I Thess. 5:12-13 Dear brothers and sisters, honor those who are leaders in the Lord's work. They work hard among you and warn you against all that is wrong. Think highly of them and give them your wholehearted love because of their work. And remember to live peaceably with each other.
Some church leaders deserve to be recognized and honored for the work they do for the Lord. They serve humbly and sacrificially. They shy away from the praise of man and are quick to acknowledge and praise others. They are not afraid to get their hands dirty doing tasks that others may be reluctant to do. They are servant-leaders worthy to be followed. They strive to live by the Word of God and carefully protect its integrity amongst those they serve.
On the other hand, there are church leaders who shirk their spiritual duties. Just because they are in positions of leadership does not mean they should be honored. So many are slothful in their duties, they don't work diligently to protect their people from potential false teachings, they like the praise of others, and they serve more out of duty than love.
When church leaders are right with God and serve Him honorably, they should be loved and treated with respect. They should be listened to and encouraged in their labors of love. When there are disagreements with them, we should take the high road and strive to live in peace with them. It takes much cooperation and teamwork to accomplish much for the Lord. Let us do our part as much as it is possible for us to do so.
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
LIVE IN THE LIGHT
I Thess. 5:8 But let us who live in the light think clearly, protected by the body armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.
The Lord is not the Lord of confusion. He clearly gives us understanding on the things we need to know. He clearly reveals to His children the truths of the Gospel so that we can grow in faith and be more effective witnesses for Him. He protects us from false teachings by making His Word known to us. We, who are children of God, must always protect the light that we have been given so that we can think clearly. Sin darkens the light and that is when we begin to get cloudy in our thinking and confused.
Our protection from darkness is our body armor of faith and love. Faith compels us to stay rooted in Christ. It compels us to seek out truth through Him. It compels us to listen to the Holy Spirit as we read the Word. It compels us to filter all that we hear through the Word. It compels us to get it right so that we don’t get led astray and sin against God. Faith is evident in our desire to accurately know the truth of God’s Word and then live it.
Love is our love for God. If we love God, we will want to get things right. We will want to know what He says and not necessarily what others say He says. Our love for God protects us because we don’t want to misinterpret or misapply what God says. We want to get it right because He is the lover of our souls and we want to please Him.
We think clearly when we we are confident in our minds about our salvation. We know we are saved by how we think about Christ and His role in our lives. Children of God have a desire to let Christ rule their hearts. They have a desire to honor and please the Lord. They want to put into practice the pure life of Christ. They want to honor Him by becoming like Him. They are not content with the status quo but always want to improve the quality of their spiritual lives. The mindset of the redeemed is clearly set on becoming more and more like Christ.
The Lord is not the Lord of confusion. He clearly gives us understanding on the things we need to know. He clearly reveals to His children the truths of the Gospel so that we can grow in faith and be more effective witnesses for Him. He protects us from false teachings by making His Word known to us. We, who are children of God, must always protect the light that we have been given so that we can think clearly. Sin darkens the light and that is when we begin to get cloudy in our thinking and confused.
Our protection from darkness is our body armor of faith and love. Faith compels us to stay rooted in Christ. It compels us to seek out truth through Him. It compels us to listen to the Holy Spirit as we read the Word. It compels us to filter all that we hear through the Word. It compels us to get it right so that we don’t get led astray and sin against God. Faith is evident in our desire to accurately know the truth of God’s Word and then live it.
Love is our love for God. If we love God, we will want to get things right. We will want to know what He says and not necessarily what others say He says. Our love for God protects us because we don’t want to misinterpret or misapply what God says. We want to get it right because He is the lover of our souls and we want to please Him.
We think clearly when we we are confident in our minds about our salvation. We know we are saved by how we think about Christ and His role in our lives. Children of God have a desire to let Christ rule their hearts. They have a desire to honor and please the Lord. They want to put into practice the pure life of Christ. They want to honor Him by becoming like Him. They are not content with the status quo but always want to improve the quality of their spiritual lives. The mindset of the redeemed is clearly set on becoming more and more like Christ.
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
BURNING LIGHTS
I Thess. 5:5-6 For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don't belong to darkness and night. So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be sober.
Be on your guard; do not let Satan lull you to sleep. His tactics are varied, but one of his most effective methods today is to convince us that we must always stay busy. We are led to believe that we just don't have the time to spend with the Lord. For many of us we pat ourselves on the back if we are able to spend 5-10 minutes of our day alone with Him. We are convinced that all we need is a quick "spiritual fix" and we will be just fine. We squeeze the Lord and His Word in whenever we can. We keep so busy that we scarcely even feel any guilt about it. In fact, we consider ourselves in pretty good shape because so many others don't even bother to feed themselves except maybe in church. Our busy lives squeeze out time needed to read, study, and meditate on God's Word. It is no longer deemed to be important enough to invest time and energy into. Even our pastors are becoming too busy. How can we expect to grow in the Lord when we don't even know what He says well enough to think about it and live it?
How can we even think that we can constantly live in the darkness of the world without keeping our lamps burning brightly? Darkness swallows up a flickering light. There is very little value in a light that does not dispel darkness. A light that is not properly fueled soon goes out. The only way to see our way around in the darkness is to keep our lights shining brightly. We will stumble and fall over and over again if we don't.
No one can keep your light lit for you but you. It is your responsibility to keep yourself connected to the Lord so that He can be seen in you. Only you can let Him shine through you.
If you are struggling to keep your light lit, you need to rethink your priorities. There is no excuse for not keeping your light shining brightly. You have the time; it's your decision what you do with it.
Be on your guard; do not let Satan lull you to sleep. His tactics are varied, but one of his most effective methods today is to convince us that we must always stay busy. We are led to believe that we just don't have the time to spend with the Lord. For many of us we pat ourselves on the back if we are able to spend 5-10 minutes of our day alone with Him. We are convinced that all we need is a quick "spiritual fix" and we will be just fine. We squeeze the Lord and His Word in whenever we can. We keep so busy that we scarcely even feel any guilt about it. In fact, we consider ourselves in pretty good shape because so many others don't even bother to feed themselves except maybe in church. Our busy lives squeeze out time needed to read, study, and meditate on God's Word. It is no longer deemed to be important enough to invest time and energy into. Even our pastors are becoming too busy. How can we expect to grow in the Lord when we don't even know what He says well enough to think about it and live it?
How can we even think that we can constantly live in the darkness of the world without keeping our lamps burning brightly? Darkness swallows up a flickering light. There is very little value in a light that does not dispel darkness. A light that is not properly fueled soon goes out. The only way to see our way around in the darkness is to keep our lights shining brightly. We will stumble and fall over and over again if we don't.
No one can keep your light lit for you but you. It is your responsibility to keep yourself connected to the Lord so that He can be seen in you. Only you can let Him shine through you.
If you are struggling to keep your light lit, you need to rethink your priorities. There is no excuse for not keeping your light shining brightly. You have the time; it's your decision what you do with it.
Monday, April 25, 2016
ARE YOU READY?
I Thess. 5:2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night.
I live in a state of expectation. I expect the Lord to come just about any time. I do not expect life to go on as it is now for very much longer. I have no way of knowing when the Lord is coming, but when He does, I know that He will catch everyone by surprise. He will not give us any other warnings than what He has already given us in His Word. He will come as a thief in the night.
Since we know that He will come unexpectantly, how should we be living? We should always be in a state of readiness. We dare not get lazy and let our guard down. We must always make sure that we are living holy lives before God. We must be obeying Him in every area of our lives. We must be serving Him and be witnesses for Him. We dare not let the thought that He may not come for a while cause us to get careless in our walk with Him. We must always strive to deal with sin whenever it crops up in our lives.
Since we don’t know when the Lord is coming for sure, we should be actively involved in helping as many people as we can to know Him. We need to be sharing our faith with all that we can. We should be praying for those we know who are lost. We should be taking advantage of the opportunities we have to sow the seed of the Gospel. We should be praying for those who are actively working in the harvest field. We should be striving for the peace and unity in the church and not participate in those things which divide her.
There is no question that Jesus is coming and He is coming at a time we will least expect it. We must always stay ready so that we are not unprepared and left behind when He comes. Are you ready?
I live in a state of expectation. I expect the Lord to come just about any time. I do not expect life to go on as it is now for very much longer. I have no way of knowing when the Lord is coming, but when He does, I know that He will catch everyone by surprise. He will not give us any other warnings than what He has already given us in His Word. He will come as a thief in the night.
Since we know that He will come unexpectantly, how should we be living? We should always be in a state of readiness. We dare not get lazy and let our guard down. We must always make sure that we are living holy lives before God. We must be obeying Him in every area of our lives. We must be serving Him and be witnesses for Him. We dare not let the thought that He may not come for a while cause us to get careless in our walk with Him. We must always strive to deal with sin whenever it crops up in our lives.
Since we don’t know when the Lord is coming for sure, we should be actively involved in helping as many people as we can to know Him. We need to be sharing our faith with all that we can. We should be praying for those we know who are lost. We should be taking advantage of the opportunities we have to sow the seed of the Gospel. We should be praying for those who are actively working in the harvest field. We should be striving for the peace and unity in the church and not participate in those things which divide her.
There is no question that Jesus is coming and He is coming at a time we will least expect it. We must always stay ready so that we are not unprepared and left behind when He comes. Are you ready?
Sunday, April 24, 2016
LIVE A QUIET LIFE
I Thess. 4:11 This should be your ambition: to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we commanded you before.
What is your main ambition in life? I would dare say that living a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands would not be on your agenda. Most of us want to be noticed. We want to be recognized for what we do or have become in life. We want the affirmation and attention of others. Many will go to great lengths to make it happen. They will strive to be the best in whatever they do. Their ambition is to rise above the rest.
Living a quiet life means that we don’t get caught up in the quest to be the best at what we do. We should do our best and let our best be good enough. It is not healthy to be driven to be on the top. Personal ambition can easily distract us and keep us from being driven to live a life that is submissive to the Lord and pleasing to Him.
Minding our own business seems to be something that is lacking in many of us. There is that part of us that thinks we have to know the details of other people’s lives. We want to hear the latest and often it is with the intent of finding something that makes us look better. Way too much time is spent sticking our noses into other people’s business!
We tend to work more with our mouths than we do with our hands. We tend to want to find ways to avoid work. Shame on us. Work was given to man to do in the Garden of Eden. God knows that we need to work in order to stay busy and not let Satan get the upper hand in our lives. Idleness is fertile ground for Satan to work. It is good for us to do the work the Lord has equipped us and given us to do. And, it is good for us to do our work with a cheerful and thankful heart.
What is your main ambition in life? I would dare say that living a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands would not be on your agenda. Most of us want to be noticed. We want to be recognized for what we do or have become in life. We want the affirmation and attention of others. Many will go to great lengths to make it happen. They will strive to be the best in whatever they do. Their ambition is to rise above the rest.
Living a quiet life means that we don’t get caught up in the quest to be the best at what we do. We should do our best and let our best be good enough. It is not healthy to be driven to be on the top. Personal ambition can easily distract us and keep us from being driven to live a life that is submissive to the Lord and pleasing to Him.
Minding our own business seems to be something that is lacking in many of us. There is that part of us that thinks we have to know the details of other people’s lives. We want to hear the latest and often it is with the intent of finding something that makes us look better. Way too much time is spent sticking our noses into other people’s business!
We tend to work more with our mouths than we do with our hands. We tend to want to find ways to avoid work. Shame on us. Work was given to man to do in the Garden of Eden. God knows that we need to work in order to stay busy and not let Satan get the upper hand in our lives. Idleness is fertile ground for Satan to work. It is good for us to do the work the Lord has equipped us and given us to do. And, it is good for us to do our work with a cheerful and thankful heart.
Saturday, April 23, 2016
CALLED TO BE HOLY
I Thess. 4:7-8 God has called us to be holy, not to live impure lives. Anyone who refuses to live by these rules is not disobeying human rules but is rejecting God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.
Life's greatest calling is to be a holy people. Every believer in Christ is called to be holy. It is not enough to proclaim ourselves as being holy because He is holy. Talking about being holy and actually being holy are two different things. A holy people are a people who are becoming like Christ in character, thought, and action. We will never achieve Christ-like holiness on earth, but we can continue our progression towards it. We must measure ourselves by the standards of God's Word. We must strive to be far more like God than like the world. We must not settle for mediocrity in our Christian walk. In fact, I do not believe a true child of God cannot live in Christ without growing into holiness.
Life's greatest challenge is to a holy people. We live in an unholy world, surrounded by an unholy people. We have opportunity to sin all the time. We are constantly challenged to think as the world thinks about things. We are challenged to take the necessary time with the Lord to be a holy people.
We too easily excuse lack of spiritual growth in our walk with the Lord. We rely on His holiness and think it's okay to be who we are because we trust in Him. It is not okay to live in mediocrity! God created us in Christ to be a holy people, a people after His own heart and like Him in character. If we fail to strive for holiness in our lives, we are rejecting God's plan for us. We are rebelling against Him and denying Him His rightful place in our lives.
Let us always be moving into greater holiness. With the Lord in control of our hearts and minds, we can do it. It is not an option, it is a command from God.
Life's greatest calling is to be a holy people. Every believer in Christ is called to be holy. It is not enough to proclaim ourselves as being holy because He is holy. Talking about being holy and actually being holy are two different things. A holy people are a people who are becoming like Christ in character, thought, and action. We will never achieve Christ-like holiness on earth, but we can continue our progression towards it. We must measure ourselves by the standards of God's Word. We must strive to be far more like God than like the world. We must not settle for mediocrity in our Christian walk. In fact, I do not believe a true child of God cannot live in Christ without growing into holiness.
Life's greatest challenge is to a holy people. We live in an unholy world, surrounded by an unholy people. We have opportunity to sin all the time. We are constantly challenged to think as the world thinks about things. We are challenged to take the necessary time with the Lord to be a holy people.
We too easily excuse lack of spiritual growth in our walk with the Lord. We rely on His holiness and think it's okay to be who we are because we trust in Him. It is not okay to live in mediocrity! God created us in Christ to be a holy people, a people after His own heart and like Him in character. If we fail to strive for holiness in our lives, we are rejecting God's plan for us. We are rebelling against Him and denying Him His rightful place in our lives.
Let us always be moving into greater holiness. With the Lord in control of our hearts and minds, we can do it. It is not an option, it is a command from God.
Friday, April 22, 2016
OVERFLOWING LOVE
I Thess. 3:12-13 And may the Lord make your love grow and overflow to each other and to everone else, just as our love overflows toward you. As a result, Christ will make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy when you stand before God our Father on that day when our Lord Jesus comes with all those who belong to him.
Not only should we love one another, it should overflow! How many of us can honestly say that we have so much love for others that we just cannot contain it? Yet, this was Paul's prayer for the church. He wanted the church to have so much love for each other that it overshadowed everything else. Overflowing love wards off any internal strife that may arise. It keeps people together and working together for the common good of the body. It nips in the bud anything that crops up that could be divisive or disruptive. It always seeks to edify and encourage.
Getting along in love in the church is not only what we should do, we should get along with everyone else in the same way as well. We should have such love in our hearts for people that we strive as much as possible to live at peace with everyone and strive to be as helpful as we can when we have opportunity to do so.
When we learn to be a loving people, our hearts grow in faith. Faith grows stronger as we love others. When we become a people of love, we become like Christ, holy and blameless before God. God is love and commands us to be a people of love. We cannot live in Christ and not love others. It doesn't mean we will get along with everyone, but as for our part, we will love them regardless of what they may say or do to us. Our desire should always be that the Lord use us as vessels of love in and outside of the church.
Not only should we love one another, it should overflow! How many of us can honestly say that we have so much love for others that we just cannot contain it? Yet, this was Paul's prayer for the church. He wanted the church to have so much love for each other that it overshadowed everything else. Overflowing love wards off any internal strife that may arise. It keeps people together and working together for the common good of the body. It nips in the bud anything that crops up that could be divisive or disruptive. It always seeks to edify and encourage.
Getting along in love in the church is not only what we should do, we should get along with everyone else in the same way as well. We should have such love in our hearts for people that we strive as much as possible to live at peace with everyone and strive to be as helpful as we can when we have opportunity to do so.
When we learn to be a loving people, our hearts grow in faith. Faith grows stronger as we love others. When we become a people of love, we become like Christ, holy and blameless before God. God is love and commands us to be a people of love. We cannot live in Christ and not love others. It doesn't mean we will get along with everyone, but as for our part, we will love them regardless of what they may say or do to us. Our desire should always be that the Lord use us as vessels of love in and outside of the church.
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