by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say…” Matthew 23:16 There is more than one kind of blindness. Jesus charged the religious establishment of His day with spiritual blindness; they could see with their eyes, but remained blind concerning spiritual truth. Commenting on this, the Apostle Paul said, “…for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” I am unable to comprehend the horror of meeting God, only to realize that I lived my life in spiritual blindness. God, speaking through His prophet Isaiah said He will, “… open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.” Those who are blind and acknowledge the same, to them God gives sight. God wants His people to see reality as He sees it. The world, insisting that it can see without God’s assistance, refuses to come to the Light. Thus, thinking that they see, they live in darkness. How can you know if you see or are blind? Scripture says indicators include an eager heart to obey all God commands, acknowledging that His will is “good, acceptable, and perfect.” Anytime you resist His will you can conclude you are blind, living in... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“But when he heard this he became sad, for he was very rich. Jesus looking at him said, ‘How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.'” Luke 18:23-25 Jesus will test you at the point of your weakness. For the rich young ruler, the issue was not wealth, but rather the limits of his commitment to Christ. Jesus understood that the limits of this young man’s commitment included his net worth, so Jesus tested him. Christ has an uncanny way of identifying any area of life not under his lordship, and you can count on His demanding a decision. For the committed follower of Christ, surrendering temporal goods eliminates the responsibility of stewardship. Thus Peter says, “We have left all and followed Thee”. Luke 18:28 The fear of whether Christ will adequately supply Peter’s needs replaces the tension of stewardship. Your Heavenly Father wants you perpetually vulnerable and dependent. Preparation for your time of testing includes solitude with God where you systematically give to Him all that you deem precious. Begin with surrendering your spouse and children. “God I cannot guarantee that I will not weep if You take them, but I do covenant not to fight You in this matter.” From here move to your health, the absence of pain, the ability to read, think, talk, etc. Then dreams, hopes and aspirations must be given over to His lordship. Anything less than total commitment places... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.” Numbers 14:19 The spies, sent by God to recon the Promised Land, returned with news of the giants. The Israelites complained that God did not treat them properly. Charging God with wrong ensured His judgment. Moses, realizing that the people had sinned, interceded with God on their behalf. God responds with the promise, “…I have pardoned according to thy word.” Numbers 14:20 When Moses said, “Pardon … as Thou has forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now,” God did not forgive them in the past, as seen in His sending a plague. Numbers 11:31-33 So too, God says He will pardon them, when in reality He forces the nation to wander forty years in the wilderness, ensuring the death of those who complained, prior to God bringing them into the Promised Land. Obviously, “pardon” and “forgive” do not mean the absence of accountability, but rather the promise of maintaining His covenant with them; they still had to suffer the consequences of their unbelief. If you are not careful, you can easily confuse God’s “pardon” and “forgiveness” in your life as well; God’s pardon does not eliminate the consequences of... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“For the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:10 The word “save” is a beautiful word filled with emotion. A child trapped in a burning building fills the onlookers with fear and apprehension. The fireman, risking his life, rushes into the flames and returns with the child in his arms. People cheer as someone cries, “the child is saved!” A pleasure craft capsizes inthe ocean and the Coast Guard comes to the rescue. The next day the headlines in the newspaper read, “The Coast Guard Saves All.” Few words thrill the soul like the word “saved.” Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. In this context the word “save” becomes an affront to many people. They resent hearing it because it implies that they are in danger and need saving. Some people, like those floating in the ocean hoping for rescue, know that they need saving. Others live in danger and do not know it. For example, aviators talk about experiencing vertigo, a phenomenon in which you lose your sense of direction. The instruments on the aircraft may indicate that you are losing elevation while your instincts tell you the opposite. Such people need saving and do not know it. Never lose your thrill when hearing the word “saved.” And never be shy about telling others the good news. When Jesus said He came “to seek and to save the lost,” he meant that there are two kinds of people in the world: those that know they need saving, and those that don’t. When people are offended by your telling them... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes or whither it goes; so it is with every one who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8 How do you control the wind? Jesus says that the work of the Holy Spirit is analogous to the wind; you hear and see its effects, but cannot tell its origin or destination. How often you would like to reach inside another and alter their perception of reality. You say to yourself, “Why can they not understand this simple message of redemption?” But they cannot, and you cannot force it. Unless the “Wind” has His way, they remain blind and dead in their sin. Man is never more insecure than when he cannot create, measure, and control. The work of man can be created, measured, and controlled, but the work of God cannot. If you try you will inevitably become abusive in your interpersonal relationships, trying to force people into meeting your expectations so that you can accomplish your objectives. The work of God requires a walk of faith. When you apply the template of your business on your church, calling your pastor to the same business techniques you use in the marketplace, you pressure him into trying to do the impossible. The cause of Christ is best served when you allow God to create, measure, and control, and you give yourself, by faith, to the task of investing in the lives of others. Let God do with your investment what... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“And the land was defiled, therefore I did visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land vomited out her inhabitants.” Leviticus 18:27-28 Leviticus 18 expresses God’s standards regarding sexual purity. Among His prohibitions, He includes incest, bestiality, adultery, and homosexuality. Note the interdependence of the people and the land; when the people defiled the land, the land “vomited out her inhabitants. God revealed to Abraham that his descendents would spend 400 years in Egypt, after which God would return them to the Promised Land. “And in the fourth generation they shall come back hither; for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet full.” The Amorites lived in the land God promised to Israel, and He had to wait until the iniquity of the Amorites was complete before removing them. There comes a point when the sexual immorality of a people crosses a threshold and the land “vomits” them out. I have no idea where that threshold is, but God does. It has nothing to do with God’s election, nor with whether or not the inhabitants are His chosen people; when Israel crossed the line God sent them into captivity in Babylon. In our country where we sanction divorce, homosexuality, and all manner of immorality – where the dormitories at our universities have become dens of licentiousness – I fear we may be getting close to crossing this threshold, if we have not already done so. Lord God, have mercy on us! We dare not forget that although investigation and experimentation in the intellectual realm leads to excellence, when applied to the moral realm it leads to depravity... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.” Romans 1:14 Paul discusses debt and obligation a great deal. To the Corinthians he wrote, “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves yourservants for Jesus’ sake.” 2 Corinthians 4:5 He tells them that he is obligated to minister to them. “For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity islaid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!” 1 Corinthians 9:16 In his opening remarks to the Romans Paul says that he is indebted to the non-Christians, for from them he accrues profit in the form of fruit. “…oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruitamong you also, even as among other Gentiles.” Romans 1:13 For this reason he is “eager”to come to them. Paul longs to minister to them, for in so doing he gains fromthem; he wants fruit from them. Your desire for fruit or profit is not bad, depending on what you consider to befruit or gain. You should not try to divorce debt and obligation. Your obligation to participate in the Great Commission is tied to your indebtedness to the fruit of evangelism, for this fruit accrues to your eternal bank account. According to the eternal economics of Scripture, when you give you... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, ‘My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” 2Corinthians 12:8-9 Scripture makes a connection between sin and sickness that I find disturbing: “Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.” This seems to support the teaching of Jesus as well: “When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk… Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.” It seems from this that we should conclude that sickness may result from sin, but this does not mean that those sick are ill because of their sin. We must be careful that we do not draw unwarranted conclusions from Scripture, while at the same time looking to God during times of illness to ensure that we are not living in un-confessed sin. James 5:14-15 Mark 2:5 John 5:8,... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“This He said to show by what death he (Peter) was to glorify God. And after this He said to him, ‘Follow me.'” John 21:19 As in life, so in death, Peter was to glorify God. Death affords us our last opportunity on this earth to glorify our Lord Jesus. Dawson Trotman, founder of The Navigators, affords a good example: He died saving the life of another. Often, I have asked God, when He comes for me, to take me from behind rather than straight on. But if God answers my prayer, it may limit my ability to glorify Him. Would I rather have the opportunity to glorify Him, or the absence of pain that comes with a silent death? The only way I can hope to glorify God in death is to “follow Him” with a biblical hope as the anchor of my life. Most men who do not live their lives with a biblical hope die cynical and bitter. “For me to live is Christ, but to die is gain.” I don’t think a day goes by that I don’t ask for the Lord’s return. With the passing of years, I find that my capacities – emotional, physical, mental, etc. – diminish. I fear that I may finish the race poorly, and thus my fervent prayer is that I can end this life without being a major embarrassment to the Savior. Jesus said, “When the Son of man comes, will he find faith on... read more
by MIMADMIN | May 7, 2015
“And my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 Paul sought to make his life a reflection of the gospel; that is, make the messenger like the message. Just as the gospel appears weak and foolish to the world, so does the preacher. The foundation of your faith is not reason, but the wisdom of the cross. Paul, in his preaching, makes no reference to the inferiority of heathen gods or the folly of idolatry. Neither does he seek to give proofs for the existence of God. The power is not in the argument of the messenger, but in the message. “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” 1 Corinthians 2:2 Conversion comes solely through the gospel in all of its simplicity, not because of craftily formed arguments and logic. Proclaim the gospel from a posture of inadequacy and dependence. Don’t try to impress people through technique. You will not bring people to conversion by satisfying the needs of reason. They come because the Holy Spirit has transformed their hearts. The gospel is eminently reasonable when you accept its presuppositions. But logic and reason cannot bring a person to acceptance. This marks the difference between the seeker and the skeptic. Reason may help the seeker, because God has already touched his heart, but it can do nothing for the skeptic. Human wisdom is not bad. It just cannot bring a person to... read more
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