings in my life as though they were accomplished through my own effort? I can’t. 

How can I not be humbled as God’s Word is continually revealing God’s holiness and exposing my sinfulness? It is a blessing from God to grow and mature in understanding, knowledge, and wisdom of His holiness. In these, we become more and more humbled by who God is and His awesome power, might, strength, grace,, love, mercy, and Creator of all there is. 

 

“Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.
Ephesians 4:26-27

When rock climbers are ascending the sheer face of a mountain, they look for the tiniest place to lodge their toes—a place that gives them the opportunity to make progress. Climbers refer to such places—a ledge, crack, or outcrop—as a foothold. Place, opportunity, and foothold are all English words used to translate Greek topos in Ephesians 4:27: “Nor give place [opportunity/foothold] to the devil.” Foothold calls to mind the expression, “Get a foot in the door”—when someone takes advantage of an opportunity for advancement. What is Paul discussing? How might we give the devil an opportunity for advancement in our lives?  (Dr. Jeremiah)

Scripture tells us to be filled with the Holy Spirit and to take every thought captive. Some thoughts come to our minds that are so ungodly, God-honoring, or God-glorifying and are even offensive to us and we have to wonder where in the world did it come from. We need to be able to recognize these thoughts for what they are.

Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, we have a sinful nature that continues within us until the day we die. It rears its ugly head in our thoughts when we are not expecting it or even desiring it.

Satan is the prince of this World, its lies, false hopes, disgusting lusts, self-satisfaction, self-greed, personal justice, self-reliance, self-pride, personal worth, etc….. all of which are footholds in our minds and thoughts.

The world and its desires are clearly displayed in social media, sports, news outlets, movies, radio, podcasts, etc… It is impossible to live in this world and not have these influences tempt our minds and thoughts. Recognizing them requires Word of God, diligence, perseverance, and Holy Spirit discernment. The more time spent in God’s Word the more our eyes will be opened to truth and through the Holy Spirit we will discern and identify worldly influences that tempt our thoughts. When we are able to recognize an errant thought we can take it captive, confess it, thank God for exposing it, and cast it out of our head.

Too many times we allow these thoughts to linger and take a foothold. Too many times we do not recognize them for what they are and who they are from. When we fill our hearts and minds with God’s Word and desire and seek the Holy Spirit’s leading we will have a firm foundation on which God will be honored and glorified.  We can’t stop these thoughts from coming but we most certainly know they are not God-Honoring or God-Glorifying, take them captive, and cast them out.

 

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above.

–James 1:17

How can you develop an attitude of gratitude? I recommend writing a list of God’s blessings in your life. Let me give you five ideas to prompt your thinking:

Material blessings–In 1 Timothy 6:7–8, Paul said, “We have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content.” Paul was saying if you have food on the table and a place to sleep, you ought to be content; anything beyond that is gravy. Thank God for His material blessings.

Church–Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.” Every time you enter your church, thank God for providing a place of worship and fellowship with other Christians.

Answered prayer–Philippians 4:6 says, “Tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank him for his answers” (TLB). How easy it is to pray for our needs without stopping to thank God for what He’s already done. That’s one reason I keep a prayer journal. When I look back over my requests, many times I am more thankful for the “no” answers than the “yes” answers. Before you ask God to do something else, thank Him for answered prayer.

Problems–James 1:2–3 says, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.” Joy is a calm assurance that no matter what happens, God is still in control. The Bible says you can rejoice and thank God in difficult circumstances because you’re confident that He’s still working out His plan for you.

Salvation–Romans 5:6, 8 says, “While we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. . . . But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus didn’t die for you because you’re a wonderful person. No, the only reason He offers you forgiveness is that He loves you. Reflect on what your life would be like without Christ, and thank God for leading you to faith in Christ.

Once you’ve completed your list, ask yourself, Which of these good things is not ultimately a gift? James 1:17 says, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above.” When you think about it, everything you have ultimately comes from God.