advantage – Praying Pint

22.k. “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, or self.”

1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved.

Colossians 3:17    And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

1 Peter 4:11   whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Colossians 3:23   Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,

Philippians 1:10    so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,

Do you give thought to “all that you do”, you are doing for the glory of God? How much of each of our days are spent without the thought? If God and His Word are not consistently within our thoughts we can be certain then honoring and glorifying Jesus Christ is not being honored. We may do good things that honor Him but if the intent is not to honor Him by what we are doing then we miss honoring and glorifying Him. A good place to start is by practicing the presence of Jesus Christ. For sure He is always present but are our actions, thoughts, and tendencies reflecting we are aware.

18.u. “Whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him.”

John 16:7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

John 7:39    Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

John 14:16-17   And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,  even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

John 14:26    But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

John 15:26    “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.

He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Sin is the truth about man, righteousness is the truth about God, judgment is the inevitable combination of these two truths. (Guzik)

“Each man’s conscience has some glimmering of light on each of these; some consciousness of guilt, some sense of right, some power of judgment of what is transitory and worthless; but all these are unreal and unpractical, till the convicting work of the Spirit has wrought in him.” (Alford)

The ancient Greek work translated convict has a broader range of meaning than simply our word convict, especially as it is understood in a legal sense. It also carries the ideas to expose, to refute, and to convince (Bruce). This is the work of the Holy Spirit in the world and in individual hearts; to convince and convict of these truths. It is a serious thing to resist and reject this work of the Holy Spirit, which is especially prominent and powerful in seasons of great spiritual advance. “The Spirit does not merely accuse men of sin, he brings to them an inescapable sense of guilt so that they realize their shame and helplessness before God.” (Tenney)

“The Spirit is the ‘advocate’ or helper of those who believe in Jesus, their counsel for the defence. But in relation to unbelievers, to the godless world, he acts as counsel for the prosecution.” (Bruce) It’s important to have the Spirit of God to defend rather than to convict.

In the great awakening of 1860-61 in Great Britain, a high-ranking army officer described the conviction of sin in his Scottish town: “Those of you who are ease have little conception of how terrifying a sight it is when the Holy Spirit is pleased to open a man’s eyes to see the real state of heart. Men who were thought to be, and who thought themselves to be good, religious people… have been led to search into the foundation upon which they were resting, and have found all rotten, that they were self-satisfied, resting on their own goodness, and not upon Christ. Many turned from open sin to lives of holiness, some weeping for joy for sins forgiven.” (J. Edwin Orr, The Second Evangelical Awakening in Britain)

It is unbelief, the rejection of Jesus, which ultimately proves one to be guilty. The Holy Spirit will tell the world of the importance of trusting in, relying on, and clinging to Jesus to avoid this sin. “The essence of sin is unbelief, which is not simply a casual skepticism nor a difference of opinion; rather, it is a total rejection of God’s messenger and message.” (Tenney) It is a vague kind of skepticism which is one of the most common spiritual diseases in man.

14.n. “These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters”

Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

Psalms 5:9     For there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue.

Psalms 73:7-9     Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies.  They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threaten oppression.  They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongue struts through the earth.

Psalms 52:2   Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit.

Matthew 12:34-37    You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.  I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,  for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Jude 1:13-16    These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage.

Proverbs 10:31-32    The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.

Free speech does not give the right, in the sight of God, to say or speak every thought that comes to our mind. Lying to influence or appeal to people is wrong. The intent, purpose, ambition, object, plan, scheme, and target are all wrong. The same can be said about deception where it might not be an outright lie but the expected truth is far away from what this deceiver is saying. We hear it from politicians, businesses, celebrities, news outlets, strangers, friends, family, etc….. The human heart, apart from Jesus Christ, has a way of making deceit right in its own eyes. Their heart is hardened like stone and they believe they are not going to be held accountable by God. They have no fear of Him. Lies, boasts, and arrogance flows from their mouths like a river. In a nation that has Free Speech we may be free to say what we want but what we say can have consequences both now and in the future and for sure at the Judgement Seat of Jesus Christ.

If we want to apply Free Speech let us do it in the way Jesus Christ intended. Do not be confused by what the culture determines is right and true. Let the Word of God be your guide. We are to speak truthfully, build others up, and use our speech to praise, honor, worship, and glorify Jesus Christ. Put your thoughts and words you are about to speak through the strainer of God’s Word. If it is not the truth, or building someone up, or to the honor, praise, glory, or worship of Jesus Christ keep it to yourself.

Slaves to various passions and pleasures

Psalms 119:37 Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways.

Numbers 15:39 And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after.

Joshua 7:21 when I saw among the spoil a beautiful cloak from Shinar, and 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels, then I coveted them and took them

Proverbs 4:25 Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.

Proverbs 23:5 When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings

Matthew 5:28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.

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

Titus 3:3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.

Titus 2:12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age,

1 Peter 1:14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance,

1 Peter 2:11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.

Ecclesiastes 5:10-11 He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity. When goods increase, they increase who eat them, and what advantage has their owner but to see them with his eyes?

There is always more, something better, something we don’t have. These desires seem to have a voice. At first it maybe nothing more than a faint whisper that is not loud enough to give us reason to turn and seek to understand what is being said. The problem is that these whispers soon gain volume and if we are given over to listening to them they will soon capture our full attention.

We see a car or truck, house, furniture, sporting goods, pools, clothes, jewelry, tools, art, money, vacations, amusement parks, shoes, other men, other women. The point is, it doesn’t matter what it is. What matters is the prideful and lustful passion that drives the desire to have it for our own pleasure.

It does not take much observation in methods all the different advertisements of merchants through written word, pictures, radio, or TV bombard us with to know they are playing on lust, greed, pleasure, pride. They whisper a simple story line to break through to our basic sinful nature.

They speak with authority. Soon the whispers become loud saying; We deserve it. We would look better with it. We would gain status if we owned it. We would be happier with it. We would be lost without it. Only smart and successful people are worthy of it.

Oh if we would listen to the whispers of God like we listen to these soul dismembering calls from the world. Oh that we would see the beauty of what God has created and pleasure in it. Oh that we would see the blessing of being content, humble, kind, and generous.

There is a battle for our very soul. Recognize the whispers of worldly passions and identify them for what they are. Desire and listen for Godly whispers from His word to overcome the blasts of worldly pleasure. Contentment is a wise adviser.

I am sending the promise of my Father

“And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you”

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

John 16:7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:

Acts 2:33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.

Zechariah 12:10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.

Ephesians 4:10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things. And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,

Jude 1:17 But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.

The promise of the Helper, Holy Spirit, and Spirit of Grace and Mercy has been given to all who believe. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to lead, guide, teach, convict, comfort, and encourage our heart, mind, and soul. The Holy Spirit’s influence in our life is not through some mystical void but rather through bringing God’s word alive and flooding our inner soul with understanding and knowledge of God. The Holy Spirit produces fruit in our lives. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us peace. “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus“. Staying in His word gives fertile ground for it to be brought to life and being led into action by the Holy Spirit for the purposes of God. The promise of God for the Helper will equip us for all of God’s plans and purposes this side of eternity. It will also equip us for everything we experience this side of eternity. Stay in His presence, study His word, be open to hearing His whispers of leading, pray, and above all desire and commit to humbly serving, honoring, following, and obeying Him.

Chasing after wind

“and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.”

“yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.“

Psalms 39:6 Surely a man goes about as a shadow! Surely for nothing they are in turmoil; man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!

Ecclesiastes 1:14 I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.

Ecclesiastes 2:17 So I hated life, because what is done under the sun was grievous to me, for all is vanity and a striving after wind. I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me,

Ecclesiastes 2:20 So I turned about and gave my heart up to despair over all the toil of my labors under the sun, because sometimes a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it. This also is vanity and a great evil.

Ecclesiastes 6:11 The more words, the more vanity, and what is the advantage to man? For who knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his vain life, which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him under the sun?

Ecclesiastes 12:13 The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

Isaiah 55:2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

Luke 12:20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.

1 Peter 5:6”Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

What are you doing with your life? Where are your priorities? Are they on things above or on things of this world? It is hard to say isn’t it. We know we are not to be foolish and we need to plan but in the end I think we get lost in the plan. The goal seems to consume our focus and we loose sight of God and our purpose here on earth. Keeping all of this in balance requires a commitment, choice, and desire to humbly serve honor and obey God in all that we say, think and do. One thing is for certain – we need to stay in His word routinely and with purpose. Chasing after wind seems foolish and who at the end of their life would want to look back and see this is all that had been accomplished. However, seeking God and His purpose has wisdom and eternal reward. Choose that which is eternal.