Finding Your Voice - Direction

Your Directional Voice – Who’s your audience? 

WHY AM I HERE?  WHAT IS MY PURPOSE?  WHAT MUST I DO?

God had invited Israel to the wedding and then He sent the bridegroom …Jesus.  In Matthew 22:1-8 we can see what Israel’s response was and what God’s response to them was.  While we know from Romans 11 that this was not a permanent state of grace for Israel (they had been in the penalty box many times before), it did open up the door for the gentiles.  Many Christian apologists believe we have taken Israel’s place and cast their future into Hell but it can be proved in scripture that Israel does indeed have a future in God.  My purpose here however is to discover OUR future and OUR responsibilities as Christians.

Beginning in verse 9 of Matthew 22 we read, “Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage. 10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.

Here is the reason we Gentiles were received into the kingdom of Heaven.  God the Father, wanting to honor His Son with a large and extravagant wedding, invited EVERYONE to the wedding.  Everyone was compelled to enter into the wedding hall, both good and bad.  Everyone was offered a free wedding garment of righteousness and was encouraged to put it on.  Many did but a few did not.  The righteousness had been paid for and the hall was full.

Matthew 22:11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: 12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. 13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen.

Why do you suppose that some of the wedding guests did not have on their wedding garment?  They were paid for, provided free of charge.  This particular man sat there in the wedding chapel clothed in his own moth eaten, polluted foul smelling garments when the King came through to see if all was ready for His Son’s big day.  First we see that God called him FRIEND.  The Greek word means comrade, partner, dear friend.  The King had not withheld his love or concern for this man; had provided the proper clothing and sat him in a seat of honor.  In response this man disdained the clothing and arrived at the wedding unwashed, uncovered and ultimately…undone. 

Verse 12 says the man couldn’t even answer.  Have you ever met someone who argued about EVERYTHING.  Even when they knew they were wrong they would argue, unwilling to admit their mistakes.  Verse 12 shows us something extremely important.  If we have not partaken of the gift of God and put on Christ’s righteousness and accepted His sacrifice, there will be no arguing or debating between us and God.  Your mouth will be closed and speechless in this circumstance.  There will be no arguments because NO ONE will dare argue with God on that day.  It’s rather like the day after the rapture when those who thought they knew God but didn’t, looked up and wept.

Verse 13 makes God’s serious attitude toward righteousness perfectly clear.  God said unto the angels, “Bind this man hand and foot.  Carry him away from this place of honor, love and joy and cast him into outer darkness.  He will know nothing after this but weeping and gnashing of teeth.  Verse 14 says, “Because many are called, but few are chosen.” 

If you are one of the chosen it is not only because of God’s call, but because of YOUR obedience and YOUR surrender to God’s will.  When God first calls your name, you might not know how to live in Christ; might not know what is expected of you, but if you are willing to surrender your future for His, God will qualify you precept by precept until you are fully clothed in your perfect wedding garments.  The man in verse 11 above was not cast into outer darkness because he didn’t have the same opportunities as everyone else.  He was cast away for refusing the free gift and promises of God.  He was cast away for disobedience to God’s Word and the heavenly calling.

One thing you could say about Saul of Tarsus is that he was a man of faith and conviction.  He fully believed in God’s holy Torah.  He was flawless in his obedience to it.  He knew he was a Pharisee of the Pharisees until he met the man called Jesus on the road to Damascus.  Blinded by our Lord he was forced to reconsider all his beliefs and to his credit was willing to change to serve the risen Savior.  Paul did not have to throw away his faith in God.  He simply discovered that he was incorrect in his doctrine and chose to bring it in line with the Eternal Lord.  He was one of the few Pharisees who would do so and certainly the most open about it.

One of the most important things to keep in mind when you are seeking God’s will is that your opinions and plans may not be in keeping with God’s.  Paul was a Pharisee.  He spoke their language and understood their rules and laws.  After Jesus explained all the connections revealing Him in the Tanakh, the Old Testament, Paul thought he would be the perfect choice to witness to the priesthood and the Jewish people.  He was wrong.

Acts 22:17-21 “When I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance 18 and saw him saying to me, ‘Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’ 19 And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that in one synagogue after another I imprisoned and beat those who believed in you. 20 And when the blood of Stephen your witness was being shed, I myself was standing by and approving and watching over the garments of those who killed him. ’ And he said to me, 21 ‘Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.

Notice that Jesus did not say, “Well, give it a month or two and let’s see what happens.”  He said, “Move it!  Get out of town NOW!”  Paul like many of us felt led to disagree with Him.  God never explained WHY they would not receive Paul.  He simply reiterated His first statement, “GO!  I am sending you FAR AWAY to the Gentiles.”  It was at this moment that Paul blew Jonah’s example out of the water. 

God told Jonah to go to Nineveh and tell them He was going to destroy the city in 40 days.  After running away and being dragged back by a fish he grudgingly did as he was told.  His witnessing technique was kind of like, “Hey scumbag Ninevites!  In 40 days you get yours so burn in hell!”  I don’t recommend that you adopt his technique but from the king on the throne to the donkey in the stable the entire kingdom put on sackcloth and ashes and repented so sincerely that God gave them 100 more years.  Perhaps it was because Jonah was bleached completely white and covered in seaweed but it worked.  This of course irritated Jonah who sulked for days about the grace and mercy of God and argued with God over whether or not he had a right to be angry.  Jonah chapters 2-4.

It is much better to go where God sends you with a good will than grudgingly and of necessity (2 Corinthians 9:7).  If you are a cheerful and giving witness you will be able to walk in all of God’s grace (v. 8-12). 

Ephesians 3:1 For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— 

Whether Paul wanted to witness or not is irrelevant.  His attitude in Ephesians 3:1 was, “I am a prisoner of Jesus and I will do what I must to get you people saved.  Woe unto me if I preach not this gospel of Christ to you (1 Corinthians 9:16-27).  Verse 27 is one of the most important of the Bible.  Paul could have remained in Jerusalem.  God is unlikely to have sent angels to drag him to Ephesus and Corinth.  Well, I don’t think He would have anyway.  The point is that Paul wanted to please God.  He took all his own passions and loves and desires and made them all subordinate to God. 

Like Jesus and Peter he wanted to hear God say tetelestai, it is finished.  He wanted to hear God say, “Well done thou good and faithful servant.  So do we.  We all long to say, “I did it God!  I did what you asked!”  What passions and loves and desires are you willing to put second or even third behind God’s will.  In the case of flexible morals in the world today, it isn’t that one sin is any worse than the others (usually), but that God has called it sin.  He is the final judge and arbiter and we will answer to Him. 

Since we are all depending on God to finally say, “Well done,” we need to make sure we have obeyed His voice and His purpose in our lives.  To discover what our voice is we need to pray and seek His face.

·      Jesus directional voice was the salvation of all mankind.

·      Paul’s directional voice was the salvation of gentiles.

·      Peter’s directional voice was the salvation of the Jews.

Your directional voice is to:

Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths.”

Do you know His voice?  Have you prayed, fasted, studied His word and obeyed His unctions enough that you are able to say, “Speak Lord, thy servant heareth (1 Samuel 3:9-10)?”  Once you do, even others will begin to understand God’s leading in your life.

Galatians 2:7-9 AMP But on the contrary, when they really saw that I had been entrusted to carry the Gospel to the uncircumcised Gentiles, just as definitely as Peter had been entrusted to proclaim the Gospel to the circumcised Jews, they were agreeable;

 For He Who motivated and fitted Peter and worked effectively through him for the mission to the circumcised, motivated and fitted me and worked through me also for the mission to the Gentiles.

 And when they knew perceived, recognized, understood, and acknowledged the grace God’s unmerited favor and spiritual blessing that had been bestowed upon me, James and Cephas Peter and John, who were reputed to be pillars of the Jerusalem church, gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, with the understanding that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised Jews.

Whether someone accepts your call or not, as long as your spirit and God’s Word agree and God is making a way to accomplish it, rejoice in the work.  Not everyone will agree but some will and perhaps help you along your way. 

Finding Your Voice - Doctrine

Your Doctrinal Voice – What is your message?

Hebrew – leqah – Something Received – Old Testament doctrine is not a work of man’s wisdom but something received from God directly, placed in the hearts and minds of those He has chosen.

Moses was a unique individual in Bible history.  God Himself said that there would never come a prophet of His stature who God would speak face to face and breath to breath (Numbers 12:1-8).  He said he would only give the prophets a vision or a dream but Moses was special.  God presented him with the Torah which means the opposite of sin.  Sin means missing the mark.  The root of Torah is yareh which is an archery term and means to HIT THE MARK.  We already know that God’s scripture is inspired BY GOD. 

John 17:17 says, “Sanctify them through thy truth:  thy Word is truth.”  I am perfectly willing to hang my life upon the Hebrew and Greek texts of our holy scripture.  It cannot be proven wrong.  Jesus came to bring us life, light, peace and truth.  Either He was the biggest psychotic around or He truly was the Son of God.  He clearly and personally said, “I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE:  NO MAN COMES TO THE FATHER BUT BY ME.”  That is a pretty clear declaration which requires one to decide, “Do I believe Him?” 

The reason I have explained all this is because if you do not believe the Torah, it makes the New Testament somewhat anemic.  Every single New Testament author built their doctrine and lessons upon the Hebrew Scriptures as revealed directly by Jesus.  This even included Paul who was taught by Jesus while in seclusion.  They took the Hebrew Scriptures as the authoritative Word of God and taught what that means to us born again Christians.  The New Testament is the…

Greek – didache – Something Taught – New Testament doctrine is taught by anointed men of God who stand and teach from the foundation of Old Testament doctrine as revealed by Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

That’s right, the Greek New Testament is something TAUGHT.  The Apostles received it from Jesus personally, not as some new and never before given Word, but a newly revealed depth to the Old Testament Hebrew scriptures that was hidden by God.  Psalm 51:6 says, “Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.”  Other writers (Isaiah 48, Obadiah 1, 1 Corinthians 2:7, Revelation 2:17) have spoken about the hidden truths in scripture.  Paul and Jesus made sure we knew that the book was closed and if revelation comes it will come through what we have already received and will line up with it perfectly.  I write about this later in this lesson but it should be understood that doctrine is FIXED.  God is not doing a new thing unless it is a repeat of an old thing.  Jews understand prophecy to be pattern more than prediction.  If it brings a remez to an earlier scripture then it may well come from God but the remez must be accurate and not a doctrinal change.

The only one to speak about a new commandment was Jesus in John 13:34 where He didn’t really create a new commandment but stated that we should love one another AS HE LOVES US. 

Because New Testament doctrine is something taught it is open to interpretation by those who do not have a strong measure of the Spirit of God.  This is a problem.  I have actually heard of churches in America who say they will take the Homosexual issue under advisement and take a wait and see what God does about it attitude.  Really?  A group whose lifestyle along with IV drug users has brought us AIDS and then politicized it so we dare not speak against their lifestyle?  One pastor of a church recently removed from fellowship with the Southern Baptists feels he made the right decision to marry gays and support homosexuality after prayer, reflection of scripture and discovering his son was gay.  That final fact seems to have made up his mind. 

I hold no hatred in my heart for homosexuals.  I have known those who live that lifestyle and while I do not approve of it from a Biblical doctrinal standpoint, they have been good and decent people.  They have also decided to live a lifestyle that has existed almost as long as mankind which God has declared to be an abomination.  I can love and pray for them and do all I can to win them to the Lord…but…  They must understand their lifestyle is unacceptable to God.  This is sometimes hard and difficult to deal with, especially if someone close to you is in that lifestyle.  God never changes.  If He called it an abomination in the Hebrew scriptures and spoke against it in Christian verses then it is unacceptable.  No man, no matter how honorable or virtuous sounding, can change the mind of God.

Deuteronomy 27:17 says, “A curse on anyone who moves his neighbor's boundary marker.’ All the people are to say, ‘Amen!’”

Doctrine is all about BOUNDARIES.  Christ came that we might have life more abundantly (John 10:10).  That more abundant life comes with some requirements and commandments on our part.  I have heard any number of people say, “Christ has freed us from the curse of the law! (Galatians 3:13)” which to them means that they can do what they want since the ‘law’ is made void.  This is not correct.  Christ has redeemed them from the curse of death for sin which the law could not do.  The law told them what sin was and they were expected to live by the law.  Christ came so they could heap that sin upon Him if they accidentally stumbled and sinned.  This does not cover willfully and purposefully living against God’s commandments.

Romans 6 talks about this in detail.  It goes on to explain that we are baptized into His DEATH and our bodies are to be kept in subjection to the Word of God as dead things which cannot rule and reign over us.  I am purposefully fasting right now in preparation to preaching Sunday because I know my flesh is way too talkative and full of itself if I don’t.  Everyone, preachers, teachers, prophets, sinners, evangelists, pastors…everyone lives in a body of conflicting desires and passions.  We would run around like a bunch of murdering, lying, thieving, loveless terrorists if we allowed our bodies to rule us.

Doctrine is the wall, the fence that says, “This far and no further.”  Doctrine tells us what is allowed and what is not.  Doctrine MUST be according to God’s Word.  One of the things that got the priests of Israel in trouble was that they Midrashed (created oral traditions) the 613 laws of the Torah into an insane number of pseudo-laws and doctrines of man until the average man on the street didn’t know if he was coming or going. 

The Torah, the Old Testament is God’s boundary marker.  He has placed boundaries for our lives.  When we choose to move those boundary markers by calling scripture sin and sin scripture then we are cursed.  You think those Old Testament laws are canceled but Christ Himself said, “I come not to destroy the law but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17).”  With the exception of dietary restrictions, avoiding dead bodies (of which I am personally in favor), and the like, and a few specified holy days, God’s holy scriptures remain intact. 

Even many of the dietary and sanitary restrictions that the Jews have been observing for more than 4000 years have produced beneficial results.  Are you aware that during the dark ages when disease killed almost half of Europe, the Jews death toll was almost non-existent.  It was so apparent that many accused the Jews of poisoning the people around them when they simply followed the dietary and sanitary rules given in the Torah.  That doctrine, which many Christians mock and ignore, saved them from some of the worse diseases in history.

Go to Genesis 3:1-7

Adam and Eve moved one of God’s boundary markers in Eden.  God was quite specific.  Every fruit in the garden is yours to eat…except one.  The fruit was not poisonous.  It was not bad tasting.  It was not ugly.  It was simply forbidden.  God’s promise was that on the day they ate of that fruit they would surely die. 

…and they did.

Adam and Eve lost much more than eternal life when they sinned against God.  Their bodies no longer functioned perfectly and their spirits were no longer connected to God’s  They spiritually died at that very moment and physically began to die right then.  Look at the example of the temptation that caused Eve to stumble and Adam to sin and ask yourself, “Is this happening in the world today?”

Coming to Eve who was younger and not yet as well taught as Adam, Satan said, “Has God really said you can’t eat it?” 

Sound familiar?  Has God truly said homosexuality is wrong?  Has God said you should tithe?  Has God said you should love your irritating neighbor?  Has God said you can’t get drunk?  Has God said you have to be polite and gracious?  Has God said you must be faithful to your wife? 

Feel free to add your own questions here.  Haven’t you heard these questions from the world and even the church today?  Eve was confused in her doctrine and said, “We can’t eat it or even touch it.”  Let’s go back and look at what God said in Genesis 2:16-17.

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Does it say anywhere in those verses that you may not TOUCH the tree or its fruit?  No.  Now, understand that Eve came after God commanded Adam to leave the tree’s fruit alone.  This meant that Adam had to tell her what was allowed and what was not.  Did Adam tell her not to eat of it or even touch it?  Did she increase the restrictions herself and decide she couldn’t touch it.  The reason this is important is because either Adam or Eve CHANGED GOD’S WORD!  They moved God’s boundary marker. 

God had placed His boundary marker on the “do not eat” line and they moved it way over to the “do not eat or even touch” line.  You might say, “so what?  It’s just strengthening God’s commandment.  This way they would be sure to keep out of sin.”  This premise is incorrect.  By making the command more onerous and difficult you make it more likely that someone will tire of keeping the commandment.  You could tie a ribbon around the trunk of the tree and happily wander around the garden eating anything else, or you might feel you have inadvertently sinned by brushing up against the tree so let’s just eat some.  We humans coined the phrase, “May as well be cursed for a sheep as for a lamb,” which means if you’re going to steal and eat a little lamb, you might as well take a full grown sheep and really enjoy it.”

Genesis 3:5 - Satan’s next tactic was to make her think God was keeping something important from them.  He practically said, “God is cheating you out of your future.”

This started Mary thinking, “I would like being smarter and more important.  I want my husband to be wiser too.  We could both be wise as God!  Yeah!  He’s trying to keep us down, like animals on his little Eden farm.  Yeah!  I’m going to eat it.  Workers of the world arise!!!”

Am I over the top here?  Look at the world today and the things people will kill and murder over.  Am I really over the top?  I don’t think so.  And what happened after she ate it and talked her husband into eating it?  The absolute first brilliant and blinding bit of wisdom they received was, “We’re naked.”  Wow!  Understanding of nakedness is a mark of the pollution of sin.  Without sin, nakedness is not an issue.  They didn’t learn anything to make their lives better or to improve the flawless functioning of the garden.  They discovered they were naked.  Great insight.  They also failed God and destroyed the trust He had in them.  It doesn’t matter that He knew they would mess up.  He had to give them a choice.  He didn’t want slaves, even Satan / Lucifer, had a choice.  Heaven must have grieved that day.

And of course Satan won that battle.

DOCTRINE IS IMPORTANT!  DOCTRINE PROTECTS LIVES! 

Doctrine DOES NOT swell with importance and begin to multiply itself until it makes someone crazy.  We do that to ourselves.

The prophetic New Testament is Christ’s boundary marker and the very same curse applies.  Revelation 22:18-19 says, “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.”

In Galatians Paul says almost the same thing.

Galatians 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: 7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

Doctrine brings a moment of clarity in a difficult and changing world.

Deuteronomy 32:1 Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. 2 My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass:

Doctrine educates and nurtures us as dear children.  It does not abuse us with impossible tasks and rules.

Proverbs 4:1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding. 2 For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.

Doctrine is not poured into us all at once.  It is built up bit by bit and we are able to speed the process or slow it down depending upon how attentive we are to God’s Word.  The opposite is also true.  Doctrine can be torn down commandment by commandment until we become like those during the time of the Judges when, “everyone did what was right in their OWN eyes.”  When God’s doctrine dies, so do His protections and so does the nation.

Notice in the verses below that doctrine is supposed to bring us rest.  You don’t have to wonder what to do in a situation, you will know.  Others (sinners) will argue with you and disagree even though they have no standards of their own, but you will stand upon God’s doctrine and it will sustain you because all the authority of our Lord is behind it.  Verse 13 describes those who spurn God’s doctrine.

Isaiah 28:9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. 10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little: 11 For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. 12 To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. 13 But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

I don’t want to belabor this so I will leave you with one last truth. 

Matthew 7:24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. 28 And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: 29 For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

Jesus IS the one with authority.  Scripture IS the one with authority.  Not pastors, teachers, prophets or apostles.  If they do not present Christ (scripture) to you unpolluted and unchanged then do not follow their examples.  If our scripture is not true and honest and perfect then our faith is nothing. 

Obey God’s Word as perfectly as you are able.

Choices, Choices, Choices

1 John 2:12 I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.  13 I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one.

I write unto you babes in Christ because you must know your sins are forgiven.  I write unto you father’s in the faith because you have known the Torah and the grace of God and you knew the Lord when He came.  I write unto you young men, because with all your strength and passions and zest for life you have overcome the temptations of Satan and have embraced the Lord of Hosts and have used your great strength in His service.

In every generation there is a temptation, a blessing and a fulfilled need in your life.  God’s love is absolutely awesome and full of power and ability to both keep us and change us.  We must understand and embrace each generation so they might fulfill their purpose in Christ Jesus.  Far too many have either failed to fulfill their purpose or have become a pale shadow of that purpose.  In many churches we do not acknowledge the call of our children until they are in their late twenties or even thirties.  I am not talking about the cute praise dancing or children’s choir.  I am talking about actual ministry where we teach them God’s Word daily and prepare them for life in Christ.  How can we reduce their ministry before God to a ‘seen but not heard’ status when Christ Himself preached and taught the Sanhedrin at the age of twelve. 

At my age I am supposed to be the voice of reason and wisdom.  My experiences are supposed to be available to the youth so they do not choose the wrong paths but my other  purpose is to encourage them to venture out in ever increasing acts of faith and ministry.  My job is not to hold them back from growing up in Christ until they become frustrated and abandon their faith or the ministry before they even begin.  When I was a young man of 21 or 22, Apostle Sims had me prophesy to seasoned ministers.  I should have begun even earlier but that is when I came to the Lord.  He never held us back and afforded us opportunities to minister whenever possible.  Because of this we knew we were immature in some areas (nothing like having a seasoned prophet say, “Keep at it son, you’ll get it one day.) but bit by bit we were ushered into responsibility and purpose. 

1 John 2:14 I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father. I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.

A child raised in a godly and loving home has a deeper understanding of God than any abused and wounded child.  Frederick Douglas once said, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.”  It is wonderful to win the abused and beaten of the world to the Lord but how much better to raise our children in the nurture and admonition of His love.  When they have been raised in love and grace they will truly understand their heavenly Father. 

Fathers who love God have learned who He is through years of experience and love.  They know His moods and desires.  We can speak a word of truth that will change the course of lives because we truly have learned to know the Father.  Father’s provide continuity as God our Father is the truly continuous one.  He is forever and will never change.  We have (supposedly) come to know Him and are passing that along to our children.  Once again this scripture says that the young men are strong.  They have their vitality and power and they are full of life.  They have overcome the evil one by strength of character and the DUNAMIS power of God.  They are no longer children who are tossed to and fro.  They are young vibrant adults who have overcome the enemy through their knowledge of God’s Word and are ready to join the community of believers in that fight.

1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

I have often watched groups like the Sierra club and Earth First who would love to kill off three quarters of the human race in order to protect this planet.  My earthly father always told me to leave a place cleaner and better than I found it.  I have no problem with conservation and protecting what God has given us but at the same time I recognize that this Earth will one day burn up in flames and violence and there will be a new heaven and a new earth.  This planet like everything and everyone on it, is subject to the bondage of decay (Romans 8:21).  The truth is, the Earth was created for man; not the other way around.

The word for WORLD is kosmos and means the orderly arrangement of all things.  Why should God have any problem with the orderly arrangement that He set in motion in the first place.  Perhaps the answer is that we have become infatuated with the creature rather than the creator who is blessed forever (Romans 1:25).  God will not allow anyone or anything receive more worship than He does, certainly not the planet He created to be our home.  Many nations on Earth are cursed because they have removed God from His rightful place and have exchanged Him for trees and mountains and four legged animals.  They worship nature or an idea or a purpose above the very God who gave us minds able to comprehend these ideas.

Whoever loves this world we live on more than those who live on it has already left God and His purpose for this planet.  His purpose was that you might have more abundant eternal life through His son, Christ Jesus.  Elizabeth Falls in Africa are absolutely beautiful.  The Grand Canyon in Nevada is awe inspiring.  When you look upon this Earth that God has created for us you can’t help but see His love for beauty and joy in creation.  The golden oil rich sands of Arabia are filled with strife and war.  They have enough wealth to meet any need and turn the Middle East into a flourishing garden but God’s judgment against them keeps them bickering and battling because they have left their first love.  The beauty of North Korea is tainted by suspicion, poverty and distrust because they have left their first love.  South Korea is a shining light of Christian love and a vibrant economy.  The only difference between them is God’s love and grace. 

There are good and terrible reasons to carefully watch every corner of the earth but only one perfect one.  God said, “Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.” 

1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

I was at a department store the other day looking for a Birthday Card.  In one particular section the cards were all about being proud of who you are.  As I read one after the other I realize  that my simple desire to choose a HAPPY birthday greeting was being changed and twisted by the spirit of pride.  As Christians we are supposed to be aware that whatever we are is because of God’s grace and love.  I can be proud of my God and be happy and blessed that He chose me but what RIGHT or REASON do I have to be proud of this bag of bones I call flesh?

The verse above says that lust of the flesh and lust of the eyes and pride of life is ALL that is in the world.  That means that when a preacher sounds like a motivational speaker and tells you how you deserve happiness and you are a terrific person, he has allowed the spirit of the world to enter his message and corrupt it.  The truth is that God has promised you more abundant life and to make you more like the Him each day because of HIS love and HIS grace and HIS mercy. 

GOD has much to be proud of. 

Lust of the eyes and lust of the flesh can be about that new car, new home or expensive watch just as it might refer to your desire for sexual fulfillment.  You may be tall or short, thin or fat, smart or not so smart, but all those attributes reflect who you are in God and are not anything YOU have provided.  I have Attention Deficit Disorder or ADD.  I have often wondered why God ‘made me thus.’  I’m not a genius but I do have a reasonably comfortable IQ.  As for looks, as long as I am comfortable with them I can look in the mirror and say, “You are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:13-18).”  I am precious in God’s eyes.  That Psalm I just quoted ends by saying, “marvelous are your works Lord.”  I didn’t make myself.  God did.  Should I be proud that I was made black, white or brown, male or female when I had nothing to do with it? 

If mankind could choose to bear a boy or girl, if we develop this scientific ability, then we will begin to believe we are gods.  In many countries those parents would chose to have nothing but boys because a girl is looked down upon.  In twenty years those boys will look around for their soul mates and find nothing because of their parent’s short sighted prejudices.  We neuter men and masculinize women and wonder why they choose themselves to love.  A masculine man and feminine man make a family together and since they cannot bear children they adopt on of the many left without families because of wars or famine.  This so called love is borne out of deliberate disobedience to God.  The women who find each other say, “We are women, we can bear children.”  They go to a fertility clinic and purchase seed or find a good male friend who is willing to ‘help them out’ and get them pregnant and call this love, yet another deliberate disobedience to God.

As a man I may find thousands of women attractive.  I have no emotional attachment to any of them, but if my wife and I have NOT maintained a healthy emotional, spiritual and loving relationship with one another, that very attractiveness can become lust of the eyes or lust of the flesh.  It is this vital and necessary love, both agape and phileo, that allows us to marry and nurture and raise a family together when age and time cause the eros of the relationship to fade.  God has forbidden certain relationships for our own good.  Like accepted relationships they may contain selfless love, friendship love and passionate love but they are nonetheless forbidden. 

God has said, “These are my rules.  I do not make them because they are unimportant or of no consequence but because they are important and have grave consequences.  The consequences may be hidden to you but trust ME, I know best.  Your obedience may not always be the most pleasurable choice at first, but eventually your flesh will come into agreement with your spirit and My Spirit.” 

You ask yourself why you should deny yourself these passions, these relationships?  Verse 17.

1 John 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

God has not said that you cannot have passion or comfort or love.  He has not denied you any GOOD thing; He is simply the one who determines what is good and holy and right.  You do not have to obey Him.  The word abideth above (meno) means to stand, to remain, to endure, to maintain.  The word ever (alon) means world without end, eternal, beyond time.  We know that those who disobey and forsake God are doomed to spend eternity in Hell and we know that there is a great gulf fixed so no one may enter and bring comfort to those suffering in Hell (Luke 16:24-26).  We also know that Hell will be cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14-15). 

Salvation is not difficult.  Jesus said, “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light (Matthew 11:30).”  There ARE things we are denied in Christ and if we press toward that mark then the grace of God is sufficient.  If we choose to disobey God and fulfill our ungodly passions then it is no more grace but a fearful looking forward to judgment (Hebrews 10:19-31 ^read).  This scripture refutes those scandalous lying people who say that God’s grace is provided to keep us safe even when we choose to deliberately disobey God’s Word and still try and call ourselves Christian. 

For you who choose to deny yourself in order to obey God and cherish His life giving Spirit, there is eternal life.  For you who do not…

Choose life beloved.

Life and Light in Him!

1 John 2:6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

Matthew 12:37 says, “By YOUR words you shall be justified and by YOUR words you will be condemned.”  One is not allowed to remain silent about your stand with regards to God.  If you belong to Him you MUST say so.  If you belong to another (though there are no others) you must make this verbal commitment.  One is not allowed to remain like neutral like Switzerland.  God requires a commitment on your part. 

Joshua 24:15 says, “Choose ye this day whom ye will serve.”  He actually made it even more clear.  “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”  They answered and said, “God forbid we should serve other gods.”  I will say that they did manage to keep God’s commandments all the days that Joshua led them.  They continued to fight for God successfully and lost no battles until after his death when they began to forget.

Verse six above says we ought to walk even as Jesus walked.  Jesus could never be accused of being a “forgetful hearer.”  He obeyed God’s Word because He was God’s Word.  In God’s miraculous grace, Christ is able to dwell in us and we in Him.  In God’s economy we are expected to walk as He walked, talk as He talked and even to do greater things than He did because He stands before the Father making intercession for us and funneling that eternal power through us into the world.  We are the conduit God has chosen to bring His Word to all the world.

1 John 2:7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.  8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.

These two verses can be confusing to some.  First John says he writes no new commandment and then says he writes a new commandment.  Jeremiah 31:31 says, “Behold, the days come saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah.”  This is repeated in Hebrews 8:8 and explained further in that chapter.  In Hebrews 12:24 it says that Jesus is the mediator of that new covenant. 

In the law there is a high priest who makes intercession and offers sacrifices for the people according to the law through the sacrifice of animals.  It was an imperfect answer for an age old dilemma of a Holy God who wanted to make a path into His presence for an unholy mankind.  God instituted this sacrifice well before the giving of the law when He killed animals to provide skins for Adam and Eve.  Scripture after scripture says we must be clothed in righteousness in order to stand in God’s presence.  God provided this first example by clothing Adam and Eve in and through the sacrifice of animals.  When Moses came God codified (wrote into law) the various sacrifices.

Thousands of years later God sent His son in the same flesh worn by the rest of mankind except without sin.  According to scripture sin is introduced to the unborn child through the father’s seed.  God worked around this problem by making Mary pregnant by spirit and not man.  It is interesting how we have discovered through science that a woman does not provide the blood of the child, in fact her reproductive processes are designed to keep the child’s blood completely separate from her own blood.  Nutrients pass between them but blood does not.  When Jesus was born He was born without the sin passed down through the male lines from Adam.  Joseph’s legal position as her espoused made Jesus a Jew but Mary’s position opened the way for Him to be King.

When Christ first died and rose again many Priests came forward to become Christians.  Soon after the chief priests put a stop to this and through threats, lies and intimidation began a split that ended with two separate religions, Christianity, the new and vibrant faith that would join much of the world’s gentiles, and Judaism, which remained as insular and isolated as ever.  Because of their offensive declarations against Jesus (ignorantly calling the Holy Spirit Beelzebub), God blinded their eyes against the truth until the time of the Gentiles was fulfilled.

This is the spiritual and political arena that John was writing to.  Every chapter of the 66 books of our Bible tell of Jesus.  Both old and new testaments clearly broadcast His name and message to those who had ears to hear.  On the one hand he explains, there is no new commandment to write about.  This is true since everything that might be known of Christ may be known through the Old Testament, except for a few revelations that explain some formerly unknown attributes of Jesus. 

Those few revelations, such as the brass serpent in the wilderness, were only understood and explained in the New Testament.  Over all however, the Old Testament was the only scripture the disciples of Christ had to teach from until the New Testament was written and collected into one interconnected book.  The New Testament makes understanding our Lord and His message easier, but it was not absolutely necessary.  With proper prayerful insight a diligent and studious man can discover Jesus within the Law and the Prophets of the Old Testament.

This is why Paul said in verse seven that there was no new commandment but in verse eight that he was indeed writing a new commandment.  The new commandment hinted at in verse eight was foretold and almost completely revealed in the Torah.  That truth had been hidden for thousands of years but was now revealed in Christ.  Jesus brought the light of the glorious gospel, and the age of darkness brought on by man’s ignorance and lack of knowledge is erased by the light of truth in Christ.

1 John 2:9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now.

LOVE.  Deuteronomy 6:5 says, “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”  Matthew 22:37 repeats it with some clarification, “And he said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  The word for might in Hebrew is mod which means vehemence.  Vehemence is from a French word that means to put forth with violence, passion and forcefulness.  In other words, you must put everything you have into it.  The Greek word that replaced might in the Hebrew is dianona and though it loosely means mind, it really means the passion, strength and forcefulness of someone whose mind is made up and leads him in one powerful direction.

I have often sung a song that goes, “My mind is made up; I’m on my way up, I’m gonna hold my head up.  Goin’ on with the Lord!”  Job 23:13 speaking of God and His Word says, “But he is in one mind, and who can turn Him?  And what His soul desires, even that he doeth.”  God is of one mind though He be a triune God.  He has sent His Word and that Word WILL NOT CHANGE no matter how much some on earth may wish it.  David said, “Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee (Psalm 119:11).  Man’s desire is to move God to change so His Word might be more comfortable to follow.  God has no interest, no reason, no desire and no purpose in changing His immutable word. 

Malachi 3:6 says, “I am the Lord thy God, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.”  There are two ideas present here.  In idea one, God’s plan and purpose will continue and all who accept His Word as sacrosanct, holy and unchangeable will not be consumed and destroyed.  Idea two is that whosoever changes God’s Word, even to the least jot or tittle will be consumed and destroyed.  I thought John made it quite clear in Revelation 22:18-19, “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” 

I wanted to establish that God will not put up with anyone changing His words.  There are others as well of course, but you get the idea.  This means that God’s first commandment is that you should love the Lord with all that is in you.  The second (also found in Matthew 22) is – v39 “…thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”  A brother ought to be closer than a neighbor.  1 John 3:15-16 says, “Whosoever hateth his brother is a MURDERER: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 

You know those two people in church that you can’t stand, sister (Smith) and brother (Jones)?  Tell me, how do you feel about sister (Smith) now?  What about brother (Jones)?  Do they still get on your nerves?  Do you still refuse to speak to them and talk about them behind their backs?  Did you know the reason sister (Smith) acts the way she does is because she was abused by her father?  …or that brother (Jones) is the way he is because he has a learning disability that he’s ashamed of and you are both smart and educated?  These are just examples I pulled out of the air of course but you get the idea.  There are ALWAYS reasons behind bad behavior and while someone may treat you badly because of those reasons, they may still LOVE you and pray for you.  That means that if you hate them for their behavior but in spite of their behavior they love you and pray for you, they will be saved and YOU will NOT.

1 John 2:10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.

The word used here for love is agapao.  This word does not say they are your good friend and you enjoy spending time with them.  There are plenty of difficult people in the Body of Christ.  That is not your problem, it’s God’s.  He is working on them.  You need not wish to marry or be near these people either, but you do have to love them.  You MUST want the best for them and desire God’s divine purpose to be fulfilled in their lives.  You must pray for them and ask God to deliver them from their pain and sorrows.  This is the commandment of AGAPAO and if you do this you will not stumble out of frustration and anger toward your brother. 

Frustration and anger toward others is caused by ignorance.  Racism, sexism, hatred and war are all caused by ignorance.  We are ignorant of God’s purpose and ignorant of the motivations of others.  Even if you understand what motivates the other person, if you cannot find it within yourself and your relationship with God to love that person and seek God’s face for their well being, you are not perfected in love.  While you were a filthy sinner, Christ died for your salvation (Romans 5:6-8).  I have already explained how your best, your absolute best behavior is a filthy, bloody rag to God so how can you expect others who have not yet been delivered or changed by the power of God to live perfectly toward you?

If you hate, you have already stumbled.  If you do not forgive, you are fallen on your face.  If you rejoice in difficult people because of the challenge of praying for them to be delivered and you shout in triumph when you see them begin to change, then you have fulfilled this scripture.  When you rejoice in watching the redeeming work of the Holy Spirit and God’s Word in the life of a former sinner, then you will truly walk in the light. 

1 John 2:11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.

In the verse above I explained what our requirements are for the difficult people among us.  I have seen far too many ‘saints’ of God in church who have all but cursed other ‘saints’ of God because of their behavior.  I might expect this behavior from Christian babies, but when should we expect those babies to grow up?  A baby’s eyesight is terrible.  They can’t really focus yet and can only recognize colors and vague shapes.  As they get older, they learn to control their eye muscles and can focus on and track objects more effectively.  Far too many Christians see like those babies after years of life in church.  This is completely unacceptable. 

When Matthew 6:22 says that the light of our body is the eye it means that the light which flows into the body of Christ is the eye of the body of Christ; your ability to discern and understand those around you so you might love and treasure them by that knowledge.  Jesus Himself said, “If your eye be evil, your whole body is in darkness.”  How grievous it must be for Jesus when a large portion of the eyes of HIS body wallow in darkness and are totally unsuitable for service to God.  If you hate your brother you are in darkness.  A spiritually blind man cannot do the works of God because there is no light within Him and Christ came that we might have life and light.

Christ is our head and the head of our body.  How horrible if we bring darkness into His body and refuse to overcome our blindness and ignorance for the sake of the kingdom.  People are usually not blind and ignorant because they do not understand or cannot comprehend the scripture.  People are usually blind and ignorant because they choose to be and do not want to submit their anger and rage to God.  They believe that their desire is more important than God’s.  This is one of the greatest problems in the world today.  People want what they want and if they cannot justify it in Christ and His Word then they expect the rest of the world to simply change that word until it fits their will, their desire. 

God said, “I am the Lord thy God and I change NOT! 

Neither should WE!