2009-06-05
Good Morning God’s Cherished Ones,
Once again, the Holy Spirit leads me to continue comparing MT 7: 1-2, 6 with other passages, so we can see the consistency of God’s teaching. Moreover, we need to understand that if God repeats something, He feels it’s important, and that certainly applies to dealing with false teaching, discerning it from the truth. The same can be said for why this lengthy segment of messages on judgment is so important to all of us and to Him. Today, we will look at 2 TIM 4: 2-4. First MT 7: 1-2, 6, “Do not judge others so that God will not judge you, for God will judge you in the same way you judge others, and He will apply to you the same rules you apply to others…Do not give what is holy to Dogs-they will only turn and attack you. Do not throw your pearls in front of pigs-they will only trample them underfoot.” And now, 2 TIM 4: 1b-4, “I solemnly urge you to preach the message, to insist upon proclaiming it (whether the time is right or not), to convince reproach [finding fault with false teaching] and encourage, as you teach with all patience. The time will come when people will not listen to sound doctrine, but will follow their own desires and will collect for themselves more and more teachers who will tell them what they are itching to hear. They will turn away from listening to the truth and give their attention to legends.”
At the risk of being simplistic, the obvious step to obeying either of these passages is having discernment. That can’t be acquired without knowing God’s word well and being able to hear God’s direction-you guessed it, study and prayer. People without these habits honed to God’s word are likely to be more vulnerable to the “wolf in sheep’s clothing” [MT 7: 15], a person guided by the evil one into lies, deceptions, and sins of omission. This latter would certainly apply to churches or sects which don’t reveal all their beliefs until a person has been thoroughly brain-washed with half-truths over a period of time. I know of denominations where this is practiced, and only after experienced members decide they are ready, are the worshippers allowed to learn the whole body of their beliefs. By that time, they are brought by repetition into accepting lies that to a real believer in Christ would come across as outlandish. Together and often we must pray, PS 119: 125, “I am Your servant; give me understanding, so that I may know your teachings.” To that, we should add PS 51: 6, “Sincerity and truth are what You require; fill my mind with wisdom.” True believers who have repented and opened their hearts to faith in Jesus Christ are people who will live “in Christ.” In other words, their acts of faith don’t stop at first base. They will live out God’s teaching in their thinking, feeling, and actions –head, heart, and hands. That carries them to second and third base, but even that, doesn’t get them home. What does is the perfect love, timing, and methods of our One only and true God, the God Who teaches us to love Him and others. At that perfect moment that only God knows, He carries us to a home run to heaven-glorifies us. The adversary is always out there trying to hit us as we run from base to base with his fiery arrows, the ones that if they connect full-on will bring us to strike out-give up on God. Only suiting up with God’s full armor [EPH 6: 10-12], understanding the enemy for who he is and how cunning he is, gives us the strength to deflect the incoming evil arrows and advance to the next base.
When Paul wrote 2 TIM 4: 3-4, it was as if he were describing the experience of living in our own times. Yes, indeed, more people will refuse to listen to the truth of God’s teaching than not. All we need to do is look around us at whole continents like much of Asia and Europe to see how secular the people have become. The same thing is happening in North America too. One of the saddest stories some dear friends brought back with them from their trip to Istanbul was their experience of visiting St. Sophia’s. This very dominant church in that city was almost vacant. It’s gorgeous golden walls at the time were covered up, as this Byzantine building was converted to a mosque. There simply weren’t enough Christians left in the area to support filling this lovely place with true believers. My understanding is that now in 2009, there is a restoration project to uncover the golden artwork on its walls, but it still isn’t being used as a Christian place of worship. Closer to home, we are all exposed to a group of “feel good” leaders, who choose to emphasize whatever people want to hear, rather than Biblical truth.
I assert that a church that isn’t based on the word of God is a church in deep trouble. This relates to God’s teaching on judgment, just as it does to His teaching on anything else. Without discernment, the individual believer is not equipped to recognize the truth. If there was ever any question as to what the truth is, God defines it in HE 4: 12, “The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through , to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of man’s heart.” God intended for us to learn His word and to live by it. Through the Holy Spirit, He influences our thoughts and attitudes, and thus, our actions to reflect his goodness and love. Our job is to open our hearts to His influence, revel in it, and let it affect us for the rest of our lives.
PRAYER: Dearest Abba, we stand before Your mighty throne to ask You to give us the discernment we need. Everything in Your word is important to us and is a source for truth and real contentment. You breathed life into Your word and thus, prepare us for good deeds and real opportunity for You to reveal Yourself [2 TIM 3: 16-17]. There is nothing in our lives that matters more than to know You well and to live by Your carefully constructed standards. They are made for our benefit and to give us peace and happiness. The road to these goals is not easy. Often, You ask us to leave our comfort zones or take carefully-calculated risks, designed to strengthen our faith and give us a better knowledge of You. Our beliefs are by no means a “head-trip.” Rather, they may enter through our intellects, but must sink down deeply into our very hearts and souls. Once there, You have designed them to profoundly influence our attitudes, decisions, and thoughts. They, then, are converted to godly action. There is nothing wrong with living a pious life, devoid of self-righteousness, passive and active aggression, and arrogance. You have promised to protect us, if we will be faithfully obedient. PS 139: 5, “You are all around us on every side. You protect us with Your power.” If we are not sure of the truth of what we hear, what others try to convince us is truth, we can always turn to You. PS 145: 18, “He is near to those who call to Him, who call to Him with sincerity.” PS 91: 14-16, “God says, ‘I will save those who love Me and will protect those who know Me as Lord. When they call to Me, I will answer them, when they are in trouble I will be with them. I will rescue them and honor them . I will reward them with long life; I will save them.’” In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I end this prayer with praise and thanks. PS 28: 6-7, “Praise be to the Lord, for He has heard my cry for mercy; the Lord is my Strength and my Shield; my heart trusts in Him and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song.” Amen.
Next week, we will take another look at MT 7: 6 and the issue of being discriminating about sharing God’s truths. Witnessing is an important part of our lives as God’s faithful servants. To be done effectively, it requires wisdom, timing, sensitivity to the audience’s needs, and accuracy. That is why Paul wrote in 2 TIM 1: 13-14, “Hold firmly to the true words that I taught you, as the example for you to follow, and remain in the faith and love that are ours in union with Christ Jesus. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Who lives in us, guard the Treasure that has been entrusted to you.” Think about what that Treasure is and how you relate to it this week, and we will return to this intriguing subject next week. In the meanwhile, we all need to realize that God sacrificed His only begotten Son on the cross, solely so that those who will listen to the truth and live by it will be saved [JN 3: 16; RO 3: 24-25]. The truth is that the Lord Jesus is our own personal Savior and Messiah. It is His teaching, including that in the Sermon on the Mount, which guides us through the life that has been laid out for us. It is He Who encourages us, protects us, directs us, and loves us via the Holy Spirit. We need to do as 2 TIM 2: 3 tells us, “Take your part in the suffering, as a loyal soldier of Christ Jesus.” Remember that God really does protect us from second [spiritual] death in this process. He also gives us the same power that God used to raise Him from death to life everlasting to battle the evil one to victory in Christ’s holy name [EPH 1: 18-20]. How wonderful is that! Praise be to God!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn