Month: November 2017

In J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic fantasy series, The Lord of the Rings, a young hobbit named Frodo Baggins is given the enormous task of being the ring-bearer. The ring, of course, is very powerful and has the ability to create darkness in the one who bears it. Yet Frodo willing takes on the task of bearing the ring to Mount Doom, where it can be destroyed.

Throughout the story, Frodo struggles under the burden of carrying the ring and, at times, almost succumbs to its power. But Frodo is accompanied by his gardener and friend, Samwise Gamgee, who helps him to complete the task set before him. But Sam cannot bear the burden of the ring for Frodo. Sam knows this and at Frodo’s lowest point, Sam says, “I can’t carry it for you, but I can carry you.” And so Sam physically carries Frodo as they head to Mount Doom.

Each one of us bears a heavy burden in life. It is not a ring of power, but its weight in our lives is just as heavy as the weight of the ring that Frodo carried. The burden that we bear is the burden of our sin. Each one of us has sinned and fallen short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23). And each one of us faces the penalty of that sin, which is death (Romans 6:23). But just as Frodo had Sam to help him to bear the burden of the ring, we have someone who can help us to bear the burden of our sin, and that is Jesus Christ.

But, while Sam could not carry the ring for Frodo, Jesus can carry our sin. And not only can He carry it, but He did carry it. Jesus carried the burden of our sin, taking it upon Himself. He carried that burden to Calvary, where He was nailed to a cross, where He suffered and died to pay the penalty for our sin. He took our sin from us and our sin was crucified with Him on that cross. Then, three days later, He rose, conquering both sin and death.

Jesus paid the price for our sin. All we need to do is to believe that He did, to turn from our sinful ways, and to follow Him as Lord and Savior.

Believers are to be led by the Spirit. When we give our lives to Christ, we need to crucify the desires of the flesh and replace them with the desires of the Spirit. As we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us, we become more like Christ, which should be evident by the fruit of the Spirit, the things that show to the world that we are different. In his letter to the Galatian church, Paul tells us that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-24)

It is also important that the church, the body of Christ, displays the fruit of the Spirit. It is only when the fruit is evident in the church that those in the world will feel drawn to it. Love must be evident. Jesus said that the world will know we are His followers if we love one another. That love for our family in Christ should also extend to those around us who are unsaved. Joy should fill our hearts, reflecting an exuberance about life that is contagious.

We should have the peace of Christ in our lives as we trust in Him for all that we need. And that peace should be seen in how we face the trials and tribulations of life. We should demonstrate patience in a willingness to stick with things and not give up, even if they are difficult. And kindness should be seen as compassion for the world around us as we seek to be the light of Christ to a world that needs Him. Jesus demonstrated compassion to those with whom He came in contact. As the body of Christ, we must demonstrate that same compassion.

Goodness should be reflected in the way in which we live our lives. When we follow Jesus, we are set apart from the world, we are in the world but not of it. That should be evident in the way that we live. God has demonstrated His faithfulness in so many ways, most especially by giving Jesus as a sacrifice for our sins. The mark of the church should be loyalty to our God, faithfulness to Him and to each other.

Gentleness should be seen in the way we deal with those around us. We must not look to have our way, pushing our own agendas, but rather place the needs of others before ours. And finally, self-control should be seen in our lives as we work toward curbing the desires of the flesh, directing our energy wisely as we strive to live by the Spirit.

These are the things that the world needs and wants to see in the church. These are the things that will make the world desire what we have. The harvest is there, waiting for us to reap it. When we, as the body, demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit, that harvest will be reaped and lives will be changed.

Scripture gives us many pictures of the things that will happen in the end times. Among them is that there will be wars, rumors of wars, famine, and earthquakes. Jesus Himself said that there will be many false prophets, people who will teach false doctrine, deceiving many people (Matthew 24:11). Some of these false prophets will even perform signs and wonders, deceiving many, including some believers (Mark 13:22).

In his second letter to Timothy, Paul pointed out that a time will come when people will listen to those who teach what they want to hear, rather than the truth of God’s Word (2 Timothy 4:3). As believers, this is why we need to hold fast to sound doctrine, the truth that can pierce through the lies of the enemy. Those of us who teach others must hold on to the words of truth found in God’s Word so that we can encourage others with sound doctrine and refute those who teach doctrine that is contradictory to His Word (Titus 1:9).

The teaching of false prophets and teachers is the enemy’s attempt to divide us. And it is for this reason that believers should not fight against this teaching with argument and debate. Those things will only serve to fuel division by creating quarrels (2 Timothy 2:23). Instead of getting into a war of words with others, we need to promote unity. We can do this through kindness to all, by being able to teach. We need to endure evil with patience, correcting those who teach false doctrine with gentleness (2 Timothy 2:24).

Those who teach false doctrine are caught in the snares of the enemy. Their judgment comes from God, not from us. It may well be that He will grant repentance to those false teachers and false prophets, leading them to a knowledge of His truth. And it may well be that they will be set free from the snares of the one who has captured them for the purpose of doing his will. God can set them free. Our part is to hold on to the truth, correcting with gentleness and sound doctrine and then step back and allow God to do the rest.

Another Thanksgiving Day has come and gone. The leftovers are finished and the scale is showing a little higher number than it did before last Thursday. But one thing that hasn’t changed and should never change is the need to be thankful. If you take a few minutes to think of all the ways in which God has blessed your life, it’s easy to see why we should give Him thanks. Thankfulness should be a part of our daily lives. It should be as natural as breathing. William Arthur Ward (1921-1994), one of America’s most quoted writers of inspirational thoughts, once said, “God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say, ‘thank you?’

In his letter to the church in Colosse, the apostle Paul stressed the importance of thankfulness in the life of a believer. In fact, he mentions thankfulness three times in three verses. After instructing believers to let the peace of Christ rule in their hearts, something to which we are all called, Paul tells us to be thankful (Colossians 3:15). Paul then tells us that we need to let Jesus’ word dwell in us, using the wisdom that He gives to teach and admonish each other. When we do, His words will become second nature to us and will cause our hearts and our mouths to be filled with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs that will naturally be filled with heartfelt thanks to God (Colossians 3:16).

Paul then tells us that whatever we do, whether it is in word or in deed, should be done in the name of Jesus. That doesn’t just mean the prayers we offer, the praise we give, our church attendance, or other “spiritual” things. It means everything that we say and everything that we do, whether spiritual or not, should be done in Jesus’ name. And, most importantly, the things that we say and do in His name should be accompanied by thankfulness, as we give thanks to God our Father through Jesus (Colossians 3:17). Be thankful in all you do, for all that you have, for all that He is, each and every day. The time we are given, we are given by God. We should use it to thank Him.

Roots are one of the most important parts of a tree. A tree’s roots are what anchor it in the soil, keeping the tree from falling during extreme weather. The roots keep the tree straight and give it stability. Water found in the soil is absorbed into the tree through its roots. And the nutrients and chemicals that are necessary for the health of the tree, for its growth and development, are taken from the soil through the tree’s roots. Without roots growing down into the soil, a tree cannot survive.

In order for our faith to survive, we need divine roots. And our roots need to grow into divine soil. That divine soil is Jesus Christ. When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior and begin to follow Him, we need to allow our roots to grow down into Him, we need to allow our lives to be built on Him. When our roots grow into Jesus’ divine soil, our faith will not just survive, but it will also grow strong in His truth. The result will be thankfulness that will overflow from us (Colossians 2:6-7).

When we allow our roots to grow in Jesus, we are anchored in Him. And when we are anchored in Him, no storm of life will be able to make us fall. We will be like the wise builder whom Jesus taught about, building our lives on His firm foundation (Luke 6:48). When we allow our roots to grow in Jesus, we will trust in Him and allow Him to keep our paths straight and give our lives stability (Proverbs 3:5-6). And, just as a tree’s roots take from the soil the nutrients and water that the tree needs to survive, when we are rooted in Christ, He gives us all that we need to survive. Jesus is the Bread of Life and, when we come to Him and allow our roots to grow deep in Him, we will never be hungry and will never thirst (John 6:35).

On October 3, 1789, in the City of New York, a proclamation was issued by our first president, George Washington. The purpose of this proclamation was to set aside a Thursday in November as a day of service to God, a day of thanksgiving and prayer that should be observed by “acknowledging with grateful hearts the many favors of Almighty God.” The proclamation began by pointing out that it is “the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits.”

As Americans, we still set apart that one Thursday in November to be a day on which we give thanks to God for all He has done for us individually and as a nation. As believers and children of God, every day of our lives should be set apart as a day of thanksgiving. Thankfulness should be a way of life for us, and our hearts should always be filled with gratitude for all that God has done for us. We should be thankful not only every day, but in all circumstances in which we find ourselves, good and bad, for this is the will of God for all of us (1 Thessalonians 5:18). It is God’s will that, through His Son, Jesus Christ, we be a people with an attitude of gratitude.

There is so much that we should be thankful for. Every good gift and every perfect gift comes to us from our heavenly Father (James 1:17), from the food we eat to our very breath. For those things, we should be thankful. Scripture tells us that not only is God a good God, but the love He has for us, His steadfast, faithful love for us, will endure not just for a day, not for a week, a month, or a year, but forever. And for that, we should give Him thanks (1 Chronicle 16:34). And, of course, we should be thankful for His Son, Jesus Christ, whom God gave as a ransom for our sins so that, by believing in Him, we will not perish but will have eternal life (John 3:16). And that is something to be truly thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Have you ever wondered why, in the United States military forces, there are commissioned officers and non-commissioned officers? What does it mean to be commissioned? The word commission refers to an instruction, a duty, or a command that is given to a person or group of people. In the military, an officer who is commissioned is one who holds a commission from the highest authority in the country, the President of the United States. That commission allows the officer to command all of the military personnel under him or her. A non-commissioned officer, on the other hand, receives orders from commissioned officers and assigns tasks to lower-ranking personnel.

A believer receives his or her commission from the highest authority there is, from God. Throughout Scripture, God gave commissions to His people. The first commission, given to mankind through Adam and Eve, was to multiply, fill the earth, and have dominion over all living creatures (Genesis 1:28). Later, when mankind’s evil caused God to bring a flood to wipe out what He had created, God selected one man and his family to survive and then gave them a similar commission to the one given to Adam and Eve, be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth (Genesis 9:1).

Before He ascended into heaven, Jesus gave a commission to His disciples, a commission that is for each and every person who believes in and follows Him. Just as Adam and Eve and Noah and his family were commissioned to go out into the earth, we as believers are commissioned to do the same. Jesus told His disciples to go to Jerusalem, to Judea, to Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. And just as Adam and Eve and Noah and his family were to be fruitful and multiply, we are also commissioned to be fruitful and multiply, but not in exactly the same way.

Our commission as believers is to be fruitful by spreading the good news of Jesus Christ, by bringing the gospel to all parts of the earth and to all of its people (Mark 16:15). Our commission is to help bring those with whom we share the gospel into the family of God, to multiply the number of those who have been saved by the redeeming power of the blood of Jesus Christ. Our commission is that of ambassadors for Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20), being His witnesses as we represent Him to the world (Acts 1:8).

My wife’s office recently had a potluck luncheon and I prepared a vegan “chicken” salad for her to take to the luncheon. When the luncheon was over, there was a good amount of the salad left over, so my wife left the office with the leftovers, intending to bring them home. Lunch for the next couple of days! But, on her way home, something happened. As she made her way home, she came upon an old Asian woman who appeared to be homeless. Feeling a nudge from the Holy Spirit, my wife asked her if she was hungry, but the woman spoke no English. My wife took out the bowl of salad and showed it to the woman, who accepted it and smiled. Although my wife could not communicate with this woman verbally, through her act of compassion my wife communicated to the woman the love of Christ. I believe it was a divine appointment.

In Acts 8:26-40, the apostle Philip encountered a divine appointment. He was told by an angel of the Lord to head south on the road that goes from Jerusalem to Gaza. Obediently, Philip got up and went. On the way, he came upon an Ethiopian eunuch, who was an official of the court of the queen of Ethiopia. The eunuch was reading from the prophet Isaiah and not really understanding the meaning of what he read. Philip explained the Scriptures to the eunuch, telling him the good news about Jesus Christ. As a result of this divine appointment, the eunuch accepted Christ and was baptized.

God sometimes gives us divine appointments. He puts people in our paths so that we may show or tell them the love and good news of Jesus. These appointments often come at times and in places where we would least expect it. They sometimes can even seem like an interruption, taking us away from what we were doing in order to do God’s work. God creates these appointments. What we do with them is up to us. We can look at them as inconvenient and even try to ignore them. Or, we can do what the Holy Spirit is nudging us to do and stop to do God’s will. When we do, we become God’s instrument, and our obedience can be the difference between life and death for someone who needs to see or hear the gospel.

Jesus taught us that we must love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37). In other words, we must love Him with all that we are, with our whole person. Loving with our hearts is easy to understand. The heart is the seat of emotion. We need to love God with all of our emotions. Loving with our mind is also easy to understand. Our thoughts must reflect our love for God. But what about our soul? What does it mean to love Him with all our soul?

When we speak of the soul, we are speaking of that part of us that is unique to us. While our bodies all have some differences from those of other people, we all have eyes, noses, ears, and all the other parts that make up our physical being, that make us human. It’s our souls that truly make us different. They make us who we are. Our souls embody our personalities and our wills.

To love God with all of our souls means that we are to love Him with what makes us, well, us. I may be introverted where you may be extroverted. I may be a morning person where you are a night owl. But, whatever I am and whatever you are, we should love God with all of it, with every bit of our unique personalities.

To love God with all of our souls also means to love Him with our wills. Because of His incredible love and grace, God created each and every one of us with free will. We can choose to be what we want to be. We can choose to do what we want to do. And, we can choose to love God or not love Him. But, if we choose to love Him, we must do it fully, with our full will. It should not be when we feel like it, or when we are having a good day. In my opinion, it’s on the days when we don’t feel like it, when things are not so good, that the will really comes into play. It’s then that we really have to exercise our full will and give Him all of the love He deserves.

Love the Lord your God. Love Him with all of your heart, with your deepest emotions. Love Him with all of your mind, with every thought and with your full intellect. And, love Him with your soul, with every part of your personality and with every bit of your will.

If you are a sports fan, a word that may be near and dear to your heart is the word victory. The word “victory” means success in defeating an opponent. It means winning the game or the championship. Victory is sweet when it’s your team that has won. In warfare, it means winning the battle or the war against an enemy. In 1 Corinthians 15:57, Paul speaks about a victory. He gives thanks to God, to the One who has given us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

But what is this victory that we have won, why was it necessary, and how did we win it? The victory that Paul refers to in that verse is the victory over sin and death. It’s a victory that was won on Calvary and will be made complete when Jesus returns to take His people with Him to heaven. It is a victory that was made necessary when sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden through man’s disobedience to God. And it’s a victory that we could never have won through our own strength.

Jesus Christ came to earth in order to secure our victory. He gave His life as a sacrifice for our sins, taking our sins upon Himself in order to pay the price for those sins. The price for our sins was death. When Jesus breathed His last on the cross of Calvary, He took our sins with Him, washing us clean of the stain of those sins and enabling us to stand before the presence of God. That is when our victory began, but it didn’t stop there.

Jesus died and was buried in a tomb but, three days later, that tomb was empty. Jesus had risen from the dead. His resurrection was the next step in our victory, as Jesus conquered death. Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, death no longer has a hold on us. Our mortal bodies will die, but we can have eternal life through Jesus, if we believe in Him and follow Him.

The victory over death will be made complete on the day that Jesus returns for us. On that day, a trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised, and we will be changed. The perishable body that we live in now will be replaced by one that is imperishable (1 Corinthians 15:52-53). Our mortal bodies will become immortal and as it says in 1 Corinthians 15:54, death was swallowed up in victory. And, what a sweet victory that is!