June 30, 2015                                         RESPONDING  TO  TRIALS

John 16:33: “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you have tribulation, but take courage: I have overcome world.”                                                                                                                                                                                              

John 16:22:  “therefore you too now have sorrow, but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one takes your joy away from you.”

It is crucial that our expectations be realistic and based on the truth of scripture.  It is a fact that we will face trials in life, but if I am expecting a life free of trials, I will be greatly disturbed and defeated when trials come. Also, if I have unhealthy expectations of others, I will surely be disappointed. Someone has said that: “If you have no expectations, surely you will not be disappointed.” There is an element of truth in that statement, but it is certainly not wrong to have healthy expectations. Jesus certainly faced trials, and He has given us notice that we will also have trials in this world; so it’s a helpful for us just to know that trials are on the agenda! How we respond to trials is the paramount issue. Jesus told His followers to “take courage: I have overcome the world.” It does indeed take courage to face the face; and He will give us the courage we need-but we must “take” courage. It is clear from this scripture and other scriptures that Jesus is saying that we too can overcome the world- great news for us! Do trials defeat us, or take the breath out of us; or do we overcome the trial? Being an overcomer of trials does not mean that we don’t feel the pain and hurt; but it does mean that we are not defeated or deterred by the trials. We can overcome trials because we are in Him and He is in us-letting His life in us be our life. To overcome trials, and the world in general, requires a super-natural power, and that power is available to us through the Holy Spirit. God uses trials to produce in us what could not be produced without the trials. Endurance, patience, and trust are learned in the midst of trials. In 1 Peter 4:12 we read: “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you.”  How we respond to the trial-how we overcome the trial-can be a testimony of God’s grace and power at work in us. As I have commented in previous blogs; some trials are of our own making, some are beyond our control and some trials come because of our obedience to Christ. If the trial we face is the result of our bad choices, even then we can learn the lesson that God would teach us. If the trial is a consequence of personal sin, then repentance is called for and again, we can learn what God is teaching. As the above verse states, we will have sorrow, but we can know that sorrow is temporary. Jesus told His followers that their sorrow would be turned to joy when they saw Him again-evidently, Jesus was referring to His appearing to His followers after His resurrection.  There will come a day when we also will see Him face to face; but because He lives in us, we can see Him now with our spiritual eyes and our heart can be filled with joy. When the trials come, remember that just as Jesus overcame the trials- so can we- because He lives in us filling our hearts with joy.

Blessings,

Buddy

June 25, 2015                                          WHY  WE  EXIST

1 Corinthians 8:6: “yet for us there is but one God, the Father from whom are all things, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.”

We have an inborn desire to know why we exist and man has come up with untold numbers of reasons for our existence. Many believe that they exist for themselves- to find whatever makes them “happy” or brings a sense of fulfillment. If one does not know God and His purposes for him, then all that remains is to live life according to self. The greatest defining factor in life is whether we live life with the view that we exist for Him, or we live life with a focus on self. The idea that we belong to another and we are not our own is not a popular view among many. 1 Corinthians 6:19: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.” The person that does not know God does not know the true reason for his existence; and it is also possible for believers to struggle with the idea that “we are not our own.”  The truth is that every believer has to monitor his or her motivation of life and determine if he or she is doing what they do out of their belief that they exist for Him.  If you visit a Christian book store in person or on-line, you will find many “self-help” books and cd’s with the subject of how to find happiness and fulfillment. “Self” is important, but an emphasis on self prevents us from knowing the fullness of Christ and in that light, self is the enemy.  (Don’t  misunderstand  what  I am saying: there are a lot of good resources available and I’m glad we have Christian book stores.)  When we know that we exist for Him, our life is simplified-many distractions are eliminated when we “exist for Him” as we have only one purpose. Our decisions, our actions and our thoughts are to be filtered through the one purpose of existing for Him. One of the biggest lies of the enemy is that we should do whatever we need to do in order to make ourselves happy; the truth is that we will find happiness, peace, and joy, as a by-product of the awareness that we exist for Him-to do His will. Whether we like it or not, agree with it or not, God designed man in such a way that he is complete only when he knows that He was created by and for God. Any efforts to find lasting satisfaction and fulfillment in life outside of God’s purposes will prove to be in vain. The good news is that in our job, in our home, in our neighborhood, in our church, on the golf course, at the mall-where ever, we can “exist for Him.”  There is great freedom that comes when we totally submit to Him and His will for us; and when we get to know Him for who He is, submitting to Him becomes natural. Let us remember that were created by Him and for Him, and only by living according to His design, will we discover all that our heart longs for.

Ephesians 4:10: “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Colossians 1: 16: “For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

Blessings,

Buddy

June 20, 2015                                                    LEGACY  -  ONE DAY AT A TIME     

2 Timothy 1:5: “For I am reminded of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure it is in you as well.”

Joshua 24:15b: “But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

There is no greater legacy, or inheritance that we could leave other than that of a life spent honoring God our Father. The goal of leaving houses, land, possessions and money fails in comparison to leaving a spiritual heritage. In the verse above, we see that Timothy had a rich heritage that started with his grandmother Lois and it came to him through his mother Eunice.  We tend to think that “someday, I will leave an inheritance for my children,” however that though is flawed. The fact is that a legacy is built one day at the time. Even if one does accumulate a lot of material goods to leave as an inheritance, he will still be remembered for the life he lived-what type of a person he was while alive. Let it be understood; leaving a material inheritance is not in violation of scripture as found in Proverbs 13:22: “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.”  As in most cases, it is a matter of what is in our heart. If we come to realize that it is the goal of our heart to accumulate wealth, then we should at that point re-evaluate our heart. On the other hand, if our heart is for the Lord first and foremost, and He gives material blessings, we are to thank Him for the blessings and then be a good steward of all He gives. Proverbs 10:22: “The blessing of the Lord makes rich, and he adds no sorrow with it.” I am sure that each of us have a desire for our life to make a difference in a positive way, and that can and will happen if it is our heart’s desire to know and follow the Lord. Proverbs 4:7: “The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; and with all your acquiring, get understanding.”  Again, wealth in itself is not a bad thing and it can be used to expand His kingdom, but it is the love of money that is the problem.  We are called to be good steward of all that we have, including the money we have-whether it be a small sum or a large sum of money.   When our focus is on knowing God and discovering His purpose for our lives, our lives will matter-we will make a lasting difference. When one is living out of the new heart that God has given, his life will be a reflection of God and he will be light in a dark world. With this new heart, we will find ourselves blessing others, loving others, caring for others, encouraging others, forgiving others, and our life will begin to resemble the life that Jesus demonstrated.  We will find ourselves being dependable, diligent in all that we do, faithful, full of hope, overcoming, compassionate, and at peace. Let it be our desire to live our lives in such a way that our lives “are portals through which others see into heaven.” Each and every day is a gift from God and we have a choice as to how we will spend the time that we have been given. God has enabled us to soar above, to overcome anything that would cause us to live contrary to the life that God has called us to live. The life that God calls us to live is a supernatural life-we can’t live it in our own strength-but because He lives in us, we can indeed live supernaturally. Just as Lois passed on a spiritual legacy to her children’s children, so can we. We are living our legacy-one day at a time.

Proverbs 19:8: “The one who gets wisdom loves life; the one who cherishes understanding will soon prosper.”

Matthew 7:24: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house upon the rock.”

Blessings,

Buddy

June 16, 2015                                IN  ORDER  THAT  WE  MIGHT  KNOW

1 John 5:20: “And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding, in order that we might know Him who is true, and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.”

We did not find God. Because of His great love and compassion, God sent His Son that we might be redeemed and transferred from darkness to light. There is no room for man’s pride or any room for him to take credit in God’s plan of salvation. We are not capable of knowing God on our own; but because of His grace, He gives us understanding that we might come to know Him who is true. This world’s system is built on lies; the dominant lie being that man does not need God, or that God does not exist. When one does not know that truth is in God alone, the motivation and the reason for life is based on self, resulting in a life that is unfulfilling and limited.  When we know and when we walk in truth that comes from God, every aspect of our life is different.  In His truth, our motivations, our outlook, and our desires move from being self-centered and we discover a much bigger life; a life with endless blessings and possibilities. It is indeed a red letter day when we come to know the truth that is in God. The truth is that God has a great love for His people and He wants to bless those that belong to Him and all that He does is based on His love. Some have a wrong conception or view of God; they fear God because they think that God is someone who is ready to punish when they do wrong- they see God as the “big eye in the sky” that’s ever looking for them to do wrong.  Knowing that “the Son of God has come” is the great- divide of mankind-there are those who know that He has come, and there are those who do not know that He has come. He came that we might know Him and as we come to know Him, we find that He is a loving God who gives abundant, overflowing life. (Abundant life does not mean a life free of trials.) There are some who no doubt have negative connotations when they hear the admonition to keep the “commandments” of God. The truth is that out of His grace and wisdom, He has given us commandments. In first John 5:3 we read: “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.” His commandments are given for our good-to lead us in the way of life. Also, His commandments actually reveal the new person that we are in Him. For example; we are commanded to love one another-and that is exactly what we do when we live according to our new identity-the new us. It is a great help to see His commandments, and scripture in general, as pointers to our new nature. The good news for us is that God wants us to know Him, and He made that possible by sending His Son who reveals the heart of ourFather.

1 John 3-6: “And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in Him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.”

Blessings,

Buddy

June 11, 2015                                 AS  HE  IS,  SO  ALSO  ARE WE

1 John 4:16-19: “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, that we may have confidence in the day of judgement; because as He is, so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love cast our fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us.”

The greatest discovery we could ever make, the greatest insight that we could ever gain, the greatest power we could ever know is the love of God! The overriding theme in the scriptures- the main deal- the big idea, is that God is a God of love. (Don’t confuse what the world calls love with the love of God).  In the verse above, Paul said that “we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us.” God demonstrated His love and this demonstration of love turned the world upside down. When we come to know the love God has for us, our world is turned upside down as well-everything changes. It may sound so simple, but it is awesome to know that when one abides in love, he abides in God, AND God abides in him! Can we get the truth in our hearts and minds that GOD dwells in us? One day God will judge the world and the judgement will be based on the rejection of Jesus and the judgement will be sudden and it will be fierce. However, those who are abiding in the love of God, who have been redeemed, will have confidence in that day and will not have fear. The love that God has is a perfect love and in love, there is no fear. Because God is sovereign, because God is all powerful, and because this same God is our Father who loves us, we have nothing to fear. We can trust that whatever God allows to touch our lives, it is for our good. Our God is the one who provides and protects. When one is fearful, he is “not perfected in love.” God’s love is a giving love and when we abide in His love, we also become givers, and in this way we are like Him in this world! We cannot encounter His love and remain unchanged.

We live in a world that does not know the love of God and as a result, the focus is on self-preservation and “getting all you can” and in such an environment, fear and mistrust are common place. The kingdom of God has invaded the kingdom of this world and God’s kingdom stands in stark contrast to the kingdom of this world. In the kingdom of God, there is no fear; and in this kingdom, giving and trust and love prevail. In His kingdom we find joy, peace, purpose, rest, wisdom, hope, faith and love. The two kingdoms cannot be blended together-there are two, and only two distinct kingdoms. Those that have come to know God are most blessed to live in His kingdom, even while living here on earth. As we experience life in His kingdom, we can clearly see the conflict, the insecurity, the mistrust, and the fear that is so prevalent in the world. It is not our place to judge the world, or those in the world, (that’s God’s business) but it is our place to be light in the darkness. We must remember that if we have come to know the love of God, then we will be conduits of His love, and “as He is, so also are we in this world.”

We have the privilege of being a part of a revolution-a revolution of love. The old song had it right-with one correction: “What the world needs now, is love, (God’s) sweet love.” Join the revolution today-find ways to boldly express the love of God and be as He is.

1 John 4:7-8: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

Blessings,

Buddy

June 8, 2015                                            WE  ARE  NEW     Part Two

In the book of Ephesians we learn about our new identity in Christ and what it means to be made new creations.  As in the last blog, the old person was not simply renovated-but made totally new and given a new heart and a new mind, enabling us to live as God originally designed. In this blog, we will look at some of the descriptions of the new person as found in the book of Ephesians, and may it be our prayer that God will continue to open our eyes to see more clearly what it means to be made new.

“We have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”

We have been chosen by God and adopted by Him.

“He has lavished upon us all wisdom and insight.”

We have been given the Holy Spirit to live in us.

God has made us alive together with Christ and has raised us up with Christ and we are seated with Christ in heavenly places.

We are His workmanship-created for good works.

We now “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.”

We are gifted by God.

We lay aside the old self and put on the new self.

We speak truth and we live in love.

We now speak words that build up and are kind to one another, forgiving each other.

We imitate God.  (Wow!)

We are now light in the Lord and this light consist in goodness and righteousness and truth.                                            

We do the things that please the Lord.

We make the most of our time.

We understand what the will of the Lord is for us.

We make melody in our heart and we can give thanks in all things.

We are strong in the Lord.

We put on the armor of God so that we stand strong.

With our faith, we overcome.         

Throughout the scriptures we find descriptions and insights as to what it means to be made new and we come to realize that the new birth (being born again) is indeed a new birth!  This new birth is where the old man is crucified and we become a new person with a new heart and a new mind.  The new birth is quite radical in the fact that old things pass away and new things come-we are actually transformed. However, as it has been said many times in recent blogs, knowing our new identity and walking in our newness is not automatic for the believer. Coming to discover our new identity starts with a desire to know God above all else and we come to know God through the reading and study of His word while asking Him to reveal truth to us. We need to approach God’s word with an open heart and mind  without preconceived ideas that may prevent us from seeing the truth of the scripture and  we must be willing to change what we believe if we find that it conflicts with God’s word.  Finally, we must adjust our thinking so that our thoughts are based on what God says is true, and we must put into action, or obey, the scriptural admonitions and commands that come to us from our Father who is the giver of all good things.  

Blessings,

Buddy

June 5, 2015                                                  WE  ARE  NEW – Part One

Ephesians 4:20-24: “But you did not learn Christ in this way, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, that in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lust of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which is in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

One of the most far reaching truths of all of scripture, a truth that has tremendous implications for all believers is that we have been made new! We have not been “improved” or simply “adjusted”, but made totally new-indeed a new species. Who we use to be has passed away. We cannot see or understand our being made new, apart from God revealing this truth to us. It is awesome that we have been made new, but it is even more awesome that our new self is made “in the likeness of God.” Perhaps we have trouble receiving or believing that we have been made new because so much of the teaching we have heard for many years has been focused on getting our “old person” improved or renovated. For example, we have heard the admonition and teaching that we must force ourselves to think “right”, because it is assumed that we naturally don’t think “right”. It is true that the old us, the old man, does not think as God would have us think  and no matter how hard we may try, we cannot in our own strength cause our mind to naturally think in the right way. The good news for us is that God has made us new and part of the newness is that we get a new mind that enables us to think as God intended man to think. With the new mind, it is natural to think the right way-it’s not difficult. (Let it be said that having a disciplined thought life is a good thing and we are called to take all thoughts captive). We also get new hearts when we come to know Jesus as our Savior and out of this new heart we express the love of God and we have compassion for others. With this new heart, the desire to sin is taken away, and in its place we find the desire to be pleasing to the Lord. If and when we have a desire to do something that is not pleasing to the Lord, it is because we are not living out of our new heart. It is helpful to know that the New Testament was given to show us our new identity-our newness in Christ. The commands of God call us to be who we really are; thus His commands are not burdensome. As wonderful as it is to be made new, it is possible for us not to live in or experience our newness, either because we do not know our true identity, or we simply choose to live contrary to the gospel-which is a precarious place to be as we see in Hebrews 10:29: “How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?”  As God opens our eyes and we begin to get a glimpse of just how awesome the New Covenant is-of what it means to be made new- we will notice that what use to be a struggle for us is no longer a struggle and we will find ourselves thinking and living in such a way that we are pleasing to Him. Walking in our new identity does not mean we never falter or sometime find the old self rearing its ugly head. The key is that we are to be continually putting on the new man and keep being renewed in the spirit of our minds. While we are made new at salvation, learning our new identity is a process and there is a maturing, or transformation that should be taking place. The new man is in place and now it is our opportunity to discover the new person we are. Living and walking in our newness is not forced on us and it is not automatic, but God, through the Holy Spirit within us, will reveal the truth about who we really are if we only ask Him to do so. In the next blog, we will discover what being new looks like in the practical.

2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

Blessings,

Buddy

June 2, 2015                                                              JOY

Romans 15:13: “May the God of hope fill with you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

The believers that Paul was writing to were living in a culture that was hostile to Christians and persecution was the norm- yet he was talking about being filled with joy! I don’t think Paul was expecting them to be “happy”, as happiness is tied to circumstances at the moment and happiness will come and go as circumstances change. On the other hand, joy is not dependent on circumstances but joy comes from knowing and trusting God who is the source of joy. When you think about it, it really is a miracle-a gift from God- to have joy even in the midst of trials. Trusting God and the fact that He is sovereign and that He loves, takes us out of the “natural” to a place where we can rise above the circumstances. When our trust is in God, we can see beyond the circumstances in which we find ourselves and we can be assured that “God is working all things for our good.” This does not mean that we don’t experience pain in adverse circumstances, but we do receive God’s strength “to help in time of need.” Joy is to be a hallmark of Christians. The definition of “hallmark” is fitting: “a mark stamped on articles of gold, silver or platinum in Britain, certifying their standard of purity-a stamp of authenticity.” The fruit of knowing God as Father is joy. However, just because one is a believer does not guarantee he or she will experience the joy of the Lord. It’s true to say that having the joy of the Lord is conditional. There are many factors that determine whether or not we experience the joy which is our birthright as a child of God. The overriding factor is whether or not we know our true identity as believers-that we have been made new and given new minds and new hearts enabling us to think like He thinks and live life as He designed. If we do not realize, and appropriate the fact that the old us has been crucified with Christ, we will not experience the abiding joy of the Lord. Even though we may know our identity in Him, there will likely be occasions when we do not have joy-and God knows that and that is why we have the scriptural admonition to “be transformed by the renewal of your mind.” God does not give us formulas to live by but He calls us to a living relationship with Him and the greater we understand this relationship we have with Him, the greater the joy. We will discover that joy may defy logic and we find joy flowing from the inside out like “rivers of living water” (John7:38).  Reading and applying the scriptures, doing the things that please the Lord, blessing others, being a part of a local church, and developing faithfulness are things we can do (not a formula-but because we love Him) that will make His joy a present reality. I believe that each of us want the hallmark of joy. Let us remember that we are called to a living, vital daily relationship with our Father and it is in His heart to fill us with His joy no matter what is taking place around us. Those around us need to see joy expressed-so let us be the ones to let the joy of the Lord shine through. If for some reason you don’t know His joy at the present, then be reminded that He wants to give you His joy-it’s yours for the asking.

Nehemiah 8:10  “the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

Psalms 16:11: “Thou will make known to me the path of life; in Thy presence is fullness of joy; in Thy right hand there are pleasures forever.”

Blessings,

Buddy