I'm sorry for my inconsistency in blogging, I desire more consistency in keeping track of the things I'm doing and learning and am going to try to improve that. As I continue my study through the law I currently find myself in Leviticus. God is opening up His Word to me and challenging me to live a holier life. I would today like to share with you all some lessons God has showed me in the first chapter of Leviticus.
Leviticus 1 talks about the burnt offering, in Hebrew called "oleh" meaning everything goes up. Good stuff here in Leviticus 1, this sacrifice, as said in the post Walk Through the Law, has nothing to do with sin, in fact the first three sacrifices have nothing to do with sin, it's the last two, the sin and guilt offering that act as expiatory sacrifices or sacrifices that deal with transgression. The burnt offering is different in that it is the only sacrifice in which the priest has no part. Normally the priest would have a part of the sacrifice that he could eat but this one was wholly set apart for God.
I want to start out by asking, does God need anything? Does God really need our sacrifice so that He can gain something? The answer of course is no. So if God doesn't need my sacrifice, then why all these laws about sacrifices and giving to God? The answer is what it does for us. The sacrifice is for what happens to our hearts when we offer it to God, the divine truth that is revealed to us about God upon sacrificing. Now of course today we don't sacrifice animals, we're really not supposed to (and if you are doing it watch out for the Animal Rights Activists), this was the law for some Jews about 4000 years ago but we can still pull out great principles as to what God requires of us His people. Leviticus is all about approaching a Holy God as an unholy people. Knowing this we can ask, why did God decide to give the order that the Israelite people partake in the burnt offering and even more relevant, why did He decide to tell us about it? We'll get to that at the end but for now I want to point out some principles found in chapter 1 and then I would like you to filter those through the theme of the burnt offering which will be found at the end of the post.
Verse 1 brings out a good point, it'd be easy to pass by quickly but we see an important principle here. It says "Then the Lord called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting." You see, a leader receives revelation from God when he spends time with God. That revelation will change the lives of many when transmitted correctly, truthfully, and with love. This book is revelation straight from the heart of God to His leader and then transmitted to the people so that they could have a closer walk with their God. We as well need to always be with God, learning from Him so that we can transmit the truth He reveals to us to those that need it most.
I won't be going through every verse but I do want to point out two very important principles. The first of those is in verses 3 and 10. When we offer things to God it has to be the best, if not, it's not a sacrifice. The sacrifices offered here had to be without blemish or defect from the best of the herd or flock (Definition of defects in Lev 22:17-25). God deserves the best. How many times when giving our offerings do we choose to give a dollar or a few quarters instead of giving from the heart, although tithing and money offerings pertain to the peace offering in Leviticus 3 the principle is the same. How often do we give God what is comfortable for us to give, how many times do we really step out in faith and say God, you've done so much for me, you deserve the best and then give to Him from our heart. If our sacrifices to God don't hurt us, our heart is probably not in it and the heart is what God really desires (Genesis 4:2-7). Like we said, He doesn't need our stuff.
The last principle that I want to share is in verses 5 through 17. We see here a list of processes as to how the burnt offering was to be prepared. Just as said, our lives are to be a living and holy sacrifice but we need to know that the how to get there is contained in the mind of God and in His Holy Word. This life must be lived according to God's standards not what seems right in our own eyes. Our standards will always fall short of God's. Even if what He has us do seems weird or ridiculous it's the right thing (Joshua 6:3). There are too many Christians walking around living so much like the world that they couldn't even be distinguished between a purebred heathen and a true believer. We have lost the importance of holiness in today's preaching. We try so much to be like the world and we even justify ourselves with reasons like, "I'll be able to reach more people for Christ because they'll see that I'm like them." This thinking is wrong, we are called to be holy as God is holy, so let's examine the scriptures, spend time with our Lord, and when He shows us the path to holiness let's be obedient to His voice.
We now arrive to our answer from the earlier question. This is the central idea of Leviticus 1. In Romans 12:1 Paul says, "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship." He is referring to the burnt offering in Leviticus 1. When he says, present your bodies, he's talking about an inspection, in fact the same inspection that took place when an Israelite offered his sacrifice, the sacrifice had to be blameless, without defect. Each sacrifice was to be inspected by the priest before being offered on the altar, in the same we we are to be inspected by God to show that we are blameless before Him. Friends and family, we must be holy and blameless, offered completely to God. The main principle of the burnt offering is surrendering every area of our lives to God, just as everything went up in the offering so must our life be, completely surrendered to God. I want to ask you personally, are you surrendered to God? You might say yes right away but really think about it. Your music, what you watch, what you say, the things you do, what you wear, are you really surrendered to our Lord? If someone was to look at your iPod would they be able to tell if you're a true follower of Christ or are you spending your days blending in with the rest of the world? Every day before I start my devotions I have to surrender to God, I have to die to myself because my heart always wants to stray away from my One True Love and always wants to fulfill it's desires not those of God. It's sad but true. I have to surrender and say "God, whatever you want from me today, I will give it to you", if I don't do this it's impossible for me to hear the voice of God. I love you all and pray that you will hear the voice of God this week and obey. God bless you all!!!
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Walk Through the Law
My desire is to know the Word of God and to make the Word of God known. Over the past few weeks I have been doing a very interesting study on the first five books (known as the Torah or Pentateuch) of the Bible and would like to share that briefly with you all. A lot of people get the sacrifices and all the laws mixed up, so let's clarify shortly on the three types of law that are found in the first five books of the Bible.
CIVIL CODE (Exodus 20-23; Numbers 5, 6, 15, 28-30): This was the law followed by the Israelites while they were in the desert. Before they made it to the promised land they had to follow what we call the civil code. Remember, they had no idea how to live as a nation nor as a civilized people because they had just been set free from slavery in the land of Egypt. God gave them this portion to tell them how to live together while they were on their what we could call, "camping trip".
CRIMINAL CODE (Leviticus): This was Israel's hand book on how to approach a Holy God when you are not holy. We have in the beginning five sacrifices the burnt, grain, peace, sin and guilt offerings. The first three have nothing to do with sin but more to do with surrender and thankfulness to God, these are often called the soothing aroma sacrifices. The last two, sin and guilt, are those that dealt with sin. The rest of the book tells the Israelite people how and when to apply said sacrifices.
CONSTITUTIONAL CODE (Deuteronomy): This book was for the Israelite people when they entered the land of Israel. They needed a constitution and the book of Deuteronomy was just that. It's what made a Jew a Jew. Inside of Deuteronomy we find 15 different subjects or codes of law.
In the remaining part of these five books we find stories about the lives of others. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, the journeys of Israel, etc. This part can be used as a guide for learning from mistakes and successes. We see men who followed God but definitely screwed up along the way, also we see people who's hearts were far from God and how the Lord dealt with them. As many know we can learn in two ways, example or experience, we all know that learning from example hurts a lot less.
When reading these portions of Scripture we must first have in mind that it was written to Jews
not to us. However, it applies to us in the sense that we can find good principles on how to live a holier life or on how to approach our Holy God as an unclean people. My prayer is the you too can find the richness found in the beginning of the Bible instead of believing those who say, "it's too dry and really has nothing to do with me." God bless you all!
CIVIL CODE (Exodus 20-23; Numbers 5, 6, 15, 28-30): This was the law followed by the Israelites while they were in the desert. Before they made it to the promised land they had to follow what we call the civil code. Remember, they had no idea how to live as a nation nor as a civilized people because they had just been set free from slavery in the land of Egypt. God gave them this portion to tell them how to live together while they were on their what we could call, "camping trip".
CRIMINAL CODE (Leviticus): This was Israel's hand book on how to approach a Holy God when you are not holy. We have in the beginning five sacrifices the burnt, grain, peace, sin and guilt offerings. The first three have nothing to do with sin but more to do with surrender and thankfulness to God, these are often called the soothing aroma sacrifices. The last two, sin and guilt, are those that dealt with sin. The rest of the book tells the Israelite people how and when to apply said sacrifices.
CONSTITUTIONAL CODE (Deuteronomy): This book was for the Israelite people when they entered the land of Israel. They needed a constitution and the book of Deuteronomy was just that. It's what made a Jew a Jew. Inside of Deuteronomy we find 15 different subjects or codes of law.
In the remaining part of these five books we find stories about the lives of others. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, the journeys of Israel, etc. This part can be used as a guide for learning from mistakes and successes. We see men who followed God but definitely screwed up along the way, also we see people who's hearts were far from God and how the Lord dealt with them. As many know we can learn in two ways, example or experience, we all know that learning from example hurts a lot less.
When reading these portions of Scripture we must first have in mind that it was written to Jews
not to us. However, it applies to us in the sense that we can find good principles on how to live a holier life or on how to approach our Holy God as an unclean people. My prayer is the you too can find the richness found in the beginning of the Bible instead of believing those who say, "it's too dry and really has nothing to do with me." God bless you all!
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Brokenness and Happiness
Well, for someone who isn't in the habit of blogging I have quite a bit to write. The subjects on my heart this past week are that of happiness and brokenness. Doesn't seem like they go together but I believe that they do. To be honest these past 9 months in Peru have been work. Meaning, I haven't wanted to be here. I've wanted to go home, get back to the place that made me happy... or so I thought. On the verge of leaving, like literally about to buy my plane ticket I called my parents to let them know how I was feeling and what I had planned to do. My Mom said take a week, think about it, pray about it, and then see if God would say anything to me. I told her I could not hear God in this very difficult time, so I set this time aside to seek God's will, if He didn't make it clear to me that He wanted me here then I was going to be on the soonest flight home. I decided to take two weeks, well I guess I only needed one. This was honestly one of the hardest times in my life, fearing that God would want me to stay here when I really wanted to come home so badly. My excuses were few but somewhat reasonable, I wasn't happy, didn't think it was a good fit for me, and didn't like some of the things inside of the organization. Day three and God spoke to me, not in an audible voice but He made me understand a truth that I had known but that was more head knowledge, not something that affected my life. "Gary, you can not receive happiness from what you do, what you have, or who you know, only from an intimate and growing relationship with Me, your God." Wow, that blew a reason off of my list as to why I should go home. As time went on, day four, five, six my excuses and reasons as to why I should leave faded and the Will of God remained. "Gary, I have chosen you for this hour, I want you to stay here." God had been breaking me down so that His will might be done in me, so that I would submit to Him and live only to do what He wants from me, not what Gary wants. Ouch, man that's a tough lesson and a process that will not be finished over night. The breaking process must continue, it hurts, but how good to know that my God is good and what He is doing inside of me is for my well being. It all came to light on the 11th of this month when I read one of my writings, something I had written a year before on July 10th, 2009.
This is what I wrote a year ago:
This is what I wrote a year ago:
Break Me!
7/10/09 5:46pm
I'm learning more and more that I can put no confidence in the flesh. The flesh will let me down 100% of the time. Paul even says in Philippians that we put no confidence in the flesh (Philippians 3:1-6). More and more God has been dealing with me on the confidence that I place in my flesh. So what's the remedy for this? We must be broken and filled with the Spirit. Jesus says in John that apart from Him we can do nothing (John 15:4-5).
We must also be broken. I don't really know how to be, other than asking God to do it. I believe God is the only one who can break us. Once we are broken of ourselves I believe that the Spirit of God will shine through in a much more brilliant way.
Apart from brokenness I believe the keys to being filled with God's Holy Spirit are simple. Devote yourself to God's Word, prayer, and fellowship. In Acts 1:14 we see that the disciples were continually devoting themselves to prayer and fellowship. It was after their devotion to these two things that the Spirit of God fell upon them.
The only way the Apostles did what they did was because of God's power through them. If we want that same power I believe it's available but we must pay the price of sacrifice in order to get it. We must dedicate our lives solely to God and ask Him to break us. This seems to be a painful process but I know that in the end it must be worth it.
I believe that the Lord might use Peru in order to break me. It's what I ask and pray. Lord God, break me so that I can be used of You in a greater capacity.
End of note.
So as you can now see, I was trying to escape a beautiful but painful process that God is putting me through in order to break me of myself. Just like the Bible says, He disciplines the ones He loves. This life is short, so let's be focused on eternity. If God has got you in a certain place that happens to be a hard painful process just endure. The word endurance in the Bible is "Hupomeno" and it literally means to remain under the pressure of. God is calling us to remain under the pressure of the tough circumstances, if that is where He has placed us He wants us to stay there. Also, for those who would say that they aren't satisfied with life, know that only a relationship with God will fulfill you. Your wife won't do it, your job won't do it, drugs and alcohol can't help, nothing you do will fill that God- shaped hole in your heart. If you don't know God He is willing in this moment to start an intimate, amazing relationship with you. We were born sinners, separated from God but He didn't create it to be that way, we chose to disobey and sever the relationship that we had with Him. About 2000 years ago He sent His Son Jesus Christ to earth to die in our place for our sins so that we could be reconciled to God so that we would have another chance to know the one true God. Jesus is like our bridge to God, we must place our faith in Him and turn from our sins. From there the relationship with God has started, now you are called to live in a different way than you lived before (Ephesians 4:1- 6:9). God is happiness and joy, let's choose this week to renew our relationship with Him. Keep the goal in mind... eternity, with the One who made us.
I'm learning more and more that I can put no confidence in the flesh. The flesh will let me down 100% of the time. Paul even says in Philippians that we put no confidence in the flesh (Philippians 3:1-6). More and more God has been dealing with me on the confidence that I place in my flesh. So what's the remedy for this? We must be broken and filled with the Spirit. Jesus says in John that apart from Him we can do nothing (John 15:4-5).
We must also be broken. I don't really know how to be, other than asking God to do it. I believe God is the only one who can break us. Once we are broken of ourselves I believe that the Spirit of God will shine through in a much more brilliant way.
Apart from brokenness I believe the keys to being filled with God's Holy Spirit are simple. Devote yourself to God's Word, prayer, and fellowship. In Acts 1:14 we see that the disciples were continually devoting themselves to prayer and fellowship. It was after their devotion to these two things that the Spirit of God fell upon them.
The only way the Apostles did what they did was because of God's power through them. If we want that same power I believe it's available but we must pay the price of sacrifice in order to get it. We must dedicate our lives solely to God and ask Him to break us. This seems to be a painful process but I know that in the end it must be worth it.
I believe that the Lord might use Peru in order to break me. It's what I ask and pray. Lord God, break me so that I can be used of You in a greater capacity.
End of note.
So as you can now see, I was trying to escape a beautiful but painful process that God is putting me through in order to break me of myself. Just like the Bible says, He disciplines the ones He loves. This life is short, so let's be focused on eternity. If God has got you in a certain place that happens to be a hard painful process just endure. The word endurance in the Bible is "Hupomeno" and it literally means to remain under the pressure of. God is calling us to remain under the pressure of the tough circumstances, if that is where He has placed us He wants us to stay there. Also, for those who would say that they aren't satisfied with life, know that only a relationship with God will fulfill you. Your wife won't do it, your job won't do it, drugs and alcohol can't help, nothing you do will fill that God- shaped hole in your heart. If you don't know God He is willing in this moment to start an intimate, amazing relationship with you. We were born sinners, separated from God but He didn't create it to be that way, we chose to disobey and sever the relationship that we had with Him. About 2000 years ago He sent His Son Jesus Christ to earth to die in our place for our sins so that we could be reconciled to God so that we would have another chance to know the one true God. Jesus is like our bridge to God, we must place our faith in Him and turn from our sins. From there the relationship with God has started, now you are called to live in a different way than you lived before (Ephesians 4:1- 6:9). God is happiness and joy, let's choose this week to renew our relationship with Him. Keep the goal in mind... eternity, with the One who made us.
Friday, June 4, 2010
James 5:13-20 Prayer and Shepherding
James ends this book out with two very important subjects: prayer and shepherding. Subjects that are often neglected. James displays the power of prayer although at times it might seem to be useless and dry, we see why we should pray here. Also, he presents the subject of shepherding or spiritual care for one another.
(vv13-18) BE FAITHFUL IN PRAYER: If you're suffering or going through some tough things, pray! Just like we read in the last chapter, we must have patience and endurance through this life, but while we're waiting and persevering let's pray! How about those who are cheerful, let them praise the Lord. In verses 14-15 it's somewhat difficult to pull out the true meaning of what is being said, so let's take a deeper look. The word here in the NASB translation is sick. "If anyone among you is sick." At first glance we would think that this is a man who has some disease or sickness. If we look at the Greek and read within the context we will we find something very different, James is not talking about a physical sickness. The word sick is Asthenei which means to be weak. If a brother is sick in the faith, if he is spiritually weak, he is to call the elders of the church so that they might pray for him. This prayer will restore him who is spiritually weak. In other words the prayer will save, keep safe and sound, to rescue from danger or destruction, save a suffering one, or aid one to an effect (Energeo). Also if he has committed sins they will be forgiven, this man will be restored, refreshed, and ready to continue on in his walk with the Lord. In the first part of verse 16 we see the importance of community prayer. Let me ask you in this moment, do you feel spiritually dry and dead? Then God wants you to spend time with those closest to you, those who have a deep, personal, and intimate relationship with the Lord so that you can be restored. They are here for you in your times of need and you in turn for them. God will use them in your life to restore you to a state of fullness in your walk with God. Remember that the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and can accomplish much. Keep the importance and power of prayer in mind. In verses 17-18 James tells us about Elijah and what the prayer of a righteous man really can do. We find this example in 1 Kings 17:1; 18:41-46. If a man can pray and it not rain for three and a half years, how much more can our prayers assist those who don't know Christ. How much more can our prayers impact the world that we live in.
(vv19-20) BE A SHEPHERD: What does it mean to be a shepherd. Let's take a look at a few passages so that we can get a better idea as to what the word shepherd means (Psalm 23; Isaiah 40:10-11; Ezekiel 34:1-10; Zechariah 11:4-7; 1 Peter 5:1-4). These are only a of the few passages that talk about shepherding. Today we call shepherds pastors and many of them aren't true shepherds, many don't do what they are called to do. They are called to shepherd the people or flock of God. That means to feed them, to take care of them, to guide them and make sure that they are well. I think Psalm 23 is the best example of what a true shepherd really is. We as well are called to shepherd those who have gone astray from the truth. Onto verses 19-20... "if any of you strays from the truth." The word stray is Planao and it means the following: cause to stray, to lead astray, wander, roam around, lead away from the truth, lead into error, to deceive. "If any of you strays from the truth and one turns him back", this is shepherding this is being a true friend. When a brother is spiritually sick and straying from his Master's path, the true shepherd turns him back and shows him the way. The one who does this saves his friends soul. The word soul here is Psuche, it means breath, breath of life, the vital force which animates the body and shows itself in breathing, a living soul. In other words you save the actual life of the one who is going astray from the truth. How can this be? Here's an example. A long time ago a famous christian hymn writer went astray from the faith. For years he lived a life of carnal pleasures and strayed so far from the grace of God that he once used to sing about. One day he ran into a woman who was reading a book. Very interested in the book, the woman came across a line from one of the authors famous hymns and quoted it to him. The man told her, "Ma'am, I am the poor miserable man who wrote that hymn." The woman then told him that those rivers of grace that he sang of still flowed today. The man repented, turned back to the Lord, and was fully restored. This story is true; and in this case the woman was used by God to save the soul or life of this man.
CONCLUSION: Let's be continually dedicated to prayer and fellowship so that when we are weak or spiritually sick our brothers and sisters in Christ can lift us up and restore us.
This concludes the book of James. A book full of blunt spiritual truth. Let us apply these truths to our lives. Let us not just be hearers of the Word but doers as well (James 1:22).
Sunday, May 30, 2010
James 5:7-12 Patience and Endurance
Don't try to escape that trial! If God has put you there, remain right where you are. The word endure in the Bible is hupomone, and it means to remain under the pressure of (Romans 5:3). I want to ask you today what kind of pressure you are facing. First off, are you where God wants you to be? If so and you are facing trials and problems, stay firm and endure. Today, we will be learning about the importance of patience.
(vv7-8) PATIENCE: I believe that over the last nine months God has been using my circumstances in order to teach me patience amidst other things. In truth, the last nine months haven't been enjoyable and the thought of going home is ever present. Although this is true, I am called to be patient and endure, just like the farmer who waits until the harvest. In life we are going to go through hard times. We as Christians are going to go through many months, possibly years, wondering where God is, asking ourselves why He has deserted us. During these times strengthen your hearts. Yes, strengthen your hearts, but how? We strengthen our hearts by reading the Word, pulling out the promises of God, and standing on them. Let's stand on God's promises and trust in Him. He is highly glorified in this.
(v9) DON'T COMPLAIN: Don't complain? But I'm going through a really tough time, how can the Bible ask me not to complain? It advises us so that we might be pleasing and honoring to Christ. Listen to this: A master has many servants working in the field, he selects one and gives him the hardest work in the field but secretly plans to pay him the best out of all the other workers. The master expects his worker to have a good attitude hoping that the worker will trust in his faithfulness and fairness. When the master tells the worker that he will return, he hides in a bush and watches the worker. The worker complains and curses under his breath all day long. He even cursed at his fair master, being very short-sighted, the only one he damaged was himself. When the master returned he was very disappointed with the servant. He told the wicked servant about the wonderful pay he had for him but how his complaining lost him his wages. In the same way we must trust our Good Master. We must trust that He loves us dearly and has the best in mind for us.
(vv10-11) BIBLICAL EXAMPLES: Let's follow the biblical example that have been left for us. How many of you have read the story of Job and learned about the suffering that he faced. What happened? This man Job went through horrible trials, and not once did he curse God. After years, Job was blessed by God double, double than what he had before! Because of his endurance and faithfulness God blessed him abundantly. We also have the prophets, faithful men who loved the Lord and proclaimed His Word. They went through some hard stuff but were still faithful to God; they now have their reward in heaven. God is full of compassion and mercy, so let's conduct ourselves in such a way that is pleasing to Him.
(v12) BE TRUE TO YOUR WORD: Finishing up, we are told not to swear. In other words to affirm, promise, threaten with an oath, or invoke. This passage is very often misinterpreted but all the James is saying here is to be true to your word. When you say something, do it! If you say yes, let others know that that is what you mean.
CONCLUSION: I don't know what you are going through right now, but know that if you are where God wants you to be and you're going through some tough stuff , it's good for you. Trust in God, strengthen your hearts, and stand on the Word, knowing that God will take care of His faithful servants.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
James 5:1-6 Stewardship of Wealth and People
What's more important, people or wealth? Today we will deal with the stewardship of our wealth and the people in our lives. I believe that this passage will deal with all of us as we read it today. The heart issue is our greed or love for material possessions which unfortunately is normally bigger than our love for others.
(vv1-3) THE RICH: "Come now you rich, weep and howl...", actually means, burst into tears. Why would a rich man cry? He should have all that he could ever need or want. Well... not actually. As we see in verses 1-3, wealth is temporary, it might make us happy for a moment but then it rusts and fades. Just like James says, "...your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have rusted." As you all know, when we first get something new it's really cool... for the first week. The things of this world don't satisfy. This is why James tells the rich to burst into tears, because they have put their trust, their love, and even their very lives into their stuff, and upon seeing the vanity of it all, and how it doesn't last, their reaction should be that of sadness. They've wasted their lives on collecting worthless junk and now the rust and decay of their stuff is a witness against them.
(v4) WHAT REALLY MATTERS: What really matters in this life? Is it money, cars, houses, stuff, or maybe the Kingdonm of God? Maybe it's the people that God has placed in our lives. Just as the rich here have invested their lives in things that don't matter, they also have rejected the thing that really does matter, the Kingdom of God, that which is unseen. Many times in this life we reject that which is really valuable for a cheap plastic imitation. Let's reach out for the Kingdom of God and not be like the rich man who refused to pay his workers their salary. The Lord desires that we might be giving, not hoarding. He desires us to invest in His eternal Kingdom, in the lives of those who need Christ. These are the works that will last, the things that won't rust or fade away.
(v5) BE AFRAID: James recaps here, talking again about the life of wanton pleasures that the rich live. James' comparison is very short but should inspire a healthy fear inside of those that are living a life of wanton pleasures and neglecting the Kingdom of God. He compares the rich as a fattened calf ready for the slaughter. This was probably a good expression for the Jewish audience who might have seen many fattened calves slaughtered in sacrifice. This is an example of what a greedy life will earn us.
(v6) PUT YOUR LIFE INTO WHAT COUNTS: Again recapping, James puts more emphasis in how the rich oppress the righteous. Their world view is twisted and instead of pursuing riches they should be helping those whom God has placed in their life.
CONCLUSION: Today we've learned some tough spiritual truths. One thing I don't want you to hear is that money is bad. There is nothing wrong with money in itself, but we must take care of our motives and greedy attitudes. We must use our stuff to please the Lord and advance His Kingdom, not to hoard it and spend it on our own desires (James 4:3). God doesn't give us things for our own pleasures, but that we might use them for His purposes. Let's seek the Kingdom first and also seek to honor the Lord with all the things He has blessed us with.
(vv1-3) THE RICH: "Come now you rich, weep and howl...", actually means, burst into tears. Why would a rich man cry? He should have all that he could ever need or want. Well... not actually. As we see in verses 1-3, wealth is temporary, it might make us happy for a moment but then it rusts and fades. Just like James says, "...your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have rusted." As you all know, when we first get something new it's really cool... for the first week. The things of this world don't satisfy. This is why James tells the rich to burst into tears, because they have put their trust, their love, and even their very lives into their stuff, and upon seeing the vanity of it all, and how it doesn't last, their reaction should be that of sadness. They've wasted their lives on collecting worthless junk and now the rust and decay of their stuff is a witness against them.
(v4) WHAT REALLY MATTERS: What really matters in this life? Is it money, cars, houses, stuff, or maybe the Kingdonm of God? Maybe it's the people that God has placed in our lives. Just as the rich here have invested their lives in things that don't matter, they also have rejected the thing that really does matter, the Kingdom of God, that which is unseen. Many times in this life we reject that which is really valuable for a cheap plastic imitation. Let's reach out for the Kingdom of God and not be like the rich man who refused to pay his workers their salary. The Lord desires that we might be giving, not hoarding. He desires us to invest in His eternal Kingdom, in the lives of those who need Christ. These are the works that will last, the things that won't rust or fade away.
(v5) BE AFRAID: James recaps here, talking again about the life of wanton pleasures that the rich live. James' comparison is very short but should inspire a healthy fear inside of those that are living a life of wanton pleasures and neglecting the Kingdom of God. He compares the rich as a fattened calf ready for the slaughter. This was probably a good expression for the Jewish audience who might have seen many fattened calves slaughtered in sacrifice. This is an example of what a greedy life will earn us.
(v6) PUT YOUR LIFE INTO WHAT COUNTS: Again recapping, James puts more emphasis in how the rich oppress the righteous. Their world view is twisted and instead of pursuing riches they should be helping those whom God has placed in their life.
CONCLUSION: Today we've learned some tough spiritual truths. One thing I don't want you to hear is that money is bad. There is nothing wrong with money in itself, but we must take care of our motives and greedy attitudes. We must use our stuff to please the Lord and advance His Kingdom, not to hoard it and spend it on our own desires (James 4:3). God doesn't give us things for our own pleasures, but that we might use them for His purposes. Let's seek the Kingdom first and also seek to honor the Lord with all the things He has blessed us with.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
James 4 Selfish Desires and Pride
James wants to tell us about our selfish desires and pride that reside inside of us. We'll be seeing the source, cure, and effect of our selfish desires and pride.
(vv1-2) OUR PLEASURES: James introduces our subject; the selfish fights that we face as Christians. Let's keep in mind here that James is writing to the Jewish believers or the 12 tribes scattered abroad (James 1:1). Apparently the Jewish believers were having problems with fights and quarrels and James came in to straighten things out. The first thing that we learn is that the source of our quarrels originates from the pleasures deep inside of us.
(v3) YOU DON'T RECEIVE: This is a great verse of clarity. I personally get fed up with hearing people take verses like Matthew 21: 18-22 and saying that God wants you to be happy and wants you to have the desires of your heart. Yes, He does want us to be happy but He's not going to give us whatever desire we may have inside of us. God will give us the desires of our heart if they are according to His will. If we ask with the wrong motives we won't receive because God does not want us to spend or squander it on our own wanton pleasures. If God gave me every desire of my heart I would be a mess, so thank you Lord for that.
(V4) FRIENDSHIP WITH THE WORLD: Let's remember that we are talking in the context of selfish disputes and our evil desires that spur them on. Well ... we have to choose here, God, or the world, there's no other option. James is laying out the seriousness of our selfish flesh and the desires of the world. What does this mean, that we can't have nice things a nice house or a nice car. Not necessarily. We can't be engaged to both Christ and the world, we have to choose who we will live for and who we will yield and surrender to. If we choose the world we are enemies of God and reject Him but if we choose Christ we reject the world and no longer serve it.
(v5) GOD JEALOUSLY DESIRES US!: This verse is very hard to translate but I believe that in the context we see the meaning. God jealously desires us! He wants to be our every desire and our fulfillment. If we choose the world over Him we are refusing the best love and fulfillment that we could ever have.
(vv6-10) HUMBLE YOURSELF: So we see the strength of our selfish desires. How could we ever escape them? Good thing that you asked because we are given the antidote here in verses 6 through 10. Humble or submit yourself to God. The word submit here is a military term which means to arrange oneself under the command of. So let's get back into the marching line. When a soldier goes off to do his own thing and not the will of the commander he is stepping out of line and now is considered an enemy of that army. We as well have to get back in line and humble ourselves under the command of our Master. This is a submission of our will to His will. Also we see that we have to resist the Devil. The word resist means to set oneself against, to withstand or to oppose, and the promise is that he will flee from us.
(vv11-12) THE JUDGMENTAL ATTITUDE: In these selfish fights brought on by selfish desires. The effect is a judgmental attitude. If you speak against your brother you have gone from being a doer of the Law to a judge of it; and since there is only one Lawgiver and Judge, it's impossible for us to take His place as unrighteous judges of the law. Practically speaking, what does this say to us, I believe that it's very simple. It all comes back to the humility or our spirit. If we are not humble we will by nature want to judge those around us. Let's humble ourselves and recognize our position as servants. Let's follow the example of our LORD GOD who created the earth and came down in the humble form of a servant to wash the feet of 12 dirty men. How humbling for us. What sinners we are!
(vv13-16) EMPTY BOASTING: Once again we come to the subject of pride and boasting is just one of the many forms of pride. We are left with the example of some business men who claim that they are going to make "X" amount of dollars on their trip. We see here the pride of man. This reminds me of the false teaching I've heard time and time again saying, "You have to claim your reality! Speak what you want into existence! Make a demand upon God and He has to give it to you!" We call this the "name - it - claim teaching". Let's just say that this is not biblical in any way. You don't speak your future into existence and you definitely DO NOT make a demand upon God the Creator of the universe. Instead, we must practice what we see in verse 15. "Instead you ought to say, 'If the LORD wills, we will live and also do this or that'". Let us again remind ourselves of the humility that we must possess because if we don't, we are practicing evil as stated in verse 16.
(v17) CAN'T PLEAD NOT GUILTY: Very simple, James says that if we know the right thing to do and don't do it that it's sin. All to say that we can't say that we didn't know. In other words, we call this the sin of omission, knowing the right thing to do and not doing it. In conclusion let us put into to practice all that we have seen and learned today.
(vv1-2) OUR PLEASURES: James introduces our subject; the selfish fights that we face as Christians. Let's keep in mind here that James is writing to the Jewish believers or the 12 tribes scattered abroad (James 1:1). Apparently the Jewish believers were having problems with fights and quarrels and James came in to straighten things out. The first thing that we learn is that the source of our quarrels originates from the pleasures deep inside of us.
(v3) YOU DON'T RECEIVE: This is a great verse of clarity. I personally get fed up with hearing people take verses like Matthew 21: 18-22 and saying that God wants you to be happy and wants you to have the desires of your heart. Yes, He does want us to be happy but He's not going to give us whatever desire we may have inside of us. God will give us the desires of our heart if they are according to His will. If we ask with the wrong motives we won't receive because God does not want us to spend or squander it on our own wanton pleasures. If God gave me every desire of my heart I would be a mess, so thank you Lord for that.
(V4) FRIENDSHIP WITH THE WORLD: Let's remember that we are talking in the context of selfish disputes and our evil desires that spur them on. Well ... we have to choose here, God, or the world, there's no other option. James is laying out the seriousness of our selfish flesh and the desires of the world. What does this mean, that we can't have nice things a nice house or a nice car. Not necessarily. We can't be engaged to both Christ and the world, we have to choose who we will live for and who we will yield and surrender to. If we choose the world we are enemies of God and reject Him but if we choose Christ we reject the world and no longer serve it.
(v5) GOD JEALOUSLY DESIRES US!: This verse is very hard to translate but I believe that in the context we see the meaning. God jealously desires us! He wants to be our every desire and our fulfillment. If we choose the world over Him we are refusing the best love and fulfillment that we could ever have.
(vv6-10) HUMBLE YOURSELF: So we see the strength of our selfish desires. How could we ever escape them? Good thing that you asked because we are given the antidote here in verses 6 through 10. Humble or submit yourself to God. The word submit here is a military term which means to arrange oneself under the command of. So let's get back into the marching line. When a soldier goes off to do his own thing and not the will of the commander he is stepping out of line and now is considered an enemy of that army. We as well have to get back in line and humble ourselves under the command of our Master. This is a submission of our will to His will. Also we see that we have to resist the Devil. The word resist means to set oneself against, to withstand or to oppose, and the promise is that he will flee from us.
(vv11-12) THE JUDGMENTAL ATTITUDE: In these selfish fights brought on by selfish desires. The effect is a judgmental attitude. If you speak against your brother you have gone from being a doer of the Law to a judge of it; and since there is only one Lawgiver and Judge, it's impossible for us to take His place as unrighteous judges of the law. Practically speaking, what does this say to us, I believe that it's very simple. It all comes back to the humility or our spirit. If we are not humble we will by nature want to judge those around us. Let's humble ourselves and recognize our position as servants. Let's follow the example of our LORD GOD who created the earth and came down in the humble form of a servant to wash the feet of 12 dirty men. How humbling for us. What sinners we are!
(vv13-16) EMPTY BOASTING: Once again we come to the subject of pride and boasting is just one of the many forms of pride. We are left with the example of some business men who claim that they are going to make "X" amount of dollars on their trip. We see here the pride of man. This reminds me of the false teaching I've heard time and time again saying, "You have to claim your reality! Speak what you want into existence! Make a demand upon God and He has to give it to you!" We call this the "name - it - claim teaching". Let's just say that this is not biblical in any way. You don't speak your future into existence and you definitely DO NOT make a demand upon God the Creator of the universe. Instead, we must practice what we see in verse 15. "Instead you ought to say, 'If the LORD wills, we will live and also do this or that'". Let us again remind ourselves of the humility that we must possess because if we don't, we are practicing evil as stated in verse 16.
(v17) CAN'T PLEAD NOT GUILTY: Very simple, James says that if we know the right thing to do and don't do it that it's sin. All to say that we can't say that we didn't know. In other words, we call this the sin of omission, knowing the right thing to do and not doing it. In conclusion let us put into to practice all that we have seen and learned today.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)