Category Archives: Before your head hits the pillow

Before your head hits the pillow

What’s in a name?

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Each of us has a name, a given name and a surname. Our given name is the name that mom and dad chose for us. Often times the given name is a name that means something to the parents, like a name given in memory of a departed loved one or a family name that is given often to the first born boy from generation to generation.

Our name is how we are known to our friends and acquaintances. The name becomes very important and people are often disturbed by someone not remembering their name or mispronouncing it.

Our surname or last name is a generational name. The surname is a rather recent historic development. Many surnames are derived from an ancestor’s occupation or area of residence. Over time surnames often evolve.

But no name(s) have ever been as important as the names of Jesus, our Savior. The research that I have done indicates that there are more than 170 names associated with Jesus and all of them descriptive. You may find research that indicates fewer or more, but what is definite is that Jesus was known throughout the Old and New Testament by many descriptive names. Each name tells us something special about Jesus’ character.

There is no way that I can list all 170 names here but I will highlight some just to reveal how important the names of Christ are and how they describe His magnificent character.

Christ is described as far back as Genesis 49:10 as Shiloh which means “Peace bringer.” And indeed, He is the one who brings us peace.

In Numbers 24:17 he is referred to as Sceptre which means “The King is Coming”

He is referred to as Redeemer in Job, Isaiah, Galatians and Revelations.

And too many times to list as Son of God, Holy One, King, and High Priest.

Song 2:1 refers to him as the Rose of Sharon – the rose is often given as an example of new life and of a perfect blossom.

Those most familiar to us are Emmanuel which means “God is with us,” Wonderful, and Counsellor (He definitely guides us giving daily wisdom). He is also known as Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace.

I could go on and on with dozens more examples of his name.

You might ask why this is important. It is important because the names of Christ show his majesty, His love for us, his grace and the place He wants to have in our lives.

There is no way that one name could adequately describe our Savior. One name cannot precisely indicate all He is to His people.

If you really want to better know Christ, I would encourage you to look up all of the names of Christ. Study them so that you can better know your Lord. Better knowing Him better equips us to serve Him.

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There Is No Name So Sweet on Earth.

There is no name so sweet on earth,
No name so sweet in Heaven,
The Name, before His wondrous birth
To Christ the Savior given.

We love to sing of Christ our King,
And hail Him, blessèd Jesus;
For there’s no word ear ever heard
So dear, so sweet as “Jesus.”

His human name they did proclaim,
When Abram’s son they sealed Him;
The name that still by God’s good will,
Deliverer revealed Him.

And when He hung upon the tree,
They wrote this Name above Him;
That all might see the reason we
Forevermore must love Him.

So now, upon His Father’s throne,
Almighty to release us
From sin and pain, He gladly reigns,
The Prince and Savior, Jesus.

O Jesus, by that matchless Name,
Thy grace shall fail us never;
Today as yesterday the same,
Thou art the same forever.

Before your head hits the pillow

Why is it Important to Believe in the Virgin Birth of Jesus?

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We are currently in the Advent Season.  Advent includes the four Sundays leading up to Christmas.  The dictionary defines advent as: The arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.

NOTHING in this world has ever been as notable as the arrival of Christ and nothing will be as notable as the Second Advent, the second coming of Christ.

There have been scholarly disagreements about the virgin birth.  People will say, well that is impossible.  No person could be born of a virgin, but the Bible makes it VERY clear that Jesus WAS born of a virgin, the Virgin Mary.  But why is it important for us, as Christians, to acknowledge the virgin birth.  This can be summed up in three points.

First it is important because it shows that our salvation comes from God, not from man.  If Jesus was not brought to us in this special way, in this miraculous way, then our salvation would not be from God.  God promised us in Genesis 3:15 that our Lord would come from the “seed” of a woman, but this could not happen without the supernatural intervention of God.  Nothing on this earth could have brought about the payment for our sins, only the efforts of God Himself could do this.

Second, Jesus being born of a virgin makes Him fully man, born of Mary, and fully God, conceived by God.  If Jesus were not fully man, He could not have lived our experiences, felt our grief, and suffered the consequences for our sins.  However, if He had not been fully God, he would have been imperfect and not able to atone for our sins.  Prophetically Jesus needed to be fully human, a descendent of Adam, in order to bring about our atonement.

And lastly, Jesus’ humanity through Mary, but His conception through God, made Him free from the inherited sin of Adam. Jesus, because He was God and from God did not inherit the corruption of sin, nor the guilt of sin that rests on all mankind. In Luke 1:35 the angel Gabriel says to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”  This passage tells us that Jesus was innately holy and was morally pure.  Because Jesus was not born of a human father but rather of God breaks the human line of inherited sin.

I marvel at the love our Heavenly Father.  He loved us so much that He sent His son to pay the price for our sins.  He loved us so much, that He conceived His son as a real human child, without human sin, who could experience the pains of this world.  Jesus thirsted, he wept, he got hungry, and he learned and grew strong.  In every way but carrying sin, Jesus was a man.  He was perfectly man and perfectly God because of the virgin birth.  So as we go into this Christmas season, a season filled with gifts and frivolity, let’s not forget to remember what this season is really all about.  This season brings to memory the beginning of God’s redemptive work and the beginning of our justification through faith in this man, the one true God we know as Jesus!

Before your head hits the pillow

God Isn’t Fixing This

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God Isn’t Fixing This donned the front page of the New York Daily News the day after the horrific shooting in San Bernardino, California.

The days that ensued were full of politicians telling us what they believe our country needs to solve this problem. One after another I heard them say, “Thinking about the victims and praying for them is not enough, we need to take action!”  I didn’t hear this from one politician, I heard it from several, like it was part of a talking points memo.

The fact of the matter is, the ONLY thing that can fix this is GOD!  These things are not happening because we have too many guns or because one race does not get along with another.  These things are happening because this country, in large proportions, has decided to turn its back on God.

Our children are no longer allowed to pray in school.  Many are threatened if they take their Bible to school. Communities are told that they can no longer put up nativity scenes on the court house lawns as they have been accustomed to doing for years.  Public school music programs are void of Christian carols like Silent Night or Oh Come All Ye Faithful.  Even though you can find a marble figure of Moses holding the Ten Commandments on east pediment of the Supreme Court, courts throughout the country are now told that the Ten Commandments are forbidden.  In God we Trust, our national motto, is inscribed in letters of gold behind the Speakers rostrum in the U.S. House chamber.  In the National Archives you will find a bronze design on the floor of the rotunda that contains the Ten Commandments.  Carved inside the Washington Monument are many Godly messages like “Holiness to the Lord,” “Search the Scriptures,” and “May heaven to this union continue to its beneficence.”

But now we are told that God has no place in the public square.  So maybe God isn’t going to fix this because our country has turned its back on Him.  But 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”  I understand that we are not God’s chosen people as were the people of Israel to whom this message was given.  But as Christians we ARE God’s people and He would do the same for this land if we would turn from our wicked ways and seek His face.

Proverbs 6:16-19 says, “There are six things which the LORD hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil,  A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers.”  I am afraid that his country has fallen into many things that God hates.  We have become arrogant and self-centered.  Under the protection of this country’s laws and courts we shed the innocent blood of thousands of unborn children each day. And we have run rapidly into redefining the definition of marriage, a sacred union created by God Himself.

But all of those who said that thinking and praying isn’t enough are probably right as well.  I don’t think that their suggested action of gun control is the answer.  The action that is however necessary is a revival.  This country needs a spiritual awakening.  The evil that brings about a shooting in San Bernardino or racial unrest in Missouri all stems from the same place.  It stems from a lack of peace that comes from a lack of union with God.

The action that needs to be taken in this country is for Christians to rise up and bring the Good News of Christ to everyone they meet.  If we want our country back, we need to be willing to bring Christ into our places of work, into the gym where we work out, and into our social clubs.  Keeping the gospel pent up inside the four walls of the church building will not bring the healing we need for this land.

So no, prayer and thoughts are not enough to solve the evil that exists in our country.  It is time for the United States of America to see God.  And the primary way they will see God is through the actions of His children.  Bring the love of God into your communities.  Show His love and His mercy to those around you. Bring His message of hope to the lost.  Let’s start a revival!

Before your head hits the pillow

What About the Fourth Commandment?

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I have been asked to write about the fourth commandment.  For those of you who know them by heart and know them in order, you will know that this is the commandment that tells us to “Remember the Sabbath-day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath-day and hallowed it.”

The Sabbath day to the Jewish people was the seventh day.  It was Saturday.  Many people believe that in order to completely honor this commandment, one must worship and attend church on Saturday and that setting aside Sunday to do so is a sin.

Nine of the Ten Commandments are reiterated in the New Testament.  But the one not reaffirmed was the fourth commandment about the Sabbath.  Jesus did however say that He was the Lord of the Sabbath in Matthew 12:8.

The New Testament also states that, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.”  God rested on the seventh day, but He certainly didn’t need to for He is all powerful and never becomes weary.  But God knew that man needed to rest.  He knew we needed a day to focus on Him.  He knew we needed a day to not only renew our bodies but to renew our souls as well.

Romans 14:5-6 says this about setting a day apart, “One man regards one day above another, another regards every day alike.  Let each man be fully convinced in his own mind.  He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God.”

Colossians 2:16-17 speaks further on the matter, “Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day– things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.” The important thing is not what day your worship but that you worship Christ, for Christ is the real Sabbath.

I think it matters little what day a person chooses to set aside for God, what is important is that one is set aside.  What is important is that we have a day of rest, a day for renewal and regeneration.

So why did so many people begin worshipping on Sunday?  It appears that many of the early Christians chose to worship on Sunday because that was the day of Jesus’ resurrection.  We know that they worshipped on Sunday for we read it in Acts 20:7 when it says. “On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight.”  Breaking bread meant that they were celebrating the Lord’s Supper or Communion, which they did when they gathered to worship.

I Corinthians 16:1-2 Paul instructed the church to collect money on the first day of the week, “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also. On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come.”  The early church gathered on the first day of the week.

Ezekiel 20:12 says that the Sabbath was a sign between God and man so that man would know that it was God who sanctified them.  But we are now under a new covenant.  The real Sabbath is Jesus.  Our rest must come in Jesus.

Some people believe that worshiping on Saturday is a matter of salvation.  I do not agree with that assertion.  If we believe that the day we worship the Lord can determine our salvation or lack thereof then we are putting salvation into our own hands and not in the hands of the giver of grace, our God.

So if someone believes that they should worship on Saturday, then I believe that is fine.  But for someone to say that worshipping on Sunday is contrary to the fourth commandment, then I think they do not fully understand the new covenant of grace.  The early disciples gathered for worship on Sunday as a celebration of the resurrected Christ.  So I too believe that worshipping on Sunday is perfectly fine.  What is important in this debate is that we worship, that we set aside a day of rest.  That we renew our minds, bodies, and spirits by pondering on our holy God and His redemptive power.

Before your head hits the pillow

Are You a Saturday Christian?

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While teaching my theology class last night one of the women said something I had never heard.  She referred to Saturday Christians.

We were talking about the churches we had been raised in.  I mentioned that I thought the church I was raised in may have stressed too much of our sin.  I remember thinking that I was nothing more than a filthy rag.  I think that likely came from the verse in Isaiah 64:6 that says – “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.”

Then I remembered a song we sang that said we were like worms.  It was written by Isaac Watts and goes like this: ”Alas! and did my Saviour bleed, And did my Sovereign die? Would he devote that sacred Head For such a worm as I?”

The true gospel of Christ has balance.  There is a balance between the love of God and the judgment of God.  God is both full of love and full of justice.  True preaching and true gospel cannot have one without the other.

I Peter 4:17 says, “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”

Matthew 12:36-37 says, “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

God is just!

But then we also read that God is so loving.

John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

And Romans 5:8 says, “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

God is BOTH just and loving.  But then what is a Saturday Christian.  A Saturday Christian is one who doesn’t celebrate the resurrection.  They are stuck in the, “I am guilty” “I am a worm” “I am worthless” phase of life.  They are stuck in the day before Jesus’ resurrection.  They are not happy and rejoicing over the resurrection of our Savior.  It is because of His death and His resurrection that we are no longer worms and filthy rags, but are now adopted children of God.

John 1:12 joyfully says, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,”

Because of Christ’s sacrifice we are now RIGHTEOUS.  2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” And I John 1:9 further states, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Joy came into the life of the Christian on Sunday, the third day when Jesus rolled the stone away from His own tomb.  Immeasurable, unspeakable joy!  In and of myself, I am a worm.  I am nothing, but because of Jesus death and resurrection I am now righteous before God.  He looks at me as blameless!  We are no longer guilty.  We are free!  “For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.” Ephesians 5:8.

So I don’t want to be a Saturday Christian, one who is struggling day to day to find joy and peace.  I want to be a Sunday Christian!  I want to revel in the fact that my Savior is alive!  I want to be a Christian who finds great joy in the fact that I am redeemed.  I want to be a Christian who knows and celebrates the fact that death no longer has a hold on me, it has NO STING!  I want to be a Christian who understands the words, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” I Corinthians 15:55.

I care not to be a down in the dumps Christian walking around with a long face.  I want to be a Christian full of celebration!  I will sing the joyous song of redemption!

Redeemed – how I love to proclaim it! Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Redeemed through his infinite mercy. His child, and forever, I am!

Before your head hits the pillow

Living in the Light

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The Bible is the best textbook, the best life instruction book ever written. Written within its 66 books and 1,189 chapters is the cure for all hurt, the remedy for all failings, and the recipe for living a life filled with joy and peace. It is up to each of us to decide whether we want to fully envelop ourselves in this great instruction book or if we want to make a go of it on our own.

Ephesians 5:1-20 teaches us how to live in the light of Jesus Christ. Stepping out of the darkness and into the light can be scary. When we see our own sin, stepping into the light can be very convicting, but this is exactly what Paul instructs the Christians of Ephesus to do. This brief text gives us six keys to living in the light.

1 – Follow the example that Christ God gave for us in everything we do. (vs. 1)

2 – Live a life full of love for others. We must love others just as Christ loved us. Christ loved us so much that He laid Himself down as a perfect sacrifice. John 15:13 states – Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. (vs. 2)

3 – Let there be not a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed in us. We should not speak obscenities; we should have no foolish talk or coarse joking. But rather we should be filled with thanksgiving. Paul continues that we can be sure of this: “no immoral, impure or greedy person – such a person is an idolater – has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.” (vs. 3-5)

4 – Don’t be deceived by the empty words of those who sin around you, who try to justify their sin in an attempt to make it seem right. Don’t be partners with them. My concordance says – Do not partake with them in their sins, that you may not share in their punishment. (vs. 6-7)

5 – You were once in darkness but now you are in light. Live in that light and show the fruit of that light which is goodness, righteousness and truth. Have nothing to do with those who seek to do wrong but rather expose them. (vs. 8-9)

6 – Be careful how you live,” not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do all of this with thanksgiving to the Lord (vs. 10-20)

The instructions for living in the light are clear. God wants to make things clear for us. He does not want confusion in our lives. So if you wish to walk in the light, to live in the light, follow this simple recipe – Follow Christ’s example, live a life full of love for others, stay away from immorality, and even those crude jokes you may like to tell, don’t be greedy, don’t be pulled into doing wrong things by people who are still living in the darkness, live a life full of goodness, righteousness and truth, and be wise, making the most of every opportunity. And do all these things with thanksgiving on your lips.

If you live each day with these six points as your model, your life will be free from confusion and drama, your heart will be full of joy, and you will experience immeasurable peace granted by none other than the King of the Universe!

Before your head hits the pillow

Who is Jesus?

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As Christians we are told that it should be our goal to live as Jesus lived, to act as He acted.  When my children were growing up it was all the rage to where bracelets that contained the letters WWJD, standing for What would Jesus Do?  But it is pretty hard to act as Jesus would act if we don’t even know what He was like as He walked this earth or who He still is today.

First and foremost we must understand that Jesus, the man who walked this earth some 2000 years ago was indeed God.  There are few people who deny that Jesus existed.  It is accepted in nearly every religion and among many non-believers that Jesus was indeed a real figure in history.  But this is where it stops for many people.  They want to say that Jesus was a great man, a kind and loving man, or maybe even a prophet but they don’t want to profess that He was God.

C.S. Lewis says this about this suggestion, “A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with a man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon; or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that option open to us. He did not intend to.”

C.S. Lewis knew that our Lord Jesus Christ was and still is God!  People who try to say that Jesus was just a great teacher are certainly deluding themselves.

But if we are to follow Jesus, to emulate Him, to act as He acted, we need to know about who He was when he walked this earth. GotQuestions.org and some great insight into the question “What was Jesus like as a person?”

Jesus was not a good looking person like so many of the pictures we see of Him. Isaiah 53:2 says that he had “no beauty that we should desire Him…”  It wasn’t His good looks that drew people to Himself, it was His personality and His character.

Jesus was intensely compassionate.  His compassion found Him feeding 5000 hungry people.  It was His compassion that caused Him to intercede for the woman accused of adultery.

Jesus was serious and focused.  He knew what His mission on earth was.  He knew why it was that he came to earth and His whole ministry was centered on that day when He would die for our sins.  Jesus had a servant’s heart.  Mark 10:45 says that, “He did not come to be served, but to serve.”  Jesus was kind and selfless.  Jesus was constantly thinking about the feelings of others.  He cared about little children and their parents even when His disciples didn’t want the children bothering Him.

Jesus was submissive to the will of His Heavenly Father.  In His final hours, while in deep anguish Jesus asked His Father to “take this cup of suffering from Me: but let what you want be done, not what I want.”  Jesus was even submissive to His earthly parents.  Luke 2:51 says that “He continued in subjection to them…”

Jesus was full of mercy and forgiveness.  He asked His Heavenly Father to forgive those who put Him to death.  He called the disgusting tax-collector Matthew to be one of His disciples.  He showed mercy to the centurion when He healed his servant.

Jesus cared for the most wretched and despised of people.  He cared for the Samaritan woman at the well.  He cared for prostitutes and adulterers.  He cared for children and lepers.  Jesus was the epitome of caring and love.

Jesus was not afraid of confrontation but was most condemning of people who professed to know God but were more about religion than they were about love and service.  Jesus often confronted the Pharisees and the Sadducees, the Jewish leaders of the day.  Jesus confronted the money changers in the temple who were defiling God’s sacred house. And Jesus even confronted his friend Peter when Peter tried to interfere with His mission. Matthew 16:23.

Jesus spent much time in prayer and fasting.  He fasted and prayed for 40 days and 40 nights as He prepared for His ministry.  Jesus prayed at His baptism, He prayed before He selected His disciples, He prayed before feeding the 5000, He prayed before raising Lazarus from the dead, and He prayed many, many more times!

Jesus was honest and truthful.  He never told a lie, He never stretched the truth, but rather spoke the truth everywhere that he went.  Jesus was patient.  He was patient when His disciples failed to understand Him, He was patient when Peter all too often spoke before he thought, He was patient when they argued about who would sit at Jesus’ side in heaven.  Jesus was patient.

So there we have it.  If we want to live like Jesus lived, these are things to strive for: Compassion, serious focus, being submissive to God and those in authority, have mercy and forgiveness, be caring for those who appear to be unlovable, do not be afraid to confront when evil exists, spend time in prayer and fasting, be honest and truthful, and be patient.  That is our recipe for happiness and joy.  If we live in this way, completely surrendered to Christ, we will have great peace and immeasurable joy.

Before your head hits the pillow

Are You a Pearl?

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For some reason I got thinking about pearls on my way to work this morning.  I think that God places what might seem like random thoughts into our heads to direct us to something He wants us to ponder.  I guess this morning that was pearls.

So how is a pearl made? A pearl is typically generated within an oyster but on rare occasions it can also take form from within clams and mussels.  An oyster has two halves or valves.  The valves are connected by an elastic ligament.  For the most part the oysters’ valves are open so that it can eat.  The oyster has an organ known as a mantle that develops into its shell.  The inside of the shell is lined by a substance known as nacre.

When a foreign object gets lodged in between the mantle and the shell it causes an irritation.  To combat the irritation, which I guess could be compared to a sliver or splinter in your finger, the mantle then begins to cover the foreign object with the same substance that makes up the shell, the nacre.  After years of being covered with nacre a pearl develops.

So what does this have to do with anything?  As I got thinking about the pearl and this irritant that develops within it, I began thinking about our lives in Christ.  Man was created perfect but when Adam sinned, we all inherited his sinful nature.  That sinful nature is like an irritant, a foreign substance that is contrary to the ways of God.

But God can begin covering us just like the oyster covers the irritant lodged inside of it.  That irritant must be uncomfortable for the oyster and that is why it begins its work.  The work God does in us can also be uncomfortable but we know that if we are steadfast, He will create something beautiful out of our broken lives.

The Bible says this about the trials that cover us:  “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” I Peter 5:10

James 1:12 says, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”

Romans 8:18 blesses us with these words, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

And one of my favorite passages is Romans 5:1-5, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Our trials and tribulations can also feel like irritants to us, but as Romans 5 tells us they begin to cover us with amazing beauty.  First those sufferings cover us with the beauty of perseverance, then the beauty of fine character, and finally they give us great hope.  And that hope assures us that we now stand before God in His grace being made righteous!

That irritant known as sin can be covered by God’s love over and over again.  That irritant known as suffering can teach us about God’s love, His grace, and His compassion.  Until one day we emerge as a beautiful pearl.  As we continue in our journey with the Lord, if we follow Him and let him cover those irritants in our lives, we become more and more beautiful until on that final day, we will be not just any pearl but a perfect pearl!  I like that thought!  But for now, I am just going to let God work on the irritants in my life so that I can become a more glorious pearl each day.

Before your head hits the pillow

Put on the Whole Armor of God

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Ephesians 6:10-18

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

As Christians, we must always remember that we are in the midst of a spiritual war. It is not a war of physical bullets or missiles. It is a battle against the evils of the world. It is a battle against greed, against arrogance, a battle against lying, a battle against gossip, or a battle against spreading discontent among believers. It is a battle against the devil himself.

2 Corinthians 10:3,4 – For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.

2 Timothy 2:3&4 – You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

But Paul teaches us what we can do to prepare ourselves for the battle.

Each day, most of us get up and take a shower. Then we determine what cloths we will wear for the day, brush our teeth, tend to our hair and then we are ready for the day, but are we?

Do we take as much time dressing ourselves for the spiritual battles of the day?

Each day we should make sure that we equip ourselves with the BELT OF TRUTH.

In armor, the belt is needed to secure other pieces of armor. The rest of the armor does not function well without the belt being attached firmly in place. Just as God’s truth undergirds everything for our daily lives. If we did not have the truth, nothing in our arsenal would be effective. John 14:6 states that Christ is “the way, the truth, and the life.” Jesus is our truth.

Next we need to take on the BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. In the suit of armor, the breastplate protects the heart and other vital organs. We are deemed righteous only through Christ, not by anything that we can do. Understanding that we are deemed righteous only through the grace of the Lord keeps us humble. It also reassures us that no matter what happens in our lives that we are His. Nothing can pierce our hearts and take his redemption away from us!

After we have fitted ourselves with the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness, next we must arm ourselves with the SHIELD OF FAITH.

The shield was the warrior’s first line of defense. It was strapped firmly to his arm as faith must be strapped firmly to us as we face the world. Faith is our first defense against doubt. When we go into battle, we cannot afford to have a tinfoil shield of faith. Our faith must be strong and thick, strong enough to take any arrow or accusation the devil throws at us.

Then we must put on the HELMET OF SALVATION. Salvation is the knowledge that we are sinners, that we must accept Jesus as our Savior and repent of our sins.

The helmet guards our head. Knowledge of salvation comes from our head. There are going to be times that we doubt, but we must rely on that shield of faith, and the knowledge of salvation to get through those times. The helmet of salvation protects our head from false teaching and those who would lead us astray.

The next part of our uniform is GOSPEL OF PEACE SHOES. During our struggles hear on earth, we are going to have to be sure footed. We are going to stand firm in order not to slip. These shoes will help us side-step the enemy and will allow us to bring the good news to all mankind. Sharing the gospel of salvation ultimately brings about peace between God and man.

And then we must pick up the SWORD OF GOD’S WORD. This is the only offensive weapon in our suit of armor. Hebrews 4:12 states: For the Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. An acute knowledge of the Word of God is our best defense AND offense in this world’s battles.

And the last of our armaments is PRAYER. Not just some prayer, but praying in the Spirit on all occasions.

Just as you wouldn’t go to work tomorrow morning minus your pants, or without your shoes, you cannot be prepared for the struggles of the day without placing on THE ENTIRE ARMOR.

You need TRUTH, FAITH, RIGHTEOUSNESS, SALVATION, SHARING OF THE GOSPEL, THE WORD, and PRAYER! You need all of them to battle well!

God has given us everything we need to engage in this spiritual war, it is up to us to make sure that we get dressed every morning!

 

Before your head hits the pillow

Are You Vulnerable to Attack?

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No one wants to be vulnerable to attack.  We do a lot to keep ourselves safe.  Many people install security systems in their homes.  Our cars come with theft alarms.  Women carry mace on their key chains.  Each day hundreds of women, all across the country, take self-defense classes.  We are cautious about traveling alone and we no longer pick up hitch hikers.  Our world is just not safe.

So here is the question, if we take so many precautions to keep our bodies safe, why don’t we take as many if not more to keep both our body and soul safe?

Have you ever watched the nature channel and seen an episode that shows a lion on the prowl?  The lions surround their prey.  They look for a weak animal, one that is small or wounded.  Then they isolate that animal.  The separate the most vulnerable in the herd from the pack and then attack.

That is not much different than how the devil and his demons go about their attacks on us.  They look for any weakness they can exploit.  If a marriage isn’t going well, they introduce a third party to tempt.  If you are a new Christian the devil may surround you with your old friends, friends who do things that you have turned your back on.  The devil also wants to isolate you from the body of believers.  When you go to church you have the protection of the body of believers.  They are there to pray for you.

But the devil wants to isolate you.  He wants to take you away from anyone who can build you up or keep you strong so he isolates you from other believers.

The devil wants you to be weak so he certainly doesn’t want you to be aware of the armor of God. But we can learn how to strengthen ourselves for battle with the enemy by reading Ephesians 6:10-18, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”

So there you go, if you don’t want to be vulnerable to spiritual attack, be spiritually strong by placing on the full armor of God and by surrounding yourself with others who love the Lord.  Run in a pack of Christians! We are stronger when we are many.  We are more productive when we are praying together. We are a greater force when we gather together with other Christians.

You can make excuses for not gathering together with other Christians, but know this, you are making yourself vulnerable to spiritual attacks.  You can make excuses for not undergirding yourself with Scripture but you are making yourself as vulnerable as a weak antelope, isolated from the rest of the herd as the lions attack.

The devil’s attacks and schemes will always be out there, but so will that armor and the body of Christ!  Begin your battle preparation now, put on that armor and join the army of Christ’s fellow servants.

Tomorrow I will repost a piece on what the full armor of God really is.  Stay tuned.