"Devoted"

  Is there something we are missing? When we look at our lives, what are we devoted to? As we look back some 2000 years, we find that when Christ built His church through the teaching of His apostles, there was something very unique going on. Those who received the word that Peter and those apostles spoke that day were responding to the call of God through the death of Jesus. After those 3000 were baptized into Christ for the forgiveness of their sins (Acts 2:37-47), something was happening within them that created a drive, a desire and want. What is it? They were devoted!

  What do we see today? Little devotion. Salvation doesn't seem to stir us. At times I wonder if we know what it means to be saved? Those early brethren understood they stood condemned and would face the Messiah they had crucified. They knew their sins were great and the release from those sins was monumental. As a result of their being washed pure and clean from all sins and guilt, they were devoted. "They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." (Acts 2:42) These brethren wanted the apostles teaching and they were devoted in seeking it! Today, there are too many devoted to someone else's teaching. Some devote themselves to things that make them feel good about themselves. Some are devoted to the mega-church ideas, wanting to be part of this new era of church.  Many seem devoted to things that have little to do with the teaching of the apostles but the music is great.

  These first century brethren were devoted to the apostles teaching, to fellowship, to breaking of bread and prayer! Too many are content with as little as possible. The teaching of the apostles is not thrilling which means fellowship will not be thrilling, much less breaking bread and prayer, it's almost non-existent. Can we see the importance? We need to follow the teaching of the apostles, have our heart set to hear and receive it so we can find what we need to adhere to and what to not pay attention to. It will bind us, strengthen us and stir us to a more intimate time with the Lord and one another. In all this, it led them to a faith of commonness and praising God.

  Salvation is wonderful! Forgiveness is wonderful! It should lead each of us to being devoted! What about you?

"From the Beginning"

  God's plan for Jesus began before the world began. Yes, that's right! "For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you." (I Pet. 1:20) John said it this way: "All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain." (Rev. 13:8) I've known those who simply will not accept that Jesus was foreknown and slain before and from the foundation of the world. That's sad because they miss God and His purpose!

  Paul takes it one step further: "Who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity." (II Tim. 1:9) His purpose and grace granted from eternity! God worked it all out. His purposes, His heart, His grace was revealed in Jesus Christ. We look at our Lord on earth and what do we see? A commitment from the character and heart of God that what He created He was dedicated to. And this commitment began before the world was created and will last until this world is 'uncreated'. Don't doubt God!

"Thank You"

  We have all been there. We saw that wonderful movie that moved us in some way or we read a book that really touched our hearts in such a manner that while reading it, we didn't want to put it down but continue to the end. What did we want to do in response to such a movie or book? We wanted to share it! But it goes a little beyond that. If we could find the producer or author, we would love to just tell them "thank you"! Someone gives us something anonymously and we wonder who would give us such a gift. We think, ponder and then we want to search them out just to tell them a heart-felt "thank you"! The joy that is felt is not completed in any case until we express the fullness of our hearts. It is a joy that we didn't create but received and wants to be expressed. 

  But when we come to the worship of God, where is that desire to express what we feel? Sensitive people worship God because they want to praise God and just say "thank you" in honor of what He has done for them. People have difficulties in their lives. Some live hard lives. Is there nothing to say "thank you" for toward God? No health, no home, no water, no food, no friends, no children, no marriage? Nothing at all to express a deep "thank you"? No one to sing, "Fairest Lord Jesus, ruler of all nature"? No one to sing, "Love lifted me, when nothing else could help, love lifted me"? Here are songs that apply to everyone without exception but are we so empty that we can't express this to our Father?

  Some people worship out of duty. I was recently told that the reason this individual went to worship was because they had made it a habit to go. A habit? Is that what we have done to ourselves in our relationship with the Lord? Reduced the relationship to a habit? Have we not been touched by this wonderful gift, this blessings from heaven for our salvation? Is it better than the good book or movie? Is it better than receiving that gift from someone? We should be a people who want to say to the heavenly Father, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" When we assemble in the name of the Lord to offer our worship, there is where we express to God, as His children together and are reminded who we are and the great things that the Lord has done for us which leads to "thank you"! Praise, adoration toward God. Not praise and adoration of man nor man's abilities. And then we are struck in the heart as we sing, "My sin, O the bliss of this wonderous thought. My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more, praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul." It just doesn't get any better than that. A great big "THANK YOU LORD"! Worship God!!!

"Faithfulness"

  When we look closely at the death of Stephen (Acts7), it's rather amazing how he faced adversity from the crowd. As the crowd began stoning him we have these words: "They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.' Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, 'Lord, do not hold this sin against them!' Having said this, he fell asleep." (Acts 7:59-60) How could Stephen react in such  calm way in the face of hatred and death? What kept anxiety and distress from showing up? He had the trusting knowledge that all was well with his soul.

  The Lord God rebuked a sinful nation of His people simply because they paid no attention to the words of the Lord and as a result they forfeited the peace of God that flows like a river (Isa. 48:18)

  The peace of God and security of salvation is not mystical. It comes from one thing: living within the will of the Lord. To know the peace of God you must trust the will of God. We must trust God's promises and walk with Him. Peace is the fruit in your life as you walk by the Spirit (Gal. 5:22).

  This all leads us to the idea of being faithful. Faithfulness, like many other Biblical teachings and words, has lost its meaning. We deem faithfulness as someone who attends all the services. When someone attends some of the assemblies we say they are kind of faithful. If someone stops assembling we call them unfaithful. No wonder we find very little comfort and peace from God. We can't understand what faithfulness is. We quote the end of Rev. 2:10: "...be faithful until death and I will give you a crown of life." But what about the rest of the verse? "Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life."  Did you get that? Suffering, trials, prison and tribulations. These are life threatening! What does John mean? You must hold on to God and trust in His promises. What does it mean to hold on to God? STAND FIRM IN THE LORD'S SALVATION! Faithfulness is about trusting God's salvation even if it costs you your life!! Jesus is the guarantee.

  Now don't misunderstand me when I spoke of assembling with the saints. That's where we praise our Lord and exhort one another. They are important but to imply that sitting in an assembly means someone is faithful shows how little we understand about faithfulness.

  Over and over we are told: God is faithful! (I Cor. 1:9/10:13) God gives us His promises and I receive them, embrace them and my hope is built on them. That means no matter what comes in this life, my life is secure because He promises!! Faithfulness on my part is not about me doing every thing properly. It's about my trusting Him and leaning on His grace. I don't understand every thing and I sure don't do every thing properly but I do know this, His grace reaches me and trusting in His grace, I trust His promises through His Son. Faithfulness is trusting the faithfulness of God as I live for Him and His will!! We aren't exempt from suffering. We stand in His grace for eternity!

"Salvation"

  We call it "salvation". What does that mean? What does that really mean? For years I have known some who were afraid to think they were saved. Others I have heard say one can never know for certain about salvation until they die. What a terrible way to live. John wrote his letter, inspired by the Holy Spirit, that the "things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life." (I John 5:13)

  Salvation is about deliverance and preservation. It is being saved from some impending doom. Salvation cannot be merited. The grounds for salvation is the blood of Christ and nothing else. Salvation is not a badge that is earned and worn but a gift from God. "He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness..." (Titus 3:5) Salvation can only be accepted, received and enjoyed but never earned or merited. Salvation is by the grace of God and God initiates grace. Faith is our response to God grace. God formed the blueprint, drew the plan and initiated it through Jesus Christ. There is no other way to be saved. It is by the grace of God, your faith in Christ's redeeming work and praising God or your not saved.

  The strongest temptation within the church is to substitute this salvation we have received through Christ Jesus for a 'human-law-works' system. It is very pleasing to us to trust in ourselves, in our good deeds, in our 'I'm there every time the door is open' mind-set turning salvation into a do it yourself plan. We want in some way to trust us! That's why so many are weak and failing. The trust is not in the blood of Jesus, it is us. Too many cannot distinguish between Rom. 3:27-30 where Paul speaks that our acquittal (justification) is not by works and Jam. 2:14-26 where James speaks we are justified by works. People have a hard time realizing that Paul is dealing with salvation initially. James is speaking about the result of salvation received by faith. Two completely different elements.

  The grace of God brings us salvation, with complete 100% trust in the blood and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Just take some time and read Acts 2 again but slowly and diligent. When you listen to the message preached that day, try to find any works of human merit involved. The only involvement that day by humans were being held accountable for killing the Messiah they had waited for. People heard the charge, heard the Scriptures and it pierced their heart. The only response? "What shall we do?" Faith was asking, reaching. Peter called their faith to respond but they merited nothing but trusting in Jesus the Lord was their answer. And they received the word, responded as the word said and rejoiced!

  Do you find yourself guilty of something? Do you find yourself doubting you might not have done enough in the eyes of God? The blood of Jesus is the cleansing agent, not doing more. Once the blood of Jesus cleanses only then will you find the power to move forward in serving the Lord (Heb. 9:14). The guilty, human works people can never do enough to feel good enough. It might be today as I did something but then comes the failure and what do they do? Feel insecure, guilty and look to work their way back. No wonder they can never know if they are acceptable before God! No wonder they have little assurance and little joy! It's time to get back to the power of the gospel to save!!!

"Misery Love Company"

  She was an older woman responding to a compliment about how nice she looked. She said, "I may look good on the outside but I have felt terrible on the inside for long time."

  He was a middle aged man and very likeable. One day he revealed, "Some pray that tomorrow may be better but I pray that I won't wake up!"

  The husband was a heavy drinker. When confronted about his drinking he spoke, "It is the only way I have of getting even with my controlling wife!"

  All three people have a common thread: MISERY! The emotional stress on their personal lives and their constant state of living in this stress has created a misery within their being. What causes misery in the lives of people? Sometimes it can be caused by physical illness but as hard as it is for some to accept, most misery is self-induced and self-maintained. Misery has its roots in selfish desires. The more we want something, whatever that may be, the harder it is to accept not getting it.

  She was a young woman and wanted a husband so badly that she attempted suicide when a young man refused to marry her. Her suicide was a fake attempt to get his attention. It didn't matter if he wanted to marry her or not, all that mattered to her was she wanted to be married and was willing to do whatever it took to accomplish that!

  Here's the point. Wrong reactions to what others do to you will always lead you into more pain. Resentments, bitterness, hate and malice are reactions we experience when others have done us wrong. Do you realize when you do or think something that is wrong, especially when it involves others, that you are suppose to feel miserable? This state of mind is described in Rom. 2:14-15 as it involves the conscience. If we are reacting to a situation involving someone else wrongly, it becomes easier and easier for us to become hateful and bitter creating a state of misery within our being. 

  The Scripture points out in Gal. 6:7-8, we have a detailed account of how God operates. God is not fooled and you can't excuse yourself before Him. The Lord God gives to each person what they sow! It's that simple. For one to give in to his own fleshly desires, the harvest he will reap in himself will be corruption!! Corruption is where a person gets better and better in reacting wrongly to situations and less regard for what the Lord wants. In the list of the deeds of the flesh in Gal. 5:19-21, we can see plainly of how and what we sow toward. Our fleshly desires produce these reactions within us and the longer we keep sowing to them, we become more steeped in them and misery begins its reign within. We blame this situation or that person as the cause of our miserable existence while ignoring the real source...YOU. You become more miserable as you become more corrupted.

  God says there is an answer to man's misery and that's to walk by the Spirit. It's not mystical or magical. It is simply yielding to God, listening to Him and following His lead (Gal. 5:16-17). If we would change our minds and give in to God's ways, the product will be wonderful (Gal. 5:22-24). This is God's answer to misery. God wants to help and we have to decide if we want His help. It calls us to humility and faith. When you are in turmoil you have to make a choice. God or my desires? One reaps peace the other loves company! 

"The Missing Message"

  Paul made certain that Timothy the preacher understood the direction the Lord wanted things to be done in the church. In fact, the charge was so serious that Paul called Timothy in the presence of God and Jesus Christ the judge of the living and dead to make sure this was heeded. "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom; preach the word..." (II Tim. 4:1-2)  God's word is so easy to quote but it's difficult to preach! It takes pain-staking effort to wrestle with the context of the verses and make proper application. Too many opinions fly rather than God's word. Many have found if they sprinkle a little of God's word on whatever subject they are dealing with, it's preaching the word and the people are happy.

  It has become sad to me that many congregations of the Lord has turned from "preaching the word" as the Lord intended to an entertaining art of communication. The result is the church shifts from believing in the God who charges us into a people of activities with countless programs and committees going to and fro satisfying their own personal desires. "Look around and see what we have to offer!" is our calling card. Busy, busy, busy. And for what? What is accomplished? Are we preaching the word or preaching our word?

  Far too many are becoming religious consumers. They look to the church to meet their needs and when those needs aren't met, they look elsewhere. The emphasis is no longer on preaching the word of God, or seeking God and His Christ but rather on "me, myself and mine." The question arises: what does the church have to offer me and my family? That's what many are looking for.

  In our society truth has vanished. Each person is left to do as they please in their own eyes. It reminds me a lot of what happened in Israel when they lost spiritual leadership. "Everyone did what was right in his own eyes." That's how the book of Judges ends. Lying is common place and not blinked at. Deception is at it's height. The moral character is so low that hardly anything is looked upon as sinful. From killing babies, to shacking up with one another, to babies out of wedlock, to families destroyed because of sin, to alcohol consumption and drug abuse all of which go against the word of the Lord. It reaches in the church and you can see it in attitudes and laziness while calling themselves "Christian." People bicker and fight, being hateful to one another and little concern for the welfare of brothers and sisters. If anyone will be saved it will be because God has placed a standard before us and we uphold that standard. If the church is going to be Christ's body as Christ intended, it will be from taking His calling seriously. It's called PREACH THE WORD !