Walking Wisely

February 24, 2023

Ephesians 5:15-17 15 So then, be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. In his letter to the Ephesians, the apostle Paul shares how to walk wisely. In today’s passage, he gives three instructions. First, he says to “be careful how you walk” (v. 15). Because we live in a sinful world, we must be vigilant about how we think and act. Second, the apostle instructs us to “make the most of our time” (v. 16). So often we are tempted to squander our time and energy on our own pursuits without a thought of what our heavenly Father may have in mind for us. Third, Paul tells us to “understand what the will of the Lord is” (v. 17). In its broadest sense, God’s will for us is that we would each become the person He created us to be and do the work He planned for us (For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Eph. 2:10). Knowing this, we should look at every decision with consideration of whether our choice will further or hinder our heavenly Father’s purposes for us. The Lord wants us to walk wisely so that we can enjoy all the marvelous benefits He has promised in His Word. Wasted opportunities and time misspent can never be reclaimed. Let’s commit to make our lives count for Christ instead of merely living for ourselves.

The Positive Power of Confidence

Philippians 3:4-14 4 although I myself could boast as having confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he is confident in the flesh, I have more reason: 5 circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless. 7 But whatever things were gain to me, these things I have counted as loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them mere rubbish, so that I may gain Christ, 9 and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; 11 if somehow I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. 12 Not that I have already grasped it all or have already become perfect, but I press on if I may also take hold of that for which I was even taken hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not regard myself as having taken hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.   Paul was a confident man. Before his salvation, the apostle’s self-assured attitude came from trusting in his credentials, background, education, and position. However, his encounter with the Lord led him to realize these things were of little worth (4 although I myself could boast as having confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he is confident in the flesh, I have more reason: 5 circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless. 7 But whatever things were gain to me, these things I have counted as loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them mere rubbish, so that I may gain Christ, Phil. 3:4-8). So, what wasthen the source of his boldness? Paul’s relationship with Jesus formed the new foundation for his very existence (vv. 8-10). He not only recognized the inadequacy of everything he had previously relied upon—his knowledge, achievement, and authority; he also relinquished any notion of living independently of the Lord. The apostle lived his life through reliance upon God ( I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. Gal. 2:20). Because of Paul’s unwavering trust in the Lord, He believed God’s promises to strengthen and equip him, guide him in every situation, meet all his needs, and never leave him. Paul took the Lord at His word and was empowered to meet adversity with boldness. His confidence was not in himself but in God’s presence, provision, and power; therefore, it remained strong. Do you see why we can be confident followers of Christ? It isn’t who we are, what we believe about ourselves, or what strengths and abilities we have that matter. Developing a wholehearted trust and reliance on Jesus is what brings about confidence. How much do you trust Him?

Listening to God when You Cannot Pray

Michael Summers A little more than thirty years ago, I endured a series of events that traumatized me. I was angry at God, so angry that I didn’t want to talk to him. However, I did want to hear what he had to say. I hoped that his words would bring reason for my pain, would restore order to replace the chaos. I did not pray for months, but I read the Bible every day, craving to hear what God had to say that would make life make sense. I said that I did not pray, but if prayer is a conversation, perhaps I just was not talking and giving God a chance to make his case. In the end, I prayed fully again. I still grieved, but now I understood better what Paul meant when he said that God told him, “…My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). An endangered psalmist prayed concerning the threats posed by his enemies. He knew that he had nearly died and that the danger persisted. He called out to God, but Psalm 119:89-96 reveals that he also listened. In a recent post, I said that when we pray, we celebrate, we advocate, we lament, and we listen. In this prayer, the psalmist celebrates God’s faithfulness and the reliability of his enduring message. He advocates for his own salvation, while he laments the threat that his enemies pose to him. He also listens. He hears what God is telling him in his divine instructions, his laws. He prays, “Your word, LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures. Your laws endure to this day, for all things serve you. If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never for get your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life. Save me, for I am yours; I have sought out your precepts. The wicked are waiting to destroy me, but I will ponder your statutes. To all perfection I see a limit, but your commands are boundless” (Psalm 119:89-96). This past week, I participated in a Zoom call where participants discussed losses that we had endured, and how lament had played a role both in our grieving and in our healing. When I mentioned the time when I didn’t want to talk to God, others responded that they too had had a time like that. If you too, because of trauma, loss, or illness, do not want to talk to God, perhaps you still can listen. When I could not pray, God spoke to me, as he had to the psalmist before, through his written revelation. I read how biblical heroes had suffered, but survived because they trusted that God would provide. I heard about God’s love through the care that two churches lavished on me, first in Maryland, and then in Tennessee. They walked with me in my suffering and helped me regain my trust in God by being patient enough with me to let me serve how I could while I slowly healed. If I had not listened to God’s message, I likely would have perished in my affliction. Like the psalmist, I pondered God’s word and sought out his answers to what I was experiencing. Like him, I remembered that I belonged to God and I sought out his way. I rediscovered his love in the accounts of his faithfulness with his people, but also in the life and teaching of Jesus, whom the books of John and Hebrews respectively say is the “word of God” and the one through whom God speaks to us now (John 1:1-14; Hebrews 1:1-4). I encourage you to concentrate on hearing God if praying to him just seems impossible right now. Take time to read his word for twenty minutes or more each day. Spend time with people who love God and who love you. Reflect on what you hear in what you read. Perhaps soon you too will talk to God again as you pray, grateful for feeling whole again. • Quotes from the Bible are from the New International Version.

Love’s Hidden Enemy

Childish thinking can block our ability to fully enjoy love.

1 Corinthians 13:8-11 8 Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away with; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away with.9 For we know in part and prophesy in part;10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away with.11 When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. What keeps you from loving others? Paul penned a beautiful description of biblical love (4 Love is patient, love is kind, it is not jealous; love does not brag, it is not arrogant. 5 It does not act disgracefully, it does not seek its own benefit; it is not provoked, does not keep an account of a wrong suffered, 6 it does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 it keeps every confidence, it believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.1 Cor. 13:4-7) and then concluded, “When I became a man, I did away with childish things” (v. 11). I believe childish thinking is a hidden enemy of loving relationships. When we are young, a mental grid forms in the mind, and we interpret life through it. Over time, that grid changes as some ideas are dropped and others are incorporated. The same is true for us spiritually: As we mature, our mental framework should increasingly be shaped by Scripture—and that includes our understanding of love. Childish, self-seeking ideas of love must be replaced with truths about mature love that wants what’s best for others. Our relationship with God can also be affected by childish thinking. We may believe that His love is dependent on our performance. Or we could mistakenly assume God is withholding love if He doesn’t fulfill our desires. What faulty thinking is hindering your ability to love and be loved? By putting away your immature beliefs, you’ll be freed to experience God’s unconditional love and express Christlike love to others.

We All Win Together

Sent by a friend

Church should be a place where Christians shed the world’s competitive spirit. But instead, it’s sometimes yet another arena where people strive for personal glory. When we treat our sanctuaries like stages, chasing the spotlight, we end up building our own kingdoms instead of God’s. And our brothers and sisters in Christ can become stepping stones or, worse, collateral damage. This problem isn’t new, nor is its solution. What Jesus taught the disciples to abandon was not the pursuit of excellence but the path of self-exaltation. In other words, if we’re competing for anything, it should be for last place—so that we might all triumph together in becoming a true reflection of Christ. Do you see something of yourself in these descriptions? If so, ask the Holy Spirit for help correcting course and aligning your heart with His. Think about it • Read Romans 12:10-21 (10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor, 11 not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, 13 contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. 17 Never repay evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all people. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all people. 19 Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written: “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.) and Matthew 20:1-15 (“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace; 4 and to those he said, ‘You go into the vineyard also, and whatever is right, I will give you.’ And so they went. 5 Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing. 6 And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing around; and he *said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day long?’ 7 They *said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He *said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ 8 “Now when evening came, the owner of the vineyard *said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, starting with the last group to the first.’ 9 When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius. 10 And so when those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day’s work and the scorching heat.’ 13 But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go; but I want to give to this last person the same as to you. 15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I want with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’). Are there any specific areas of your life that need to be reoriented so that they align with these verses? With whom are you competing? How can you shift toward honoring and serving them instead?

Salvation: An Ongoing Blessing

Our lives are transformed when we make a daily choice to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

February 16, 2023

2 Peter 1:1-11 Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ: 2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 for His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4 Through these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world on account of lust. 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they do not make you useless nor unproductive in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For the one who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choice of you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; 11 for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.   Some people think of Salvation as a single point in time. And it’s true that the moment trust is placed in Jesus, a person permanently becomes a member of God’s family. But limiting the definition to that single faith decision gives an incomplete picture. Salvation includes three parts: 1) justification—the moment our sins are forgiven and Christ’s perfect righteousness is imputed to us; 2) sanctification—the process of becoming increasingly righteous in this life; and 3) glorification—the completion of the process, when we’re made perfectly sinless at the resurrection. It’s a package deal. Those who are justified are being sanctified and will be glorified (29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters; 30 and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. Rom. 8:29-30). We can’t claim we’re saved if sanctification isn’t happening in our lives. The degree of godliness and fruitfulness varies with each individual, but God has promised to complete the good work He began in our life (For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work among you will complete it by the day of Christ Jesus. Phil. 1:6). Jesus is our Master because He purchased us from sin with His blood. AndRomans 10:9 (that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;)  says we must confess Him as Lord in order to be saved. The question is whether you’re submitting to His process of sanctification. Has your life changed since you first professed Christ? Are you diligently cooperating with the Holy Spirit so that your life reflects Jesus’ image?

Christ-Centered Confidence

Spending time in the Word and in prayer deepens our trust in the Lord.

2 Corinthians 3:1-6 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you? 2 You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all people, 3 revealing yourselves, that you are a letter of Christ, delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 4 Such is the confidence we have toward God through Christ. 5 Not that we are adequate in ourselves so as to consider anything as having come from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, 6 who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.   Did you know you can build your confidence in God? It grows the more we meditate on His Word, know who He is, and draw near to Him through prayer. Confidently trusting the Lord brings many blessings: • Spiritual Growth. Relying on God means we respond to difficulties by seeking Him for guidance and strength. In turn, we experience the Holy Spirit’s presence, provision, and power and, as a result, spiritual growth. We’ll be capable of accomplishments far better than we imagined when our assurance comes from the Lord ( Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, Eph. 3:20). • Peace. When our security rests in God and we show conviction about His promises, peace follows. Isaiah 26:3 says, “The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in You.” Our calm demeanor will waver, however, when we mix trusting Him with relying on ourselves. • Influence. Others will take notice when they observe that God inspired our confidence. As they see us achieve something unexpected, grow spiritually, or exhibit inner peace, they’ll want what we have. Then, hopefully, we can inspire them to know the Savior. Do your actions reveal self-reliance or Christ-centered confidence? The Lord is worthy of our trust (“Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power, wealth, wisdom, might, honor, glory, and blessing.”Rev. 5:12). What steps will you take to deepen your belief in Him?

A Way of Escape

No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 Jesus Christ was tempted to sin. For example, He underwent three major temptations from Satan after fasting for forty days (Matthew 4:1-11). But He resisted not only those temptations but others as well (Hebrews 4:15).

How did Jesus resist temptation and not sin? By taking “the way of escape” that God provided—in His case, biblical refutations from Deuteronomy to all of Satan’s lies. And because He “suffered” during temptations, “He is able to aid those [us] who are tempted” (Hebrews 2:18). Because temptations don’t come from God (James 1:13), He is more than willing to provide a “way of escape” so that, like Jesus, we can avoid falling into sin. First Corinthians 10:13 promises that God will provide a way of escape. Our task is to find the way and take it. If you don’t immediately see the way God has provided, ask Him to reveal it (James 1:2-5). [We must] pray constantly for His enabling grace to say no to temptation, of choosing to take all practical steps to avoid known areas of temptation and flee from those that surprise us. – Jerry Bridges David Jeremiah

Assurance Enhances Sanctification

A Broadcast with R.C. Sproul

Not only is it possible to obtain assurance of our salvation, but God’s Word commands us to do so. Today, R.C. Sproul teaches that an assurance of God’s grace in our lives stimulates us to serve Him diligently and joyfully.

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Sowing Spiritual Seeds

1 Corinthians 3:5-9 5 What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. 7 So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. 8 Now the one who plants and the one who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building. Think about everything that contributed to your salvation story. It’s probably not possible to count all the spiritual seeds God used to draw you to the Savior. And most likely, some of the people who sowed them never saw the outcome. It’s important to recognize the value and cumulative effect of how others have worked to expand the kingdom. When we do, we then realize our own opportunity: We can sow spiritual seeds in the lives of friends, coworkers, children, grandchildren, and even strangers. God uses what we plant and leads others to spread further seed or water the ground, but He alone causes the growth. When you display Christlike qualities and sow truth into others’ lives, God feeds their spirit, changes their heart, enlarges their spiritual understanding, and increases their desire to live for Him. Whether or not you ever see the results, the Lord is using you to accomplish His will. God is interested in more than the big things His children do for Him. He also sees all the small ways believers try to influence others for Christ. He values quiet manifestations of the fruit of His Spirit, for which no credit or praise is expected. Your love, kindness, patience, gentleness, and self-control are seeds that impact others.