Thursday, July 31, 2008
still away...
So sorry I'm not back to posting yet - came back from vacation with a series of migraines - on new medicine and hope to be feeling better and back to posting soon.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
on vacation...
We've been on vacation this week - I'll be back on the blog site Monday, July 28th.
Debbie
Debbie
Friday, July 18, 2008
The problem with tradition....
"knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19. but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot."
Peter is referring to the practice of redeeming someone who had been taken into bondage. A price had to be paid so that they could be set free. What set us free was more precious than gold or silver. The blood of Jesus Christ was the payment God accepted to set us free. We have been set free from the bondage of sin and the curse of the law, but that’s not all.
Peter was also telling his readers that they had been set free from the pointless lives they had lived as a result of the traditions their fathers taught them. That had special significance for the original readers of Peter’s letter. The way of life handed down to them by their forefathers had been empty, binding, and ineffective in meeting God’s standard for holiness and obedience. But God had set them free from such a pointless life of trying to please Him by keeping rules. They had been redeemed from such a life and they were now free to honor God by depending on His indwelling Holy Spirit to live through them.
My favorite quote is one from Dr. Steve McVey of GraceWalk Ministries. He says, "Tell a man who he is in Christ and he can't be stopped from godly activity. Try to control him through rules and you set him up for spiritual ruin." I am convinced that when a person comes to an understanding that God has made them holy, and that they can live out of that holiness, then they will be constrained by the power of that understanding to live holy lives. But when religious leaders try to control the behavior of church members by pounding them with rules and traditions, the lives of those church members will usually reflect everything but holiness. What you usually get from that sort of teaching is "holier than thou-ness" that covers secret rebellion and unholy attitudes.
Christians shouldn't have to be constrained by the rules. Peter is teaching us truth in the appropriate order by which we should live it. First, God has made us holy and we can live out of that holiness. Next, he taught us that we have been empowered by the life of Christ within, Who will work through us and then reward us as if we had done the work ourselves. And now, Peter is giving us one more holy motivation for living holy lives. A HUGE price was paid for our salvation. We were not redeemed with gold or silver or anything worldly. We were purchased with the blood of Jesus Christ.
When Peter spoke of lambs, he was referring back to a foreshadowing picture of Christ in the sacrificial lamb that had been offered up in temple sacrifices. All of Peter’s readers would have recognized the requirements of perfection those animals had to meet. And Jesus fulfilled all the requirements of the Ultimate Sacrificial Lamb that would accomplish everything the lambs could never fully accomplish, thus redeeming us and ending the need for temple sacrifices forever.
So Peter said, "Knowing all this truth should be enough to motivate us to holy lives." Knowing the power that resides within us and knowing the price that was paid to save us should constrain us to live holy lives. Rules will never constrain us to such lives. But the knowledge of God's transformation will. Tradition won't do it, but truth ALWAYS will.
I Peter 1:17-19 (NKJV)
Peter is referring to the practice of redeeming someone who had been taken into bondage. A price had to be paid so that they could be set free. What set us free was more precious than gold or silver. The blood of Jesus Christ was the payment God accepted to set us free. We have been set free from the bondage of sin and the curse of the law, but that’s not all.
Peter was also telling his readers that they had been set free from the pointless lives they had lived as a result of the traditions their fathers taught them. That had special significance for the original readers of Peter’s letter. The way of life handed down to them by their forefathers had been empty, binding, and ineffective in meeting God’s standard for holiness and obedience. But God had set them free from such a pointless life of trying to please Him by keeping rules. They had been redeemed from such a life and they were now free to honor God by depending on His indwelling Holy Spirit to live through them.
My favorite quote is one from Dr. Steve McVey of GraceWalk Ministries. He says, "Tell a man who he is in Christ and he can't be stopped from godly activity. Try to control him through rules and you set him up for spiritual ruin." I am convinced that when a person comes to an understanding that God has made them holy, and that they can live out of that holiness, then they will be constrained by the power of that understanding to live holy lives. But when religious leaders try to control the behavior of church members by pounding them with rules and traditions, the lives of those church members will usually reflect everything but holiness. What you usually get from that sort of teaching is "holier than thou-ness" that covers secret rebellion and unholy attitudes.
Christians shouldn't have to be constrained by the rules. Peter is teaching us truth in the appropriate order by which we should live it. First, God has made us holy and we can live out of that holiness. Next, he taught us that we have been empowered by the life of Christ within, Who will work through us and then reward us as if we had done the work ourselves. And now, Peter is giving us one more holy motivation for living holy lives. A HUGE price was paid for our salvation. We were not redeemed with gold or silver or anything worldly. We were purchased with the blood of Jesus Christ.
When Peter spoke of lambs, he was referring back to a foreshadowing picture of Christ in the sacrificial lamb that had been offered up in temple sacrifices. All of Peter’s readers would have recognized the requirements of perfection those animals had to meet. And Jesus fulfilled all the requirements of the Ultimate Sacrificial Lamb that would accomplish everything the lambs could never fully accomplish, thus redeeming us and ending the need for temple sacrifices forever.
So Peter said, "Knowing all this truth should be enough to motivate us to holy lives." Knowing the power that resides within us and knowing the price that was paid to save us should constrain us to live holy lives. Rules will never constrain us to such lives. But the knowledge of God's transformation will. Tradition won't do it, but truth ALWAYS will.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
You've Been Redeemed, So Your Life Can Honor God....
17. And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; I Peter 1:17 (NKJV)
If we take this verse out of the context of the entire passage, we could be deceived into believing that we will be judged for “our” works.
Verse 17: The word “if” in this verse actually means “since.” Peter is addressing Christian readers of his letter and he is saying that since they have called on God to save them, knowing that salvation would eventually result in a day in which they would be judged for the work they did on earth, then they should be encouraged by that understanding, to honor Him in all that they do so that they will be judged favorably. This verse is not speaking of an eventual judgment to decide the eternal fate of believers. Their salvation is already established. We tend to associate judgment with punishment, but judgment can also simply mean “evaluation.” The judgment to which this verse refers is the “bema seat” type of judgment which will evaluate the righteous deeds and determine the rewards of believers (II Corinthians 5:10).
You have to consider the order in which Peter wrote his encouragements. He had just established that the only reason we can be obedient unto holy lives is because of the indwelling Spirit of Christ within us. Once Peter established that such a life of obedience is possible, he then informed us that a life of holiness will be rewarded. First, he established that the only way we can live a holy life is by resting in Christ and allowing His Holy Spirit to lead, speak, and work through us. Then he gave us a great motivation for living such a life. If we honor God by resting in what Christ does through us, then we get the reward for it. I want to make sure you fully understand that process. When we rest in Christ, He does the work through us, and we get the rewards for it!!
If we take this verse out of the context of the entire passage, we could be deceived into believing that we will be judged for “our” works.
Verse 17: The word “if” in this verse actually means “since.” Peter is addressing Christian readers of his letter and he is saying that since they have called on God to save them, knowing that salvation would eventually result in a day in which they would be judged for the work they did on earth, then they should be encouraged by that understanding, to honor Him in all that they do so that they will be judged favorably. This verse is not speaking of an eventual judgment to decide the eternal fate of believers. Their salvation is already established. We tend to associate judgment with punishment, but judgment can also simply mean “evaluation.” The judgment to which this verse refers is the “bema seat” type of judgment which will evaluate the righteous deeds and determine the rewards of believers (II Corinthians 5:10).
You have to consider the order in which Peter wrote his encouragements. He had just established that the only reason we can be obedient unto holy lives is because of the indwelling Spirit of Christ within us. Once Peter established that such a life of obedience is possible, he then informed us that a life of holiness will be rewarded. First, he established that the only way we can live a holy life is by resting in Christ and allowing His Holy Spirit to lead, speak, and work through us. Then he gave us a great motivation for living such a life. If we honor God by resting in what Christ does through us, then we get the reward for it. I want to make sure you fully understand that process. When we rest in Christ, He does the work through us, and we get the rewards for it!!
Don't just act holy....BE holy!
I've been going back over the last couple of days and looking at some of the absolute truths Peter declares in his epistles. Like this one....
"because it is written, ”Be holy, for I am holy.” I Peter 1:16 (NKJV)
Peter is stating the truth that God has enabled us to live holy lives by the power of His own holiness!!! He is holy and His Holy Spirit now lives within us. We have become holy by His own holiness, therefore we can "be" holy as He is holy.
An apple tree bears apples because it is by nature an apple tree. Sinners bear the fruit of sin because they are, by nature, sinners. Holiness defines our new nature. We are holy because God has made us holy in nature. We have become “partakers of the divine nature” of God. (II Peter 1:4) We are holy by nature, therefore we can bear the fruit of holiness. It bears repeating...We can be holy because we are holy.
If a Bible verse starts with the phrase, “it is written,” it’s always important to look back to the original passage from which the phrase is quoted. In this case, the phrase is taken from a multitude of Scripture passages, many of which are found in the Old Testament book of Leviticus.
“For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy…” Leviticus 11:44a (NKJV)
This was a portion of a passage of Scripture in which God prescribed the methods that were to be taken in the preparation of foods and in the ceremonial temple cleansings. Certain precautions were to be taken so that the people would avoid unclean foods and unclean activities.
In the days in which the Book of Leviticus was written, God used the ceremonial cleansings in the temple to illustrate the holy lives that were to distinguish His people from the rest of the world. In their outward ritual cleansings, the worshippers symbolically demonstrated that God had enabled them to live clean lives. God was teaching even then, that there was a connection between spiritual holiness and holy living. But remember that everything God instructed them to do in their temple ceremonies was a foreshadowing picture of what He would eventually do through Christ. In this case, the external ceremonial cleansing foreshadowed the spiritual holiness that Christians experience through their relationship with Christ. Our salvation provides the cleansing that was demonstrated in the temple rituals.
Notice the cause and effect of the verse in Leviticus. God said that since He is holy, then those to whom He is God will also be made holy by His holiness. The fulfillment of the picture He painted in Leviticus is that in Christ, we have “become” holy (II Corinthians 5:21) and you can’t get more holy than holy. The word “holy” means that the job has been completed. If there is any part of something that is not holy, then the entire something is unholy.
God says that believers are holy. If you are a beliver in Jesus Christ, then you already have all the holiness you will ever get. And by the way, no one else ever got any more holiness than you did!! Not Billy Graham. Not the apostle Paul or even Peter, the author of this book of truth. In fact, if you are a believer, then you are as holy as Jesus. All believers have been made equally holy, just as He is holy. Therefore, we can all now live holy lives.
Basically what Peter is saying in verses 13-15, is that we can think right and live right because we are right!!
"because it is written, ”Be holy, for I am holy.” I Peter 1:16 (NKJV)
Peter is stating the truth that God has enabled us to live holy lives by the power of His own holiness!!! He is holy and His Holy Spirit now lives within us. We have become holy by His own holiness, therefore we can "be" holy as He is holy.
An apple tree bears apples because it is by nature an apple tree. Sinners bear the fruit of sin because they are, by nature, sinners. Holiness defines our new nature. We are holy because God has made us holy in nature. We have become “partakers of the divine nature” of God. (II Peter 1:4) We are holy by nature, therefore we can bear the fruit of holiness. It bears repeating...We can be holy because we are holy.
If a Bible verse starts with the phrase, “it is written,” it’s always important to look back to the original passage from which the phrase is quoted. In this case, the phrase is taken from a multitude of Scripture passages, many of which are found in the Old Testament book of Leviticus.
“For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy…” Leviticus 11:44a (NKJV)
This was a portion of a passage of Scripture in which God prescribed the methods that were to be taken in the preparation of foods and in the ceremonial temple cleansings. Certain precautions were to be taken so that the people would avoid unclean foods and unclean activities.
In the days in which the Book of Leviticus was written, God used the ceremonial cleansings in the temple to illustrate the holy lives that were to distinguish His people from the rest of the world. In their outward ritual cleansings, the worshippers symbolically demonstrated that God had enabled them to live clean lives. God was teaching even then, that there was a connection between spiritual holiness and holy living. But remember that everything God instructed them to do in their temple ceremonies was a foreshadowing picture of what He would eventually do through Christ. In this case, the external ceremonial cleansing foreshadowed the spiritual holiness that Christians experience through their relationship with Christ. Our salvation provides the cleansing that was demonstrated in the temple rituals.
Notice the cause and effect of the verse in Leviticus. God said that since He is holy, then those to whom He is God will also be made holy by His holiness. The fulfillment of the picture He painted in Leviticus is that in Christ, we have “become” holy (II Corinthians 5:21) and you can’t get more holy than holy. The word “holy” means that the job has been completed. If there is any part of something that is not holy, then the entire something is unholy.
God says that believers are holy. If you are a beliver in Jesus Christ, then you already have all the holiness you will ever get. And by the way, no one else ever got any more holiness than you did!! Not Billy Graham. Not the apostle Paul or even Peter, the author of this book of truth. In fact, if you are a believer, then you are as holy as Jesus. All believers have been made equally holy, just as He is holy. Therefore, we can all now live holy lives.
Basically what Peter is saying in verses 13-15, is that we can think right and live right because we are right!!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Timeless truth....
Tim and I are passionate about sharing truth - and we are in good company because so many that have gone before us have shared that deepest desire of the heart. The Holy Spirit Who motivates and empowers me to teach and write about the Word of God is the same Holy Spirit who empowered the prophets of the Old Testament, the apostles of the New Testament, and all those who have taught the truth of Scripture throughout history. And the truth has always been and always will be about the grace of God expressed through Jesus.
10. Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you… 12. To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven – things which angels desire to look into. I Peter 1: 10, 12 (NKJV)
The recipients of Peter’s letters placed a lot of value on the words of the Prophets, so Peter wanted them to understand that the message he shared was no different from the message the Prophets had shared. The message of grace is on every page of the Bible. The ancient writers of the Scriptures were inspired by God to speak truths that pointed to Jesus. And during the miraculous days in which Peter lived, those truths had come to pass.
Peter was saying, “We’re preaching the same message the Prophets preached!” The same Holy Spirit that inspired the Prophets also indwelt Peter and other preachers of his day and proclaimed the same message through all of them. And that same Holy Spirit still speaks the enduring and unchanging message of grace through Christians today. The gospel of Jesus Christ was, is, and forever will be the same.
10. Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you… 12. To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven – things which angels desire to look into. I Peter 1: 10, 12 (NKJV)
The recipients of Peter’s letters placed a lot of value on the words of the Prophets, so Peter wanted them to understand that the message he shared was no different from the message the Prophets had shared. The message of grace is on every page of the Bible. The ancient writers of the Scriptures were inspired by God to speak truths that pointed to Jesus. And during the miraculous days in which Peter lived, those truths had come to pass.
Peter was saying, “We’re preaching the same message the Prophets preached!” The same Holy Spirit that inspired the Prophets also indwelt Peter and other preachers of his day and proclaimed the same message through all of them. And that same Holy Spirit still speaks the enduring and unchanging message of grace through Christians today. The gospel of Jesus Christ was, is, and forever will be the same.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Fireproof...
Last night Tim and I had an incredible opportunity to preview the new movie Fireproof - it's done by the two brothers/church/film company that did Facing the Giants a couple of years ago. I can't even begin to tell you how wonderful the movie was. I am already excited about what God is going to do with this movie. I truly believe that God is going to use it to heal relationships and save marriages. It stars Kirk Cameron and they announced at the end of the movie that he took no money for doing it. He probably won't get it, but he deserves an Oscar for his portrayal of a fireman in a failing marriage. At times I found myself really disliking him; he was that good!
As with Facing the Giants, the characters are believable and the interaction between the characters is personable. There are parts that are hilariously funny and other parts that bring you to tears. Please support this movie when it is released in September. They told us that the number of people that go to the movie the opening weekend greatly impacts the possibilities of more theaters showing the movie.
You can go to the website www.fireproofthemovie.com to see a trailer and get more information.
As with Facing the Giants, the characters are believable and the interaction between the characters is personable. There are parts that are hilariously funny and other parts that bring you to tears. Please support this movie when it is released in September. They told us that the number of people that go to the movie the opening weekend greatly impacts the possibilities of more theaters showing the movie.
You can go to the website www.fireproofthemovie.com to see a trailer and get more information.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Freedom From the Captivity of the Enemy....
There is an interesting statement made in Exodus 13:17-18.
“When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for battle.” (NIV)
This text takes place just after the account of God’s miraculous intervention forcing the Pharaoh to release the Hebrew children who had been held as slaves in Egypt. We are told that God did not lead the Hebrews through the area where they would face war, even though that was a shorter route to their destination. And we are even given the precise reason why God chose an alternate route. God said that if they faced war, they might turn around and go right back into captivity. So instead He led them toward the Red Sea where He could show them His mighty power.
Couldn’t He have shown them His power in war too? Of course, He could have. But He knew He would never get that chance because the people would choose captivity over war. God had set them free. There is no way that He would have allowed them to be forced right back into captivity, but He certainly didn’t want them to go back to slavery by their own choice.
Our enemy cannot force us into any form of captivity. But we can choose to sin or we can attempt to live by the law and in so doing we become victims of our enemy’s crafty lure back into bondage.
“And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:32 (NKJV)
Remember that the truth made you free. When God saved you He "made" you free. You are free because Jesus purchased your freedom with His own life. But you can be completely free, yet still live as if you are in bondage. The truth of God made us free, but it's believing that that that sets you free to live in freedom. Believing a lie is what keeps you in bondage. The only way our enemy, Satan, can bind up a Christian is by deception. And even then, they aren’t truly in bondage. They just believe that they are and for Satan’s purposes, that’s just as effective.
The enemy will try to make you believe that you still have to live up to the measure of the law. Remember that the power of sin is found in the law, so if he can get you to focus on the law, he will be successful in getting you to sin. And if he can keep you in that sin long enough, it will ultimately bring great harm to you.
The enemy will try to make you believe that you are still under the control of sin. He will try to convince you that you are in bondage to some activity that you just can’t stop doing. And you will finally give up in defeat to its power. Again, his goal is for sin to destroy you.
I was once at the lake on a prayer retreat and we broke up from our groups to go pray alone. My friend saw some vicious looking dogs behind me where I was praying, but told me not to be concerned about them. She explained to me that they were in an invisible fence. I was within 10 feet of them, and there appeared to be no barriers dividing us, yet those dogs never got any closer to me.
I learned later how an invisible fence works. An electrical wire is buried just under the ground to form a boundary. For several weeks, the dog wears a devise around its neck that emits an electrical charge every time the dog gets close to the boundary. The dog soon learns how far he can go without feeling pain. After the dog is trained, the devise can be removed from his neck, but the dog will still not venture close to the boundary line.
Those dogs at the lake were fully free to have a meaty meal off of me, but they just didn’t know it. And their lack of knowledge about their freedom was just as effective as a 20 foot fence!!
God has removed us from captivity to our enemy. If we believe the truth of God’s Word, he will never have any power over us again. The truth gives us victory over Satan. The truth makes us free and when we believe it, we can live freely in it!
“When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt armed for battle.” (NIV)
This text takes place just after the account of God’s miraculous intervention forcing the Pharaoh to release the Hebrew children who had been held as slaves in Egypt. We are told that God did not lead the Hebrews through the area where they would face war, even though that was a shorter route to their destination. And we are even given the precise reason why God chose an alternate route. God said that if they faced war, they might turn around and go right back into captivity. So instead He led them toward the Red Sea where He could show them His mighty power.
Couldn’t He have shown them His power in war too? Of course, He could have. But He knew He would never get that chance because the people would choose captivity over war. God had set them free. There is no way that He would have allowed them to be forced right back into captivity, but He certainly didn’t want them to go back to slavery by their own choice.
Our enemy cannot force us into any form of captivity. But we can choose to sin or we can attempt to live by the law and in so doing we become victims of our enemy’s crafty lure back into bondage.
“And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:32 (NKJV)
Remember that the truth made you free. When God saved you He "made" you free. You are free because Jesus purchased your freedom with His own life. But you can be completely free, yet still live as if you are in bondage. The truth of God made us free, but it's believing that that that sets you free to live in freedom. Believing a lie is what keeps you in bondage. The only way our enemy, Satan, can bind up a Christian is by deception. And even then, they aren’t truly in bondage. They just believe that they are and for Satan’s purposes, that’s just as effective.
The enemy will try to make you believe that you still have to live up to the measure of the law. Remember that the power of sin is found in the law, so if he can get you to focus on the law, he will be successful in getting you to sin. And if he can keep you in that sin long enough, it will ultimately bring great harm to you.
The enemy will try to make you believe that you are still under the control of sin. He will try to convince you that you are in bondage to some activity that you just can’t stop doing. And you will finally give up in defeat to its power. Again, his goal is for sin to destroy you.
I was once at the lake on a prayer retreat and we broke up from our groups to go pray alone. My friend saw some vicious looking dogs behind me where I was praying, but told me not to be concerned about them. She explained to me that they were in an invisible fence. I was within 10 feet of them, and there appeared to be no barriers dividing us, yet those dogs never got any closer to me.
I learned later how an invisible fence works. An electrical wire is buried just under the ground to form a boundary. For several weeks, the dog wears a devise around its neck that emits an electrical charge every time the dog gets close to the boundary. The dog soon learns how far he can go without feeling pain. After the dog is trained, the devise can be removed from his neck, but the dog will still not venture close to the boundary line.
Those dogs at the lake were fully free to have a meaty meal off of me, but they just didn’t know it. And their lack of knowledge about their freedom was just as effective as a 20 foot fence!!
God has removed us from captivity to our enemy. If we believe the truth of God’s Word, he will never have any power over us again. The truth gives us victory over Satan. The truth makes us free and when we believe it, we can live freely in it!
Monday, July 7, 2008
Freedom From the Control of Sin...Part Two
Continued from the last blog....
So, if we are not under the law and therefore don’t have to focus on it, what will keep Christians from sinning? Since we have been set free from the condemnation of the law, can’t we just start sinning as much as we want? Well, let’s say you live in an imaginary country where speeding is not against the law. Should you drive 80 miles per hour around hairpin turns in rainy weather, just because you know you can do it without breaking a law? Of course not. Just because something is legal, doesn’t mean that it is beneficial.
But Paul had to field similar questions when he was addressing the Romans.
“14. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace. 15. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16. Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17. But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” Romans 6:14-18 (NKJV)
The reason that God can trust us enough to remove us out from under the law is that He also removed us out from under the dominion of sin at the same time. We were all born with that original bent toward sinning. It was the natural thing for us to do because that was our nature as sinners.
Verse 14: But we are no longer under the dominion of sin. In other words, sin no longer has power over us. We can never again use the excuse, “I just couldn’t help it.”
We often readily accept the fact that our salvation saved us from the penalty of our sin. We will even accept the fact that one day in heaven we will be saved from the very presence of sin. But how often do we fully realize and live out of the truth that we have already been redeemed from, set free from, released from the POWER of sin on a daily basis?
You may say, “but it sure feels like sin has power over me.”
Well, if so, it’s because you are not fully living out of the truth of Romans 6:14. When I am at the beach on vacation and I hear that a hurricane is coming my way, I head for home because a hurricane comes ashore on a beach! Now, does that hurricane still have all its power even though I leave the beach? Sure it does, but it no longer has power over me!!
If I live out of the truth of Romans 6:14, I will realize that sin still has all the power it ever had, but it no longer has power over me, because I no longer live under the law where sin’s power dwells. And when I feel the temptation to sin, I must believe with faith that I no longer have to choose to sin.
Verses 15-16: These verses prove that sin is a choice. If you present (willingly give) yourself as a slave to obey something, then you will become a slave to obey whatever that something is, even though you are not required to do so. Why would you want to willingly subject yourself as a slave to sin when you have been set free from it?
Sin is always destructive and God loves us so much that He doesn’t want us to be destroyed by it. That’s one of the reasons why God set us free from its rule over us.
Paul said that all things may be lawful for Christians, but not all things are beneficial to them. (I Corinthians 6:12) God doesn’t do anything harmful to you when you sin, but SIN itself always does. Romans 8:1 says that there is no condemnation left for sin, but it doesn’t say that there are no “consequences” for them.
When the Holy Spirit convicts me of sin, it is not to rain down condemnation on me. Instead, it’s to say, “Here’s an area of your life where I want something better for you. You are settling for less than the best here. This is going to hurt you if you don’t let Me take it out of your life.”
Verses 17-18: What keeps us from going back into sin once we understand that we are not under law, but instead under grace? Well, these verses are clear about that. Though we were once slaves of sin, we became slaves of righteousness and became obedient “from the heart.” Do you see where our motivation for obedience originates? Not in our knowledge of and adherence to the law, but “from the heart.”
At the point of our salvation, God exchanges our sinful hearts for pure hearts into which He implants His Holy Spirit. And it is out of that new heart, filled with the Holy Spirit, that our obedience springs forth. You may feel that Christians can’t be trusted to be obedient without God giving them a set of rules to follow and the accompanying punishment that goes with breaking those rules. But God is not placing His trust in Christians when He releases them from bondage to the law. He trusts His own work in us. He trusts the new heart He has placed in us. He trusts Christ who lives within us.
Let me just ask you something. When you truly focus on Christ and what He has accomplished in your life, do you really want to go out and sin? Is the deepest desire of your heart to be rebellious or is it to obey God? I believe that when we fully realize the heart change we have experienced, we will be obedient “from the heart” and we will never experience bondage to sin or the law again.
“But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.” Romans 7:6 (NKJV)
The point of being set free from the law is not that we “can” sin. It’s that we no longer “have to.” We don’t have freedom so that we can do whatever God’s law forbids. Instead, we have the freedom now to be obedient because we are enabled to do so and we have a desire to do so. We are not motivated by the regulations of the written law that only produces condemnation and gives sin strength. We are now motivated by the desire of our pure hearts.
So, if we are not under the law and therefore don’t have to focus on it, what will keep Christians from sinning? Since we have been set free from the condemnation of the law, can’t we just start sinning as much as we want? Well, let’s say you live in an imaginary country where speeding is not against the law. Should you drive 80 miles per hour around hairpin turns in rainy weather, just because you know you can do it without breaking a law? Of course not. Just because something is legal, doesn’t mean that it is beneficial.
But Paul had to field similar questions when he was addressing the Romans.
“14. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace. 15. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16. Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17. But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” Romans 6:14-18 (NKJV)
The reason that God can trust us enough to remove us out from under the law is that He also removed us out from under the dominion of sin at the same time. We were all born with that original bent toward sinning. It was the natural thing for us to do because that was our nature as sinners.
Verse 14: But we are no longer under the dominion of sin. In other words, sin no longer has power over us. We can never again use the excuse, “I just couldn’t help it.”
We often readily accept the fact that our salvation saved us from the penalty of our sin. We will even accept the fact that one day in heaven we will be saved from the very presence of sin. But how often do we fully realize and live out of the truth that we have already been redeemed from, set free from, released from the POWER of sin on a daily basis?
You may say, “but it sure feels like sin has power over me.”
Well, if so, it’s because you are not fully living out of the truth of Romans 6:14. When I am at the beach on vacation and I hear that a hurricane is coming my way, I head for home because a hurricane comes ashore on a beach! Now, does that hurricane still have all its power even though I leave the beach? Sure it does, but it no longer has power over me!!
If I live out of the truth of Romans 6:14, I will realize that sin still has all the power it ever had, but it no longer has power over me, because I no longer live under the law where sin’s power dwells. And when I feel the temptation to sin, I must believe with faith that I no longer have to choose to sin.
Verses 15-16: These verses prove that sin is a choice. If you present (willingly give) yourself as a slave to obey something, then you will become a slave to obey whatever that something is, even though you are not required to do so. Why would you want to willingly subject yourself as a slave to sin when you have been set free from it?
Sin is always destructive and God loves us so much that He doesn’t want us to be destroyed by it. That’s one of the reasons why God set us free from its rule over us.
Paul said that all things may be lawful for Christians, but not all things are beneficial to them. (I Corinthians 6:12) God doesn’t do anything harmful to you when you sin, but SIN itself always does. Romans 8:1 says that there is no condemnation left for sin, but it doesn’t say that there are no “consequences” for them.
When the Holy Spirit convicts me of sin, it is not to rain down condemnation on me. Instead, it’s to say, “Here’s an area of your life where I want something better for you. You are settling for less than the best here. This is going to hurt you if you don’t let Me take it out of your life.”
Verses 17-18: What keeps us from going back into sin once we understand that we are not under law, but instead under grace? Well, these verses are clear about that. Though we were once slaves of sin, we became slaves of righteousness and became obedient “from the heart.” Do you see where our motivation for obedience originates? Not in our knowledge of and adherence to the law, but “from the heart.”
At the point of our salvation, God exchanges our sinful hearts for pure hearts into which He implants His Holy Spirit. And it is out of that new heart, filled with the Holy Spirit, that our obedience springs forth. You may feel that Christians can’t be trusted to be obedient without God giving them a set of rules to follow and the accompanying punishment that goes with breaking those rules. But God is not placing His trust in Christians when He releases them from bondage to the law. He trusts His own work in us. He trusts the new heart He has placed in us. He trusts Christ who lives within us.
Let me just ask you something. When you truly focus on Christ and what He has accomplished in your life, do you really want to go out and sin? Is the deepest desire of your heart to be rebellious or is it to obey God? I believe that when we fully realize the heart change we have experienced, we will be obedient “from the heart” and we will never experience bondage to sin or the law again.
“But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.” Romans 7:6 (NKJV)
The point of being set free from the law is not that we “can” sin. It’s that we no longer “have to.” We don’t have freedom so that we can do whatever God’s law forbids. Instead, we have the freedom now to be obedient because we are enabled to do so and we have a desire to do so. We are not motivated by the regulations of the written law that only produces condemnation and gives sin strength. We are now motivated by the desire of our pure hearts.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Freedom From the Control of Sin...Part One
More thoughts about freedom – Think about this.....Americans don’t have to live under the control of the Japanese government, the government of Great Britain, or the government of any other nation we’ve encountered in battle. Why is that? The answer is simple. It’s because WE WON!!! We don’t have to live under the control of a defeated enemy. We are free as Americans because the victory was ours.
Because of the victory Christ won on the cross, our ultimate enemy has been defeated. Satan was defeated forever and we are free to live in Christ’s victory which includes victory over the power of sin in our lives.
But how does that play out in the reality of our lives every day? How do we LIVE in that victory over sin? Well, it has a lot to do with being free from the law. It may seem that focusing on the law would keep us “in line” and away from sin, but in reality it’s a focus on the law that sets us up to sin!
Paul encouraged the Galatians to stand firm in their freedom in Christ and to never be tempted to get tangled up in bondage to the law again. (Galatians 5:1) That’s because sin finds strength in the law!!
The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. I Corinthians 15:56
When preachers and teachers try to motivate Christians to the right behavior by using the law, they are only setting them up for defeat. Here’s how that works:
One Sunday morning our church drainage system malfunctioned and every restroom in our church had to be closed. I spoke to a woman after church who said that she had never before sensed a need to use a restroom at the church, but on that Sunday she wasn’t even able to concentrate on the service because she kept thinking she had to use the restroom!!
If you’re on a diet and you spend all day reminding yourself that you can’t have fried chicken what will you end up doing? You’ll go out and get yourself some fried chicken before the day is over!
That’s how it is when we focus on the law. When we keep our minds on the law that points out sin, it actually makes us want to sin. But when we realize that we don’t have to focus on what is right and wrong so that we will only do what is right, then our minds are free to focus on Christ. And when we stayed focused on Christ, the last thing we’ll want to do is sin!
To be continued....
Because of the victory Christ won on the cross, our ultimate enemy has been defeated. Satan was defeated forever and we are free to live in Christ’s victory which includes victory over the power of sin in our lives.
But how does that play out in the reality of our lives every day? How do we LIVE in that victory over sin? Well, it has a lot to do with being free from the law. It may seem that focusing on the law would keep us “in line” and away from sin, but in reality it’s a focus on the law that sets us up to sin!
Paul encouraged the Galatians to stand firm in their freedom in Christ and to never be tempted to get tangled up in bondage to the law again. (Galatians 5:1) That’s because sin finds strength in the law!!
The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. I Corinthians 15:56
When preachers and teachers try to motivate Christians to the right behavior by using the law, they are only setting them up for defeat. Here’s how that works:
One Sunday morning our church drainage system malfunctioned and every restroom in our church had to be closed. I spoke to a woman after church who said that she had never before sensed a need to use a restroom at the church, but on that Sunday she wasn’t even able to concentrate on the service because she kept thinking she had to use the restroom!!
If you’re on a diet and you spend all day reminding yourself that you can’t have fried chicken what will you end up doing? You’ll go out and get yourself some fried chicken before the day is over!
That’s how it is when we focus on the law. When we keep our minds on the law that points out sin, it actually makes us want to sin. But when we realize that we don’t have to focus on what is right and wrong so that we will only do what is right, then our minds are free to focus on Christ. And when we stayed focused on Christ, the last thing we’ll want to do is sin!
To be continued....
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Freedom from the Condemnation of the Law....
On July 4th I started writing about freedom and I had some more thoughts about the freedom we have in Christ. In Him we have freedom from the condemnation of the Law. To completely grasp what that means we have to understand what the law is and why we are condemned by it until we are released from it through a relationship with Jesus.
“Condemnation” is the legal declaration of a guilty verdict and the accompanying requirement of the penalty due. In order for condemnation by law to exist, you have to be bound by the law you break. In other words, you can't be punished by law for breaking a law if you are not under that law!
Suppose you lived in a remote area of the world where almost no one owned an automobile. In this country there would be no laws to regulate traffic, because there would be no traffic. So if you were fortunate enough to have a car, you could drive around the countryside at whatever speed you wanted and never break a law.
But what if you returned to the United States one day and since you were quite accustomed to driving at whatever speed you chose, you flew by a policeman in town at about 80 miles per hour? You would have a problem because you would now be a law-breaker. Was it the act of driving 80 miles per hour alone that condemned you? No, because you had been doing that in the other country with no condemnation because there was no law against it. But in the United States there are laws against such driving and when an action breaks a law, you are condemned by it.
“19. Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Romans 3:19-20 (NKJV)
Every person who has not experienced the salvation of God is already condemned by their sin nature. That would have been enough to condemn us, but we are still judged by the law. One of the reasons the law was given was so that no one could ever say they didn’t know what was unacceptable in God’s sight. The law proves all law-breakers guilty and since we are under it from birth, there is no defense against the condemnation (guilty verdict) handed down by God for breaking it.
But trying to attain to salvation by keeping the law is not an option because doing everything required by God’s law is impossible. Just breaking one equates to breaking them all, so every person is condemned and cursed by their inability to keep the law. The law makes us aware of our sin, but keeping the law cannot save us from sin’s penalty. God's law is the way by which His condemnation is imparted.
"For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed (counted against us) when there is no law." Romans 5:13 (NKJV)
Condemnation (a guilty verdict) is not imparted when there is no rule of law. As long as you lived in that imaginary country where there were no traffic laws, you were not a law-breaker when you drove 80 miles per hour.
It is so important that our salvation made sure that we are not under the rule and the accompanying condemnation (guilty verdict) of the law because it is the law by which we are condemned. If we are not under it, then we can't be condemned by it!
“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law…” Galatians 3:13a (NKJV)
There is that word “redeemed” again. And it goes back to the concept of paying a ransom to set a prisoner free. Christ’s death and our acceptance of His death for our salvation, set us free from the condemnation (guilty verdict) of the law. The law condemned us because we were hopelessly destined to break it, but Christ took us out from under the law so that the condemnation for breaking it would not be imputed to us. Freedom from the law is important to us because we had no hope of keeping the law, therefore we were condemned by it!!
I have been called a "Grace Nazi" because I am so obsessed with making sure the truth about our freedom in Christ is declared. I can't stand to hear a song, a lesson, or any type of declaration that denies our freedom in Christ in even the slightest way. When I hear a teacher or preacher try to put Christians back under the law, I wonder if they realize they are attempting to put them back under condemnation because if we are under the law then we are subject to its condemnation!
One of the greatest blessings of the grace of God is that we are free from the law. There was an old hymn we used to sing when I was a child and it's so true.
Free from the law, oh happy condition,
Jesus has bled and there is remission,
Cursed by the law and bruised by the fall,
Christ has redeemed us once for all.
“Condemnation” is the legal declaration of a guilty verdict and the accompanying requirement of the penalty due. In order for condemnation by law to exist, you have to be bound by the law you break. In other words, you can't be punished by law for breaking a law if you are not under that law!
Suppose you lived in a remote area of the world where almost no one owned an automobile. In this country there would be no laws to regulate traffic, because there would be no traffic. So if you were fortunate enough to have a car, you could drive around the countryside at whatever speed you wanted and never break a law.
But what if you returned to the United States one day and since you were quite accustomed to driving at whatever speed you chose, you flew by a policeman in town at about 80 miles per hour? You would have a problem because you would now be a law-breaker. Was it the act of driving 80 miles per hour alone that condemned you? No, because you had been doing that in the other country with no condemnation because there was no law against it. But in the United States there are laws against such driving and when an action breaks a law, you are condemned by it.
“19. Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Romans 3:19-20 (NKJV)
Every person who has not experienced the salvation of God is already condemned by their sin nature. That would have been enough to condemn us, but we are still judged by the law. One of the reasons the law was given was so that no one could ever say they didn’t know what was unacceptable in God’s sight. The law proves all law-breakers guilty and since we are under it from birth, there is no defense against the condemnation (guilty verdict) handed down by God for breaking it.
But trying to attain to salvation by keeping the law is not an option because doing everything required by God’s law is impossible. Just breaking one equates to breaking them all, so every person is condemned and cursed by their inability to keep the law. The law makes us aware of our sin, but keeping the law cannot save us from sin’s penalty. God's law is the way by which His condemnation is imparted.
"For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed (counted against us) when there is no law." Romans 5:13 (NKJV)
Condemnation (a guilty verdict) is not imparted when there is no rule of law. As long as you lived in that imaginary country where there were no traffic laws, you were not a law-breaker when you drove 80 miles per hour.
It is so important that our salvation made sure that we are not under the rule and the accompanying condemnation (guilty verdict) of the law because it is the law by which we are condemned. If we are not under it, then we can't be condemned by it!
“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law…” Galatians 3:13a (NKJV)
There is that word “redeemed” again. And it goes back to the concept of paying a ransom to set a prisoner free. Christ’s death and our acceptance of His death for our salvation, set us free from the condemnation (guilty verdict) of the law. The law condemned us because we were hopelessly destined to break it, but Christ took us out from under the law so that the condemnation for breaking it would not be imputed to us. Freedom from the law is important to us because we had no hope of keeping the law, therefore we were condemned by it!!
I have been called a "Grace Nazi" because I am so obsessed with making sure the truth about our freedom in Christ is declared. I can't stand to hear a song, a lesson, or any type of declaration that denies our freedom in Christ in even the slightest way. When I hear a teacher or preacher try to put Christians back under the law, I wonder if they realize they are attempting to put them back under condemnation because if we are under the law then we are subject to its condemnation!
One of the greatest blessings of the grace of God is that we are free from the law. There was an old hymn we used to sing when I was a child and it's so true.
Free from the law, oh happy condition,
Jesus has bled and there is remission,
Cursed by the law and bruised by the fall,
Christ has redeemed us once for all.
Friday, July 4, 2008
The cost of freedom...,.
I took this picture at the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor Hawaii. I have never experienced anything like the emotion I felt standing on that sacred spot where so many gave their lives for my freedom. Without even knowing them I was drawn to express my thankfulness for their great sacrifice during a time when our country came dangerously close to losing the lifestyles and liberty that we love so much.
But on this day of celebrating our nation’s independence I’m also reminded of another great sacrifice that purchased an ever greater freedom for me. Jesus Christ gave His own life willingly so that I can be free from the penalty, power, and one day even the presence of sin. I am free to have a relationship with God. I am free to live in victory and abundance. I am free from the threat of hell.
As part of the gift of salvation, God has given us ultimate freedom. He has set us forever free from anything that would bind us. And no one, no activity, no habit, in fact nothing, can ever force us back into captivity once God has set us free.
The only price that God would accept as payment in full was the blood of Jesus. But when that price was paid, it was used as a “ransom” to set me free.
“just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20:28 (NKJV)
The word “ransom” used in that verse actually means “to loose.” It was a term used to describe the payment made to secure the freedom of slaves or those taken prisoner by the enemy in a war. Another word for the way Christ purchased our freedom is “redemption.”
When Christ gave His life and His blood as a ransom for us, He redeemed us and secured our freedom from the condemnation of the Law, from the control of sin in our lives, and from the captivity of the enemy.
And if the Son has set you free, you are free indeed and free forever. (John 8:36 pp) We can never again be taken captive. We are secure in His freedom.
But on this day of celebrating our nation’s independence I’m also reminded of another great sacrifice that purchased an ever greater freedom for me. Jesus Christ gave His own life willingly so that I can be free from the penalty, power, and one day even the presence of sin. I am free to have a relationship with God. I am free to live in victory and abundance. I am free from the threat of hell.
As part of the gift of salvation, God has given us ultimate freedom. He has set us forever free from anything that would bind us. And no one, no activity, no habit, in fact nothing, can ever force us back into captivity once God has set us free.
The only price that God would accept as payment in full was the blood of Jesus. But when that price was paid, it was used as a “ransom” to set me free.
“just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20:28 (NKJV)
The word “ransom” used in that verse actually means “to loose.” It was a term used to describe the payment made to secure the freedom of slaves or those taken prisoner by the enemy in a war. Another word for the way Christ purchased our freedom is “redemption.”
When Christ gave His life and His blood as a ransom for us, He redeemed us and secured our freedom from the condemnation of the Law, from the control of sin in our lives, and from the captivity of the enemy.
And if the Son has set you free, you are free indeed and free forever. (John 8:36 pp) We can never again be taken captive. We are secure in His freedom.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
One more Clay story.....
Clay at 4 years old
and at his wedding...
When I posted the last blog in honor of Clay's birthday, I was trying to decide between two stories about his childhood that God used to teach me important lessons about my relationship with Him as my Heavenly Father. I chose the story about him refusing to pick up his toys. Through that God taught me about how He doesn't "force" us to do His will. Instead, He chooses to transform us from the inside out, giving us the desire to obey Him. The other story about Clay reminds me of an equally important lesson about God's love and care for me.
When Clay was small, he got bored in school very easily. He would then get into trouble. We came to dread the inevitable phone calls from his teacher. We were so frustrated with our unsuccessful attempts to change his behavior by punishing him. Finally, his teacher came up with a system that seemed to work. She would send home a daily notice of his behavior. If he got more “happy faces” than “sad faces” in one week, then he got a prize. If he got all “happy faces” in a week, he got a really good prize. He was so naturally competetive that he wanted to "win" and did very well with this process.
One night during the time we were in the midst of this process, he was riding the exercise bike in our home, without our permission. We heard a terrible scream. He had caught his toe in the pedals and it was mashed flat. When I heard his scream my first reaction was to respond to him. I cried right along with him and tended to his injury. I gave him some medicine to relieve the pain.
When I heard his cry, it never occurred to me to check his record of “happy/sad faces” first to see if he deserved to be helped. I never even considered the fact that I had told him not to ride that bike and that he was only in pain because he had disobeyed me. He was my child and he was in trouble. It was the deepest desire of my heart to help him and to see to it that he was never hurt in that way again.
Now, since we know that God is a perfect Father, do you really think He would do any less for you? We sometimes get the idea that God won't help us if we get ourselves into trouble. Or that God will somehow check our record of good and bad actions to determine whether or not we deserve His help. But God loves us perfectly and unconditionally. Even our best behavior doesn't merit His favor. We don't deserve anything He does for us. But everything He does for us is based on His love, not our good or bad behavior. When we hurt, He responds with perfect love and always with the appropriate action that is best for us.
When Clay was small, he got bored in school very easily. He would then get into trouble. We came to dread the inevitable phone calls from his teacher. We were so frustrated with our unsuccessful attempts to change his behavior by punishing him. Finally, his teacher came up with a system that seemed to work. She would send home a daily notice of his behavior. If he got more “happy faces” than “sad faces” in one week, then he got a prize. If he got all “happy faces” in a week, he got a really good prize. He was so naturally competetive that he wanted to "win" and did very well with this process.
One night during the time we were in the midst of this process, he was riding the exercise bike in our home, without our permission. We heard a terrible scream. He had caught his toe in the pedals and it was mashed flat. When I heard his scream my first reaction was to respond to him. I cried right along with him and tended to his injury. I gave him some medicine to relieve the pain.
When I heard his cry, it never occurred to me to check his record of “happy/sad faces” first to see if he deserved to be helped. I never even considered the fact that I had told him not to ride that bike and that he was only in pain because he had disobeyed me. He was my child and he was in trouble. It was the deepest desire of my heart to help him and to see to it that he was never hurt in that way again.
Now, since we know that God is a perfect Father, do you really think He would do any less for you? We sometimes get the idea that God won't help us if we get ourselves into trouble. Or that God will somehow check our record of good and bad actions to determine whether or not we deserve His help. But God loves us perfectly and unconditionally. Even our best behavior doesn't merit His favor. We don't deserve anything He does for us. But everything He does for us is based on His love, not our good or bad behavior. When we hurt, He responds with perfect love and always with the appropriate action that is best for us.
I'm glad we made it through Clay's childhood because God did a great work in his life. He is one of the finest young men I know.
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