Dream

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it. (Proverbs 3:27, NASB)

We like to dream big. When I was eight, I wanted to be the next Troy Aikman. Maybe you dream of being a great singer. Or, a martial arts expert. Or, a record breaking coffee drinker. I tried that once…but I gave up after twelve cups. Spiritually, sometimes we dream big. We dream of holding revival meetings in Asia. We dream of fearlessly proclaiming God’s Word in India. We dream of helping those with AIDS in Africa.

These are great dreams, but, for many of us, they are not within our “immediate” reach, meaning we often cannot chase these dreams in the here and now. Proverbs tells us to always do good when it is within our power. All around us are opportunities for this.

We see these opportunities in the crying child, the hungry man, and in the hurting teenager. Today, will we stop and offer them hope and compassion? Or, will we pass by them and keep dreaming?

Free!

You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. (Galatians 5:12, NIV)

Much of Galatians was as an attack on legalism. Certain people seemed to hold the idea that you had to be circumcised in order to be saved…which is kind of freaky. Of course, that is not true and Paul spends much time discussing the fact that Christians are “free, ” not bound by the Old Testament law. Here, though, he takes a step back for clarification. While the Galatian Christians were to be free, they were not free to walk in the sinful nature. Instead, they were free to serve one another in love.

As Christians, we are also free. We are free to serve. We are free to help the blind man. We are free to edify. We are free to wash each other’s feet. Do we use that freedom?

The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Galatians 5:14, NIV)

Will We?

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 15:5-6, NIV)

In Romans 15, Paul begins to wrap up his letter with a few final instructions and thoughts. Usually we wrap up our letters and emails with a few thoughts about the weather, with a “P.S.” or a “ttyl.” Paul was a little different. In his concluding thoughts, he often would cover final pieces of exhortation and encouragement, commend certain people, and then tell the recipients to greet one another with a holy kiss…like I said, his letters were slightly different.

In these few verses, Paul covers the unity of the church. He speaks a blessing, asking that the God of patience (endurance) and encouragement would give the church in Rome a spirit of unity. Unity is something we desperately need in the church. Many churches split over non-important issues and we all hear sad classic stories of churches that split because they couldn’t decide if they wanted to have a Mexican food potluck or an Asian food potluck.

It is easy to preach about unity. Anyone can say, “We need to be unified.” Football players say it. Politicians say it every other sentence. Barbie doll collectors could say it. But, it needs to go deeper. Are we willing to perhaps “let go” of some small things in order to advance the kingdom of God?

In a way, Paul was praying for unity. He was praying that God would give the church a spirit of unity. As Christians, we may pray a lot. We may pray for the lost and sick. We may pray that God would stop that little kid from screaming in service–which is kind of fun. But, do we, like Paul, passionately pray for unity in the body of Christ?

Unity takes action and prayer. Will we act? Will we pray?

Equation

I don’t really like tests. Actually, it depends. Tests on the Bible and coffee are fun. Tests on Algebra are not. I don’t like Algebra. I actually think it would be funny if we lived our lives according to the rules of Algebra. I mean, imagine a world where we would have to do something to each and every side. Someone gives us money…we give it right back. Or, imagine driving your car and trying to solve an algebraic equation to figure out your speed. An officer pulls you over, “I’m going to have to give you a ticket. You were driving at a speed of (x+10)(x+17).” Now, those of you who like Algebra might get that. But, those of us who struggle with it would pay a lot of speeding tickets. Life would be rather disorderly and confusing.

The book of James tells about a type of test. Thankfully, it’s a Bible test and no Alebraic equations are required. Let’s check out the first part of the test:

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. (NIV, James 3:13)

In a way, this verse is kind of like the “instructions.” But, it can be confusing, so let’s dig a little. James asks, “Who is wise and understanding among you?” Anyone can say they are wise. Anyone can think they are a “know it all.” These people are usually pretty annoying. They think they can do everything. They can tell you what species of thistle you have in your yard. They once did brain surgery. Years ago, they had a dazzling career with the Dallas Cowboys. And, they claim to be wise as they pretend to be Wilson from Home Improvement, thinking they can solve all your problems. James, in this case, is saying, “Here’s the deal. If you think you are wise and intelligent, then show it.” We don’t show it through claims about thistle and football. We show it through a good, Godly life and through the humble acts of service that result from His wisdom.

So, in a way, we have an equation:

Godly wisdom=A Godly life that is obvious through service done in humility.

If one has wisdom, then that will be visible through a Godly life, and we will know that someone has this Godly life if they are serving Him in humility, not constantly bragging about all they did in the church or how they once did brain surgery after watching an episode of M*A*S*H or ER.
James, though, does not vaguely leave it at that point. He continues on, saying:

But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. (NIV, James 3:14-16)

He says that if you keep bitter envy and your own selfish and sinful ambitions, then that kind of “wisdom” does not come from God. Godly wisdom, as we see from the equation, has to do with willingly doing service for God in humility. Being envious and selfish is not a humble service to God. James even says that it comes from “the devil.” And, wherever this earthly wisdom is, there is much disorder and evil practice…much like a life where everything was determined Algebraically.

If we think we are wise, then we must look at this equation. Are we constantly striving to live a Godly life through service done in humility? As Christian speaker Jeremy Kingsely would say, “We need to ‘descend’ to greatness [in our Christian walk].” We become more like Jesus and gain more Godly wisdom as we humble ourselves, thinking of ourselves as the “least” and of God as the greatest. We put God at the top of our lives and we fall to our knees, descending to greatness. James 3 continues, saying:

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. (NIV, James 3:17)

This gives us more great stuff on living this Godly life. If we have this Godly wisdom then we will show it through physical and mental purity, our peaceful temperment (meaning we don’t lose our temper because they gave us a soy latte instead of a milk latte), being kind and considerate of other’s feelings, submissive to God and accountable to others, full of mercy and good “fruit,” impartial, and sincere. And, we can find other similar “lists” in places such as Galatians 5. All of this might seem rather daunting and intimidating, however, with God, we can continue to become more like Him and gain more Godly wisdom.

A world controlled by Algebra would be rather hectic. And scary for dudes like me. Similarly, a life of worldly wisdom results in disorder and evil. Meanwhile, a life living by God’s wisdom results in purity, mercy, and “good fruit.” How does this happen? Through the equation.

Godly wisdom=A Godly life that is obvious through service done in humility.

An Hour?

(I do not usually log on the computer on Sunday, so here is Sunday’s verse on Saturday night)

God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. (Hebrews 6:10-12, NIV)

So yeah, there is a ton of good stuff in this passage, but it can largely be disected into two main parts. First, we see great encouragement from the author about God not forgetting the service we willfully do for Him. And, secondly, we see the inspired author asking the readers to continue to diligently serve God.

As a Christian, you may be reading this and you may be feeling a little frustrated and depressed. Perhaps you work in a frustrating position in your church where it seems like all you do has no impact. Perhaps you work behind the scenes, moving chairs and cleaning up random un-identifiable objects throughout the church (serious kudos to you if you have to clean up un-identifiable flying objects in the church) and no one seems to notice. Today, I pray that as you read Hebrews 6:10, you will be strengthened. God is with you as you preach. God is with you as you clean. God is with you as you run the sound board. God is with you and He will not forget your faithful work.

In addition, you may be reading this and you are simply a “church-goer.” You take in the work and words of others, but refuse to willingly and diligently serve God. I pray that as you read Hebrews 6:11-12, that the Lord will move on your heart to diligently work for His kingdom.
We all have certain likes, pesonalities, and gifts. Some people like talking and others like working with their hands. Some folks are quiet and others talk non-stop. Some people are gifted in chair-picker-upping and others excel at running the latest computer. No matter what your gift, the church has a place where you can diligently serve Jesus Christ.

As I have said before, Christ gave His life for us. He shed His blood. Can we not give our lives in return? Could we even give an hour? Christ gave so much more. Let us daily take up our cross, follow Him, and daily dedicate our lives and actions to Him.

It wasn’t that long ago
You were a girl all alone
There was no way to know
How soon you’d have kids of your own

Now you’re the first one awake
The last one asleep
Cleaning and making your plans
And there are days when it feels
Like there’s no time to pray
You wonder if God understands

Chorus:

But if ever you worshiped it’s now
If ever you kept your vow
You may not understand how
But if ever you worshiped it’s now

(“If Ever You Worshiped” by Danny Oertli)

Madness

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! (NIV, Romans 11:33)

God’s wisdom is pretty amazing. Our fleshly wisdom is not. Romans tells us that God’s is deep and rich. 1 Corinthians 1 makes it clear that, to our wisdom, the cross is foolishness.

When we think about the cross in a worldly way, the wisdom of God is ridiculous. I mean, God is holy, all-knowing, and completely sovereign. He saw that we were sinful and disgusting people. Even the good stuff we did was like filthy rags to Him. Our sin had hurt Him. But, He chose us. He did not choose us for destruction or revenge. He didn’t choose us so He could fire paintballs at us for a while. He chose us to be adopted as His sons. Not only did He want to adopt us, but he forgave us through Christ’s blood, gave us an inheritance, and sealed us with the Holy Spirit.

This wisdom of God seems like madness to men. If someone hurts us like we hurt God; if someone caused us to experience such pain, then our first instinct is not to adopt them, but to hurt them. But, God didn’t do that. God loved us and while we were still sinners, Christ died for us because of His love. (Romans 5:8 )

According to human logic, this is crazy. Thankfully, God’s thoughts are not our own. The thoughts of the flesh are deceitfully wicked and sinful. Isn’t it great to know that we serve a God who is holy and sovereign?

Candy Dispenser

The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. (Zephaniah 3:17, NIV)

Zephaniah 3:17 is pretty cool. A lot like blue cheese. I love blue cheese. Anyway, in this case, God promises future deliverance during a time when the people would be restored with a “pure language.” In the first few verses of Zephaniah 3, we see how wicked the people are, yet God promises deliverance–along with the change of the people.

So often, we want things. Sometimes we wants things like Mountain Dew, cell phones that can do everything, or heavenly Abmasters. Other times, we plead with God for deliverance from a problem or situation. In Zephaniah, the people had a problem. But, God promised deliverance along with change.

Today, as we pray for pretty much everything, are we willing to change for God? Will we work to conform to His image so that we pray “in His will?” Do we strive to change and become more like Jesus? Or, do we use Him like a candy dispenser, popping in a prayer and expecting a gum ball each time?

Dust

As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things. (Ecclesiastes 11:5, NIV)

I don’t like wind. Especially wind in Nevada. Every afternoon it seems like the wind comes up and blows a ton of dust to who knows where, making my house a dust haven and leaving my nostrils allergetic. As the wind blows, the dust really has no choice. It is picked up, swirled around, and eventually spit out in a new location.

We usually don’t know for sure where the wind will the leave the dust. And, Ecclesiastes tells us that God is much like that. Through our lives, we can all see that we do not always understand the work of God or His reasons for doing things.We are, however, told to have faith in God. When He “blows” through our life, we must place our faith in Him and let Him take us where He wants us.

Hebrews 12:29 says that our God is a consuming fire. Does He consume you? Do we, as “dust,” so to speak, allow God to consume us and carry us where He wishes?

His Life for Us, Our Life for His

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. (Psalm 139:13-14, NIV)

Today, have you taken up your cross to follow Jesus? Psalm 139 tells us that God created us and that we are wonderfully made. He is the God of life. So often, we think of this life as “our own,” just like we think of a art project or Mountain Dew as “our own.” But, we forget that God has given us one life to live.

Jesus live one “human” life here on earth. And, He gave it up for us. Today, will we take up our cross and give our one “human” life up for Him?

Because You gave Your son to die
On the cross for me
And daily I will take up my cross
And I’ll follow You
Until the whole world knows

(I’ll Let the Whole World Know, Ever Stays Red)

Prayer Request

Check out the update on David from The Rebelution.

Modest Attraction

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. (Proverbs 31:30, NIV)

So yeah, I start to write about the BibleGateway verse of the day and I now have two straight days of verses from Proverbs 31…all about women. If this continues, I’ll be ready for marriage in no time! This all must have something to do with Mother’s Day being two days ago.

The first thing I thought about when I read Proverbs 31:30 was the big “M” word. More power! Just kidding. Actually, the word is “modesty.” Thankfully, many Christian magazines and blogs have begun focusing more and more on modesty. It’s pretty cool. In this verse, we see that a “woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” The Word places character above appearance.

This is how it should be for both guys and girls. Both can be immodest through clothing and actions…but we need to focus on fearing the Lord. In the end, that is what matters. If we live a faithful life, fearing God, then the Lord can truly say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” God will never say, “Well done and nice abs, dude! Here, have a heavenly Abmaster!”

This week, let us truly show that we fear God. Let’s be lights for Him and advertise His light, not our own features.

“You are not for sale…don’t advertise.” –Marty McGhin

New Page: The Gospel

Be sure to check out the new page I just added to the site entiteld “The Gospel.” It is basically a short, text version of the Gospel and I hope it will reach out to people who read this blog. I am currently working on a cool audio version to add to the page as well.

Be sure to read some of the posts below, especially the one entitled, “Two Pieces of Paper.” And, take time to study the Word of God today, that, is much more important than this blog.