Revelation 3:7-13
God knows us better than we know ourselves and He has promised never to give us more than we can bear, always showing us a way out so that we can endure. He knows what and when we need it as He shapes and molds us to be His church and the faithful depend upon His grace, mercy, and love to see them through. God watches how we respond under pressure and He rewards and instructs so that we might grow, for we are not meant to remain babes that can only take milk. How silly would it look to see a teen eating baby food all the time? Then why do you think it is any different in the things of the spirit?
The church in Philadelphia faced persecution that disguised itself as family, as God’s chosen people but God said they were from Satan’s synagogue. God said they would acknowledge that YOU are the ones I love and they would bow at your feet. Why because deception is one thing we see God coming against very harshly. Time and time again we see Jesus rebuke religious leaders that twisted the law to fit their needs while crushing those who were supposed to be under their protection. Jesus came to show us who God really was, he said if you have seen me then you have seen the Father.
If you had really known Me, you would know who My Father is. From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him!"
(Joh 14:7 NLT)
Another place Jesus also said that if you cause one of mine to fall into sin it would be better for you to have a millstone tied to your neck and thrown into the sea (Mark 9:42).
So who belongs to God? Revelation 3:10 Jesus makes it clear it is those who remain faithful to His commands to persevere. To those He promises to protect and keep from a “great time of testing that will come upon the whole world”. The letter to those in Philadelphia closes with hope that causes them to persevere and it is meant for us today, if we know Jesus.
I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown.
(Rev 3:11 NLT)
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
To all who are victorious
Revelation 3:1-6
Have you ever met someone who seems alive but something is off? This happens at work probably more often than any other place but can happen anywhere leadership is required. The need for leadership and motivated people who have left Christ behind or who never knew Him is the recipe for a train wreck. There is something driving them other than what God has asked for, either money, success, and/or lack of wisdom begins to drive them resulting in them driving others, few respond favorably to this management. Those who don’t know better would say they are passionate and alive because of being so driven and if people were ignorant and less perceptive it might work but instead you get people questioning why this “leader” is upset, why nothing satisfies him, and ultimately confused on what they are really trying to accomplish.
In the case of the church at Sardis their passion is no longer for the things of God and sin has crept in. God said because of their blindness they were mostly dead and even that which remains alive is just barely hanging on. God’s answer – wake up, go back to what you first believed, and repent of what you’ve done. We see God also call out an inner circle, He said there were some who have not soiled their clothes with evil. To all who are victorious I will never erase your names from the Book of Life. Again indicating that if we make the effort to move towards God He will meet us but this is not a onetime thing! We must continually seek God whole-heartedly, do you disagree? Are you willing to bet eternity on it? He said to those who are victorious, in order to have victory over something we must have come through a battle. If we have battled then we have struggled, if we have struggled then we must have heard the call of God’s Holy Spirit, for without Him we cannot tell right from wrong or righteousness from evil. But to those who hear the Holy Spirit and do not follow, who do not struggle against their own flesh, who do not battle the enemy, who cannot claim victory what are they promised?
As a side note let me say that in the end it does not matter if we are successful at work if we are stepping on people to obtain this status? Somehow people know who the real leaders are, most can sense being pushed and prodded verses following someone who has taken the lead, someone they trust. If the leader is having trouble getting people motivated they must first ask themselves am I leading or pushing others. Then ask what is my motivation, and finally do I love others as much as I love myself? Do I care about their development or the prophet margin. If the prophet is you goal you will never realize your full potential as a leader. A Christ centered business is a successful business. In the end people need to know why they are putting forth the extra effort, they have to buy into the company’s reasons why they should spend extra time at work, why they should sacrifice time with their families. If that is not clearly defined then very few people will buy into it or take ownership. It is not good enough to simply want to be the best, that is losing game but to have real purpose, to meet a real need that is what motivates people. What is true in the spirit is also true in the physical – it’s all about motive!
Have you ever met someone who seems alive but something is off? This happens at work probably more often than any other place but can happen anywhere leadership is required. The need for leadership and motivated people who have left Christ behind or who never knew Him is the recipe for a train wreck. There is something driving them other than what God has asked for, either money, success, and/or lack of wisdom begins to drive them resulting in them driving others, few respond favorably to this management. Those who don’t know better would say they are passionate and alive because of being so driven and if people were ignorant and less perceptive it might work but instead you get people questioning why this “leader” is upset, why nothing satisfies him, and ultimately confused on what they are really trying to accomplish.
In the case of the church at Sardis their passion is no longer for the things of God and sin has crept in. God said because of their blindness they were mostly dead and even that which remains alive is just barely hanging on. God’s answer – wake up, go back to what you first believed, and repent of what you’ve done. We see God also call out an inner circle, He said there were some who have not soiled their clothes with evil. To all who are victorious I will never erase your names from the Book of Life. Again indicating that if we make the effort to move towards God He will meet us but this is not a onetime thing! We must continually seek God whole-heartedly, do you disagree? Are you willing to bet eternity on it? He said to those who are victorious, in order to have victory over something we must have come through a battle. If we have battled then we have struggled, if we have struggled then we must have heard the call of God’s Holy Spirit, for without Him we cannot tell right from wrong or righteousness from evil. But to those who hear the Holy Spirit and do not follow, who do not struggle against their own flesh, who do not battle the enemy, who cannot claim victory what are they promised?
As a side note let me say that in the end it does not matter if we are successful at work if we are stepping on people to obtain this status? Somehow people know who the real leaders are, most can sense being pushed and prodded verses following someone who has taken the lead, someone they trust. If the leader is having trouble getting people motivated they must first ask themselves am I leading or pushing others. Then ask what is my motivation, and finally do I love others as much as I love myself? Do I care about their development or the prophet margin. If the prophet is you goal you will never realize your full potential as a leader. A Christ centered business is a successful business. In the end people need to know why they are putting forth the extra effort, they have to buy into the company’s reasons why they should spend extra time at work, why they should sacrifice time with their families. If that is not clearly defined then very few people will buy into it or take ownership. It is not good enough to simply want to be the best, that is losing game but to have real purpose, to meet a real need that is what motivates people. What is true in the spirit is also true in the physical – it’s all about motive!
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Knowing my Savior
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)
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)
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.
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