Bible Ballistics: Who’s Values Do We Hold??? Vol. 5 #12

What do we treasure in life today? The draw of the world is strong and often it is a real struggle to keep our focus where it ought to be. The thing I’d like us to consider today is how to keep a right focus in a crooked world.

Philippians 2:12-16, “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. 14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings: 15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; 16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.”

Working out our own salvation as we go from day to day, simply means letting God work out what HE has put within us—His Spirit in our hearts. Jesus Himself, promised that HIS Spirit would lead us into all truth; that He would teach and reveal truth and righteousness unto our hearts so that our lives would be a glory to God and a testimony to the world!!! But we must listen and yield!!!

John 16:13, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.”

And Peter reminds us that we are empowered to obey through the “Spirit”:

1 Peter 1:22-23, “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: 23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”

“Being born again” by the power of the Spirit of God, then we can also overcome sin and the world the same way—by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us. That Spirit of the ‘promise’, the “new covenant”, enables my obedience.

Acts 1:4-5, “And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. 5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.”

The New Covenant is the ‘Promise’:

Jeremiah 31:31-33, “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: 32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: 33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.” That very ‘Holy Spirit’ writes the ‘law’ of God in our hearts.

And Ezekiel 36:26-27, “ A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” The ‘promise’ of the ‘Spirit’ which would guide us into ‘all truth’. (See John 16:13 above)

As God is doing HIS Work within us, we are enabled to do His Work before the world. (See John 4:34) To be a reflection of His “Word” and His ‘Work” before this “crooked and perverse nation”. To be right and light in the darkness of the world.   We must learn contentment with Jesus—to let Him satisfy the longing of our soul. As the Psalmist says,

“O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. 15 Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil. 16 Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children. 17 And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.” Psalm 90:14-17

Real heart-felt satisfaction comes from God, not things or circumstances—God will establish our ways, if we but keep our eyes on HIM. We must exercise contentment in Jesus, to resist the spinning vortex of the world–the rush, the hustle and bustle, the pull of the world. It is not easy to stand fast, but we must, and by God’s power, provision, grace and strength we can.

1 Timothy 6:6-11, “But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. 9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.”

We are to treasure the things of God, to trust in His Word, and rely upon His Spirit: to love and depend on God and not things!!! We are also called to love people and use things for God’s glory and purpose: not to love money and use people for our own ends!!! It is a difficult culture that we live in, and it is a constant challenge to resist the pressure of ‘things’ and remember that God has a better way. Paul warned us that in these last days the world would forsake God and right to pursue self.

2 Timothy 3:1-5, “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

And in closing, Isaiah reminds us of the same things as he cautions us to keep our standard aligned with God not the world:

Isaiah 5:20-21, “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! 21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!”

May we stand fast in these days of calling “evil good” and “good evil”? It’s going on all around us. What are you valuing? What are you willing to compromise to get along? It’s your choice! But remember—consequences come from the choices we make!!! We are free to choose—we aren’t free to set our own consequences!

Bible Ballistics: BBs #131   When Is The Light On?

We talked the last time out about letting “your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven….”, that’s a lofty goal for our lives each day, and as I was sitting here this morning I thought about Tom Bodette, (the Motel 6 guy) and his commercials which promised to “leave a light on for you!” What about us? Do we ‘leave the light on’ of Jesus’ love and power in our hearts and lives? Or is ours a blinking light? A caution light? Or an emergency vehicle flashing light—only turned on in emergencies?

This thought takes my mind to Job, as we think about letting our light shine consistently and continually.

Job 1:8-11, “And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? 9 Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? 10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. 11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.”

Of course we know that God allowed Satan to afflict Job on this occasion when he took all of his possessions, slew his children and left him with virtually nothing. Yet, Job said:

“….. Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. 22 In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.” Job 1:21-22

While Job didn’t jump for joy at the calamities that were befalling him, he did acknowledge God as the ‘sovereign Lord’ over all of his possessions. He “sinned not, nor charged God foolishly”. Job stood his ground and maintained his ‘light’ before God and before his world. But Satan comes again before the Lord and requests permission to afflict Job even more:

Job 2:4-5, “And Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. 5 But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.”

Satan requests that the restriction regarding Job’s ‘body’ be removed, and God allowed it. We can’t reason in our ‘finite’ minds why God would allow Job to suffer so, but suffice it to say, He did. God is always at work to accomplish His purpose in and through our lives and our testimony, which proceeds most often, and most powerfully from our circumstances. Yet what do we complain about most? Our circumstances!!!

While Satan had no confidence in Job, God had absolute confidence in His “servant, Job”!!! God knew the outcome for Job and He knows ours. Will we let our light shine before the world, our family, our neighbors, our co-workers, and our enemies??? Even when Job’s wife implored him to ‘curse God, and die’, Job maintained his relationship with and his integrity before God (And we can note here that Job’s wife and friends weren’t his greatest gifts from God):

Job 2:9-10, “Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. 10 But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.”

So??? Here’s our shot for today. We need to check our ‘light’! Are we fully connected to our Lord? Are we maintaining the current of power through His Word and prayer? Are our time and our choices diminishing our power with God? Or are we willing to stay in HIS light and be a reflection of HIS glory to our world?

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7

We can maintain our ‘integrity’ with God by walking in the light and allowing the current of God’s power to flow through us. Have a great day shining!!! Wherever you are, NOW!!!

Bible Ballistics: BBs #130   What Do They See???

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16.

What kind of light am I being today? A dim light? A burned out bulb? A light on a dimmer switch gone wild? A fluorescent light with a bad ballast (we all hate those)? Or am I being the reflection of the one I claim to love and serve?

How can we be light? Only when we belong to “the light of the world”! And as the old song says, ‘The Light of the World is Jesus”, and I’m so glad He is and that He has saved me and promised:

“Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” John 8:12

Jesus is the light, we are to be the ‘mirrors’ of His light. What are you reflecting today? Jesus, or something dark? How can we reflect the light of Jesus? Only by having HIM within us! And when He is in us, then His Spirit is working His work—His light—in us, by the love of God.

Romans 5:5-6, “And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.”

Because Jesus paid the price for my sin and yours, we can have the indwelling Holy Spirit who shines HIS love in our hearts, so that we can reflect and share it with and before the world.

So??? Here’s our shot for today. Check your light source! Are we reflecting the ‘love of God’ to those around us? Or do they see our hormones, our bad memories, bad attitudes, or the wickedness of our culture? Much like our ‘computers’, what goes in will come out!!! What are we putting in our hearts? God’s Word? The World’s influence? You can choose, but let’s strive today to shine for Jesus like Paul desired for the believers in Philippians 2:15,

“That ye may be

blameless

and harmless,

the sons of God,

without rebuke,

in the midst of a crooked

and perverse nation,

among whom

ye shine as lights in the world;“

Won’t you “Let your light

so shine before men,

that they may see your good works,

and glorify your Father

which is in heaven.”???

Bible Ballistics: Old, New or Just Re-cycled??? Vol. 5 #11

We hear so much today about ‘re-cycling” today that it overflows into our every thought and action, and I fear it has also slipped into our Christian lives. We get into a mindset where we are determined to ‘deliver’ all the objects, substances and people around us. We expect to re-use, re-surface, re-mold, re-make and re-purpose everything from newsprint to automobiles. But there is a problem with this idea when it spills over into the spiritual realm.

So many around us are equating salvation with ‘turning over a new leaf’, or recycling a ‘soul’!!! Just show someone how to ‘clean up’ his or her life, their behavior, their choices, their life-style or their ‘religion’. Well friends, that isn’t what Jesus came to do! He came that we might be ‘born again’.

John 3:3-7, “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.”

Jesus said, be ‘born again’—not cleaned up, fluffed up, remolded, renewed or re-purposed, but ‘born again’. Made new by the power of the crucified, buried and risen Lord Jesus. NO other way will work. This is what we see also in John 1:12-13,

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

Born again “not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God…” by a supernatural work of God. A new creation, intrinsically new, NOT recycled flesh but a totally revitalized and intrinsically NEW person on the inside, which will be reflected on the outside. As Paul shares with the Corinthians,

2 Corinthians 5:17-21, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. 20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. 21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

We are made new by the reconciling and atoning death of Jesus Christ and nothing else. And when we are reconciled to God (made right with God by the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ our Lord), God has paid for our sin at Calvary, where Christ was made sin for me/you, and when we believe in HIM, we receive His righteousness credited to us. And as His Spirit indwells us, He is working to make us more and more like Jesus.

Romans 8:28-31, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. 31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?”

How? By the work of the blood of Jesus by the Father!

Colossians 1:13-14, “ Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:”

We are delivered from Satan’s power, and transferred into the Kingdom of Jesus!!! Praise the Lord!!! It’s all about Jesus. I have one desire and that is to please the One that saved me. To serve, exalt and promote the name of Jesus; the saving, atoning work of Jesus; and the truth that only He can save those who come to HIM. Only Jesus! As Peter told the religious leaders shortly after the ascension of Jesus, it’s all about Jesus. His salvation, His death for my sin and yours, His power to give ‘new birth’:

Acts 4:9-12, “If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole; 10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. 11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. 12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

As a friend once told me years ago, “you only have one song”, meaning every answer involves JESUS!!! May He be the only song in my heart, the one word on my lips and the one seen through my writings? If not for Jesus, I have no real purpose to pursue these things. But, praise God Almighty, I do have Jesus and He has given me salvation, hope and a purpose—

1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”

I Corinthians 2:2, “For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.”

How do we accomplish this? Only one way! By living the crucified life.

Galatians 2:20-21, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. 21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.”

He is my all in all!!! May you know Him and grow in HIS grace and power. That you can live your life “by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me”.

Bible Ballistics: BBs #129   Be Strong and Courageous???

Continuing to think about our strength “in the Lord”, I was reminded of Joshua. In the Deuteronomy 31 and Joshua 1, God calls Joshua at least 7 times to “be strong and of a good courage”.

Joshua was being called to step into the shoes of “Moses”!!! Moses, the mighty prophet of God, who had led the children of Israel out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, to the promised land (which they refused to enter at first), and through 40 years in the ‘wilderness’. Now they are come to the Promised Land (again), Moses is being taken from them, and Joshua is called to step up to become their leader. I can’t imagine the anxious thoughts that overwhelmed him, as he rehearsed in his own mind what he had experienced as Moses’ ‘right-hand’ man. The miracles, the conflict, the rebellion of the people, the challenges to Moses’ authority—and now he has been called to take the mantle of leadership. Yet God’s word to him is: “be strong and of a good courage”!!!

Like Joshua, you may be facing great and difficult expectations. What are you going to do? Are you ready to ‘throw in the towel’? Are you thinking about abdicating to someone else?   Or are you looking for ‘plan B’? Sometimes the fear of expectations, fear of the future, fear of the past, fear of our own weaknesses and failures bring with it a paralyzing inability to go forward, but that’s exactly what God called Joshua to do. It is also what God calls us to do!!!

So??? Here’s our shot for today. God wants YOU to “be strong and of a good courage”!!! He has you, just as He had Joshua.

Joshua 1:9, “Have not I commanded thee?

Be strong

and of a good courage;

be not afraid,

neither be thou dismayed:

for the Lord thy God is with thee

whithersoever thou goest.”

God assured Joshua that he could be strong “in the Lord”, because the “LORD” would be “with him” everywhere he went!

God has given us that same assurance: we can have victory in His strength. Here are two passages to take with you today to remind yourself that:

You can do whatever God is calling you to DO!!!

You can go wherever God is calling you to GO!!!

You can be all that God is calling you to BE!!!

So? “Be strong and of a good courage”!!!

Hebrews 13:5-6, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.”

2 Corinthians 10:3-6, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; ) 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

YOU can do it!!! God has it and you!!!