Colossians 2: 20
Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules?
I'm pretty sure this speaks to the man-made rules the religious leaders imposed. It's so very easy to keep up apperances by doing and saying all the right things or by not doing the wrong things. But these rules are completely meaningless. They only benefit those who wish to judge righteousness based on the external. It's all pride based and self promotion.
It's not that God gives us a moving, elusive target and that there are no rules. But unlike the "basic principles of this world" by which men judge, God looks upon the heart. Is how I live my life an outflow of loving and serving God and loving and serving others? Am I immitating the culture around me or Christ?
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Ecclesiates 10-12; Psalm 94, Ephesians 5
Ephesians 5:15-17
Be very careful, then how you live - not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is.
Eccleiastes 21:13-14
Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgement, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.
SO simple to read, so hard to live.
Be very careful, then how you live - not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is.
Eccleiastes 21:13-14
Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgement, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.
SO simple to read, so hard to live.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Ecclesiastes 7-9; Ephesians 4
Ecclesiastes 7:1-2
A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day of birth. It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart.
Obviously I don't remember the day of my birth. But having seen my four children born, I know the joyfulness felt on those days. Somehow I don't sense that the day of my death or of anyone close to me will seem like a better day. Except....
As a believer in Jesus, death is the not the end of me. It becomes the day when my hope in Christ is realized. Any possessions, any fortune, any fame and power I had are meaningless. The kind of car I drove, the number of weeds in my lawn, my social status don't matter. At death, which we all will face, every one of us faces either an eternity in the presence of God or apart from God based on what we did with Jesus between those bookends of birth and death.
With complete confidence I can say my day of death will be much better than my day of birth. By far it will be better than any day in between either. I really wonder how many people I know who are unable to say the same.
A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day of birth. It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart.
Obviously I don't remember the day of my birth. But having seen my four children born, I know the joyfulness felt on those days. Somehow I don't sense that the day of my death or of anyone close to me will seem like a better day. Except....
As a believer in Jesus, death is the not the end of me. It becomes the day when my hope in Christ is realized. Any possessions, any fortune, any fame and power I had are meaningless. The kind of car I drove, the number of weeds in my lawn, my social status don't matter. At death, which we all will face, every one of us faces either an eternity in the presence of God or apart from God based on what we did with Jesus between those bookends of birth and death.
With complete confidence I can say my day of death will be much better than my day of birth. By far it will be better than any day in between either. I really wonder how many people I know who are unable to say the same.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Proverbs 30-31; Psalm 33; Ephesians 1
Psalm 33:18-19
But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
to deliver them from death
and keep them alive in famine.
This entire Psalm is a great one to read in these times of economic uncertainty and cultural decay. The bottom line is God is in control. Kings and nations and every person can make their own plan or think they are able to control circumstances. But God spoke and the universe was created. He is right and true and faithful in all He does. And if our trust is in Him rather than ourselves nothing else matters.
But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
to deliver them from death
and keep them alive in famine.
This entire Psalm is a great one to read in these times of economic uncertainty and cultural decay. The bottom line is God is in control. Kings and nations and every person can make their own plan or think they are able to control circumstances. But God spoke and the universe was created. He is right and true and faithful in all He does. And if our trust is in Him rather than ourselves nothing else matters.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Provrebs 28-29; Psalm 60; Romans 16
Romans 16:21-22
Timothy, my fellow worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my relatives,
I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.
Hmmmm. Just how did Mr. Tertius happen to insert his own little greeting in this letter? Did Paul invite him to add a few words? Was he just caught up in the moment and wanted to throw in his own hello? Was it just Tertius feeling a great connection to other believers through what Paul had previously dictated so that he felt compelled to greet them in the Lord along with Paul? I've never been aware of my hearing a sermon where the pastor included comments his secretary typed in the middle of his notes. This is just a curious thing to me.
But, since it's in there, I've got to believe it is as inspired as the rest of Scripture. Is is to show us that even though Paul was the "face" of the ministry, there were many behind the scenes helping to make things happen? Was it just to be an example of Paul being gracious to those helping him, a reward for Tertuis' hard work of transcription? Is it to serve as a simple example of the interconnectedness of the global body? I'm not sure I'll ever need to know the real meaning for this. Maybe it's just to show that sometimes when a person is prompted to speak encouragement they need to forget about convention and just go for it.
Timothy, my fellow worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my relatives,
I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.
Hmmmm. Just how did Mr. Tertius happen to insert his own little greeting in this letter? Did Paul invite him to add a few words? Was he just caught up in the moment and wanted to throw in his own hello? Was it just Tertius feeling a great connection to other believers through what Paul had previously dictated so that he felt compelled to greet them in the Lord along with Paul? I've never been aware of my hearing a sermon where the pastor included comments his secretary typed in the middle of his notes. This is just a curious thing to me.
But, since it's in there, I've got to believe it is as inspired as the rest of Scripture. Is is to show us that even though Paul was the "face" of the ministry, there were many behind the scenes helping to make things happen? Was it just to be an example of Paul being gracious to those helping him, a reward for Tertuis' hard work of transcription? Is it to serve as a simple example of the interconnectedness of the global body? I'm not sure I'll ever need to know the real meaning for this. Maybe it's just to show that sometimes when a person is prompted to speak encouragement they need to forget about convention and just go for it.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Proverbs 25-27, Romans 15
Romans 15:14-15a
I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another. I have written you quite boldly on some points, as if to remind you of them again.
Proverbs 27
Better is open rebuke than hidden love.
Proverbs 27
As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another
Good old Paul with a pat on the back and a slap up side the head at the same time for the Christians in Rome. Not too different than, say, the pastor of my church. We collectively, and I myself have lots of knowledge and competence. But I am always in need of some bold, in-my-face "reminding" of just what I should be doing and how I should be living. How loving would it really be for somebody to stay silent and not rebuke a brother when they veer off the right path?
Unfortunately is seems in our culture that rebuke, trying to "sharpen" somebody else or words of correction are taken as an insult. We throw up walls of defense around us, the individual. We pay lip service to the concept of "body" but don't really understand how to reconcile that with the American concepts of individualism and pioneer spirit that have evolved.
I know we cannot be certain of the motives of others. But just imagine this. What if each of us resolved to always assume a brother or sister really had our best interest as well as the best interest of the body of Christ in mind when they approached us to address a concern about something they have seen in our life. If we both agree that the goal is to follow Christ and obey God's Word how could I not desire you to examine my life.
This also frees us from the fear wrought by the shackles of ego and pride. At the foot of the cross there are no secret things of which Christ died to cleanse me. If the only One who knows all my failings yet still loved and forgave me, then what do I have to fear from men who want to see me live in the fullness of all that life in Christ offers. We are also complete equals, not me measuring your life by my own or you measuring mine by yours. We look at the template in the Bible and try to conform to that. Sure there will be points where we disagree about what some things mean and how that is lived out. But if we are all looking at Christ we stand shoulder to shoulder in unity instead of eyeball to eyeball in conflict.
I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another. I have written you quite boldly on some points, as if to remind you of them again.
Proverbs 27
Better is open rebuke than hidden love.
Proverbs 27
As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another
Good old Paul with a pat on the back and a slap up side the head at the same time for the Christians in Rome. Not too different than, say, the pastor of my church. We collectively, and I myself have lots of knowledge and competence. But I am always in need of some bold, in-my-face "reminding" of just what I should be doing and how I should be living. How loving would it really be for somebody to stay silent and not rebuke a brother when they veer off the right path?
Unfortunately is seems in our culture that rebuke, trying to "sharpen" somebody else or words of correction are taken as an insult. We throw up walls of defense around us, the individual. We pay lip service to the concept of "body" but don't really understand how to reconcile that with the American concepts of individualism and pioneer spirit that have evolved.
I know we cannot be certain of the motives of others. But just imagine this. What if each of us resolved to always assume a brother or sister really had our best interest as well as the best interest of the body of Christ in mind when they approached us to address a concern about something they have seen in our life. If we both agree that the goal is to follow Christ and obey God's Word how could I not desire you to examine my life.
This also frees us from the fear wrought by the shackles of ego and pride. At the foot of the cross there are no secret things of which Christ died to cleanse me. If the only One who knows all my failings yet still loved and forgave me, then what do I have to fear from men who want to see me live in the fullness of all that life in Christ offers. We are also complete equals, not me measuring your life by my own or you measuring mine by yours. We look at the template in the Bible and try to conform to that. Sure there will be points where we disagree about what some things mean and how that is lived out. But if we are all looking at Christ we stand shoulder to shoulder in unity instead of eyeball to eyeball in conflict.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
