Galatians 5:22-26 – “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”  NKJV

Let me get in hot water at the outset and ask, “If someone were observing your life and asked to describe your characteristics, attributes or fruit what would they list?”  I would hope they would list some of the items above in describing me but that might depend on what day they were asked.  Am I confessing to inconsistency?  I guess I am.  Am I admitting that I am human?  Well I guess I am.  Am I admitting that I exhibit more carnality than spirituality at times?  Sadly, I guess I am.  However, like Paul said in Philippians 3:14 I am pressing toward the mark. I am not there but trying to keep my ship of life headed that direction.

What would those who know you say if over time you began to consistently (and you may) the items listed in the text passage?  How would it impact your co-workers, business associates, neighbors, and the lost you encounter?  Most of us who have received the Lord Jesus as our personal savior desire that the ‘fruit of the Spirit’ be manifest in our lives consistently and are saddened when we fall short regardless of the situation.  Some have found that allowing areas of small discretion over time have allowed insulation in our conscience so that we are not as deeply touched when we fall short as we should and that is dangerous.

The fruit that the Living Lord through the Holy Spirit demonstrates in a life He indwells is love.  We are explicitly told in the Bible that one of the ways we know we are saved is that we ‘love the brethren’ that we ‘love one another.’  We often justify this or that in our lack of love but I would suggest that God is not buying it and we know it is not right.

Joy is contagious and at times infuriating.  I had a person tell me once ‘cheer down’ a bit you do not have that much to be happy about.  Walking in ‘peace’ is such a secure place for it allows you to think clearly, listen carefully, and act rationally.  Being patient is something that we learn through complete reliance on our Lord.  We are naturally impatient people and our present world is a ‘microwave world’ where we want everything yesterday.  I have internet that is ‘high speed’ and while it is lightning fast in comparison to the old dial up I still find myself complaining that it is ‘too slow’.  Imagine what it would be like if I had to go to the library and actually dig through volumes to find the answers.  SLOW?  My grandmother told me once, ‘kindness costs nothing but being unkind much.’  Goodness (integrity, honesty) is a quality that will bring favor and respect.  When I read the word ‘faithfulness’ I immediately think of the people who have most influenced my life and the common characteristic has been their ‘faithfulness’ in all things and at all times.   They exhibited the heart of Jesus and where could we find one as faithful as He.  Are we ‘gentle’ and I contend that one can be so without being ‘weak.’  In our modern world this next fruit is vanishing rapidly – ‘self-control’.   Paul tells us that ‘against such there is no law’.  He tells us that if we are ‘in Christ’ we allow the flesh to be crucified and replaced with the heart of our Lord producing in us the Fruit of the Spirit.

As we allow the Holy Spirit to manifest Jesus in our lives and walk in the Spirit we will find it a preventative for conceit, jealousy, envy, gossip, division, and will enable us to encourage and motivate one another to press toward the mark.

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

Matthew 8:23-27 – “When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. 24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep. 25 And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” 26 He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. 27 The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”  NASU

Early in my Christian experience and before acknowledging or understanding the call to preach I asked a question that was birthed in this passage much to the caution and disapproval of many fellow believers. The question:  “If Jesus once did miracles why don’t we expect Him to do them today?”  Some said, “We do!”  Others said, “We don’t want to overly inflate people’s hopes and leave them candidates for failure.”  “Miracles were only for the 1^st Century church.”  “We have science, doctors, and technology so we don’t need miracles.”  Those are a few of the responses I received and I found that I was being avoided by some because my questions made them uncomfortable and they did not want to be moved out of their comfort zone.

You may not believe in miracles I do not know but I do.  I believe that the answer to ‘What kind of man is Jesus?’ is that He is GOD.  He is Omnipotent, Omnipresent, and Omniscient.  He was, is, and will be I AM THAT I AM.  He has not changed, will not change and if miracles are no longer available then the Bible spends way too much time encouraging us to ‘ask what we will’, ‘come boldly before the Throne’, and ‘ask’ the Lord for things on our behalf.  If it is not possible to receive them the prodding and urging us to seek the impossible is sadistic not LOVE and God is LOVE!

I have been healed on more than one occasion of broken bones and seen X-Ray verification as well as doctor testimony on the radial head of my right arm that God healed 10 days after it was broken.  I have been healed of parathyroid cancer and my mother had a broken back and God healed her.  I have seen people given up for dead that God restored to life leaving the physicians in disbelief and questioning.  I have had financial miracles that could not be explained by natural means.  I have been led to take a different route or direction only to find that had I continued on my course calculating time, speed, etc. I would have likely been killed or faced incredible ruin.  Sorry, but I have experienced THIS MAN who can calm the stormy seas and cause the boisterous wind to become calm.  I have experienced His miraculous working power in my life, witnessed it in others and believe that THIS MAN is the SAME MAN as He was that night in the boat with the disciples.

Will you receive a miracle every time?  I would say no because that is what I have witnessed.  Why?  I cannot answer that and will not allow the condemnation that says, “Well you just did not  have enough faith, believe or confess right.”  No, sometimes the providence of God overrides our desires and prayers and I have chosen to trust Him while not allowing disappointment to diminish my confidence that He not only can but will.  He is Jesus the SON OF THE LIVING GOD!

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

John 16:33 – “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”  NASU

The Words of our Lord were never spoken frivolously or flippantly they were and are always deadly serious and have meaning.  Jesus spent his earthly ministry preparing his disciples to take the ‘Gospel’ to the world and as he taught He taught with emphasis.  He seems to always give a condition, an option, a solution, and a promise.  I wonder how often we fail to grasp those four elements in His words!

He identifies the only true source of peace – HIMSELF.  He is the ‘way, truth, and life’ and there is NO OTHER access to the Father but through Him.  He is not one of the prophets but the SON OF GOD.  He is not an accessory that you add to your religious life but the FOUNDATION of your life.  He brings ‘shalom’ which is more than the absence of trouble, struggle and strife but an empowerment to walk in that security He brings.  If peace is absent in your life there is an option you can turn to God who is the solution and the promise is PEACE.

He identifies that in the world there will be trouble – TRIBULATION.  The world hates Him and as a result will hate us.  False religions want to eradicate all who do not believe like they and reject the truth that JESUS is the way.  If you are facing tribulation there is an option.  You can try to go it alone and likely see the trials intensify or you can turn to God who is your solution and the promise is PEACE.

If you are discouraged or fearful there is an option.  You can continue to cower in fear and try to find a place to hide or you can opt to run to Him and find that He will not only encourage but embolden your hearts and give you confidence to STAND and He brings PEACE.  Remember who it is that we are talking about for He has OVERCOME THE WORLD.  He has rendered powerless the powers of hell.  He has given us authority over all the power of the enemy. [Luke 10:19].  We are no longer aliens but citizens of the Kingdom of God through the Blood of Jesus Christ and joint heirs with Jesus.

So if you want PEACE but are facing TRIBULATION and finding it difficult to exhibit COURAGE remember He has OVERCOME the world.  So His promise is PEACE in the midst of TRIBULATION and the COURAGE to enforce the victory of Calvary!

            God bless you as you go through this day!

Galatians 5:13-15 – “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”   15 But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!”  NKJV

John 14:6 – “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”  NASU

Recently in discussing the sectarianism within the Christian community a friend of mine reminded me of something I had read years before.  He recited a quote that Dr. James Kennedy used, “In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity.”  “In necessariius unitas, in non-necessariis (or dubiss) libertas, in utrisque (or, omnibus) caritas.”  The saying is most often attributed to St. Augustine but it appears that his creed would not allow it although his heart might have embraced it and that it can possibly be traced to Repuertus Meldenius during the 1600’s.  In a book by Gregor Frank we find, “Let truth prevail, let charity prevail, let liberty abide through Jesus Christ who is truth itself, charity itself, freedom itself.”

 I have long been disturbed with the attempts of believers to advance their ‘brand’ rather than the pursuit of ‘abiding’ in Christ.  Before you come after me with righteous indignation as you may perceive it and brand me a heretic I completely understand and agree that there are some things we cannot accept.  That is true in life and it is equally true that we do not all agree on all things in life.  If we did, we would all want the same things, same mate, same car, same house, same job, etc.  We do not and that is not a bad thing normally.

In matters of faith it is vital that in the ‘essentials’ we speak the same thing as was urged by the apostle Paul.  I had someone tell me that it would not be problematic in their theology if Jesus were not ‘virgin born’ and did not die on the Cross or rise the third day.  It would mine!  That person considered most of the bible mythological and yet stated that he was a Christian and his beliefs should not affect our fellowship.  He publicly made his views known and tried to persuade others to follow his theological beliefs and for me to continue in fellowship with him would be paramount to saying, “I can accept his stance.”  I could not and knew that if I continued it would impact a significant number of people in the community and possibly shipwreck some in their faith.  So this was one of the ‘essentials’ that I had to insist on unity and we did not have that.

When we come to the ‘non-essentials’ and while some will tell me that there are no such things in matters of faith, I believe there are some things upon which our salvation does not depend.  I recall meeting with a number of ministers in a retreat and during the evening meal some partook of a glass of wine, a few had a beer, some had tea, and others coffee.  One of the ministers drinking his coffee looked at those with wine and beer and began to challenge them for drinking alcohol.  One of the ministers from Europe paused and said, “My brother, what is in your cup?”  The minister proudly declared that he did not imbibe alcohol and that it was just coffee.  The European said, “If we are going to talk about things toxic to the human body I would suggest that you lay aside your caffeine and remove the beam from your eye before you try to remove specks from the eyes of others.”  He continued to address ‘moderation’ and readily acknowledged that becoming intoxicated was wrong.  He said, “My brother, this is an area in which we can disagree without compromising the essentials of salvation.”   I know that some would say, “Oh no, that is sin!” 

In all things ‘charity’ or ‘love’ should be exhibited.  It truly is Jesus that who should be our focus not our particular opinions.  He is the truth, the way, the life and there is no other doorway to the Father but by Him.  I decided long ago that I would endeavor to teach the ‘essentials’ and when I came to what I considered ‘non-essentials’ I would preface my message or teaching with, “This is my opinion or preference” rather than “Thus says the Lord” and attempt to press everyone into my particular mold or brand.

I am convinced that if we ‘seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness’ He will show us what to leave off and what to keep in our lives.  The foundational truths of God’s Word will NEVER CHANGE but as we gain understanding and maturity many of our opinions will.  It is my desire that we all come to the place that we will “let truth prevail, let charity prevail and let liberty abide through Jesus Christ who is truth, liberty, and charity.”

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

John 19:30 – “Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.”  NASU

Man has and will always seek to earn his salvation and modify God’s way to fit his desires and ability.  That is the nature of depraved humanity with his bent toward evil since the fall in the Garden of Eden.  I realize that some will argue that man is basically good but the Bible speaks otherwise and thus because we have missed the mark (sinned) we need grace.  Man needs a redeemer to purchase his redemption and rescue him from the clutches of darkness.  Jesus is that redeemer and His birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension make the work of salvation complete.  He declares in John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” We are told in Ephesians 2:8-9 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

The satisfaction of divine justice is complete.  Mankind was delivered to the devil by Adam in the Garden and the door to God has been opened by Jesus on the Cross.  There is nothing that can be added to that and nothing can be taken away it is the FINISHED WORK.  If it is complete then I ask ‘how complete is complete?’  If it cannot be earned, is not deserved, and can only be received through faith it is A GIFT. 

Many have an ingrained difficulty with the FINISHED WORK of our Lord on the Cross.  It is human pride and deception that goes back to the Garden that causes this problem.  Remember THE LIE that the serpent told?  I know you may ask, ‘which lie?’  While there were many facets of THE LIE it is one.  One of the facets was ‘you shall be as God’ or put another way ‘you shall be God.’  Man at that point descended into darkness that resulted as inherent in his nature a pride that needs to have a sense of deserving.  He wants to earn it so he can believe he deserves it.  His deception allows the devil to manipulate him and pervert the pureness of the gospel and through his attitude, belief, words, and deeds seek to ‘add to’ the message and work of the Cross.

If one could be saved via their works and self-discipline it would not be grace but merit.  Keeping all the rules will make one a Pharisee not a Christian.  Keeping all the rules will turn the heart into a Legalist not a Child of God.  Keeping all the rules will allow one to become self-righteous and judgmental comparing oneself with others rather than measuring oneself by the gospel.  I cannot keep all the rules no matter how hard I might try in my own flesh, it is humanly impossible.  It is only as I receive THE LIFE that comes to me through the FINISHED WORK of Christ can I be saved and manifest Him.  Will I find that I come short from time to time?  Absolutely, as Paul said in Philippians 3:12-14 – “Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do:  forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

             I, like the patriarchs of old, am looking for a city whose builder and maker is God.  I am a sojourner passing through this world headed toward that eternal land of promise.  The life that I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of and in the Son of God.  I am not my own I have been bought with a price and that price is the Blood of Jesus.  He willingly became my substitute so that I could escape the penalty of sin and rebellion.  He became my door to GOD and eternal life.  His work is COMPLETE and if I receive it I am SAVED!  How complete is complete?  COMPLETELY!

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

Jeremiah 33:3 – “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’  NKJV

In the modern Christian world I see a significant decrease in the emphasis of the importance and power of prayer.  I had a man tell me once that prayer was a waste of time because God was going to do what He was going to do whether we pray or not.  If that is completely true then I find the many directives to prayer in the Bible incredibly misleading and almost sadistic and that is not an image I can allow of God or the Bible.  If prayer has no importance there would not be so many references to it and examples of the benefits of it in the Bible.  I have experienced the power and purpose of prayer so if that is your theory you came too late to convince me.

Here we find an incredible INVITATION from the King of Kings and Lord of Lords to CALL UPON HIM (Pray).  In the natural you would never go into the presence of a king or potentate without invitation.  That is equally true with God but He has repeatedly issued the INVITATION to pray and as Paul said we can come ‘boldly to the throne of grace…’ WHY?  Because He has extended an open invitation to do so and that is astounding!  God has invited us to come whenever into His presence and ‘ask’.

We not only have an invitation but a PROMISE that He will answer us.  In 1 John 5:14-15 we read, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.”   That is beyond amazing it is revolutionary and causes me to wonder why we too infrequently practice it or believe it.  We have been invited into the presence of GOD ALMIGHTY and He has promised to ANSWER us when we call.  If that won’t stir your heart I don’t know what will.

Then He goes even further beyond the invitation and promise to answer and declares that He will REVEAL to us great and mighty things that we do not know.  Imagine that, God is going to let us in on the secrets of life and show us things that we could otherwise not know.  The Bible says that God will do nothing except He reveal it first to His prophets and here we find that He is promising to pull back the curtain of life and allow us to know that which we do not now know.  God wants to give us knowledge, information, and revelation to enable us to walk unimpeded and triumphant in life as we pursue His purposes.

So I would challenge you to renew your commitment and practice of prayer and see what God does in your life.  I believe you will be amazed and quite pleased with the outcome.  May the Lord be with you as you go through this day!

2 Corinthians 4:16 – “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.”  NKJV

I recall as a young Christian and minister one of the senior ministers in the area pulled me aside and said, “Son, always remember that from the time you were born you began to die in the natural.  But from the time you were born again you begin to live in the spiritual.  Never forget that while you are heading toward the grave naturally your, are headed toward heaven spiritually.  Never let the natural take priority over the spiritual.”  In the years that have passed I have sometimes had a difficult time acknowledging that I am growing older for in my mind I’m still twenty-something but when I look in the mirror I am reminded of his words.

His words have caused me to continually evaluate life and purpose.  His words have helped keep me focused on the objective in life and prioritize.  His words have helped me fight off the temptation to become despondent when things appeared to have no solution.  His words have inspired me to always LOOK to the author and finisher of my faith.  I do not recall why he pulled me aside but he did and his daughter told me at his funeral that her dad loved me like a son and what she relayed that he saw in me I could not see.  Of course what he really saw was Christ in me not my talent or abilities but a willing and hungry heart.  I wanted to be what God wanted, do what God wanted, and go where God wanted.  It was and is a consuming passion!

LIVING is not just a chronology it is experience.  Unless the Lord comes and takes us home first we will all experience that which we call death or as the New Testament calls SLEEP.  In the process of making the journey from cradle to grave we should LIVE rather than just EXIST as too many do.  For some, when the cold reality shatters their fantasy of natural immortality they become depressed and paralyzed.  That is not and has never been God’s plan.  If we live as pilgrims in this life and citizens of heaven we can face the eventuality of death with a joyous heart and savor each moment in life.  If we are fighting to exist we will miss so much life has to offer and become targets of depression.  God wants us to live while we are dying allowing His Abundant Life to be our life in this present world.

DYING for the child of God is not a terror but can be faced with a calm assurance knowing that it is simply a transition from the natural to the eternal.  For as Paul said, ‘to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.’  I have talked to the Lord and shared what He already knows that I want to live as long as He will allow enjoying my life, His work, my family and friends.  I want to enjoy the experience of seeing His hand touch lives and watch their transformation.  I remember what it was like the night I truly came to know Him and as I see others experience His liberation in salvation or some other bondage I experience what they experience vicariously.  LIFE lived is thrilling!

            May the Lord be with you as you go through this day!

Deuteronomy 2:2-3 – “And the LORD spoke to me, saying, 3 ‘You have circled this mountain long enough. Now turn north…’” NASU

I have and you probably have found yourself going in circles in life and after a while found it difficult to acknowledge that fact and break out of the cycle.  I remember once fishing with my dad and brother and it was one of only two times I can recall my dad being turned around in the woods even at night.  After we passed a particular bend in the creek and the same Elm tree three times dad acknowledged that we were lost and stopped long enough to reorient himself and led us to the truck.  When you are lost it seems that one tends to make one step shorter than the other and instead of going in a straight line often you will go in a circle as we did.  Nothing is in the right place and the other time we were disoriented an Uncle insisted that the creek was running the wrong direction. Obviously it could not be so it allowed us to reorient ourselves and find our way out.  That is true in the natural and the spiritual. 

Sometimes we need to ‘cease striving’ and ‘listen’ so the Holy Spirit can help us become reoriented and head in the right direction.  In this case Israel was wandering almost aimlessly in the wilderness by God’s plan and now the time had come when God spoke and said, “Enough already it is time to head north to the Promised Land.”   He instructed them how to conduct themselves, where to go and what to expect and reminded them that although they had been in the wilderness forty years they had been taken care of and lacked nothing.  They were learning to TRUST and that would be essential in their taking possession of the Promised Land and their failure to trust would be a key in their downfall in later years.

If you sense that you are simply going in circles and accomplishing nothing, progressing nowhere, and have a sense of emptiness as a result I suggest that you STOP what you are doing and LISTEN.  God will give guidance if your heart is willing to hear and heed what He directs.  Do not seek to manipulate God that will not happen and will only prolong your aimless wandering leaving you empty and dissatisfied.  If you are willing to heed what you hear from the Word and Spirit of God you will be pleasantly surprised at how quickly you emerge from your doldrums and enjoy God’s Promise.

            May the Lord be with you as you go through this day!