FREE AT LAST

Romans 6 & 1 John 3

(Please read these chapters before reading the following article.)

“We know that our old life was put to death on the cross with Christ. This happened so that our sinful selves would have no power over us. Then we would not be slaves to sin.” –Romans 6:6 ERV

One evening when Leon Patillo was a guest speaker at a church I attended a number of years ago he was sharing about just what it was that could pull Christians down and tear them apart.  To make the point he paced back and forth in front of the church saying, “What is it that can grip the souls of believers?  What is it that is constantly pulling at them?  What is it…?”  At this point a 4 year old boy in the front row exuberantly shouted out, “JESUS!” Mr. Patillo paused for a moment, then smiled and responded, “I hear you brother, but if it was Jesus our troubles would all be over.”  He went on to explain that it was sin.  It was when we allowed sin to rule and control us that we were pulled away from the Lord.  If only we allowed Jesus to control us then our troubles would be over.

“Surely you know that you become the slaves of whatever you give yourselves to. Anything or anyone you follow will be your master. You can follow sin, or you can obey God. Following sin brings spiritual death, but obeying God makes you right with him.” –Romans 6:16 ERV

In verse 16 Paul explains that whatever controls us is our master.  We are slaves to whatever we allow to control us.  Is it really that simple?  Yes it is.  If you pursue selfish desires (those that gratify your physical wishes and wants) then they will control you, but if you want to be free from the control of those sins then put God first: as your Master and as the Head of your life.

“In the past you were slaves to sin—sin controlled you. But thank God, you fully obeyed what you were taught.  You were made free from sin, and now you are slaves to what is right… now you are free from sin. You have become slaves of God, and the result is that you live only for God. This will bring you eternal life.” –Romans 6:17-18, 22 ERV

Do not just decide to allow Him to be your Lord and Master, but rather make it a daily purposeful decision and establish Him as such; “…the result is that you live only for God…” and you will really be “free at last!”

“No one born (begotten) of God [deliberately, knowingly, and  habitually] practices sin, for God’s nature abides in him [His principle of life, the divine sperm, remains permanently within him]; and he cannot practice sinning because he is born (begotten) of God.” -1 John 3:9 AMP

FORGIVING JUDAS

When I accepted the Lord as my Savior years ago I was told that I could have a “personal” relationship with Him.  Over the past 41 years I have learned more and more about Him as I study His Word and spend quality time with Him in worship and prayer.  The result: a close personal relationship with my Lord that I would not trade for the entire world.  This morning I read an article by Scott Harrup (the Managing Editor of the Pentecostal Evangel) that talked about Jesus as our dearest Friend but he also noted that we can take this relationship for granted.  Mr. Harrup said it in a nutshell when he wrote, “It’s almost as if, having lived for some months or years within the reality of a saving faith, we expect the attendant blessings as our due.”  As I read the article I was humbled to realize that I was taking God for granted:  knowing I was saved and believing all He promised I had an attitude of entitlement (I thought I was supposed to receive all He has to give me).  After all, are we not taught to believe in His promises?  What I realized is that I should believe His promises but recognize that He does not have to give them but rather chooses to give and stand by them.  Why, not because of anything I have done or am but because He loves me.

“Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.”  Isaiah 38:17 KJV

“He didn’t have to die for me.”  Our Youth Director shared this statement given by one of the children in our youth group with me recently.  The Youth Director went on to share that the full reality that Jesus was not forced to give up His life but that He chose to had dawned upon this child.  My salvation is another thing I tend to take for granted.  When I realized this morning that I was taking both my salvation and my personal relationship with the Lord for granted I asked His forgiveness.  As I contemplated how He is “Faithful to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness,” my thoughts cried out with the song writer when he wrote:    “Amazing love, how can it be, that Thou my Lord shouldst die for me?!”   

I have found that it is through His forgiveness that I can recognize His true love for me.  How deeply does His forgiveness run?  He forgave Judas, the one who betrayed Him up to His torturers with a kiss of friendship.  Now THAT is forgiveness; now THAT is love!

“I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.”  Isaiah 43:25 KJV

“For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.”  Heb. 8:12 KJV

“And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.”  Heb. 10:17 KJV

OPPORTUNITIES AND TRADITIONS

Every year, on Thanksgiving Day, it starts.  You would think that by now it’s causes are so repetitious we would not be affected, but we are.  Even when we steel ourselves against it and determine we will not respond the same way, we still do.  What is it?  Tears fill our eyes and we get lumps in our throats.

Be truthful with yourself!  Can you tell me that watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade does not move you?  If you are old enough, you remember the Rocky and Bullwinkle balloons.  Younger adults smile when they see the Ronald McDonald balloon.  To thrill the very young of age is Sponge Bob Square Pants.  Yet at the end of the Parade, every year comes Santa Clause and his sleigh.  If the balloons do not stir our hearts, Santa must.

As I experience the traditions of the season I find a comfort in the repetitions.  New traditions are great, but the old faithful ones make me feel secure in this ever-changing terrorist gripped world.  We start hearing and singing songs like “Sleigh Ride”, “Frosty The Snow Man” and “White Christmas”.  As we enter and exit stores shopping for Christmas presents we hear bell ringers and greetings of Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays.

We have such movie classics to watch such as: “It’s A Wonderful Life” where we relate to Jimmy Stewart’s character in finding out that the joy of life comes from our relationships with the people around us.  How many times do we remember our own childhood watching the boy who wanted a BB gun in “A Christmas Story”?  With the ‘all American’ sense of rooting for the underdog we cheer as Rudolph gains acceptance by saving the day (or should I say Christmas night?) in “Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer”.  I look forward to watching and hearing Danny Kaye and Bing Crosby recharge an old inn and an old man’s sense of value to the tune of ‘White Christmas’ in the colorized version of “Holiday Inn”.

These are the things that stir our emotions.

There are two things that not only stir my emotions but also bring those tears to my eyes and a lump in my throat:  when I sing “O Holy Night” and watching “A Charlie Brown Christmas”.

God has blessed me with a soprano voice.  The most challenging song I have ever sung is “O Holy Night”.  It starts out slow and melodious with words that establish the reason for the season, but build to a crescendo while the chorus comes commanding us to fall on our knees as we celebrate the night of the birth of our Savior.  Even with a lot of practice, I struggle singing the whole song through without those tears and that lump.

The thing that stirs my heart the most, though, is watching something as simple as another poor ’underdog’ struggle to be accepted only to feel like a failure.  In “A Charlie Brown Christmas” Charlie was tasked with finding a Christmas tree for the kid’s Christmas play.  The one he chose just did not cut the muster and the kids ridiculed him for it.  In his frustration, Charlie Brown cries out, “Can anyone tell me what Christmas is all about!?”  Then, right on national TV during prime-time Linus replies, “I can tell you what Christmas is all about…lights, please (and as a spot light is shined on Linus and it is absolutely quiet he calmly recites Luke 2:8-14)…

”And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And, Lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them:  and they were sore afraid.  And the Angel said unto them, fear not:  for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  For unto you is born this day to the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  And this shall be a sign unto you:  Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

Then Linus simply states, “That is what Christmas is all about.”  When I hear Linus start the recitation, I find those tears in my eyes and the lump in my throat and my mouth saying the words with him as my spirit soars to great heights in worship and adoration to my God and King for all He has done for me.

The business of the holiday season tends to rob us of the opportunities of sharing and worship.  Let the traditions of the season stir, lift and send you into flights of worship and adoration of the One the season is about.  Take the opportunities to share the gift of eternal life with those around you who do not know our Lord.  Would these not be the grandest of birthday gifts to give Jesus this year?

HIGHER GROUND

I’m pressing on the upward way,
New heights I’m gaining every day;
Still praying as I’m onward bound,
“Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.”

Sometimes I get complacent and comfortable in my life and walk with the Lord.  The American lifestyle makes that so easy.  This song by Johnson Oatman, Jr. (circa 1898) reminds me that I am not here on this earth to “just get by” or “hold on until the Lord comes”.  I am here to fulfill God’s will and be a delight to Him.  How can I do that if I am just dong enough to get by?  I always cry out to God for His help when I am going through a trial but what about when life is full of good times and complacency?

Lord, lift me up and let me stand,
By faith, on Heaven’s tableland,
A higher plane than I have found;
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

Lately I have been almost overwhelmed with the evil happening in the world.  Wars, killings, hate crimes, and natural disasters fill the news broadcasts every day.  If I pondered these things over and over I would tend to feel the hopelessness of it all but God has ordained that I not dwell there.  I turn to praise and singing when faced with so much evil and I join other believers in regular worship and praise (Hebrews 10:25).

I want to live above the world,
Though Satan’s darts at me are hurled;
For faith has caught the joyful sound,
The song of saints on higher ground.

I want to scale the utmost height
And catch a gleam of glory bright;
But still I’ll pray till heav’n I’ve found,
“Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

Have you ever heard the phrase “He’s so heavenly-minded that he’s no earthly good”?  I think that when we ARE heavenly-minded we can do the most earthly good!  I have found that when I focus on, trust in, rely on my Heavenly Father throughout the day then He gives me the words and actions that are in His will to reach out to those around me.  While I reach out I still hold His promises in my heart that He will return for me some day and take me to that final “higher ground” to live forever in His Presence.

Lord, lift me up and let me stand,
By faith, on Heaven’s tableland,
A higher plane than I have found;
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

Are you looking for relief from the troubles of this world?  Are you longing for peace in all the turmoil?  Are you looking for higher ground?  Turn to your Heavenly Father and He will lift you there even while you are still on the earth.

“For who is God except the Lord? Or who is the Rock save our God, The God who girds me with strength and makes my way perfect?  He makes my feet like hinds’ feet [able to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble]; He sets me securely upon my high places.”  -Psalm 18:31-33 AMP

FAT TUESDAY

When I was a teenager our family lived in Algiers which is a suburb of New Orleans.  My father served as a Chief Petty Officer in the Navy on the naval base there towards the end of his naval career.  Every year in the spring the city has a big celebration.  I remember going to see parades, watching brightly decorated floats go by with costumed people throwing out necklaces of beads, plastic gold and silver coins, and pieces of candy to everyone around.  It was such fun to grab as many of these items as I could.  This was my happy memory of Mardi Gras (or “Fat Tuesday” in English).

Years later I gained valuable insight into the reality of just what Fat Tuesday was really like.  As a student in Mission School our outreach team spent just under a week in New Orleans during the Mardi Gras of 1998.  A church in Algiers graciously housed our team in their Sunday School rooms and chapel for those days and nights since they were not holding any of their regular scheduled church services.  I remember asking why they were not holding any services and the pastor stated that during Mardi Gras most of the members went to visit families in other parts of the country because they did not want to be in the city when it was full of so much evil.  It causes one to wonder though, what would have happened if they instead had stayed and went to prayer during those two weeks? 

We were excited to get across the river and check it all out so we rode the ferry across the muddy red Mississippi and entered the French Quarter.  Even at 10 am there were hundreds of tourists and groups coming in and out of shops and jazz bars.  Many of them were already quite drunk and staggered out of one bar to the next.  My parents were quite careful to protect me from this side of Fat Tuesday so I was surprised to say the least.  We were carrying tracts titled “Are You Lost?” that had a map of the French Quarter and downtown New Orleans on the inside and a message about how Jesus can help one find their way spiritually on the back page.  The local Youth With A Mission base made up the tracts and found that because of the map inside people did not throw them away when handed one.  It was a great witnessing tool.

Around noon the local members of Youth With A Mission base team brought a casket accompanied by a small jazz band playing light-hearted jazz to Jackson Square (in the center of the French Quarter) and then they set the casket against a tree, opened it and displayed the body inside.  The band continued to play until quite a crowd had gathered then one of the mission team members, dressed in preacher’s clothes (circa 1800’s), started preaching for the funeral.  He started talking about what the man in the casket was like and when he stated, “He was a good man.”  The man in the casket opened one eye and shouted, “No I wasn’t”.  The funeral continued with the man in the casket countering everything the preacher said.  At first the crowd, when they got over the shock that the man was not really dead, would laugh at the banter between the preacher and the man in the casket but after a while the crowd grew silent.  This is when the preacher turned to the crowd and told them that if the man had really been dead it would have been too late to change or make amends for the bad things he had done in his life but the preacher then encouraged the crowd that it was not too late for them.  Many people gave their lives over to Jesus when the preacher invited them to do so.

Yes, though I walk through the [deep, sunless] valley of the shadow of death, I will fear or dread no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort me. –Psalm 23:4 AMP

Our team went back to the French Quarter in the evening but found it nearly impossible to share the Lord because almost everyone we met was drunk.  Other things we observed that evening were people brutally fighting, urinating or defecating in the street, and getting naked and having sex on open balconies.

These things were my adult memories of Mardi Gras.  The “magic” of the Mardi Gras of my youth was gone but the memory of people choosing to believe in Jesus in the midst of all the drunkenness and other debauchery made the trip worthwhile.  The one thing that still stands out in my mind though is the minister of that church telling me that the church members left the city during this time.  They obviously hated the evil running rampant during the weeks of Fat Tuesday so they fled it.  I admired the local Youth With a Mission team members who stayed, prayed and were daily witnesses of the Lord in the midst of all that evil.

“You, my children, who belong to God have already defeated this spirit, because the one who lives in you is far stronger than the anti-Christ in the world. The agents of the anti-christ are children of the world, they speak the world’s language and the world, of course, pays attention to what they say. We are God’s children and only the man who knows God hears our message; what we say means nothing to the man who is not himself a child of God. This gives us a ready means of distinguishing the true from the false.” -1 John 4:4-6 PHILLIPS

In less than two weeks another season associated with evil approaches.  It has the fun elements of dressing in elaborate costumes and getting candy like I enjoyed when I was a child watching the Mardi Gras floats pass by, but it also has its unseen evil side as well.  Many Christians I know do not believe in celebrating Halloween.  They leave their porch light off and do not answer the door, watching TV instead and trying to ignore the festivities.  I used to be one of them.  This year I choose to not be like the Christians that fled New Orleans for those two weeks in the spring.  This Halloween I choose to be a person who goes to prayer and battle wickedness where it counts, in the spiritual realm.  Will you join me?

The reverent, worshipful fear of the Lord leads to life, and he who has it rests satisfied; he cannot be visited with [actual] evil. –Proverbs 19:23 AMP

“…The King of Israel, even the Lord [Himself], is in the midst of you; [and after He has come to you] you shall not experience or fear evil any more...” –Zephaniah 3:15b AMP

DROUGHT

Psalm 32

“For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: My moisture was changed [as] with the drought of summer. [Selah]” – Psalm 32:4

I have read with some concern but more often amusement at the proliferation of articles in the news lately about the drought happening in California.  The concern stems from the fact that I live in the state and often ponder how water restrictions may affect me; the amusement stemming from the many ideas being floated around or actually being implemented to help alleviate the situation, such as desalination plants and shipping water into California from Oregon and Washington.  Mankind does not like to deal with uncertainty and will strive to find ways to control what they often cannot control.

There have been times of drought throughout the ages and mankind has survived them, but that does not mean that we are comfortable with or enjoy them.  Just as there are physical droughts, there are spiritual droughts.

Some spiritual droughts are caused by the Lord.  He sends a sense of dryness to drive us closer to Him to find refreshing for our souls.  I heard one pastor teach that when things seem dry spiritually then just keep doing what you know to do:  keep reading in God’s Word, keep fellow-shipping with other believers, continue in regular prayer, and God will send refreshing in perfect time.

Most spiritual droughts are caused by sin and we can bring them upon ourselves when we sin (Psalm 68:6; Jeremiah 50:38).  So how do we get out of these spiritual droughts?

In Matthew Henry’s commentary regarding Psalm 32 he reflects on the fact that mankind tends to keep silent regarding sin.  Man likes to hide his sins from himself and tries not to even think about them by diverting his mind to something else, like something he wants to do, somewhere he wants to go, or some project he wants to complete.  He states that mankind chooses to “…pine away in their iniquities than to take the method which God has appointed of finding rest for their souls. Let such expect that their smothered convictions will be a fire in their bones, and the wounds of sin, not opened, will fester, and grow intolerably painful. If conscience be seared, the case is so much the more dangerous; but if it be startled and awake, it will be heard. The hand of divine wrath will be felt lying heavily upon the soul, and the anguish of the spirit will affect the body; to the degree David experienced it, so that when he was young his bones waxed old; and even his silence made him roar all the day long, as if he had been under some grievous pain and distemper of body, when really the cause of all his uneasiness was the struggle he felt in his own bosom between his convictions and his corruptions.”

Ignoring spiritual droughts caused by sin will not make them go away so God has provided a way for us to come out of them.  We are taught to declare our sins to God and ask for His forgiveness.  This is what David did in verse 5a (AMP):

“I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord [continually unfolding the past till all is told]…”

Matthew Henry says of this verse that, “Those that would have the comfort of the pardon of their sins must take shame to themselves by a penitent confession of them. We must confess the fact of sin, and be particular in it (Thus and thus have I done), confess the fault of sin, aggravate it, and lay a load upon ourselves for it (I have done very wickedly), confess the justice of the punishment we have been under for it (The Lord is just in all that is brought upon us), and that we deserve much worse—I am no more worthy to be called thy son. We must confess sin with shame and holy blushing, with fear and holy trembling.”

True confession and repentance is more than just a set of words, “I sinned God, forgive me.”  True confession and repentance is telling God that we know and acknowledge how evil and shameful what we did is and that we choose to walk another way and never do it again.  One thing I learned while at Mission School was that we (mankind) tend to tell God what to do when we ask forgiveness of Him.  If we are truly honest with ourselves we find that the simple, “I sinned God, forgive me,” is not really a request.  It is a command.  Who am I to command God?!

True confession draws itself from our inner hearts as we fully see the evil we did and want to be cleansed from it.  Our hearts cry out to God to free us from this thing (sin) which has enslaved us and parched our souls to spiritual drought.  When we do this then God hears our cry and His response is immediate:

“…—then You [instantly] forgave me the guilt and iniquity of my sin. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!” (Verse 5b AMP)

I love how Matthew Henry comments on this:  “Concerning God’s readiness to pardon sin to those who truly repent of it: "I said, I will confess (I sincerely resolved upon it, hesitated no longer, but came to a point, that I would make a free and ingenuous confession of my sins) and immediately thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin, and gavest me the comfort of the pardon in my own conscience; immediately I found rest to my soul.’’  (Italic emphasis is mine.)

How wonderful to know that spiritual drought caused by sin can end so quickly.  Are you in a spiritual drought today?  Take a moment right now and seek God out.  If it is a drought to draw you closer to Him then as you draw near through the Word, fellowship with believers, and prayer you will find refreshing again.

If it is a sinful drought consider one more note from Matthew Henry’s commentary on Psalm 35:  “…God is more ready to pardon sin, upon our repentance, than we are to repent in order to the obtaining of pardon. It was with much ado that David was here brought to confess his sins; he was put to the rack before he was brought to do it.”   Do not be like David and keep putting it off.  Confess and repent right now to obtain your immediate relief.

“And the Lord shall guide you continually and satisfy you in drought and in dry places and make strong your bones. And you shall be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters fail not.” – Isaiah 58:11 AMP

DOLDRUMS

Doldrums was a word used more often before the Industrial Revolution by sailors on schooners and sailing ships denoting periods when the winds would be calm or disappear altogether, trapping sail-powered boats for periods of days or even weeks.  They are actually caused by low-pressure areas mostly around the equator in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.  The low-pressure is caused by the heat at the equator, which makes the air rise and travel north and south high in the atmosphere leaving little to no wind to propel sail-driven vessels.  Sailors obviously disliked the “doldrums” because of the state of inactivity, listlessness and stagnation they created in their journey.  The actual meaning of the word “doldrums” comes from dold (an archaic term meaning “stupid”) and –rum(s) a noun suffix found in such words as tant-rum’.

I have found that in my Christian journey there are spiritual “doldrums”, periods of time where things seem slow, flat or boring, or even come to a stand-still.  Even though I am still doing everything God calls me to do I do not always experience excitement, like when He answers something long prayed for or when I really experience a worship service that just seems engulfed in His Shekinah Glory.  What should we do when spiritual things are dull, hot, stuffy, flat and still?  We can take a lesson from the sailors who lived and worked in the doldrums:  keep on doing what you KNOW to do.  Did the sailors quit working and sit around in the shade waiting on the wind to kick back up again?  No they went about their jobs scrubbing the decks, repairing and replacing woodwork, tools, sails, and other needs they did not have time to see to when they were underway.  The times things seem stagnate are the very times I need to be faithful to spend daily time reading the Word of God, praying, singing praise, and giving thanks.  It is during the spiritual “doldrums” that I should make every effort to fellowship with other believers and share the Gospel to those around me in need of my Savior.  A friend of mine once said in a sermon, “When you do not know what to do…do what you DO KNOW to do.”

The “doldrums” can also be times of reflection and refreshing.  One of the most important lessons I learned at Youth With A Mission Discipleship Training School was, “When things seem off or go wrong go to the last thing the Lord told you to do…did you do it?  If not, GO DO IT!”  Maybe things seem stagnate because God is trying to get your attention.  Seek Him out.  Ask Him to show you what He wants you to do.

We can look to the sailors experience with the “doldrums” for another key in our experience with spiritual “doldrums”.  The sailors always knew the wind would return eventually so they made preparations to get underway as soon as they felt the winds pick up.  We know that spiritual dryness comes in our walk with the Lord, but we can be prepared for the day ahead as we continue to spend daily quality time with and remain obedient to Him.  When we do that, as He promised, the days of refreshing will return (Isaiah 58:9-12).

THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP

Luke 14:26-33

How important is being a Christian to you?  Do you try to live a righteous life?  Are you careful not to cuss?  Do you pray every day for those living around you?  Do you avoid your old lifestyle, stay away from bars and dance clubs?  Are you striving to pay your tithes, make it to church every Sunday, sing in the choir or serve in some capacity?  I could go on and on listing things that most Christians strive to do or avoid but I think you get the picture.  These are things we associate with being a Christian:  a disciple of Christ.  They are important, for sure, but are not really that important to the Lord.  Remember, He does not look at our actions as much as what motivates our actions (1 Sam. 16:7).

(26) “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his [own] father and mother [in the sense of indifference to or relative disregard for them in comparison with his attitude toward God] and [likewise] his wife and children and brothers and sisters—[yes] and even his own life also—he cannot be My disciple.  Whoever does not persevere and carry his own cross and come after (follow) Me cannot be My disciple.”

I love how the Amplified Bible states that “hate” is to have “indifference to or relative disregard…in comparison with his attitude toward God”.  The best example we have of this is in Jesus.  When he was speaking to a group of people it was announced to Him that Him mother and brothers were waiting outside to speak to Him.  What was His response?  “Who is My mother, and who are My brothers?  And stretching out His hand toward [not only the twelve disciples but all] His adherents, He said, Here are My mother and My brothers.  For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother!” Matt. 12:48-50.  Now did Jesus actually hate his mother and brothers?  No, but He held His Heavenly Father’s will as supreme and of more importance.

God wants preeminence in our lives.  He wants to be the only focus for our lives.  He has a plan for each of our lives and He knows we cannot and will not follow it unless we are looking to Him for directions (Jeremiah 29:11).  If you really want to be a Christian, a disciple of Christ, then you need to have the motivation to act like one.  You can go around doing all the right things, saying all the right things, and acting the right way but still be going straight to hell.  Remember God looks on the heart (1 Sam. 16:7).

Motivation is the first consideration in being a disciple of Christ but you have to consider just what it will cost you to go through with what motivates you.

(28-30) “For which of you, wishing to build a farm building, does not first sit down and calculate the cost [to see] whether he has sufficient means to finish it?  Otherwise, when he has laid the foundation and is unable to complete [the building], all who see it will begin to mock and jeer at him, Saying, This man began to build and was not able (worth enough) to finish.”

I have observed believers who believed God wanted them to go into full-time missions.  Then they sold all they had to fund their training and then worked hard to raise funds to go to a place they felt called to.  When they arrived there they worked so hard in sometimes severe conditions to share the gospel.  When they came home to the United States on sabbatical they decided to not return because they were “burned-out”.  I have also observed some missionaries who, when they returned on sabbatical, spent their whole time going from church to church not just to raise money but to raise awareness and prayer support for the people they are working with.  Instead of being “burned-out” they were infused with joy, enthusiasm and energy.  What was the difference?  The first type of believers went into the mission field unprepared.  They had not counted what it would cost them emotionally and spiritually.  They had not continued to check in with God as to what HE wanted them to do and where HE wanted them to go.  The second type of believers went knowing there would be hard times and severe conditions but they had a plan ahead of time to keep focused on God for themselves, knowing that if they became weak spiritually they would not be effective witnesses of the Gospel.

 (31-32) “Or what king, going out to engage in conflict with another king, will not first sit down and consider and take counsel whether he is able with ten thousand [men] to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?  And if he cannot [do so], when the other king is still a great way off, he sends an envoy and asks the terms of peace.”

Being a disciple has a cost, and more often than not the cost is severe.  I shared a story in January from Kyle Idleman’s book “Not a Fan” that shows this more clearly:

 “A few years ago I was pretty deep into some tribal areas of Africa.  One night I finished preaching a message to a crowd of a few dozen people.  I presented the gospel and the invitation of Jesus to follow him.  There were two young men, probably in their twenties, who accepted Christ and committed to follow him.  The following afternoon these two men showed up at the house where we were staying.  They each carried a good sized bag over their shoulder.  I went over and asked the local missionary we were staying with why they were here.  He explained that these two men would no longer be welcomed by their families or in their village.  When I heard that, I was afraid that maybe this was going to be more than they would be willing to go along with.  About that time the missionary said to me, ‘They knew this would happen when they made the decision’.

They were choosing Jesus over their families.  They were choosing Jesus over their own comfort and convenience, and fans don’t do that.”

 

Followers are willing to deny themselves and say, ‘I choose Jesus.  I choose Jesus over my family.  I choose Jesus over money.  I choose Jesus over career goals.  I am his completely.  I choose Jesus over getting drunk.  I choose Jesus over looking at porn.  I choose Jesus over a redecorated house.  I choose Jesus over my freedom.  I choose Jesus over what other people may think of me.’  A follower makes a decision every day to deny himself and choose Jesus…even if it costs everything,” (“not a fan”, pg 145).

(33) “So then, any of you who does not forsake (renounce, surrender claim to, give up, say good-bye to) all that he has cannot be My disciple.”

To follow Christ has its costs, sometimes severe costs, but the joys and fellowship we enjoy with God and other believers far outweigh the costs.  I know that I would never give up all the hard times I went through so far in my life if it meant I would have to give up Jesus.  There is a song I like to sing that says it best:

You may ask me why I serve the Lord.
Is it just for heaven's gain?
Or to walk the mighty streets of gold,
And to hear the angels sing?

Is it just to drink from the fountain
That never will run dry.
Or just to live forever, ever and ever
In the sweet ol' by and by.

But if heaven never was promised to me
Neither God's promise to live eternally
It's been worth just having the Lord in my life.
Living in a world of darkness,
He brought me the light.

If there were never any streets of gold,
Neither a land where we'll never grow old,
It's been worth just having the Lord in my live
Living in a world of darkness
He brought me the light.

He's been my closest friend all through the years.
And every time I cry, He dries my tears.
It's been worth just having the Lord in my life.
Living in a world of darkness,
He brought me the light.

By Andre Crouch
(c) 1973, Bud John Songs, Inc.

GOD'S MISSION OF REDEMPTION

We all know the story of Adam and Eve and how they disobeyed God.  There was a result to that disobedience that has affected every human being since that day such as man having to work hard to gain substance for his family, women having to experience terrible pain just to bring a child into the world, and the loss of intimate fellowship and friendship with God:

Genesis 3:15 AMP

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her Offspring; He will bruise and tread your head underfoot, and you will lie in wait and bruise His heel.”

Enmity means:  hostility, hate, and antagonism.  Since that day satan has done everything he can to keep us in our sinful state and away from God.  He is everyone’s enemy.  He is your enemy.    He does not want you to succeed.  In fact, He wants you to fail, to suffer, to give up on God.  He does this by tempting you to live a life of sin.  He makes his offers enticing, and hits where you are weakest.  Those of us in addiction really know what this is like.  “Just one little taste won’t hurt…just one snort…just one shot,” and in giving into that temptation we find ourselves back, full-blown into our addiction.  “It’s alright Eve, just one bite…”

A life of sin is a life of disobedience.  If we choose to sin then we are not choosing God.  Sin breaks our fellowship with God but in His mercy He is willing to forgive and to restore our (mankind’s) relationship with Him.  When God told satan what his punishment would be for enticing Eve and Adam to sin He included a prophecy of how He would release us from this curse of sin.  When God says, “You will strike his heal,” He refers to satan’s work of putting Jesus to death physically.  When God said that satan’s head would be bruised and treaded on He was referring to the work Jesus’ death and resurrection did not only physically but spiritually.  While a strike to the heal is not deadly a strike to the head is quite lethal.  Even from the beginning God revealed how important and special we are to Him.  On that same day sin became our curse Divine Love proclaimed the promise of release from it by pointing to Jesus:

“For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.  For God did not send the Son into the world in order to judge (to reject, to condemn, to pass sentence on) the world, but that the world might find salvation and be made safe and sound through Him.”  – John 3:16-17

You are greatly loved!  God longs for your fellowship.  I am speaking right now to those who already believe that Jesus has redeemed them from the curse of sin.  Are you living in that redemption?  Reaffirm your commitment to Him right now.  I am also speaking right now those of you who have never accepted what Jesus did for you and those of you who are not sure.  You are greatly loved!  Father God gave up His only Son to die and redeem you from the curse of sin.  He wants to make YOU “safe and sound.” All He ever asks in return is your heart.  Won’t you give it to Him today?

I would love to hear from you regarding what you decided.  Please email me at kingsmonarch@gmail.com with the word “redemption” in the title line.

REFLECTIONS ON PRAYER

If we spent as much time in prayer as we did worrying…!

People often approach my Pastor saying, “Pastor, will you pray for me?”  His concerned gentle response is usually, “Are you praying for yourself?”  Of course he will pray for them but the reason he asks this is that they often do not pray for themselves.  They seek out someone they perceive as more “spiritual” or someone they think has a stronger connection with God.  Friends, let me encourage you, if you know Jesus as your Savoir then YOU have the strongest connection there is to the Throne Room of the Heavenly Father!  “Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you.  For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, [the door] will be opened.”  Matt. 7:7-8 AMP

Of course, just because we believers have direct access to the Creator of the universe it does not mean that we can just ask for any thing we want.  If your eight year old asked for the keys to the car would you just give them to him?  We also have to consider with what desires or attitudes we come with to our Heavenly Father in prayer.  “What leads to strife (discord and feuds) and how do conflicts (quarrels and fighting’s) originate among you? Do they not arise from your sensual desires that are ever warring in your bodily members?  You are jealous and covet [what others have] and your desires go unfulfilled; [so] you become murderers. [To hate is to murder as far as your hearts are concerned.] You burn with envy and anger and are not able to obtain [the gratification, the contentment, and the happiness that you seek], so you fight and war. You do not have, because you do not ask.  [Or] you do ask [God for them] and yet fail to receive, because you ask with wrong purpose and evil, selfish motives. Your intention is [when you get what you desire] to spend it in sensual pleasures.”  -James 4:1-3 AMP

Prayer does not always bring on instant results.  Daniel prayed and it took a while before the angel came with his answer because of a spiritual battle with the evil “prince” over that area, but he kept on praying until the answer arrived (Daniel 9-10).  This was the way Daniel waiting on the Lord, he prayed.

Sometimes we have to wait for the answer, but even waiting can bring glorious results!  “And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.”  –Isaiah 30:18 AMP

Leon Patillo once shared in a concert that waiting on God is not just sitting around waiting for something to happen, but rather it is being like the athlete getting ready for his race.  He does not sit or stand around; he gets set secure against the starting blocks, ready to pulse forward at the sound of the starting pistol.

If you have prayed for something and have not received your answer then wait on the Lord.  Wait is a verb and a verb is an action.  Be like Daniel and KEEP PRAYING!  He WILL answer at just the right time.  He will not allow any delay to deter His answer. 

“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”  –Isaiah 40:31 AMP

DON'T LOOK BACK!

“And it occurred that as they were going along the road, a man said to Him, Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.  And Jesus told him, Foxes have lurking holes and the birds of the air have roosts and nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.  And He said to another, Become My disciple, side with My party, and accompany Me!  But he replied, Lord, permit me first to go and bury (await the death of) my father.  But Jesus said to him, Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and publish abroad throughout all regions the kingdom of God.  Another also said, I will follow You, Lord, and become Your disciple and side with Your party; but let me first say good-bye to those at my home.  Jesus said to him, No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back [to the things behind] is fit for the kingdom of God.”  –Luke 9:57-62 AMP

The end of the year is the time mankind tends to look back and reflect on how the year went and then make commitments (New Year’s resolutions) to change in the upcoming year.  Of course it is often joked about that most New Year’s resolutions are not followed through with.  With our old nature it is hard to nearly impossible for us to change.  Christians should not have this problem.  We should be changing continually throughout the year, day-by-day, as God works with us to bring to completion the salvation of our souls (mind, will to do, intellect, and emotions) –Phil. 2:12-13.  Let us take a moment right now and do a self-assessment:  Am I changing to be more like Christ day-by-day?    No?  What is hindering me?

One of the things that can stop us from growing in the Lord is looking back.  Looking back really should not be part of the Christian lifestyle.  What does looking back get us?  In Luke 9 one man walking with Jesus told Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.”  He had the right attitude but Jesus pointed out to him that it would not be an easy journey.  The scripture does not tell us what the man decided after that but I would like to think that he was not discouraged and continued on with Jesus.  He did not look back.  Right after speaking with this man Jesus turned to another and told him to become His disciple.  This man’s response tells us that he reflected and decided he wanted to tend to his family first.  He “looked back” and I surmise with that attitude that he did not continue on with Jesus.  A third man then told Jesus that he would follow Him and become his disciple but he first wanted to go home and say good-bye to his family.  Although this man spoke of being a committed follower Jesus could see his heart was not fully committed.  He was looking back.  Jesus pointed out this lack for full commitment by comparing it to a man plowing a field.

My Uncle Harry had a ranch in Colorado and he grew corn and sugar beats.  I used to ride with him on his tractor while he plowed the fields to prepare them for planting.  I learned then that if you are going down the length of the field and you look back to see how well the plow is doing then the tractor tends to drift either to the right or left, depending which shoulder you are looking over, and often you miss turning over about a 10 to 20 foot section of earth.  Then you have to go back over that section wasting time and fuel.  If you did that very often you would not be a good farmer or rancher.  Don’t look back.

 Let me share another instance of looking back:

“And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.  And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.  And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed…Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.  But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.” –Genesis 19:15-17, 24-26 KJV

The scripture does not say why Lot’s wife looked back but I can imagine it was very hard for her, having lived the nomadic life for so long before coming to Sodom, facing living in tents again, away from the comforts and ease of city living.  She probably had friends she had to leave behind, let alone her rich belongings being the wife of a wealthy man.  Maybe, as they rushed away, she heard the thunderous noise of the destruction of the two cities behind her.  In any case, she looked back.  She looked back to the life she once had and she was immediately turned into a pillar of salt.

Now I know you are thinking, "Well, we're not going to turn into salt in this day and age," and you are probably right but looking back always has consequences, and not looking back has them too.  Listen to something Kyle Idleman wrote in his book, "Not a Fan" (which I strongly encourage every believer purchase and read): 

“A few years ago I was pretty deep into some tribal areas of Africa.  One night I finished preaching a message to a crowd of a few dozen people.  I presented the gospel and the invitation of Jesus to follow him.  There were two young men, probably in their twenties, who accepted Christ and committed to follow him.  The following afternoon these two men showed up at the house where we were staying.  They each carried a good sized bag over their shoulder.  I went over and asked the local missionary we were staying with why they were here.  He explained that these two men would no longer be welcomed by their families or in their village.  When I heard that, I was afraid that maybe this was going to be more than they would be willing to go along with.  About that time the missionary said to me, ‘They knew this would happen when they made the decision’.

They were choosing Jesus over their families.  They were choosing Jesus over their own comfort and convenience, and fans don’t do that.

 

Followers are willing to deny themselves and say, ‘I choose Jesus.  I choose Jesus over my family.  I choose Jesus over money.  I choose Jesus over career goals.  I am his completely.  I choose Jesus over getting drunk.  I choose Jesus over looking at porn.  I choose Jesus over a redecorated house.  I choose Jesus over my freedom.  I choose Jesus over what other people may think of me.’  A follower makes a decision every day to deny himself and choose Jesus…even if it costs everything,” (“not a fan”, pg 145).

There is no place in the Kingdom of God for looking back.  If you want to be a committed follower of Jesus you have to commit with your whole heart.  You cannot continue to love the world and follow Jesus (Mt. 16:24-26).  You cannot look back (Luke 9:62).  Do not wait and make a New Year’s resolution to be a committed follower.  Purpose in your heart to go hard after God (Ps. 63:8).  Do it today, and tomorrow, and make it a renewed commitment every day from here on out.  Now is the time to look forward, forward to everything God has in His plan for your life, forward to the ways He will deliver you through your trials, forward to growing ever closer and deeper in love with Him.

“For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.” –Jeremiah 29:11 AMP