Give Me More of God

I have been unsatisfied as of late of my desire and attitude toward God. These "feelings" are hard to put into words but I think most of us have found ourselves there at certain times in our walk with Christ. For me, it's been an overwhelming sense of despair and that feeling I often got while serving in the military when I put my 120 pound rucksack on my back. Then realizing that I would be jumping out of a plane with it and humping it in the jungle for the next several days - Ugg!

After my study and messages on Romans yesterday, talking with my wife last night and then my devotions this morning, I realize that there has been some discipline(s) that I have not exercised as fervantly in the last few months as I have in the past. Specifically they are fasting and prayer. Yes I have been praying but my sense of urgency and desperateness has not been what it demands. In light of where I'm at in my walk and the sense of being overwhelmed by a myriad of circumstances my greatest need is more of God.

In reading Romans in these last weeks, chapter 13:11-14 have come out of the inspired pages of Scripture as a desperate prayer as we plow through this most influential letter to the Christians at Rome. The time is now to "wake up out of sleep!" The urgency of my sense of despair as well as our circumstances in the snowballing affects of secularization in America; not to mention what is going on in the world around us requires a series wake up call to action.

That action must start on our knees before the Creator God who is the only one who can give the grace to increase our faith to cause change (beginning with my heart) through the Gospel. The answer and solution is always by grace through faith in him.

The fasting part deals directly with our desires. My desires have been far to concerned with the things of this world and even my own despair and sense of being overwhelmed. And so my desire needs to change to being overwhelmed by the presence and glory of God. Piper puts it like this, "The fight for faith is a fight to feast on all that God is for us in Christ. What we hunger for most we worship" (A Hunger for God: Desiring God through Fasting and Prayer. pg 10). 

The above quote is also the book I'll be reading to assist in fasting biblically and in the right attitude. So through prayer may his grace let my will respond to my Lord, knowing that power to obey is not in me, but that his free love alone enable me to serve him. So here then is my empty heart, fill it with your grace!

Philippians 3:8-11 "Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith - that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead."

Repentance

We don't hear much about repentance anymore. Even during our invitations we seldom hear that a person must repent and place his faith or trust in the person and work of Christ. King David set the pattern for us. David confessed and repented.

C.H. Spurgeon preached on repentance week after week, and somebody came to him and said, "When are you ging to quit preaching on repentance, pastor?" Spurgeon replied, "When you repent." When we talk about confession and repentance, we need to keep right on talking about it until either it has had its effect or we know it will have none. In those situations, Jesus said it best: "And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet" (Matthew 10:14).

Do you need to do some repenting? Here are a couple of questions to ask yourself and in doing so, I think it will be obvious that we all need to spend some time in confessing and forsaking our sin and then to turn to Christ. 

1. Am I always truthful and honest?
2. Do I have any habits I am ashamed to let anybody know I have?
3. Is my speech clean?
4. Am I using my money wisely?
5. Do I gossip about people?
6. Am I heavenly minded or earthy minded?
7. Am I faithful in prayer?

These are a few questions. You can answer them evasively or truthfully. If you decide NOT to deal with them through repentance, you will find yourself very dissatisfied with your walk with the LORD. Or you can answer them truthfully and see renewal and satisfaction in your heart.

Put yourself in the hands of the LORD who loves you infinitely. If you have failed Him, you will have to admit that there is sin of omission or commission in your life. Tell Him - don't hide it. He will not turn His back in anger and say, "You disappoint me and betrayed me." He immediately sends his grace and mercy. His healing is complete in the blood of the Lamb will get you back to an intimate relationship with your Savior. 

Oh, How we Need to Pray

This morning as I check my email, I find again it full of new church grown methods, plans to advance the church and enlarge our congregations. However, I never find in any of these methods, plans, and ideas the need for and dependance on the LORD. 

From my understanding of Scripture and in looking at the 1st century church, it's the LORD who advances and adds to the church.  Luke said, "...And the LORD added to the church daily such as should be saved" (Acts 2:47).  What I also find in this chapter is a model - a Scriptural model that should be followed as cloesely as possible in the 21st century. 

Within that model in Acts, I find that God used people.  The church today has tended to lose sight of the man God uses for His plan.  Preachers today are not so concerned about themselves as they are about what new method to adopt that will guarantee their success. 

However, E.M. Bounds states that "God's plan is to make much of the man, far more of him than of anything else. Men are God's method. The Church is looking for better methods; God is looing for better men" (Bounds, "Power Through Prayer).  God is looking throughout the whole earth to show himself strong, however these people are to have a heart for God and His glory and not their own (see 1 Chron. 16:9). 

This means that the man matters to God.  The character of the preacher matters to God.  Again, Bonds states in a very convincing and convicting matter, "It is not great talents nor great learning nor great preachers that God needs, but men great in holiness, great in faith, great in love, great in fidelity, great for God - men always preaching by holy sermons in the pulpit, by holy lives out of it" (Bonds, p12). "And every man that has this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure" (1 John 3:3).

So how is our churces going to grow?  God is going to add to the church and he is going to do it through men who are active in the sanctification process, allowing the Holy Spirit of God to mold them into the image of his Son Jesus Christ.  That means I must be dependent upon Him and the best way to know if you or I are dependent upon God is how often we are on bended knee. 

Misemployment of time is injurious to the mind. In illness I have looked back with self-reproach on days spent in my study; I was wading through history and poetry and monthly journals, but I was in my study! Another man's trifling is notorious to all observers, but what am I doing? Nothing, perhaps, that has reference to the spiritual good of my congregation. Be much in retirement and prayer. Study the honor and glory of your Master."
                                       - Richard Cecil

The Radical Act of Baptism?

Believer’s baptism by immersion was no insignificant step when Baptists championed it in the 17th Century. This radical and public act was a break with over 1300 years of recognized practice in Christian society and it won few converts in the early years. Why was it so unpopular?

Infant baptism was important to almost everyone. With it came a Christian name, a recognized family and community relationship. For the church it meant another communicant who would obey its teaching and support it financially, either through offerings or taxes (or risk severe punishments!). Since church and state were wed across Europe, infant baptism was significant because it was the first point of accountability and authority which a person met.

Baptists, on the other hand, saw no scriptural basis for infant baptism and no need to succumb to the authority of the church in this way. Dedication of children to the Lord was permitted, but scriptural baptism was something else. A believer’s baptism by immersion was a profession of his faith in Christ as Savior and Lord … it was a picture of his death, burial and resurrection. When Baptists immersed new converts, the believers knowingly and voluntarily sought baptism and church membership, thus exercising each individual’s precious liberty of conscience. Believer’s baptism was an act that no parent, guardian or sponsor could do on one’s behalf. It was a personal, public witness of faith.

For those who defended the baptism of infants, the public spectacle of immersion was disgraceful, unbecoming and unhealthful. More than that, believer’s baptism was an affront to church tradition, control and authority, and certainly the continued well-being of both church and state.

Baptism is a declaration to the world that we belong to Jesus. Believer’s baptism by immersion … a radical act indeed!

Bibliography

Christian History Magazine-Issue 6: The Baptists (Worcester, PA: Christian History Institute, 1985).

What is a True Christian?

I have been thinking a lot lately about the word Christian.  What is a Christian?  Good question – right?  It seems to be a question that should be easily answered by anyone who has “been one” for very long.  Now I know that there are many different facets to this question of what a Christian is.  However, one of those many facets that seem to be absent, at least in my mind, is the acknowledgment of the word of God and the willingness to subject or submit themselves to it. 

J.I. Packer in this regard states that “true Christians are people who acknowledge and live under the word of God.  They submit without reserve to the word of God written in ‘the Book of Truth’ (Dan 10:21), believing the teaching, trusting the promises, and following the commands.”

I recently went to visit my son in college and on Sunday we all went to church, of course with the intent to worship our God and Savior.  The church property was beautiful and the auditorium was incredible and could seat at least 3,000 people if not more.  Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not against big churches and beautiful buildings and to be honest I was probably drooling a little bit and in somewhat in the state of awe.  Everything in the service from start to finish was polished and good.  The music, the announcements, the preaching – everything was all good.  However, those thoughts that I had been thinking were still in the back of my mind in a nagging sort of way.  I began to think, how many of these 2,000 plus people here in this early service where there as “Christians” that were intentionally putting themselves under the authority of the word of God?  On the other hand, I wondered how many were there and ready to give their critique of the music, or the announcements, or even how well the message was going to be delivered that morning? 

I continued to contemplate how many will leave the service talking about the message of God’s word from John chapter 11?  How many there that day will allow their life to be changed because of the word of God and it’s authority on their life?  How many of them because of the word of God preached that morning will change their business habits, parenting or perhaps think of someone that they could share the wonderful message that they heard from John chapter 11? 

I think most of us know the answer to that question.  However, I wonder what would happen if instead of us coming into church to evaluate how well the building and grounds are maintained.  Or whether or not they sang the songs I like the way I like them.  Or how well the preacher was and if he followed the program and stopped on time.  I just have to wonder what would happen if we actually came through the doors of the church this week with the prayer and attitude that we are going to be a true Christians and acknowledge and live under the word of God.  I wonder what would happen if we actually came to church and expecting God to do a work and to allow the word of God to evaluate us.  I thought to myself, things would be radically different then. 

You see that’s exactly what I caught myself doing last week - critiquing and evaluating the church and I believe it’s the default mode of most of us “Christians” that live in an entertainment all about me based culture. But God and His wonderful, yet convicting way gave me an illustration that brought these thoughts to my own present circumstances.  I was there in church evaluating everything that was going on and totally indifferent to God’s presence and Him standing at my hearts door knocking and desiring to do a work in my own life. 

What snapped me back to reality and the presence of God was a young couple who sat in the row ahead of us and to my right.  Specifically, I noticed that the young lady was already moved by the Spirit of God.  This was visibly evident by her swollen eyes and the tears that trickled down her face.  I immediately repented and begged God for forgiveness and prayed for God’s Spirit to continue to work in this young ladies life and that my indifference to the Spirit of God would not be a hindrance to His divine work.  I then prayed for Him to minister to me and that I needed to submit myself to the word of God in my own life. 

I want to be a true Christian.  My desire is to be a person who acknowledges and lives under the word of God.  I want to be a true Christian that will submit without reserve to ‘the Book of Truth’ believing it, trusting in its promises and following its commands.  God help me. 

To Be or Not to Be - Resolutions

Some of you have asked about my New Year resolutions or commitments that I have made to Christ. As I taught on Sunday morning, many do not keep their commitments for a number of reasons. One reason is because they are not meaningful or challenging enough. What I mean by that is it must be something you believe important enough to follow through with and that other activities will not overshadow them. Remember this is a commitment to Christ and is focused on Him first and foremost not what we might want more for ourselves. Secondly, it must be a commitment that can easily be measured. In this, it’s important that you don’t set the goal too high to where you are quickly discouraged. I once had a goal to read the Bible through 4 times in one year. However, I didn’t make it, but I didn’t quite and was able to read it through almost 3 times. Obviously, I received a great blessing from that.

What is important is that we follow through with our commitments and that means they have to continually be put before you as a reminder. Many people today are IT savvy and imbed their commitments into their calendar on Outlook. I use both technology and the old school way. I have automatic pop ups on my calendar to remind me of daily, weekly, and monthly goals, but also use my daily journal that has my goals written out in 05 lead pencil. If you are really serious about your commitments you will also make yourself accountable to someone else. Share with someone what your commitments are. In many instances you don’t have to be to specific if it’s a personal matter and they might just ask you if you have been faithful in what you allow yourself to look at (TV, computer, etc.).

Remember these commitments you have to the Lord have been prayed over and have been determined to be important. Because of this, it’s always best to prioritize these commitments. For me, that means I do them first before other things. In other words, many of my commitments are spiritual in nature, thus they are done first before other things. Practically what that entails is I get up early and give the first part of my day to the Lord.

Many of you are probably wondering how do we determine what our resolutions, priorities and goals will be. Here I think it’s best to partner with the Holy Spirit of God and ask some questions in regard to four major areas: Spiritual, Emotional, Physical, and Relational. This is hard work and often can’t be done in one sitting. Here are just a few questions that I have asked the Holy Spirit over the last 3-4 weeks in helping to determine my resolutions and might help you with the process:

Q 1: What am I doing in my devotion time that needs to change and get better?
Answer 1: I need to get back to reading the Bible through each year.
Action Plan: Find or develop a reading plan that will keep me on track that includes readings from both NT and OT along with a daily Psalm and Proverb.
Answer 2: I need to memorize/meditate more Scripture.
Action Plan: Use book “Scripture Memory Made Easy” by Mark Water.

Q 2: Do I exercise enough?
Answer: No.
Action Plan: Exercise at least three times each week for 30 minutes.

As you can see this is not an easy process but it will make a difference. I will leave you with this reminder that permanent change is inward and temporary change is outward.

That’s simple. If we’re going to be the person that we need to be and that God wants us to be, the first thing that we are going to have to understand is the real change that is lasting and for eternity is an inward change. And that outside change, what we are, flesh, at best it’s just a few school years. Isn’t it amazing how much we spend on the outward and how little we spend on the inward?