Rejoice In Everything

Have Mercy

Lord, you hear our cries for mercy and you know why each one of us needs it. Reveal your mercy to us today. Open our eyes to see your mercy in our lives. 

Look Where You're Going

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 

Colossians 3:1-2

Where I live, for many drivers who I share the road with, it seems that turn signals have become optional. Or, for some, activating the turn signal only means they are turning, not necessarily in the direction their turn signal is indicating. What seems to be a much more reliable indicator of which way someone is turning is the direction they are looking. If I can see that the driver is looking right, even though their turn signal points left, they are probably turning right. 

Now, I'm not saying all that just to complain about the way some people drive. What I want to point out is that, for the most part, you go where you look. Naturally, when you turn your head your body follows. Try walking straight while looking ninety degrees to the right or left. Your body naturally starts to go where you are looking. 

Applying that to these wonderful verses in Colossians we understand that if we focus on Christ, on knowing him and loving others like he loved us, we will live as he wants us to live and enjoy the fruit of living in the Spirit. It's not really complicated. But, what about work? Listen, my job isn't studying the Bible. I'm an educator. Later in the chapter Paul tells the Colossians, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." (Col. 3:17) What I do today, I will do as a servant of Christ, serving other teachers and students. My desire is to be Christlike. What I do may not be "spiritual" but I look to the Lord to give me the strength, wisdom and skill I need to my job to the best of my ability. So, do what you do in the strength of the Lord and then thank him for whatever he does in and through you. Set your mind on things above...

Fear, a Good Thing

Not all fear is a good thing, just the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is actually is actually a foundational part of our faith. Truly knowing who God is and who we are before him should be the fear of the Lord. Living rightly before God allows you to be open to and see the blessing of the Lord he bestows on us every day. The fear of the Lord is a good thing.

No Other

“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
You shall have no other gods before me.

Deuteronomy 5:6-7 

Sometimes in the simplicity is the profoundness. The Lord is our God and he is to be the only God in our lives. It is important to remember that God is the one who sent his One and only Son to die for us, to save us from our sins, to redeem us, justify us and will one day take us all home to be with him in heaven. 

Reality is not just the way that God, the God of the Bible, sees it to be. Reality is the way that God created it to be, the way that it is. Matter, space and time were all created by God. Scientists, theoretical physicists, and philosophers may conjure up fine sounding arguments, theories and explanations for the world and universe, but, the Lord is God, and there is no other. 

Father, you are the only true God. We praise you and acknowledge you as the LORD, our God who brought us out of sin and into life in Christ Jesus. Praise be to you in us today!

The Lord is God.

Father, we acknowledge that not only are You the only true God, but that You are our God. May You be lifted up and glorified in Your people today. Shine Your light through us into the darkness of this world.

God is Your Help

Thank you, Father, for being our help. Thank you that we can call upon your Name!

Stay Connected, Stay in Christ

They have lost connection with the head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow.

Colossians 2:19

Paul's concern was that the Colossians grow in Christ, to continue in him as they started in him. The apostle compares the false teachers to a part of a body that has lost connection with the head. 

Several years ago my aunt died of a rare disease called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Basically, it destroys the brain, bit by bit. When certain parts of the brain are lost, then the brain can no longer tell the body what to do. So, people with the disease usually lose their memory and then bodily functions. Eventually, people die because the brain can't tell the heart to beat. 

The false teachers seeking to invade the early church were trying to mislead believers away from Christ and into pre-Gnostic philosophies or legalistic Judaism. Either way was leading people away from Christ, the head. If you disconnect from the head, as a part of the body, you will die. We must stay connected to Christ, in other words, continue in him, rooted and built up in the faith as the word of God teaches. Stay connected, stay in Christ. 

God Will Not

Will not let your foot slip.

Will not slumber or sleep.

Will not stop looking out for you.

Watch Out for False Humility

Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you. Such a person also goes into great detail about what they have seen; they are puffed up with idle notions by their unspiritual mind. 

Colossians 2:18

Humility, it's the one spiritual fruit that you aren't supposed to let anyone know you know you have. The type of person Paul describes here in Colossians seems to have to conflicting purposes in their actions. One is to be, or appear humble. The NASB translates the word as self-abasement. Yet, they are also pointing out with great detail about their spiritual encounters, which apparently involved angels. 

True spirituality always glorifies Christ. Always. A guy I heard on the "Christian" channel in our area once was describing his "encounter" with Jesus while he was shaving. I think he said Jesus told him something, but, it was couched in a detailed description of how tall Jesus was and what color his hair was and so on. The real point was not about what he remembered that Jesus told him, but, that Jesus appeared to him while he, a normal guy, was, of all things, shaving. And that's why you should send money to his ministry. 

People who do these things are not trying to help you to grow in Christ. They are seeking to deceive people because they really aren't our to glorify Christ. Christ is the only way, truth and life. Only through faith in Christ are we saved. Paul used very strong terms when he said not to let anyone disqualify you. If it's not about Christ it's not from God. 

My Help Comes From God

Friday's Prayer

Got Peace?

Great peace have those who love your law,
   and nothing can make them stumble.

Psalms 119:165

When you know you did the right thing, you know you're going to be all right. It's a bit like driving down the road and looking up in your rear-view mirror and see a Highway Patrol officer. Then, you look at your speedometer and you are going the speed limit not over it. You know your tags are paid up and everything is working and you used your turn signal when you turned...so you know you're OK. But, for us, as Christians, it's a bit more...

As Christians we are not talking legalism and following the Old Testament law or a newly crafted set of rules that are culturally relevant. Although that is what David was talking about when we apply this Scripture to our lives through the work of Christ on the cross, we see grace. The law of love, faith in action. Great peace is the fruit of knowing that we act in faith, seeking to loves those around us. This doesn't mean everything will work out perfectly and every desire will be fulfilled exactly as we envision its' fulfillment. 

Jesus loves us. He gave himself for us.  He sits at the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf. He sent the Spirit to indwell us, to guide us, to comfort us and to lead us into all truth. The Father is Sovereign over all things and has placed all things under Christ.  He is faithful in all things. As we seek to express our faith through love, which is the only thing that counts (Galatians 5:6), God works. We have peace because we know we are under grace and whatever happens is up to God. Peace happens when you live in grace by faith.

Christ is our Redemption

Reality is Found in Christ

These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. 

Colossians 2:17

All religious ceremony is only a glimpse of what is to come. When Paul wrote this epistle to the Colossians religious festivals were a common occurrence.  So, when the Judaizers came into the Colossian church it would of been easy to tell them that they needed to practice the Passover, the Feast of Tabernacles, the Sabbath and all the rest. But, Paul realized the truth that all those feasts and special days were only a foretaste,  a glimpse of what was to be found in Christ.

So what does that mean to us today? All the feasts and special days in the Old Testament are meant to point us to Christ. Just like our church services today are meant to lead us to Christ. Going to church does not save you, knowing Christ does. I think we often get hung up on the acts of the service or meeting and miss the point which is connecting to Christ. Think about singing, worship. How often to we just sing hoping to get a warm fuzzy and kind of forget that worship is not really about us, it's supposed to be about acknowledging Christ for who is. It's OK to tell God your concerns and ask his help and deliverance. That's just really a petition not worship. 

Now I don't want to get legalistic about anything I just want to encourage us to remember that our fullness, our completeness, our wholeness and healing is all wrapped up in Christ, knowing him and serving him. The important rituals we still have are not the end, they are just reminders. Like baptism does not save you. Baptism is an acknowledgment that Christ died for our sins and we also died to our sins in Him and that we, like him have risen to a new life in Christ. 

The reality, our reality is found in Christ. 

Are You the Judge?

Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. 

Colossians 2:16

I want to look at this from two angles. First, I know that Paul is dealing with Judaizers who were trying to bring Christians under the law. Just like then we have legalists today who want us to live under their set of man made rules and regulations. We must remember that Christ set us free from the law, not be be lawless, but, to be loving. 

I also want to challenge you to ask yourself, "Am I the judge?" Are you making up your own set of rules and regulations that you think you are following and you are judging others by those self-imposed standards? You might find yourself saying things like, "Well, I don't think it's right for Christians to..." or, "I think if you're a believer you shouldn't..." Now listen. We of course know sin is sin. But I'm talking about matters of conscience and style. For example, there are a lot of great churches that are doctrinally right on, just not my style. How someone else connects with the Lord is more about personalities than rigid rules of conformity. 

So, are you being bullied by judgmental modern day legalists? Are you a modern day legalist? I remember many moons ago when I first knew Christ as my Lord and Savior, that one of the pastors said that if we didn't learn how to live under grace we would become present day Pharisees and Sadducees. Be gracious. Be loving. Be humble. Remember what Paul said in Romans 4:14, "Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand." 

Rise and Hope

The Cross, The Triumph

On the cross, Christ took what the enemy thought was his victory and turned it into our victory. All that stands against us, death, sin and all that opposes God, can see their defeat nailed to the cross. In Christ, we see our victory, our fullness, our future. Praise God for his surpassing goodness, greatness and grace!

Have Mercy

Build Up and Keep Up

But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

Jude 1:20-21

These verses are the "to do" in response to scoffers during the end times. I'm struck that we are not told to argue for or defend our beliefs. We are instructed to build ourselves up in our most holy faith and keep ourselves in God's love. 

I don't want to get into a theological discussion of the end times. I do think the author was writing to a problem that, at least in some sense, was already occurring. Whether you believe we are in the end times or not, you know we live in a world that openly mocks and despises Christianity and all those who believe in Christ. You can have crazy hair and believe in ancient aliens but, not in the historical Christ. That's the world be live in.

What are we to do? Build yourself up, build each other up. Pray in the Spirit. Keep yourself in God's love. Wait for his mercy to bring you to eternal life. Our faith is built upon knowing Christ. We know Christ because of what we read about him in the Bible and how we trust him in our daily lives. Christ loved us first. We love first. He served. We serve. We don't serve and love just those who might love and serve us reciprocally.  We love and serve everyone. That's were faith really comes into action and becomes real and alive. By faith we wait upon his mercy and by faith we show mercy and the love of God builds us up in our most holy faith. Be build up and keep up brothers and sisters in Christ!

I Can't Say

An important lesson to learn...

Nailed to the Cross

He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

Colossians 2:13c-15

We need to remember that Paul is writing to believers who were being confronted on two sides by false teachers. On one side where the Judaizers who where teaching that to really know God, to be saved, you needed to fulfill the law, specifically, be circumcised. Then on the other side the predecessors of Gnosticism and philosophers  were teaching that you needed their secret knowledge to be truly enlightened or saved. Sound familiar? 

Paul deals with the heart of the matter directly in Christ. The world is really dealing with guilt. The real guilt that all people know. Some try to work it away, while others just try to explain it away. Have you noticed the new self-righteousness of the world? Save the world. Drive a Prius. Drive an electric car (that is mostly supplied with electricity created from fossil fuels). Recycle. And so on and so forth. Blame the rich. Blame something else for the evils in this world. Blame the god you don't believe in. Demand justice from someone else. 

Paul dealt with the prevailing ideologies of his day. How? The supremacy of Christ and his real death on a real cross. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Christ took that charge and nailed it to the cross. All our sins. Dealt with in Christ, nailed to the cross. Your guilt is nailed to the cross. Remember the false teachers were in essence saying that either Christ's death on the cross wasn't enough or it didn't really happen. Paul emphasizes the truth that Christ did die on the cross and that in so doing he triumphed over sin, all our sins. He nailed them to the cross. My sin, your sin, all of it, nailed to the cross. That's the truth and that truly is good news!

2016: Be Strong and Courageous

God's blessings to you in 2016. Be strong and courageous for the battle will be fierce, and God will be with you!