Month: July 2017

R-E-S-P-E-C-T…


Spiritual Blog - Respect 1

1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 – “And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. Be at peace among yourselves.”  NKJV

 

I believe that respect is earned not demanded.  I hear people say, “Don’t disrespect me” as though they had an inherent right to be respected regardless of their disrespectful attitude or actions.  I believe that everyone’s rights should be respected but not everyone is deserving of respect.  That statement may cause some difficulty but an unruly child that rebels are not deserving of respect.  A parent that berates their children and family and is unfaithful to the marriage and family and fails to provide is not deserving of respect.

When I acknowledged God’s call to the ministry and assumed my first assignment as pastor of a small rural congregation I assumed that everyone would respect me because of the call of God.  Unfortunately, that utopian vision of the ministry was short-lived and I found that the desire for power among people does not include healthy respectfulness.  We are commanded in Scripture to ‘respect’ spiritual leaders because of the WORK.  Most who have served as pastor, have heard, “What do you do all day?  Why do you need a day off?  It must be nice to have a job where you just read the Bible and pray all day.” 

Hebrews 13:17 instructs us to OBEY those who rule over us and be SUBMISSIVE.  Why?  They watch for our souls and God holds them accountable for our condition and development.   I have participated in meetings where the leader would present ideas and on one occasion where the majority did not agree they stated:  “We do not agree but if you believe this is best and is in the best interest of all involved we will support you as the leader.”  They were not being obsequious for some were quite strong-willed individuals but they were deferring to their leader because of their respect for his position and person.

HOW DO YOU EARN GENUINE RESPECT?

  • Show Yourself Worthy.

One minister said, “I cannot stand in the pulpit and command the congregation to respect me.  It is earned by demeanor, by love, and by character.”  I believe that character and integrity are foundational in respect.  That means we have to be attentive to small things and strive to be above reproach at all times and in all things.

  •  Respect Ourselves. 

People truly do take their cues about respecting a leader from the leader him or herself.  My attitude is that in myself I am nothing but I can do all things through God who strengthens me and if God called me He is or has prepared me.  Therefore, my confidence is in God.  Without tooting your own horn it is sometimes necessary to let people know what God has done using you as a vessel of service.  

  • Respect Others.

Respecting others for a pastor means learning what their needs are and work diligently to address them.  Likewise how you handle partiality is a reflection on your respect for others. 

  • Confront Disrespectful Actions.

Remember Paul’s counsel to Titus, “Let no one despise you.”  I have found that if you overlook or ignore disrespect it will be repeated and usually more prolific than before.  I am talking about things that are genuinely disrespectful.  I have experienced someone seeking to demean and disallow my authority and corrupt my responsibility in order to gain power.  I did not let those go without notice and each one was handled differently as the Holy Spirit directed.  I tried to be kind, gentle, loving but firm enough that it would be understood that behavior which had the potential of disrupting the church could not be tolerated.  

I prefer to approach disrespect with a servant heart and the spirit of meekness toward the disrespectful person.  So, I tolerate it for a time and once I have proved their spirit and it continues I can then demonstrate mine and on that strength, I can confront whatever is necessary with God’s authority behind me.

As with having friends, we must be friendly to gain respect, we must be respectful.  RESPECT is earned!    God bless you as you go through your day!

 

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REFUGEE OR CITIZEN?


Spiritual Blog - Citizens

Colossians 1:13-14 – “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”  NASU

We sing about being the REDEEMED and that we are SOJOURNERS just passing through and that is good.  However, I want to highlight something for consideration regarding our status in this world and the one to come.

The work of Christ in His birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension affords something wonderful.  The King James Version says He “delivered” us from the devil’s power.  The Amplified refers to it as “delivered” from the devil’s control and the New American Standard identifies that we have been “rescued” from the Domain or Kingdom of Darkness.  All basically say the same thing but let’s take this idea or revelation and examine it briefly.

If we have been delivered or rescued from the devil’s kingdom (where we were citizens) and his power (where he manipulated us) and have been transferred into the Kingdom of God that is worthy of note.  In that single act of our LORD, we have seen our status change from ‘refugee’ to ‘citizen’ of a different realm or kingdom.

In the natural, if our citizenship changes we are under the laws and governance of the new country of which we are citizens.  Theoretically, we have backing us the entire might of our new country and rather than holding refugee status we hold citizenship.  We may be sojourners in this present world but our citizenship is in that Eternal World of the Kingdom of God.  The title ‘god of this world’ the devil held has been rendered, null and void by the Finished Work of Jesus on the Cross and His Resurrection from the Dead.  We are here not as refugees fleeing the tyranny of the devil but as ambassadors of our new country or kingdom.

The authority through which Jesus operates is extended to us as citizens of that new kingdom and through His authority, we have power and authority over all power and authority of the former ‘god of this world’.  Jesus redeemed or ‘bought back’ that which was lost and whether we accept His grace or reject it we no longer belong to the devil but to God.  We may resist and reject what Jesus has done but what He did is complete.  However, unless we accept His grace we will perish and by that act of rejection we ‘give place to the devil’ and in so doing place ourselves within his grasp.

Too many in the Body of Christ tend to live as refugees in this present world trying to escape the devil and longing for the heavenly cavalry to arrive and rescue us.  That places us in a subordinate position rendering us powerless against the power of darkness for we fail to understand or appropriate the position afforded us through Grace.  If we can understand that we have a LEGAL VICTORY in Jesus to exercise dominion and authority in this earth over all the power of the enemy we will find our lives transformed drastically.

We need to learn to enforce the Victory of Calvary and appropriate the Promises of God in this present world.  We are not refugees we are citizens of the King of God.  We are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesus.  We have been given power over all the power of the enemy and our weapons are mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds.  We are more than conquerors through Jesus so let’s live like citizens, not refugees.

            God bless as you go through this day!

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ONLY BY THE BLOOD…


Spiritual Blog - Blood of Jesus

Exodus 12:12-13 – “For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. 13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.”  NKJV

 

As God prepared Israel for their deliverance from Egyptian bondage the one thing they had to do to be spared was take the “blood of the sacrificial lamb” and place it on the doorposts of their houses.  When the destroying angel came into the land and saw the BLOOD the inhabitants would be spared otherwise DEATH would be the result.

This was symbolic and pointed to the time when Christ, our sacrificial lamb, would offer up His innocent blood on the Cross for the sin of mankind.  In our reception of His sacrifice and grace, the Holy Spirit applies the Blood of the Lamb to our hearts and we are spared from the plague of sin.  Only by the blood are we spared!  It is not by works, not earned, not deserved it is “by grace, through faith” that we enter into the family and kingdom of God.   NOTHING BUT THE BLOOD!

The old gospel song says it perfectly:

“What can wash away my sin?

              Nothing but the blood of Jesus;

              What can make me whole again?

              Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

 

              Oh! Precious is the flow

              That makes me white as snow;

               No other fount I know,

               Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

The prophet Isaiah penned it perfectly in Isaiah 1:18 – “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.   If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword.”

Some in today’s PC world do not like the mention of THE BLOOD for they consider it too vile for polite society and seek to eliminate it from the religious conversation.  Unfortunately for them, salvation’s door is opened ONLY BY THE BLOOD.  Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission as declared Paul in Hebrews 9:22.  Forgiveness is not possible without the Blood of Christ shed for sin.  He paid the divine penalty and through His sacrifice, we have HOPE and LIFE!

What can wash away my sin?  NOTHING BUT THE BLOOD OF JESUS!   So today, if you have not received Him I urge you to listen to the nudging of the Holy Spirit and allow God to apply the blood of Jesus to the doorposts of your heart.

            God bless you richly is my prayer and desire!

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NOT ONE WORD OF GOD FAILS…


Spiritual Blog - Word

Jeremiah 1:12 – “Then the LORD said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over My word to perform it.” NASU

             I have encountered some that are like those Peter addressed in 2 Peter 3:9 reminding them that God is not slack concerning His promises.  I am fully convinced that I can depend on anything it is God’s Word for I believe that His word cannot be separated from Himself and if He says it He will bring it to pass.

When Israel entered the Promised Land and had finally taken possession of the Land of Promise we read in Joshua 21:43-45 – “So the LORD gave to Israel all the land of which He had sworn to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it and dwelt in it. 44 The LORD gave them rest all around, according to all that He had sworn to their fathers. And not a man of all their enemies stood against them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. 45 Not a word failed of any good thing which the LORD had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.”  

ALL OF IT, every promise came to pass.  Every Word that God said God did.  That is true in our lives as well.  Although we live by the calendar and clock and we are serving one who responds to neither.  We are time conscious whereas He is timeless.  We live in the finite but He is infinite.  We have self-imposed deadlines and bind ourselves to them but God is never bound by our limitations.

It doesn’t matter if God promised something to you when you were 10 and now you are 80 if He said it He will bring it to pass.  People will fail but God will not.  Our plans are always flawed but His are perfect.  Our timing is subject to our interpretation of the need and circumstances His are limited only to His limitlessness which means they have no limitations and He is never late (truly).  If we can embrace the words of Paul in Romans 8:28 we can deal with God’s supposed delays knowing that ALL THINGS are WORKING TOGETHER for our ultimate good.  All things are not good but the compilation of them produces the finished product that is.

The question should not be whether or not God will keep His promises but whether we will ‘faint’ before the promise is fulfilled.  If we believe God to be God then we can hold on, no matter what, to His promises knowing that His track record is NOT ONE WORD FAILS.

            May God be with you as you go through your day!

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MONEY AND POWER…


Spiritual Blog - Money

John 12:4-9 – “But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, 5 “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it.  7 But Jesus said, “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial.  8 For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.”   NKJV

 

I recall years ago hearing Billy Graham say that God told him to “Not touch the money”.  He was talking about integrity and how money has corrupted too many men who began right in the pursuit of the purposes of God.  I have observed in my decades on this terrestrial ball that MONEY and POWER are two of the most deadly elements man faces in any area of life.  There are other things that are destructive but those two are in the top tier to be guarded against their negative influence.

Do not understand me to say that MONEY in itself is evil for that is not what Jesus declared but rather THE LOVE OF IT is where the root of evil resides.  POWER is not bad in itself but if allowed to whet the appetite for control over others it becomes deadly spiritually, socially and politically.  The writer of Ecclesiastes declared, “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.”  (5:10).

The Bible tells us that where the treasure is the heart is there also.  If MONEY and POWER become so valuable to us they become dominant objects we pursue they will become corruptions in our character.  I firmly believe that God wants his servants well taken care of.  I also know that there is a lurking danger of allowing the appetite for the lifestyle of the “Rich and Famous” to override our heart of charity and understanding of the purpose of both MONEY and positions of POWER.

I have been told more than once that as a preacher I should keep only a minimal amount of my money and give the rest to the poor.  I have been attacked when the congregation I was leading spent money on the facilities and told that we were to keep everything minimal and the rest should go to the poor.  Jesus addressed that, in a sense, when Judas displayed disgust over the act of worship and extravagance when Mary took costly oil and wiped the feet and hair of our Lord.  Jesus considered what she had done an act of worship and faith and it is clear from the passage that Judas cared less about the poor than the money.  Jesus said, “…the poor you have with you always…” 

I personally do not believe that our places of worship or our lifestyles should be so extravagant they repulse and demonstrate a lack of awareness and concern for the plight of those around us.  It would be difficult for me to adopt a lifestyle of living in the lap of luxury when I see so many needs presenting themselves daily.  I preached along this line once and was told that I had a ‘spirit of poverty’.  I prayed about that and the Holy Spirit assured me that was not true.  My desire to bless others, have my needs supplied, live comfortably and maintain a tender heart overrides any appeal that lavish wealth affords brings joy to my heart.  I want the Power of the Resurrection in my life to combat the forces of hell and the wealth of the wicked in my hands to advance the purposes of God.

            God bless you as you go through this day!

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BECOMING A VICTIM…


Spiritual Blog - Victim

Ephesians 4:29-5:2 – “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. 32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. 

5:1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.”  NKJV

I believe that one of the key sources or roots causing a person to develop a Victim Mentality is BITTERNESS.  Many harbor resentment so deeply that it dominates their lives.  The question is why do we replay the hurt over and over in our minds reliving the old wounds?  It is because we go back to The Lie, “you shall be as God.”

What does God do?  He is in control.  Therefore, if we believe that we are like God then we envision ourselves as being in control.  If we are in control then we are in charge of the punishment to be meted out to the ones who hurt us.  They can never be set free because we are determined to eventually make them hurt like they hurt us or maybe even more.

We lock the door to our lives and attempt to influence as many others to lock the offender out as well.  In fact, it can escalate to the point that we want them eradicated from the human race declaring them that despicable.  WHY?  We have become the Victim.  If you had not said or done what you did I would not be an addict, alcoholic, abandoned, economically or socially deficient.  It was your fault!  Because of you, I have been living in Hell and now I’m going to send you there as well.  The pain is real and incredible for the Victim.

If I could somehow get everyone to realize that no human being can make you do anything you are free.  It is a choice.  He or she makes me so mad!  No, you choose to become angry.  But, you are a Victim because you were injured.  They did it to you so do not ask me to forgive them THEY ARE WRONG!  The victim chooses to remember and by holding on to it he/she believes they can guarantee it will never happen again.  The wall is erected and the list of offenders denied access grows almost daily.

Some never forgive because they do not understand forgiveness.  They think if they forgive the offender they will be hurt again and become a doormat.  But what is forgiveness?  It is not calling a truce, admitting defeat, letting evil win or saying let’s just forget it.  Have you ever had someone who hurt you come and apologize and you say, “Oh, it was nothing”?  That is not the truth and you know it!  IT HURT and was far more than nothing!  Some have the mistaken idea that if they do not admit it hurt it doesn’t exist but if you will not or cannot admit the pain you cannot forgive.

Forgiveness is never condoning.  We are often told we must forgive but rarely are we told how to forgive.  We are told the why behind forgiveness but not the how.  We hear that we must forgive because Christ has forgiven us and if we do not forgive we will not be forgiven.  True, but how do we forgive?

What does God do?  He takes the initiative and comes to us.  The one that we sinned against comes and takes our place.  He chooses to bear all our guilt, grief and sorrow.  He pays our debt with His own blood.  Then He rises from the dead and extends a full pardon to us.  We are Free!  Remember the workers hired at different times of the day?  As the owner of the vineyard begins to hand out the pay he begins with those who worked least and paid them but as he worked through to those who had worked all day he paid the same wage and they were irate.  Not fair was the cry!  Exactly, life is not fair and we should be glad God is not fair for if He were we would have something quite other than salvation and pardon.

What do we do?  We REPENT!  We surrender and receive His grace.  There is no discussion of the past.  The key is that we are to forgive “just as” God has forgiven us.  We must BE that which He has made us.  Be kind.  Be tender-hearted. Be forgiving.  Be someone who dishes out grace.  It changes the entire attitude and moves us from being victims to victors.  Therefore, you take BITTERNESS and get rid of it.  You banish it from your life.  You hold it up to the light of God’s Grace and begin learning a lifestyle of forgiveness.  You will repeat it over and over again for a long time, most likely.  It will become who you are and then your actions and attitude will reflect His Forgiveness and become Forgiveness.

Forgiveness is not divine amnesia and we forgive by faith!  We choose to not lay their sin to their charge and release them.   May the Lord be with you guarding and guiding you through this day!

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CHRISTIANITY KNOWS NOTHING OF A VICTIM MENTALITY…


Spiritual Blog - Victim

Ephesians 4:29-5:2 – “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. 32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. 

5:1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.”  NKJV

Much of our modern world including some in the church have developed a victim mentality.  That phenomenon has been to the detriment of both society and the church and is foreign to Christ and Christianity.  You may have been victimized but you should never be a victim.

When I consider the text for this devotional I reflect on what Paul has been talking about, the New Birth.  He has been talking about leaving the old world, old way and the old man behind.  Everything that belongs to sin and the race of Adam has been taken out of the way.  Something happened and we have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness (this world) into the Kingdom of Jesus Christ.  We have a New Self, are a New Man or a New Creation.  We have been ‘rebirthed’.  Therefore, it is imperative that we learn to live out our New Life in Christ.  We need to BECOME the people the Bible says we really are!

This point in our lives (New Birth) is a time of crisis.  Most acknowledge that but tragically too many of those who profess Christ continue to emphasize and focus on that crisis the remainder of their days on earth.  We sing about the crisis and go to church to hear about and discuss the crisis.  In so doing, I believe, we have missed an important truth in the Gospel.

The New Testament is not about the crisis it is about being taken out of the crisis and the process of becoming who God says we are.  Now that we are saved and have passed from death to life we need to BECOME.  We are no longer who or what we were for we are New Creations in and through Jesus.  Now is the time to begin the process of allowing that Newness to invade every dimension of our lives.  We have been rebirthed and now it is time to become!

In all honesty, many that I talk to about Christ and Salvation seem to have everything in reverse.  I’ve had countless people say, “Let me shape up and then…”  They seem to feel that if they somehow turn over a new leaf, change, try harder THEN they can be accepted.  Got receives us and once He has received us we are accepted.  In that state of acceptance, God says, “Now let’s change you!  Let’s help you BECOME…”

THE CHANGE SEEN IN OUR TEXT:

He says there are some areas in our lives that must change:  Bitterness, malice, evil speaking, anger and anger we are to PUT AWAY.  Then he tells us we are to BE… Kind to one another, tenderhearted and forgiving.  We are IN CHRIST, pardoned and have been given righteousness so now it is time to start working and walking that out in our lives.  It is not someday in heaven we are going to BE it is NOW.

We were in and of the world which is a part of THE LIE that goes back to the Garden.  Man believed that he would be as God and independent of God.  NOW, we have been delivered from that realm and we must learn TRUTH and through that truth a new LIFESTYLE that is completely opposite of what we knew.  Simply we have to RELEARN LIFE.  No wonder Jesus said that we must become as little children.  We are Brand New and as a child must learn to LIVE!  Being a Christian is not adding Sunday to your schedule it is relearning how to live 24/7/365.  We are being delivered from the Bentness, Distortion and Wrong Thinking and must have our minds renewed so we can become who we are.  Victors, not Victims!

            God bless you as you go through this day!

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LOVE – The Danger of Poisonous Love…


Spiritual Blog - Agape

1 Corinthians 13:1-13 – “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. 4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. 11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. 13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”  NKJV

 

In the English language, we sometimes have significant communication problems and the word LOVE is no exception.  The word, in the English language, has evolved to mean a myriad of things and many not remotely connected to the Bible word for LOVE.  The word LOVE in the New Testament translated from the Greek ‘AGAPE’ and has no real English translation.  The word we must most of the time is more akin to the Greek word “Eros” which is largely foreign to the New Testament directive.  In the writing of the New Testament, the Holy Spirit drew a word out of obscurity a word that most Greeks barely knew what it meant.  The New Testament brings us the definition of AGAPE.

The definition is incredibly simple and is found in 1 John 4:8 – “God is AGAPE!”  Many believers like the word Agape but have little real knowledge of its meaning and impact.  Most of the time when we speak of love it is by the human definition.  This Love that Paul is referring to is the God kind of Love or the God quality of Love.  Remember Jesus said, “Love one another as I have loved you.”  

This chapter is more than amazing.  Most Christians know this almost by heart and can quote it readily but it has virtually no impact on multitudes.  It is nothing more than words to place a salve on our consciences rather than transform our lives.  In verse 3 the apostle declares, “…if I deliver my body to be burned, but do not have AGAPE it profits nothing.”  Hear that, please.  You can become a martyr for God or the Christian faith and if you do not have AGAPE it is nothing!

What is a martyr?  Someone who, because of what they believe regarding God and the meaning of life give their lives.  He or she is willing to die for that belief and conviction.  But let’s take it a step further because AGAPE has to do with relationships with people.  In a very real sense, AGAPE has nothing to do with me loving God but me loving people.  Therefore the entire chapter is about you or me loving AGAPE People.  That screams to me, “It is not what a person does that counts it is the source from which it comes.” 

If we are going to find, experience and manifest REAL LOVE then we must understand what real love is.  God is Love!   God does not just have love HE IS LOVE.  This is not what God has but what God is.  Additionally, Love is of God.  It issues forth from God for there can be no AGAPE outside God for He is the source!  If man is severed from God, what is he left with?  The stuff he is made of – Flesh!  There is a hole in his heart. There is an emptiness or lack in his makeup.  Man has a longing for love and to be loved.  God’s AGAPE is life giving but man’s perversion of Love can be toxic.

            God bless you as you go through this day!

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THE HEART OF A PASTOR…


Spiritual Blog - Heart

Exodus 32:30-32 – “On the next day Moses said to the people, ” You yourselves have committed a great sin; and now I am going up to the LORD, perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” 31 Then Moses returned to the LORD, and said, “Alas, this people has committed a great sin, and they have made a god of gold for themselves. 32 “But now, if You will, forgive their sin — and if not, please blot me out from Your book which You have written!”  NASU

             A true shepherd is willing to give his life for the sheep and in many ways, that is exactly what pastors do.  The Bible speaks of good leaders and bad and good shepherds and bad, so I am not suggesting that simply because a person carries the title or position of Pastor they are saints.  Sadly, some are self-serving and why they entered the ministry is a mystery but the sheep’s welfare is not a primary focus of their hearts or lives.  Some are lazy and do not fight the good fight of faith in the trenches of their prayer closets as well as in the community in which they serve.  But, some are faithful servants who spend virtually every waking moment thinking of and praying for the sheep they have been charged with giving spiritual oversight.

Moses demonstrated the heart of a Pastor on many occasions and this is one of the most prolific, in my view.  He did not sugarcoat the sin of the people and challenged them to acknowledge their error and repent.  He, like the Shepherds described in the Bible, set himself at the door of the sheepfold and as he stood before God he spoke with a genuine heart of concern for both the sheep and God.  I do not believe this was an attempt of Moses to manipulate God.  That would have been futile and the response of God would have been much different with Israel being smashed like bugs and Moses along with them.  God extended mercy, not because Moses manipulated Him but because He responds to a heart that is broken and contrite that comes in genuine humility and repentance before Him.

A true pastor knows that God judges sin and that there are penalties for sin and forgiveness does not always negate the reaping of what has been sown.  It restores fellowship but the chastisement of God, though painful for a season, is redemptive in the view of eternity.  Like a parent, a pastor understands that he cannot protect his flock from the ills of seeds sown in sin, but he can intercede for them that they receive forgiveness and mercy.  The Bible says that there is no greater love than for a man to lay down his life for his friends and that is what Moses comes before God to do.  He is offering himself, taking ownership for the condition of the people.  No, he did not commit their sin, but he recognized that as their leader and human spiritual head he is accountable for them.  How many of us who have served as shepherds of God’s sheep have interceded before God to that degree?  Not to be judgmental or condemnatory, I would say few, if any.  Most would say, “Well, I can’t control them and I tried to teach them the right way but they chose to go into sin.”  That may well be true on all counts and it is equally true that the fathers do not die for the sin of the sons nor the sons for the sin of the fathers.  However, Hebrews 13:17 offers some insight as to the responsibility of the sheep and the shepherd, “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who give an account.  Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.”  Let that soak in and digest it for a while.  It just might change your attitude toward the pastor and the attitude of the pastor toward the sheep.

A pastor, who loves the sheep sacrifices without complaint because it is more than a job or vocation it is a calling and a life.  Sadly, some pastor’s focus so much on the flock they forget their responsibilities to their own families.  If I win the church and lose my family have I fulfilled my call and purpose in God?  If I devote hours on end to the congregation and give scraps to my family am I truly serving well?  That is why I believe that the pastoral ministry must be more than an individualized ministry it must be a Team and a Family affair.  Moses was wearing himself out by trying to be all things to all people all the time.  He was the classic pastor wearing all kinds of hats.  His father in law saw the problem and gave him wise counsel and that counsel helped Moses understand and develop a Pastor’s heart to a greater measure than before.  He was fully responsible and/or accountable for the flock and yet he understood that they were individuals with minds of their own.  He also understood the Ways of God not just the Acts of God.  He had learned the Heart of God and although it is said of David not Moses that he was a man after God’s own heart, I am quite sure God viewed Moses in that light as well.

It was out of his great love that Moses stood before God and said, “If you will forgive their sin – and if not, please blot me out from Your book which You have written.”  Moses did not desire to be blotted out but he honestly expressed to God that he could not bear life if those he was charged to care for were rejected.  He also was acknowledging his accountability for them.  He loved his people that much and he respected and feared God to the point that he truly believed that God would respond to honesty, humility, and repentance.  A Pastor demonstrates that spirit he does not just proclaim it.

God, bless you as you walk this walk in Jesus!

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WHAT GOSPEL???


Spiritual Blog - Provision

Matthew 6:11 – “Give us this day our daily bread.”  NASU

Proverbs 30:7-9 – “Two things I asked of You, do not refuse me before I die: 8 Keep deception and lies far from me, give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, 9 That I not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the LORD?” Or that I not be in want and steal, and profane the name of my God.”  NASU

 

I have listened to many preachers, heard and preached many sermons and messages through my decades on Planet Earth.  I have observed that man, generally, preaches one of two gospels.  He either preaches the Gospel of Prosperity or Poverty.  Of course, there are modifications of those two but at the heart of the message and mentality is often one or the other.

I do not believe that most people believe either completely.  Before you attack that statement let me explain.  Some seem to believe that it is somehow godly to lack and be in need or want all the time.  I have been told by preachers and parishioners that it is not good to have money or possessions because it will make you proud and you will lose your hunger for God.  I’ve been told by others that God intends for each of His children to be rich and if you are not rich you are lacking in faith, commitment or relationship with God.  I believe both are right and both are wrong at some level.  I know that places me in a position that appears to be guilty of vacillating and so vague that my argument provides no benefit.  If I left it there, I would totally agree.

I had a church member tell me once they believed that it was God’s job to keep the pastor humble and theirs to keep him poor.  I had a minister tell me that God expected the church to ensure that he always had the best of everything even if they didn’t.  I am troubled by both views.  Jesus’ words throughout the Scriptures reveal that it is God’s desire to bless His children.  There are many passages in the Bible regarding God’s desire and willingness to bless us and in Malachi, we are told to PROVE GOD regarding finances and He will open heaven’s windows with blessings beyond what we can contain.  Jesus also taught that when we give it will be given back in an overflowing fashion to mention a couple.  Proverbs 10:22 is exciting, “The blessing of the LORD, it makes rich, and He adds no sorrow with it.”  He said, that we can ask anything and expect the answer and that includes possessions and money.  That is not limited to those but they cannot be excluded.

On the other hand, God’s purpose for giving us abundance is not so that we can live as Regals ignoring the plight and needs of others but He gives to us so that we can have the ability to give to every good cause He sets before us.  We are told, that those who give to the poor lend to the LORD and God faithfully repays.  In the sense that we need to keep everything in perspective suggests that the prayer of the writer of Proverbs 30 is revealing the heart of God.  He asks for neither riches or poverty but his heart is crying for something else – PROVISION. 

I believe that the Gospel Jesus preached was the Gospel of Provision.  He is our Provision as well as our Provider.  He is our Health and Healing as well as our Healer.  He gives us Guidance and is our Guiding Light.  He gives us Hope and is our Hope.  He gives us Life and is our Life.  Remember what God told Moses when asked: “Who will I tell them has sent me?”  He said to tell them that “I AM.  I AM THAT I AM.”  He is our Provision.  The Bible does not tell us to seek first possessions or poverty but the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness.  The Bible does not tell us to lift up riches or extol the virtue of lack but to lift up Jesus and if He is lifted up He draws people to Him.  Jesus is our PROVISION and no matter what the need HE IS what we need.

I realize that this is somewhat simplistic but my heart is crying out to urge everyone to seek neither poverty or riches but Him who is the giver and sustainer of life.  My God, the Bible tells us, shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.  There is no need for which He is not the supply.  I have stopped preaching or seeking prosperity in material things and reject the mentality that God wants me to live as a pauper.  Rather I have determined to Preach Jesus and when I make Him Lord of All and Seek Him first and foremost I live as the Hebrews with NO SENSE OF LACK for I have THE PROVISION.

God, bless you as you enjoy this day in Jesus!

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