Thoughts on Christ and His Word

Everyone has has a purpose in life.  But finding that purpose and accomplishing it can prove a daunting challenge. This is why mentors are needed.  Barnabas mentored Paul. Paul mentored Timothy. Each man helping the other to conquer and succeed in his area of ministry. Young men are in real need of older godly men to guide them while they fulfill their God-given purpose. Howard Hendricks wrote that "young men need a champion of the faith to help them conquer their God-given territory.". Our job as older leaders is to help them identify and conquer their territory/ministry.

Many people go around ANGRY these days. They yell at the Wal-Mart cashier, they make obscene gestures to people in other cars, and then come home and yell at their spouse and kids. David gives us a helpful tip on how to deal with anger: In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent.  Psalms 4:4 One way to start dealing with your anger is to "search your hearts and be silent."   Take your anger to God in prayer.  Ask Him "why am I so angry?".  Through prayer and meditation on key passages in the Bible you can begin to discover the reasons for you anger. Read the Psalms, Jonah, the life of Joseph, and David. Compare your life to what your reading and ask God for the wisdom to apply what you learn to your life. Psalms 4:4 begins with "In your anger do not sin".   Be aware that regardless of the reasons for your anger, you are not justified in God's eyes for lashing out at others (verbally or phy

David Watson was an English Evangelist and author.  Cancer took his life on February 18, 1984.  While he was fighting this disease he wrote a book called Fear No Evil on how he was dealing with this terminal sickness.    In this book David Watson writes: As I spent time chewing over the endless assurances and promises to be found in the Bible, so my faith in the living God grew stronger and held me safe in his hands.  God’s word to us, especially his word spoken by his Spirit through the Bible, is the very ingredient that feeds our faith.  If we feed our souls regularly on God’s word, several times each day, we should become robust spiritually just as we feed on ordinary food several times each day, and become robust physically.  Nothing is more important than hearing and obeying the word of God. I say “Amen” to that.  Let’s all aim at feeding our souls a regular diet of the Word of God.

Some Christians live unhappy lives.  They need to discover the JOY that God promised. One Christian found another one day and asked him if had the "Joy of the Lord" in him.  The second man replied "Yes, he did".  To which the first man said, "Well tell your face, because it looks miserable." Here are a few tips on living a Joy-filled life: 1. Develop a thankful heart. Thank God often throughout the day for the big and small blessing that you enjoy.  The Bible speaks about "Giving thanks to God"  (in some form)  over 80 times.  Paul commands us to  " Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.  1 Thess. 5:16-18 2. Enjoy legitimate physical pleasures.  Some Christians think that all physical pleasure is evil.  This is a lie from the enemy.  In the Old Testament, God gave the Jews over 10 different festivals (or feasts). Not all were yearly festivals,

When we don't like someone staring at us, we might ask them "Who are you looking at?"  Most people don't like to be stared at. But God doesn't mind us looking constantly and intently upon Him.  Especially when we get into trouble. He wants us to call upon Him so that He might get us out of trouble and show His power. When King Jehoshaphat realized that a mighty army was about to attack him he turned his eyes and heart to God.  He prayed... ...we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you. 2 Chronicles 20:12 God told him to march his people to where the invaders would be.  They sang songs until they got there and found that God had made this vast enemy force to turn on itself and all the enemy soldiers were dead.  They plundered the dead army and found so much loot that it took them three days to haul away all the valuable stuff. When your in trouble, who do you look towards for h

God takes Joy seriously! He takes it so seriously he commands us live in it - "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!"   Phil 4:4 The phrase "Rejoice in the Lord" appears twelve times in the Bible and 4 of those appear as commands. God wants to help us obey this command, so He gave us His Spirit who strengthens us to live for God in all areas.  But if we look at the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5 we notice that the second characteristic that the Spirit produces in us (right after "love") is "Joy". But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy , peace, patience... Galatians 5:22 Why does God want to live in Joy? For at least two reasons. One, God is the most Joy-filled being in the universe.  God is not this grumpy old man looking down waiting for someone to get out of line in order to zap him.  He is filled with Joy. When we are filled with Joy we become more like God. Two, God's Joy in us makes sin l

The tribes of Israel east of the Jordan River wanted to expand their territory so they picked a fight with the Hagrites and some other peoples.  They has trained for such battles for the Bible says: "The Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh had 44,760 men ready for military service—able-bodied men who could handle shield and sword, who could use a bow, and who were trained for battle." 1  Chronicles 5:18 They had done their part, now God was about to do His... "They were helped in fighting them, and God handed the Hagrites and all their allies over to them, because they cried out to him during the battle. He answered their prayers, because they trusted in him." 1 Chronicles 5:20 Are you trusting in God to help you win your battles today?

Every Christian would undoubtedly say that we should serve God with all we got - give him 100% of us. "He gave it all for us, so we should give our all for Him." However when it comes to the practical act of actually giving to Him real dollars in this real world many are not that enthusiastic.  Giving God 10% through the local church seems too much, too hard, or too legalistic - "that was Old Testament law; now we are under grace."  But prior to the law Abraham established the tithe (10%) as the standard for giving to God.  After rescuing his nephew (Lot) from the armies that took him captive, and having defeated them and taken their stuff (booty) he offered to God 10% (Gen. 14:20) How do we know that this marked a standard to be followed by God's people for all time? His grandson Jacob promised to give God 10% of all the wealth he would accumulate in Haran (Gen. 28:22) 10% was made part of the law of Moses (Lev. 27:30) Jesus Christ reaffirmed the ti

The prophet Elijah asked God to send down fire so that the people would know "that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again." 1 Kings 18:37. God is always looking to turn our hearts back to him.  Sometimes He does it in a dramatic way like fire from heaven, sometimes He whispers to us words of love and forgiveness, and sometimes when our hearts are really rebellious He may opt to deliver sickness or other tragedy to our door steps. Whatever the method He uses our response should be like that of the Israelites on the day He sent fire - "The LORD-he is God! The LORD-he is God!" 1 Kings 18:39  

When can you tell your grandmother to "go take a hike"?  When she sets up a wooden pole and tells you to worship it. This is what King Asa did:  Asa did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as his father David had done. 12 He expelled the male shrine prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the idols his fathers had made. 13 He even deposed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother, because she had made a repulsive Asherah pole. Asa cut the pole down and burned it in the Kidron Valley.  1 Kings 15:11-14 God wants our heart.  We cannot have divided loyalties, even with family members.  Jesus told us what the high cost of being His disciple was: Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me Matthew 10:37 So love your moms, dads, children, and grandma, but Jesus must be the #1 love of our lives.

You've heard of 5 Hour Energy drink, or Red Bull? These boost the body, but how about your soul. For that you need the Power of the Spirit of God. So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power . Samuel then went to Ramah . 14 Now the Spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD tormented him. 1 Samuel 16:13-14 Notice the contrast. David now had power because the Spirit of God was upon him. Saul's disobedience and pride led to God taking away the Spirit from him and thus he was left vulnerable to greater demonic influence and bouts with depression. In the power of God's Spirit, David went on to kill lions, bears, Philistines, and giant Philistines. He lead Israel to become a powerful kingdom and groomed his son to lead an empire. Through humility, surrender, and obedience we can access the power of the Spirit God has placed in us.

When I was a child I used to like for my uncle or others to carry me. I used to enjoy jumping on people's backs for a horsy ride or have my uncle lift me up with one hand. I still like to be carried, although not by humans, but by God. God loves to carry us during hard times - our trial, troubles, and tribulations. He carried the Israelites out of Egypt while pummeling the Egyptians. At the edge of the Promise Land, God reminded Israel: “Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. 30 The LORD your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, 31 and in the desert. There you saw how the LORD your God carried you , as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place.” Deuteronomy 1:29-31 God is a gracious God who in our times of trouble is there to carry us while He fights for us and takes us to a place of victory. .

Are you afraid of snakes? Most people are. I am not afraid of them; I just have a healthy respect for them. The people Israel sinned against God (again) by speaking against Him and against Moses. They cried out with their usual imbecilic statements: “Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die in the desert? Numbers 21:5 God let loose the snakes that bit the people and they died. Once they repented, God did not take the snakes away, but He did provide a way for them to live. He had Moses make a bronze snake, put it on a stick and raise it up high so that “when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.” Numbers 21:9 When they looked at the bronze snake they were putting their faith in God and his provision for their healing. This became the picture of how God would save us through Christ. Christ was lifted up on a cross and anyone who looks to him in faith receives healing – eternal life. This is how Jesus put it: Just as Moses l

If you wanted to be a judge under Moses you had to meet at least four qualifications. You needed to be: 1. Capable – Educated enough to know or be able to learn God’s laws and apply them to people’s points of dispute. 2. God-Fearing – You needed to love and respect God so much that your own life reflected holiness and obedience to His laws and values. 3. Trustworthy – You needed to be a person worthy of this position. You needed to be faithful to God, hard-working, be where you’re supposed to be at the time you are supposed to be there type of person. 4. Hater of Dishonest Gain – In your integrity, you would not use your position to gain riches for yourself nor would ever take a bribe nor distort justice for selfish purposes. …select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Exodus 18:21 Even if we don’t want to be a judge for Moses, we should al

It's better to be tongue-tied than to have a loose tongue. We all know that people who can't control their tongues get into a lot of trouble. Talking back to parents, teachers, and police officers can get us trouble with authorities. Letting our tongue loose with our friends and family is a good way to lose those close relationships. But did you know that a person with a careless tongue is also an unspiritual person? Spiritual maturity is measured (in part) by one's ability to control one's tongue. If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. James 1:26 A loose tongue is like a loose cannon in old naval ships. It rolls all over the place doing more damage to friends than to the enemy. James encourages us to learn to rein in our tongue, or we run the risk of believing we are spiritual because we know a lot, but in fact our loose tongue makes our relig

Have you ever done something wrong and had someone cover for you? In some cases (like criminal acts), covering up for someone might not be good. However, in many cases covering someone's sins would be the loving thing to do. Noah's son Ham walked into his dad's tent and accidentally saw his father's nakedness (Genesis 9). His dad had been drinking and in his drunkenness took off his clothes and was sleeping naked on his bed. Ham should have just covered his father and left without ever talking about this incident to anyone - to protect his father's integrity. But Ham left the tent and his father's uncovered body and told his brothers what he had seen. To see one's father naked in those days was considered a very serious offense. It was a sign of disrespect. So not only was Ham disrespecting his father by declaring he had seen his nakedness, but revealed his father's sin of getting drunk, disrobing and falling asleep naked in his bed. Apparently hi

Are you sure that a Christian's salvation is secure? What if he or she sins too much or commits a really big sin? Many of us have been challenged by people who say that a Christian can lose his or her salvation. Some of these people point to Christ's words in Revelation - "Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God" (Rev 3:12) - to say that a Christian must maintain their salvation by living a holy life and overcoming sin. Indeed Christ talks about "him who overcomes" several times to the churches in Revelation. But what does Christ mean by "overcoming"? What must we overcome and how? While thinking about this the other day the Lord gave this passage: "...for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God." 1 John 5:4-5 It seems our overcoming is by faith in Christ.

Are you tired and need some sleep? Many days my wife and I feel like we want to sleep for a long time and not wake up until noon. It never happens. Our bodies wont let us (yes we are getting old). Some people believe that when a Christian dies, we go into a soul sleep. That we sleep until judgement day and then we resurrect to be judged. This is not true. The Bible says: Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2 Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, 3 because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4 For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. 6 Therefore we are always c

As we conclude our church-wide campaign "God's Will for Your Life" I liked how Rick Warren summarized what we've been learning. In chapter 39 of The Purpose Driven Life he writes: Jesus...helped them [his disciples] to know and love God (worship), taught them to love each other (fellowship), gave them the Word so they could grow to maturity (discipleship), showed them how to serve (ministry), and sent them out to tell others (mission). Today God calls each of us to the same work. Not only does he want us to live out his purposes, he also wants us to help others do the same. God wants us to introduce people to Christ, bring them into his fellowship, help them grow to maturity and discover their place of service, and then send them out to reach others, too. I agree that a well-rounded Christian life will live out these five purposes in proper balance. May God grant that all the saints in The Rock live a purpose-filled life for the honor and glory of our great God a

Nacho Libre once said "I t sucks to be me right now!" Life wasn't giving him what he wanted, and Nacho was frustrated. In The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren writes about such frustrations in life: "Every time you forget that character is one of God's purposes for your life, you will become frustrated by your circumstances." As Nacho found out, life is not easy. There are many difficult situations and difficult people that come our way. But here is what I need to remember. God has surrounded me with frustrating people and circumstances to stretch my character. For it is in the stretching of my character that I most become dependent on Christ and and His Spirit's power. This produces great glory for Christ since I am becoming more like Him and truly allowing Christ to live through me. This is why Paul wrote: "I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I deli

"Stay here" is a popular command for children. When my kids were little we would often have to tell them to "stay right here, don't move" when we wanted to find them quickly and not have to search all over for them. Jesus tells us, his children, to "stay". He told his disciples: "remain in my love" (John 15:9). To "remain" is to abide, stay put, endure, or continue in his love. In the next verse He told them how: "If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love ." Jesus gave many commands - love one another, don't lust after money or women, have faith, be humble, be servants, pray constantly, etc...So if we obey Christ we will remain in His love. To obey Him I also need to know Him and his commands, so prayer and meditation on His words become indispensable. It is interesting that Paul told us that if we walk in the Spirit and don't quench

Years ago I used to use a self-image test that revealed if someone were caught in some type of self-image trap - finding our self-worth in something other than God. One trap was called the Approval Trap, where a person finds their worth and value from the opinion of others. If others approve of them, they are happy about themselves. If others disapprove of their actions, they feel worthless. This must have been the trap of many rulers in Israel during the time of Christ. ...even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. John 12:42-43 These "rulers" weren't real God-fearing leaders. Although they were in positions of authority, they cared more about what others said about them than about what God thought of them. Pleasing, serving and loving others is good, as long as God gets the glory in the end. But to not

Most people hate tests. They fear that the test will reveal their incompetence. They also don’t like that they have to put in time and discipline to study for the test. God seems to love giving tests to his children. He tested Abraham, David, Paul, and even Jesus Christ. Psalms 11:4-5 says God’s “eyelids test the sons of men. The LORD tests the righteous” But why? Why does God “torture” us with tests? In his book The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren give us the best answer I’ ve read: “God continually tests people’s character, faith, obedience, love, integrity, and loyalty…character is both developed and revealed by tests, and all of life is a test.” God tests us every day in small and big ways for our good. He gives us opportunities to grow in our character and love for Him and others. Don’t fear the test – embrace it, for “the Lord test the righteous”, and you are His beloved righteous child. .

What do you boast about? Your new pair of jeans, new shoes, new ring? Sometimes we believe that “things” make us more valuable and so we display them and talk about them and we glory in them. In Psalms 3 David spoke about what (or who) brought him glory: But You, O LORD, are a shield for me, My glory and the One who lifts up my head. Psalms 3:3 NKJV David said that God was his “shield” (protector) and his “glory”. What does it mean that God is “my glory”? It means that God brings me glory and the one I boast about. It’s not that I deserve glory; it’s simply that God bestows glory on me because I am associated with him by spiritual birth – I am his child. When I boast about my material possessions (my sports car, or my house, etc…) or my social position, I live an illusion of importance. All these things are fleeting and will disappear in due time. They are an illusion of glory since they are so temporary. But when God is “my glory” (the one I boast about; the one who gives me importan