Loving like Jesus is a command from Jesus that every ordinary christian must learn to obey if they are going to shine the Light of Christ brightly in their part of this dark world.
Read More1 Major Obstacle To Magnifying Christ
/As Christians were are shine the light of Jesus brightly in our part of this dark world but the question I think we need to ask ourselves is how we can magnify Christ even larger in a world filled with darkness. Or, are there any obstacles that keep us from magnifying Christ in and through our lives.
In this video I will identify a hug obstacle that blocks Christ from being magnified.
Watch This Video & See If You Are Magnifying Christ Or Is There Something That Needs To Be Changed!
What Will It Take To Reach Your Community With The Gospel Of Jesus Christ!
/When we as God’s Children hear that it is our responsibility to make sure that our community hears about the Good News of Jesus Christ we get a bit overwhelmed and begin to doubt whether or not that is even possible. This is especially true if we live in an urban area like Los Angeles or New York City.
Well I want to encourage you today and maybe even empower you using God’s Word. Take a few moments and watch this video about a time when Christ’s Good News totally saturated and urban center of that time. And then never forget. ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD!
Russia, Ukraine, & God's Sovereign Control
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There is so much grave concern about what is going on with Russia in regards to Urkraine. And understandably so! But I also want to remind my brothers and sisters in Christ about the lesson God taught King Nebuchadnezzar. It is a lesson that we as God's people need to remember and find comfort in. Here is what God said to the Great King Nebuchadnezzar,
"... and this is the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king: that you be driven away from mankind and your dwelling place be with the beasts of the beasts of the field, and you be given greass to east like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven; and seven periods of time will pass over you until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes." Daniel 4:25
While this is disturbing! While this invasion should cause all of us to stand up, take notice and choose to do something about it. We also need to remember that God is not only on His thrown but God is also in charge of what nations are raised up, what nations are torn down and that it is all about God bringing about the end of this present age and bringing in the age to come also known as the Millennial Kingdom where Christ reigns for a 1000 years.
From an earthly perspective we see nations positioning themselves to further their ambitions but from a Heavenly perspective God is moving His chess pieces to usher in his Kingdom.
So, with all that is going on let us pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ who live in Ukraine but let us also keep our faith in the Lord Jesus strong and remember that even the nations of this world are under His sovereign authority. And let us pray for God's Kingdom to come and God's will to be done on earth just as it is in Heaven.
Remember the words of Jesus when He told his disciples,
" ... you will be hearing of wars and rumors of war. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom and against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all of these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs." Matthew 24:6-8
Remember God is still in control!
5 Reasons Why You Need To Put To Death The Deeds Of The Flesh & Live By The Spirit!
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The Bible admonishes us in Romans 8:13 to put to death the deeds of the sinful flesh by the Holy Spirit so that we might truly live. In other words, true life in the Spirit can only happen when true death happens to the lifestyle of the sinful flesh. Before one can live the other must die.
Jesus put it this way in Luke 9:23,24:
“And he was saying to them all, ‘If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.” NASB
Again we see this dying in order to live. Life in Christ and life in the Spirit cannot fully happen until their is a death to self and to the sinful deeds of the flesh. And according to Jesus this dying must be a daily activity. It is not something a Christian does once and he’s all good to go. No! On the contrary. Death to the sinful deeds of the flesh is something that needs to happen on a day by day basis and sometimes on a moment by moment basis.
Today we are going to look at a story of Peter and Jesus that will give us 5 reasons why this daily dying is so very important. This story is found in Matthew 16:13-23. It says,
“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets. ‘But what about you?” he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’ Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’ Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. ‘Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!’. Jesus turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” (NIV)
From this story we can learn 5 important things about why a Christian should daily put to death the deeds of the sinful flesh and begin to walk in the Spirit of God. Because:
A Christian Can Transition From Walking In The Spirit To Living By The Deeds Of The Sinful Flesh Very Quickly And Without Noticing It.
Did you notice how this story started off? It started off with Jesus asking a couple of questions about who do people says that Jesus is. Then Jesus got very specific and personal with a second question. He ask: “Who do you say I am?”
In that moment Peter filled with the Holy Spirit answered the question, “You are the Christ the Son of the living God.” And it was the corrected answer! And Jesus explained how it was that Peter was able to come up with the right answer. Jesus said it was because God had revealed the answer to Him and that Peter hadn’t learned it from any man.
You see God the Father through the working of the Holy Spirit made known to Peter who Jesus really was. At that very moment Peter was in the Spirit, filled with the Spirit or understanding the identity of Jesus because of the Spirit.
But then Jesus begins to explain all that was going to happen once they get into Jerusalem. He shared that he was necessary for Him (Jesus) to suffer many things, be killed and then be raise back to life again on the third day.
Why was Jesus telling his disciple these things? Maybe it was to prepare them for what was about to happen; maybe Jesus felt that since Peter had to nicely answered the question about His identity that the disciples were ready to hear more or maybe it was a combination of both of these things and others all combined. But is note worthy is how Peter responded to this disturbing news.
Peter takes Jesus aside and begins to rebuke Jesus! Really? Did Peter really feel that he had the right or maybe status to rebuke Jesus? Who knows but that’s what Peter did and Jesus quickly and powerfully corrects Peter for doing it.
Here’s the point I’m trying to make. One moment Peter is walking in the Spirit and then minutes later Peter is now walking in the deeds of the sinful flesh. It happened that quick! In just minutes.
The need for being vigilant in daily crucifying the deeds of the flesh because we can move very quickly from walking in the Spirit to walking in the flesh and not even know we made the transition.
Walking In The Deeds Of The Sinful Flesh Can Cause You To Start Rebuking Christ.
Did you noticed that once Peter moved from walking in the Spirit to walking in the deeds of the flesh the first thing he did was to pull Jesus off to the side and “rebuke” Jesus. That’s right the Bible said Peter rebuked Jesus!
Now before you get to far onto you holy horse and proudly declare that you would never do anything like that let me ask you some self examining questions:
A: Have you ever complained to God about the some disappointing experience in your life?
B: Have you ever argued with God about some ministry assignment that He was giving you?
C: Have you ever avoided reading the Bible because you really didn’t want to hear what God had to say?
If you answered “Yes” to any of those questions then you have been guilty of rebuking God. Why? Because, just like Peter, you are telling God that you know better than Him and that God should listen to you.
Instead of rebuking Christ Peter should have taken this disturbing news to Christ and ask him to explain further and to give him more understanding about what He is hearing. Likewise, we too, should go to God is prayer when we hear or sense God telling us something that we really don’t want to hear. Not to argue or rebuke God but to ask for wisdom and understanding.
Walking In The Deeds Of The Sinful Will Make You Into A Tool Of Satan.
When Jesus hears Peter’s rebuke Jesus quickly identify’s what is going on and who is behind all this stuff coming out of Peter’s mouth. Jesus cry’s out, “Get behind me Satan …”
Jesus was making it perfectly clear that he knew exactly who was behind all this and that in a quick moment Peter had, at best, become a tool for Satan. Satan was using Peter to get Jesus off his path of obedience to the Father.
Here we can clearly see why is it of the utmost importance that we daily killed the deeds of the sinful flesh and walk in the Spirit. Because if we fail to do so we can quickly become a tool of Satan to try to obstruct God’s plan and mission.
Now I don’t think that it was Peter’s intention or desire to be a tool of Satan and I don’t think he even knew he was until Jesus identified it. And likewise, I don’t think any of God’s people desire to be used by Satan but that’s exactly what can and will happen if we are not vigilant in putting to death the deeds of the sinful flesh.
Walking In The Deeds of The Sinful Flesh Will Make You Into A Roadblock To God’s Work.
If calling Peter a tool of Satan wasn’t enough Jesus then tells Peter that he had now become a hinderance to Him. He was holding Jesus back, Peter had become a roadblock to Jesus from doing what He was sent to do.
What exactly was Peter hindering Jesus from doing? Well, Jesus had just been explaining that it was “Necessary” for him to go to Jerusalem, suffer many things, die and then be resurrected, so it is only reasonable that Jesus was telling Peter that you are trying to keep me from becoming the sacrificial lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. Unknowingly, Peter was being an obstacle that if successful would prevent Jesus from taking the punishment of God for our sins. This was the reason for Jesus’ birth - it was to die on the cross and Peter was being a hinderance to Jesus fulfilling that purpose.
Did you know that your failure to put to death the deeds of the sinful flesh can actually be used as a hinderance to God in fulfilling His redemptive purposes? Now can you see why it is so imperative for us to daily kill that sinful flesh.
Walking In The Deeds Of The Sinful Flesh Blinds Us To What Concerns God Because We Are To Fixated On Our Concerns.
Read what that last line of verse 23 says,
“because you’re not thinking of God’s concerns but on human concerns.”
I guess that’s what’s been true about all of human history. For the most part mankind, including us, have been fixated upon what is important to us and not really caring about what is important to God.
That was true for the Prophet Jonah. He didn’t want the people of Nineveh to experience God’s forgiveness - Jonah wanted them to experience God’s wrath and judgment. That’s why he didn’t go the first time God called him and even after he went Jonah whined and complained that God did forgive them. You see Jonah knew that it was in God’s nature to forgive those who sincerely repents but Jonah didn’t want them to repent. As a result, Jonah found to joy or happiness in seeing an entire city repent from their sins and experience God’s forgiveness.
Why did Jonah have this negative attitude? Because he was walking in the deeds of the sinful flesh.
To walking in the deeds of the sinful flesh is to be hard hearted to what is important to God and it is to be self-centered instead of God-centered. As Christians we find our true and lasting joy by joining God to accomplish what God’s heart desires. To walk in the deeds of the sinful flesh is to lose all that joy that could and should be our.
There is only one solution and that is to mortify, kill, destroy the works of the sinful flesh from our lives on a day by day basis and sometimes that is on a moment by moment basis during a particular day.
Now that you know 5 reasons why it is so important to do, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to allow the deeds of the sinful flesh live on in your life or are you going to kill them? Do you even know how to kill them?
Let me close with his quick little Bible verse to help you understand how to accomplish that killing? In Galatians 5:16 it says,
“I say then, walk by the Spirit and you will certainly not carry out the desires of the flesh.”
This is a promise! If you learn to live by the Holy Spirit and His control over your life you will naturally not carry out the desire of the sinful flesh. You can’t kill the flesh with flesh. You kill the flesh by the Holy Spirit living in and through you.
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Biblical Principle #1 For Shining The Light Of Christ
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Photo by Mercedes Bosquet on Unsplash
Biblical Principle #1 For Shining The Light Of Christ Brightly In Your Part Of This Dark World!
Watch this video and receive empowerment from God’s Word to go live a life that reflects the glory of Christ back into the lives of those still trapped in darkness.
What If The Church Looked More Like This?
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With the worldwide pandemic of COVID-19 and the social distancing that is being ordered many churches have experienced a horrible decline in church attendance. Christians are quickly getting out of the habit of going to church because of fear.
In addition to the pandemic Christians are beginning to face some social opposition because of their mixing their faith with politics. For the first time in our nations history the church is beginning to be viewed by the unbelieving population as a bad social organization.
As a result there is a lot of discussion on what the church should be like and look like. Some really interesting discussions have centered around the church becoming more like the New Testament church they meet in homes.
Here's a simple video to illustrate what is being proposed. Watch this video and then share your thoughts on if you feel you could be part of something like it.
ROMANS 8: THE MOST IMPORTANT CHAPTER IN THE NEW TESTAMENT: Part 2
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Now that we know how chapter seven of Romans ended, which reveals the most powerful dilemma that all Christians have to face, we can now move onto chapter eight which gives us God’s way to deal with that dilemma once and for all.
But before we do that we should remind ourselves exactly what hat dilemma is. It’s the dilemma of wanting to live for Christ but unable to do so because of the power of sin still has control over us. We want to do what God wants but we find ourselves doing sinful things. We hate the sinful things that we do but still we are attracted to it and fall prey to their temptation.
But chapter eight is all about good news, hope and faith that God is not only able to deliver us but has already established the way to that victory over sin.
And in doing so Romans 8 starts off with one major liberating declaration. Let’s read for ourselves what that liberating declaration is.
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1
I love the way the Apostle Paul put it, “… now no condemnation…”. The truth is that we all live in the here and now but before we can get to the “NOW” we first had to go through the “BEFORE”.
The life we now have in Christ does not consist of any condemnation from God. For God’s people we now live a condemnation free life. But the life we had before was filled with God’s condemnation. All of us, right down to last one of us, was a condemned sinner to hell.
But we really need understand how condemned we truly were? By developing a thorough understanding of the depths of our former condemnation we will gain a greater appreciation for the amazing declaration we now have of:
NO CONDEMNATION!
THREE LEVELS OF CONDEMNATION:
Level 1: We are condemned because we are part of Adam’s seed.
“So then, as through one trespass there is condemnation for everyone, so also through one righteious act there is justification leading to life for everyone. For just as through one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” Romans 5:18,19
We are condemned because the human race (Adam’s seed) has been condemned. Adam and Eve is the beginning point of the entire human race and through Adam’s sin everyone is condemned.
Now I know what some of you are thinking! You’re thinking, “That Doesn’t Sound Fair”. You’re thinking that it isn’t fair that you should suffer because of something your relative did way back before you were ever born. Now that would be a great subject to study but not now because there isn’t enough time. But for now let me say that our condemnation isn’t just because Adam was our relative. We are also condemned:
Level 2: Because we too are sinners.
“For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23
To an even greater degree condemnation has come to all of us because each of us joined in on the sinning. I can’t blame my parents, my siblings or my friends. I am a sinner because I chose to sin. I chose to hate, I chose to lie, I chose to lust. These are my sins and no one else is to blame for them.
But then there’s a third level of condemnation that only some will experience. But it is a condemnation that is of an even greater intensity than either level one or level two combined. But is that level?
Level 3: Because you have rejected the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
“For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Anyone who believes in him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.” John 3:17-18
Here’s the point to get from this passage. Those people who have had the privilege of hearing the wonderful and amazing gospel message and rejected are also condemned. However, in the book of Hebrews there is some indication that their condemnation might be more severe than others who have never heard the gospel.
Here’s the truth about your life before you knew Jesus as your Lord and savior:
YOU WERE CONDEMNED TO HELL!
But now that you know Jesus God the Father has a new pronouncement:
NO CONDEMNATION - NOT EVEN A LITTLE BIT!
God is no longer condemning you and he is not even look for a reason to condemn you. In the eyes of the Heavenly Court with God the Father as the Righteous Judge you have been declared free!
ISN’T THAT AMAZING!
Before you came to Christ you were sinking and drowning in a sea of sin and you were helpless and hopeless to do anything about it. You had been condemned to hell and you were just waiting for the Last Day, the Day of Judgement when that sentence of condemnation would be executed. But then something amazing happened. God the Father stood up in the Heavenly courtroom and declared:
NOT CONDEMNED BUT JUSTIFIED.
The Why? and How? We will learn as we go through this chapter. But for now just marvel in amazement that God has declared you no longer condemned.
ROMANS 8 THE MOST IMPORTANT CHAPTER IN THE NEW TESTAMENT: Part 1
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The reason I call Romans chapter 8 the most important chapter in the New Testament is because this particular chapter address the dilemma that is brought up in chapter 7. This dilemma is a common problem that all Christian experience as they strive to live a life that pleases God and worthy of our calling in Christ.
Romans chapter 8 starts off with the word, “Therefore”. Whenever you see this word it is always referencing to what has just be said and in this case what was said in chapter 7. So what exactly is the dilemma expressed in chapter 7? Simply this:
Why Do I Still Struggle With Sinning Even Though I Have Given My Life To Christ As Lord? And I Feel Helpless To Do Anything About It!
Read what the Apostle Paul Actually Says,
“For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it. For I do not do the good that I want to do, but i practice the evil that I do not want to do … What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” Romans 7:18,19, 24
I think it is important to note that even the Apostle Paul struggled with desiring to do what is good but finding that he lacked the ability to do so. If this was a struggle with the Apostle Paul then surely all of us will struggle with it also.
This struggle is a common Christian experience. All of us more often than not finding ourselves doing things that we know we shouldn’t do. We feel helpless and hopeless. We hate ourselves for it! After another failure we look into the mirror and see our reflection with disgust. We are ashamed, embarrassed and wish we could go hide somewhere so no one can see us. But since we can’t go physically hide somewhere we instead we hide by putting on a pretense in front of others. We smile and pretend that all is going just perfectly with our spiritually lives in front of our Christian friends and family. And this is done all because we don’t want others to see the real spiritual condition of our lives.
But all this pretending only serves to perpetuate our failure and our struggle. We can’t fake our way out of this dilemma and as we have discovered over and over again we can’t force or will our way out of it. If we could we would have already done it.
WE’RE JUST NOT STRONG ENOUGH!
So what then is the alternative? If faking it doesn’t help and if our own personal strength fails us to live right, then what is the solution? That’s what chapter eight of Romans deals with. Chapter eight reveals God’s strategy for overcoming the power of sin in our lives and the way to live a life that is pleasing to God.
In the upcoming posts in this series of blogs we will unpack exactly what the Bible says about overcoming the power and influence of our sinful flesh and how to live a life that please God and worthy of our calling.
God's Evaluation Of The Message Of Health & Wealth False Teachers
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There is a teaching that has found its way into the church ever since the times of the Apostles of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul in writing to Timothy warned him against these preachers and a particular kind of teaching that was false but still was found very appealing to so many. Sadly, these same kind of teachers exists in our churches today and their false teaching is still attractive to many who are in our churches.
Listen to what the Bible says,
“If anyone teaches false doctrine and does not agree with the sound teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ and with the teaching that promotes godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing, but has an unhealthy interests in disputes and arguments over words. From these come envy, quarreling, slander, evil suspicions, and constant disagreement among people who’s minds are depraved and deprived fo the truth, who imagine that godliness is a way to material gain.” 1 Timothy 6:3-5 (CSB)
In this passage there are many descriptions of the kind of teaching that makes these preachers classified as a false teacher. Some of those descriptions are not being in agreement with the teaching of Jesus, doesn’t and doesn’t promote godliness. But there’s one particular teaching that is specifically identified and needs to be carefully considered. Why? Because it is destructive and still very much at play in the church of North America.
What is it? Simply this:
That Godliness Is A Way To Material Gain!
It is a teaching that says:
if you act in a godly way God will reward you with wealth.
That it is God’s will for all His people to be wealthy.
If you don’t have wealth it is because you don’t have enough faith.
The Apostle Paul is very clear about this kind of teaching. Paul says it is false and comes from false teachers. He describes these teachers as being:
Conceited: They think more highly of themselves than they ought to.
Understands nothing: They not only lack truth but they lack the ability to discern truth.
Having unhealthy interests in disputes: They love conspiracy theories.
Argue over words. They like to take words and ascribe different definitions to them!
These Teachers Are The Source Of All Kinds Of Problems. Problems Like:
Envy: These kind of teachers and the message they give lends itself to becoming envious of others and what they have.
Quarrels: Literally fights. Fights breakout because of them and their message.
Slander: They build themselves up by tearing other people down.
Evil Suspicions: Always suspicious of people feeling that everyone is trying to take what they got.
Disagreements with people: This evil suspicion doesn’t lend itself to living in harmony or agreement with others but instead causes arguments.
Two Basic Descriptions About These Teachers:
The Are Depraved: Literally means the corruption of ones morals. The moral fiber of these teachers is corrupted and falling a part. They are morally bankrupt. They have no Godly values that guide them.
They Are Deprived Of The Truth: To be deprived is to be severely denied something of importance. It is very much like that of neglecting a child of love, or clothing or food. It is a serious neglect. But in this case these teachers are deprived of what really is truth. There teaching holds no truth.
The Apostle Paul warns us to stay clear of these kinds of teachers. We are not to entertain their teaching. Ther motives are for their own person material gain. You’ll often hear them teach you that if you give to their ministry then God will reward your sacrifice with giving you a hundred fold return. In other words they are trying to tell you that if you give to them financially then God will make you rich.
The only we read of Jesus telling people to sell all that they have and give it away was to a rich young ruler found in Mark 10:17-27. But there’s a big difference from what Jesus did and what these health and wealth teachers teach! They teach for you to give them money. But Jesus taught that we should give what we have to the poor. You see Jesus doesn’t want our money and He doesn’t need our money. What does Jesus want:
HE WANTS YOU
4 REASON'S WHY CHRISTIANS SHOULD KEEP OUT OF WORLDLY PURSUITS!
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Photo by Sandy Millar on Unsplash
As fully devoted followers of Christ we need to give careful attention to what things we pursue in life! Why? Because they can either help us grow in our devotion to Christ or hinder us. A Godly goal is a good thing but a worldly pursuit is not.
In this post I want to share with you 4 reasons why God’s people should at all cost avoid pursuing worldly goals and in particular keep themselves from getting entangled in the love of money. The Love of Money, by the way, according to the Bible is one particular way Christian quite often get caught up in the things of the world.
To accomplish I will be sharing 3 Pitfalls that come with choosing worldly goals and what happens to those who stumble into those pitfalls. These pitfall’s are found in 1 Timothy 6:9-10:
“But those who want to get rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires. , which plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” ((CSB)
These pitfalls are:
PITFALL #1:
It Makes You susceptible To Temptation: When our heart longs for the things of this world we become more vulnerable to the wiles and schemes of the devil. Temptations in and of themselves are not sins but they are the doorway that leads a person to sin. The primary reason a person commits a sin is because they have some kind of worldly desire they are trying to satisfy. And that unmet satisfaction cause people to look for its fulfillment in ways that God says is sinful. Therefore, the cure is not to continually fight off the temptation but to root out the evil and sinful desires and replace them with God honoring desires. So, if your sincere desire is to live a life that pleases God then you need to make sure that your hearts desires are on the things of Heaven and off the things of this world.
PITFALL #2:
It’s a trap that will ensnare you. Traps have been used throughout the ages by hunters who are want to catch unsuspecting animals. They are usually camouflage so the animal will not see it and step into it. And this is the way it is with the goals of this world and especially the love of money. The true intent of these longings are hidden and dressed up to look like things that are good. After all, what could be wrong with being rich if it allows me to give more money to help the poor? What’s wrong with having a nicer and bigger home for my family to live in? Shouldn’t they be able to live in a nice place? You see the issue isn’t what you can do with the money but what you are willing to do to get the money or your true motivation for getting the money.
PITFALL #3:
It Ignites Feelings That You Shouldn’t Have: The problem with the love of money or the desire to have the things of the world is that it doesn’t stay satisfied with the fulfillment of those desires. As a result of pursing them newer and more harmful desires start to grow. There are some feelings that we were never intended to have or experience. The “Love of Money” is described as a “root”. If temptation is the seed then the love of money (materialism) is the root that is form from that seed and it in turns grows into a blooming plant of all kinds of other evil and more harmful desires. If you think that you can control your love for money and keep it contained then you are only fooling yourself. The only way to keep yourself from growth of all kinds of evil in your life is to uproot the love of the world and replace it with a root that exclusively loves God.
Now let me share a little bit about what the end result will be if you fall into one or all of these pitfalls and fail to uproot and guard agains the love of this world and the pursuit of worldly goals. Quite simple it is exactly what the Bible says,
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” 1 Timothy 6:10 (CSB)
2 End Results:
#1: Wandering From The Faith:
In Luke chapter 8 Jesus tells a parable about a person who went sowing seed on different types of ground and then He explains the spiritual significance for each group. Here’s how Jesus describes the seed that feel on the ground filled with thorns and thistles.
“As for the seed that fell among the thorns, these are the ones who, when they have heard, go on their way and are choked with worries, riches, and pleasures of life and produce no mature fruit.” Luke 8:14 (CSB)
This is quite a visible picture, from Jesus, on what happens to people who have their hearts set on the things of this world and not on Christ. The riches and pleasures of life of life choke out or we could also, are more valuable to people than Christ is, and as a result they walk away. Another way of saying it is that people who hear the Gospel of Christ and are excited with the forgiveness of sins that come from following Christ but once they hear that they need to leave everything (including their riches) in order to follow Christ, they walk away sad because they love their money more than they do Jesus.
#2: They Stab Themselves With Lots of Grief:
Notice that verse 10 uses the word pierce and not prick. Why? Because the word pierce suggest a knife or sword stabbing. It is a life threatening wound. It’s not a little poke that might draw some blood but a wound that in most cases lead to death.
Also, notice that this is a self-inflicted wound. This is something you caused yourself and not something someone did to you. You’re the one who sets you life goal, you are the one who decides who your heart will be devoted to. To choose the world over Christ is your chose and the result is a harm that you brought on yourself. It is avoidable if you choose wisely but it is also unavoidable if you don’t choose wisely.
So many people suffer horribly simply because they have chosen to go after the things of this world, to give their heart over to what this world says is important. The pain is real but the pain was and is avoidable.
By simply choosing to love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength you will avoid all three of these pitfalls and the consequences that follow. So who will you give your heart to? Will it be God through Jesus Christ or will it be the world.
DON'T CHOOSE DOOR #1: A Biblical Life Goal To Pursue: Part 1
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When I was a child growing up one of our families favorite T.V. programs was the game show, LET’S MAKE A DEAL. I always enjoyed watching it because of the thrill of watch people possibly winning something really amazing. You know what I mean. Right? The thrill of the win or the agony of the loss. I would always imagine myself as the big winner.
But wouldn’t it have been nice if you had some special knowledge in advance of what was behind Door #1, or Door #2 or even Door #3? If you did have that knowledge do you think it would have influenced what choice you would have made?
Of course it would!
In this post we are starting a series that deals with options, consequences and admonitions about the kind of life goal you should establish that will guide your pursuit in life. Whether we know it or not we all have goals that guide how we live life and the kind of choices we make as we go through life. Our expectations is that these goals will help bring joy, fulfillment, excitement and happiness during our travels here in this world.
However, establishing bad goals can hinder the experience of that joy, excitement, fulfillment and happiness that we so desperately want in our lives. Making wise choices about our goal is going to be absolutely essential.
However, gratefully God, in the Bible, has told us what our options are when it comes to establishing a goal for life and even better news is that there aren’t 10 to 15 different choices! In actuality there are only 2 choices. One choice is good and the other choice is not good at all. So, in reality for those of us who are fully devoted followers of Christ there is only one life goal that is to be our choice.
Our series of posts will be taken from 1 Timothy 6:3-10 and today’s post is entitled:
DON’T CHOOSE DOOR #1.
Remember there are only two choices but this first choice is not the right choice. This first choice is the choice to avoid at all cost. It is the choice that will rob you instead of give you. It’s the one that will harm you instead of benefitting you. So, what’s that option? It’s the option that this world offers to you.
So, what exactly is in door #1? What is it that we should not make our life’s goal? To help us find out let us take a look at 1 Timothy 3: 3-5 and most specifically verse 5. It says:
“If anyone teaches false doctrine and does not agree with the sound teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ and with with the teaching that promotes godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing, but has an unhealthy interest in disputes and arguments over words. From these come envy, quarreling, slander, evil suspicions, and constant disagreement among people whose minds are depraved and deprived of the truth., who imagine that godliness is a way to material gain.” (CSB)
What is the life goal to avoid?
The Pursuit Of Material Gain!
The pursuit of material gain as a life’s goal is one of the false teachings that was and still is part of the church and especially trying to use godly living as a means to getting rich. In verse 10 the Apostle Paul refers to people who make the amassing of material wealth their life goal as people who “Love Money”. Take a look at what it says,
“For the love of money is a root to all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” 1 Timothy 6:10 (CSB)
The reason why the pursuit of worldly riches or the love of money is a life goal to avoid is simply because it’s a heart issue. It’s a matter of what you “LOVE” the most.
In Luke 16:13-15 Jesus is teaching the people that it is impossible to serve two masters. You will either love the one and hate the other or visa versa. And then Jesus coined a quote that we still use today. It is:
“You cannot serve both God and money” Jesus Christ
Jesus said you cannot serve both God and money! He didn’t say:
“You can’t serve fully both God and money.”
or “It’s hard to serve both God and money”.
No! Jesus flat out stated emphatically stated that it is:
IMPOSSIBLE
Why? Because the issue at play is all about the heart or it is all about what you love. God refuses to compete or share with anyone or anything concerning the love that is due Him as God Almighty.
Let me hammer the point in by asking you a question: What is the greatest commandment? That was a question Jesus asked some of the religious leaders of his day. It’s a good question that we should ask ourselves from time to time and the answer is something we should remind ourselves daily. What is it? According to the Bible it is:
“To Love The Lord Your God With All Your Heart, Mind, Soul And Strength”
The truth of the matter is that God wants our full and complete love! And God is unwilling to share it with anyone or anything. And one of the biggest competitors to robbing God of the love that is due Him is the love for money. Money is enticing and money is deceiving, People try to justify their love for money to make it sound acceptable or at least understandable.
But according to the Bible the love of money or the amassing of material gain is absolutely not the life goal for anyone who calls themselves a Follower of Christ.
Door #1 Is Not The Door To Choose!
A FIRM FOUNDATION FOR YOUR CHRISTIAN LIFE: Part 3: Biblical Principle #2
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A Firm Foundation Is Essential For Weathering Life’s Storms!
“Therefore everyone who hear these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. ‘And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. ‘Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ‘The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell and great was its fall.” Matthew 7:24-27 (NAS)
Isn’t it interesting to note that both men had built a house and both men built their house on top of something. One was a rock and the other was sand. As it is true in building a house so it is also true in building your life - it will be built upon something. There is some kind of foundation upon which your life will be built upon. But the choice of what foundation you use to build your life is of the utmost importance. Why?
Because The Foundation Is The Key To Your Ability To Weather The Storms That Life Throws At Us!
When it come to survival or destruction of your life the foundation upon which you build your life is the one and only determining factor. And because it is the one and only factor it becomes an essential factor. A person can’t go cheap on laying that firm foundation. A person cain’t afford to use inferior material in laying a foundation. And absolutely a person can’t even consider not laying a foundation.
THE FOUNDATION IS ESSENTIAL!
As we already discussed in the previous post storms of life are going to happen. It’s not a matter of “if” they happen but just a matter of “when” they’ll happen. We have no control over whether or not trails, tribulations or persecution happen in our life. The truth of scripture is clear - they will happen. In addition, we also have no control over the intensity of the storms when they do arrive. It could be a mild storm or it could be a potentially devastating storm. We have no control over it. So in light of these truths the only sensible and prudent thing to do is to make sure you lay a firm foundation upon which to build your life.
It would be easy if there was only one option available to us for the foundation we use from which to build our life. But that’s not the case! In this story Jesus makes it clear you do have options. You can chose to use the options the world avails you (that’s the sand) or you can use the option that Jesus recommends (that’s the rock). The choice is yours but you need to choose wisely! Why?
Because The Foundation Is Essential!
Because the foundation is so essential you need to make sure you spare no expense, cut no corners and don’t be lazy in your efforts to the laying of that firm, solid and massive rock like foundation.
So as you begin to lay the foundation for you life be careful, give it your full attention and we wise. The foundation you choose will be the determining factor of whether your life is destroyed or stays strong after you go through the intense storms of life.
If you have not already read the first two blogs in this series you can hit the links below to check them out.
PART 1
PART 2
Challenging Quotes For Joining Christ On His Mission (Part 2)
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These quotes are from the God motivated Evangelist George Muller. May they serves to encourage, challenge and maybe even provoke you to living a life fully devoted to our Lord Jesus Christ. George Muller was such a man!
“George Müller (born Johann Georg Ferdinand Müller, 27 September 1805 – 10 March 1898) was a Christian evangelist and the director of the Ashley Down orphanage in Bristol, England. He was one of the founders of the Plymouth Brethren movement. Later during the split his group was labelled as the Open Brethren.
He cared for 10,024 orphans during his lifetime,[1][2] and provided educational opportunities for the orphans to the point that he was even accused by some of raising the poor above their natural station in British life. He established 117 schools which offered Christian education to more than 120,000.” Wikipedia
“A servant of God has but one Master. It ill becomes the servant to seek to be rich, and great, and honored in that world where his Lord was poor, and mean, and despised.”
“Trials, obstacles, difficulties and sometimes defeats, are the very food of faith.”
“There is an intimate connection between the life of the Christian here and the enjoyment and the glory in the day of Christ's appearing.”
“Often the work of the Lord itself may be a temptation to keep us from that communion with Him which is so essential to the benefit of our own souls”
“Where faith begins, anxiety ends; where anxiety begins, faith end.”
“The greater the trial, the sweeter the victory.”
“Laying up treasures in heaven will draw the heart heavenward.”
“God is pleased continually to vary His mode of dealing with us, in order that we may not be tempted to trust in donors, or in circumstances, but in Him alone, and to keep our eye fixed upon Him.”
“I desire many things concerning myself; but I desire nothing so much, as to have a heart filled with love to the Lord. I long for a warm personal attachment to Him”
“God judges what we give by what we keep.”
“If we desire our faith to be strengthened, we should not shrink from opportunities where our faith may be tried, and therefore, through trial, be strengthened.”
“Every instance of obedience, from right motives, strengthens us spiritually, whilst every act of disobedience weakens us.”
“I believe God has heard my prayers. He will make it manifest in His own good time that He has heard me. I have recorded my petitions that when God has answered them, His name will be glorified.”
“When the day of recompense comes, our only regret will be that we have done so little for Him, not that we have done too much.”
“When God overcomes our difficulties for us, we have the assurance that we are engaged in His work and not our own”
As we start this new year may we find the strength, encouragement and determination that we find in our brothers in Christ go before us as our guide on living a life fully devoted to our King, Jesus Christ!
Challenging Quotes For Joining Christ On His Mission (Part 1)
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Here Are 10 Quotes By Hudson Taylor The Great Missionary To China Whom God Used To Do Great Things For His Own Glory. Read And Be Encouraged and Challenged To Allow God To Use You To!
1. "God is not looking for men of great faith, He is looking for common men to trust His great faithfulness."
2. "Do not have your concert first, and then tune your instrument afterwards. Begin the day with the Word of God and prayer, and get first of all into harmony with Him."
3. "All our difficulties are only platforms for the manifestations of His grace, power and love.
4. "The real secret of an unsatisfied life lies too often in an unsurrendered will."
5. "I am no longer anxious about anything, as I realize that He is able to carry out His will for me. It does not matter where He places me, or how. That is for Him to consider, not me, for in the easiest positions He will give me grace, and in the most difficult ones His grace is sufficient."
6. "The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed."
7. "Carrying the cross does mean following in Jesus' footsteps. And in His footsteps are rejection, brokenheartedness, persecution and death. There are not two Christs - an easy going one for easy going Christians, and a suffering one for exceptional believers. There is only one Christ. Are we willing to follow His lead?"
8. "You do not need a great faith, but faith in a great God."
9. "When we work, we work. When we pray, God works."
10. "Many Christians estimate difficulties in the light of their own resources, and thus attempt little and often fail in the little they attempt. All God's giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they reckoned on His power and presence with them."
Your Weaknesses Are Not A Liability For A Powerful Missional Life
/During my time in ministry as I am trying to encourage or equip people for sharing Jesus with others and making disciples for Christ I have often heard this rationale why someone cain’t do the work of disciple making. What is rationale or excuse?
“I Am Too Weak To Do The Work Of The Lord”
But is that true? Today I want you to watch this video that discuses this very thing and hopefully to encourage you to realize that your weakness are not a liability to doing the work of the Lord! WATCH! I THINK YOU’LL BE AMAZED!
So now what you going to do? Are you willing to get up and start trusting God as you join Him on His mission of discipling the nations?
4 Different Participants For Gospel Penetration
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When a person comes to faith in Christ and receives the forgiveness of sin that comes from God it is because 4 different Persons have been working their roles. Each of these persons are important and so is the roles that each of them play. As you will see both you and I, as a Follower of Christ, play an important role! So, who are these persons and what roles do they play?
ROLE #1: God The Father As The Drawer
"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.” John 6:44 (NIV)
Before any person can come to faith in Jesus Christ and received the forgiveness of sin they so desperately need, they first must be drawn by God the Father. It is the work of the Father to create a hunger and thirst in peoples heart to have what Christ has to offer them.
Why do people when they come to faith in Christ seem so ready and prepared to receive Christ? Why is that they are like ripe fruit just waiting to be picked? It is because God the Father has already been at work in their life preparing the soil of their life to be good soil ready to receive the seed of the gospel and bring about a desire, hungering and thirsting for this wonderful Good News. And it is good news to them because it is offering what their hearts are longing for and their hearts are longing for it because the Father has created that desire for it.
ROLE #2: The Holy Spirit As The One Who Convicts
"And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;” John 16:8 (NAS)
It is the role of the Holy Spirit to convict people. Specifically the Holy Spirit convicts people of the sin in their lives, the righteousness life they are lacking and need to have, and that because of their sinfulness and lack of righteousness that they will be caught up in the coming judgement of God when Christ returns.
No one fills bad about their sinful life unless the Holy Spirit first convicts them of it and thereby keeps them from sensing the need for experiencing a changed life. No one will want to have a changed life if they are not convinced that their life isn’t good enough to stand before a Holy God. And no one will fear punishment if they are not convinced that this Holy God will hold the accountable, in Judgement, for the sins they have committed. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to give people this conviction of heart that will prepare them to receive the wonderful gift of life through faith in Christ.
ROLE #3: God's People As The Proclaimer
“We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God.” 2 Cor 5:20 (NIV)
Every person who comes to faith in Christ, the Bible tells us, becomes a new creation in Christ. The old things have passed away and all things have become new. One of those new things that we have is a new identity with a new job.
The Bible tells us that in 2 Cor. 5:20 that all of us who have received Christ and His forgiveness have become His Ambassadors to our part of this spiritually dark world. As His ambassadors we are to declare His message of being reconciled with God. We are to proclaim His Gospel message. We are to share the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who still need to hear.
The Bible tells us in Romans 10:17 that faith comes from hearing the message of Christ, the Gospel. Without the Gospel being shared it can not be heard; and if the Gospel isn’t heard, faith cannot be generated to believe it; and if one does not believe it, they cannot receive it.
So, the gospel has to be shared in order for a person to be saved. IT IS ESSENTIAL! And it is the job of all Christians to share this amazing Gospel message to all who live in their part of this dark world.
ROLE #4: Jesus As The Receiver
“And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.” John 6:39 (NIV)
It is the job of Jesus Christ to receive all that the Father draws to Him and to lose none of them but to raise them all up on the last day.
When the Father does His job of drawing a person to His Son (Jesus) and when the Holy Spirit does His job of convicting that person of His sin and when Christians do their job of proclaiming the Gospel to those people who are drawn and convicted something very amazing happens! Jesus receives all of them, loses none of them and raises them all up on the last day at the resurrection.
In other words Jesus gathers them all up and none are lost!
Evangelism Implications:
Everybody Has To Do Their Work For People To Be Saved! Each Person of the Trinity needs to do their job so that people can come to salvation. We don’t have to worry about that! God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are perfect and will always do their job and do it very well. The issue of not doing their job isn’t with God but with us who are Christians. Christians have the honor and the responsibility to be the delivery boy of the God’s Good News, but how good of a job are we doing?
Prayers For Specific Peoples To Be Saved Is Powerful! Christians should be steadfast and intentional in their prayers for specific people coming to faith in Christ and for God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit to do their job in the lives of those specific people. God loves to hear the prayers of His saints as they cry out for salvation to come to their family and friends and for God to prepare them for that salvation. We should pray for specific people we know that the Father would create a hunger and thirst in their lives for Jesus; that the Holy Spirit would convict them of their sinfulness and created a fearfulness of the coming judgement, so that when the gospel is shared with them they will believe.
Lots Of Gospel Seeds Need To Be Sown! Christians daily should be sharing their story of faith to Christ and Christ’s story of salvation to those they know, love and long to be saved. They should share this same message with those they have just met to see if God has prepared them for salvation. Christians need to become competent and confident in share the Good News of Christ.
SUITING UP FOR SPIRITUAL WARFARE Part 5: Knowing Your Enemy
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In the last post of this series SUITING UP FOR SPIRITUAL WARFARE I wrote about Knowing Who’s Not Your Enemy. The reason for that post is because to often we think that people are our enemy and the cause for such terrible difficulties that we experience during spiritual warfare. But people are not our enemy. As we found out that those same people we used to believe were our enemy were in fact the ones we came to liberate. All people before they come to faith in Christ, according to the Bible, are lost, slaves to sin and blinded by Satan. And they are the reason why we are still in this world. Every time we share the Gospel with these people they have an opportunity to experience freedom in Christ. THEY’RE NOT OUR ENEMY - THEY ARE THE ONES WE’VE COME TO RESCUE!
However, we do have a very real and dangerous enemy and we should not take the threat lightly. We need to know of him and about him. The one we know about our enemy the better we can anticipate his what to expect from him, specially during spiritual warfare. Take a look at who the Bible describes is our enemy.
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)
According to William Barclay, the great New Testament theologian, this verse indicates that the Apostle Paul view our enemy as a very sophisticated and organized system of evil that Satan has constructed to rule this world. There are rulers, there are authorities, there are powers of darkness and there are spiritual forces from the heavenly realms. In verse 11 we read that our enemy is the devil who likes to scheme against us. In verse 16 we read that our enemy is the evil one who is shooting flaming arrows at us.
So who is our enemy? It is none other than Satan and his demonic forces that rule this world on a temporary basis. Satan and his forces are powerful and organized and they certainly do not like those who follow and obey Christ.
The Apostle Peter also identifies Satan as our enemy,
“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8
In this verse Peter emphasis that we should view Satan as a real and dangerous threat by admonishing us to stay alert and sober minded. And why? Because our enemy is always looking for an opportunity to catch us with our guard down so he may attack.
Peter describes the devil as that of a roaring lion seeking to devour his prey. There are two things I want you to mediate on about the devil.
First, Satan is a powerful foe. The reason why we call lions the king of the jungle! And that’s because they are strong and able to over power most other animals. They are very high up on the food chain and don’t really cower from their opponents. Satan is the same! He is powerful and if not taken seriously can quick overpower us.
Second, Satan is a predator. Lions prey on others animals. They don’t grow crops or produce their own food. They feed off of less powerful animals. Satan too is like a predator just waiting to ponce on an unsuspecting person and destroy them. Satan
Satan is not our friend. He is our enemy and he hates us. He does not have our best interest at heart. He will lie, cheat, and steal all to get you in a position where he can ponce on you.
Does the thought of Satan being your enemy cause you to worry at some level? Do you know of other brothers or sisters in Christ who seem to struggle with worry? Then check out this great new book on how you can join Christ on His mission without worry. Hit the link below to get more information:
CLICK HERE
Does Satan Engage In Identity Theft?
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Now that’s a really good question!
Does he? And what do I mean when I say that?
Take a quick moment and watch to see if your identity in Christ has been stolen by Satan or not!
SUITING UP FOR SPIRITUAL WARFARE Part 4: Knowing Who's Not The Enemy
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Photo by Tony Rojas on Unsplash
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)
Part of suiting up or preparing for spiritual warfare is to know your enemy. It’s to know who they are so you can recognize them in battle; understand their tendencies and tactics so you are not caught off guard during an encounter with them; and to make sure you are not bringing the fight to the wrong person or group.
In Tom Cruise’s movie The Last Samurai Nathan Algren, a captain in the US Cavalry, has been tasked to prepare the Japanese army to fight again the Samurai led by their leader Katsumoto. While the Samurai are considered to be the enemy of Japan, Katsumoto and the rest of the Samurai believe there struggle is actually in service to Japan’s Emperor and their country. In two different scenes both Captain Algren and Katsumoto express the same attitude about preparing for battle. Both of them share that to prepare for battle against their new enemy they would have to get to know their enemy. So each of them in their own way studies there opponent and gets to know as much about them as possible. Why? To be prepared for when the battle begins, to know what to expect, and develop a strategy that will lead to victory.
This is exactly what the Apostle Paul is now saying in verse 12. He is sharing with the readers that we must know our enemy if we are to be successful and victorious in our struggle during spiritual warfare. To not know your enemy is the path to loss and failure. Successful boxers train with sparing partners who have many of the same tendencies and characters of the opponent they are to fight. Why? To prepared for when the real fight begins. Knowing your enemy is part of suiting up! It’s getting your mind prepared.
But First We Need To Know Who’s Not Our Enemy:
Isn’t interesting that the Apostle starts off telling us who isn’t army before he tells us who is our enemy? I think it’s because Paul knew that too often we have mistaken our enemy for someone who really isn’t our enemy at all. More harm has been done in the name of spiritual warfare because people had a wrong idea of who the enemy was. And as a result they wasted so much time, energy, resources and not to mention credibility with those who desperately need to know Jesus.
So, who’s not our enemy? Who are those we are not to consider our enemy? Read what Paul says:
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, …”
Quite simply our enemy is not other people. You mother or father are not the enemy! Your spouse is not the enemy! Your employer or rude co-worker are not your enemy! Not even that obnoxious next door neighbor is your enemy! No person who has ever lived or is alive today is your enemy. When it comes to spiritual warfare. They might be the most unpleasant of individuals you have ever met but they still are not your enemy in spiritual warfare.
Although they may act like your enemy they are not. Then why do they act the way they do? To explain this lets break all of mankind down into two Biblical categories:
First, there are people who are our brothers and sisters in Christ. That would include anyone who has believed on the Lord Jesus Christ and surrendered over to the Christ’s Lordship. Regardless of that persons past, race, language, country of origin, or any other ways we try to separate ourselves from one another, if they have given their lives over to Jesus the Bibles says they are family. Through Christ all our previous differences have been torn down and we all have been brought together in Christ as one family in God. Other Christians, therefore, are not our enemy, they are family.
Then, there are people who aren’t Followers of Christ. They have never surrendered to Christ by faith. They are still in opposition to God. If they are in opposition to God then why aren’t they our enemy. To answer that question lets look at how the Bible describes the unbelievers.
They Are Blinded By Satan!
“Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Corn 4:1-4 (NIV)
Did you see that? The god of this age, Satan, has blinded the minds of the unbelievers so they can’t see the light of the gospel. Who do unbelievers act the way they do? Why are they so opposed to God? Simple because they can’t see the truth and it is Satan who has blinded them.
They Are Slaves To Sin!
“Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” John 8:34-36 (NIV)
The fact of the matter is that every unbeliever is in bondage, a slave to, chained to sin! Sin is their master and they belong to sin. A slave has to do what their master wants them to do. The master controls them and directs them. So when an unbeliever persecutes one of our brothers and sisters in Christ they are only doing what their master commands them to do.
Now when you put both of these two images together when begin to see a very sad reality that should cause all of God’s people to not hate or consider unbelievers as the enemy. What’s that picture these two combined images create of an unbelievers. Simple this:
Unbelievers who persecute God’s people do so because they are SLAVES TO SIN and being commanded to do so and they are BLINDED BY SATAN so they can’t even see that what they are doing is horrible and sadly, because of their blindness, they think they are doing what is right and good in the sight of God.
Close your eyes for just a moment and begin to imagine some particular rude unbeliever you know but imagine them walking around in stocks and chains as a slave to sin and this big thick blindfold covering their eyes with Satan walking behind them whispering in their ears deceiving them into what to believe. Can you see it? Is that picture clear in your mind? Now wouldn’t you agree that image is just pitiful? But that’s how we all were before we to know Christ. And because it is such a pitiful sight it should well up in our hearts pity for them.
I think this is why Stephen, one of the first deacons of the early church, as he was being pummeled with stones to his death for preaching Jesus and the Gospel could make this petition to the Lord on their behalf. Stephen said.
“Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep.” Acts 7:60 (NIV)
What? Are you kidding me? Did Stephen just really pray for God not to hold this particular sin of killing him against them? Yes, that is exactly what he did! And, why? Because Stephen knew that they were not his enemy!
What Stephen at the moment of his death said is very much like what Christ said while hanging on the cross. Christ prayed for the His Father to forgive those who were killing him because they know not what they are doing. You see Jesus knew that those people who were killing them were actually people blinded by Satan and couldn’t see the truth of their actions. Jesus knew that in a very real sense the people who had him arrested, convicted, and nailed to the cross they were not his enemy. In fact they, along with us, are the ones whom He was dying for. They and us are the ones that Jesus and God the Father loves! While it may not appears so at first glance, they are the ones we have come to liberate from slavery to sin and the blindness of Satan. They are the ones needing salvation.
The Apostle Paul knew this concept better than most other people, for he, at one time, was one of those murderers and Christian haters. He made it his life’s pursuit to seek out and arrest all who claim Christ as savior, that is until he was liberated from spiritual slavery and saw the truth for what it really was. And once he gave his life over to Christ, he became the very thing he once hated most, a Christ loving disciple maker! PEOPLE ARE OUR ENEMY! And we shouldn’t treat them as such. We should love them in spite of their sinfulness.
Now that we have clearly identified who’s not our enemy the next post will identify who really is our enemy and what he is like.
