Greatest

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Monday, June 30, 2008 - The Greatest Thing in the World

I remember that as a young junior Sunday school student, I memorized 1 Corinthians 13. That's the famous love chapter, and I can still quote it almost perfectly. But, like many other familiar scripture passages, I've quoted it and heard it so often, that the full implications of its teaching have not always impacted my life as they should.

Some dear friends once asked me, "How can we pray for you?" and my ready reply was, "Just pray that I'll love Jesus more and more and have a heart to love others." If those things are in place in my life, everything else follows. If not, nothing I do has any importance or meaning. Paul said I could speak with the voice of an angel, but it wouldn't mean anything without a loving heart.

Paul also said that love is the fulfilling of the law. This was a radical statement in his day, because all of his fellow Jews were focused on fulfilling the ten commandments and the 110 other commandments which they had manufactured out of them. Can you imagine how difficult that must have been, just to remember all of them? And now Paul brings this revolutionary principle: "If you do one thing, you will do these 110 things without even thinking about them. If you love, you will unconsciously fulfill the whole law."

When I taught customer service seminars, I pointed out that there was one basic principle underlying all good customer service, and that is the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. If every company treated customers the way they would want to be treated if they were in the customers' shoes, every company would have a very high level of customer service and satisfied customers.

The same is true for us as Christians. If we focus on ONE thing–being filled with love for Jesus and love for others–all other things we need to be will automatically follow. Yet so often we reverse the process. I think of a woman who is in many ways very godly. She prays all the time; she studies her Bible constantly; she is at every church service; she keeps herself separate from harmful activities of any type; her life is exemplary in many ways. Yet, when she is with people, almost every time she causes them to be uncomfortable and hurts feelings because of her words which sound unloving and self-righteous.

Oh, we need to pray and read our Bibles and keep our lives separate from worldly actions, but those things should follow love, not precede it. Without being focused on love, we may do a lot of things that look good, but they'll never impress God, because he says without love, it's all a bunch of garbage in his sight. This is a powerful lesson for us to grasp.

Follow

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

FOLLOWING OUR SHEPHERD

Romans 8:14
For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God

I had the privilege of feeding and caring for the sheep on the farm where I was raised. I discovered that sheep aren't the smartest animals on the farm. Sheep need to be shepherded. Left to themselves in a lush pasture, they will keep eating until it kills them. They need a shepherd to make them "lie down in green pastures" (Psalm 23:2) so they don't eat themselves to death!

The Lord often pictured our relationship with Him in Scripture like that of a shepherd and his sheep. Those of us who live in the West don't have a correct picture of what it means to be led like sheep. Western shepherds drive their sheep from behind the flock, often using dogs to bark at their heels. Eastern shepherds, like those in Bible times, lead their sheep from in front. I watched a shepherd lead his flock on a hillside outside Bethlehem during a visit to the Holy Land. The shepherd sat on a rock while the sheep grazed. After a time he stood up, said a few words to the sheep, and walked away. The sheep looked up and followed him. It was fascinating! The words of Jesus in John 10:27 suddenly took on new meaning to me: "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me."

Sheep without a shepherd become disoriented and scatter. Rams arise from the flock and butt heads to determine who will lead. The ones with the hardest heads win. Without a shepherd, we too are left to the mercy of hard-headed, driven people or we wander around directionless, eating ourselves to death.

The Spirit-walk is one of being led, not driven. God won't make you walk in the Spirit, and the devil can't make you walk in the flesh, althought he will certainly try to draw you in that direction. You are free to choose to follow the leading of the Spirit or the desires of the flesh (Romans 8:14).

Prayer:

Gentle Shepherd, thank You for searching for me when I was lost and for comforting me when I am hurt. I long to follow You today.

Most Americans Believe "Many Ways"

Excerpt from Pew Research Findings on Religious Beliefs
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Religion in America: Non-Dogmatic, Diverse and Politically Relevant

Most Americans agree with the statement that many religions – not just their own – can lead to eternal life. Among those who are affiliated with a religious tradition, seven-in-ten say many religions can lead to eternal life. This view is shared by a majority of adherents in nearly all religious traditions, including more than half of members of evangelical Protestant churches (57%). Only among Mormons (57%) and Jehovah’s Witnesses (80%) do majorities say that their own religion is the one true faith leading to eternal life.

Most Americans also have a non-dogmatic approach when it comes to interpreting the tenets of their own religion. For instance, more than two-thirds of adults affiliated with a religious tradition agree that there is more than one true way to interpret the teachings of their faith, a pattern that occurs in nearly all traditions. The exceptions are Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses, 54% and 77% of whom, respectively, say there is only one true way to interpret the teachings of their religion.

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More Intensely Focus

"It's easier to leave something if you believe you've found something better. As humans, we don't exist very well in vacuums; we're sucked one way or the other by our passions, so -- spiritually speaking -- instead of seeking a passionless existence, we need to more intensely focus our affections. John of the Cross points out that the lure of the world can be so strong that "if the spiritual part of the soul is not fired with other more urgent longings for spiritual things," the soul won't be able (or it will simply lack the courage) to deny its appetites for the wrong things."

Gary Thomas, The Glorious Pursuit

Tough Times

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Wednesday, June 25, 2008 - Do's and Don'ts: When Times Are Tough

Almost every day we hear about the financial hardships of our times: Mortgage failures, gas prices rising dramatically, food costs increasing, and most of us are feeling the squeeze.

It can be tempting in tough times to stick your head in the sand and live in denial—like an ostrich. To postpone the inevitable by refusing to face the music and make some needed changes. But just because you don’t see the danger coming doesn’t make it disappear. Acting like ostriches is not a smart thing to do. We need to keep our eyes and ears open and make sure we understand all we can about the hard times so we can make good decisions.

You remember Joseph, after he became second in command to the Pharoah, when God revealed to him that there would be seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine, he made a strategic plan to save during the years of plenty so there would be enough to eat during the famine. If he had lived in denial and refused to plan for the future, it would have been a tragedy for the whole country, as well as his own family.

Even during tough times, there are opportunities and possibilities which you’ll miss if you’re sticking your head in the sand. Proverbs 20:13 says, Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread. If you’re facing some financial hard times now, have you been keeping your eyes open for new opportunities? You know, people still get hired, promotions are still awarded, raises are still given even in tough times. But if you’re not looking for those opportunities because they are few and far between, you could be missing out on some good things.

Also, it is during these tough times that we can truly grow in our knowledge of God and in learning to trust him at a deeper level. The Psalmist wrote: It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes (Psalm 119:71). Think in your own life: Is it not true that when you have gone through some tough times, you look back and see that it was actually good for you, because you learned to trust God. Oh, you wouldn’t want to do it again, but you can say with the Psalmist that it was good for you.

Passion?

Thoughts from GLP on What Fires Your Passion?

Today as a staff we worked through how our schedules should reflect our desire for self-leadership. In essence, what things do I need to do on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly basis in order for me to be the very best I can be as one who vocationally serves God through the local church? Most of us had similar thoughts - eating well, exercise, retreats, and the like filled up the conversation. But in thinking about what activities I would add into my life, bigger questions rose to the surface of mind, not the least of which was: What keeps me passionate in life?

In other words, what things do I do that fire me up to live the life I live? For me, I can't think of very many personal evils worse than living a dispassionate life. It's not how I'm wired at all. I love living with an intensity, an edge...and being fired up about it all is simply par for the course. Call it hyper or being too revved up, it doesn't matter to me. I'd much rather be faulted for being too amped up than coming in day after day with barely a pulse. For me, living passionately is a vital cog in the machine of my self-leadership.

So I began to write down things that throw fuel on the fire of my passion for life. I'll give you a couple that I wrote down...

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So, how would you answer this question?

Best?

Excerpts from Seth Godin's post Is It Worthy?

"Is this the best I can do?

I’ve paid for the rent and the furnishings and the menus and the staff and the insurance... is this plate of food worthy of what went before it?

I’ve flown across the country to visit this museum--a building that cost more than a billion dollars to create and fill and maintain. Is my attention focused enough?

We paid $300 in marketing costs just to get this phone to ring this one time. How shall we answer it?

I’ve had a great education, suffered and scraped and scrounged to get this point... is this diagnosis, this surgery, this prescription, this bedside manner the end that justifies that effort?

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If I hadn’t had those breaks, if there weren’t all those people who had sacrificed or helped or just stayed out of my way... what then? Would I even have had a shot at this?

What if this were my last post? Would this post be worthy?

The object isn’t to be perfect. The goal isn’t to hold back until you’ve created something beyond reproach. I believe the opposite is true. Our birthright is to fail and to fail often, but to fail in search of something bigger than we can imagine. To do anything else is to waste it all."

Quiet

Excerpts from Dr. D. V. Adams The Act of Quiet (New Wineskins)

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We live in an energized culture that moves at the blink of think. Adrenaline rush is the drug of choice. The busier we become the happier we think we are. Even without conditioning our lives to live at a rested pace, we will eventually be stopped. It may happen in the form of a failed relationship, a death, legal action, or some other collision course. We are not created to live on adrenaline and feelings alone.

To come to a place of quiet in our hearts means to physically be at rest. Psalms 46:10 (NIV) gently reminds us that we are to, “Be still, and know…” that He is God. The Hebrew word for still is Raphah (raw-faw) which means: “to be quiet, to relax, withdraw, to let drop, abandon.” This verse has two separate statements that have one meaning: “Be still… and… know…” The Hebrew word for know is Yada (yaw-dah), which translates: “to know, to perceive, to find out and discern, to know by experience.” How can we know God, really experience Him, if we aren’t still or quiet? 1 Thessalonians 4:11(KJV) says, “And that ye study to be quiet…” meaning that we can only know God by experiencing Him and we can only experience Him when we are in a quiet, intimate place with Him.

But when do we have time to listen to God? We race from work to home to our TV or we are ‘Church-atized’ which is to say that we spend much of our time attending a multitude of church functions, thinking that we are learning more “about” God instead of getting to “know” God.

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Thus today’s Christians don’t practice the Act of Quiet, which involves a significant act of physical and mental discipline. The late Henri Nouwen, who wrote extensively on solitude comments, “We have become alienated from Silence…when we are invited to move from our noisy world into this sound filled silence we become frightened…our ears begin to ache because the familiar noise is missing.” The familiar noise we hear should be that of God speaking to us, not the chatter of voices calling to us from our TV.

A simple act of denying TV time in exchange for prayer is an act of discipline. It is simply fasting, which is denying ourselves of worldly pleasures for the benefit of spiritual gain. How do we expect to live forever with God and rest in the luxury of his amazing love and presence without getting to know him now?

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Sola Scriptura

Excerpt from C Michael Patton In Defense of Sola Scriptura - Part 2

Any attempt to defend a position is going to be met with three things: 1) reasoned rebuttal from those who are truly trying to understand yet disagree, 2) antagonistic reaction from those who see your argument as a threat to their favorite position and have an emotional reaction to it, and 3) misguided response from those who misunderstand and misdefine the position that you are attempting to defend.

As part of my continued belief that people (including Protestants) don’t really understand sola Scriptura, in my initial post in this series, I distinguished it from four other views. I had hoped that this would serve to prevent reaction #3, but such was not the case. Nevertheless, here is another chart to help define my position.

In my initial defining I distanced the doctrine from those who would claim that there is more than one infallible authority for the Christian (dual-source theory or sola ecclesia) and those who would claim that the Scripture is the sole authority for the Christian (solo Scriptura or nuda Scriptura). The doctrine of sola Scriptura is the belief that the Scripture is the final and only infallible authority for the Christian. In other words, it is the ultimate authority.

That sola Scriptura utilizes other authorities is evident even in the heat of the Reformation as Martin Luther was called to Worms to give an account of himself. When asked to recant his controversial writings, after sleeping on it, Luther uttered these famous words in response:

“Unless I am convinced by the testimony from scripture or by evident reason—for I confide neither in the Pope nor in a Council alone, since it is certain they have often erred and contradicted themselves—I am held fast by the scriptures adduced by me, and my conscience is held captive by God’s Word, and I neither can nor will revoke anything, seeing it is not safe or right to act against conscience. God help me. Amen.“

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Bloom

USING YOUR UNIQUE GIFTS AND ABILITIES

2 Timothy 4:5
Do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry

For the Christian, true fulfillment in life can be summarized by the popular bumper sticker slogan, "Bloom where you're planted." Peter said it this way: "As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another" (1 Peter 4:10). Your greatest fulfillment in life will come when you discover your unique gifts and abilities and use them to edify others and glorify the Lord.

God allowed me to understand this vital principle before entering the ministry while I was still employed as an aerospace engineer. I knew God wanted me to be an ambassador for Him where I worked, so I started a breakfast Bible study in the bowling alley next door. My announcement about the Bible study had only been posted in our office about an hour before a Jewish fellow pulled it off the wall and brought it to me. "You can't bring Jesus in here," he objected.

"I can't do otherwise," I said. "Every day I walk in here Jesus comes in with me." He was not impressed with my response!

One of the men who found Christ in the Bible study took over when I left Honeywell to enter seminary. A few months later I went back to visit my friends in the Bible study. "Do you remember the Jewish fellow?" the leader asked.

"Sure, I remember him," I said, recalling his brash opposition to our Bible study.

"Well, he got sick and almost died. I went to the hospital and visited him every night. Finally I led him to Christ."

I was ecstatic at the realization that I had become a spiritual grandparent. The sense of fulfillment was exhilarating. And it all happened because I started a simple little Bible study where I worked in order to do what Paul said: "Do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry" (2 Timothy 4:5).

Prayer:

Father, I want to bloom where I am planted and resist the defeating temptation to compare myself to others.

Greatest Love

Excerpt from Why It Matters That God Does Everything for His Own Glory by John Piper

Why should we emphasize that God loves, forgives, and saves for his own glory?

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2. Because it makes clear that God loves us with the greatest love.

Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory. (John 17:24)

God loves us not in a way that makes us supreme, but makes himself supreme. Heaven will not be a hall of mirrors but an increasing vision of infinite greatness. Getting to heaven and finding that we are supreme would be the ultimate let down.

The greatest love makes sure that God does everything in such a way as to uphold and magnify his own supremacy so that when we get there we have something to increase our joy forever—God’s glory.

The greatest love is God’s giving himself to us for our eternal enjoyment for ever, at the cost of his Son’s life (Romans 8:32).

Label

Excerpts from C. Michael Patton writing about Minimizing Christianity to the Glory of God?

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As a consequence of being misunderstood, you get mislabeled. One label that has been recently tapped on my back with red crayon is “minimalist.” What does that mean to be a minimalist?

Minimalist

One who sees Christianity as a system of belief that only recognizes the least common denominator. In other words, let’s just find out what all those who call themselves Christian believe and say that this is true Christianity and then let’s not talk about anything else. Talking about what divides, well . . . divides. And division is bad, bad, and double bad. Therefore, let’s just all get along.

Many of those in Pop Evangelicalism, the Emerging Church, and the Emergent church take this perspective.

From the standpoint of those who call me a minimalist, I represent a branch of Evangelicalism that compromises truth for conciliation in the name of ecclesiastical unity.

Stepping back and looking at this criticism, I can see where it comes from. I understand how people would get this impression. I do tend to encourage people to focus on the things that unite. I do tend to plead with people about the danger of talking past each other. I am even sometimes critical of militant apologetic methods that seem to deepen chasms, hardening others in an apologetic position that only focuses on what they are against, thereby losing perspective. However, I would not classify myself as a minimalist.

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A centralist is focused on the most important elements of the faith so that the other issues can be seen in light of the perspective it provides.

Most in the Historic Evangelical church, some emergers, and some Eastern Orthodox hold this perspective.

It is in this camp that I can be found roasting marshmallows.

What is the “center” of the faith?

The doctrine of the Scripture? The doctrine of truth? Helping those in need? Social action? No. None of these in my opinion are the center of the faith. The center of our faith is Christ. If you want to say “the doctrine of Christ,” that is good as well. It is the person and work of Christ that is the center of Christianity. “Who do men say that I am?” is the most important theological question there is. If you get this wrong, all else will not only come undone, but it will be meaningless. If you get this right, there is a foundational unifying factor that we must recognize and in light of which all other issue must find their place.

Those who say that Christ is the eternal God-man who died for our sins and rose from the grave have more common ground with each other than they often care to admit.

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Relationships

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Thursday, June 19, 2008 - Dealing With Broken Relationships

Have you ever gone to someone for the purpose of being reconciled, hat in hand, asking forgiveness, and trying to restore the relationship, only to be rebuffed? Jesus commanded us to seek to be reconciled to anyone who has something against us, even if it is not our fault.

But the facts are, you and I cannot control the other person. All we can do is obey the Lord, do what we’re supposed to do, and let God take care of the outcome. In Romans 12:18 we read:

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
We must not ignore the imperative of this verse which says: . . . as far as it depends on you. . If you have a broken relationship, make certain that you have done and are doing everything you can to mend it. Don’t let yourself off the hook easily. Go the extra mile, humble yourself, initiate the reconciliation, be willing to swallow your pride. . . whatever it takes for true reconciliation.

However, please keep in mind that being reconciled does not include being someone’s “doormat,” enduring abusive treatment of any kind, compromising your Christian principles of integrity or lowering your standards of behavior. So, we’re not talking about peace at any price. But we should never be the person who is holding up the reconciliation.

Many of us harbor hurt feelings far too long and delay a reconciliation because we don’t want to humble ourselves. If you’re holding up a reconciliation with someone for anything but a good biblical reason, then you’re at fault, regardless of the circumstances.

Of course, there are times where a relationship has been damaged so much that full restoration is not possible. But to the extent that it can be restored, it should be restored.

For those who’ve done all you can to be reconciled and the other person refuses, don’t live in false guilt about that relationship. Remember, the principle is, as much as it depends on you, live at peace with all people. Many things are out of your control, and that is what you have to accept and trust to God’s care.

Fellowship

"We sit in our own cars, cook in our own kitchens, and hunker down in the bunkers of our own homes. Yet our isolation destroys us from the inside. We are made in the image of God as relational beings, and we cannot heal our lack of connectedness through increased profits, Prozac or psychotherapy. “It is not good for the man to be alone”, God himself said.

In accepting the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize, Archbishop Desmond Tutu declared, “God created us for fellowship. God created us so that we should form the human family, existing together because we were made for each other. We are not made for an exclusive self-sufficiency but for interdependence, and we break that law of being at our peril.”

It is possible to become strong, vibrant men and women who live with a vigorous awareness of communal obligations. Living such a life will strengthen, not weaken, our businesses, neighborhoods, families, churches, and the environment. Our commitment will ring out into the world and resound throughout its four corners like the loud peal of a village bell.

Ultimately, an individual finds integrity, honor and usefulness only in relation to his or her community. A finger remains honored and useful only so long as it stays attached to the hand. When we separate ourselves from the body, from our community, we lose both our honor and our usefulness.

If technology shuts down, it might be the best thing that ever happened to us. It might even help us to avoid the disaster quite possibly looming in our future."

-The Gospel Reloaded Exploring Spirituality And Faith In The Matrix; Chris Seay and Greg Garrett; Piñon Press, Colorado Springs, CO; 2003

Cross

"God gives us the cross, and then the cross gives us God."
Jeanne Guyon

Fleshly Desires

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

The Fleshly Person

1 Corinthians 3: 2,3
I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly.

The spirit of the fleshly person is identical to that of the spiritual person. The fleshly person is a Christian, spiritually alive in Christ and declared righteous by God. But that's where the similarity ends. Instead of being directed by the Spirit, this believer chooses to follow the impulses of his flesh. As a result, his mind is occupied by carnal thoughts and his emotions are plagued by negative feelings. And though he is free to choose to walk after the Spirit and produce the fruit of the Spirit, he continues to involve himself in sinful activity by willfully walking after the flesh.

His physical body is a temple of God, but he is using it as an instrument of unrighteousness. He has the same troubling physical symptoms experienced by the natural person because he is not operating in the manner God created him to operate. He is not presenting his body to God as a living sacrifice. Since he yields to the flesh instead of crucifying it, the fleshly man is also subject to feelings of inferiority, insecurity, inadequacy, guilt, worry, and doubt.

Several years ago I did some research to discover how many Christians are still the victims of their flesh. I asked the same question to 50 consecutive Christians who came to me to talk about problems in their lives: "How many of the following characteristics describe your life: inferiority, insecurity, inadequacy, guilt, worry, and doubt:" Every one of the 50 answered, "All six." Here were 50 born-again, righteous children of God who were so bogged down by the flesh that they struggled with the same problems of self-doubt which inundate unbelivers who only live in the flesh.

If I asked you the same question, how would you answer? I imagine that many of you would admit that some or all of these six traits describe you. It is evident to me that a staggering number of believers are still confused about their spiritual identity in Christ and its implications for their daily lives. We are struggling with the behavior aspect of our growth because we are still struggling with the belief aspect of our growth: who we are in Christ.

Prayer:

Father, help me live above my fleshly desires today by exercising my spiritual inheritance at every temptation.

A Mutual Ministry of Encouraging One Another

A further excerpt from Consider Each Other How to Stir Up Love by John Piper

Hebrews 10:23-25

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; 24 and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near.

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Verse 24 gives the focus and aim: "Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds." Then verse 25 gives us instructions how. It says, " . . . not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another." Two things. First, don't neglect to get together.

Second, encourage one another. When I was growing up I heard this text referred to most often as an argument for regular attendance at worship services. "Do not forsake the assembling of yourselves together - come to church regularly." And that is not a wrong application of the text since one of the most important kinds of encouragements and exhortations that we get is from the preaching of God's word in the power of God's Spirit. (Hebrews 13:22 calls the book of Hebrews a "word of encouragement.")

But in the context, the kind of coming together in view seems to be one where the members "encourage one another." Verse 25 is explicit: come together and encourage one another. The "one another" implies that there is something mutual going on. One is encouraging another and another is encouraging one. Each is doing or saying something that encourages. If you ask what that corresponds to in our church, I would say the closest thing is the small groups - which is why I regard this ministry as so utterly crucial. I am a great believer in preaching. There is something about the Word of God that begs to be heralded and trumpeted and exulted over - as well as discussed and taught. But I have no illusions that preaching is enough in the life of a believer. The New Testament - and especially this book of Hebrews calls us again and again to a kind of mutual ministry that involves all the believers in encouraging others.

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Relationships

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Tuesday, June 17, 2008 - Dealing With Broken Relationships

If there is a broken or wounded relationship in your life, have you yet followed Jesus’ instructions for mending that relationship? You’ll find that instruction in Matthew 5:23-24:

Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

Since Jesus says that if you “remember that your brother has something against you,” it must mean that it is possible to forget that you have a broken relationship. Here are some of the methods we use to “forget” about those unpleasant, hurting relationships:

• We stay very busy, even if we have to create unnecessary activity.
• We convince ourselves that there’s nothing that can be done about it.
• We convince ourselves that since we didn’t cause the problem, we shouldn’t be the one to initiate the reconciliation.
• We find other relationships to fill the gap in our lives.

Jesus said we are to go to anyone who has something against us, and that would include those whose feelings are hurt, those with whom we’ve had a misunderstanding that has not been clarified, those people to whom we spoke hastily chosen words that were not appropriate, those who feel we’ve treated them unfairly or neglected them, to mention a few.

Are there any people in your life that fit that description? Have you been “forgetting” that they have something against you, sticking your head in the sand, so to speak, so as not to have to face that unpleasant reality?

Notice that Jesus didn’t limit it to those who have something legitimate against us or those who have a right to have something against us. No, he says if you know that someone has something against you, whether it’s your fault or not, then you take action.

Jesus made it clear that being reconciled was very important when he said “leave your gift there in front of the altar” and go. I think he wanted to make it abundantly clear that reconciliation should have a very high priority in our lives. Basically, drop what you’re doing and go be reconciled.

Is there someone you need to be reconciled to? How about taking step one today.

The Greatest

Memory Verse for the Week:

3And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 18: 3-4 (NIV)

2-5For an answer Jesus called over a child, whom he stood in the middle of the room, and said, "I'm telling you, once and for all, that unless you return to square one and start over like children, you're not even going to get a look at the kingdom, let alone get in. Whoever becomes simple and elemental again, like this child, will rank high in God's kingdom. What's more, when you receive the childlike on my account, it's the same as receiving me.

The Message

Served Honored Noticed

"The lust to be served, honored and noticed is nothing less than the lust to be treated like God." Gary Thomas, The Glorious Pursuit

Lots of Voices Calling to You

I like the Casting Crowns song Voice of Truth

Oh,what I would do to have
the kind of faith it takes
To climb out of this boat I'm in
Onto the crashing waves
To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown
Where Jesus is,
And he's holding out his hand

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But the voice of truth tells me a different story
the voice of truth says "do not be afraid!"
and the voice of truth says "this is for my glory"
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

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Peace

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

THE NATURAL PERSON

Ephesians 2:1, 2
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience

In 1 Corinthians 2:14-3:3, Paul distinguishes between three types of people in relation to life in the Spirit: natural persons, spiritual persons and fleshly persons. In the next few days we will examine the critical differences pertaining to spiritual life which exist between these three kinds of individuals.

Ephesians 2:1-3 contains a concise description of the natural person Paul identified in 1 Corinthians 2:14. This person is spiritually dead, separated from God. Living independently from God, the natural person sins as a matter of course.

The natural person has a soul in that he can think, feel and choose. But his mind--and subsequently his emotions and his will--is directed by his flesh which acts completely apart from the God who created him. The natural person may think he is free to choose his behavior. But since he lives in the flesh, he invariably walks according to the flesh and his choices reflect the "deeds of the flesh" listed in Galatians 5:19-21. The natural person’s actions, reactions, habits, memories and responses are all governed by the natural world. The natural person will struggle with feelings of inferiority, insecurity, inadequacy, guilt, worry and doubt.

The natural person lives independently of God and His purposes and does not respond to life in harmony with God’s plan for him. Living in a stressful age with no spiritual base for coping with life or making positive choices, the natural person is even more subject to physical ailments, such as tension or migraine headaches, nervous stomach, hives, skin rashes, allergies, asthma, some arthritis, spastic colon, heart palpitations, respiratory ailments, etc. Doctors agree that many physical problems are psychosomatic. Possessing peace of mind and the calm assurance of God’s presence in our lives positively affects our physical health, since the Spirit gives life to the body (Romans 8:11).

Prayer:

Lord, thank You for redeeming me from my former life governed by sin and Satan and giving me peace of mind and calm assurance.

Focus

Excerpt from Consider Each Other How to Stir Up Love by John Piper

Hebrews 10:23-25

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; 24 and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near.

When you get up in the morning and you face a day, what do you say to yourself about your hopes for the day? When you look from the beginning of the day to the end of the day, what do you want to happen because you have lived? What difference do you want your life to make?

If you say, I don't even think like that, I just get up and do what I've got to do, then you are cutting yourself off from a basic means of grace and a source of guidance and strength and fruitfulness and joy. It is crystal clear in the Bible, including this text, that God means for us to aim consciously at something significant in our days. God's revealed will for you is that when you get up in the morning, you don't drift aimlessly through the day letting mere circumstances alone dictate what you do, but that you aim at something - that you focus on a certain kind of purpose. I'm talking about children here, and teenagers, and adults - single, married, widowed, moms, and every trade.

Aimlessness is akin to lifelessness. Dead leaves in the back yard may move around more than anything else - more than the dog, more than the children. The wind blows this way, they go this way. The wind blows that way, they go that way. They tumble, they bounce, they skip, they press against a fence, but they have no aim whatsoever. They are full of motion and empty of life.

God did not create humans in his image to be aimless, like lifeless leaves blown around in the backyard of life. He created us to be purposeful - to have a focus and an aim for all our days. And this is not oppressive. It's not slavery. It's not depleting. To find what we were made for and to do it with all God's might (Colossians 1:29), is freeing (Galatians 5:13) and energizing. Jesus said, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me" (John 4:34). Food! Aiming day by day to do what you were meant to do, is like eating: it gives life and energy, rather than taking it away. You will eventually die if you do what you were meant to do.

You may be young or you may be old. That is God's choice, not yours. But when you die doing what you were meant to do, you die well and full.

...

Humility

"To embrace humility is to be liberated from the insatiable search for self-significance."
Gary Thomas, The Glorious Pursuit

Fellowship

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

ALREADY ACCEPTED

1 John 1:7
If we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, cleanses us from all sin

Fellowship with God is not an abstract theological concept, but a living relationship. Living in continuous agreement with God is to walk in the light. Satan can’t accuse me if I live in the light, but walking in the light is not moral perfection (1 John 1:8). We are not sinless, but the confession mentioned in 1 John 1:9 brings us into agreement with God about our present moral condition before Him.

What makes it possible to be this open with God about our condition is the fact that we are already His children. Our eternal state is not at stake, only our daily victory. We don’t have to pretend with God in the hope that He will accept us. As His children we’re already accepted, so we are free to be honest with Him. We have no relationship to lose, only fellowship to gain. Knowing that we’re secure in Christ, we can express ourselves honestly to Him. He already knows the thoughts and intentions of our hearts (Hebrews 4:12).

Knowing that we are forgiven, let’s come before His presence with thanksgiving. God is our Father, and like any parent He doesn’t appreciate grumbling, complaining children, especially since this Father sacrificed His only begotten Son for us. He will not be very interested in our list of demands if we haven’t been obedient to Him. I also don’t think He is going to be very interested in helping us develop our own kingdoms when we are to work at establishing the only one that will last--His!

To sit in the presence of my Father who loves me, who has made an incredible sacrifice so I can be there, doesn’t have to be a dismal, failing experience. He invites us into His presence just as we are, because in Christ our weakness and sin have been covered: "Let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience" (Hebrews 10:22).

Prayer:

Thank You, God the Creator, that You have opened up the way for me to approach You and enjoy fellowship with You.

Children of Promise

In light of our Wednesday night conversations it was interesting for me to read again these verses from Galatians 4: 21-31 (The Message)

21-31Tell me now, you who have become so enamored with the law: Have you paid close attention to that law? Abraham, remember, had two sons: one by the slave woman and one by the free woman. The son of the slave woman was born by human connivance; the son of the free woman was born by God's promise. This illustrates the very thing we are dealing with now. The two births represent two ways of being in relationship with God. One is from Mount Sinai in Arabia. It corresponds with what is now going on in Jerusalem—a slave life, producing slaves as offspring. This is the way of Hagar. In contrast to that, there is an invisible Jerusalem, a free Jerusalem, and she is our mother—this is the way of Sarah. Remember what Isaiah wrote:

Rejoice, barren woman who bears no children,
shout and cry out, woman who has no birth pangs,
Because the children of the barren woman
now surpass the children of the chosen woman.

Isn't it clear, friends, that you, like Isaac, are children of promise? In the days of Hagar and Sarah, the child who came from faithless connivance (Ishmael) harassed the child who came—empowered by the Spirit—from the faithful promise (Isaac). Isn't it clear that the harassment you are now experiencing from the Jerusalem heretics follows that old pattern? There is a Scripture that tells us what to do: "Expel the slave mother with her son, for the slave son will not inherit with the free son." Isn't that conclusive? We are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.

Never Leave You Nor Forsake You

6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

Deuteronomy 31

Prayer

There's something going on that started last weekend called One Prayer. As they say at their website:

One Prayer is unifying churches from all over the globe to stand together and promote unity in the body of Christ.

Here are ten prayer ideas from Mark Batterson:

Here are ten ideas, but let me give a warning upfront. Don't try all ten! Keep it simple. Here are ten ideas to consider for the 40 days.

1) Set Prayer Goals--pray thirty minutes five times a week. I know that sounds a little like "punching the clock" but it's a great way to develop a habit and I believe God smiles on those kinds of goals if our heart is to hear His voice and seek His heart.

2) Keep a Prayer Journal--this is a great way to cultivate the spiritual discipline of journaling. Yes, I think it's a spiritual discipline. It's a form of meditation.

3) Put together a prayer list--I think alot of us don't pray because we don't know what to pray for. Why not come up with a list, and add to it over time, that helps you remember what to pray for.

4) Pray through the newspaper--instead of reading about the elections pray about them. Pray about everything you read about!

5) Pray through your calendar--don't just go into a meeting. Pray about it beforehand.

6) Set Your Alarm an Hour Earlier for 40 Days

7) Turn Your commute into a prayer walk or prayer ride--turn off the radio and tune God in.

8) Pray with your spouse before bed for forty days.

9) Pray through the Bible--you hearing God's voice is more important than God hearing your voice. You can go broad and read through the New Testament. Or go deep and read through one book of the Bible.

10) Fast something--I've found that giving something up for 40 days helps me stay focused. Try soda or TV!

Woo

I only caught a little of this FamilyLife Today broadcast with Tim Downs on my way home last night, but it sounded interesting. Here's an excerpt (Tim speaking) from the conversation:

If we're going to reach people, we have to realize people are fallen as human beings, it's not just our minds, it's our hearts, it's our imaginations, it's our wills. We're trying to reach fallen human beings. So that means our job is not just to inform the uninformed, it's to woo the wayward lover back, and I think it's one of the reasons that Jesus told so many stories even though His career on earth was only three years long. I mean, wouldn't He write a legal text? Could He really afford to take a chance that He'd be misunderstood or that He wasn't clear?

But I think He knew, these are wayward lovers here, so I'm going to tell them some stories. I'm going to engage their hearts, their imaginations, and they will begin to follow Me, and that's exactly what happens.

Guidance

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

DOING GOD’S WORK

Isaiah 58:11
The LORD will continually guide you

An important concept of God’s will is that God can only guide a moving ship. He is the rudder, but if the ship isn’t under way, it can’t be directed. Willingness to obey His will gets the ship moving.

In Acts 15:36, Paul had decided to revisit the churches he helped establish on his first missionary trip. The churches were being strengthened and increasing in number (Acts 16:5). Luke reports:

And they passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia; and when they had come to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them; and passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a certain man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him, and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us" (Acts 16:6-9).

Sometimes God’s leading does not make sense. If God wanted Paul to go to Macedonia in the first place, why didn’t He make it easier and faster by having Paul travel by land to Caesarea and sail to Macedonia? Because God starts us out on a life course to fulfill a certain purpose and then, only when we are ready, He gives us course corrections. Like a good river pilot, He steers us away from troubled waters, and like a good coach, He never puts us in the game until we are ready.

I believe in divine guidance as described in Isaiah 58:11. But the context reveals that there are prerequisites that have to be satisfied. We are sometimes like a person who seeks to be an athlete by simply suiting up for the race. That’s not how the skills are gained. It’s in the course of dedication, training, and the contest itself that one gains the skill of an athlete.

It’s in the doing of God’s work that His will becomes known.

Prayer:

Thank You, Father, that You oversee every turn in the road of my life. I want to faithfully heed Your guidance today.

Evangelism

Here is an excerpt from Adam's "Believers and Disciples" article in Sunday's bulletin:

"I've heard/read Dallas Willard several times say something to the effect of: any system of evangelism that does not naturally produce disciples (or apprentices) of Jesus should be abandoned immediately. He also points out that "disciple" may have become so "churchy" a word that its meaning is lost on us. He says that "apprentice" is also an equally valid translation of the same Greek word and might convey its meaning a little better. ... What if we focused on incorporating people into our faith communities and then immersing them in the practices of a disciple of Jesus? What it they came to belief BY belong to a community and participation in the mission of the kingdom of God? What would that even look like? Wouldn't it be fun to find out?"

Hope

I like the song Every Man by Casting Crowns

Some of the lyrics are:

...

There is hope for every man
A solid place where we can stand
In this dry and weary land
There is hope for every man
There is Love that never dies
There is peace in troubled times
Will we help them understand?
Jesus is hope for every man

Glasses

Excerpts from "Convert Tinted Glasses" or "Are Emergers Simply 'Embittered Evangelicals'?" by C Michael Patton

“Conversionism.” This is one of the few marks of Evangelicalism spoken of by Evangelical historian Mark Noll. Evangelicals believe that people must experience a sincere personal conversion to Jesus Christ. This is a hallmark of Christianity—to be a convert.

Please understand that what follows in no way detracts from this. Conversionism is essential to Evangelicalism. What follows serves as a warning about the dangers that often exist as a person’s conversion from any position to another interacts with their witness and theological integrity.

I was in a spiritual conversation with a gentleman the other day. At times, the conversation became heated. I don’t mind heated conversation or debate so long as it is respectful, honest, and intentional. At one point in the conversation, the gentleman accused me of not being able to see outside of my “Evangelical lenses” that tainted my ability to accept the truth—his version of it of course.

Did you get that. Let me pause and for a bit of repetition. He believed I could not understand because (let me paraphrase):

“You cannot see outside of your Evangelical tainted lenses!!!”

Ouch! And what lenses are you wearing?

“None. I am a postmodern. We are the only ones that don’t wear lenses.”

Interesting. Can I have a pair of those?

It seems that this is becoming increasingly common. In fact, it has happened to me three times in the last few weeks (which is why I bring it up here). The assumption is that one is not a careful thinker because they already believe according to a certain tradition. And you know what that means: it is not you believing, but your tradition believing for you.

Isn’t this odd? One cannot see the truth so long as he already thinks he has the truth, but once he does not think he has the truth, he can finally see the truth? While I do believe that there is a hint of truth to this, it can and is often taken to a self-referentially absured extreme. As well, many of us in the postmodern world like to use it as conversation stoppers when we lack any other recourse. When in doubt and you have no answer, just say this: “You cannot see because your commitment perspective blinds you.”

...

The issue is not so much about right or wrong, but about being able to think with integrity. It may involve converting from atheism to Christianity, Christianity to atheism, Evangelical to emerging, Arminianism to Calvinism, or a belief in inerrancy to a denial of inerrancy. I have seen this militant conversion attitude much with regard to former dispensationalists who were “delivered” from the “lies” of the dispensationalism. It is interesting to see their attitude. They often have an absolute dismissive spirit toward any argument that is put forth for dispensationalism. “Oh, I took off those glasses. In fact, I smashed them on the ground. You should too.” But what glasses did you put on after you took these off? “The glasses of truth.” Oh, that is nice. Was there nothing good about the old ones? Can they not still contribute to your understanding in any way at all? At all? Are they completely invaluable? Completely? Is everyone wearing them as a duped idiot? Everyone? That is the way you make it sound since your enlightenment.

...

A Discerning Heart

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

SPIRITUAL DISCERNMENT

1 Kings 3:9 NIV
Give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong

Discernment is an overlooked spiritual discipline in many churches. But in reality, spiritual discernment should be our first line of defense against deception. It's that "buzzer" inside, warning you that something is wrong. For example, you visit someone's home and everything appears in order. But you can cut the air with a knife. Even though nothing visible confirms it, your spirit detects that something is wrong in that home.

The first step to understanding discernment is to understand the motive which is essential for employing it. In 1 Kings 3:9, Israel's king Solomon cried out to God for help. God answers: "Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice, behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart" (verses 11, 12). The motive for true discernment is never to promote self, to amass personal gain, or to secure an advantage over another person--even an enemy.

The Greek word for discernment-- diakrino --simply means to make a judgment or a distinction. Discernment has one primary function: to distinguish right from wrong. In 1 Corinthians 12:10 discernment is the divinely enabled ability to distinguish a good spirit from a bad spirit.

Discernment is not a function of the mind; it's a function of the Holy Spirit which is in union with your soul/spirit. When the Spirit sounds a warning, your mind may not be able to perceive what's wrong. Have the courage to acknowledge that something is wrong when your spirit is troubled. Share what you are sensing with others, and ask the Lord for wisdom.

Prayer:

Thank You, Father, for the discernment Your Holy Spirit provides. Without You I couldn't avoid the land mines the enemy places in my path.

Praise

Excerpts from The Sacrifice of Praise by John Piper

Hebrews 13:8-16

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever. Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings; for it is well that the heart be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited their adherents. We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go forth to him outside the camp, and bear the abuse he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city which is to come. Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of the lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

...

In verse 12 it says, "So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood." Then follow three exhortations for how we should respond.

1. Verse 13, "Therefore let us go forth to him outside the camp, and bear the abuse he endured." This is the priority of getting outside the safety of our camp and being inconvenienced, and perhaps even suffering, to make Christ known.
2. Verse 15, "Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name." This is the priority of praise, or worship.
3. Verse 16, "Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God." This is the priority of generosity and sharing and ministering to each other.

...

Let's look today at the new worship—the "sacrifice of praise." Verse 15: "Through him [i.e., through Christ] then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name."

I want to impress upon you as powerfully as I can this morning that this is your sacred duty and joy—to praise God continually with your lips.

Priority Number One at Bethlehem is the cultivation of hearts that stand in awe of God. We believe in missions. We believe in evangelism. We believe in nurture and education. But we know that this is all a weariness of the flesh if it is not preceded and carried by a sense of wonder at the glory of God. If your

• heart is not amazed by the grace of God,
• and your mind is not gripped by the truth of God,
• and your sense of right and wrong is not permeated by the justice of God,
• and your faith is not resting in the power of God,
• and your imagination is not guided by the beauty of God,
• and your life is not steadied by the sovereignty of God,
• and your hope is not filled with the glory of God,

then the service of God will be what Paul calls works of the law, and not the fruit of the Spirit. Work for God that is not sustained by wonder at God is a weariness of the flesh. Priority Number One is the cultivation of hearts that stand in awe of God.

Someone may say, "Why do you say that the Number One Priority at Bethlehem is the cultivation of a heart of praise, when this verse 15 emphasizes lips that praise?" My answer is that the word "fruit" demands the priority of the heart. God calls us in this verse to offer a sacrifice of praise which is the "fruit of lips." Fruit is something that grows naturally when the sap is flowing within. Jesus said in Matthew 15:8, "This people honors me with their lips but their heart is far from me." That is not what Hebrews 13:15 is commanding. That is the work of the lips, not the fruit of the lips. The "fruit" of lips is the natural outgrowth of the heart. And therefore Priority Number One is the cultivation of a heart that stands in awe of God.

But it does say "lips." Not just heart, not just thoughts, but lips. God wants from us lips of praise. Lips that speak and sing the praises of his name. Real sounds. Real words. And the verse says he wants them "continually." "Let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips . . . " One of the reasons that so many Christians lead such weak and unhappy and ineffective lives is that this exhortation is disobeyed most of the time. Ask yourself, does the praise of God grow out like fruit on your lips continually?

Most of us would have to say, No. Do you see what a great need there is in our lives for revival, for a great awakening of heart-felt love for the glory of God? Most of us live at a level of praise that is pathetically beneath this text. But God would not have called us to this experience of continual verbal praise if it were bad for us or impossible for us. If you want it, you may have it. And not to want it is to disobey Scripture—to disobey God.

It doesn't mean of course that every sentence should have a "Praise the Lord" attached to it. (Though we are not now in danger of overdoing it!) But it does mean, at least, that we should weave worship into all the parts of our lives. Not just silent worship of the heart, but verbal worship of the lips. We should weave explicit worship into all our board meetings and committee meetings and business meetings and small groups. Not the same in every group, of course, but somehow the praise of God's greatness and goodness finding verbal expression in all our gatherings.

...

Welfare of the City

We have talked some about the implications of Jeremiah 29:7 for our body. These words to the exiled in Babylon to seek the welfare of the city:

1 These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. ... 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

And then I was reading these verses from Nehemiah 2:

9 Then I came to the governors of the province Beyond the River and gave them the king's letters. Now the king had sent with me officers of the army and horsemen. 10 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant heard this, it displeased them greatly that someone had come to seek the welfare of the people of Israel.

Even though Nehemiah had been sent by the king, it displeased some there that "someone had come to seek the welfare of the people."

But we should follow the path of Nehemiah and do whatever God puts in our heart to do for our city for His glory and the welfare of the people.

In the Morning

I was thinking about this verse(3) from Psalm 5:

In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice;
in the morning I lay my requests before you
and wait in expectation.

And I was reminded of the lyrics from Give Me Jesus

Worthy to be Praised

1-2 I love you, God— you make me strong.
God is bedrock under my feet,
the castle in which I live,
my rescuing knight.
My God—the high crag
where I run for dear life,
hiding behind the boulders,
safe in the granite hideout.

3 I sing to God, the Praise-Lofty,
and find myself safe and saved.

[The Message]

1I love you, O LORD, my strength. 2The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
3I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.

[ESV]

my strength, rock, fortress, deliverer, God, rock, shield, horn of my salvation, stronghold -- worthy to be praised

Psalm 18:1-3

Seek Kingdom First

Excerpts from Is the Kingdom Present or Future by John Piper

Luke 17:20-21

Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, he answered them, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, 'Lo, here it is!' or 'There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you."

Is the kingdom of God a future reality to be hoped for or a present reality to experience now? That's today's question. The answer is that it is partly present and partly future. Many of its blessings are here to be enjoyed now; but many of them are not yet here. Some of its power is available now but not all of it. Some of the curse and misery of this old age can be overcome now by the presence of the kingdom. But some of it cannot be. The decisive battle against sin and Satan and sickness and death has been fought and won by the King in his death and resurrection, but the war is not over. Sin must be fought, Satan must be resisted, sickness must be prayed over and groaned under (Romans 8:23), and death must be endured until the second coming of the King and the consummation of the kingdom.

Now I want you to see this clearly in the New Testament because it is extremely important for your faith. It will inspire you with hope that there is a great and glorious future yet in store for all believers. It will deepen your confidence that the glory of your future in the kingdom is secured by precious past down payments of that very kingdom (Romans 8:32!). It will give you a handle on why so much amazing kingdom power is being unleashed in the world, and yet why so much of sin and Satan and sickness and suffering remains. If you get a handle on the presence and the future of the kingdom of God, you will find yourself on a pathway of spiritual power, which might include the power to perform signs, and will definitely include the equally remarkable power to suffer patiently the cross of grief and pain (Colossians 1:11).

...

[here are John Piper's concluding thoughts -- lots of teaching in between these two excerpts]

First, the warning: beware of insisting that God demonstrate dimensions of the kingdom now which he has reserved for the consummation. The kingdom now is limited in its scope and effects. And beware of assuming that all who are swept into the power of God's kingdom are the children of the kingdom. The power of the kingdom gathers many (Matthew 7:22) into its net that will be cast out in the end because they loved healing and not holiness; they loved power and not purity; they loved wonders and not the will of God.

And finally the encouragement: the kingdom really has arrived. Unprecedented fulfillments of God's purposes are in the offing. The King has come. The King has dealt with sin once for all in the sacrifice of himself. The King sits at the Father's right hand and reigns now until all his enemies are under his feet. The King's righteousness is now already ours by faith. The King's Spirit is now already dwelling in us. The King's holiness is now already being produced in us. The King's joy and peace have now already been given to us. The King's victory over Satan is now already ours as we use the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. The King's power to witness is now already available to us. And the King's gifts—the gifts of his Spirit—are now already available for ministry.

And now with a sober awareness of the mystery of the kingdom—present yet future; fulfilled but not consummated—let us go on as a church to seek the kingdom first—to discover all we yet should be for the salvation of lost sinners and the glory of King Jesus!

Reading

Some thoughts from Summer Reading and Community post:

...

Here are some benefits to reading books in community:

1. You see what they might miss, they see what you might miss. That's the power of more "eyes" on the same pages.
2. You've also added more brains to further dissect, ruminate and assimilate the ideas of the text. Some people think creatively, others linearly and still others may think in a way that defies definition - but the more "different thinkers" you have - the better potential there is for really breaking down a book's contents.
   
3. You multiply the potential applications that get put on the table to think through. Instead of one life pressed up against the matrix of a book, you have multiple situations that are intersecting with what you're reading.
   
4. There is better accountability to keep plugging through the text when it gets dry or dense, knowing you've got to meet with someone in a few days to talk about what you don't want to read at the present. That 7AM meeting tomorrow morning at the local coffee shop with your reading buddies may be the only thing that keeps your nose in the book at times...and that's a good thing.
   
5. Now you get the added blessing of how the Holy Spirit chooses to use the truth of what you're reading to affect more than just you. For example, maybe the conviction someone in your group begins to work through will be something you need to ponder in your own heart. Community can be a great instrument for the grace of sanctification.

...

Significance

Neil Anderson Daily in Christ

FOCUS ON THE SIGNIFICANT

1 Corinthians 3:14
If any man's work . . . remains, he shall receive a reward

Significance is a time issue. What is forgotten in time is of little significance. What is remembered for eternity is of great significance. Paul wrote to Timothy: "Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness . . . since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come" (1 Timothy 4:7, 8). If you want to increase your significance, focus your energies on significant activities: those which will remain for eternity.

Brian was a pastor of a small church who attended one of my classes at the seminary. He was in his mid-thirties and married when he found out he had cancer. The doctors gave him less than two years to live.

One day Brian came to talk to me. "Ten years ago somebody gave a prophecy about me in church," he began. "They said I was going to do a great work for God. I've led a few hundred people to Christ, but I haven't had a great work for God yet. Do you think God is going to heal me so the prophecy can be fulfilled?"

My mouth dropped open in shock. "You've led a few hundred people to Christ and don't think you have accomplished a great work for God? Brian, I know some big-name pastors in large churches who can't make that claim. I know some great theologians who have probably never led anyone to Christ. If a few hundred people are believers today because of you, and they have influenced who knows how many other people for Christ, I'd call that a great work for God." (Brian is now with the Lord, having completed his significant ministry of reaching hundreds for Christ.)

As children of God, we are in the significant business of collecting treasures for eternity. What we do and say for Christ, no matter how insignificant it seems in this world, will last forever. There are no insignificant children of God, because our life is eternal.

Prayer:

Lord, I desire to use wisely the time You have allotted to me. May my life count for gold, silver and precious jewels, not wood, hay and stubble.