God's Book--God's Voice, The Bible (part 2)

A.     ITS INERRANCY

1.     Three important doctrinal terms:

a.     Revelation—when God gave His truth.

b.     Inspiration—when writers of the scriptures received and recorded His truth.

c.      Illumination—when we understand and apply His truth.

2. Revelation has ceased. Inspiration has ceased. But illumination is going on right up to this moment! Right now as you hold His book, The Holy Spirit is incessantly at work instructing you and giving you New Hope and clear direction.

2.     How can we be sure that God’s word is free from error and deserving of our trust?

a.     “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction, if righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

b.     All scripture inspired. Not inspired like a painting by Picasso, a sculpture by Michelangelo, or a play by Shakespeare, but inspired as in “God breathed.”

3.     How did God do it?  “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:20-21)

a.     Men moved by the Holy Spirit.

b.     Moved is a nautical term describing a ship without a rudder or sail at the mercy of the wind and the currents.

c.      Moved without its own power and energy.

4.     Writers, who without losing their own style and personality, wrote His truth under divine control.

5.     “Inerrancy means that when the facts are known, the scriptures in their original autographs and properly interpreted will be shown to be wholly true in everything that has to do with doctrine or morality or with social, physical, or life science.”

                                                                                     Paul Feinberg

B.     BENEFITS OF RELYING ON THE BIBLE

1.     STABILITY IN THE MIDST OF A STORM “You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies: For they are ever with me.”(Psalm 119:98) It gives you a deep sense of purpose and meaning. “I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation.” (Psalm 119:99)

a.     People who really know their Bible are not intimidated.

b.     You can be outnumbered, but not intimidated, because you have the truth, which gives you insight.

2.     WE GAIN MATURITY. “ I understand more than the ancients, Because I keep Your precepts.” (Psalm 119:100) You will have more understanding than the aged as you rely on this book.

DO YOU WANT STABILTY? WOULD YOU LIKE INSIGHT? IS IT YOUR DESIRE TO HAVE MORE MATURITY? OF COURSE! ABSOLUTELY! ALL THAT – AND MUCH MORE CAN BE FOUND IN GOD’S RELIABLE WORD. RETURN TO THE ROOT OF TRUTH. LEAN ON IT. START TODAY. IT WILL HOLD YOU UP AND KEEP YOU STRONG. WHEN IT COMES TO THE FINAL AUTHORITY IN LIFE THE BIBLE MEASURES UP.

(Condensed from chapter 3 of Growing Deep In The Christian Life by Charles R. Swindoll, 1986, Multnomah Press, Portland, Oregon.)

PRAY:

1. Lord You are my "shelter from the storm" and "strong tower." I will spend time with you in the coming year so that You will be my Teacher and my Guide.

2. Help me to grow in wisdom and maturity as a "saint" that is not afraid to talk to others about You and the magnificence which is Your Bible.

3. Lord help me daily to look to You for my strength and for wisdom to live a life that is acceptable and worthy of the title You have given me as Your child.

God'd Book--God's Voice, The Bible (part 1)

   One of the finest chapters I have read over the years was written by Pastor Chuck Swindol, President of Dallas Seminary and Pastor of several churches during his life. This chapter from one of his myriad books, I have used to teach Sunday School classes, Men's Bible studies, and the teaching of young pastors in India. It meant a lot to me when I read it and when I had the opportunity to share it with others. I hope you find it uplifting and encouraging as we get ready to start a new year with all its promise and challenges. Because of its length it is summarized and provided in two parts:

A.     THE ABSOLUTELY TRUSTWORTHY CRUTCH

1.     The Bible is the authority, the final resting-place of our cares, our worries, our grief, our tragedies, our sorrow and our surprises.

2.     Psalm 119 speaks of a man who knows what it means to hurt.

a.     He is no stranger to suffering (“MY soul faints for Your salvation, But I hope in Your word. “ (Psalm 119: 81)

b.     He waits for God’s word, not human reasoning (“My eyes fail from searching Your word, Saying  ‘When will You comfort me?’ (Psalm 119: 82).

c.      God’s assistance is not always immediate (“The proud have dug pits for me, Which is not according to Your law. All Your commandments are faithful; the persecute me wrongfully; Help me! They almost made an end of me on earth, But I did not forsake Your precepts.” (Psalm 119: 85-87).

d.     His only hope is God’s Word  (Unless Your law had been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction,” (Psalm 119: 92).

“IF THY LAW HAD NOT BEEN MY DELIGHT THEN I WOULD HAVE PERISHED IN MY AFFLICTION.”

3.     In a world of relativism, the Bible talks in terms of right and wrong, good and bad, yes and no, true and false. It tells us straight. It provides the kind of solid foundation you and I need.

B.     WHY THE FOUNDATION IS SO DEPENDABLE

1.     In Luke24: 27 it is called  “The scriptures” (that which is written). In other words, the sacred writings.

2.     God did not simply think or speak His message. He insured that it was actually written down.

3.     In John 17:14-17 Jesus tells us that “thy word is truth”. This is not human counsel; it is truth—divine counsel. It is honest. It has integrity. It is as absolute as it is timeless.

4.     Truth, real truth, truth you can rely on, truth that will never turn sour, that never backfires, that is the truth of this book.

5.     As Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 2:13, “When I presented the truth of what Moses, Jeremiah, and Amos had said, you saw it for what it really was—the very word of God.”

6.     When you realize that the print on the page you are reading is, in fact, God’s message, God’s Word, it stands alone. Absolutely unique---in a class by itself.

     There are only two eternal things on earth today, only two: people and God’s Word. Everything else will ultimately be burned up—everything else! 

   “Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever, because ‘All flesh is grass, And all the glory  of man as the flower of the grass,. The grass withers, And the flower falls away, But the word of the Lord endures forever.” (1 Peter 1: 22-25)


What is your plan for spending time in God's word for the coming year? Do you have a plan. I know you have heard the saying: "If you don't plan, then you plan to fail."

(Condensed from chapter 3 of Growing Deep In The Christian Life by Charles R. Swindoll, 1986, Multnomah Press, Portland


PRAY:

1. Dear Lord, help me to set up a plan and stick to it that has me read Your word every day. 
2. Help me to really read, looking for You to speak to my heart and for me to have a teachable heart that is quick to obey and to apply what You teach me to my everyday life.
3. Help me not to be afraid to share with others what You are teaching me and to encourage them to spend time with You also in Your precious Bible!

God came down!

  “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.” (Philippians 2:5-7)

    At this time of the year we celebrate the birth of Jesus and how God, in the form of His Son, Jesus Christ, left Heaven and was born of a virgin in stable in Bethlehem of Judea over 2000 years ago. Have you ever stopped to think of the magnitude of what God was willing to do for you and me? The prophet Isaiah prophesized 700 years before He was born that: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14) Immanuel means “God with us”. That is what God did! He came down and lived among us for thirty-three years and then gave “His life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28b)

    Have you ever stopped to think about what it meant for Jesus to leave His place in heaven and to come down to earth to live as a human being in a poor and “foreign” land? My wife, Miriam, and I have spent some time in third world countries on various short term and one long term mission trip. One trip comes to mind immediately though, when I think of the shock one receives when going out of our native “industrialized” country to a completely different, more impoverished country.

  

    In 2000, Miriam and I and one other man went to support a pastor in Paramakudi, India. We were to preach at some outdoor gatherings (no longer legal in India), and teach some local pastors. We arrived in Mumbai (formerly Bombay) and had to stay overnight in a hotel before continuing our travel to Madurai by domestic airline and then by vehicle to Paramakudi. We landed at midnight in heat and the humidity and took a vehicle through the winding and dirty streets of Mumbai to get to the hotel. The multitude of people and traffic, even at that hour, was overwhelming. Homeless thousands slept on the sidewalks in makeshift shelters of cardboard and cloth and people were even cooking and sleeping next to night workers welding steel at a construction site. There were stray dogs, pigs, and cows roaming everywhere and there were open plots of land right next to houses with garbage piled high. (There is no garbage service.) There were open sewers that lent their smell the to the atmosphere and the incense being burned at Hindu shines that had the most demonic looking figures of gods that you can imagine.

     We arrived at the hotel, which was nice by Indian standards, but was a little different from the U.S. The shower was a bucket with a cup in it next to the facet. The water was cold. The toilet was a hole in the ground with two footprints marks where you would put your feet to squat over the hole and the room looked as though it had not been dusted, nor been cleaned well, in a while.

   As we lay in the bed I confess that I fell asleep fairly fast. Miriam could not. But it was not the lack of cleanliness, nor the poverty that she had witnessed that hit her hard. It was the spiritual darkness she could feel in that country that is shrouded in darkness and where the Hindu religion permeates every aspect of the country with its caste system and its stifling rules on what one can do or be in life.

    As she lay on the bed unable to sleep and feeling the oppression of her spirit she heard the Holy Spirit speak to her heart. He said: “You are feeling just a small part of what I felt when I left heaven to come down and live on the earth.” Miriam started to cry and she felt a heartfelt need to pray and to thank Jesus for all that He was willing to do for her in leaving His home in heaven and becoming a mere mortal so that He could die on a cross for our sins and be our High Priest!

   “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”(Hebrews 4:15)

  So how about you? Are you thankful for what God, though His Son, Jesus Christ, was willing to do for your sake? If you are, thank Him today! Oh yeah, don’t forget to tell someone else that doesn’t know Jesus about what He has done for you also!

PRAY

1.     Thank you Lord Jesus for coming down to live among us and live a sinless life so that You could be our Savior.

2.     Help me to remember Your compassion for Your lost sheep like me, and that You allowed Yourself to be born in a humble stable in Bethlehem so that You could be our sinless and compassionate High Priest.

3.     Lord help me to remember Your love for me throughout the coming year so that You will be lifted up and others will know You as their Savior as I do today.

     

    

Is your heart a Bethlehem?

    

   “And the angel answered and said to her. ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible.’” (Luke 1:35-37)

     This time of year it is always exciting to read the story of Jesus and the ordeal of Joseph and Mary as they were obedient to God as the earthly parents of the Son of God. Oswald chambers does an excellent job, as usual, reminding us just what the advent of Jesus that blessed Christmas day really means for us:

      “Jesus Christ was born into this world, not from it. He came into history from the outside of history; He did not evolve from history.

       Our Lord’s birth was an advent; He did not come from the human race, He came into it from above. Jesus is not the best human being, He is a Being that cannot be accounted for by the human race at all. He is God Incarnate, not man becoming God, but God coming in human flesh, coming into it from the outside. His life is the Highest and the Holiest entering in at the lowest door. Our Lord entered history by the Virgin Mary.

      Just as our Lord came into human history from the outside, so must He come into us from the outside. Have we allowed our personal human lives to become a ‘Bethlehem’ for the Son of God?...The conception of new birth in the New Testament is of something that enters into us, not of something that sprang out of us.  (Oswald Chambers, The Psychology of Redemption)

    Have you allowed your heart to be a ‘Bethlehem’ for Jesus or have you put up a sign that says: ‘no room in the inn?’ If you have not let Him in, then what better time is there than now? “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:2) Take the time now to open your heart to Him. You will never regret it!

PRAY:

1.     Oh Lord my God, how I long to know You better and to be Your faithful son or daughter.

2.     Help me today to totally surrender and abandon myself to You that You may guide my steps aright and keep me on the path that You have prepared lovingly for me.

3.     Keep me faithful to spend time with You everyday and especially this Christmas season as we remember Your willingness to leave heaven, to live with us, and to die on a cross for our sins that we who accept You as Lord and Savior might live for you here on earth and with you in heaven for eternity.

The Arrival

  "And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered...... Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. (Luke 2:1,4-7)

    As we approach the Christmas season I am reminded of one of my favorite stories, told by one of my favorite story tellers, Max Lucado. Pastor Lucado is the master of the word picture and his words always paint a visual picture for his readers that make a story come alive. I have often said "that when I grow up I want to be able to write like him." This story is entitled: The Arrival.

     "The noise and the bustle began earlier than usual in the village. As night gave way to dawn, people were already on the streets. Vendors were positioning themselves on the corners of the most heavily traveled avenues. Store owners were unlocking the doors of their shops. Children were awakened by the excited barking of the street dogs and the complaints of the donkeys pulling carts.

     The owner of the inn had awakened earlier than most in the town. After all, the inn was full, all the beds taken. Every available mat or blanket had been put to use. Soon all the customers would be stirring and there would be a lot of work to do.

   Our imagination is kindled thinking about the conversation the innkeeper and his family at the breakfast table. Did anyone mention the arrival of the young couple the night before? Did anyone ask about their welfare? Did anyone comment on the pregnancy of the girl on the donkey? Perhaps. Perhaps someone raised the subject. But at best, it was raised, not discussed. There was nothing that novel about them. They were, possibly, one of several families turned away that night.

    Besides, who had time to talk about them when there was so much excitement in the air? Augustus did the economy of Bethlehem a favor when he decreed that a census should be taken. Who could remember such commerce in the village?

     No, it is doubtful that anyone mentioned the couple's arrival or wondered about the condition of the girl. They were too busy. The day was upon them. The day's bread had to be made. The morning's chores had to be done. There was too much to do to imagine that the impossible had occurred.

    God had entered the world as a baby.

     Yet, were someone to chance upon the sheep stale on the outskirts of Bethlehem that morning, what a peculiar scene they would behold.

     The stable stinks like all stables do. The stench of urine, dung, and sheep reeks pungently in the air. The ground is hard, the hay scarce. Cobwebs cling to the ceiling and a mouse scurries across the dirt floor.

     A more lowly place of birth could not exist.

     Off to one side sit a group of shepherds. They sit silently on the floor, perhaps perplexed, perhaps in awe, no doubt in amazement. The night watch had been interrupted by an explosion of light from heaven and a symphony of angels. God goes to those who have time to hear Him--so on this cloudless night He simply went to shepherds.

    Near the young mother sits the weary father. If anyone is dozing, he is. He can't remember the last time he sat down. And now that the excitement has subsided a bit, now that Mary and the baby are comfortable, he leans against the wall of the stable and feels his eyes grow heavy. He still hasn't figured it all out. The mystery of the event puzzles him. but he hasn't the energy to wrestle with the questions. What's important is that the baby is fine and that Mary is safe. As sleep comes he remembers the name the angel told him to use...Jesus. "We shall call Him Jesus."

    Wide awake is Mary. My, how young she looks! Her head rests on the soft leather of Joseph's saddle. The pain has been eclipsed by wonder. She looks into the face of the baby. Her son. Her Lord. His Majesty. At this point in history, the human being who best understands who God is an what he is doing is a teenage girl in a smelly stable. She can't take her eyes off Him. Somehow Mary knows she is holding God. So this is He. She remembers the words of the angel. "His kingdom will never end."

    He looks anything like a king. His face is prunish and red. His cry, thought strong and healthy, is still the helpless and piercing cry of a baby. And He is absolutely dependent upon Mary for His well-being.

    Majesty in the midst of the mundane. Holiness in the filth of sheep manure and sweat. Divinity entering the world on the floor of a stable, through the womb of a teenager and in the presence of a carpenter.

     She touches the face of the infant God. How long was Your journey?

     This baby had overlooked the universe. These rags keeping Him warm were the robes of eternity. His golden throne room had been abandoned in favor of a dirty sheep pen. And worshiping angels had been replaced with kind but bewildered shepherds.

    Meanwhile, the city hums. The merchants are unaware that God has visited their planet. The innkeeper would never believe that he had just sent God into the cold. And the people would scoff at anyone who told them the Messiah lay in the arms of teenager on the outskirts of their village. They were all too busy to consider the possibility.

   Those who missed His Majesty's arrival that night missed it not because of evil acts or malice: no, they missed it because they simply weren't looking.

    Little has changed in the last two thousand years, has it?

(by Max Lucado in the book "God Came Near")

PRAY:

1. Lord help me this Christmas season to remember that You were willing to come down and live among us and die on a cross for our sins and to redeem us to live for You.
2. Help me today to look for those I come in contact to make sure they know about You and what You have done for me and for all who will put their faith in you.
3. Thank You Lord, for adopting me as Your child and fill me with Your Spirit today so that I might live this day for You and for Your kingdom which will never end!

 

My commitment as a Christian

     

      I don't know who gave me this short statement of commitment but I received it several years ago and is supposed to be written by a young African preacher and tacked on the wall of his house. It is well written and hopefully well lived up to by the author and each one of us who might be challenged by his humble words.

     "I'm a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spirit Power. The 'die has been cast'. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.

     My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future secure. I'm finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane walking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.

        I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't deserve to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

     My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

    I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes into His own, He will have no problem recognizing me--my banner will be clear!"


PRAY:

1. Lord help me today to have an enthusiasm and fire like this young preacher. Thank you that You have claimed me as Your own.
2. Help me to be humble like this young man and to not desire anything for my benefit but all for the benefit our Your kingdom.
3. Help me to be faithful today to proclaim Your gospel to all I come in contact with who don't know about You and what an awesome God You are!

A fathers' advice to his son (part three)

Part three of a three part letter. If you have not already read parts one and two you may want to do that first.

   Eighth: It is not about me! It is about Him! It is all about bringing glory to the Father and realizing that I can do nothing of value by myself. “I do nothing of myself but as my Father taught Me.”(John 8:28) That is Jesus talking. If He can do nothing without the Father, then neither can I. But with Him, look out! “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”(Philippians 4:13) “If you have the faith of a mustard seed you can say to this mountain, go and it will be removed.” (Matthew 17:20) The question we must ask is not what do I want to do with my life, but what does He want to do with my life?  Where is He working that I may join Him in His work?

  Ok, fine that is all great right? But what about specific guidance for my son? Should you stay in the Army and go Special Forces, get out and run crazy through the woods, or something in between? (See point seven.) Pray! Pray without ceasing for your “Daddy” to let you know what direction He would have you to go. Yes, you can seek the counsel of other godly men and women but it is only your heavenly Father that can guide you aright. He is the one who has “formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.” (Psalm 139:13) and has a perfect plan for your life. He will not force you to go the way He has designed for you but He will show you and, oh yes, usually you will not know why He has allowed certain things to come to pass in your life until much later. When Moses spent forty years on the backside of the desert shepherding sheep and goats he did not know it was preparing him to shepherd Israel. When Paul spent nine years in the desert searching the Scriptures, he did not know it was preparing him to be the apostle to the Gentiles. Now, most of us are not going to get big jobs like that but He gives us much smaller jobs that are just as important for the growth of His Kingdom.

        As I look back on 57 years I can tell you that the most important and enjoyable job that my Lord gave me was to be a husband to your mother and a father to you and your brother and sister. There is no adventure, no sporting event, no promotion, no riches, no power, no prestige, or accolade that can possibly compare with the joy it has been, and continues to be, to say that your mother is my precious wife and that I have priceless children who all love the Lord and make me proud every day. Nothing in life can compare to the investment you put into the family that He has entrusted you with and to see that you have a legacy of men and women who are faithful followers of Christ. It is the ultimate joy that gives me pause to praise my Savior often and fervently.

       I am not telling you that you need to run out and find a wife right away. I am just telling you that you don’t need to think that life will end when you are no longer single and a world-class adventurer. Life will just be beginning. No SCUBA dive, parachute jump, black diamond ski-run, surfing trip, exotic vacation, trip to Jerusalem, Australia, or Argentina, can compare to the joy of waking up every morning in the same bed with the women that loves you and has given her life to spend with you. Nothing can compare with watching children grow up in the nourishment and admonition of the Lord and knowing that, even though your mother and I didn’t do it “right” we had a God who took our meager attempt and honored us with a bountiful crop!

     Now, I know that I am more fortunate than most men in that the Lord blessed me with one of the most incredible women on this planet. So I can tell you that although we were tremendously in love when we were first married, with the help of the Holy Spirit who controls both our lives, we are so much more in love today and it is a love that is still growing. I confess that the best commandment the Lord gave me was: “Husbands love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,” (Ephesians 5:25) and “’For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” (Genesis 2:24) So don’t think that getting married and settling down will ruin your life. On the contrary, it will give a purpose and meaning in life like no other thing. One of your jobs is to become a husband and father so that there will be a godly legacy for your life. “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” (Genesis 9:1) and “bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.” (Ephesians 6:4)

       So there it is. I am still your earthly father and unlike your heavenly Father, I will not be with you always and I will fail you just as I have failed you in the past. But, I will always love you and will do as much as I can humanly do to be there for you and pray for you wherever you are and whatever you do. I can love you unconditionally because the Holy Spirit empowers me to do so and will always be proud of you and tell the whole world that you are my son, “in whom I am well pleased.” May our Lord guide you daily as you seek His will for your life and as you take one step at a time on this journey called life.

May God continue to bless you today, tomorrow, and always.

I love you my son,

 Dad

PRAY:

1.    Lord help me to remember that I can do nothing without You but with You I can do all things that You want me to do.

2.    Thank you Lord for the trials and trouble you have put into my life and help me to learn the lessons You want me to learn in adversity. I will rely upon You to carry me through the battle today.

3.    Help me to be the man or woman You have ordained me to be “from the foundations of the world” to be your beloved son or daughter in the family and situation where You have placed me.

A fathers' advice to his son (part two)

Part two of a 3 part letter. If you have not read part one you may want to start there first.

  Fourth: My life is not my own. “You are not your own for you were bought and paid for at a price.” (1 Corinthians 6:19a-20b) When I gave my life to Christ, The Holy Spirit took up residence in my body and “it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me.”(Galatians 2:20) I am to die to sin everyday and allow the Holy Spirit to fill me and control my life. “Be not drunk with wine, which is dissipation, but be filled with the Holy Spirit.”(Ephesians 5:18)  If I allow my flesh to control me then what I get is the same old man that was around before I was saved. But I desire the fruits of the spirit to control my actions and not the fruits of my flesh. They are “Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.”(Galatians 5:22)   They can only exist if I willing yield myself to the control of the Spirit each day. (Oh and by the way, the Spirit is not a thing. It is God himself and He has taken up residence in this earthly tent called my body!)

    Fifth: Our main goal in life is to bring Glory to the Father. Life is not about what you own, who you know, who knows you, what you are called, where you have been, what you have accomplished, or any of those things. Life is about knowing the Savior of the Universe and allowing Him, through the Holy Spirit, to take control of every facet of your life. When people think of you they should not think of how good or bad a person you are, what you look like, how you dress, what you say, where you went to school, and how ugly your children are. They should look at you and glorify your God in heaven. They see Jesus in you when you talk, when you act, when you interact with other people. How does Jesus act? “But when he saw the multitudes he was moved with compassion, because they were weary and scattered like sheep having no shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36) Do people see Jesus in you? They can if you allow the Spirit of the Living God to fill you daily and direct your paths.

       Sixth: “Don‘t worry, be happy” is how the song puts it but the Word of God says it much better. “Be anxious for nothing.” (Phil 4:6) Also: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5) You, perhaps more than most people your age, know that God has been active in your life. You have seen His hand in your selection for college, in your assignment to Ft. Carson to your brothers battalion, the helicopter He sent you to ferry you to Baghdad and back, and your deliverance from IED’s  (Improvised explosive devices), snipers, and assorted other enemy attacks . These are signposts or markers in your life that show you how intimately your heavenly father knows you and cares for you. God is not so busy taking care of the universe that He is not with you at all times. “For He Himself has said: ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’”(Hebrews 13:5) Whenever you wonder if God is looking out for you just remember these markers. They tell you that He takes a personal interest in His adopted son (that’s you). He has watched over you in the past, He is watching over you now, and He is going to continue looking after you in the future. He cares about you personally. I remember the first Bible verse I helped you memorize as a 4 year old in Michigan. Do you? “Cast all your cares upon Him for He cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7) And don’t forget this one either: “’the Lord knows those who are His,’” (2 Timothy 2:19b)

       Seventh: Pray! Pray in the morning when you rise. Pray when you sit down to eat. Pray when you need help in making a decision. Pray before you go out on a mission. Pray while riding down the road. Pray when you come back from a mission.  Pray when someone you know is sick, in trouble, in danger, or just needs encouragement. Pray for your family, friends, coworkers, and yes, pray for your enemies. Pray when you have some time alone to talk with God about what is going on in your life. (He knows it all but He wants you to know Him and to lean on Him.) Pray without ceasing every waking hour of the day and then pray before you put you head on the pillow for some well deserved sleep. “the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”(James 5:16) Jesus commanded us to pray. He modeled to us how often to pray and how fervently to pray. He prayed for specific things, such as: “let this cup pass from Me.” (Matthew 26:39) but always he prayed that the will of the Father be accomplished. Then He accepted the answer that His Father gave him. (Read point two again.) There is no such thing as unanswered prayer! God will answer. He may not answer as fast as you would like and He may say no, but He will answer. “You have not because you ask not.” (James 4:2) “Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name He will give you.”(John 16:23)  Furthermore, He always gives more than you ask for and definitely more than you deserve. “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.” (Ephesians 3:29)

PRAY:

1.    Lord, fill me with Your Holy Spirit today! Guide and direct my words, my thoughts, and my actions today. Let You be seen by how I live my life with You in control.

2.    Lord help others to see Jesus in me. Let me be a witness for You in my home, in my school, in my work, and in my neighborhood.

3.    Lord help me to be more faithful as a prayer warrior for You and Your kingdom. Bring people to my mind that I may intercede for them today.

A fathers advice to his son (part one)

   The following is a copy of a letter I wrote to one of my sons 12 years ago when he was in the middle of making a decision about staying in the Army or getting out and doing something else. He had just finished a tour in Iraq as a Infantry/Cavalry platoon leader and was returning to the U.S. (Since it is a little long I am publishing it in 3 parts.)

Dear Son,

         Well, I have been putting off writing this letter for at least a week but I need to just sit down and let it flow. I know that you are going through some trying times as you try to determine what God’s Will is for your life and what you should do about the Army, further education, and life in general. What I have learned in my 57 short years about life and its decisions may be of some interest to you and hopefully, you can glean something from this collection of thoughts.

   First: I have learned is that life is not about what I do. It is about who I am. My job primarily is to spend time in God’s Word every day and time alone with the Master to allow Him to teach me and mold me into the type of servant/steward that He wants me to be. So I’m not to worry too much about the vocation I am currently in but I am to focus on being the best that I can be at the job I have as a soldier/teacher/worker and do the best job I am capable of for my current boss. (The principal is that I do not really work for my current boss, “And whatever you do, do it heartily to the Lord and not to men.”(Colossians 3:22) My God is interested in my character and whatever He allows to come to pass in my life is for my good, even those painful and annoying events. It is great to have a job that you love, but it is more important to have the best attitude you can about where God has placed you. Henry Blackaby (author of Experiencing God), puts it this way: “Just do the last thing God told you to do.”

    Second: My heavenly Father loves me more than any other person in the world! He has my best interest at heart and always, always knows better what I need than I do. He is my “Daddy’ and even when things don’t make any sense, I know that He has allowed it to be a part of my life and it is not some random act. It has been ordained for me since the beginning of time and it is for my own good. “Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed, And in your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them” (Psalm 139:16) Also, He will not forget about me and all that I am going through. “Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you.” (Isaiah 49:15)

    Third: My job in life is basically very simple; to love God and to be obedient to the things I know I should do. I know what to do because God has provided Scripture for me to read and it is at my fingertips always. Scripture is reliable. I can depend on it. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that a man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”(2 Timothy 3:16-17) Every time I open God’s Word He is speaking to me. I have access to the very words of God that He has allowed to be written down. “knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.: (2 Peter 1:20-21) The Scripture is your guide and light. “Thy Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (Psalm 119:105)  

    That means I must learn and obey what my Daddy has to say about life. He tells me things like: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and your neighbor as yourself.” (Luke 10:27) “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there be food in My house, And trust Me now in this, Says the Lord of hosts, If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out such blessing that there will not be enough room to receive it.” (Malachi 3:10) “Let your yes be yes and your no, no” (Matt 5:37) “You shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and the end of the earth.”(Acts 1:8b) It means I need to know the Scripture, to understand the Scripture, and to have a burning desire to be obedient to that which the Holy Spirit has taught me through His Word. “To obey is better than sacrifice” (1 Samuel 15:23) “If you love Me, keep my commandments.”(John 14:15)

PRAY:

1.    Lord, I am trusting You to guide my path for every decision I need to make in life. Help me to seek your Face everyday and to listen to Your Holy Spirit as He speaks in the “still small voice.”

2.    Help me to be obedient to what You are teaching me in Your Word everyday and help me to be quick to obey also!

3.    Lord, thank you that I can depend upon You to guide my path and help me to take the best road of the many that are set before me.

Please come!

    In 1998 a friend of mine, Richard Johnson, asked me if I would join him in taking a year-long course for missions pastors that was given by First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Georgia. He said that it would require two weekends there and the rest would be home study and reading and then culminating by taking a mission team from my church to one of the countries in the 10-40 window. (Countries 10 degrees north and 40 degrees south of the equator.) Mainly the countries of northern Africa, the Middle East, India, China, Southeast Asia, and Indonesia, countries where there are very few Christians.

    I spoke to my pastor, Larry Harmon, and he agreed to support me and allow me to form a mission team to take to one of these countries. After the first weekend training session I came back and talked to pastor about the experience and we both agreed to pray that God would lead us to the country He wanted us to go. The next weekend he told me that there was a visiting pastor from India, Balasingh Pandian, that one of the Sunday School classes supported would be visiting our church that Sunday and would I like to meet him? We met in the pastor’s office and pastor told Pastor Balisingh that we were going to send a team overseas the next summer and that India was one of the countries we were considering. Pastor Balisingh’s countenance changed dramatically as he looked into our pastor’s eyes and said. “Please come!” He repeated that phrase several times during the short time we met.

   A week or so later pastor asked me if I had had any guidance from the Lord about where to take the team. I told him that every time I prayed all I could see was Pastor Balisingh saying: “Please come!” He said that he had the same experience! “I guess the Lord is telling us to go to India!” We both agreed.

   That conversation got the ball rolling and we contacted Pastor Balisingh who had returned to India at that time and told him we would bring a advance team in December and the main team in June the following year and asked him what type of things would he like our team to do for him. He responded that he would like teaching for the pastors in 50 house churches he supervised and that we would have 4 days of out door evangelistic meetings in his hometown of Paramacudi and in two other towns nearby.

  The first team we took in June 1999 consisted of 10 people including myself and Pastor Harmon. Since then, trips have continued almost annually (with two exceptions) for 17 years. Our next team leaves this week with 13 people and will be preaching to pastors, their wives, and provide a VBS type program for children.

   God has opened the way for this partnership and has sustained it thus far by His grace and His mercy and we are thankful that God has allowed our church to be a part of this ministry in India. We will always remember His call to us through Pastor Balasingh: “Please come!”  To Him be all the glory and honor.

Pray:

1.     God help me to be receptive when you bring opportunities to me to help others or to present the gospel to those who do not know you.

2.     Open the eyes of my heart to see people as You see them and to love them with Your love.

3.     Thank you for allowing us to be a small part of Your plans to make sure Your name is known among the nations.

The Book of Life

“He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life: but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. He who has an ear; let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 3:5-6)

   When Miriam and I were in the Philippines we were able to meet the parents of one of my students who worked with Wycliffe Bible Translators. They were from Australia and were very gifted in translating Christian literature from English into Tagalog, the native Philippine language of Luzon and some other islands of the country. (Mindanao and some other islands have different languages.) Among other literature, they translated My Daily Bread into Tagalog every month.

   The father told me a story of a time when one of the radio broadcasts that his ministry was involved in was broadcasting in Thailand and the lesson being taught was about the necessity of being saved and having your name written in the Book of Life. The message was broadcast over a large area and included many areas where people have never heard the gospel message or even the name of Jesus spoken in their lifetime.

     Several months after the broadcast, there arrived at the mission headquarters in Manila a large box from a small village in Thailand. In the box were several ledgers with the names of everyone in the village and the surrounding countryside. The letter that accompanied the ledgers said that they had heard the radio program about the Book of Life and asked if the mission organization would please add the names of these villagers to the Book!

   At first the Wycliffe people were amused at the misunderstanding of the message but then realized what it was that God was telling them: these people are ready to receive someone to tell them the gospel!  They must dispatch missionaries to this village as soon as possible, and they did! Over the next few years hundreds of people in that region of Thailand heard the gospel and gave their lives to Jesus!

    The day that you accepted Christ your name was written in the Lambs Book of Life! It is written in permanent ink and can never be erased! It is something you can rejoice in everyday!  Remember that each beat of your heart and each breath you take is a gift from God and He loves you with a love that is beyond comprehension. Spend this day in service to the One who “will never leave you nor forsake you”  (Hebrews 13:5) and has “inscribed you on the palms of My hand.” (Isaiah 49:16)

   “And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.” (Philippians 4:3)

PRAY:

1.     Lord, thank you for saving me and writing my name on the palm of Your hand and in the Lambs Book of Life.

2.     Help me today to pray for those of my family and friends who do not know You and need to have their names written in Your book also.

Help me to find ways to talk to them about You and to demonstrate with my life what a great  and loving God You are!!

A loyal soldier

“You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.” (2 Timothy 2:3-4)

    This verse has always meant a lot to me. Probably, since I spent 25 years on active duty as a soldier it struck a sensitive cord in my heart. It is easy to envision myself as a soldier who has enlisted in the Lord’s Army and to understand the significance of that enlistment. However, I know that it is hard for someone who has never served in the military to understand the importance of discipline, loyalty, and obedience. But I do believe that it should be easy to understand that it is a war that you have signed up for when you gave your life to Christ and not a Sunday stroll in the park.

   Oswald Chambers, was not a soldier, (although he served  as a member of the YMCA with the British Army in Egypt during World War I), but he can explain the importance of serving as a soldier for the Lord better than anyone I have ever read. Here is what he has to say about Paul’s advice to Timothy:

   “The first requirement of the worker is discipline voluntarily entered into. It is easy to be passionate, easy to be thrilled by spiritual influences, but it takes a heart in love with Jesus Christ to put the feet in His footprints, and to square the life to a steady ‘going up to Jerusalem’ with Him. Discipline is the one thing the modern Christian knows nothing of; we won’t stand discipline nowadays. God has given me an experience of His life and grace; therefore, I am a law unto myself.

    The discipline of a worker is not in order to develop his own life, but for the purposes of his Commander. The reason there is so much failure is because we forget we are here for one thing, loyalty to Jesus Christ; otherwise we have no business to have taken the vows of God upon us. If a soldier is not prepared to be killed, he has no business to have enlisted as a soldier. The only way to keep true to God is by a steady persistent refusal to be interested in Christian work and to be interested alone in Jesus Christ. …..

    Our Lord Himself is the example of a disciplined life. He lived a holy life by sacrificing Himself to His Father; His words and His thinking were holy because He submitted His intelligence to His Father’s word, and He worked the works of God because He steadily submitted His will to His Father’s will; and as is the Master, so is the disciple.” (My Utmost Devotional Bible, reading 302 by Oswald Chambers.)

Pray:

1.     Lord, thank you for allowing me to enlist as a soldier in Your army. You are my Commander and my desire is to be obedient to Your commands.

2.     Help me to always to keep my eyes focused on You and Your word and to not get sidetracked with things that look good but are not directed by You.

3.     Fill me with Your Spirit today so that I will be receptive to Your leading and help me to be quick to obey whenever You direct my way.