USE YOUR BRAIN

 

USE YOUR BRAIN

I Thess. 5:19-22 Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. Keep away from every kind of evil. NLT

We stifle the Spirit when we stop learning and growing, when we hinder His ability to teach us new things through the Word and His messengers. There is so much we should be learning about ourselves, God and His Word. We should be constantly learning and growing in Christ. We stop growing when we get the idea that there is nothing else for us to learn or that we are good enough as we are. Use your brain.

What we must know about ourselves is that we are not complete in Christ. We will never be complete in Him as long as we are living in the flesh. We contend with Satan all the time. He never quits and will do all he can do to keep us from moving forward. We have so much sinful influence to overcome. We do not have perfect knowledge and never will have it on earth.

The work of the Spirit is to help us grow and learn. He is actively working in every believer from the moment of their salvation to lead them into holiness of heart. He tirelessly works in us to get rid of all that hinders our growth. He constantly battles Satan on our behalf. If we are not careful, we will treat lightly the preaching and teaching of the Spirit through the Word. We will cease to think over it and start believing anything we hear.

We need to test everything we hear by the Word of God. God’s Word is absolute in its truthfulness and authority over us. We must be active listeners. We must examine all things that go into our brains through the filter of the Scriptures. Use your brain. God gave it to you for a reason.

We must hold onto that which is good, never letting it go. Our passion should be to always do and be good. We are to live by God’s standards and not our own. All goodness flows from God alone. When we cling to that which is good, we will be able to stay away from the pitfalls of evil conduct and thought. The end result of evil is a broken relationship with God. Living in God’s goodness keeps us away from embracing evil. If we choose to embrace that which is evil, it is a conscious decision to reject God. Keep away from evil; don’t even go there. Entertaining that which is evil leads to an evil heart, which is an abomination to God.

COOPERATE

 

COOPERATE

I Thess. 5:19 Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. NLT

To stifle is to hinder. Do not hinder the Holy Spirit in what He wants to do in your life and through it. He wants first and foremost to connect you on a deeper level to God. He wants to lead you into holiness of living. No one can hinder Him from getting it done but you.

The Spirit wants to lead you to a deeper understanding of the Scriptures. You will hinder Him when you don't open up the Word and meditate upon it. You must be still in His presence and listen to what He is saying to you as you read it. You must be willing to embrace it as He reveals it to you.

You hinder the Spirit when you put off until tomorrow what you can do for Christ today. You hinder the Spirit when you insist on carrying out your own agenda instead of the one He gives you. You hinder the Spirit when you keep your faith to yourself and don't let it influence how you live in the world. You hinder the Spirit when you wrestle with Him over control of your life. You hinder the Spirit when you don't take advantage of the workings of His power in you. You hinder the Spirit when you take for granted what Christ has done for you and live as if it was a thing of the past instead of the present. You hinder the Spirit when you waste your opportunities to be a witness for Christ. You hinder the Spirit when you treat prayer as an option instead of a necessity in your life.

When you stifle the Spirit, you are robbing God of His rightful place in your life. You are treating God with contempt. You are denying Him lordship over you. You are stifling your fellowship with God. And, without fellowship, there is no fruitfulness. And without fruitfulness there is no joyfulness and thanksgiving. Without joyfulness and thanksgiving faith is dead.

Cooperate with what the Holy Spirit’s work in you. Yield to His control. Let Him change whatever He desires in you. You will be glad you did.

ALWAYS IS NOT A SUGGESTION

 

ALWAYS IS NOT A SUGGESTION

I Thess. 5:16-18 Always be joyful. Keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. NLT

We don’t like that word always. It is frustrating to read it, because we know that we don’t do it. We aren’t always joyful, thankful or prayer warriors. We may try to be these things most of the time, but always?!!

Even though we may struggle in these areas of our lives, we should always keep on trying. We should never give up just because we find we can’t do it.

Joyfulness comes from staying focused on the activity of the Lord in our lives. We need to never forget or take for granted that the God of the universe has chosen to take up residence in us. We should rejoice that He is always at work in us to make us holy vessels for Him. We should always keep in mind that we are children of God by His choosing.

Most of us are not prayer warriors. It is one of those things that we don’t practice as much as we know we should. It is hard for many of us to pray except for when we are in need. Effective praying comes with much practice. The more we pray the more comfortable we get with praying. Praying opens up our hearts to God and invites Him in. It is essential for our souls.

We should never let circumstances dictate our gratitude. We are never left alone to deal with life. We have the promises of God for life now and for all eternity. We have been given freedom from the bondage of sin and a clean heart before God. We must always strive to think on these things and bow before our God in deep gratitude.

God desires that we do these things. He knows that it is great medicine for the soul. He knows that as we do these things we will be able to live in victory and not defeat. May the Lord help us to be doers of His Word and not just listeners of it.

BE GRACIOUS

 

BE GRACIOUS

I Thess. 5:14 Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. NLT

Do you know any lazy Christians? If so, you need to warn them to change their ways. How we live affects our witness. A lazy Christian dishonors Christ. We should be leading the way on how to live productive lives. A lazy person generally is a vulnerable person. Their slothfulness carries over into their spiritual lives. You cannot stay connected to Christ by being lazy. It takes diligent work to stay on track with the Lord. It requires of us sacrifices of time and energy. If you, or anyone you know who professes to know Christ, is lazy, in love warn them before it is too late.

Do you know any timid Christians? Encourage them to step out of their comfort zone. Praise them for the good things they do. Encourage them to just simply tell others what Jesus has done for them. Remind them that they don't have to be a scholar in order to have a story to tell. They don't even have to know the Bible well if they know Jesus well.

Do you know any hurting or needy Christians? Treat them with tender care. Show them the love of Jesus. Come alongside of them and just be a caring friend. Everyone needs to know that someone truly loves them and wants to help them when they are weak.

Dear friend, just be patient with everyone. Be gracious. Don't expect more from people than what they are able to do. Give people some slack. Be gracious, kind and understanding as people grow in grace, even as Christ is towards you.

LAZINESS

 

LAZINESS

I Thess. 5;14 Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. NLT

There is no room in the work of the Kingdom for lazy people. Lazy people do not get the work done. They become a liability rather than an asset. Lazy people have a tendency to be critical of those who are busy. They are quick to judge and slow to change. Lazy people are not growing people. They lack the incentive to help themselves grow. They are not good students of the Word, let alone doers of it. They are not generally prayer warriors. They always follow and never lead.

We need to encourage one another to step out in faith. We need to spur one another on to service in spite of fear and lack of confidence. We need to inspire others by our example to become bold servants of God.

We need to take tender care of the weak. We should be aware of those who do not have strong faith and come alongside of them to help them. We need to be sensitive to those who are vulnerable and need coaching along the way. We need to get involved in their lives and do what we can to help them become strong.

We need to learn to be patient with everyone. Not everyone thinks alike and not everyone grows alike. We must not become impatient with those who don’t seem to “get it” like we do. We must allow the Lord time to teach and grow others in the faith. We must ask the Lord to exercise patience to all, especially those who have a tendency to mess up more than others. And while we are at it, we need to ask the Lord to grow us. Our ability to help others depends on our own maturity of faith and understanding.

HONOR YOUR LEADERS

 

HONOR YOUR LEADERS

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. NLT

There is a fine line between putting people on a pedestal and honoring what they do for the Lord. We must be careful that we don’t idolize people because they may be talented and gifted. We don’t idolize people because they have winsome personalities. We don’t idolize them because of their position in life or wealth. We don’t idolize them because of their successes in the world. We don’t value them higher than others and make them out to be favored citizens of heaven. However, we do need to honor those who are leaders in the Lord’s work.

We should respect their role in the church. God prepares and puts into place leaders in the church. They are given responsibility to preach and teach the Word. They are responsible for spurring others on to greater faith and godliness. They are responsible for the spiritual well-being of those whom they serve. They have to answer to God for what they do.

We should respect what they say to us. Godly leaders warn us of not only what is to come, but what happens to us now when we reject the Lord or His Word. They warn us that sin has consequences and no one can escape them. We need to pay attention to what they say to us and strive to put into practice what we hear.

We should think highly of them and intentionally love them and pray for them. It is so easy to criticize those in leadership. They are vulnerable to being criticized and judged for their failures. They are expected to be better than we are and to meet all of our expectations. They are easy targets to blame when things don’t go the way we think they should.

What we should do is be supportive of those who lead in a godly way. We should appreciate what they are doing for the Lord. We should come alongside of them and stand with them. We should encourage them and support them in their efforts. As long as leaders are doing the best they can do in their service to the Lord, we should be on their side and not against them.

We should honor them by adequately supporting them in the work they do. Support comes in a wide variety of ways: financially being fair to them, being kind to them, being positive, encouraging them, etc. We must never forget that they are human just like we are and their need for being treated with decency and affirmation is just as important to them as it is to us. We should as well treat their families in the same way we want our families to be treated.

We should always strive to live in peace with not only our leaders, but everyone of faith. Internal conflict within the family of God is always wrong and should not be allowed to continue.

FAITH AND LOVE PROTECTION

 

FAITH AND LOVE PROTECTION

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. NLT

The light is the truth of the Gospel message; it is living under the guidance and authority of the Holy Spirit. When we are being led by the Holy Spirit, we should be thinking clearly about things. It's when we take off and fend for ourselves that we begin to get confused about things and begin to question the truthfulness of the Gospel.

When we are living in the light, we are protected by the body armor of faith and love. We live by faith in Christ and are governed by the love of God. Everything we do is influenced by our faith in Christ. We see things through the Word of God and choose to live by the Word and nothing else. We see the possibilities of what God can do in and through us instead of what we can't do. We see the difference between that which is holy and unholy and choose to live by what is holy. We accept as truth those things which our minds cannot grasp based on the fact that God has said it.

When we live in the light, we are governed by God's love. We seek to always embrace others through God's love and not be quick to dismiss them and judge them unworthy of our time or attention.

When we live in the light, we have our heads screwed on straight. We are confident in how we live and our standing with God. We know that Christ has saved us and we are moving in the right direction for heaven. We seek always to honor and glorify Him as we live for eternity. We see our lives on earth as an investment in eternity.

When we live in the light, we refuse to doubt in the dark what we know to be true in the light. We refuse to let circumstances or feelings to overrule our faith. We believe and trust in what God has said no matter what. We refuse to listen to those who would distort, dilute, or deny God’s Word.

SALVATION CONFIDENCE

 

SALVATION CONFIDENCE

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. NLT

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 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.

Salvation confidence is seeing life through the lens of faith. It is finding one’s purpose for living and meaning for life in Christ. It is being spiritually-minded instead of being worldly-minded. It is living with hope rooted in Christ. It is wanting to please God and not man. It is bearing fruit in one’ life that is consistent with the fruit of the Spirit.

CHILDREN OF THE LIGHT

 

CHILDREN OF THE LIGHT

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. NLT

By nature, the child of God is a child of the light, not darkness. We should naturally shun the darkness. We should always be on the alert for tempting situations as they crop up in our lives. We should always know sin when we encounter it and strive to resist it. We should always strive to maintain pure and godly hearts. We should never fall asleep when it comes to our souls.

Sadly, most of us don't do what we should be doing. We get careless and don't always watch over our souls and minds. We allow ourselves to linger in the presence of sinful behavior. We listen to things that are cloaked in sin. We read things that are not good for the mind and soul. We get careless about keeping strong devotional lives. We lose our sense of what is, and is not, sin.

We embrace things that are clearly called sin in the Scriptures. Instead of changing our mindset and behavior regarding sin, we try to justify it or we call it some other name. We don't treat sin like that big of a deal. We claim that God loves us and will not condemn us for our sins, even though we know He is holy and must deal with it.

Only those who live in the light will make it to heaven. We must be on guard and resist sin. We must not compromise or cater to sinful behavior. We must always strive to be a holy people; for without holiness, no one will see God.

Children of the light are aware of what tempts them and strive to not put themselves in a position to be tempted. They are honest with themselves when they do sin and repent of it. They seek out God’s Word and embrace what God calls sin and work to keep it out of their lives. They gravitate towards holiness and seek to please the Lord.

ALERT AND SOBER

 

ALERT AND SOBER

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. NLT

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 very little 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 to invest in your spiritual growth; it's your decision what you do with it.

What you do with your time now will certainly impact what you will be doing with your eternal life. Diligently and purposely keep your light shining brightly and you will never have to be anxious when the Lord may come.

HE IS RISEN!

                                                           HE IS RISEN!

Luke 24:4-6a “And it happened that while they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling apparel; and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen.” NASB

Matthew identifies the two women as Mary and Mary Magdalene. They were there to honor Jesus by wrapping His body in spices for His permanent burial. But when they arrived at the tomb where Jesus was placed, their world was turned upside down. The tombstone had been rolled away! If that were not enough, two men (angels) were there to greet them, and the most shocking thing of all, Jesus was not there! They were in a state of absolute despair. Perplexed, they asked the men where He was. It terrified them. Everything was happening so unexpectedly with the men before them were clothed in dazzling white.

But the men spoke to them with the most comforting words ever spoken, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen.” “Death could not keep his prey, Jesus my Savior! Up from the grave He rose! Jesus, my Savior!” YES, I serve a risen Savior! Not only is He in the world today, He lives in my heart! “Because He lives, I can face my tomorrows.” I have nothing to fear because I know He holds my hand and will lead me home to be with Him for all of eternity.

But that is not all, as wonderful and amazing as it is that Jesus is alive today and lives in my heart, He is coming again! “What a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see!” I will look at His face and fall on my knees and cry “Glory! Glory! Glory!” And when I stop shouting glory, I will cry out,
“Holy! Holy! Holy!” Yes, Jesus is coming again for me, and when the trumpet sounds, I will be there!

Christ the Lord is risen today. Hallelujah! Glory to God in the Highest! Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords now and forever!

IS JESUS REALLY COMING?

 

IS JESUS REALLY COMING?

I Thess. 5:2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. NLT

Even though there seems to be a sense of expectancy in the air within the Church about the coming of the Lord, I believe that for the most part we have been lulled to sleep. We live like His coming is far away. We go about our daily living with little sense of urgency about living in holiness in preparation for His return. We do not witness with a sense of urgency. We get so busy living that we scarcely allow time to keep our souls connected to Christ. We fail to gather together and pray much anymore. We just don’t seem to have a real sense that the Lord is going to come soon.

Beware: the Lord will catch most of us off guard. His coming will not be publicly known. He will break into the normal routines of our lives. He will come in a moment’s notice, when we least expect it. Only those who are ready for His return will leave this world and go to be with Him. The rest will find life extremely difficult and nearly impossible to be saved.

There is yet time for us to get ready. We don’t have to be caught off guard. Now is the time to live righteous and holy lives. The coming of the Lord is certain, and it will be when we least expected. Make sure that your heart is right with God while there is still time. Today is the day of salvation. Today is the day to commit yourself to daily invest in the health of your soul through Bible reading, prayer and being a witness for Him. Don’t waste another moment of opportunity to be ready for the Lord’s return.

Is Jesus really coming? Yes. Is He coming for you? I don’t know, but I do know that when He comes He will take me with Him back to heaven. Live always in a state of readiness and you too, will go with Jesus when He returns to heaven.

EXPECT CHRIST TO COME

 

EXPECT CHRIST TO COME

I Thess. 5:2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. NLT

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 without any warning, 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?

A QUIET LIFE

 

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 before. NLT

What is your ambition? What do you really want to see happen in your life? What are you living for? The Apostle Paul tells us what we should really be living for, to live a quiet life, mind our own business, and help ourselves through our work. If we were to do these things, much of the problems that plague us in and outside the church could be avoided.

Most of us do not live quiet lives. We fill our lives with much busyness, so much so that we are often uncomfortable when things quiet down and we don’t have much to do. We need to relearn the value of quiet living. We need to learn how to eliminate a lot of the stress in our lives by not taking on so much and just enjoying life as God intended for us to do.

Do we mind our own business? Most of us struggle with this. For most of us, news travels fast and we are quick to stick our nose into things that really don’t concern us at all. We make other people’s business our business whether it is or not. We are quick to jump on the bandwagon of criticism and judgment which should be none of our concern at all.

Do we work with our own hands? Most of us don’t have as much of a problem with this command as we do the others. We know the importance of work. Most of us know that if we don’t work we don’t eat or pay the bills. We know how much stress a lack of willingness to work places on us and those we love. Paul is reminding the church that it is important for everyone to take care of themselves through work instead of mooching off of the generosity of others. Those who don’t, or won’t, work are usually the troublemakers in the church and beyond.

Let us be part of the solution and not a part of the problem. Let us strive to have healthy ambitions, live quiet lives, mind our own business, carry our own load, and contribute positively to the common good of the body of Christ.

LIFE'S AMBITION

 

LIFE’S AMBITION

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. NLT

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 whatever 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 in everything. 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.

Striving to excel is a good thing as long as we don’t become obsessed by it. Without balance, one’s life is valued based on how we succeed or fail instead of our standing with God.

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. And some feel compelled to talk about what is none of their business in the first place. 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.

We should work with thanksgiving. We should be grateful for the health we have that enables us to work and the opportunities we have to work. It’s a privilege that most of the world do not have. It is a gift from God to help us become a holy people, a people after His own heart. Idleness is breeding ground for sin.

CALLED TO BE HOLY

 

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. NLT

Life's greatest calling is to be a holy people. Every believer in Christ is called to be holy. However, 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 be 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.

HOLINESS OR ELSE

 

HOLINESS OR ELSE

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. NLT

It’s pretty clear, isn’t it? We have been called by God to live holy lives, not impure lives. What this means to us is that we are to separate ourselves from sinful activities, conversations, and as much as is possible, desires. We are to discipline and train our minds to focus on those things which draw us closer to God. We are to strive to learn more about holy things and to put them into practice. We are to strive to stay away from those things which lead us into sinful thoughts and activities.

While we know that we won’t get it right all the time, for no one perfectly lives a holy life, we can do much better than we do. We can continue to mature in faith to the point where we become more capable of choosing to do what is holy and right before God.

Anyone who chooses not to work on being holy before God, is disobeying God; he is rejecting God as the Lord of his life. He is in essence defying God and anyone who does these things cannot live in fellowship with God. We cannot choose which parts of our lives we will be holy in. We must be willing to put all things into subjection to God. We must be willing to get rid of everything that hinders us from being holy.

We need to consistently examine our hearts to make sure that we are not holding back any part of them from the Lord. We must seek to be fully surrendered to Him at all times. We must be a holy people, for without holiness, no one will see God.

APPROVED BY GOD

 

APPROVED BY GOD

I Thess. 2:4 For we speak as messengers who have been approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He is the one who examines the motives of our hearts. NLT

Paul understood who he was in the church and why. He was a messenger sent by God to the Church and he was approved by God for the task. God does not send people out to do a task that are not approved by Him for the task. In order to be approved by God, one must have a holy heart and be totally committed to Him. Paul clearly met God’s requirements. Living in fellowship with God and being right with God consumed Paul’s life. He had no other desire in life than to give his all to the Lord and the Kingdom of God.

Paul was trustworthy. God entrusted Paul with the Good News. God knew Paul would not mess it up. He knew he would be faithful and not preach another Gospel. He knew Paul would tell it like it is and not worry about how others might receive it. His duty was to proclaim the Gospel and he did it with determined passion. He was not a people-pleaser. He was not concerned about anything but living rightly before God.

We must be good imitators of Paul. We have but one agenda as children of God, and that is to serve the Lord with determined passion. We are not in the people-pleasing business. In fact, if people are pleased with us all the time, we are not being faithful messengers of the Gospel. The truth always is opposed by those who don’t want to live by it. We share the Gospel message regardless of whether someone wants to hear it or not. How it is received is between the listener and God.

We must never forget, God knows our hearts. He knows not only what we do, but why we do it. We need to be careful that we don’t serve the Lord with wrong motives. Those who please the Lord have pure hearts in all they do. They serve Him out of love, not duty.

If we are true to the Gospel, we will ruffle some feathers. There will be those who will not be pleased with what we say and do, but that is a good thing, not a bad thing.

The Gospel is divisive because there are always those who do not want to live by it. They want the fluff, but not the meat and bones of the Gospel. They want you to tickle their ears. And when you don’t, sometimes things don’t go so well.

But always remember, we don’t answer to anyone but God on Judgment Day. It is only the Lord we should be concerned about pleasing. Obey God, not man; proclaim the Word always and let the chips fall where they may.

APPRECIATION FOR OTHERS

 

APPRECIATION FOR OTHERS

I Thess. 1:2-3 We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. As we talk to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and your continual anticipation of the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. NLT

Wouldn’t you like to have a pastor like Paul, one who you knew appreciated you and was constantly praying over you? I can only imagine what the church would be like to have spiritual leaders like that, people who genuinely cared about the souls of the church.

Paul did not focus on the negative things within the church. Instead he thought about their faithful work, their loving deeds, and their focus on the Lord’s coming. It is so easy to magnify the flaws of others in our minds and prayers. It is easy to point out flaws in others to the Lord and ask Him to fix them. But, Paul wasn’t like that. He chose to focus on the positives instead of the negatives. It would be wonderful if a church was so good that there would not be room for the negatives to crop up, but unfortunately that generally is not the case.

What do we think about when we pray for one another? Think about it for a moment. Do you thank the Lord for what is going on right with a person and pray that it continues? Or, do you focus on the negatives and ask the Lord to change them? One of the reasons why we are prone to dwell on the negatives is that in our minds it makes us look better than they do. And when we see ourselves in a positive light, we are not prone to see our own flaws and failures and repent.

Also, when we see other believers negatively it’s because we are proud of our own understanding of spiritual truths. Deep down we see ourselves as better than they are.

Appreciation for others is lacking in most churches today because there is a lack of appreciation in the heart of those sitting in the pew. It is a deficiency that needs to acknowledged and addressed if we are going to reach the lost for the Lord.

THANKSGIVING FOR OTHERS

 

THANKSGIVING FOR OTHERS

I Thess. 1:2-3 We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. As we talk to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and your continual anticipation of the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. NLT

What do we think about when we pray for one another? I would be surprised if thanksgiving would be very high on the list. We seldom thank the Lord for those who are His, especially if they are not “one of us”. We seldom think of others enough to faithfully pray for them. We are negligent about praying for those we know, let alone those whom we don’t know. Praying with thanksgiving over the body of Christ should be a regular part of our prayer life, not a rare part of it.

I would be surprised if we give much, if any, thought to the work that the Lord is doing in and through others. We ought to faithfully remember and be thankful for what the Lord is doing in our community churches and the churches around the world. No church should ever feel like she is in competition with other churches for the salvation of souls. It’s never a numbers game. We put way too much value on the number of people in the pews. Our concern should be about the salvation and discipleship of the soul of man. We should rejoice with those who are doing it well.

If you have a problem with not being grateful for what the Lord is doing in His universal church family, ask Him today to change your heart attitude. Give thanks always for the faithfulness of God’s people, the good works they are doing for Him and the preparations they are making in the souls of man for Christ’s coming.

The Lord blesses those with thankful hearts. And, when you are giving thanks for how the Lord is using other churches, you will not be finding fault with them and avoiding them like the bubonic plague. Instead, you will find yourself actually loving and embracing them in their ministries.

DON'T BE FOOLISH

 

DON’T BE FOOLISH

Col. 4:5-6 Live wisely among those who are not Christians, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and effective so that you will have the right answer for everyone. NLT

Sadly, many professing believers live foolishly amongst those who are not saved. They do not take a stand for Christ by not refusing to participate in unholy things. They do not guard their tongues. They do not protect their eyes from unholy things. They do not speak out when they have opportunity to share Christ. They compromise their standards when asked to do so for personal gain. Instead of such foolishness, we are to live wisely among those who are not saved. We are to stand firm on truth and not waver in our commitment to it. We are to always do what is right in God’s eyes.

We are to make the most of every opportunity we have to be witnesses for Christ. In our living and talking we ought to be gracious and effective witnesses. It doesn’t happen by accident or overnight.

We need to take the time to invest in the development of our souls. We need to spend time in the Word to discover and grasp its truths. We need to spend enough time in prayer so that we can have real fellowship with God. We need to put into practice the things we learn so that we can be effective in our witness to others. We need to become knowledgeable of truth so that we can help others and not lead them astray. We need to purposely strive to act and speak graciously towards others. We need to strive to always be right in our declaration of truth.

The time we spend developing our souls into godliness is the best investment of time we will ever spend. We become wise in the things of God and attractive to those who are not Christians seeking to find God.

Don’t be foolish and not prepare your soul for living in the world. People everywhere need to know the Lord living in you.

BE OPPORTUNISTIC

 

BE OPPORTUNISTIC

Col. 4:5-6 Live wisely among those who are not Christians, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and effective so that you will have the right answer for everyone. NLT

Wisdom would teach us that we must be careful how we live in the world. We must accept the fact that we are being watched, and eternal decisions are being influenced by what others see in us. It matters what we say and do. Often people are just looking for excuses to not make a commitment to Christ.

Wisdom would teach us to take care of our souls before we enter into the world. We know that we will influence people and perhaps for all eternity by how we are in the world. We must understand that without the constant lordship of Christ over us we may very well do far more harm than good to those we meet in the world. We must enter into the world bathed in prayer and the Word. It protects us from the world and prepares us to be witnesses in the world.

Wisdom would teach us to be alert to opportunities we are given to be witnesses for Christ in the world. We dare not assume that missed opportunities don't matter. We don't know the state of someone's heart. Perhaps the Lord has adequately prepared them for salvation and all they need is our witness to nudge them into the Kingdom.

Wisdom would teach us to be aware of what we say and how we say it. We must take responsibility for words spoken. They do matter to God and others, and they should matter to us. What we say and how we say it originates in the heart.

If you lack wisdom today, before you do anything else, ask the Lord to give you some. All you have to do is ask. He has promised to give it to all who seek it.

THE SOUL'S LIFEBLOOD

 

THE SOUL’S LIFEBLOOD

Col. 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. NLT

To devote one's self to prayer means that there is a commitment to pray. Prayer is deemed to be a necessity and not a safety valve in time of need or desire. Prayer is an attitude of the heart we live by. It is intentional. It is a natural part of how we live out our lives. Prayer is an expression of our heart's desire for God. It is the soul's lifeblood. It is our first response, not an afterthought.

When we pray, we are to have an alert mind. We are to be aware of what we are praying for. We are to pray with purpose. We are to pray in tune with the heart and will of God. We are to pray intellectually and not just emotionally. We are to pray knowing what we need. We are to pray as well knowing what we don't need.

When we pray, we are to have thankful hearts. A thankful heart is Christ-focused. It is a heart that is sensitive to who the Lord is, what He has done, and what difference He is making in one's life today. A thankful heart understands what might have been true in his life had not Jesus saved him from his sin. A thankful heart is mindful of the riches of grace and the resources of heaven that are his to enjoy and employ. A thankful heart does not take for granted life in God or the things of God.

Prayer with thanksgiving guards the soul from vain repetitiousness and self-centeredness. Prayer is not a duty, it is a privilege. Prayer is not something we do quickly so we can rush into something else. It is a waiting on the Lord, basking in the glow of His presence, savoring our time with Him. If we don't have time to wait before Him, we will soon dry up spiritually and wander away from Him.

Prayer is intentional, knowing that the Lord is our life-blood. It is a time of drawing from Him what we need for life and giving Him what we don't need. It is a time for soul-cleansing and refreshing. It is a time in which we let Him carry our life burdens so we can be free to live the free and full life He died to give us.

Prayer is fellowship with God, and if you aren't praying, you are slowly dying spiritually.

DEVOTION TO PRAYER

 

DEVOTION TO PRAYER

Col. 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. NLT

Prayer plagues most people in the Church. We know we need to do it, but most of us don’t do it well or enough. We make excuses about being too busy to pray. We don’t place prayer high on our list of things we need to do daily. We get the idea that public prayer in church is enough. Our churches do away with altars and concentrated public prayer meetings. We get comfortable with the idea of not praying.

We are to be devoted to prayer. Prayer should be the primary thing we do together in public and in private. It should be at the top of our list of things to do. Prayer is the lifeblood of the Christian life. It is where we have our most intimate fellowship with God. It is where we grow best in our love for God and others. The more we wait before God, the more we grow in our ability to love. Prayer is an expression of our love and devotion to God. It is the ultimate sign of our respect of Him. It is a true reflection of how much we really do value our relationship with God. Prayer is where things happen between God and man. A person who prays faithfully and fervently moves the hand of God. Great things are accomplished in the Kingdom of God only when we pray.

When we pray we need to have alert minds. We need to be aware of being in the presence of a holy God. We need to be aware of our need for Him. We need to be aware of our sins and need for forgiveness. We need to be aware of the needs around us. We need to be aware of what the Spirit is moving our hearts to pray for. We need to strive to be at our best when we pray. We know we aren’t always at our best, but our prayer time is most effective when we are.

When we pray we need to have thankful hearts. Thanksgiving is always a part of effective praying. We need to be thankful for all the Lord does in our lives. The list is endless. We owe our very existence to God. We should never take for granted the life we ive. Thanking the Lord for salvation and His constant presence in our lives is always appropriate in praying. Prayer without thanksgiving is not really praying at all.

Yes, we pray for needs, and rightly so. We pray for God to move in our churches and across our nation and world. We pray when we are down, when we are frustrated and we feel all alone. We pray for a countless number of reasons and God wants us to. But, never to forget to pray with thanksgiving. An attitude of gratitude moves God to act when we pray.

TREAT OTHERS RIGHT

 

TREAT OTHERS RIGHT

Col. 4:1-2 You slave owners must be just and fair to your slaves. Remember that you also have a Master—in heaven. Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. NLT

The application of these verses for us today would be for those who are in positions of authority over others. Whether it be in the church or in the public arena, believers have a responsibility before God to treat those under them in a God honoring way. Sometimes the pressures of the job we are in work against us. There is the temptation to be demanding and unfair to others under us. There is also the temptation to feed off of the power and authority we have and let it affect how we treat others. How do we avoid mistreating others? Paul offers us a couple of ideas.

First, we need to be a people of prayer. In order to treat others right, we must stay right with God. We must stay close to the Lord at all times. We must come humbly before God and be willing to listen to Him. We must learn from Him how we must conduct ourselves and then do it.

When we are close to the heart of God, we are going to be kind and gracious. We are going to strive to help others bring out the best in them. We are going to care for them as people and not look at them as just numbers to use. We are going to strive to be honest and fair at all times. We are going to deal with others out of our love for God. Prayer changes how we treat one another, and it is an absolute necessity if we want to be a people after God's own heart, regardless if we are in positions of authority or not.

We are to pray with alert minds. We are to be aware of the needs around us. People are needy. A godly leader is sensitive to people who are in need. If people are hurting, there is an awareness and he prays for them. He does what he can to minister to those in need. He is compassionate and not judgmental.

We are to be thankful. Life offers some of us greater opportunities than others. Some are blessed with good jobs that pay well. A godly person does not take for granted his position in life; instead, he gives thanks to the Lord. No one deserves the blessings of life and we should be grateful for the life we have. No matter what our lot in life is, we are blessed. There are a multitude of people who will never know the blessings you enjoy and take for granted. Daily we ought to thank the Lord for His blessings, love and grace. And, a grateful heart treats others well.

PAY BACK IS COMING

 

PAY BACK IS COMING

Col. 3:25 But if you do what is wrong, you will be paid back for the wrong you have done. For God has no favorites who can get away with evil. NLT

Everyone stands on equal ground before God. He does not care who you are, what you do, what you have accomplished in life, what your wealth or influence may be, or what stature you may have with man. Each one of us is personally responsible for how we live our lives. No one will get away with sin.

We must recognize and accept this truth. We live in a day in which we put people on pedestals. We are quick to ignore or condone sin in the lives of our leaders. We seldom challenge them on how they are living out the faith. We don’t like to stick our noses into other people’s personal lives and convince ourselves somehow that it’s none of our business.

Or, we may go to the other extreme and get way too nosy. Some of us may always look for faults or sins to expose. Some will hold leaders to a much higher standard than they themselves are living or are willing to live.

God shows no favoritism. We are all held up to the high standards of God’s Word. No one will get away with anything. We will reap what we sow as we stand before God in judgment. We will be defenseless as we hear God tell us our destiny. God knows the heart. Each one will be judged on what He sees there.

Only those in whom Christ dwells will be found pleasing and acceptable to God and where Christ dwells there is righteousness and holiness lived out daily.

WORSHIP WHILE YOU WORK

 

WORSHIP WHILE YOU WORK

Col. 3:23-24 Work hard and cheerfully at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and the Master you are serving is Christ. NLT

Do you work hard for the Lord? Do you put as much effort into your serving the Lord as you do serving yourself or others? Most of us don’t. We tend to not give the Lord our best effort. We take our faith for granted and sort of coast along.

Even if you do work hard at serving the Lord, do you do it out of duty or do you do it cheerfully? Attitude is very important to the Lord. He judges the motives of our hearts. If we are not enjoying what we do for the Lord, what is the point of doing it? No matter what we do in life, it is an act of worship before the Lord. Whether we want to accept it or not, our living is a reflection of our faith. If the Lord isn’t honored in what we do, then we need to re-examine our hearts.

If we see our labors on earth as an act of worship, we will put our best foot forward and strive to do our best. We should work hard and work with pride in what we do. We should always strive to consider our work as being unto the Lord and not man. Sometimes our labors are misunderstood by others and criticized, but if we are doing our best to honor and please the Lord, it doesn’t really matter. Live and work passionately for the Lord and don’t worry about what others may say or think.

We need to always keep in mind that the ultimate reward of our labors is in heaven and not on earth. Whatever rewards we get on earth are temporary and very fleeting; the rewards in heaven are eternal and forever satisfying. It is far better to work with heaven in mind instead of whatever reward man may give you. Give of your best to the Master and great will be your reward in heaven.

 

WORK HARD CHEERFULLY

Col. 3:23-24 Work hard and cheerfully at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and the Master you are serving is Christ. NLT

These verses have been the bedrock of my walk with Christ. The Lord laid these verses on my heart shortly after I began walking seriously with Him. I believe that every believer must put forth the best effort he can muster in the things he does in life. All of life is a witness for Christ and if we are slothful in what we do, it is a reflection on Christ. We dare not give the world just cause to reject Christ because we fail to honor Him in what we do.

It is easier to work hard when we approach our work cheerfully. How can we cheerfully do mundane work? We believe in our hearts that what we do we do it for the Lord. Our work and living is to honor and please our Lord. We do them cheerfully because we understand how loved and blessed we really are by the Lord. We are cheerful because we appreciate our lives and blessings from God. We are cheerful because we know that soon this life will be past and only what is done for Christ will last and matter. We are cheerful because we know that all of our life is an offering unto the Lord and He loves a cheerful giver.

If you are struggling with your attitude, remember these things. Remember that the Lord has an inheritance for you that is far more valuable and precious than anything your heart or mind can imagine, and He is waiting to give it to you. Remember always that it is Christ you are serving and not man. Remember, and go out and live your life to the fullest in Christ, at work, home and play.