The Dangerous Word of God

The Bible is a dangerous book.  It touches places in our lives no other medium can reach. It cuts through our public veneer and with pinpoint accuracy addresses deeply rooted heart issues. The Bible’s very words are the breath of God himself and its truths have the power to transform the messiest of lives.  Taken seriously and studied with an open heart and mind, the Bible will not leave the student the same as he or she came to it.

As dangerous as God’s word is, it is even more essential.  The Bible cleanses us, transforms us, educates us, and equips us.  The word of God is food for our soul and without it we suffer spiritual malnourishment and find ourselves weak and useless to the King and His Kingdom.  We can read books about the Bible and we can watch movies based on the Bible, but there is no substitute for opening those powerful pages and in the quietness of our soul hearing a word directly to us from God himself.

So, my question is what are you doing with God’s word?  You may tote a copy around, talk about what you think is in it, dabble with it, pretend to know it, but are you systematically and humbly reading, studying, meditating on, and applying it?

God’s word will change your life.  Or is THAT what YOU are afraid of?  There is no substitute and no shortcut for immersing your life in God’s Word on a regular basis.  What are you waiting for?


All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17

For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the ideas and thoughts of the heart. – Hebrews 4:12

Like newborn infants, desire the pure spiritual milk,so that you may grow by it for your salvation… – 1 Peter 2:2

The Simplicity of God at Work in Us

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And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. – Philippians 1:6

One of the reasons followers of Jesus lose hope is that we forget that God is at work in and around us.  Specifically God is doing a GOOD work.  What happens to us may not seem good, feel good, or appear good, but because God IS good and because God IS sovereign, what is happening to us IS good.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. – Romans 8:28

Another reason we lose hope is that we fail to recognize WHERE God is at work.  He has begun a good work IN you, not to you, around you, for you, or about you… IN you.  God is much more interested in our holiness than our happiness, more interested in our character than our comfort.  God is in the process of conforming is to the image of Jesus.

For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. – Romans 8:29

Since God is working IN us, what then becomes our role?

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. – John 15:4

Each day, spend time in God’s Word allowing Him to use that word to interpret our circumstances (not vice-versa) and to transform us into who He wants us to be.  

Yes.  It really is THAT SIMPLE.  Dig into God’s Word, observe our lives, learn how to apply God’s Word to the circumstances of our day, and over time God transforms us into the image of Christ. No shortcuts.  No gimmicks.  God’s Word applied to everyday life.  We do our part, God does His part.  We bear fruit and God receives glory.  I encourage you to start today.  Let the good work begin.

By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be My disciples. – John 15:8

God’s Eye Surgery

Last week, my sister had eye surgery to repair a detached retina.  She had lost the ability to see certain parts of her vision field in the one eye and often saw “floaters” – small moving spots that appear in your vision field. Thankfully, she had a great surgery and is on the road to recovery.

As I sat in the waiting room during her surgery, God began to stir in my heart my spiritual vision.  Over the last several days, I have read and meditated on some wonderful passages of Scripture that deal with vision.

Then came Tuesday…

Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye?You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.  – Matthew 7:3-5

That verse made a spiritual incision that cut straight to my heart.  God challenged me in a most uncomfortable but absolutely necessary way. Just in case I was slow to get the message, God brought a confirming Word Tuesday evening at a conference I was blessed to attend.  

One of the dangers of ministry is that we spend so much time helping others with their issues and problems, their “specks,” that we fail to deal with our own “logs.”  Pointing to others, addressing others’ shortcomings, dealing with the imperfections of those around me can distract me from allowing God to deal with my own issues.

I can’t see clearly enough to blame others and their faults or to help them until first I have dealt with my own.  I invite you to join me.  Then together we can see clearly and enjoy the view of the glory of God.

Why We Can Be Thankful for Painful Circumstances

There are only 84 documented cases in our country of a rare condition called Congenital Insensitivity to Pain with Anhidrosis (CIPA).

CIPA occurs because a genetic mutation prevents the formation of nerve cells responsible for transmitting signals of pain, heat, and cold to the brain. Those who suffer with CIPA are prone to self-injury, hypothermia, and other conditions which those of us with the ability to sense pain can often avoid. Another complication of CIPA, the inability to sweat, also creates the danger of heat trauma and fever. Others often break bones or chew their tongues since they are not able to feel the warning signs of pain.

Who would have ever thought to be thankful for pain? A good portion of our life and learning is spent pursuing pleasure and avoiding pain, but, the path to godliness doesn’t always pass through pleasurable places.  Our greatest teachers and trainers are often trials and pain.

If we want to be fully developed followers of Christ, some pain is inevitable. Some lessons can only be learned in the classroom of tribulation, and some wisdom can only be gained through the experiences of hardship. Just as Jesus could not experience Resurrection without the Cross, so also we do not fully identify with Him without some pain in our lives.

None of us ask for pain, but for all of us pain is inevitable. We can thank God for it, knowing that through our trials He is completing and growing us.

 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:6-7

And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 1 Peter 5:10

See also a previous blog, “Thankful for My Limp.”

Daily Bible Reading March 2 – 8

Sun – March 2 – Exodus 13, Luke 16, Job 31, 2 Corinthians 1

Mon – March 3 – Exodus 14, Luke 17, Job 32, 2 Corinthians 2

Tue – March 4 – Exodus 15, Luke 18, Job 33, 2 Corinthians 3

Wed – March 5 – Exodus 16, Luke 19, Job 34, 2 Corinthians 4

Thu – March 6 – Exodus 17, Luke 20, Job 35, 2 Corinthians 5

Fri – March 7 – Exodus 18, Luke 21, Job 36, 2 Corinthians 6

Sat – March 8 – Exodus 19, Luke 22, Job 37, 2 Corinthians 7

How to Fix This Mess

I love my country.  Because I love my country, I am burdened for my country.  We are in a mess.

Like a levee break that started as a slow trickle through a small crack but turned into a full fledged water wall of destruction, our culture which was once slowly drifting from our moral base has in the last few years quickly drifted so far from it that all semblance of morality is gone.

Consider this warning from God:

 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil,
who put darkness for light and light for darkness,
who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! – Isaiah 5:20

God holds us, His children, responsible for this mess.  It isn’t our government’s fault, it’s not Hollywood’s fault, it’s not the education establishment’s fault, it’s not the media’s fault.  It’s ours.  After all, Jesus reminded us:

 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.” – Matthew 5:13

Not we SHOULD be, but we ARE the salt of the earth, we ARE the preservative of our culture.  If our culture is rotten, the problem is with us.

With Jesus there is always hope. Transformation must first begin in us as individuals, then in our families, through our churches, eventually affecting our culture.  It starts not by changing Washington, but by changing ME.

The Sermon on the Mount is Jesus’ Kingdom Manifesto.  If we become Sermon on the Mount people, our culture will be salted and lit.  Read Matthew 5-7 daily.  Ask God to help you become that kind of follower.

Next week I will begin blogging on the Sermon on the Mount.  I am doing it for me.  I want to be  transformed.  I hope you will read along.

 

Seeing All There Is to See

One of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite preachers, Dr. Tony Evans:

“If all you see is what you see then you will never see all there is to be seen.”

How many of us live our days trapped in a reality only seen with human eyes? The Bible teaches about a realm of spiritual activity taking place all around us, and most of the time we are unaware of it. We act as though reality is only what we experience through our five senses.

Coaches encourage athletes to visualize their desired outcome because we cannot achieve what we cannot visualize. I find a tremendous spiritual lesson in that concept. We miss so much when we only see with our eyes. God created us with eyes to see, but He also provided us with another means to “see the unseen.” That means is FAITH.

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. …And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. – Hebrews 11:1-3, 6

I must caution you, though, that faith is only as reliable as its object. Having faith in ourselves, in other human beings, or manmade institutions will invariably lead to disappointment, possibly even disaster. Faith grounded in an infinitely reliable God, however, will always produce a supernatural outcome.

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” – Matthew 19:26

I like to define faith as “choosing to actively trust in all that God has said concerning His person, His precepts, and His promises.” Let me challenge you to open your eyes wider. See beyond the tangible and gaze into the spiritual realm. Choose to believe. Stop thinking that seeing is believing and learn that BELIEVING IS SEEING. 

Daily Bible Reading – February 23 – March 1

Sun – February 23 – Exodus 6, Luke 9, Job 23, 1 Corinthians 10

Mon – February 24 – Exodus 7, Luke 10, Job 24, 1 Corinthians 11

Tue – February 25 – Exodus 8, Luke 11, Job 25-26, 1 Corinthians 12

Wed – February 26 – Exodus 9, Luke 12, Job 27, 1 Corinthians 13

Thu – February 27 – Exodus 10, Luke 13, Job 28, 1 Corinthians 14

Fri – February 28 – Exodus 11, Luke 14, Job 29, 1 Corinthians 15

Sat – March 1 – Exodus 12, Luke 15, Job 30, 1 Corinthians 16

 

Are You Living in Your Sweet Spot?

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Pretty much every concern of life falls into one of three categories – things I cannot control, things I can control but shouldn’t, and things I can control and should.  How I choose categorize the daily cares and responsibilities of my life will determine my attitude and eventually my attitude will determine my effectiveness.

Many things fall into the category of things that I cannot control. For most of us, many things lie outside of our control – the weather, others’ actions and opinions of us, the ebb and flow of daily events, just to name a few.  Trying to control the uncontrollable only leads to frustration, anxiety, and ultimately burnout.  We need to remember to trust God and follow His leading in these situations. (Matthew 6:33, Proverbs 3:5,6)

When we try to control things we can but shouldn’t, we can overload ourselves with too many responsibilities.  In doing this we can rob others of the joy of accomplishment, or enable those who should be taking responsibility to continue to shirk their responsibilities.  Even more dangerously, we may grow resentful over increased responsibility rather than joyful in the Lord.

When we learn to discern and concern ourselves on with those things we can and should control, we enjoy the freedom to live joyfully and enthusiastically.  We enjoy what Max Lucado in his book Cure for the Common Life calls “living in your sweet spot.” (1 Thessalonians 4:11)

Be mindful today of the things you do and why you do them.  Do you live from a sense of purpose and calling or do you live out of obligation and a sense of “if I don’t do it no one else will”?

Choose to live on purpose, intentional, and in what Christ has given you to do for this day.

My Clock Is Ticking

The sudden and tragic death of a church member has laid a question heavy on my heart: “Am I a good steward of my life?”

My clock is ticking.  There are 86,400 seconds in every day. How do I use them? Do I spend them or invest them?  Do I major on the things that really matter, or squander away those seconds on things that will not matter in time?  Those 86,400 are counting down.  I am not guaranteed a fresh clock tomorrow, so have I fully invested today’s allotment?

What if we get to the end of it all and found that we accomplished some tremendous things, we collected some nice toys, but we built this beautiful life with the wrong materials and it was all for naught? What if we succeed at pleasing ourselves or others only to find at the end of our lives that God is not pleased with us?

So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all
appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. 2 Corinthians 5:9-10

Take care how you use your 86, 400. Live with passion, intentionality, and purpose. Focus on what REALLY matters.  Each day is a gift from God to you; how you use that day is your gift to God.

And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. – Philippians 1:9-11