Tag Archives: Proverbs

A good start each day is essential

Posted on December 14, 2015 by | Comments Off on A good start each day is essential

good startWe have all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Studies have shown that those people who eat a well-balanced breakfast daily do better quality work, are more able to handle the challenges and stresses of the day, and are in better health. Each day, schools across America give a free balanced breakfast to school-aged children so they can focus on learning rather on their hunger. I began thinking over the weekend of not only daily breakfast time at our family home but about what a balanced spiritual breakfast means for the believer.

After 40 days of fasting, Jesus offers advice for the soul

We’ve all read it in our personal devotions, have heard it taught in Sunday school, and even have heard preachers discuss it from the pulpit – the story of Jesus being tempted by Satan after he had spent 40 days fasting and praying in the wilderness. After being tempted by Satan to turn stones into bread, Jesus rebuked him, And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God (Luke 4:4). As I began studying this verse, I remembered what I once heard a small-town radio preacher say – if you want to live in this body you have to feed it; if you want eternal life, you must feed the soul. Feeding this body, bread, as Satan tempted Jesus, would only feed the physical body. When we eat, we are only feeding our physical body; this morning I had scrambled eggs, a couple of turkey sausage patties, and two of the small canned biscuits. While it was a filling and very satisfying breakfast it did nothing for my soul. It simply fed the physical body.

A good start of the day must include fellowship with Jesus

David, described by the author of the Book of Acts; I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will (Acts 13:22c), understood the importance of seeking the Lord early in the day. He wrote, O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is (Psalms 63:1). Solomon wrote on a similar theme, I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me (Proverbs 8:17). God is not talking about those that find Him early in life in this context, but those that wake up with a purpose to find and spend time with the Lord in the very first moments of the day. It takes a great effort to roll out of bed, grab your Bible, and begin reading and praying.  It becomes so easy to roll out of bed with a grunt, turn on the coffee pot, eat breakfast, and next thing you know, you’re already out the door for work without even reading one verse or spending time with the Lord in prayer.

When we truly put the Lord at the beginning of our day it does do a few things. Firstly, it allows us to put Jesus first in everything we do. When we do put the Lord first in our morning routine it changes the way we approach our work, our coworkers, and even our family members. It also allows the Lord to see our determination to follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit. I’m reminded of the testimony of Daniel: Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime (Daniel 6:10). Almost everything I’ve read about Daniel is that he prayed in the morning, evening, and noontime. Even when laws were passed against praying to the Lord, Daniel continued his routine of making the Lord the center of his life. Although we do not know exactly what three times Daniel prayed each day, I do believe that one of the times Daniel prayed was early in the morning before he began his daily routine.

A good start can set the course for the day

I will admit there have been times where I have skipped breakfast in the morning. For whatever reason, I simply didn’t have the time or just forgot to eat. It was those days where it seemed that I was the most distracted and irritable. And there have been times where I made the decision not to read my Bible or spend time in prayer with the Lord before I began my day. Just as skipping breakfast had a real influence of my day, so did skipping my personal, quiet time with the Lord. I have found I am more irritable, I get less work done, and everything seems to bother me. Aches and pains, stiff joints, and even some people, generally speaking, seem to irritate me more. However, when I have spent the time in prayer and personal Bible study in the morning, it is amazing the difference it makes. I can handle challenges and difficulties better, aches and pains seem more tolerable, and I get more done because my attitude towards what needs to be done is better. 

If you’re ready for a real change in your life that will also help your spiritual growth, I would invite you to do a thirty-day challenge – make fellowship with the Lord the first thing you do in the morning. Be ready for Satan to create all kinds of havoc as you begin to adopt a Christ-centered morning routine. Even after you’ve established it, Satan will still try to sabotage your efforts. However, I can tell you from experience that the Lord will honor and richly bless your efforts to become more Christ-focused. 

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Posted in Chrisitian Philosophy, Christian Living, My Walk, Our relationship with God

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The dangers of social Christianity

Posted on October 26, 2015 by | Comments Off on The dangers of social Christianity

Biblical-Studies-DegreeThere has been a trend in both American and western European societies that has led to a lot of scriptural misunderstanding. This trend, known as social Christianity, is a delusion that leaves the soul hungry for truth, is spiritually void, and does not have the power to save. It is a false gospel that serves no other purpose than to confuse, to distort the love of God, and to remake the faith that God has called Christians to have. Social Christianity, and the social gospels it teaches, is acceptable and appealing to the world because it sets aside the standards set by God and replaces them with a non-threatening interpretation of the gospel of Jesus where the distinction between unrepentant sinner and sinner saved by grace are distorted.

Social Christianity compared to biblical Christianity

The true gospel of Jesus is much different from the social gospel in many areas. The Bible is very clear in its presentation of the gospel: 1) there must be genuine repentance for sins [Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord (Acts 3:19)], 2) conversion (salvation) happens when we call upon the  Lord [For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation (Romans 10:10), For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16), and For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13)] and 3) our belief in Jesus is our only means of salvation [Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6) and Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved (Acts 4:12)]. There are literally hundreds of other verses I could use to show the Lord’s plan of salvation that is freely offered through His grace and love for us, but I believe Paul said it best: Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast (Ephesians 2:5-9).

Biblical Christianity places the focus of the relationship between the individual believer and the Lord Jesus Christ. That focus is centered upon the concept of individual repentance, individual recognition of our original state of being a sinner and the recognition of our need for redemption from the wages of sin [For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 6:23)]. It is placing our full and complete faith in the completed works of Jesus, His death, burial, and resurrection, the sacrifice of His sinless, spotless life in the place of our sin-stained life as our only hope of Heaven. The Bible clearly teaches that just one of our sins places us in need of judgment; Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life (Romans 5:18), but that through Jesus’ sacrifice, we are offered the free gift of salvation. Salvation is not earned by our own perception of righteousness, fairness, or by good works, but by the standards that have been set by God, of whom Paul wrote, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:2). 

Social Christianity has a number of teachings within its framework that cloud the simplicity of the true gospel of Jesus. Within the last three years, there have been a number of national-level politicians within the United States who have used the phrases national salvation and national redemption as calls for Americans to support their various agendas. Even Israel, a nation and kingdom established by God never had this kind of total and complete redemption for all its citizens. Even the Old Testament teaches salvation of the individual believer but does offer national blessings when the nation is in obedience to the will and teachings of the Lord. Will God bless our nation, if as a nation, we are obedient to the will and teachings of God? Yes. But this is not the same as national redemption or national salvation. Salvation is, even under the New Testament teachings, a relationship between the person and God.

Continued on next page.

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Bringing out the best in others

Posted on September 28, 2015 by | Comments Off on Bringing out the best in others

best in othersBringing out the best in others seems to be something that every Christian must be focused. In our society today we often witness the opposite happening in our homes, churches, schools, and the workplace. It seems that wherever we go, we witness people tearing others down. Even in our churches, we see the results of envy, jealousy, and strife as Christians take part in this strange and worldly ritual. Paul, often considered as the one apostle that had the most influence over the formation of the New Testament church, wrote, Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works (Hebrews 10:23-24).

According to the Merriam Webster’s Dictionary, provoke means to arouse to a feeling or action, to call forth, to stir up purposefully, or to offer stimulation for something. As I began to think about this passage of scripture, it became clear to me that Paul is reminding Christians to encourage others to not only be faithful to the style of living that Christ has called them to do, but to pass on the encouragement to others. If we look at this principle when applied to other areas of our life, such as dieting and exercise, programs like MyFitnessPal, the Veteran’s Administration’s program, “Let’s Move,” and Weight Watchers all share some common concepts – people are more likely to lose weight when they are part of a group of people who share the same goal. Each program uses positive peer encouragement to encourage each member to lose weight. It is this very idea that Paul is trying to encourage Christians to do for one another.

Paul continued in his encouragement, Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching (Hebrews 10:25). I’ve heard many preachers discuss this verse as referring to regular church attendance – especially on Sunday, but I have become convinced that it is so much more than that. If we are truly to bring out the best in others it cannot be left to just an hour or two on Sunday. It is within the context of Paul’s second letter to Corinth where he writes, Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? (2 Corinthians 6:14).  Again, I have heard pastors and evangelists use this verse as a basis for Christians not marrying other Christians, but I think there is much more to this verse than that. As Christians, we are to seek one another out especially as we begin to see the trials, temptations, and personal tribulations approaching. We are also to seek each other out as we watch society deteriorating around us and evil, ungodly practices becoming more mainstream. For this reason, Paul warns us not to be unequally yoked with non-believers. I think of the story of Lott and how at first, he pitched his tent towards Sodom but by the time of the city’s judgment and destruction by God, Lott was living within the walls of Sodom and living comfortably within a sin-sick society.

What Lott was missing was a person of similar faith to strengthen his resolve to live in the way that would be pleasing to the Lord. Solomon, considered as the wisest of all the kings of the ancient world, wrote Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend (Proverbs 27:17). I know that many will point towards his wife and say that she should have been his balance and should have been able to encourage him to stay strong in his faith. In reality, that rarely works, which is why programs like Promise Keepers, Weight Watchers, and others encourage us to get people other than our spouses and family members to whom we become accountable. We are not being honest with ourselves when we try to take short-cuts in this area. We need the ability to be frankly honest with whomever is our spiritual accountability partner and they must feel complete freedom to edify and teach us as well. It is through this that Christians are to bring out the best in others.

I’ve got a few men in my life who I will often ask them for guidance, opinions, and prayer simply because they are men of a similar faith to mine. Just as Solomon wrote, our friendships should be those which sharpens our faith, improves our walk with the Lord, and encourages us in our relationship with the Lord and with our family. 

 

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