"To Thine Own Self Be True!" (Shakespeare)

Did you know that God is true to Himself?  His holiness assures no conflict of interest or will and that He abides by His own nature and is true to character or always acts in character.  The Hebrew words for true, faith, and faithfulness are all related and sometimes used interchangeably. For example, in Hab. 2:4, it says, "The just shall live by his faithfulness [or faith]."   In  Psalm 31:5 is says God is a God of truth [faithfulness].  We must not divorce faith and faithfulness in our conduct and lives for God surely doesn't and we must not divide what He has joined together.  Are you true to your word? and faithful to promises?  We must feed on His faithfulness! (cf. Psalm 37:3). 

Great is God's faithfulness toward us and this even applies when we are faithless. Even when we are wayward, He cannot deny Himself and go against His nature.  God's Word is faithful and is as sure as God Himself, He exalts above all things His name and His Word (cf. Psalm 138:2).  If God went back on His Word, He'd cease being God! Not one word of all His promise He have to Moses has failed (cf. 1 Kings 8:56). He is faithful to us and even believes in us! 

God can be seen as the great Promise Keeper who abounds in faithfulness. He exercises this by believing in us that we are justified though we sin (cf. Gal. 2:17). God's faithfulness can be seen in His discipline and correction when we go astray and even in our afflictions to show us the Way and even test our faith. He doesn't intend to punish us as our sins deserve but to sanctify us and make us more Christlike. He wants us to show faithfulness to Him and even in our calling: he that is faithful in little, shall be faithful in much!  As Mother Teresa said, "God doesn't call us to success but to faithfulness!" We will be rewarded by our works done in the Lord, not those done in the flesh or for wrong motives. 

You are true (faithful) to yourself when you fulfill your mission God gave you and judge yourself so God need not do it.  Also, when we confess our sins and keep short accounts (cf. 1 John 1:9) of them so we can walk in the light or in fellowship with the Spirit of Christ and also with other believers. God will not let sin slide and we should not grow lax on our attitude towards sin and show no tolerance.  We must not just dislike sins but denounce them and vow to live life with Jesus at the helm as Captain of our soul and Master of our fate.  We must keep our promises just like God is the Promise Keeper and value our integrity and not lie to one another, for it is impossible for God to do these things (cf. Heb. 6:18). 

Paul said that his aim is to "finish the race and complete the task God gave him" (cf. Acts 20:24). We don't want to leave behind half-built, derelict towers as unfinished business for our legacy when we die but to be assured we have done all God's will for us and complete the mission to say: "Mission accomplished!"   "See to it that you complete the ministry God gave you in the Lord," (cf. Col. 4:17).  Just like when King David had done all God's purpose, he died. (cf. Acts 13:36). We must realize as David did, that God's faithfulness surrounds Him and we can count on it as Jeremiah realized when he said, "Great is thy faithfulness," even while in captivity.   Soli Deo Gloria! 

Are You Fighting God?

 "There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the LORD" (Prov. 21:30, NIV).

If you’ve heard the song, “I fought the law, and the law won!” you may realize that if you fight God, He will always win!

“You may even find yourself fighting against God, “(cf. Acts 5;39, Gamaliel).

On the road to Damascus Jesus confronted Saul that it was "hard for [him] to kick against the goads." (Cf. Acts 26:14, ESV). The NLT says, "... It is useless for you to fight against my will." God's will is stronger than ours--He's the Almighty! He gets His way! His power "works mightily in us" (cf. Col. 1:29). We have a will, but God decided our nature, and we act according to our nature, which God has the power to manipulate.

If everything seems to be against us, perhaps we are going the wrong way ourselves! For God is at work within us, "both to do and to will of His good pleasure" (cf. Phil. 2:13). He will make us willing on the day of salvation (cf. Psalm 110:3). God's will overcomes ours and it is vain and futile to oppose God: "... For who can resist his will?" (Rom. 9:19, ESV).

When God decides to save us, He doesn't just help us to believe (we cannot believe apart from God, as it says in John 15:5 that "apart from [Him] we can do nothing"), but He makes believers out of us (quickening our spirit with faith), by virtue of irresistible grace, called the effectual call of God (cf. Rom. 8:30). When we call someone they may or may not respond, but when God does it, the result is guaranteed and efficacious. Jeremiah proclaims "...[Y]ou are stronger than I and have prevailed..." (Jer. 20:7, ESV). We must not find ourselves contrary to God!

We must not find ourselves contrary to God's revealed or preceptive will (which can be thwarted), because God will find a way to work out His plan regardless: "If he snatches away, who can stop him? Who can say to him, 'What are you doing?'" (Job 9:12, NIV); "... No one can hold back his hand or say to him: What have you done?" (Dan. 4:35, NIV). God gets His way: "... 'Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will happen'" (Isa. 14:24, NIV); "For the LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him [going against His decreed or secret will]? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?" (Isa. 14:27, NIV); and finally, "'Have you not heard? Long ago I ordained it. In days of old, I planned it; now I have brought it to pass...'" (Isa. 37:26, NIV). Even the Gamaliel recognized the futility: "'... You might even be found opposing God!'..." (Acts 5:39, ESV).

God accomplishes His will in us: He will "equip you with every good thing that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight.." (Heb. 13:21, ESV). God will accomplish His will with or without our cooperation, and it is our privilege to be the clay in His hands, our Potter. For this reason, we ought to stop fighting God or kicking against the goads and get with the program. We are made to do His will and this is the only way to find fulfillment (in His will). Our wills follow our minds and God can change our minds and give us a "knowledge of the truth" (cf. 2 Tim. 2:25, NLT).

Isaiah wondered: "O LORD, why do you make us wander from your ways and harden our heart so that we fear you not?..." (Isa. 63:17, ESV). God can "uphold [us] with a willing spirit" (Psalm 51:12, ESV). It is for our own good that we pray the prayer of relinquishment and put ourselves in God's hands, praying that His will be done through us willfully, with our cooperation. Wycliffe's tenet applies: "All things come to pass of necessity," and we must realize God's sovereignty, that He is in complete control, working all things for our good (cf. Rom. 8:28) if we love Him. It is important to know that we are aligned with God's will, to know whose side we're on; it is vain to fight God the Almighty One, for He is stronger than us, His creatures, and there is not even "one maverick molecule in the universe," according to R. C. Sproul!

"...'The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will...'" (Acts 22:14, NIV). Christians are exhorted to seek His will and have the unique privilege of knowing it. We also pray in His will and all our prayers are answered if they comply with His will (cf. 1 John 5:14). One petition of the Lord's prayer is for God's will to be done. God's will is laid out to us in Scripture and revealed and illuminated through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Even Paul tells the Greeks: "For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God" (Acts 20:27, NIV). We are responsible for what God has opened our eyes to; to whom " much is given, much is required" is the principle (cf. Luke 12:48).

Jesus said that those who do the will of God are His brother, mother, and sister! (Cf. Matt. 12:50, NIV). And so it is paramount that we seek, know, and do God's will. Why? "... For whoever does the will of God abides forever" (1 John 2:17, NIV); "you need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised" (Heb. 10:36, NIV); "... [That] you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured" (Col. 4:12, NIV).

Note: one reason David was a man after God’s own heart was that he fulfilled all God’s will (cf. Acts 13:36). Soli Deo Gloria!

Going Forward, Faith To Faith

"For the LORD God is a sun and shield.  The LORD gives grace and glory..." (Psalm 84:11, HCSB).   "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith" (Romans 1:17, KJV).  

It is commonly said, that people will go anywhere as long as it's forward!  They want a promotion!  Unfortunately, many believers are heavy laden with a backsliding heart and aren't progressing or growing in faith; however, something that is alive grows!  There's a difference between the profession of faith and the reality of faith.  We progress from unbelieving and doubting faith to little faith, saving faith, and then to serving faith.  Maturity is not a given nor a foregone conclusion.  We are to ever increase in our faith as Romans 1:17 says (from faith to faith) and to show it in our lives as fruit (from faithfulness to faithfulness).  We must not divorce these two realities.   These two words are identical in Hebrew (cf. Habakkuk 2:4).  They shall know us by our fruit!

The faith we have is the faith we show and without the evidence of faith to be validated by works, it's spurious, suspect, and even dead.  That kind of faith cannot save us for we are not saved by faith per se, but faith in Christ--it's the object that matters; we don't put faith in faith.  But 2 Cor. 3:18 portrays our faith as having "ever-increasing glory."  Yes, God shares His glory with us and we will be in glory someday (Psalm 84:11).  There must come an awakening in our faith from our spiritual slumber and the day must dawn and the morning star rises in our hearts (cf. 2 Pet. 1:19).

I've heard Christians say that they are "Jesus" to someone and that is not our sanctification, even though God uses us for His glory and we are mere vessels of honor doing His will and work.  NB: We cannot reach somewhat of a "sinless perfection" (cf. Prov. 20:9) or "entire sanctification" (cf. Psalm 119:96) whereby we become Jesus in any sense of the word--we are not commanded to be Jesus, but to obey Him. We cannot save anyone and no one should expect us to save them!  There's only one Savior who alone gets the glory (Soli Deo Gloria!), for "salvation is of the LORD" (cf. Jonah 2:9).

We can be the helping hand of Jesus or His voice, or even the heart of Jesus extending mercy and comfort, but we must be humbled by the fact that we are not worthy of worship and we are not Jesus to anyone despite our do-goodery.  When we preach the gospel, it must be preaching the Word and Christ Jesus as Lord (cf. 2 Cor. 4:5), not preaching ourselves as the center of focus.   Humility is not thinking less of ourselves, but of ourselves less.   We think of Jesus, not being so preoccupied with ourselves (cf. Heb. 3:1; 12:1).

Paul was received as if he were Christ Himself, but he wasn't Christ to them  (cf. Gal. 4:14).  He was so humbled that God revealed His Son in him (cf. Gal. 1:16) and, realizing this, he couldn't wait till Christ be formed in them (cf. Gal. 4:19).  When we see Jesus by faith (cf. Heb. 2:9), the eyes of our hearts are opened (cf. Eph. 1:18) and we do see Jesus alive in our brethren and realize that He is using us for His glory and work.  But the temptation is to think that our righteousness or goodness is our gift to God and we are doing it of ourselves.  However, all our righteousness is of God as the source (cf. Isaiah 45:24).  Paul was quite humble:  "For I will not venture to speak of anything except for what Christ has accomplished through me..." (Romans 15:18, ESV; cf. Amos 6:13).  Hosea 14:8 says that our fruit or righteousness comes from Him and comes from the Holy Spirit (cf. Gal. 5:22-23).

The logical, applied goal of our faith is a desire to live it out and to complete the mission God gave us in the Lord (cf. Acts 20:24).  "All that counts is faith expressing itself through love" (cf. Gal. 5:6, NIV).  Sanctification is the process of growing in the faith and becoming more Christlike in our demeanor and conduct to show forth the witness of Christ in our lives as a living testimony.  We're all here for a purpose and God has a plan for all of us and will fulfill His will without or with our cooperation (cf. Psalm 57:2; 138:8; Job 23:14).  God even has a purpose for the evildoer! (cf. Proverbs 16:4).  Finding our spiritual gifting is part of the package and we will be as wandering stars without any purpose in life till we recognize how God uses us in the kingdom.

We are to put our faith into practice (cf. 2 Cor. 1:24), translating creeds into deeds to show others the reality of our faith, not just the profession of it. Remembering we are not saved by faith, but by Christ.   Only where our faith is difficult is it worth it; we must realize that it will be done unto us according to our faith (cf. Matt. 9:29).

CAVEATS:  THE LIE OF SATAN IS THAT WE SHALL BE AS GODS; WE ARE TO BECOME GODLY, NOT GODS! A COROLLARY IS THE NEW AGE DECEPTION:  "I'M JESUS; YOU'RE JESUS!" OR WE NEED TO FIND THE GOD WITHIN!      Soli Deo Gloria! 

Walking Worthy Of Our Lord

"The eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him" (2 Chron. 16:9, NIV).   

Just because we're saved doesn't guarantee we'll act it.  In some cases Christians fall short of the ideals and morals of the infidel, who is solely motivated by selfish pride and impressing others--as people-pleasers.   The Spirit-led, controlled, directed, filled believer has put on the new self-created in Christ's image, called the new man. He has found the Enabler, the Holy Spirit as the dynamic for living.  It's not a matter of how much of the Spirit one has, but how much of you He has.  The new life in Christ is all about surrender and it's not just a once-for-all, completed event.   He doesn't have an ulterior motive for good but wants to serve God from gratitude.

We're all works in progress and should humbly ask others to be patient with us as God isn't finished with us yet.  But we can rejoice that God doesn't deal with us as our sins deserve and He corrects us when we err.  It is said that the closer we get to God, the more we see our imperfections.   As we progress in our sensitivity to the Spirit, we strive to seek the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace and not attention to us.  Just like the Spirit seeks not to bring attention to Himself, but to Christ, so also, as believers we seek God's glory and rejoice when God uses us for it.

It is said quite wisely that the mature believer is not divisive, contentious, argumentative, nor judgmental, but leaves room for God's judgment or gives the benefit of the doubt.   As it says in Scripture, the man of God must not strive or quarrel!  But we're all human too and this temptation will come as our pride gets in the way and we succumb to Satan's Anfectung or attack.  But we should beware of the devil's schemes and not get fooled--he's always playing mind games with psychological warfare (e.g., 'divide and conquer').  He just loves to strike at our pride because that seems to be his specialty and his evil.

Only when we walk in the Spirit, always in fellowship and in constant prayer and confession are we worthy of our Lord, but this involves applying the Word, being a witness to others, and growing in faith and its application as we do walk in the presence of God.  There are no short-cuts, easy paths, or formulae to follow; the only way is the O.J.T. of the trench warfare of real-life--the school of hard knocks of putting God's Word into practice.  We must all realize that hardship and Reality 101 are part of the divine curriculum when we matriculated in the school of Christ, and that God sends us adversity for our growth opportunities--to test our faith for our sake.  We will all have a different pilgrimage and spiritual journey to complete.  God has selected each man's work and purpose--finding it is the secret because many never do. 

Those who serve God wholeheartedly can be said to be walking worthily.  God frowns upon the lackadaisical disciple who doesn't commit or follow through.  David pleased God in that he served Him with all his heart.  Joshua and Caleb likewise "wholly followed the Lord."  In other words, they were gung-ho and had gusto and spunk!  The world may count the spiritual man as out of his mind, a fool, or demented, but this is for God's glory.  We must own Him as Lord and this always includes confessing Him as Lord.

The worthy believer has not divorced faith and faithfulness. They are two sides of the same coin!  He realizes the importance of endurance and perseverance as God preserves us.   Faithfulness implies that we apply our faith with good works to prove its worth or value.  We progress from faith to faith and grow by our faithfulness.  The righteous man shall live by his faithfulness according to Romans 1:17 which also means by his faith, for the two words are the same in Hebrew (cf. Hab. 2:4). 

In sum, the believer who has a healthy relationship and/or fellowship with his Lord is without duplicity or hypocrisy to others--he makes no parade of his spirituality or false impressions but is in earnest with all integrity, even if a sin is obvious, he can be pleasing to God, though the sin displeased Him.    But his testimony is not jeopardized by acting contrary to what pleases the Lord.  One must acknowledge his sins, no matter how great and confess them with all sincerity and this doesn't mean he won't ever sin or offend others--he's both sinner and saint--a justified saint!  In other words:  What you see is what you get (no pretense)!      Soli Deo Gloria!

"We're Looking For A Few Good Men"

"Be alert, stand firm in the faith, act like a man, be strong.  Your every action must be done with love" (1 Cor. 16:13-14, HCSB). 
"But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or his stature, because I have rejected him. Man does not see what the LORD sees, for man sees what is visible [i.e., the "outward appearance" per KJV], but the LORD sees the heart"  (1 Sam. 16:7, HCSB).
"God doesn't call us to success, but to faithfulness." --Mother Teresa of Calcutta, canonized by Rome and recipient of 1979 Nobel Peace Prize

THE POST TITLE IS FROM THE USMC RECRUITING REGISTERED TRADEMARK SLOGAN, AND THE NAME OF A TOM CRUISE, JACK NICHOLSON MOVIE ENTITLED, "A FEW GOOD MEN."  

We shall see men in the light of Jesus' standard, which is the true measure of a man.  

That used to be the rallying cry or catchphrase of the US Marine Corps until women were allowed (How macho can it be if women can do it (LOL!), assuming they don't lower their standards?), then they changed it to "the few, the proud, the Marines."  It's quite ironic that you can become a cook in the Marines and or a medic and think that requires some special manly or exclusive, especially masculine skill set or mindset--the image is all psychological and social.  One tends to think of grunts, jar heads, or warriors--a lean, mean, fighting machine!  But just being in the Marines is an attitude and they always say, "Once a Marine, always a Marine!"  They take special pride in their catchphrase "Semper Fi," Latin for always faithful.   Marines also pride themselves in believing pain is weakness leaving the body!   My dad was one and he never once talked about it, but it seemed he raised us like he thought we should be ones.

We must commence by defining terms so as not to cause any undue misunderstanding by connotation.  Voltaire said, "If you want to converse with me, define your terms!"  So many disagreements could be settled this way because many quarrels are mere problems of semantics or a failure to communicate.  Don't they know that to be "good," any religion will do; Christ didn't come to make bad men good, but dead men alive!

Now to the title of a few good men.  Don't they tolerate "bad" men?  Depends upon connotations and denotations.  Does this imply that the Marines have a monopoly on good men or that if you are a Marine you are a good man?  Aren't the men of the other services also good in a sense?  Are there only a few of them?  You would think that the more good men, the better!  By good, they probably mean disciplined, intelligent, teachable, moral, patriotic, and very physically able.  Obviously, their boot camp is known to be more rigorous than Army basic training and is longer in duration though.

Jesus said that only God is good and that we are evil!  God doesn't grade on a curve!  Only by human standards can man be considered good and goodness is only relative (as if God were to grade on a curve and compared to Saddam Hussein, we are saints!).  By our standards, we sometimes call men good but this kind of goodness can be found in any religion--do-goodery or becoming goody-goodies.  God is good and the gold standard of goodness we measure us all by--the bar is pretty high and let's not lower it to make us look good.  The word is commonly becoming misused nowadays and people refer to themselves in the first person as being good--"I'm good!" That remark has no predicate and no one knows what is good: his accent?  Misuse only confuses issues and muddles the truth.  But we must become aware of the real meaning of the term too and not be part of the problem, but of the solution! 

I've heard of people referring to someone as a good Christian or a bad Christian in comparison, but these terms are unbiblical and there aren't even so-called carnal Christians as some subset of the category of believer--all believers can be spiritual or carnal at any given time and in or out of fellowship due to unconfessed sin--this isn't a problem for the few, but all.  The problem is that some believers haven't learned to walk with God and stay in touch with the Spirit or are just immature or infants in Christ.  We all need to grow up and be patient with less mature believers because we have been there and should relate not condemn.  In discernment, remember your humanness and their spirituality or position in Christ.  We are all works in progress so to speak and must realize God isn't finished with any of us yet!  Note that the Bible delineates all 52 known virtues that one should cultivate and these are applicable to both genders--courage, integrity, fairness, justice, temperance, self-control, etc.

To define terms spiritually we speak of obedience as the measure of faith and we are all committed to it as a condition of discipleship.  Obviously we can know them by their fruits!  Obedience is the more easily recognized, not one's internal spiritual state.  However, when people often speak of bad Christians they are usually talking of hypocrites or nominal believers (in name only) and don't think they are walking the walk, though they talk the talk.  One condition of salvation is sincerity--without which there is none; it's necessary but not sufficient.  There are those sincerely wrong!  What matters also is that the heart is in the right place, even more than one's doctrine be impeccable.

We are all good Christians in the sense of following Christ in obedience, for no Christian is truly a hypocrite---God has no dealing with them and Christ hated duplicity. In another vein, we are all bad Christians in the sense of falling short and not measuring up to Christ's perfect standards and being sin-free--William Jay of Bath said that he was a great sinner, but Christ is a great Savior!  Everyone that is biblically savvy knows Paul referred to himself as the "chief of sinners!"   John Bunyan wrote his famed autobiographical book, Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, alluding to Romans 5:21 and 1 Tim. 1:15 to show his falling short, not emphasizing his spirituality, nor to glorify his past or sinfulness--it was a work in humility.  Sinless perfection this side glory is unattainable (cf. Psa. 119:96; Prov 20:9).  Some Christians will be the first to tell you they are hypocrites!   We must get away from the "let's compare" mindset and start realizing that compared to Christ we all fall short.  Jesus said to be perfect like the Father is perfect, meaning that perfection is the never attainable standard, but direction is the test.

There are godly standards of a so-called "good man" should strive to have.  It doesn't mean marriageable or husband material--but he is faithful and reliable with a proven track record that speaks for itself!  Women are looking for them and wonder what to look for or where to find them!   A good man isn't one who is necessarily impressed with his machismo or how "tough" he is.  He certainly isn't a bully!  He is like Jesus in many ways or in the process.  In Christ's humiliation and subordination, he emptied Himself of the independent usage of His Deity or divine nature and submitted to the Father's will, known as the kenosis in Koine (Greek).

Jesus was manly (even a man's man), for example, was gentle and He and Moses were called this in Scripture (gentlemen is a word of compliment!), which implies He had his strength under control and in restraint or never lost control of Himself.   But one thing for sure:  Jesus was no people-pleaser.   NB:  We must never equate good men as men of the world or successes in the eyes of the world; e.g., achieving the American dream or having a degree of education or scholastic merit or achievement.  God doesn't want our achievements--He wants us and our obedience in God's will! What is honorable in the eyes of the world is often despised in God's eyes! 

All Christians are called to be submissive to authority and respectful but not doormats--they know how to stand up for what they believe and fly their Christian colors!  We must all stand up and be counted for Jesus or we are not with Him--as Christ said, "If you are not with Me, you are against Me."  Jesus was a magnet to other men and therefore the fisher of men and also good with children and that's why they were drawn to Him.  There are many godly or Christian qualities to admire in men and no man has all of them.  It's the role of the Holy Spirit to make a believer holy or mature in Christ after His image and likeness and He does it by doing away with everything that's un-Christlike, not resembling Jesus.  Jesus was a leader of men extraordinaire, but to be a good leader one must first be a follower and that's why He asked us to follow Him.

You ask me what the measure of a man is:  how a man lives for Christ's glory and knows his purpose in life; a man with vision or one with a plan!  No one should be a nowhere man not knowing where he's going or what he wants to do with his life!  He is purpose-oriented and makes goals that are achievable, realistic, measurable, time-specific, and spiritually focused.  In other words, he's not concentrating his efforts and desires on selfish ambition but in serving God.  He doesn't necessarily have big plans or goals for himself but for God's glory.  As Baptist preacher William Carey preached:  "Expect Great Things from God; Attempt Great Things for God."  With God, we can do anything, even move mountains.

The measure of a man in God's view is not his stature, looks, clothing, talents, aptitudes, possessions, sex appeal or prowess, athleticism, physical appearance, build or physique; however, according to Proverbs, the glory of a young man is his strength, but of an old man, his wisdom!  We all should be known for our faith being expressed by our love in action.  That means all that matters is that God is on His side and with Him in what he's doing and that way he cannot lose--he's in a win-win situation and never a no-win one.  Job was told to brace himself like a man and men are not to assume the feminine role in society but identify with their own gender, neither must he be effeminate, wimpy, or a pushover--able to assert himself.  NB: Scripture frowns upon "girlie" men, so God expects men to act like men!  Is it any wonder men bond so easily--they should have much in common and I'm sure there was plenty of bonding that Jesus did with His disciples too. 

Never discount or count a man of God out who is in God's will!  No one for whom Christ died is a loser in God's eyes or worth nothing--a good-for-nothing!  Christ is the only One who has something to say to so-called losers and the down and out--there's hope!  There are no hopeless cases, only those who've given up hope.  The answer to how to become a good man is to become a godly one, doing good and avoiding evil, who is mature in Christ and focused on His will--never underestimate the power of what God can do with someone dedicated and sensitive to His will!  It takes fortitude and grit to dare to stand alone, gallantry, even guts or mettle!  It is a noble undertaking that shows faith in action and creeds translated into deeds.  Dare to follow Christ and do His will!  He challenges us all to follow in His steps to our individual crosses, dying to self or saying "no" to Satan and self before saying "yes" to Him.  The world needs more of these men who are taking their cues from God, not the culture!  And who are willing to step up to assume their spiritual roles as models and mentors in the church, family, one's circle of influence, and even society at large.

In the final analysis, Christ is beyond our analysis; we cannot put Him in a box, and can only know Him but not fully comprehend Him, figure Him out; He cannot be adequately described but only known.  (For the finite cannot contain the infinite, the ancient axiom goes.)  In short, we cannot put Christ in a box or peg Him psychologically or personally and must not define a so-called good man in any certain terms without some reservations--we're all at different stages of development and cannot compare ourselves with each other.    Soli Deo Gloria!

 

Our Continuing Resolution

Our walk in Christ is one of faith, progressing from faith to faith (cf. Rom. 1:17) increasing in sanctification and glory (cf. 2 Cor. 3:18).  Our faith is a continuity:  of our status in the state of grace; one of faith from start to finish; of continuous repentance; of daily fellowship; of assurance of salvation; of security in our salvation; of surrender; of commitment; and finally, with daily renewal, for God is able to transform our lives into His image.  He is like a sculptor that chips away everything that doesn't look like his subject; in our case, God is the sculptor and we are the subject, and God chips away everything that doesn't resemble Christ.

It is important and noteworthy that our repentance is not a one-time deal we make with God but of a continuing, ongoing resolution, renewal, and repetition.  Likewise, our faith is not just a one-time action, but a continual walk with Christ.  For we walk by faith and not by sight! (2 Cor. 5:7).  Job said that he would wait until his renewal would come (cf. Job 14:14)--we must patiently wait for the Lord to (re-everything!) restore, reconcile, redeem, rebuild, and renew us in Christ's image and repair the tarnished one soiled by the old sin nature--final restoration will take place in glory!

Here is where Romanists beg to differ:  They don't believe in assurance nor in the security of the believer!  A believer who claims knowledge or assurance of his salvation, apart from some divine revelation to that effect, is guilty of the sin of presumption.  Au contraire!  Assurance is not only a command (cf. 2 Pet. 1:10) but a duty and a boon to our salvation and walk (cf. 1 John 5:13).  It is the expression of faith!  It is important to note that these two go hand in hand:  If one doesn't believe in security, neither can he presume assurance!  And how can one affirm assurance without some security?

Our faith is an ongoing progression of our knowledge of God.  The goal is to know God in His fellowship--this is by faith alone, but we taste and see the Lord is good!  We can rejoice in the knowledge of the permanency of our salvation (though the term "eternal security" is not biblical, "eternal redemption" is cited in Heb. 9:12 and "eternal salvation" is mentioned in Heb. 5:9).  Note that we are not saved on a provisional, probational, trial, or temporary basis, but on a permanent one!  We cannot utterly and finally fall from the state of grace, for we are assured we will persevere as God preserves and keeps us!  We don't need to do penance (the second plank of salvation for those who've made shipwreck of their faith) like Catholics when they have fallen from the state of grace by committing some mortal sin.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Keeping The Faith

Some earnest believers urge men to "keep the faith," while this may seem like a reasonable exhortation, it's meaningless.  The motto of the sovereign of the UK is "F.D." or Fidei Defensor, meaning that be the "defender of the faith," while crown prince Charles wants to change it to simply "defender of faith."  To him, it matters not what your faith is as long as you defend it.  The Bible also speaks of contending for the faith, not just faith per se, and refers also to our Christian credo or constitution.  All in all, it's not how big our faith, but how big our God and through our repentance.  There's no saving faith without genuine heartfelt repentance (cf. Acts 26:20). We have penitent faith or believing repentance.  We don't have faith in faith!  Faith is only as valid as the object it's placed in. We don't need perfect faith--just sincere, unfeigned faith!

As you may recall, Paul urged Timothy to keep the faith and many in the latter days would abandon the faith or bail out theologically as it were.  Paul boasted in his swan song (2 Tim. 4:7, NIV) that he had "fought the good fight, [he] finished the race, [he] kept the faith" (emphasis mine)"   This is all that's required of the believer!  Note that Paul wasn't resting on his laurels!   We don't have to win the race--Christ won for us!  We must finish the course tailored for us!  We are only His ambassadors in this world.  And we persevere in the faith only because He preserves us to the end.  

The angelic war or conflict with Satan comes with the territory and we sign up for this at salvation as our battle just begins as we get on Satan's hit list and become his spiritual enemy--but remember:  the battle is the Lord's! We live in enemy-occupied turf!  But we are our own worst enemy!  The key is to know the threefold enemy: the world, the flesh, the devil.  In affliction, the same sun melts the butter, hardens the clay! Becoming bitter or better.   Our faith must be tested as if by fire!  "But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold," (Job 23:10, NIV).  WE MUST NEVER DIVORCE FAITH FROM FAITHFULNESS!

Now how exactly did Paul maintain his faith in such an inhospitable, unwelcome environment as Rome?  The way we do:  we keep our faith by giving it away!  The measure of our faith is the works it produces as fruit. Without works our faith is suspect!  Good soil produces a good crop, not foliage.  Paul would say that faith must be proved by works, and James would say works must spring from faith!  Reiterating:  Paul teaches that works must bloom from the faith; James teaches faith must be demonstrated and validated by works!  Don't divorce them!  They go hand in hand and cannot be separated, only distinguished.  We must realize that the faith we have is the faith we show!  If our faith has no works, it's dead (cf. James 2:17) and that kind of faith cannot save.  We must bear in mind the formula of the Reformers:  "We are saved by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone."

God will certainly reward us for our work done in His name (2 Chron. 15:7) and we are rewarded according to our works, not our faith--so we must turn our faith and creed into deeds!  We must be sold out for Christ and serve Him with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength and in the Spirit.  God is not against good works, just those done in the flesh.  "...' You reward everyone according to what they have done'" (Psalm 62:12, NIV).  "God 'will repay each person according to what they have done'" (Rom. 2:6, NIV).  True faith expresses itself!  Some people will suffer loss and be saved as if by fire because their works were nothing but wood, hay, and stubble and burned up at God's fire of judgment (cf. 1 Cor. 3:15).

According to Isaiah, we must be firm in the faith to withstand the trials and afflictions coming our way as we signed up for.  "... If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all," (Isa. 7:9, NIV).  We are culpable for any lapses in our faith and must not grow lax in the faith due to carnality or lack of spiritual discipline. For those without discipline do not belong to Him and are illegitimate children.  We all have a cross to bear--no cross, no crown!  We must not be ignorant of Satan's schemes! "If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Cf. Rom. 8:31, NIV).

God gives to each of us a measure of faith (cf. Rom. 12:3) and what we do with this faith gift is our gift to God.  He gives us faith, but we must exercise it!  Paul would say, "I'll show you my good deeds by my faith," while James would counter, "I'll show you my faith by my good deeds" (Js. 2:18)." Israel was known for the sin of backsliding and Hosea is a book of promise to heal the backslider at heart:  "I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them," (Hos. 14:4, NIV). We must remember that affliction and trial belong to Reality 101 in our Christian walk, but for the backslider at heart, he can only blame himself:  "..your sins have been your downfall!" (Hos. 14:1, NIV).

We are to abide in Christ and He will abide in us (John 15:4) for it's possible to walk with the Lord for one's entire life if one is obedient as Enoch, for that is the only true measure of faith--not ecstasies nor experiences!  God is not looking for our achievements, but our obedience--He wants us!  We must be cognizant that we can do nothing without Christ's power (cf. Jn. 15:5); i.e., of our own strength. Our righteousness is God's gift to us (cf. Isa. 45:24) but what we do with it is our gift to God.  Faith is given, not achieved!  

NB: Jesus said in John 15:5 that apart from Him we can do nothing  (even believe!).  In sum, "... make every effort to confirm your calling and election. ... you will never stumble" (2 Pet. 1:10, NIV).   Soli Deo Gloria!

Finishing Well

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus..." (Heb. 12:1-2, ESV). 

As Paul's swan song (2 Timothy) expressed: to get back his manuscripts while he was under house arrest;  his cry of exultation was, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race [course], I have kept the faith," (2 Tim. 4:7, ESV). We are all to run so as to win (following the rules) and not be encumbered with the worries of the mundane in our race, just like a soldier is unconcerned of civilian affairs.  Jesus' kingdom is not of this world, and our citizenship is in heaven (cf. John 18:36; Phil. 3:20, ESV).  Don't get too comfortable in this world, for we are mere pilgrims passing through to the heavenly city.

It doesn't matter how well you start if you don't finish well.  Our reward is not according to our faith, but our works, what we did with it (cf. Rom. 2:6; Psa. 62:12; Prov. 24:12); how we apply it.  The race set before us is not a sprint but a marathon, and endurance matters; however, there is the danger of spiritual burnout if we don't know how to balance our life and keep the main thing the main thing, keeping our eyes on Jesus (cf. Heb. 3:1: 12:2). Walking with Christ gives us the power to do anything in the will of God (cf. Phil. 4:13).

Col. 2:6 tells us that just as we "have received Christ as Lord, so walk in Him" as Lord.  Lordship decisions are not a one-time matter at salvation, but progressive as we are being constantly filled with the Spirit (cf, Eph. 5;18) and keeping on the straight and narrow.  Mother Teresa, now canonized, who also received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979, said that God doesn't "call us to success, but to faithfulness!"  The key is that we are faithful in the little God gives us, not to compare our ministry or mission to others. We all are unique in our calling and gifts.

Jesus did say that he who is faithful in little shall be faithful in much!  And to whom much is given, much is required.  An example is the widow who gave two lepta (copper coins) and Jesus commended her as having given more than anyone in the worship meeting.  Saint Theresa announced she was building a convent and was asked how much she had; when she told them only twelve pence, they said, "Not even Saint Theresa can do much with twelve pence!"  The reply:  "But Theresa and God can do anything with twelve pence!"

The important idea to bear in mind, is not to be conformed to the image of the world (i.e., the rat race, the law of the jungle, survival of the fittest, etc.) and not to be achievement-oriented, for God doesn't want our achievements, but our obedience, and us!  What matters is not how much of the Spirit we seem to have but our obedience--how much the Spirit has of us!  Bear in mind:  Dietrich Bonhoeffer said that "only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes."  Christianity is not about man's achievements then, but God's accomplishment on our behalf--we are to let God work through us (Hos. 14:8; Isaiah 26:12; Rom. 15:18) as "vessels of honor."

Jesus warned of the builder who didn't count the cost and had to abandon his building, and so earnest believers must be aware of what they are getting into--a life of self-denial, devotion, a discipline.  Jesus never encouraged lackadaisical, lukewarm, halfhearted, or insincere followers.  The reason other religions are so popular, namely Buddhism, is that you don't die to yourself.   In our race we are not in competition with each other, in the sense so as to compare ourselves with one another: who is the best Bible pastor/teacher in town are (or best exegete, biblicist, even Bible expositor, etc.)  God will level the playing field--who is faithful matters--results are up to God!

We all have our own calling and gift to present unto the Lord in a life of obedience, following Him wherever He may lead.  Maturity is never measured by emotion or feeling, though they are present even if one is stoical, not demonstrative, nor is it measured by ecstasies or experiences (according to Oswald Chambers), including dreams, visions, including audible or visual encounters, but solely by a life of obedience and faithfulness, which will be tested by fire to see if we grow bitter or better.  It is vital to know that the Christian life is not a contest to see who dies with the most toys, publishes the most books, preaches the most sermons, gives the most to missions or charity, and so forth, but "obedience to the heavenly vision," doing God's work and will, as it were, like Paul delineated our walk.

The song by ABBA, "Winner Takes It All," is a fallacious worldview since Jesus owns it all and shares the victory with us, we shall all have the opportunity to win an imperishable wreath that won't fade away, and a crown, if you will, for rewards of faithfulness. Remember one's last words are very telling of one's life work!   Famous last words:  Good intentions; poor follow-through!  Corrie ten Boom said, "Jesus is victor!" for us!  The Preacher of Ecclesiastes renders some timely, germane words of divine wisdom to conclude with:  "Finishing is better than starting..." (7:8, NLT);  "Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all"  (9:11, ESV).  Soli Deo Gloria!

If We Grow Up

Note these verses with my emphasis: 

"[U]ntil we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13, ESV).  
"'When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child.   When I became a man, I gave up childish ways"  (1 Cor.  13:11, ESV).  
"[So] that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes"  (Eph. 4:14, ESV).
"Mark the perfect [mature] man, and behold the upright; for the end of that man is peace" (Ps. 37:37, ESV).   


We are not only to grow up as people, but as Christians, and, since there is metaphorical language here, I suppose there are similarities too.  We are to grow up, but that's iffy!  A mature person has learned to fend for himself or fight his own battles in the dog-eat-dog world, so to speak, and realizes the responsibility for his time, talents, resources, gifts, choices, money, and opportunities.  He usually has his passions and emotions under restraint and otherwise also has a certain degree of self-control and virtue. Likewise: Believing in Christ is only the first step to walking worthy of our Lord; a mature person is a good example and so a mature Christian is a good witness and has a consistent testimony, even though his actions may sometimes speak louder than his words; a mature Christian has learned to go to Scripture for guidance and has a one-on-one relationship with God (i.e., not second-hand) and is like David, who "strengthened himself in the LORD his God." Note:  We do get encouraged from others (even Paul did!) and benefit from the "assembly together of ourselves," but we learn to walk with Christ and to stay in fellowship with Him, as we keep short accounts of our sins and confess them, and "practice the presence of God" as Brother Lawrence (the 17th-century Carmelite, French monk) penned it.

We are always to strive towards obedience to the Word and apply what we do learn in Scripture to ourselves (cf. Job 5:27) the more we know, the more responsibility we have to apply what we know.  Paul says in Eph. 4:15 that we are "to grow up in all aspects into Him" and this means bearing the image of Christ to the world while we partake of the divine nature (cf. 2 Pet. 1:4).  You could make many analogies between mature people and mature believers, but one thing to note:   Even Paul declared that he had arrived and had "laid hold of it yet" as he said in Phil. 3:12, where he denied being "perfect."  Note:  Perfection is indeed the goal for all of us, but the direction is the test as we are to be perfect even as our Father in heaven is perfect [or mature] (cf. Matt. 5:48).

Now, the ironic thing is that we are striving for perfection but we will never get there!  (The words for perfect and mature are similar or the same.)   "... Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God'  (Gen. 6:9, KJV).  There are so-called mature believers who fall into sin just like others because no one is exempt from temptation--even David was out of fellowship about a year after his adulterous affair.  We are mature when we know who we are in the Lord and realize how God uses us and what His will is.  We all have a calling to fulfill in Christ.  Now, I realize that being used by God is no proof of maturity, because God can use a donkey if He chooses, and God does use immature believers as well. However, only believers are vessels of honor.  But the major difference is to "fulfill your calling" and to "complete your ministry" in Christ with FAITHFULNESS.  Note these verses in caution: "The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and good conscience and a sincere faith"  (1 Tim. 1:5, ESV);  "... The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love"   (Gal. 5:6, NIV);  "... [A]nd if I have faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing" (1 Cor. 13:2, NIV). 

Realize these important criteria:  First, we will be judged according to our faithfulness, not our maturity!  Nowhere do I read, "Well done, thou good and mature servant!"  We are commended for our faith and not our maturity it seems.   What we have to look forward to is Jesus saying to us, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant [cf. Matt. 25:21, italics mine]!   Enter thou into the joy of the Lord!"  Nowhere do I hear Jesus commending us for our maturity; it's assumed that, if you are faithful, you probably are also mature enough to do God's will for your life. Secondly, we are rewarded according to our deeds done in the Spirit (cf. Romans 2:6).

An immature believer is usually seen as one who is:   Ignorant of the Word (cf. Matt. 22:29 where Jesus equated knowing the power of God with knowing Scripture); isn't sure of his salvation; doesn't know the basics of fellowship or even basic doctrine prayer, and witnessing; and especially one who stumbles and keeps falling into sin and needs constant repentance or confession (cf. Gal. 6:1; James 5:16) because he is largely "carnal" like the Corinthians were, and hasn't leaned lordship and how to walk in the Spirit--note that it may be easier to delineate immaturity than maturity.   Concerning lordship:  You cannot become a Christian without bowing and acknowledging the lordship of Christ (I'm referring to lordship salvation as opposed to easy-believism), but we get more than we bargained for, and it takes a while before we realize the implications, cost, and ramifications of our decision--easier said than done!

I've met plenty of immature Christians and most of them are not "spiritual" (however, anyone in the Spirit is spiritual in a biblical sense) but carnal in the sense that it's hard to get a spiritual thought out of them--they seem to limit their spiritual times and thoughts to church or irregular encounters with believers who seem to drag it out of them.  When I meet a believer I do not feel content talking about the local sports teams or the weather, or anything that I could find fellowship with from a nonbeliever, but I expect to get some spiritual fellowship. Christians aren't just "nice" and "social" they're spiritual and godly.

Another thing I have noticed:  Baby or infant believers have a real love for the Lord that they tend to lose over time (for some "have left their first love"), and mature believers maintain it and abide in Christ; one measure is that they love the Word and are faithful in it, while the immature believer neglects it and doesn't see it's a  necessity to a faithful walk in the Spirit.  Remember that the goal of our life is faithfulness, and we will be rewarded according to our measure of faithfulness in what God has assigned us and meted out to us in gifts, choices, talents, time, opportunity, and resources.  As Jesus said, "He who is faithful in little, shall be faithful in much" (cf. Matt. 25:21).


A good measure of maturity is fruit, and this means we are fruit inspectors, but of our own fruit!  We are not to go around accusing others of being immature, but to examine ourselves as to how far we still have to go. The mature believer knows what and why he believes--is settled in the faith, not tossed to and fro.  The more mature we become the more likeness to Christ we gain in our character and become more godlike the ultimate goal.   Just like most people eventually grow up, so most Christians do too; it just takes some longer than others, but God is at work in all believers and won't ever give up:  "for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure" (Phil. 2:13, NASB); For I am confident of the very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus" (Phil. 1:6, NASB).  The goal is Christlikeness (cf. Gal. 4:19, ESV), "until Christ is formed in you!"

And so, as we grow up we become more Christlike and mature in Christ, but most of us eventually do grow up.  Being mature as a person doesn't guarantee to be a mature disciple of Christ either.  Some Christian can be more mature than you as a person, but not as a believer!  Maturity isn't the criterion or measure of faith, but obedience is.  "And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him"  (Heb. 5:9,, ESV).   The true measure of faith and faithfulness (which can be distinguished but never separated) is, therefore, obedience (cf. Heb. 3:18-19; John 3:36).  Maturity, in short, is when Christ is revealed in you and you reflect His glory in doing His will (cf. Gal. 1:16).  It was said of David that he did all of God's will and was a man after God's heart, and this is the epitome of obedience, for "after he had served the purpose of God" (cf. Acts 13:36) he was taken to glory!

There's no one-size-fits-all description of maturity no more than a formula to follow for salvation or right way to worship God (except in the Spirit and in truth). Paul expresses the goal of the preacher: in Phil. 1:28, ESV, emphasis added:  "Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ."  NOTE:  The biblical definition of maturity is found in Hebrews 5:14:  "But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good and evil." 

Finally, our reward is according to our deeds done in the Spirit, not how mature we are:  "He will render to each one according to his works"  (Romans 2:6, ESV).  A word to the wise:  "For this is the will of God, your sanctification"  (1 Thess. 4:3, ESV, emphasis mine).    Soli Deo Gloria!

The Measure Of Success

"...[F]or you have done for us all our works"  (Isaiah 26:12, ESV).

"... Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit says the LORD of hosts" (Zech. 4:6, ESV).

We tend to see worldly success as a sign of God's approval, or even prosperity as a keynote of spirituality; however, only God can judge true success, because He knows how faithful we are; we are not called to success, but to faithfulness, in the words of Mother Teresa of Calcutta.  God does promise to prosper us if we are in His will and doing what He calls us to do.  God does promise to prosper us, but not in human means when we set out to do something in the name of the Lord and God is in it--that's success!  Finding this calling.

We all have a work to do, and it will be worth it in the judgment to hear our Lord say, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."  Even Jesus said that He had completed the work that God had given Him to do.  He was primarily, a man on a mission extraordinaire, and this is not a bad model for us, once we feel led to serve the Lord.  As for me, there is no greater joy than to be used by God and to be engaged in His service.

It is important to realize that it is always God using us and working through us as His vessels to accomplish His will, and we get the privilege of being used by Him and receive the joy of serving Him--who can render to God what He deserves and payback to Him for His blessings?   Isaiah 26:12 says that all that we have accomplished God has wrought through us!  We are not to boast as Israel did in Amos 6:13, when God should be given credit, as recorded:  "[You] who rejoice in Lo-debar, who say, 'Have we not by our own strength captured Karnaim for ourselves?'"

Paul summed it up in Romans 15:18 (NIV) similarly:  "I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me...." This is the faith that we leave our comfort zones in faith and do God's bidding and will and leave the results to Him--that means not comparing ourselves to each other per 2 Cor. 10:12, which is "unwise."

We are always in a win-win situation with God on our side as our autopilot and captain directing us. We must remember that God can turn evil into good and make the most out of every situation--look how He turned the humiliating crucifixion into glory!  It is always tempting for all of us to base our achievement on the visible results like measuring success by the numbers or monetary value when we should be seeing the work of God in us and miracles behind the scene.  We must admit that we cannot achieve great things for God of our own effort, we can only faithfully cooperate with Him in a Spirit of love and good deeds, which we are destined to do (cf. Eph. 2:10).

If God owns the results, they aren't ours to criticize or evaluate!  God is the one who called us and has a purpose for it--He designed the universe, how much more were our lives laid out according to Psalm 139:16.  What they often tell you is to try harder and maybe you'll get better results:  But the answer is in trusting more and leaving the results to God, or, as they say, let go and let God--we can do nothing apart from Him  (As John 15:5 says, "Apart from me you can do nothing...").  In our culture everything is results-oriented and if we don't see them immediately we think we're failures (many authors have only had their manuscripts published posthumously).  We are hard-wired for results and think that spiritual success is measured as if it were under the scientific method of measurement and observation--this is not so, we must trust God to work in us and believe Him for results, not others or especially ourselves, nor seeking man's praise, not God's alone.

It is said that you shouldn't strive to do what you enjoy, as much as learn to enjoy what you do; this is what is meant in Ecclesiastes when it says there is joy in our toil--we're hard-wired for work and a work ethic!  We are not made for idleness and boredom is unnatural and man needs purpose and fulfillment in life, that only God can accomplish.  it doesn't matter who sows or reaps, but that God gives the increase! The lesson to be heeded is to do everything in the name of the Lord, to the glory of the Lord, and that we "get" to serve God, who also will reward us for being used!  Follow your passion in your vocation, but be ready to enjoy whatever God grants and whatever you must do.

Note that the work of salvation is applicable, too.  Salvation is not man's achievement, but God's accomplishment and we are impotent to do anything to prepare ourselves for it.  Only God can transform a heart and make one anew!  Left to ourselves, none of us would have believed or come to Jesus; much less if up to our own efforts we wouldn't be able to stay saved--He preserves as we persevere; He calls and woos as we come by His resurrection power.    We must realize that we come to Christ by grace alone and stay in Christ by grace alone--it's grace all the way.   Soli Deo Gloria!  

A Dead Heat

"We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ"  (2 Cor. 10:5, ESV).
"However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the good news of God's grace" (Acts 20:24, NIV).

Are you Christ's competition?  In God's economy: greatness is not how many serve you, but how many you serve; the way up is down; humility comes before honor; emptiness comes before fullness--we must confess with John the Baptist:  "He must increase; I must decrease" (cf. John 3:30).   You commence growth in spirituality once you become cognizant that it's not about you!  Christ defeated Satan at the cross and the battle has been won to the chagrin of Satan, who thought he was winning when Christ went to Calvary.

God used the worst atrocity in history to bring about the devil's defeat (cf. Acts 4:28)--he stands defeated and we fight from victory, not for a victory--the battle is the Lord's. We all have individual races to run that comprise God's will for our lives and to gain its prize; however, we must compete according to the rules.  The battle is won! Satan is a defeated foe.  Jesus is the victor and we are in a mop-up effort to proclaim it to the world, notwithstanding Satan's resistance.

When we have completed the will and purpose of God, our time on earth is up and we go to meet our Maker (cf. Acts 13:36, ESV):  "For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption." Hebrews 12:1 (ESV) says, "And] let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."  We all have different races and are to find God's will and plan for us.  We are all to compete as an athlete who runs for a perishable crown or wreath, but ours is an imperishable one and it isn't a sprint, but a marathon. Jesus won and we are just members of the winning team.  Our enemy is the world, the flesh, and the devil--not each other! We are our own worst enemy.

We all finish in a dead heat--there is no elite Christian who is above the others, though God is not unjust to withhold due reward for those who win their personal race and find God's will for their lives to do it.  The rule of this world is "winner takes all."  It's not "each man for himself" in a life ruled by the law of the jungle, but each of us looking out for each other's interest.  "One for all and all for one!"  We pray:  "For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory..."  We are mere stewards of the riches of God and will be rewarded according to our faithfulness in these blessings.  We are all members one of another of the same body, some being an eye, and some an ear, for example.

In God's economy, all believers are winners and are members of His royal family that will rule with Him in the Millennial Kingdom, and even judge the world and angels.  You have a different race to run than I do, for instance; mine may be only a week long, while God expects you to endure a year to finish His will.  Note that the race is not a sprint, or how fast we go, but how we endure and how faithful we are--God isn't looking for our achievements or success, but our obedience!  As Mother Teresa of Calcutta (recipient of 1979 Nobel Peace Prize and now canonized) said, "God doesn't call us to success, but to faithfulness."

Christians are in an angelic conflict with the forces and authorities of darkness and the demonic realm, that we can only defeat by wearing the armor of God.  There is plenty of rewards to go around and share with the members of the kingdom of God, and it all belongs to God; we are just stewards of the blessings of God and are here to demonstrate our faithfulness and worthiness of eternal reward. Nothing in this life is permanent--we have spiritual green cards and are only passing through, as our real citizenship is in heaven (per Philippians 3:20).  We are stewards and God has leveled the playing field:  "The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof'  (cf. Psalm 24:1).

There is no caste system in the body of Christ, for we are all royalty and equally members one of another--having different gifts, but the same Spirit.  We are all on the same team as a family in Christ!  When one part is honored, the whole body is honored. We must be careful that we are not competing with God; He is on our side and when we join Him we cannot lose the battle--which we fight in the name of the Lord with the full armor of God described in Ephesians 6:12ff.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Called To Faithfulness

Mother Teresa of Calcutta (now canonized) said that God calls us to faithfulness, not success.  She didn't believe she was a success, I gather!  We are to be faithful and leave the results to God!  There are many ways to measure it (i.e., it has many dimensions and descriptions), but God promises us good success in doing the Lord's work if we are faithful.  They say that greed drives Wall Street, and we can be ambitious for all the wrong reasons like just trying to get ahead or keep up with the Joneses like it says in Jer. 45:5--blind ambition for power, fame, or fortune.  When we are zealous for the Lord, we will surely be blessed in all we do.

There is no such thing as a clerical calling versus a secular calling (there is neither Greek nor barbarian, slave nor free, nor any caste system in the brotherhood of saints--we are all one in Christ of the same body).  Though to be in the ministry is a calling, all Christians are called to a vocation (cf. John 3:27, (NLT).   When work is done as "unto the Lord" (cf. Col. 3:23; 1 Cor. 10:31), even if it is mundane or menial, we are still vessels of honor being used by God.  As Paul said, "I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me..." (Rom. 15:18, ESV).  Similarly, Isaiah 26:12 (NASB) says this:  "... Since You have also performed for us all our works."

When we realize this we get the right attitude and have spunk, and are not lackadaisical in the Lord's work, for Jeremiah pronounced a curse on all who do the Lord's work with slackness (cf. Jer. 48:10). Jesus stooped to wash the disciples' feet and this precedent of a servile act foot-washing is to be our attitude, too--nothing should be beneath us, i.e., below our dignity.  There is no stigma to working, even though the Greeks and Romans thought manual work was a curse and relegated it to some 60 million slaves living in the known world of antiquity.  But we choose our attitude:  Amaziah "did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, yet not with a whole heart" (cf. 2 Chr. 25:2, ESV).

Martin Luther brought dignity to work by preaching that all work can be done to the glory of God and this became the Protestant work ethic.  Brother Lawrence, a seventeenth-century monk who wrote The Practice of the Presence of God, showed how we can live all day long in fulfillment of pleasing God in all we do and abiding in Him.  It is important to find your calling in life, or what you have been gifted to do; for example, Eric Liddel, who was an Olympic star portrayed in the movie Chariots of Fire, said that God made him for a purpose and made him fast, and when he runs he "feels the pleasure of God."

We all have turf or domain that God has given uniquely to us and we will be held accountable for our talents, abilities, opportunities, resources, and gifts--we are just stewards of everything, including the time God has given us.   A person is never so rich that he can live a life of non-productivity and of undisciplined or unbridled leisure and luxury.  Amos denounced the life of ease and complacency in Zion and God, only rewards discipline and virtue, not living it up with reckless abandon and without respect.   God is not all work and no play and there will be leisure or downtime in heaven where "they shall sit each man under his vine and under his fig tree" and be prosperous in the kingdom of heaven according to Micah 4:4 (ESV; cf. Zech. 3:10).

Haggai was a prophet who, as a motivation expert, got results in rebuilding the temple.  The people needed to get their priorities right for God's blessing.  Hag. 2:4 (NASB) says, "... [And] work; for I am with you."  Yes, we are held to a higher standard and God wants our obedience, not our achievements.  St. Theresa said she wanted to build a convent and when asked what her resources were, she said only 12 pence. They told her that even St. Theresa couldn't build a convent with only 12 pence.  She replied that St. Theresa and God could!   Little is much when God is in it--what matters is God's blessing and favor on our endeavors.

We need to put all our work into a proper perspective and see it as "unto the Lord."  Three men cutting stones were asked what they were doing:  One was building a wall; one was earning a living, and one was building a cathedral.  Which one had a divine viewpoint and was properly motivated to do his best?  Nehemiah said that he couldn't come down because he was "doing a great work."  And he was glad that the people "had a mind to work."  (Cf. Neh. 6:3; 4:6, ESV). Nevertheless, he who is faithful in little shall be faithful in much, according to our Lord.

Being busy is not necessarily a virtue, because some are too busy for God.  When you're in the will of God, you're never to busy and there are no interruptions, only opportunities.  We want to redeem the time and make use of what God has granted us to His glory, and we must never develop the bad habits that lead to slothfulness or laziness, one of the "seven deadly sins" of Rome.  Malingering or avoiding duty is also laziness.  Solomon says, "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might (Eccl. 9:10).  And so we should always "seize the day [carpe diem]," make the most of our days, and should be" redeeming the time," because Sir Walter Scott was right:  "Time and tide wait for no man."  Time is fleeting and we will give account--we either waste our time, spend it, or invest it in kingdom work.
Soli Deo Gloria!

Keep The Faith!

"If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all." Isaiah 7:9

This phrase has little spiritual value unless one is talking about the Christian faith which was "once and for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3, ESV).  We are to remain in the faith that God has given us or we apostatize from it!  Ephesians 4:5 says there is "one Lord, one faith, one baptism" and we should realize this: "How shall we escape if we neglect such great salvation?..." (Heb. 2:3, ESV). Man's estimation of man is that he is basically good and perfectible as an evolving animal heading toward inevitable utopia. But God's estimation of man is that he is totally depraved and as bad off as he can be--note he is utterly depraved or as bad as he can be, and there's a difference.  Our condition couldn't be any worse; God's salvation couldn't be any better!

Paul's aim was to teach "until we all attain to the unity of the faith..." (Eph. 4:13, ESV).  The motto of the British monarch is to be FD or "Defender of the Faith"--however, Prince Charles wants it to be changed to "defender of faith."  This is a far cry from the truth because faith doesn't save, only Christ saves; it is the object that saves.  When someone says, "Have faith!"  it is meaningless unless it is grounded in the truth--faith for its own sake is vain.  Faith doesn't save, Christ does!  

Jude exhorts us to "contend for the faith" in Jude 3 and this means sticking up for what you believe in and not compromising with the devil. However, there are some things we are to be tolerant of and there are areas of gray and disputable matters:  Augustine's dictum says, "In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity."  Essential doctrines are non-negotiable and must be accepted universally to be saved.  We should always withhold judgment and only judge heresy to keep the doctrine of the church pure.

Paul was glad in his swan song (2 Tim. 4:7, ESV) that he said: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."   There is the danger of error even among believers:  "O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you.  Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called 'knowledge,' for by professing it some have swerved from the faith"  (1 Tim. 6:20-21, ESV). He urges him:  "Fight the good fight of the faith...." (1 Tim. 6:12, ESV).

We are to examine ourselves regularly whether our faith is sound:  "Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith.  Test yourselves, [as at the Lord's Supper (1 Cor. 11:28)].   Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?--unless indeed you fail to meet the test!"  (2 Cor. 13:5, ESV). We must be firm in the faith as our foundation:  "Rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as [we] were taught, abounding in thanksgiving"  (Col. 2:7, ESV).  There is always danger for a believer to go astray, as Paul warned in Col 1:23 (ESV):  "If indeed you continue in the faith...."  The Galatians were growing quite well until the leaven of legalism got into them and Paul wondered what happened.

The admonition that Peter gives in 2 Peter 2:1 (ESV) says, "But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction."  But there must be heresy to purify:  "For there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized" (1 Cor. 11:19, ESV). Remember that Jesus warned that before His coming there would be a great falling away of the faith and He asked if there would be faith on the earth (cf. Luke 18:8)

What faith are we stressing?  Mainly, our great salvation Reformed formula is "by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone," and also (the Five Onlys) to God alone be the glory, and by the authority of Scripture alone! The battle cry of the Reformation was, "Justification by faith alone!   Any perversion of this pure gospel that Scripture teaches is heresy and must be denounced!  Paul was "astonished that [they] are so quickly deserting him who called [them] in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel--not that there is one, but there are some who trouble [them] and want to distort the gospel of Christ." 

But even if [he] or an angel from heaven should preach to [them] a gospel contrary to the one [he] preached to [them], let him be accursed" (Gal. 1:6-8, ESV).  We dare not introduce the merits of man, nor works into the equation.  We must put our faith in Christ alone, not in the church, the clergy, the saints, angels, Mary, nor the Pope--they cannot save!   Soli Deo Gloria!

You Gotta Have Faith

You cannot have saving faith and keep it to yourself as if you're in God's secret service.  Romans 10:9 says we must confess Jesus as Lord.  James says in James 2:20 that faith without works is dead--dead faith cannot save (likewise, works without faith or done in the flesh cannot save per Isaiah 64:6).  Bona fide faith expresses itself in the real world of one's circle of influence. Furthermore, you cannot have saving faith without genuine obedience as Dietrich Bonhoeffer said in his dictum:  "Only he who believes is obedient, only he who is obedient believes."  As "a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith," (cf. Acts 6:7, ESV) so must we. You can distinguish them, but not separate them, because they go hand in hand and cooperate with each other.

The faith you have is the faith you show, because actions can, and usually, do, speak louder than words.  It has been said that faith isn't something you have, but something you do!  Faith has legs and is an action-implying word.  Because it is an abstract idea it needs to be illustrated and the whole chapter of Hebrews 11 is devoted to this to give us the idea, to follow in the steps of the heroes of the faith--like Abraham who ventured out in faith, not knowing where he was going.  He validated his faith and transformed it into a testimony and example for all of us as the father of all who has faith. Faith and action are interrelated and go hand in hand.

The measure of one's spirituality is not his emotions, ecstasies, experiences, or achievements, but his obedience.  However, we are not made right with God or saved by what we do, but by what we believe in the heart.  We are not saved by works, in other words, but unto works.  We are not saved by works, and not without them either, as the formula of the Reformers says:  "We are saved by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone."  

Works are no substitute for faith, but only evidence of it.  Paul and James complimented each other in their viewpoints and outlook: Paul would say, "I'll show you my works by my faith;"  and James would say, "I'll show you my faith by my works." We must translate our creeds into deeds.  Galatians 5:6 (NIV) says that "the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love"--we're judged by our works, not our faith.  Judge yourself by the amount of faith God has allotted you (Rom. 12:3).

The only true standard to measure faith by is obedience. Faith inevitably and invariably expresses itself.  Samuel said to Saul that "to obey is better than sacrifice [going through the motions of ritual]." Jesus became the "source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him" (cf. Hebrews 5:9, ESV). Lordship salvation connotes obedience and aligning your ways with God's will and getting with the program.

Faith starts with comprehension and understanding, moves on to acceptance, and progresses to trust. It involves knowledge of right doctrine (i.e., not heresy, but orthodox teaching), assent and agreement to it, and trust and devotion to it in faithfulness (faith and faithfulness are interrelated too).  We must believe with our whole being: Our hearts, minds, and wills, which implies submission to His will and loving Jesus with our heart and knowing Him with our minds. It isn't the amount of faith that saves, but the object of it--faith doesn't save, Christ does!

Faith is not being credulous or lending credence to something for no reason--faith doesn't believe despite the evidence but in spite of the consequences.  We have sound reasons to believe; we can even put our doubts aside and believe anyway because we don't need all the answers to take the leap of faith.  We can pray, "Lord I believe, help thou mine unbelief!" (Cf. Mark 9:24).  Faith is simple, not simplistic, childlike, not childish, they say,  Saving faith involves sincerity, loyalty, love, worship, faithfulness, and repentance.  

God doesn't ask us to believe for no sound reason or against the evidence.  It is based on historical, verifiable fact and compelling circumstantial evidence, not myth, hearsay, or fable.  God gives us a preponderance of the evidence which dictates faith.  Faith is not blind but the cure for it! People of faith have not kissed their brains goodbye, but their faith is defensible on the open marketplace of ideas.

Faith is the instrument means of salvation, it is not salvation--we don't put faith in faith and think that just having faith is the key, regardless of content, object, or sincerity.  We believe in our hearts because Jesus said they were "slow of heart to believe."  It is not head belief, in other words, but the heart of the matter is that it's a matter of the heart.  Faith is trust in the abstract and invisible, not tangible and visible.  

Faith without works is dead faith, and that kind of faith does not lead to salvation according to James. Even the demons believe in God, so there is a difference between believing in God and believing God. The Reformed formula of salvation is thus:  Saved by grace alone [no merit], by faith alone [not works], in Christ alone [not self-effort].  We rely on the Scripture alone as our authority in this and this all means that all the glory goes to God.

The flip side of faith is repentance (they go hand in hand and can be distinguished, but not separated, which means you cannot have saving faith if you don't repent and vice versa--repentance is also by the grace of God (cf. Acts 5:31; 11:18; 2 Tim. 2:25). There is no impenitent faith or genuine repentance without saving faith--they go hand in hand and can be distinguished, but not separated. 

What is a penitent heart but a turnaround from the inside out, an about-face, a U-turn, a 180-degree turn, coming clean, and owning up to your sin by turning from it towards God in faith; note that repentance is progressive and on-going just like our faith is, as we progress from faith to faith.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Secure In Who You Are

We all know who we are supposed to be in Christ as a body:  We are a holy nation, a peculiar people, a royal priesthood, a chosen race, and a people for His own possession (cf. 1 Pet. 2:9).  However, we are individual members one of another with our own peculiar gift and identity in the Lord.  It is vital to find out who we are in the Lord ourselves and where we fit in, and not try to be all things to all people.  We go astray when we compare ourselves with others or commend ourselves with one another (2 Cor. 10:12).   Like one saying: "Compared to him I'm a saint!" or "I just can't compete with Mother Teresa!" The compare game is a no-win proposition.

We all like to size people up and put them in a box and see what they are capable of.  Caveat:  Don't belittle someone's gift (remember that to whom much is given much is required and your race is different from theirs) and worst of all, don't exalt someone and be fooled by charisma (Greek for gift), for many cult leaders have displayed great personalities and are therefore able to lead many astray. These are wolves in sheep's clothing and charlatans to boot.

We celebrate diversity in the body, as the eye needing the ear, we all have different functions in the body and are all necessary to get the body going on track.  You cannot expect someone to have the same passion for music as one gifted in this area and feels called to have a music ministry. Likewise, some people feel the passion of God when writing and this cannot be expected as normative.  Eric Liddell, in the movie Chariots of  Fire, said that he felt God's pleasure when running and realized this is what he was meant to do.  We need to find our own passions and develop them and not try to keep up with the Jones, spiritually speaking.  I used to go to a church that had a member who always said "amen" to everything the pastor said, and we called him Amen Eddy--but he was just being himself and we loved him for it, we didn't feel compelled to copy his behavior. To be sure, we are all unique and God threw away the mold when He made us!

There is such a thing known as gift envy when we wish we had someone else's gift or position in the church.  We are prone to worry that we fall short when we get our eyes off Jesus and unto others--Peter sank in the water when he took his eyes off Jesus!  There is no gift more important than another per se, but rather the spirit that the person exercises it in, and the faithfulness he demonstrates that brings reward from the Lord at the Bema  (Judgment Seat of Christ).  We want to hear Jesus say, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."

There is no "one-size-fits-all" way to worship God, as some are more demonstrative and some stoical and feel inclined to be reverent and respectful of the presence of others, not presuming to be the spiritual leader.  Some people naturally follow and some lead but we are all one in Christ--neither is more "spiritual."  It is not a matter of "inhibition" whether one feels free to express his praise, but sometimes just a matter of church background--for instance, Pentecostals are known for being unruly and free-spirited.  Those of this persuasion think that is the only "spiritual" way to be in church.  I disagree with Pentecostal-type worship on doctrinal grounds, having been there and done that, I know where they are coming from.  The intellectual loves God more with his mind and the sentimental person may wear his feelings on his sleeve.  It is too easy to rely on feelings, and let others run the show in chaos or in an unruly manner.  It is faith, not feelings that pleases God.

I, personally, am suspicious of charismatic excess, and anything that is not decent and in order as being a sign of disrespect to others.  There are plenty of churches where this is welcome.  We go to church to worship God, be edified, and get a spiritual checkup--but they are going nowhere edification-wise in the Spirit.  We should worship God in any way that seems fit or suitable--that's why there are so many denominations.  We all have our own ideas as to what is right and what is suspicious, foreign, or "strange fire" before the Lord.

The other error is gift projection, where we think everyone should be like us and imitate our gift or way of worship.  We cannot expect others to have our gift or to measure up to our standards, but we must see that we all are part of the picture and fit into God's plan in a unique way. We are not to hold someone in special esteem as our exemplar, except Christ, who alone is worthy--we are to look to Him and keep our eyes focused on the Author and Finisher of our faith.  When we expect others to be like us or like a person we respect we are presuming to be the spiritual leaders and have spiritual ambitions that as an ulterior motive.  

Besides bringing honor to the Lord, we want to get some attention for ourselves. We shouldn't expect others to meet our standards and expectations, nor should we point others out as the one to follow and bring him into the limelight, especially if he desires to keep a low profile; but let the Holy Spirit lead through multiple people.  The Holy Spirit, Himself, is not interested in attracting attention, but only in magnifying and glorifying the Lord.

Don't get into a worship rut and be confined to one way to worship.  Don't think that your church is right and everyone else just doesn't get it. Some people are caregivers and love God through meeting the needs of others.  Some are born singers and just love to sing unto the Lord all day long--it thrives in their souls.  Some people are social activists and like to get involved in political or social causes and see this as serving and loving God.  Catholics and Lutherans are highly traditional and show their love for God through a devotion to ritual.  The point is that you must learn to be yourself and not imitate others or envy what God does through them.  God is looking for real people, not ideal people and especially not people thinking they are ideal people--no perfect people need apply!

We don't want to "betray" someone as the de facto spiritual leader ("You're the man!"), and put them under pressure.  The devil sure would like to see who we see as a leader and tempt him or use him. It can go to one's head!   It is vital that we notice when someone is exalting themselves or presuming upon themselves a position of authority or leadership--the way up is down and we must heed John the Baptist's words:  "He must increase, I must decrease" in John 3:30.  The way up is down in God's economy.  

Before honor comes humility and also we should know that the wolf in sheep's clothing always tries to get in some other way than a legitimate way, and likes the back door or a side door that is not the conventional way--he recognizes no chain of command or authorized leadership but his own, and doesn't understand authority.  Soli Deo Gloria!