Wisdom and Foolishness

1 Corinthians 1:20-25 - Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

Where is the wise man? I often make the claim that I am pretty much the smartest person I know. However, I am not, by any stretch of the imagination wise, not even by human estimation. The funny thing is, one of the wisest people I know has the least education, never even completing high school. He is my dad. Life has taught him well. Also, he has spent the last thirty years in the Bible. If that doesn't make you a little bit wise, nothing will. The thing that probably makes my dad as wise as he is, is the fact that he does not lean on his own wisdom. He relies on God's wisdom and strength. This is something I am still learning to do.

"Father, I need your wisdom. I need to wait on your leading. Lord, make patient to wait and hear your direction. In the name of Christ, amen."

My First Link

I'm about to hit the big time! I just got a link from La Shawn Barber. La Shawn's is one of the more well read blogs, and I recommend her. She is a Christian, conservative lady and very well-spoken. Thank you, La Shawn.

Hate As A Good Thing

Luke 14:26 tells us this:

If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple.

At first, it would seem that this verse contravenes other commands from God in the Bible, such as, “Honor your father and mother.” Let’s look at another translation, the Amplified Bible.

If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his [own] father and mother [in the sense of indifference to or relative disregard for them in comparison with his attitude toward God] and [likewise] his wife and children and brothers and sisters--[yes] and even his own life also--he cannot be My disciple.

This lays it out a little clearer. God is once again repeating the greatest commandment. We are to have no other gods before him. We are not actually to despise or loathe our own family members. We, instead, are to just not esteem them more than our God. God isn’t just talking about family members either. We must also count our own life as nothing when compared with our relationship to God.

This is hard. We often don’t want to give up little comforts for God and He demands our whole life. Not just little comforts, either. How many of us have our favorite sin. You know, that one thing that you do that no one knows about. You justify it to yourself. You say, “But it’s just a small sin.” “No one knows about it.” “God will forgive me.”

I have one. It has reached the point of being habitual. For years I've ignored/enjoyed it. Now, I want free of it and it has wormed its’ way so deeply into me that it is proving painful to try and get rid of it.

Which leads me to the next verse. Luke 14:27, which says:

And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

What is your cross? Each cross is different. For some, their cross would appear not that hard to bear, get up Sunday morning and make it to church. We don't see the stigma that church attendance might have in their lives. For others it is just maintaining their beliefs under threat of prison or death. Mine it would appear is to fight this sin that I hold on to so dearly, also to write and express the thoughts that God would have me share. The last couple of posts that I have put up have been cop-outs, things that have caught my eye and let me post, but with no creative input from me. God has given me gifts and talents, but I persist in not using them.

There is an old proverb, “If you don’t use it, you lose it.” I actually believe this. I think that this whole writing gig would have been much easier had I started doing it in high school or college, when I had actually taken a grammar or creative writing class. Now, I’m here trying to flex the old mental muscle and at the same time be sensitive to what God wants me to write. To coin another phrase, “It ain’t easy, brother.”

“Father, I beg your forgiveness. First, I need it for my sin. Be merciful to me, chief of sinners. Also, Lord, forgive me for wasting the talent which you have blessed me with. Now that I seek to use my talent in service to you, please show me the way and let me touch those around me. Lord, let me have no gods before you and let me hate all else. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.”

Kenyan, 73, kills leopard with bare hands

This article caugt my eye:

Kenyan, 73, kills leopard with bare hands

Why? I mean we see amazing things every day, almost. Given the title, I was definitely going to read it, but there was one sentence that stood out.

Here it is:
“A voice, which must have come from God, whispered to me to drop the panga (machete) and thrust my hand in its wide-open mouth. I obeyed,” M’Mburugu said.

A voice that must have been from God, that is amazing. Not only did this happen to a Kenyan, but a Kenyan Christian, and then his faith gets trumpeted around the world. The Word says that it will not return void.

"Father, grant me the ability to hear your voice when I need to and the faith to follow your commands. Amen"

Infantry

We are all footsoldiers in the Army of God. I had never really thought of it this way. This morning I'm surfing the net and finding the larger world of Christian bloggers. There's actually quite a few of us. Well, I found this article:

http://ed.asisaid.com/blog/index.php?p=405

As Ed says, everyone in the U.S. Army is infantry first, no matter what they sign up for. In the same vein, we do not go to God and say, "I'm going to preach, but I won't sweep the floors." We are called to do whatever God calls us to do. Part of that is knowing your Bible. This is one of my weak points, but I'm getting better.

"Father, keep me from the sin of pride. Never let me be too good to do what is needed. Let me take every direction from you and follow it. Lord, make my heart soft to your commands and make my ears capable of hearing them. Amen."

Beliefs #2

OK, here here is the second of our doctrines from our Statement of Fundamental Truths.

2. The One True God

Passages to back this up:

Deuteronomy 6:4 - Or The LORD our God is one LORD; or The LORD is our God, the LORD is one ; or The LORD is our God, the LORD alone

Isaiah 43:10,11 - "You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior.

Matthew 28:19 - Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

Luke 3:22 - and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."

OK, this is pretty basic and self-explanatory. There is no god but God and Jesus is His Son. We will worship no other gods. This makes life much easier. If you know that your instructions come from THE source, then you have that much less to worry about. Keep yourself grounded in His word and listening for His voice and you can't go wrong. Turn away from Him and doom youself to failure. Just ask me. I am a prime example.

Beliefs

I am at a loss. It has been five days since I have written and I am having trouble. I don't want to go this long without an update. So, I have decided to talk about the fundamental beliefs of my church. I belong to the Asseblies of God, and they have laid out their position very nicely in their Statement of Fundamental Truths. Also, the fact that I whole-heartedly agree with their position helps immensely.

I will take these one at a time.

1. The Scriptures Inspired

Passages to back this up:
2 Timothy 3:15-17 - and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 - And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.

2 Peter 1:21 - For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

There it is, in the words of God Himself. The Bible is His. It is our manual, our guide to life. We cannot be perfect, but through a relationship with Jesus Christ, and being in His Word daily we can live a life pleasing to the Lord. When we stumble God, in His faithfulness, will be there to forgive us and help us back up.

"Father, never let me forget that the Bible is your inspired message to us, sinful men. Lord, let my hunger for it grow daily. Let me need it's direction, Then, let me heed it direction. In the name of your Son, Jesus, amen."

The Root of Salvation

A man once asked Jesus, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" Jesus told him to keep the commandments. The man persisted asking which commandments. Jesus replied, "Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself." The young man then said that he had kept all of these and asked what he still lacked.

This was the Christ's reply:
"If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

The young man walked away sadly. Why? He was rich, rich and unwilling to part with it. Not all of us are rich, but each of us has something that we hold on to, no, something that we clutch desperately in hopes that God will not ask us to do without it.

I had something like that, computer video games. Now, you're probably thinking, "What kind of idol is that?" Idol? Yes, idol. That's exactly what I am talking about, idolatry. Anyone remember these words, "You shall have no other gods before me?" I wasn't paying my tithe. Yet I was paying a monthly fee to play a game online. A wee bit of idol worship there I'm thinking.

This is not what I was going to write about today. I had my passage all picked out, Romans 10:9,10: That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

You can see where that ties in with the title. But I was led in a different direction, a direction I believe relevant for all believers. We must put God over all. No matter what it is God must take priority over it. Sometimes, this isn't easy. Computer games was easier than I thought it would be. Now I must sit back and survey my life and look at what else has assumed the role of a god.

What is your god? What keeps you from serving God to your fullest? Where does your heart lie? These are questions for you. You must answer them yourself.

"Father, I know there are things in my life that I put ahead of you. Lord, I ask that you take away my dependency on them. As ever, my cry is less of me, more of you. I want to serve you. I want to touch people's lives that they might see you. Please make me an able servant. In the name of Jesus, amen."

Random Bonhoeffer

I was in the umm..., library, yeah, that's it, the library and I opened The Cost of Discipleship to a random page. I found where Bonhoeffer was speaking on the Beatitudes. I include a whole section from the book.

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"Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God."
Who is pure in heart? Only those who have surrendered their hearts completely to Jesus that He may reign in them alone. Only those whose hearts are undefiled by their own evil--and by their own virtues too. The pure in heart have a child-like simplicity like Adam before the fall, innocent alike of good and evil: their hearts are not ruled by their conscience, but by the will of Jesus. If men renounce their own good, if in penitence they have renounced their own hearts, if they rely solely upon Jesus, then His Word purifies their hearts. Purity of heart is here contrasted with all outward purity, even the purity of high intentions. The pure heart is pure alike of good and evil, it belongs exclusively to Christ and looks only to Him who goes on before. Only they will see God, who in this life have looked solely unto Jesus Christ, the Son of God. For then their hearts are free from all defiling phantasies and are not distracted by conflicting desires and intentions. They are wholly absorbed by the contemplation of God. They shall see God, whose hearts have become a reflection of Jesus Christ.

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What do I have to add to that? Not a whole lot.

"Father in Heaven, this is my cry, to be pure in heart, to let your Son reign in my heart and in my life. I want to see you. Purify my heart and let me be ever more like Jesus. In the name of Christ, amen."

More circucision. Still ouch!

Today, I am reading Romans 4. Paul has more to say on circumcision. If you read the chapter, I recommend this, you will see he is talking about Abraham, the father of Israel. He specifically talks about when Abraham was counted righteous by God. It was before he was circumcised, before he made the outward sign. Why was Abraham seen as righteous by God? He was counted as righteous because of his belief.

We cannot achieve righteousness through our actions alone. We can go get circumcised and still not be righteous. We will be seen as righteous only through our belief in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 4:23-25 - The words "it was credited to him" were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

There it is. God has spelled it out in black and white. Only through our belief in Jesus Christ will we be righteous. We can be righteous only in Him. Do we then give up and live as we see fit. No, not at all. We must strive at all times to overcome our sinful nature.

1 Corinthians 9:24 - Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

What does this tell us? It says we need to do all in our power to achieve the prize. We need to strive to live the sinless Christian life. Can we? Under our own power no, but Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are there to empower us.

"Father in Heaven, I come today seeking your power in my life. I ask that you touch all that I do and count me righteous because of my belief in your Son. Make me a beacon in this dark and bleak world. Let me show those around me the hope that is Jesus. In the name of Christ, amen."

Circumcision? Ouch!

Having finished Proverbs I have now moved on to Romans. Today was Romans 2. I will specifically deal with Romans 2:28,29.

Romans 2:28,29 - A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God.

We, for the most part, are not Jewish, at least by our physical birth. Technically, we would fall into the category of Gentile, but through our acceptance of salvation through Jesus Christ we are adopted as Jews into the family of God. Actual, physical, circumcision is no longer a requisite for salvation. As Paul states in 1 Corinthians 7:18, 19 - Was a man already circumcised when he was called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man uncircumcised when he was called? He should not be circumcised. Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God's commands is what counts.

Actually, if you look at the two passages, their messages are very similar. It is not the outward sign of Christianity, it is the spiritual that matters. Keeping God's law is the heart of true Christianity as it was the heart of true Judaism. We are not looking for the approval of man. We want, nay, we need, the approval of God.

Keeping God's law is not something we can do on our own. If it was there would have been no need for the sacrifice of His Son for our sins. Israel had proved that the law could not be kept so God provided another way, THE way.

"Father, I come to you today and I beg your forgiveness. Each day that passes sees me breaking your law and walking outside your will. God, I know that you have a plan for my life. I ask that you create in me a desire to see that plan fulfilled. Continue to nurture this desire in me for your word and fill me with your spirit so that I might touch the world for you. In the name of Christ, amen."