Many thoughts today...
"Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ." - Ephesians 5:17-21 ESV
Maybe we can look at this phrase 'understand what the will of the Lord is' and it translates in our mind as 'knowing what to do next' but really it is 'knowing how to live life'.
Wisdom creates a priority system that excludes regret. It is value system. Wisdom lets us respond instead of react. Wisdom gives us a way of escape so we don't have to live in self-medication. Guilt has a solution.
"Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth. Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee. Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding." - Proverbs 4:5-7 KJV
Jesus Is the Living Word. He Is wisdom incarnate. Knowing Him will shape our value system. He reveals God as gracious. His good news is pure and powerful. It doesn't bring people into bondage. It frees hearts and minds.
The Gospel is the 'will of God' for mankind.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God." - John 3:16-18 ESV
That is God's will for this moment in history. Will we embrace it and enter into an experience of His favor or will we drift with nothing to sing about in a continual pursuit of vain pleasure that can never satisfy the deepest needs of our soul?
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Showing posts with label God's Will. Show all posts
Showing posts with label God's Will. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 31, 2017
Monday, June 20, 2016
Pray Like This
"Pray then like this: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.' " - Matthew 6:9-13 ESV
The depth of this passage is truly amazing. It is prayer that shows us what to do as we are praying it. Here are a few things I see this morning:
- God Is holy. Let His name remain holy. Let it be restored to holiness in our thinking.
- God has a will and it can be established on Earth. It isn't a photocopy of our will flipped inside out. It is a holy will that is evident in Heaven and can be evident on Earth and prayer is part of that somehow.
- Daily bread is our right... no... it is given. It is grace given.
- The prayer teaches us to own our actions as forgiveness reigns in our life.
- We acknowledge our tempt-ability while seeking deliverance at the same time.
'Pray like this.', Jesus says.
Heaven is invisible. I dare say most of us haven't seen it yet and that parallels the knowledge of God's will. We know about Heaven by linking together passages of the Bible and forming a picture. We do that with God's will on Earth also.
At times we want things so badly but I don't see Jesus instructing us to pray for what we want in this prayer.
Yes, There are these passages.
"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." - 1 Peter 5:6-7 ESV
"Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved." - Psalm 55:22 ESV
But Jesus' prayer is missing this element because He is teaching us to live life His way.
I see a focus that is greater than my needs here in His prayer.
I think it is very possible to live a life before God and still be bitter that 'our' will wasn't done. As fallen humans we easily impose our will on those around us... even God.
"And God blessed them. And God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.' " - Genesis 1:28 ESV
Adam lacks a spiritual life so he sees every problem as a nail and uses the hammer God gave Him originally to try and solve it. We seek to subdue and have dominion over God's will but that only works on Earth. As spiritual people we want to see Heaven on Earth.
But then we return to the holiness of God's name. When that holiness is restored in our thought life we are made whole also. It doesn't give us answers but it does give us perspective and a desire to move forwarding relying on God's goodness.
Jesus lived this way. He taught His disciples and even today He functions just this way.One day the Earth will be subdued in a way Adam couldn't even dream of. Jesus Is Lord. That fact is known in every corner of Heaven. As we pray let the knowledge of that reality flood us.
--
The depth of this passage is truly amazing. It is prayer that shows us what to do as we are praying it. Here are a few things I see this morning:
- God Is holy. Let His name remain holy. Let it be restored to holiness in our thinking.
- God has a will and it can be established on Earth. It isn't a photocopy of our will flipped inside out. It is a holy will that is evident in Heaven and can be evident on Earth and prayer is part of that somehow.
- Daily bread is our right... no... it is given. It is grace given.
- The prayer teaches us to own our actions as forgiveness reigns in our life.
- We acknowledge our tempt-ability while seeking deliverance at the same time.
'Pray like this.', Jesus says.
Heaven is invisible. I dare say most of us haven't seen it yet and that parallels the knowledge of God's will. We know about Heaven by linking together passages of the Bible and forming a picture. We do that with God's will on Earth also.
At times we want things so badly but I don't see Jesus instructing us to pray for what we want in this prayer.
Yes, There are these passages.
"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." - 1 Peter 5:6-7 ESV
"Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved." - Psalm 55:22 ESV
But Jesus' prayer is missing this element because He is teaching us to live life His way.
I see a focus that is greater than my needs here in His prayer.
I think it is very possible to live a life before God and still be bitter that 'our' will wasn't done. As fallen humans we easily impose our will on those around us... even God.
"And God blessed them. And God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.' " - Genesis 1:28 ESV
Adam lacks a spiritual life so he sees every problem as a nail and uses the hammer God gave Him originally to try and solve it. We seek to subdue and have dominion over God's will but that only works on Earth. As spiritual people we want to see Heaven on Earth.
But then we return to the holiness of God's name. When that holiness is restored in our thought life we are made whole also. It doesn't give us answers but it does give us perspective and a desire to move forwarding relying on God's goodness.
Jesus lived this way. He taught His disciples and even today He functions just this way.One day the Earth will be subdued in a way Adam couldn't even dream of. Jesus Is Lord. That fact is known in every corner of Heaven. As we pray let the knowledge of that reality flood us.
--
Monday, October 13, 2014
The X Axis And The Y Axis
The great commandment and great commission are the x axis and y axis for a believer in Christ. We plot our course by these two things.
These are not commandments written in stone. Those 'shall not' commands were fulfilled by Jesus. They were given to the nation of Israel not the rest of the world though they resonated with people everywhere. These are not like those. There was punishment for breaking those. God does not punish us for not heeding this. Grace given to us has born a nature within us that swims in an area defined by these two coordinates.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." - John 13:34-35 ESV
Love seems like a simple answer for the world. If we all just loved one another everything would be so much better. The thing is... people can't do it. They won't do it and they can't do it. Both things are true. Jesus doesn't say everyone can do this. He says loving one another is a mark of discipleship. We love submitted as students of a master learning our masters art form like any student would sit at a master craftsman's feet.
"And he said to them, 'Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.' " - Mark 16:15-16 ESV
This commission is given to the same group the new commandment was given to. Go is in the Gospel. If we have not believed in Christ than we have no reason to do this. But if we have believed we have every reason. In verse 19 Jesus is taken to Heaven. This is the last thing He said before He left.
So, These two dynamics help me map any situation. The old street maps had letters and numbers... A, B, C, D, etc and 1, 2, 3, 4. You would use the index to find your street or landmark and it would have a combination... Page 4 - D3... You would turn to that page and count one, two, three and then find the D row or column (I forget which was which). Once you found your destination all that was left was to map a route to get there.
Christ is loving and seeking the lost. The great commandment and great commission help me find Him in my day or situation. That is where He Is and what He Is doing.
Where is love? What wins the soul? We don't win anything. God does the winning. We sow victorious seed.
That is the center of His will. Lust takes us somewhere else on the map. Self interest apart from God does also. God will seek us where ever we are and find us but He Is looking using this system and that is why we use it. He looks for us to love us and win us. Now we as His disciples learn from His meekness and lowliness and have His mind.
--
These are not commandments written in stone. Those 'shall not' commands were fulfilled by Jesus. They were given to the nation of Israel not the rest of the world though they resonated with people everywhere. These are not like those. There was punishment for breaking those. God does not punish us for not heeding this. Grace given to us has born a nature within us that swims in an area defined by these two coordinates.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." - John 13:34-35 ESV
Love seems like a simple answer for the world. If we all just loved one another everything would be so much better. The thing is... people can't do it. They won't do it and they can't do it. Both things are true. Jesus doesn't say everyone can do this. He says loving one another is a mark of discipleship. We love submitted as students of a master learning our masters art form like any student would sit at a master craftsman's feet.
"And he said to them, 'Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.' " - Mark 16:15-16 ESV
This commission is given to the same group the new commandment was given to. Go is in the Gospel. If we have not believed in Christ than we have no reason to do this. But if we have believed we have every reason. In verse 19 Jesus is taken to Heaven. This is the last thing He said before He left.
So, These two dynamics help me map any situation. The old street maps had letters and numbers... A, B, C, D, etc and 1, 2, 3, 4. You would use the index to find your street or landmark and it would have a combination... Page 4 - D3... You would turn to that page and count one, two, three and then find the D row or column (I forget which was which). Once you found your destination all that was left was to map a route to get there.
Christ is loving and seeking the lost. The great commandment and great commission help me find Him in my day or situation. That is where He Is and what He Is doing.
Where is love? What wins the soul? We don't win anything. God does the winning. We sow victorious seed.
That is the center of His will. Lust takes us somewhere else on the map. Self interest apart from God does also. God will seek us where ever we are and find us but He Is looking using this system and that is why we use it. He looks for us to love us and win us. Now we as His disciples learn from His meekness and lowliness and have His mind.
--
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Focus on the Moment of Visitation
"Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. For this is the WILL of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor. Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly." 1 Pet 2:12-19 ESV
"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect WILL of God." Rom 12:2 NKJV
It is such an interesting thing to be in the world but not of the world. Christ was this way and now as believers in Christ we are also. We are to be spiritual people in the midst of moral (and immoral) people. Mindful of God as people are being mindful of our actions. God is not judging our actions but he has the desire that these people, who have no faculty available to them but sight, would glorify Him in the day of their 'visitation'.
I started this morning out doing a study on the will of God... that is why the word WILL is capitalized in these verses.
There are moments, windows of opportunity, that open in people's lives... perhaps there is a lot done and said by us that seems ineffective but is really focused on those moments of visitation. That is just one reason why it is important that we live our lives identifying with Christ. Who He is and what he has done will not fail us... or other people.
"So Jesus answered them, 'My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. If anyone's will is to do God's WILL, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority. The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood.' " John 7:16-18
How many years of Sunday school are focused on a moment of visitation in a child's life? If they have that moment they may just unwrap all that doctrine and teaching they received like a gift on Christmas morning.
Perhaps there will be a moment in an unbelieving adults life, a person close to you, when suddenly the things you said and did will make sense to them. A moment when the cross and Christ on that cross has deep personal impact for them. That is our prayer isn't it?
Conforming to the world is never the answer... mindfulness of God and identification with His Son is. When we look back we will not regret that we did.
"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect WILL of God." Rom 12:2 NKJV
It is such an interesting thing to be in the world but not of the world. Christ was this way and now as believers in Christ we are also. We are to be spiritual people in the midst of moral (and immoral) people. Mindful of God as people are being mindful of our actions. God is not judging our actions but he has the desire that these people, who have no faculty available to them but sight, would glorify Him in the day of their 'visitation'.
I started this morning out doing a study on the will of God... that is why the word WILL is capitalized in these verses.
There are moments, windows of opportunity, that open in people's lives... perhaps there is a lot done and said by us that seems ineffective but is really focused on those moments of visitation. That is just one reason why it is important that we live our lives identifying with Christ. Who He is and what he has done will not fail us... or other people.
"So Jesus answered them, 'My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. If anyone's will is to do God's WILL, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority. The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood.' " John 7:16-18
How many years of Sunday school are focused on a moment of visitation in a child's life? If they have that moment they may just unwrap all that doctrine and teaching they received like a gift on Christmas morning.
Perhaps there will be a moment in an unbelieving adults life, a person close to you, when suddenly the things you said and did will make sense to them. A moment when the cross and Christ on that cross has deep personal impact for them. That is our prayer isn't it?
Conforming to the world is never the answer... mindfulness of God and identification with His Son is. When we look back we will not regret that we did.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
If God Wills...
We take responsibility as people who are under authority. There is a firmness that is rooted in the humility of knowing that we are not our own. We have been bought with a price.
"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.' But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes from evil. You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well." Matt 5:33-40 ESV
"But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your 'yes' be yes and your 'no' be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation." James 5:12 ESV
There are religions and relationships that demand absolute loyalty. Companies that want oath after oath but it is a false sense of security and many times a recipe for failure.
God knows that grace works. He gives us grace and grace allows for a 'turn the other cheek' mentality.
Broken promises cause heartache for a reason. God doesn't break any of His. His commitments are selected on the basis of omniscience, omnipresence and omnipotence. Society makes the moral man out to be a God able to keep his commitments. If our commitments become our gods than we will fall under condemnation.
At the same time we can and should be 'yes' and 'no' people. As people under gracious authority we need not hem and haw.
"Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.' As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin." James 4:15-17 ESV
Does God have veto rights? Are there designated people in ours lives that we give an ear to that can express that also?
We can wedge our will into a problem like a crowbar hoping it is strong enough to pry the situation open or we can function by faith trusting that God answers prayer and will use an available vessel. One is striving and the other lives in rest.
As sent ones God has sent us into situations for a reason. We are dispatched as stewards and investors using Heavens currency. Let us be decisive investors saying 'Yes, I will forgive.' and 'I will go the extra mile'. We can be decisive believers affirming faith in Christ and no other and rejecting anything less than that.
"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.' But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes from evil. You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well." Matt 5:33-40 ESV
"But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your 'yes' be yes and your 'no' be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation." James 5:12 ESV
There are religions and relationships that demand absolute loyalty. Companies that want oath after oath but it is a false sense of security and many times a recipe for failure.
God knows that grace works. He gives us grace and grace allows for a 'turn the other cheek' mentality.
Broken promises cause heartache for a reason. God doesn't break any of His. His commitments are selected on the basis of omniscience, omnipresence and omnipotence. Society makes the moral man out to be a God able to keep his commitments. If our commitments become our gods than we will fall under condemnation.
At the same time we can and should be 'yes' and 'no' people. As people under gracious authority we need not hem and haw.
"Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.' As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin." James 4:15-17 ESV
Does God have veto rights? Are there designated people in ours lives that we give an ear to that can express that also?
We can wedge our will into a problem like a crowbar hoping it is strong enough to pry the situation open or we can function by faith trusting that God answers prayer and will use an available vessel. One is striving and the other lives in rest.
As sent ones God has sent us into situations for a reason. We are dispatched as stewards and investors using Heavens currency. Let us be decisive investors saying 'Yes, I will forgive.' and 'I will go the extra mile'. We can be decisive believers affirming faith in Christ and no other and rejecting anything less than that.
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