Revelation 2:18-29
Sexual sin and idol worship at the heart of these is a man or woman that is blinded by self-centered motivation and the tie to their addiction is not easily broken. The church, which is the body of Christ, cannot and will not tolerate these things going on in its midst. Love people enough to teach them what is right in the eyes of God but do not become entrapped in the same thing that binds them, the same things that have separated them from God’s presence. We are called to bring the good news to all people but the message can no longer be heard if we wrap ourselves in the same garments the world wears and the differences between us become less and less. It is not our own abilities that attract others to the One who lives within us but God’s light shining in the darkness that draws all tribes, races, and ethnic groups to see what makes us different. God is not unjust for He gives us time to choose right or wrong and He provides His light to lead us and His Holy Spirit to direct us but in the end we decide to listen or not. Those who love Him obey, simply put but those who love themselves more do what makes them feel good.
I gave her time to repent, but she does not want to turn away from her immorality. "Therefore, I will throw her on a bed of suffering, and those who commit adultery with her will suffer greatly unless they repent and turn away from her evil deeds. I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am the One who searches out the thoughts and intentions of every person. And I will give to each of you whatever you deserve.
(Rev 2:21-23 NLT)
Does this sound like the God you know? The problem is we grow up understanding God is love and God is patient but less so that God is holy and righteous. We cannot pick and choose what we want God to be, either you love Him or you don’t and if you love Him then you will do what He says is right. There will come a day when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and it will not be the day of our choosing but more like the day of the rich man who tore down his barns to build bigger ones as he depended up on himself more so than God and that very night he was called to give an account for all that he did. Yes, Jesus is coming again and He will come like a thief in the night. So do not spend time or resources pursuing things that please the flesh, instead draw close to God, learn of His ways, and ask for strength and courage to follow where He leads and when you go through a trial understand you have a loving Father in Heaven that is working off the rough edges left by this world. It can hurt no doubt and until you understand what is taking place you may even blame God of being unfair but His love for you goes deeper than that, even beyond our own understanding. Through it all hold on to Jesus through daily relationship with Him, ask for understanding and He will lead you. Read the Bible to better understand the character of God so that you can see Him moving in your life, through the good and even the bad. No matter what don’t let go because soon this life will be over and you will trade the temporary for the eternal. Yes you can know and have the blessed assurance you’ve heard the saints of old talk about but only through knowing Jesus Christ. It’s not what you do but what motivates you to do it, it’s not who sees what you’ve done but who is watching when no one is around, it’s not what you’ve done in Jesus’ name but what is born out of relationship with Him.
On judgment day many will say to Me, 'Lord! Lord! We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.' But I will reply, 'I never knew you. Get away from Me, you who break God's laws.'
(Mat 7:22-23 NLT)
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Monday, June 23, 2014
Listening to bad advice
Revelation 2:12-17
A word that is popular today is “tolerate” to disagree but still allow others to have freedom of speech, beliefs, and actions as long as they are not hurting someone else. As with so many cases mankind generalizes and compromises to the extreme, in part because of their refusal to listen and obey God’s Word. God never told us to tolerate He tells us to love and instruct, to confront and to forgive but tolerating someone who believes differently than you do is not new. The church at Pergamum began to do this as well and notice it was by no coincidence that they lived where they did “Satan’s city”. The closer we live to sin the more compromise, which often reveals itself in the form of being “tolerant” presses in to our daily lives, even without us realizing it.
"I know that you live in the city where Satan has his throne, yet you have remained loyal to Me. You refused to deny Me even when Antipas, My faithful witness, was martyred among you there in Satan's city.
(Rev 2:13 NLT)
Though God understands all that does not mean He will compromise on righteousness or His holiness. He sees why we compromise but that does not mean He accepts our reasoning. God will not allow unrighteousness and anything less than holiness into His presence and even though our own righteousness is as filthy rags we enter His courtroom through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ. To compromise on God’s standard is no less revolting than a law enforcement officer compromising on the law he or she has sworn to uphold. Nothing turns my stomach faster that to watch a police officer twist the law for their own benefit; whether it is allowing an off-duty officer to speed or acting out in rage and then those over the offender give him or her a slap on the wrist while anyone else better watch out because the same people will come down on civilians with the full force of the law. This is but a taste of what God must feel when we as “Christians” manipulate God’s Word for our benefit, to fit our unique circumstances. God’s commandments are not ours to bend to meet our needs but if we are truly His we preserve His Word in our hearts.
"But I have a few complaints against you. You tolerate some among you whose teaching is like that of Balaam, who showed Balak how to trip up the people of Israel. He taught them to sin by eating food offered to idols and by committing sexual sin. In a similar way, you have some Nicolaitans among you who follow the same teaching. Repent of your sin, or I will come to you suddenly and fight against them with the sword of My mouth.
(Rev 2:14-16 NLT)
A word that is popular today is “tolerate” to disagree but still allow others to have freedom of speech, beliefs, and actions as long as they are not hurting someone else. As with so many cases mankind generalizes and compromises to the extreme, in part because of their refusal to listen and obey God’s Word. God never told us to tolerate He tells us to love and instruct, to confront and to forgive but tolerating someone who believes differently than you do is not new. The church at Pergamum began to do this as well and notice it was by no coincidence that they lived where they did “Satan’s city”. The closer we live to sin the more compromise, which often reveals itself in the form of being “tolerant” presses in to our daily lives, even without us realizing it.
"I know that you live in the city where Satan has his throne, yet you have remained loyal to Me. You refused to deny Me even when Antipas, My faithful witness, was martyred among you there in Satan's city.
(Rev 2:13 NLT)
Though God understands all that does not mean He will compromise on righteousness or His holiness. He sees why we compromise but that does not mean He accepts our reasoning. God will not allow unrighteousness and anything less than holiness into His presence and even though our own righteousness is as filthy rags we enter His courtroom through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ. To compromise on God’s standard is no less revolting than a law enforcement officer compromising on the law he or she has sworn to uphold. Nothing turns my stomach faster that to watch a police officer twist the law for their own benefit; whether it is allowing an off-duty officer to speed or acting out in rage and then those over the offender give him or her a slap on the wrist while anyone else better watch out because the same people will come down on civilians with the full force of the law. This is but a taste of what God must feel when we as “Christians” manipulate God’s Word for our benefit, to fit our unique circumstances. God’s commandments are not ours to bend to meet our needs but if we are truly His we preserve His Word in our hearts.
"But I have a few complaints against you. You tolerate some among you whose teaching is like that of Balaam, who showed Balak how to trip up the people of Israel. He taught them to sin by eating food offered to idols and by committing sexual sin. In a similar way, you have some Nicolaitans among you who follow the same teaching. Repent of your sin, or I will come to you suddenly and fight against them with the sword of My mouth.
(Rev 2:14-16 NLT)
Friday, June 20, 2014
We have been tasked
Lord, you have breathed life into each thing that lives and with that gift you have also given us a job to do. Some have come to understand that but many have not. The animals, birds, and fish do not comprehend but simply do what they were created to do but people You have given another gift, the gift of free will. With greater freedom comes greater responsibility and the task You have given us can only be fulfilled by humbly asking for Your help.
Lord, help us not to think we are self-sufficient and don’t let the world blind us from the truth but lead us and guide us to a deeper understanding of who You are and who You meant for us to be. Help us to be sensitive to the leading of Your Holy Spirit and put other’s needs ahead of our own. Walk with us as we travel this unseen path and lovingly wait for us when we fall down. The ultimate goal is to please You because in the end nothing else matters, there is nothing else we have been tasked with. Thank You Lord for loving us enough to send Your Son Jesus to show us how to live, help us not to take Your holy example for granted. Help us not to be short-sighted by our own selfishness but eagerly await Your confirmation in a job well done.
Lord, help us not to think we are self-sufficient and don’t let the world blind us from the truth but lead us and guide us to a deeper understanding of who You are and who You meant for us to be. Help us to be sensitive to the leading of Your Holy Spirit and put other’s needs ahead of our own. Walk with us as we travel this unseen path and lovingly wait for us when we fall down. The ultimate goal is to please You because in the end nothing else matters, there is nothing else we have been tasked with. Thank You Lord for loving us enough to send Your Son Jesus to show us how to live, help us not to take Your holy example for granted. Help us not to be short-sighted by our own selfishness but eagerly await Your confirmation in a job well done.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Perfect love
Revelation 2:8-11
To the church in Smyrna suffering and poverty seem to go hand in hand with God’s blessings. It is in our suffering that if we are paying attention we’ll notice God’s presence increases. We may even talk with Him and hear His reply on a more regular basis than our prior formal prays we use to offer up and strangely enough not really realize what is going on between us and God is nothing short of amazing as you tell Him of your troubles. Perfect love casts out all fear 1 John 4:18 and knowing God on this level enables the follower of Christ Jesus to do things that fear would not have allowed previously, even face death, because you know your eternal soul is secure. Not relying on the false hope of once saved always saved but because of the relationship you now have with Christ, you are following Him where He leads and your eyes are steadfast upon your Savior. So hold tight to what you believe, for the race will be ran and soon all that was sacrificed will have been worth it to see the Father and know that you are His and the life you lived pleased Him.
To the church in Smyrna suffering and poverty seem to go hand in hand with God’s blessings. It is in our suffering that if we are paying attention we’ll notice God’s presence increases. We may even talk with Him and hear His reply on a more regular basis than our prior formal prays we use to offer up and strangely enough not really realize what is going on between us and God is nothing short of amazing as you tell Him of your troubles. Perfect love casts out all fear 1 John 4:18 and knowing God on this level enables the follower of Christ Jesus to do things that fear would not have allowed previously, even face death, because you know your eternal soul is secure. Not relying on the false hope of once saved always saved but because of the relationship you now have with Christ, you are following Him where He leads and your eyes are steadfast upon your Savior. So hold tight to what you believe, for the race will be ran and soon all that was sacrificed will have been worth it to see the Father and know that you are His and the life you lived pleased Him.
Friday, June 13, 2014
Your first love
Revelation 2:1-7
To the church in Ephesus though they diligently hated what God hated and loved what He loved God still had this one thing against them – they left their first love. It seems odd that you can diligently do the right things with patient endurance but your reason why is lost in the mechanics of the whole thing. Odd yes but impossible no, as a leader volunteer in charge of all media production for a church of four to five hundred and having teams of other volunteers and leaders there were times when the reason why I was doing the whole thing got pushed into a corner as I became consumed with the business of it all. God would quickly bring it to my attention and I remained humble and obedient and because of that He blessed my work and the people in the church. I managed that balancing act by training others to become leaders and by giving away what God had given me. For more than four years I did this faithfully until God said my work there was complete.
It’s not what you do but how you do it that matters. In all things be faithful to the One who calls you and love people enough to give away what seems to belong to you, after all it was your vision that you put your heart and soul into to bring it to the place that others have recognized. Did Jesus not do the same; did He not give everything for the sake of His Father’s call? In the end God has more than you could ever give away and that is why I believe the church at Ephesus was blinded by false limitations. They had become fixated on the work of the call and not the One who called them. If we believe this life is a journey that God uses so that we might experience relationship with Him and so that we become who He has called us to be then we simply cannot become attached to shiny things we find along the way. Yes, God will use you in mighty ways to teach others what relationship with Him looks like but don’t get stuck there. It would be like going to see the Grand Canyon and being mesmerized at the first sight of it and stopping there. It is only by continuing your adventure do you understand more about the Grand Canyon and see more wonderful sights than you did at first. Keep your first love new every morning by seeking Him whole-heartedly and the limits to how He uses you or more accurately the perceived limits you have placed on yourself, on your relationship with Him, and ultimately God Himself will keep getting pushed back and your faith will become strong in Him as you see God move mountains in your life.
To the church in Ephesus though they diligently hated what God hated and loved what He loved God still had this one thing against them – they left their first love. It seems odd that you can diligently do the right things with patient endurance but your reason why is lost in the mechanics of the whole thing. Odd yes but impossible no, as a leader volunteer in charge of all media production for a church of four to five hundred and having teams of other volunteers and leaders there were times when the reason why I was doing the whole thing got pushed into a corner as I became consumed with the business of it all. God would quickly bring it to my attention and I remained humble and obedient and because of that He blessed my work and the people in the church. I managed that balancing act by training others to become leaders and by giving away what God had given me. For more than four years I did this faithfully until God said my work there was complete.
It’s not what you do but how you do it that matters. In all things be faithful to the One who calls you and love people enough to give away what seems to belong to you, after all it was your vision that you put your heart and soul into to bring it to the place that others have recognized. Did Jesus not do the same; did He not give everything for the sake of His Father’s call? In the end God has more than you could ever give away and that is why I believe the church at Ephesus was blinded by false limitations. They had become fixated on the work of the call and not the One who called them. If we believe this life is a journey that God uses so that we might experience relationship with Him and so that we become who He has called us to be then we simply cannot become attached to shiny things we find along the way. Yes, God will use you in mighty ways to teach others what relationship with Him looks like but don’t get stuck there. It would be like going to see the Grand Canyon and being mesmerized at the first sight of it and stopping there. It is only by continuing your adventure do you understand more about the Grand Canyon and see more wonderful sights than you did at first. Keep your first love new every morning by seeking Him whole-heartedly and the limits to how He uses you or more accurately the perceived limits you have placed on yourself, on your relationship with Him, and ultimately God Himself will keep getting pushed back and your faith will become strong in Him as you see God move mountains in your life.
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Not remaining faithful
So I want to remind you, though you already know these things, that Jesus first rescued the nation of Israel from Egypt, but later He destroyed those who did not remain faithful.
(Jude 1:5 NLT)
There was an evangelist who would visit the church I grew up in who sang and played the guitar. I don’t recall anything else he said but this one thing stuck with me. He would pick up his guitar and as he started to tune it would say, “I don’t believe once in tune always in tune.” Truer words have not been spoken! I still see him on Facebook from time to time, though I’m not sure that is what he would want to be remembered by I believe those words were branded on my soul for a reason.
In my journey with the Lord there have been both times of intimacy and solitude, times of knowing Him and hearing His voice and times of wondering where He was, even if God existed (very early as a new believer). Very few times I feel as if I was being tested to see if I would grow in my faith or turn away but more frequently and later in my walk with the Lord it has been because of disobedience i.e. hearing the leading of the Holy Spirit and not following. It was in those times that I knew if I continued I would in affect walk out on God, closing the door behind me. Yes, I have had many opportunities to walk away and if it were not for the Holy Spirit lighting my path I have no doubt I would have wondered into outer darkness, alone and scared but perfect love cast out all fear.
Not all put their trust in the Lord and many do fall away. Does that mean they were never saved? To be honest I’m not sure I can only tell you of my own experiences and I know at age nine I met the Lord and asked Him into my life and by faith I know He accepted me. I also know there have been many forks in the road and by faith God has led me to this place I am now. However, at any time I could have went my own way and refused to listen to His leading and at that moment I would have backslide and been lost. So it stands to reason people can know God, have relationship with Him as His child, and then for whatever reason turn from God. If we look at the nation of Israel, God’s chosen race, we see how sin and rebellion takes people to a place that shuts the door to God’s grace. It wasn’t God giving up on them it was a people who ran from God as if to lock themselves in a room apart from God and as a result His grace no longer covered them.
But these people scoff at things they do not understand. Like unthinking animals, they do whatever their instincts tell them, and so they bring about their own destruction.
(Jude 1:10 NLT)
In many ways America is like Israel, we have been blessed by God and we have seen Him do many miraculous things through us and for us still there is a worm in the apple so to speak and if we are not careful the whole apple will turn rotten. One day America will go so far, as Israel did, to lock ourselves away from God’s grace and the result will bring a darkness that cannot be easily escaped. Read what Enoch prophesied and see if it does sound familiar.
Enoch, who lived in the seventh generation after Adam, prophesied about these people. He said, "Listen! The Lord is coming with countless thousands of His holy ones to execute judgment on the people of the world. He will convict every person of all the ungodly things they have done and for all the insults that ungodly sinners have spoken against Him." These people are grumblers and complainers, living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want.
(Jude 1:14-16 NLT)
But there is a remnant that will remain faithful and to guard against this coming darkness we must know God, recognize His voice, and humbly love and obey. It will be these who can depend upon the mercy of our Heavenly Father to sustain us through whatever storm comes our way so that on the Day of Judgment we may be counted as His. Know that this grace isn’t just for us but God intended it for all and as His ambassadors it is our mission, our purpose to love others with God’s love so they may know Him as well. We are not saved from wrath solely for the purpose of inching our way into heaven but to victoriously bring others with us.
But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God's love. And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives.
(Jude 1:20-23 NLT)
(Jude 1:5 NLT)
There was an evangelist who would visit the church I grew up in who sang and played the guitar. I don’t recall anything else he said but this one thing stuck with me. He would pick up his guitar and as he started to tune it would say, “I don’t believe once in tune always in tune.” Truer words have not been spoken! I still see him on Facebook from time to time, though I’m not sure that is what he would want to be remembered by I believe those words were branded on my soul for a reason.
In my journey with the Lord there have been both times of intimacy and solitude, times of knowing Him and hearing His voice and times of wondering where He was, even if God existed (very early as a new believer). Very few times I feel as if I was being tested to see if I would grow in my faith or turn away but more frequently and later in my walk with the Lord it has been because of disobedience i.e. hearing the leading of the Holy Spirit and not following. It was in those times that I knew if I continued I would in affect walk out on God, closing the door behind me. Yes, I have had many opportunities to walk away and if it were not for the Holy Spirit lighting my path I have no doubt I would have wondered into outer darkness, alone and scared but perfect love cast out all fear.
Not all put their trust in the Lord and many do fall away. Does that mean they were never saved? To be honest I’m not sure I can only tell you of my own experiences and I know at age nine I met the Lord and asked Him into my life and by faith I know He accepted me. I also know there have been many forks in the road and by faith God has led me to this place I am now. However, at any time I could have went my own way and refused to listen to His leading and at that moment I would have backslide and been lost. So it stands to reason people can know God, have relationship with Him as His child, and then for whatever reason turn from God. If we look at the nation of Israel, God’s chosen race, we see how sin and rebellion takes people to a place that shuts the door to God’s grace. It wasn’t God giving up on them it was a people who ran from God as if to lock themselves in a room apart from God and as a result His grace no longer covered them.
But these people scoff at things they do not understand. Like unthinking animals, they do whatever their instincts tell them, and so they bring about their own destruction.
(Jude 1:10 NLT)
In many ways America is like Israel, we have been blessed by God and we have seen Him do many miraculous things through us and for us still there is a worm in the apple so to speak and if we are not careful the whole apple will turn rotten. One day America will go so far, as Israel did, to lock ourselves away from God’s grace and the result will bring a darkness that cannot be easily escaped. Read what Enoch prophesied and see if it does sound familiar.
Enoch, who lived in the seventh generation after Adam, prophesied about these people. He said, "Listen! The Lord is coming with countless thousands of His holy ones to execute judgment on the people of the world. He will convict every person of all the ungodly things they have done and for all the insults that ungodly sinners have spoken against Him." These people are grumblers and complainers, living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want.
(Jude 1:14-16 NLT)
But there is a remnant that will remain faithful and to guard against this coming darkness we must know God, recognize His voice, and humbly love and obey. It will be these who can depend upon the mercy of our Heavenly Father to sustain us through whatever storm comes our way so that on the Day of Judgment we may be counted as His. Know that this grace isn’t just for us but God intended it for all and as His ambassadors it is our mission, our purpose to love others with God’s love so they may know Him as well. We are not saved from wrath solely for the purpose of inching our way into heaven but to victoriously bring others with us.
But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God's love. And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives.
(Jude 1:20-23 NLT)
Monday, June 9, 2014
Loving God
Loving God means keeping His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.
(1Jn 5:3 NLT)
Do we love God by the words of our mouth alone? If our love for him does not move us to action then we do not love Him but if our hands and feet are busy doing the work He has purposed for us then we know our love for Him is real. Because He first loved us and we in turn have come to know Him by His Word we can be confident when asking for His help. We only need our eyes opened by His Holy Spirit to know we cannot make it on our own.
And we are confident that He hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases Him.
(1Jn 5:14 NLT)
The closer you get to the light the more cracks and crevices are revealed but that’s okay because if God has revealed these things then He has already started working on them so that your faith might be perfected in Him. We all know what sin looks like when it comes to outward actions but did you know to hear God’s Holy Spirit tell you to do something and choosing not to do it is not pleasing to God either? If God moves on your heart to minister to someone and you remain quiet that is direct disobedience, as much so as Jonah had refused the Lord when he was told to minister to the people of Nineveh (Jonah 1) but God had a plan for Jonah and He has a plan for us. So we are to pray for each other so that we might have the courage to do what the Lord asks of us.
We know that God's children do not make a practice of sinning, for God's Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them.
(1Jn 5:18 NLT)
If Jonah would have been allowed to get away with disobeying what do you think that would have done to his relationship with God? Eventually, his selfish desires would have taken the place of God and he would have found himself in a place much worse than the belly of that big fish. It may not have been as dramatic but to truly face life without God is no place I want to be and I know this because each time I willingly sin I turn from Him and God allows me to see where my plans lead but He is faithful to hold me not because I always want to be held but because He knows what is best for me and I love Him because of it.
Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God's place in your hearts.
(1Jn 5:21 NLT)
(1Jn 5:3 NLT)
Do we love God by the words of our mouth alone? If our love for him does not move us to action then we do not love Him but if our hands and feet are busy doing the work He has purposed for us then we know our love for Him is real. Because He first loved us and we in turn have come to know Him by His Word we can be confident when asking for His help. We only need our eyes opened by His Holy Spirit to know we cannot make it on our own.
And we are confident that He hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases Him.
(1Jn 5:14 NLT)
The closer you get to the light the more cracks and crevices are revealed but that’s okay because if God has revealed these things then He has already started working on them so that your faith might be perfected in Him. We all know what sin looks like when it comes to outward actions but did you know to hear God’s Holy Spirit tell you to do something and choosing not to do it is not pleasing to God either? If God moves on your heart to minister to someone and you remain quiet that is direct disobedience, as much so as Jonah had refused the Lord when he was told to minister to the people of Nineveh (Jonah 1) but God had a plan for Jonah and He has a plan for us. So we are to pray for each other so that we might have the courage to do what the Lord asks of us.
We know that God's children do not make a practice of sinning, for God's Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them.
(1Jn 5:18 NLT)
If Jonah would have been allowed to get away with disobeying what do you think that would have done to his relationship with God? Eventually, his selfish desires would have taken the place of God and he would have found himself in a place much worse than the belly of that big fish. It may not have been as dramatic but to truly face life without God is no place I want to be and I know this because each time I willingly sin I turn from Him and God allows me to see where my plans lead but He is faithful to hold me not because I always want to be held but because He knows what is best for me and I love Him because of it.
Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God's place in your hearts.
(1Jn 5:21 NLT)
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