2010-01-22
Good Morning Dear Ones,
We should all feel cherished by God, because He gives us so much of Himself and His word. In the discussion of Christ’s Sermon on the Mount words in MT 7: 13-14 [The Narrow Gate] as compared to LK 13: 22-30 [The Narrow Door], we have reached the point where we must examine ourselves. This is not to evoke guilt, but instead, to let us see where we are with regard to God’s messages on judgment. The first question: 1) have we taken the narrow way in our own lives? This question begins with our understanding from Christ as to what the narrow way is. Our knowledge of that, our understanding of the teaching therein and our faithful obedience to it is up for consideration. We know we are told that the narrow way isn’t the easiest. That means that our spiritual selves must win out over our natural inclinations. It helps us to know that they are opposites, as Paul so aptly discussed in RO 7: 14-25. Paul speaks of doing things he doesn’t want to do, because his natural self, which leads to spiritual death, makes him do it. Then he gives us the important way out, which is Jesus Christ. For a deeper understanding of this conflict between the flesh and the Spirit, we can look at GA 5: 16-18, “What I say is let the Spirit direct your lives, and you will not satisfy the desire of the human nature. For what our human nature wants is opposed to what the Spirit wants, and what the Spirit wants is opposed to what our human nature wants. These two are enemies, and this means that you cannot do what you want to do. If the Spirit leads you, then you are not subject to the Law.” This does not mean that the Ten Commandments no longer matter. It means that legalism doesn’t, and that the Spirit will lead you to the godly things to do. When the Spirit leads, living by the Ten Commands will happen.
2) Is the Lord in leadership in our lives? This implies that we spend daily time in the Scriptures and, have an active prayer life, so that we have a solid foundation in the word of God. Christ’s parable of the two house builders, found in LK 6: 46-49 [also MT 8: 5-13] is a good comparison between what happens when a flood hits one house built on a solid foundation and another house that is built on loose sand. It’s the same way with our lives, if we don’t build our spiritual houses on a firm foundation of God’s word. 1 COR 3: 11, “For God has already placed Jesus Christ as the One and only Foundation, and no other foundation can be laid” if the Spirit is in leadership. What follows from this sure Foundation is the ability to recognize when the Lord is delivering a message to us through the circumstances of our lives. A good example of this is watching for several unconnected and trustworthy people in our lives saying the same thing to us. Another is making unexpected friendships that lead to great blessings. One such example in my life was my former 3rd. year French teacher in the senior year of high school. Now you have to know that was a very long time ago, but its impact is still with me. This lady frightened me with her brusque manner in the classroom. She didn’t suffer fools easily-people who came to class unprepared, for example. So, I carefully prepared for every session of that class. When she called upon me, I spoke French fluently out of terror! One day, I was carrying a load of books and was rushing to catch a bus for home. I tripped over some uneven pavement, sending the books flying in all directions. All of a sudden my teacher’s little foreign car pulled up to where she had seen this embarrassing incident. She quickly got out of the car and helped me pick up the books, whilst I caught my breath. In her perfect French she told me to get in her car, that she would ride me home. Somehow, she knew I had just missed the last bus of the day to go as far as I needed. In those days, I lived the farthest from school of any of the student body and had to take three buses and a trolley car to get home. I thanked her and explained how far it was. She thought nothing of that and took me home. From that day until the day she finally passed away, we remained in touch and were fast friends. Years later, I asked her why she was such a holy terror in the classroom. Her answer was that she needed to be, to cause students to take her seriously. Many of her students went on to be very successful. It was she that taught me the wisdom of self-discipline and kindness to people. There was never a question that this wonderful lady stood on a foundation of God’s word and His love.
The next question is: 3) Do we use the foundation of God’s word in making decisions, choice of our words, and in our actions? Maybe I’m not being kind here, but because of space limitations, I’m putting this out only to discuss it in more detail next week. It won’t hurt any of us to spend this week looking at our lives and seeing what our own answers are to it. The Holy Spirit encourages me to leave this subject hanging, so that we can come up with some anecdotal situations from our own experience to collect data [knowledge] of our own experience with this. Then, we will be in a better place to give a truthful and honest answer. I will start with saying that I am a sinner, and thus, my answer won’t be perfect compliance. However, examining my intent will still be useful to me in this analysis of my progress toward meeting what God wants me to be. Be blessed, not guilty, in this process, and I will take this question up next week.
PRAYER: O Lord, You want Jerusalem, Your city on a hill, to be like a lighthouse-a beacon that shines Your light on the world. It is why, in PS 122: 1-2, 9, You led us to pray, ”I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the Lord’s house. And now we are here, standing inside the gates of Jerusalem!...For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I pray for your prosperity.” If this seems like it doesn’t fit in to what has already been said, let me add to this some of Your own words which will lead to understanding of the intent of this prayer. PS 119: 105, “Your word is a lamp unto my feet, a light for my path.” MT 5: 14-16, “You are like light for the whole world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl; instead he puts it on a lamp stand, where it give light for everyone in the house. In the same way your light must shine before people, so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.” Now what I’m trying to say in this prayer should be clear. When we accept Christ as our personal Savior and repent of our sins with a genuine heart, then we also take on the responsibilities of living out our sworn beliefs and hopefully, encouraging others to do the same. The words that issue from our mouths can’t be, as James says in JAS 3: 10, “words of thanksgiving and cursing pouring out of the same mouth.” We must choose what we say with caring consideration for their impact on those within earshot. We must think before we speak, and we must think before making decisions and judgments. When the situation is not clear, we must take the time to clarify it. We must also seek You out to allow You to weigh in on an important issue before we make our final decisions on it. You have warned us, MT 7: 15, “Beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing [false prophets]; they come to you look like sheep on the outside, but on the inside they are really like wild wolves.” We thank and praise You every day for Your marvelous presence and intervention in our lives. Your wisdom is an important blessing You are willing to impart. Praise and thanks be to You, in the holy and mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
As I mentioned above, we will be taking up that important question [# 3 above] in a continuing examination of our progress in living upon the ethical foundation the Lord has laid for us. In the meanwhile, the Holy Spirit reminds me to say that every one of us has been created to be capable of asking for the Lord’s wisdom and having the courage to follow His direction [RO 1: 18-20]. It won’t be easy, but His love is so much a part of doing this, that we can take the narrow gate to the hard road that leads to eternal life. We must remember that great sacrifice the Father made of His only Son, so that we could have such a choice. JN 3: 16, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” His suffering and physical death on the cross not only made it possible for our salvation, but also our justification [being deemed acceptable in God’s sight-RO 4: 3; GA 3: 6] and reception of the Holy Spirit [RO 8: 14-16]. There is another facet to this wonderful gift. It is the hope of the resurrection found in RO 8: 29, “Those whom God had already chosen, He also set apart to become like His Son, so that the Son would be the First among many brothers.” Herein is our goal for making every effort to make forward progress in our faithful obedience to the Lord. What greater motivation can there be than eternal and blissful life in heaven with the Father. As I’ve said before so many times, the alternative is unthinkable. God loves each and every one of us. And yes, His mission statement and that of the Son, found in EPH 1: 4-5 and JN 6: 39-40 respectively, makes that crystal clear. Praise and thanks be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn