February 29, 2016                                           DISPLAYING   STRENGTH
Daniel 11:12b: “but the people who know their God will display strength and take action.”
The Christian life is not just about surviving, but is about being overcomers and being engaged in, and wining the battles we face. Part of the purpose that God has for believers is for them to demonstrate to the world, and to Satan and those who do not know God, the grace of God and the greatness of God. Believers could not demonstrate the character of God had not God had one grand and glorious plan-to give the Holy Spirit to each believer. It’s an amazing fact, but God has made us “new creations”-a different kind of human being. In 2 Corinthians 5:17 we read: “Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” The greatest, the most grand, the most life changing truth is that the Spirit of the all-powerful God resides within us! The implications of His Spirit living in us are far-reaching, impacting our lives in ways we can’t fully imagine. It is possible for a believer not to have grasped the reality of His Spirit within; that is why God has instructed believers to study His word and to seek Him first. When we hunger for His word and when we seek Him first, He will reveal to us what it means to be His “new creations.” The Holy Spirit produces good fruit in us as we see in Galatians 5:22-23. A friend of mine who is a gifted teacher of the word of God is Tom Hall, and he has said that boldness is one of the sure signs of being filled with the Spirit. Today, there is much attention given to helping believers “cope” with life, and there is a place for that for sure, but if the goal is to simply cope with life, then we fall far short of God’s intentions. The song many of us sang as children had the message right: “I’m in the Lords Army.” Also, the hymn that many have sung for years has it right: “Onward Christian Soldiers-marching as to war.”  In the culture in which we live, there are many battles to fight, and I dare say that every believer has battles to fight. The battle rages on many on fronts. Currently, there is an effort to silence Christians; persecution is on the increase; there is a breakdown of the family-the building block of society; there is widespread addiction to drugs and alcohol; many believers deal with depression; alternate life-styles that are contrary to God’s plans are condoned and given special protection under the law; the murder of the unborn is legal and accepted by many-and we could go on-but you are well aware of the battles we face. The point is that no matter what we face as individuals and as a nation, it is a time when believers are to “display strength and take action.” This verse is for you and I-not somebody else! God has equipped us to be effective in the battles we face-and He will fight with us and for us. We must acknowledge the battle, define the battle, and then be engaged in the battle. Let us not hesitate to be beacons of truth and light in a dark world; let us not hesitate to take action as God directs; let us be bold and courageous. 
Ephesians 6:13: “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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February 25, 2016                                     EVERY  THOUGHT  CAPTIVE
2 Corinthians 10:3-5: “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,”
If you think that the Christian life is passive, without battles to fight-think again! Even though salvation is free to us, and God offers abundant life to His followers, being an overcomer in life is not automatic. Paul makes it clear that even though we live in flesh and bones, we do not war, or fight, according to the flesh. The weapons that the believer has at his disposal are for more powerful than flesh and bones; in fact, with the weapons we have, we can destroy fortresses. In the passage above, Paul is emphasizing the fact that the thought life of the believer is the battle ground. Daily we are confronted with information that comes through conversations, media, ideas, and philosophies that are contrary to the knowledge of God. If we are not engaged in the battle; if we are not filtering what we see and hear through “the knowledge of God,” we will find ourselves buying into the philosophy of the culture. When we hear the lies that are of this world, we must be aggressive in recognizing the lie and aggressive in rejecting the lie and speaking the truth of God. Often, the lie we hear may not come from the outside, but may be a thought that just seems to appear out of the blue. When this happens, we must be quick to dismiss the lie and replace it with truth. I’ve heard it said that we should picture wrong thoughts as an airplane circling above, asking permission to land in our mind-but we must not give it permission to land. (That speaks volumes). As an example, I may have a thought that says: “I’m not valuable;” but I must replace that thought with: “I’m valuable because God created me and He loves me.” If we want to win the battles, if we want to experience victory in this life, then we must begin to take every thought captive just as Paul did. I think it was Peter Parris that said: “We should talk to ourselves more than we listen to ourselves,”-how true! We live in a day when lies and bad news are the norm, but as believers, we do not have to succumb to the lies; we have the power to replace the lies with the truth. Simply put, we will either be defeated by the lies we entertain, or we will be victorious by establishing our thoughts on the truth that comes from God.
Philippians 4:8:  “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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February 21, 2016                                   A  CITY  WHICH  IS  TO  COME
Hebrews 13:14-16: “For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come. Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips that give thanks to His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing; for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”
Paul, along with other writers of the New Testament, were looking for, and waiting for a city yet to come. Even though they dealt with current issues and believers were instructed on how they should conduct themselves in this present world, they understood that this life was temporary and that a new and lasting city was coming. The scripture above states that they were “seeking the city which is to come.” I am sure that believing that there was a lasting city yet to come, affected their view of life and had great influence on how they conducted their daily lives. In Hebrews 11:10 we find that the patriarch, Abraham, was also seeking a city yet to come: “for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” (Hebrews 11:10). Abraham, a very wealthy man, is known for his faith in God. God told Abraham that He was to move, but did not tell him where he was to move.  I try to imagine what it was like for Abraham to tell his servants to prepare all the livestock, pack up possessions and supplies for the move-and when they asked where they were moving to, what a shock it must have been to hear him say that he did not know.  If Abraham had a drive way-I can suspect that he was going down the driveway wondering if he would turn left or right at the end of the driveway-that is faith in action. Abraham had no problem preparing to move to an undisclosed location because he believed God. We act out of what we believe-not what we say we believe. When you make an honest comparison of the early church believers and the believers of today and the corresponding impact on the culture, I think you will find that in many cases, we fail in comparison.  I often find myself trying to find out why the difference in the early church believers and ourselves. For whatever reason, many of the early believers simply took what God said as absolutely true and acted on it. Remember-we act out of what we believe. If we indeed believe God, believe what He has said in His word, we will act on it. For example, God tells us to love our neighbor-so let us love our neighbor. God tells us it is more blessed to give than to receive-so let us be givers. God tells us to forgive others-so let us forgive others. God has said that we are to “put on the new self”-so let us put on the new self. You get the idea. Quite simply, it is in order for us to examine our belief and determine if our actions are reflecting what we say we believe. God has spoken clearly in His word and He has made it possible for us to live life in accordance to His word. His word is not to be viewed as a list if things we must do, but rather His word reveals who we are in Him. When we come to understand that we have been made new; when we know our true identity as believers, the life we live will be in harmony with what He has said. By acting and living out of our true identity, there is no pressure to try to gain His approval, or prove our faith by some action we may take, but it’s a matter of simply responding to our Father who expresses Himself through the new heart that He has given us. We can now do the things that please Him. It is interesting, and refreshing, to see the instructions that the writer of Hebrews gave to believers in light of the fact that believers are to be focused on the city that is to come: continually give praise to God; give thanks to God; do good and share-for with these sacrifices, God is pleased. How simple! May we, with God’s help, be able to turn our focus to the “city which is to come.” At the same time, let us be good stewards of all that He entrust to us while we live in this temporary “city.” Let us see that what we do here, the life we live today, is to foreshadow life in the city that is yet to come-what a privilege as the children of God. We live according to God-according to His kingdom-not according to kingdom of this world! Just as the believers did in the days of the early church, we can without question take what God says as absolutely true and act on it-that is believing God.  
Revelation 21:2: “And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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February 17, 2016                                                   DISAPPOINTED
Romans 10:11: “For the Scripture says, ‘WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPOINTED.”
We will all face disappointments, but how we handle disappointments is crucial. Disappointments not properly dealt with weakens or destroys vision and quells desire, which in turn causes one to withdraw to the side-line of life. Also, we can set ourselves up for needless disappointment by having improper or faulty expectations. How true it is that unmet expectations lead to disappointments. There is a certain amount of truth in the statement: “He who does not expect anything shall not be disappointed.” The first and most important factor in the matter  disappointment is that of making sure our expectations are reasonable, healthy, and in keeping with what God says is true. For this reason, it is important for us to build our thinking and develop our view of life on what is taught in the scriptures; what God has said in the scriptures provides a sure and steadfast foundation upon which we can establish our thoughts and our lives. Our hope, our confidence, our peace, and our joy, is to be based on the faithfulness of God and that His ways are perfect, whether we understand it or not. There are numerous opportunities that can bring about disappointments. For example, I may expect a promotion at work, but when I am passed over for the promotion, I am disappointed. It would have been better to seek to know if it was God’s will for me to get the promotion, and if I could not determine that for sure, agree in advance that whether I got the promotion or not, God would use it for good. Disappointments may come when I ask God to heal someone, and He does not heal like I expected; I may expect my children to always be “godly”, but when they go astray, I’m disappointed; I may expect my spouse to make me happy, but when they don’t, I’m disappointed. As mentioned above, we will have some disappointments in life, but if we allow the disappointments to accumulate, we will find ourselves being AWOL in life and miss what God has for us. Sad to say, I have seen a number of believers quietly give up in their pursuit of God because of disappointments. Now, for the “hard” word for any who are living with disappointment: get over it! Many believers have become too soft-skinned. No one said the Christian life would be easy. God said to expect trials. Life is not all about us. God gave us the shield of faith for a reason. Yes, the enemy wants you defeated and discouraged. The Christian life is about growing, overcoming, forgiving, learning from our failures, learning to think like God, learning to represent Him and learning that all of His ways are just and right. Some think that ending prayer with “Thy will be done” is a cop out-a lack of faith. The truth is that we do not always know how to pray as we ought and we do not always know what to ask for; so saying to God, “Thy will be done” is the best possible way to end a prayer. Actually, asking that His will be done, is great faith-faith in the faithfulness of God to do what He deems to be best. Yes, we need to be bold, and God invites us to bring our request to Him, but we are to do so acknowledging His Lordship over our lives.  The verse above says that “whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” It is assumed that what we believe about Him is according to scripture. If our belief is faulty, then the promise of not being disappointed may not be realized, because a faulty belief will lead to disappointments. Thus, we need to hear what is said in 2 Timothy 2:15: “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman who needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” The promise to us is that if we believe in Him, for who He is, for all that He has done and all that He is going to do, we will not be disappointed. It’s all about acknowledging His Lordship, His sovereignty, His love for us, and His promises that He has given to us. God can do no wrong. If we perceive that the word of God contradicts the experience of my life, then our perception is wrong and we are short-sighted. It is critical that we see what God says in scripture as a plumb line by which we are to adjust our thinking and our actions.  Let us be wise when it comes to setting expectations and let us be alert to the consequences of living with unmet expectations.
James 4:15: “Instead, you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we shall live and also do this or that.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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February 13, 2016                                              HELP  AGAINST  THE  ADVERSARY
Psalms 60:11-12: “O give us help against the adversary, for deliverance by man is in vain. Through God we shall do valiantly, and it is He who will tread down our adversaries.”
Note that the last word of this scripture: “adversaries,” is plural! If you don’t think that we face many adversaries, both personally and as a nation, you must, as they say; “you have your head buried in the sand.” Some have erroneously though that by giving their life to Christ, they would experience a life free of trials and battles. The Old Testament we find the people of God dealing with the physical issues of life; whether it was facing an invading army, dealing with drought, being enslaved, being ruled by evil kings, and etc. What God did through the natural, or physical, in the Old Testament, has spiritual implications in the New Testament. This is not to say that we do not have to deal with the natural today, and it does not prohibit us from defending ourselves against the physical attacks of our adversaries.  We do need to understand that behind the adversaries that would defeat us, there is a spirit at work causing them to have a desire to attack, or defeat us. The powerful truth is that the battle taking place in the spiritual realm is played out in the lives of human beings. Because Satan knows that He cannot defeat God, he targets God’s choice creation-people. If we are to win the battles we face, we must know who we are fighting. In Ephesians 6:12 we read: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”  If we find ourselves focusing on a person as our adversary rather than the spiritual forces at work in and through the person, we will be ineffective in our battle. With all of that being said, there is great news for the believer, and that is that Jesus defeated Satan at the cross. In Hebrews 2:14b-15 we read: “..that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.” Satan has been defeated and disarmed, but God has not bound Him as He will do at some point in the future, but has allowed Satan to “walk about seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8). Actually, God is using Satan for His own purposes and that has to do with us learning to take dominion. The only tool that Satan has now is that of deception. In Ephesians 6:11 we are told to “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” The fact is that Satan has been disarmed, but we have been armed! We have been armed with the Holy Spirit, with the shield of faith, with a new spirit, a new heart, a new mind, with wisdom, and with the word of God. God has seen to it that we have all we need to be victorious over our adversary. As the psalmist said: “Through God, we shall do valiantly, and it is He who will tread down our adversaries.” When the Israelites trusted God, He gave them victory over their enemies. When our trust is in God and all that He has done on our behalf, we too will have victory over our adversary. Let us be wise to the schemes of our enemy, let us fight strategically, and let us know that victory comes from the Lord.
Ephesians 6:13: “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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​February 8, 2016                                                 WHAT  THE  LORD  REQUIRES
Micah 6:8: “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Matthew 11:28-20: “Come unto Me all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.”
It’s the nature of man to gravitate to a list of “dos and don’ts” when it comes to getting what he desires. Man finds comfort in being given ten easy steps to get whatever it is he wants.  This mindset is often carried over in to Christianity as believers may find themselves searching for ways to satisfy or please God. Some believe that God has a list of things for us to do and a list of things for us not to do if we are to find favor in His sight. For example, some believe that if they are to please God, they must get up early in the morning and have a fifteen minute quite time; they must read and study the word; they must memorize scripture; they must be at the church “every time the door opens”; they must tithe; they must be a part of the Thursday night bible study-and the list goes on- and the list of things they must not do is just as long. You couple this mindset with the fact that life can become complicated and burdensome in and of itself, the believer may find himself living a life of “quite desperation.”  God is well aware of the nature of man and He is aware of the fact that we live in a fallen world where chaos, brokenness, and trials are the norm. As always, God is the bearer of good news to those who have ears to hear. The fact is that first and foremost, God desires to enjoy fellowship with those who belong to Him. God is not a God up in the sky who is dishing out demands that we must keep if we are to avoid His wrath. Most of us have asked: what does God require of us? In the verses above, God answers this question in such a simple, yet profound way that those who do not know Him as a loving Father, may struggle with His answer. Is it really as simple as doing justice, loving kindness and walking humbly with God? When we know in our inner person, that God in His great love for us has made us new creations and has given us new hearts, it becomes our nature to do the things that please Him. Yes, it’s our new nature to read His word, to fellowship with other believers, to do what is right, to be kind-hearted, and to do the things that please Him. To walk humbly with our God means that we understand His greatness and that apart from Him we are nothing. If by chance you are not sure what the Lord requires of you, and if you are finding life to be burdensome or empty, simply take God at His word. Do justice, love kindness, walk humble with God, rest in God, learn from Him, discover that He is humble in heart, and find that His yoke is easy and His burden is light! God gives us an awesome invitation-an invitation for us to know Him for who He is. No matter what you are currently experiencing, no matter if you have turned from God, His invitation still stands-He loves you that much. God is ready to give rest to your soul.
Psalms 103:13-14: “Just as a Father has compassion on His children, So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust.”
Blessings,
Buddy
 
 

February 5, 2016                                                  WALKING  WITH  A  LIMP
Genesis 32:31: “Now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Peniel, and he was limping on his thigh.”
Jacob had been in conflict with his brother Esau for many years, but in Genesis 32 we find Jacob desiring to be restored to his brother. God had told Jacob to return to his home country, and by doing so, God said that He would prosper him.  This account of the reconciliation of Jacob and Esau is an interesting story for sure, but as the story unfolds, we see that this is not just about two brothers in conflict, but is a story about God working out His purposes even in times of conflict. I’m sure God was not pleased with the trickery of Jacob when he stole Easu’s birthright, but the issue God would deal with is the heart of Jacob that was deceitful. Up until this point, Jacob had been in full control of his life-so he thought-planning and scheming to get what he wanted. Before we find ourselves condemning Jacob, let us realize that we too can be guilty of wanting full control of our lives. Jacob was again “conniving” a way to approach his brother as he sought to be reconciled. Jacob and family were in route to see Esau, but at one point, Jacob sent his family on ahead, and while he was alone at night, Jacob had an encounter with God that would change his life forever. After this night, Jacob would no longer be in control. I don’t know if it was God, or Jesus, or an angel of God (I will refer to him as the angel of God) but whichever one it was, they engaged in a wrestling match with Jacob. Obviously no one could wrestle with anyone of these and have a chance to win, but so that Jacob could discover that his strength was not sufficient, God allowed the match to go through the night. Jacob realized that he had met his match. At daybreak, the angel of God simply touched the thigh of Jacob causing Jacob to walk with a limp. It is also interesting to note that the angel of God asked Jacob what his name was-as if he did not know. The name Jacob means “trickster” or “deceiver.” Just for Jacob to speak his name was a confession of his deceptive nature. The angel of God told Jacob that he would no longer be named Jacob, but Israel. The name “Israel” means “ruling with God.” Wow! What a new name to get-from God. All of us at some point have been like Jacob in that our heart was deceptive; seeking to be in full control. The good news for us is that God has the desire and the power to bring about a change of heart for us. In fact, we learn in the New Testament that God does not just patch up our old heart, but gives us a new heart, and this new heart changes our very nature. With this new heart, we are not who we use to be! The new heart that God gives us frees us from having to be in control, it allows us to trust Him for everything, it allows us to think the thoughts and do the things that please Him, and it allows us to have and to enjoy uninterrupted fellowship with Him. Just as Jacob needed an encounter with God, we too need an encounter with God, and when we do encounter Him, we will be humbled in heart as a result of seeing His greatness. Just as it did with Jacob, an encounter with God also causes us to walk with a limp-a limp that comes when we realize that apart from Him, we are nothing. (I heard someone say a long time ago that “we should not trust anyone who did not walk with a limp,”-probably some good advice). Even though God told Jacob to return to his home country, Jacob was still afraid-but he started the journey anyway. God is most pleased when we obey-whether we are afraid or not does not matter. Even though Jacob was a “deceiver” for many years and had made many bad choices, God did not forget him, but confronted him and changed his name. Could it be that we need a name change? God is in the business of giving new names to those who encounter Him.
Ezekiel 36:25-27: “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statues, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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February 2, 2016                                               VERIFYING  WHAT  WE  HEAR
Acts 17:11-12: “Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily, to see whether these things were so. Many of them therefore believed, along with a number of prominent Greek women and men.”
In Thessalonica, the Jewish religious leaders became jealous of Paul and the scripture tells us that they took some “wicked men from the market place” and formed a mob, and “set the city in an uproar.” Being concerned for their life, during the night, some of the brethren sent Paul and Silas to Berea. As was the custom of Paul, when he and Silas got to Berea, he began to expound on the scriptures teaching that Jesus was the Son of God. The scriptures pay a great compliment to the Bereans when it is said that the Bereans “were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica.” Surely it was a great blessing to Paul and Silas when they came to Berea, where they found many who were open to the scriptures. As we read this portion of scripture, we naturally have to ask ourselves if we view the scriptures like the Bereans did. We can learn a lot form what we are told about the Bereans and we too can be “more noble-minded” than those who reject the teachings of scripture without examining them. The Bereans not only received the word, but they did so with “great” eagerness. It is possible for us to read the word with a casual mindset (and there may be a place for that) that lacks a sense of eagerness. When we read the scriptures, we should read with the awareness that we are reading a super-natural book that was and is inspired by God-the Creator of the universe. In His word, we find the wisdom that comes from God-we find forgiveness-we find life-we find our identity-we find purpose and we find all that we need. Let not our familiarity with the scriptures cause us to be less that “eager” when we read to scriptures. It is also important to note that the Bereans did not simply read the scriptures, but they “examined” the scriptures, and they did so “daily.” The Bereans viewed the scriptures as being the truth, and rightly so, they searched the scriptures to see if what Paul was teaching was indeed true. Today, there are an innumerable number of teachers of scriptures, and much of what we may be hearing is not in accordance to scripture.  Just for example; the message of some teachers, preachers and authors is basically a message on how to improve “self.” We are told that if we re-commit our life, if we pray more, if we memorize more scripture, if we attend church more regularly, if we give more to the church, if we give up this or that-then we will be “better” Christians. When you examine scripture, you discover that it is God’s plan that “self”, or the old man, die. You find that God has made us “new creations” with new hearts, new spirits, and new minds and now it is our nature to do the things that please the Lord. Living the Christian life is not about rules and regulations, but about living according to the new person that God has made us to be. There are many subtle, as well as overt teachings that are rooted in the Old Covenant-not the new and better Covenant that Jesus ushered in. Even Paul, and other writers of the New Testament, on many occasions had to correct, and remind believers that they were no longer under the Old Covenant. Scriptures do tell us that we are not to abuse our freedom in Christ, and we are not to view grace as an opportunity to sin. Also, my freedom in Christ does not mean that I can now just do whatever I want to do-when I want to do it. The life we now live is to reflect the nature of God-yes, we do love others, we do give-we do gather with other believers-we do the things that please the Lord- and we do think the right thoughts. It is possible for us to sin, but it is no longer our nature to sin-we have a new nature now. The BIG deal for us is to discover our true identity as sons and daughters of God-to discover the new person that we are. All of this is possible only because of the grace and work of God in us-our best self-effort is insufficient. So, let us examine the scriptures with eagerness, daily-so that we can discover all that God has said about us indeed true. May we have a “receiving” attitude and heart when we examine the scriptures.
Blessings,
Buddy
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