John 3:18 ESV
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
It is a stark contrast between the believer and the non-believer. Through Christ we have a better life, not in the worldly sense as in possessions, but as in the internal with the indescribable joy and peace the Lord gives us. We have a better legacy. Our children more times then not grow up to be respectful, God fearing and humble people. We also deal with death better. If you have ever been to a celebration of life ceremony, though there is grief, there is also an unmistakable sense of hope. In every facet the believer does not live a life of condemnation. The believer is not down trodden for long. The believer truly shows the love of Jesus shining through him/her. Am I boasting in this? Without a doubt the only place where I will seek to be boastful is what Jesus Christ has done for me. In this verse we are promised that as believers we are not condemned in either the present or the eternal.
Transversely, those that do not believe are condemned already. Notice the context of that sentence. It does not say, those that do not believe are condemned, it says condemned already. This means that their condemnation is not only in the future but is a present state. Those that are seperated from Christ are condemned in a very real and authentic way during every instance there is a spirit of non-believe in their heart. Non-believers do not have the hope of Christ that gets them through those tough times: the times of death, the times of sickness, the times of financial dificulty, the times of utter despair. Jesus takes the yoke of the believer and the non-believers are carrying their own burdens. What a heavy burden it is. The weight of the world will squish the strongest of men.
Only one person can lift it. Only one person can lift it with His pinky finger. Only one person can lift it with a spoken word and thats Jesus Christ. The non-believer, without the full knowledge and faith in Christ is condemned for all eternity, but presently condemned while they lack faith in their maker. Therefore Christian, let your hearts fill with compassion. Let the Lord who works in you and through you to spread the light of Jesus for those who are already condemned. Let not your family members be condemned. Let not your neighbors be condemned. Let not your co-workers be condemned. Those who have a lamp do not look to cover it but lift it high for all to see. Be the light of the world and be encouraged to give hope to the hopeless, peace to the discouraged, and love to the dismayed. Praise be to the King of kings who has saved us from condemnation both present and eternal.
Saturday, December 20, 2014
Friday, December 19, 2014
Do not delay!
Psalm 119:60 ESV
I hasten and do not delay to keep your commandments.
David exclaims his commitment to the Lord. His urgency of heart is not only for the law, but also for the personal daily commandments that the Lord gives him. The ten commandments is what many of us think when we see the word commandments, but there is also the will of God. Those that are seeking that still small voice. Those that have that intimate relationship with the Lord also receive commandments from the Lord. David shares with us that he strived to not only keep the precepts of the Lord, but anything the Lord told him to do. If it were just the rules and precepts that he looked to follow then he would have said I hasten to follow the Levitical law or the Mosaic law. No instead it says he does not delay to keep His commandments. Anytime the Lord speaks to us to do of His will it is a commandment. He is our Master and there is no other authority that can draw such hasty action. Lets notice that David doesn't look to mull it over. David does not feel the need to deliberate on the subject. David looks to not just carry out the commandments of God, but to do it speedily.
This my brethren requires faith. Acting on behalf of the Lord's voice and carrying our His precepts without first critically thinking about it is an act of faith. It shows that He understands that the wisdom of the Lord is above his own.
Not only is it an act of faith it is an act of obedience. When a soldier is told to halt! It is carried out immediately and obediently. Any delay and the heart of the command would be lost. So it is with David, His heart is to act at once! Haviving full faith and full obedience in the word of the Lord.
On a practical sense, when we reckon to think and weigh out what the Lord will have us do, we often do the contrary. Typically we will find excuses and or reasons to not do the Lord's will. This is because though the Spirit is strong the flesh is weak. Delaying to do the commandments of the Lord leaves us to our own demise. It leads us to our own unrighteous deliberation. It lacks faith, it lacks obedience and enables us to give excuses.
On one rainy day of recent, I was coming home from dropping off my kids at school. It was a cold brisk morning and the rain was thick. As I was pulling up my driveway I noticed some people on bikes taking cans out of trash cans on the street. As I pulled up to my house these people were at my trash can. All at once I felt the Lord tell me to go inside get money out of my wife's purse and give it to them. Instead of doing it with haste. Instead of not delaying. I wrestled with it in my mind. I thought of the ruggedness and the rain. I thought about not wanting to over step my bounds and go through my wife's purse. I also thought that maybe my mind was playing tricks on me. That morning I let those people pass by my house and I did nothing. I was haunted by it that day and prayed about it. Then the Lord directed me to this beautiful Psalm of David. He directed me to hasten and not delay to carry out His commands. So now it is also my heart, which is the heart of David, which is the heart of the Lord. I will not delay but with an urgency of heart keep the commandments of my Lord.
I hasten and do not delay to keep your commandments.
David exclaims his commitment to the Lord. His urgency of heart is not only for the law, but also for the personal daily commandments that the Lord gives him. The ten commandments is what many of us think when we see the word commandments, but there is also the will of God. Those that are seeking that still small voice. Those that have that intimate relationship with the Lord also receive commandments from the Lord. David shares with us that he strived to not only keep the precepts of the Lord, but anything the Lord told him to do. If it were just the rules and precepts that he looked to follow then he would have said I hasten to follow the Levitical law or the Mosaic law. No instead it says he does not delay to keep His commandments. Anytime the Lord speaks to us to do of His will it is a commandment. He is our Master and there is no other authority that can draw such hasty action. Lets notice that David doesn't look to mull it over. David does not feel the need to deliberate on the subject. David looks to not just carry out the commandments of God, but to do it speedily.
This my brethren requires faith. Acting on behalf of the Lord's voice and carrying our His precepts without first critically thinking about it is an act of faith. It shows that He understands that the wisdom of the Lord is above his own.
Not only is it an act of faith it is an act of obedience. When a soldier is told to halt! It is carried out immediately and obediently. Any delay and the heart of the command would be lost. So it is with David, His heart is to act at once! Haviving full faith and full obedience in the word of the Lord.
On a practical sense, when we reckon to think and weigh out what the Lord will have us do, we often do the contrary. Typically we will find excuses and or reasons to not do the Lord's will. This is because though the Spirit is strong the flesh is weak. Delaying to do the commandments of the Lord leaves us to our own demise. It leads us to our own unrighteous deliberation. It lacks faith, it lacks obedience and enables us to give excuses.
On one rainy day of recent, I was coming home from dropping off my kids at school. It was a cold brisk morning and the rain was thick. As I was pulling up my driveway I noticed some people on bikes taking cans out of trash cans on the street. As I pulled up to my house these people were at my trash can. All at once I felt the Lord tell me to go inside get money out of my wife's purse and give it to them. Instead of doing it with haste. Instead of not delaying. I wrestled with it in my mind. I thought of the ruggedness and the rain. I thought about not wanting to over step my bounds and go through my wife's purse. I also thought that maybe my mind was playing tricks on me. That morning I let those people pass by my house and I did nothing. I was haunted by it that day and prayed about it. Then the Lord directed me to this beautiful Psalm of David. He directed me to hasten and not delay to carry out His commands. So now it is also my heart, which is the heart of David, which is the heart of the Lord. I will not delay but with an urgency of heart keep the commandments of my Lord.
Monday, December 1, 2014
Eve and the Serpent. . Temptation
Genesis 3:1-6 NKJV
Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
Three things can be taken from the interaction between Eve and the serpent in Genesis 3. Eve was near the tree or at least observing it. Eve acted alone in her decision to take of the fruit. Lastly, Eve was deceived.
Scripture says that the woman "saw" that it was good to eat. This means Eve was observing the tree. We don't know her exact proximity when first interacting with the serpent, but eventually she was close enough to grab a fruit. In any case; Eve, at first was around and able to observe what could turn to sin. Isn't this how sin works for us all. Eve, probably had no intentions of sinning and taking of the fruit. By her act of admonishing the serpent, she had a certain fear of the Lord's precept. Though, being close to the temptation and gazing upon its delight filled power over her senses, she became weak to it. If perhaps she was no where near the temptation her senses would not have had the opportunity to become subject to the desire.
This can be said about our own walk. If we dare come into close proximity with fleshly desires, even if we have no intention of fulfilling them, it is that much easier for satan to use it against us. Satan used her proximity to the tree as an opportune time to lure her heart towards her fleshly desires.
Eve also acted alone in her decision making processes. This can be seen first by who the serpent is talking to. Also by her actions taken, and lastly by the specific curse God puts on women.
Eve was having a one on one conversation with satan. The bible does not record satan talking to Adam nor does it record Eve asking Adam for his opinion or approval. This means that that the sole decision to pick the fruit off the tree was hers alone. If Adam was around during this conversation and rebuked her, he would have saved, at least for the moment, the posterity of mankind. Eve picked the fruit from the tree and Adam didn't. There is much debate on when Adam showed up to take of the fruit, but because of what Timothy says in chapter 2: 13-14 "for Adam was not deceived but Eve was deceived" I am of the believe that she was alone with the Snake at least while the conversation was taking place. If Adam was next to Eve while the conversation was taking place then Adam would have heard the snake and also been deceived. This is further proof that Eve at first acted alone. Lastly, God rebukes in the order of transgression. We see that after the Lord's inquiry of the events, He first puts a curse on the serpent, then on Eve, then on Adam showing the order in which each transgressed. Eve was first deceived, then Adam took the fruit. We also notice through Adam's rebuke by the Lord, "he listened to his wife" and it doesn't say he listened to the serpent; ergo eve acted alone.
Why is this important? This shows us that acting alone and not having the council of our Father before making a decision will always lead us to sin. Our flesh is magnetized to sin. It has a natural attraction to it and without first seeking Holy counsel we will always fall to the weaknesses of our flesh. Scholars would call this a cognitive bias, and Christians would call it our fleshly nature.
We also see that Eve was deceived by the serpent. Satan used an opportune time to twist the words of the Lord. By the coupling of the lust of the eyes and the cunning words of the snake, Eve was deceived by satan.
If we look at all three facets of this interaction that Eve had with the serpent, we can then see the progressive nature of sin. First, we put ourselves in close range of sin, then we act alone without counsel and in secret, and lastly we are then deceived by satan. We can look at any sin in our lives and trace these steps. We can see that without Christ we are but doomed to resist the temptations of sin. Without using the full armor of God we will fall victim to the deciever's firey darts. Let us not look down on Adam and Eve with chronological snobbery , but with full knowledge that Adam was the most prepared and most qualified for this probation. He was a full grown man who had full knowledge of the trinity. He was blameless and knew nothing about evil. He had a relationship with God. If there were any a man on earth apart from Christ Himself that could hold true to the covenant, it would have been Adam. Nevertheless, the temptation of wanting to improve upon our position in life over took Adam. He listened to His wife and did not seek the Lord. We are helpless without Christ and that cunning snake is still slithering around the world today. Take note of your first parents and learn from their mistakes. Stay away from temptations even if you have no intent on sinning and seek Holy counsel: in this we will not be deceived.
Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
Three things can be taken from the interaction between Eve and the serpent in Genesis 3. Eve was near the tree or at least observing it. Eve acted alone in her decision to take of the fruit. Lastly, Eve was deceived.
Scripture says that the woman "saw" that it was good to eat. This means Eve was observing the tree. We don't know her exact proximity when first interacting with the serpent, but eventually she was close enough to grab a fruit. In any case; Eve, at first was around and able to observe what could turn to sin. Isn't this how sin works for us all. Eve, probably had no intentions of sinning and taking of the fruit. By her act of admonishing the serpent, she had a certain fear of the Lord's precept. Though, being close to the temptation and gazing upon its delight filled power over her senses, she became weak to it. If perhaps she was no where near the temptation her senses would not have had the opportunity to become subject to the desire.
This can be said about our own walk. If we dare come into close proximity with fleshly desires, even if we have no intention of fulfilling them, it is that much easier for satan to use it against us. Satan used her proximity to the tree as an opportune time to lure her heart towards her fleshly desires.
Eve also acted alone in her decision making processes. This can be seen first by who the serpent is talking to. Also by her actions taken, and lastly by the specific curse God puts on women.
Eve was having a one on one conversation with satan. The bible does not record satan talking to Adam nor does it record Eve asking Adam for his opinion or approval. This means that that the sole decision to pick the fruit off the tree was hers alone. If Adam was around during this conversation and rebuked her, he would have saved, at least for the moment, the posterity of mankind. Eve picked the fruit from the tree and Adam didn't. There is much debate on when Adam showed up to take of the fruit, but because of what Timothy says in chapter 2: 13-14 "for Adam was not deceived but Eve was deceived" I am of the believe that she was alone with the Snake at least while the conversation was taking place. If Adam was next to Eve while the conversation was taking place then Adam would have heard the snake and also been deceived. This is further proof that Eve at first acted alone. Lastly, God rebukes in the order of transgression. We see that after the Lord's inquiry of the events, He first puts a curse on the serpent, then on Eve, then on Adam showing the order in which each transgressed. Eve was first deceived, then Adam took the fruit. We also notice through Adam's rebuke by the Lord, "he listened to his wife" and it doesn't say he listened to the serpent; ergo eve acted alone.
Why is this important? This shows us that acting alone and not having the council of our Father before making a decision will always lead us to sin. Our flesh is magnetized to sin. It has a natural attraction to it and without first seeking Holy counsel we will always fall to the weaknesses of our flesh. Scholars would call this a cognitive bias, and Christians would call it our fleshly nature.
We also see that Eve was deceived by the serpent. Satan used an opportune time to twist the words of the Lord. By the coupling of the lust of the eyes and the cunning words of the snake, Eve was deceived by satan.
If we look at all three facets of this interaction that Eve had with the serpent, we can then see the progressive nature of sin. First, we put ourselves in close range of sin, then we act alone without counsel and in secret, and lastly we are then deceived by satan. We can look at any sin in our lives and trace these steps. We can see that without Christ we are but doomed to resist the temptations of sin. Without using the full armor of God we will fall victim to the deciever's firey darts. Let us not look down on Adam and Eve with chronological snobbery , but with full knowledge that Adam was the most prepared and most qualified for this probation. He was a full grown man who had full knowledge of the trinity. He was blameless and knew nothing about evil. He had a relationship with God. If there were any a man on earth apart from Christ Himself that could hold true to the covenant, it would have been Adam. Nevertheless, the temptation of wanting to improve upon our position in life over took Adam. He listened to His wife and did not seek the Lord. We are helpless without Christ and that cunning snake is still slithering around the world today. Take note of your first parents and learn from their mistakes. Stay away from temptations even if you have no intent on sinning and seek Holy counsel: in this we will not be deceived.
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