IS IT IN YOU?

The following are musings about how what you hold deep inside you will come out and show who you really are:

We have all seen the commercials.  You know the ones, about that drink product that implies people can do great athletic things if they drink it.  The commercials that are in black and white but when the person sweats their sweat drops are the color of the drink.  After each commercial implies that if you drink the drink then you can do just about anything athletic it ends with the question, “Is it in you?”

I recently heard two people discussing the collapse of the two towers of the World Trade Center that happened on 9/11.   They mentioned how, right before their collapse, people were actually jumping out of windows that were ten stories or more high.  People were so full of fear they jumped to their deaths. One person lamented (as we are apt to do when we see a great tragedy), “Where was God when this happened?”  The other calmly stated, “God was where each of those people wanted Him to be.”

Do you remember the fable about the scorpion and the turtle.  The scorpion needs to get to the other side of the pond and asks the turtle for a ride on his back.  The turtle figures that the scorpion will not sting him otherwise they would both drown so he agrees.  Halfway across the pond the scorpion stings the turtle.  As the turtle starts to go under he cries out to the scorpion, “Why did you sing me seeing that now we will both die?”  The scorpion replied, “It’s in my nature.”

Luke 6:45 states, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” (KJV Bible)  (See also Matthew 12:35 and Mark 7:20-22.)  I have heard preachers share this verse when they wanted people to understand why people can be cruel and hurtful with their words.

Romans 1:18-32 shows what men are like when they have evil treasure in their hearts:  ungodly and unrighteous who in their wickedness repress and even hinder the truth, making images of mortal men, birds, beasts and reptiles instead of worshiping the One who created these things, fulfilling their own vile sexual desires, covetous, greed, full of envy and jealousy, murder, strife, deceit, treachery, and cruelness.  Verse 32 states that they not only practice them but they “applaud others who practice them” (AMP Bible)

I guess I always associated Luke 6:45 with the teachings about the evil in people’s hearts, but I now notice that first sentence, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good…”

Galatians 5:22-23 shows what men are like when they have good treasure in their hearts:  they are full of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. 

All this makes me think about what is important to me.  What is it that fills my heart?  What is it that motivates me?  How will I respond when faced with adversity or tragedy?  “…for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.”  I want to be rid of my old nature (the old man) so I do not act out of it like the scorpion did (Eph. 4:17-32).  I want to be so full of the perfect love of God so that I do not act impulsively from fear like those who jumped from the towers but that I wait on Him for deliverance from my terrors (1 John 4:18).  I want to be so full of God Himself that His glory shines in contrast to this drab black and white world of sin like the brightly colored drops of that drink product stand out in those commercials (2 Cor. 3:18; Gal. 5:22-23).  I strive for Him to be in me.

Is He in You?

IMMINENT!

Matthew 24 & 25

“The kingdom of heaven is like…” Jesus used this phrase before a number of parables, but he spoke Matthew 25 right after sharing what signs we would see just before the end times came (in Matthew 24).  Both parables in Matthew 25 strongly show that Jesus return would be seem like it will not happen for quite some time but then happens “all of a sudden” and some will not be prepared.  Matthew 24:32-33 shows us that just as we observe when a fig tree puts out young shoots and leaves in the spring as a sign that we know summer is soon to follow, we should observe what He said will happen in the world (Matthew 24:4-31 all taken together) as being the sign that the age is ending and His return is imminent.

Some will be prepared for that return and some will not.  A good example of this is the parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13).  Jesus shared that ten women were ready to join in a formal wedding feast.  Each attendee would wear a special wedding garment (Matthew 22:11-14), would carry an invitation tablet or card, and a lamp or torch.   Great efforts were made to have an abundance of light at formal Oriental weddings which always took place at night (pg. 378-379, #708, Bible Manners and Customs).  They would then be admitted to the wedding feast when the wedding procession arrived, the door would be shut and no one would be allowed to enter after that.  These ladies appear to be all prepared.  They waited at night with their oil lamps burning.  It seemed that it took the bridegroom a long time, but finally they could hear the procession coming.  Six of the ladies realized that their lamps were almost out and since they did not come fully prepared with extra oil they had to go buy more.  While they were doing this the bridegroom came and the door to the wedding was shut.  They were shut out of the wedding. 

Jesus next words right after sharing this parable were, “Watch therefore (give strict attention and be cautious and active), for you know neither the day nor the hour when the Son of Man will come” (Matthew 25:13 AMP).  I love how the Amplified Bible states “be cautious and active”.  All around us we hear of wars and rumors of wars.  Take into account the revolts in a number of different Muslim countries within this past year, both in the Middle East and Asia.  There are earthquakes and famines in place after place.  Matthew 24 states that all this is but the “beginning” of those last days.  Jesus warned us with the parable of the fig tree that just as we know summer is near by observing the new spring growth on the fig tree, we will see (wars, rumors of wars, famines, earthquakes, false prophets, lawlessness, iniquity, and the abomination of desolation Daniel spoke of [Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11]) all considered together and we will know that He is near, “at the very doors.”  It is time to get ready for His coming.

We are living in the last generation.  We are in the beginning of the end.  It is time to be active in what He has called us to do.  We want to be ready, with enough oil in our lamps to shine bright so that when our Bridegroom comes we will hear him say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant…enter into the joy of thy lord.”

EVERYTHING IS FAITH AND FAITH IS EVERYTHING

I read an interesting concept in a book called “The Deep Things of God” by Norman Grubb.  In the chapter “Faith in Action” he points out “ALL activities of life, material or spiritual are activities of faith…” We are justified by faith (Rom. 5:1), saved by faith (Eph. 2:8), sanctified by faith (Acts 26:18), receive and exercise the gifts of the Spirit by faith (Rom. 12:3,6).  Christ dwells in our hearts by faith (Eph. 3:17) we walk by faith (2 Cor. 5:7), and we fight the good fight of faith (1 Tim. 6:12.)  There are many more references to what we have, are and do by faith.  I encourage you to use a concordance and look them up, list them and put them to memory.

We wake up every morning by faith.  There is a testimony often spoken in my church during testimony time, “God woke me up this morning.”  I always thought that an unusual thing to testify about, but when you think about it, He did not have to wake you this morning.  It could have been time for you to go home to be with Him.  You could have died in your sleep.  When you think about it that way, He really DID wake you up this morning!

We ate breakfast, lunch and dinner by faith.  Think about it.  What if our country was going through a drought and food was scarce?  What if we were homeless and could not afford food?  God provided that food you ate today!

How about something as simple as turning on a light when you enter a dark room?  You reach and flip the switch and light fills the room.  You flipped the switch believing that the light would come on.  Would you flip the switch if light never came on every time you flipped it?  You flipped the switch in faith.

Well, you begin to get the idea.  When you think about it, everything we do and everything that affects us is there by faith or we deal with it by faith.  Since faith is so important it would stand to reason that we should want as much of it as we can get.  God gives us a simple way to obtain it in Romans 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”  Putting the formula in reverse; a believer reads/studies the Bible and learns to hear God and when he knows how to and hears God he gains faith.

When your best friend calls you on the phone, how do you know their voice?  You know it because you have heard it often.  You heard it so often you recognize it right away.  It is the same way with the voice of God.  You have to hear Him a lot to recognize His voice.  If you want to recognize His voice, read His Word.  When you hear and recognize His voice you gain faith.  The more you listen to Him by reading His Word, the more your faith grows and the stronger your walk with Him.

What an excellent goal:  more faith.  Everything is faith and faith is everything!

“. . . AND ALL THAT IS WITHIN ME . . .”

Psalm 103:1

“Come on, let’s everybody stand…put your hands together and let’s clap and sing to glory!  …Let’s worship the Lord.  Everybody just clap their hands and let’s praise God…you might not have them tomorrow…you might have a wreck on the way home and have them cut off and you might never get to clap your hands for God anymore.  Let’s clap our hands and make a joyful noise unto the Lord!”

This was a cry from the Reverend Joe M. Miles of Scott Assembly of God, and what followed was a revival that burst through the city of Knoxville, Tennessee.

What began as a usual worship encouragement griped people’s hearts, and they really began to worship, with ALL their hearts.  How often do we worship, but not with ALL of our hearts?  How often do we sing in Church, but in the back of our mind we are remembering that we have a roast in the oven, or that the football game is starting soon?  How often do we present our offering out of routine rather than remembering that it is also a form of worship?  How often are we reading the bulletin, newsletter, Sunday School papers, or something else when the Pastor is preaching?

Every part of our Church Service is provided to help us focus on the object of our worship, Jesus Christ!  All the parts of our services are worthy of our FULL attention.  All the parts are where God IS.  In John 4 Jesus tells the woman at the well that “the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth; for the Father seeketh such to worship him.”  Can we be worshiping in “spirit and in truth” if our attention is not in it?  When asked what the greatest principle in the law was, Jesus told the Pharisees “You shall love the Lord your God with ALL your heart and with ALL your soul and with ALL your mind” (Mt. 22:37, emphasis mine)

A phrase I learned in the 12 Step Recovery process is “half measures avail us nothing!”  God is calling us to FULLNESS with Him.  Do you hear the call?