Have you ever noticed how selfish we all can be? How it is so natural that we rarely even notice? Have you ever gotten mad at someone because all they were doing was thinking of themselves but realized later that you were mad because they weren't doing whatever it was for you? We are all naturally selfish beings.
When Christ calls out to each of us "Follow Me," He is inviting us into a very unnatural way of living. God calls us to die to ourselves and our desires so that we may truly live. No longer is your life or mine our own. Paul says in Galatians 2:20, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." No longer are we number one. We aren't even in the top ten anymore! We are dead last!!! Jesus said in Mark 12:30-31, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."
I think we all pretty much are good with the command to love God with all that we are (even though it is a constant struggle), but the second part of that command is something we really have a problem with sometimes. I was in a Bible study with some guys the other day and the subject dealt with church discipline. We read in Galatians 6:2 "Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." What Paul says here and Jesus' command in Mark got me thinking. I know that I don't want to keep sinning. I know that I want my life to make a difference for the Kingdom of God. If I see a brother or sister struggling in sin or life in general, I should love them enough to go to them and bear their burdens with them. Denying myself to help restore them, and as a result, bring glory to God as His body is strengthened and His name and Good News are taken to the nations.
1 Corinthians 6:19b-20 says, "You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body." For those of us who have been saved by God, this verse is who we are now. Our plans and our bodies and our desires are dead, but the awesome thing is that those things have been replaced with God's glorious plans, God's incredible desires, and one day, glorified and perfect bodies in heaven.
From the world's point of view, all of this looks so strange, so weird, so unnatural. But for those who truly believe in Christ who gave His life for our salvation, we have a hope and a promise that one day we will be with our Creator in heaven worshiping God in all his glory in our perfect bodies. Until that time comes, this life will not be easy. It will be a battle that can only be fought through the power and strength of God, but we can hope in the promise of James 1:12 which says, "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him."
Monday, June 1, 2009
Monday, May 25, 2009
For God so loved the WORLD...
This is John 3:16 in Waray, the language of the people that I ministered to in the Philippines in 2007. Many Americans forget about the world because we have so many material possessions to keep us occupied. God loves all people, even the one's that it takes five planes, two vans, three boats, and a few miles of hiking to get to. One day during that trip, I had the incredible privilege of sharing the story of the prodigal son with a dozen people who had NEVER heard it. Only one of them had ever held a Bible! Jesus says in Matthew 9:37, " The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few." God loved you, me, and everyone else so much that He sent His Son to die for us. What have we done for Him?
Now, Jesus is calling us out to take "the gospel of God's grace" to all of the world. There are people in America, Philippines, and every place in between who have NEVER heard. What are you going to do about it? Will you continue to sit in your comforts content with your life now or will you die to your personal desires and comforts to share the love of Christ with the lost and those waiting for someone to come tell them?
The Ezra 710 Challenge
The gracious hand of God was on him, because Ezra had determined in his heart to study the law of the LORD, obey [it], and teach [its] statutes and ordinances in Israel.
Ezra 7:9b-10 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)
Has the idea of studying the Word of God ever overwhelmed you? Do you ever get confused about how to study it or even where to start?
The Ezra 710 Challenge is a simple call to read God's living Word every day. That's it! Whether it's one verse, one chapter, or one book of the Bible, take some time each day to get to know the awesome and mighty God we serve.
So, what's the point? The more faithful you are to reading the Word, the more you will long to read. The more you read, the more you will desire to tell and teach others about God. As a result, God will be glorified, as His Word is spread, and you will be blessed, as you seek and wait upon Him.
Are you ready to take The Ezra 710 Challenge?
Ezra 7:9b-10 (Holman Christian Standard Bible)
Has the idea of studying the Word of God ever overwhelmed you? Do you ever get confused about how to study it or even where to start?
The Ezra 710 Challenge is a simple call to read God's living Word every day. That's it! Whether it's one verse, one chapter, or one book of the Bible, take some time each day to get to know the awesome and mighty God we serve.
So, what's the point? The more faithful you are to reading the Word, the more you will long to read. The more you read, the more you will desire to tell and teach others about God. As a result, God will be glorified, as His Word is spread, and you will be blessed, as you seek and wait upon Him.
Are you ready to take The Ezra 710 Challenge?
Wake up, Church!
“Think of the awful fact nineteen hundred years after Jesus Christ died on the Cross “for the sins of the whole world,” hundreds of millions are still living and dying without ever having been told a word about it! Think of those vast solid areas…where the task of evangelization has not merely to be finished, but has at this late date yet to be begun! Think of a thousand tribal languages into which not a word of the Book of Life has yet been translated! Nor have the existing missionary forces more than barely touched the fringe of the total need in field after field that we call “occupied.” The huge proportions of the unfinished task of missions even in this advanced day are nothing less than staggering, and how anyone who has experienced the blessings of Christ’s salvation can view the situation without deep conviction and concern is beyond our understanding.”
-Robert Glover- (The Bible Basis of Missions 1946, pp. 193-194)
How much longer, God...?
Many times when things are going bad I will ask "How much longer, God...?" Recently, it has been more like "How much longer, God, until I will just get out of the way and let you be God in me?"
How many of you have heard the verse "May God be gracious to us and bless us and make His face shine upon us"? Many believers read that and feel a little something special inside, but is that all of that passage? The second half of that verse from Psalm 67:1-2 says, "...that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations." When God made the covenant with Abraham in Genesis 12, He did not say that He would only bless Abraham, but that through him all the nations of the earth would be blessed.
When every believer says yes to the call of Christ to follow Him, we are saying that our life and our wants are secondary to God's desires and God's plan. Yet, we so often fall back on that old nature to satisfy our desires and wants. We want God to bless us and make everything great so we can live a happy life. There is nothing wrong with asking for those things, but we must not forget that the reason to ask is not for our blessing alone but so that God's kingdom may be spread to all peoples and nations. Being a follower of Christ is not about only receiving the blessings of God, but it is using those blessings to bring others into His kingdom.
What is keeping you from getting yourself out of the way and letting God move in you? Is it sin, friends, family, the "American dream"? As a believer, we must DAILY die to ourselves and to everything else keeping us in the way of God doing a great work in us and through us. Identify those things in your life that are hindering you and ask God to help free you from them. Get in the Word and spend time with the Father in prayer and He will show you how to get out of the way and then what He wants you to do after that.
John Willis Zumwalt says in his book called Passion for the Heart of God, "Mission agencies can look across the earth and know where these unreached nations and peoples live. Imagine this! We know what we have left to do to get the Good News of Jesus Christ to every nation on planet earth! These are exciting times. We can look at the world and say, 'The Good News hasn't been there yet.' Well, let's go! That is where we are in history."
Jesus said in Matthew 24:14, "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." God has an ultimate plan that ends with someone from "every nation, tribe, people and language" (Revelation 7:9) surrounding His throne worshiping and praising Him. As far as I can see, it is all pretty simple. We know where the people are who have never heard the Good News before, and we know that they must hear before God's plan can be complete.
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Hebrews 12:1-2
In the 10/40 window there lives:
* 1/3 of the world’s population (2 billion people)
* Over 3,000 people groups that have never even heard of Jesus
* 85% of the world’s poor
* Many in this area have never heard the name of Jesus
The shocking truth is that ONLY 1.25% of all missions’ resources (money, trips, and missionaries) go to this part of the world. (http://mattsetliffe.com/missions/ )
How many of you have heard the verse "May God be gracious to us and bless us and make His face shine upon us"? Many believers read that and feel a little something special inside, but is that all of that passage? The second half of that verse from Psalm 67:1-2 says, "...that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations." When God made the covenant with Abraham in Genesis 12, He did not say that He would only bless Abraham, but that through him all the nations of the earth would be blessed.
When every believer says yes to the call of Christ to follow Him, we are saying that our life and our wants are secondary to God's desires and God's plan. Yet, we so often fall back on that old nature to satisfy our desires and wants. We want God to bless us and make everything great so we can live a happy life. There is nothing wrong with asking for those things, but we must not forget that the reason to ask is not for our blessing alone but so that God's kingdom may be spread to all peoples and nations. Being a follower of Christ is not about only receiving the blessings of God, but it is using those blessings to bring others into His kingdom.
What is keeping you from getting yourself out of the way and letting God move in you? Is it sin, friends, family, the "American dream"? As a believer, we must DAILY die to ourselves and to everything else keeping us in the way of God doing a great work in us and through us. Identify those things in your life that are hindering you and ask God to help free you from them. Get in the Word and spend time with the Father in prayer and He will show you how to get out of the way and then what He wants you to do after that.
John Willis Zumwalt says in his book called Passion for the Heart of God, "Mission agencies can look across the earth and know where these unreached nations and peoples live. Imagine this! We know what we have left to do to get the Good News of Jesus Christ to every nation on planet earth! These are exciting times. We can look at the world and say, 'The Good News hasn't been there yet.' Well, let's go! That is where we are in history."
Jesus said in Matthew 24:14, "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." God has an ultimate plan that ends with someone from "every nation, tribe, people and language" (Revelation 7:9) surrounding His throne worshiping and praising Him. As far as I can see, it is all pretty simple. We know where the people are who have never heard the Good News before, and we know that they must hear before God's plan can be complete.
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Hebrews 12:1-2
In the 10/40 window there lives:
* 1/3 of the world’s population (2 billion people)
* Over 3,000 people groups that have never even heard of Jesus
* 85% of the world’s poor
* Many in this area have never heard the name of Jesus
The shocking truth is that ONLY 1.25% of all missions’ resources (money, trips, and missionaries) go to this part of the world. (http://mattsetliffe.com/mi
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