I'll Make You Famous!

     Have you ever had one of those moments when you realized that you had known someone for a long time and did not know that they went to church and professed to be a Christian?  There were probably a lot of people that had that experience with me in High School and my early college years.  It's always an awkward moment when you try to surmise why you didn't know.  Is it because you weren't concerned enough to find out or they weren't faithful enough for it to show?  Maybe it's a little of both.
     I want to have the kind of faith that people recognize. Christians and non-Christians.  I want people to know beyond the shadow of a doubt where I stand and whom I stand for.  Don't get me wrong, I don't want to be like those misguided folks that picket military funerals in the name of Jesus.  I want to be known for a faith that matches the Bible.  The Faith, to be exact.
     Paul wrote to the church at Colosse that their faith was reaching far beyond their city gates.  They were becoming famous, in a sense, while they were making Jesus famous.  What was becoming well known?  Their faith in Christ and the love they had for all the saints.  Are you known for that kind of faith?  A faith that overflows with love?  Hear me.  I didn't ask if you were known for your knowledge.   Knowledge puffs up.  You can know a lot of scripture but yet not live it or let it change your heart.  They were known for their knowledge of scripture and how they lived it out!  That kind of faith, Paul said, came from the hope of heaven.  A real understanding of heaven changes people. It causes people to bear fruit in their Christian life.  Are you bearing fruit?  Are there new Christians following behind you?  Are there stronger Christians learning from you?  This isn't a call to church leaders only.  This is a letter written to the CHURCH at Colosse.  All are expected to make Jesus famous.
     If you are at a time in your life when people are surprised that you go to church, start loving others.  It will take  a decision on your part to stop loving yourself so much.  It will take a conscious effort to invest time in others.  Don't make people shocked to read in your obituary that you attended church.  Besides, I don't think Jesus reads obituaries.
                Read Colossians 1:1-8

What Did I Come in Here For?

     In sports, it’s said that the best thing to have besides talent, is a short memory.  Great scorers in basketball have it. Great shortstops have it.  Great quarterbacks too.  The ability to forget the last missed jumper, or error, or interception is a useful skill.  Often it distinguishes the good from the great.  A guy like Mark Sanchez has loads of talent but it seems that he will never be a Joe Montana because all of his very public mistakes are in his head more than on Sportscenter.  And that’s a lot.  

     In your Christian life, a short memory is key as well.  Paul reminds us of that in Philippians 3.  He just spent some time reminding the false teaching troublemakers about all the great reasons he had for deserving God’s love.  He then throws all of those things away, simply because they don’t mean anything.  We can never be good enough, faithful enough to deserve the love of Christ.  He gives it anyway.  Paul then goes on to say that he just wants to be like Jesus.  Not to earn his salvation but to share in what Christ did for him.  

     Here’s where the really important lesson come in.  He hadn’t gotten there yet.  He wasn’t perfect.  Few people have had a turnaround like Paul but he knew he still had his struggles.  The apostle realized the key to getting closer to the goal.  Forgetting your past.  There’s a fine line of the humility that comes from remembering what Christ saved you from and letting the old life drag you back into the pit.  Most of us lean towards the latter.  We get trapped in the lies of Satan that we aren’t good enough. There’s no way that God can forgive you!  You know what you did and God knows too.  Everyone knows what kind of person you ARE.  You haven’t changed.  You are disgusting.  You make God sick!  We believe that junk far too often!  Let me point out one simple truth to you.  God is God and you are not.  Are you more powerful than God?  If God can take away your sin and do away with it, why can’t you let go of it? He removes if from us as far as the East is from the West (Psalm 103:12).  When we hold onto our old sin and punish ourselves for it over and over, we are saying that we are greater than God!  We have to become like Paul. Forget the past and strain, fight, and claw toward what is ahead!    Press on towards the goal of Heaven. Fight for the prize!  

     Do not let Satan hold more sway in your life than the Spirit does.  Listen to the voice of truth in God’s Word not the lies of the deceiver.  You have a Savior who loves you.  He lived and died and lives again so that you could come to Him.  If you have believed in Him, repented of your sin, confessed Jesus as Lord and met Him in baptism to wash your sins away and receive the Holy Spirit, you are His.  His love is greater than your sin and He has set you free.  Keep fighting!

                                                         Read Philippians 3:12-14

We are Family!

     Have you ever known that guy (or girl) that just says whatever comes to their mind?  The no filter type.  They just let it pour out and there's no holding back.  That sums up the Apostle Paul.  Paul is not one for beating around the bush.  He certainly doesn't here.  Paul is trying to impress a point.  It's one that I try to miss.  It's an uncomfortable one that he pressed yesterday.  He won't let up today.  Again with the unity.  To rub it in, he states, "IF you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, IF any comfort from His love...fellowship with the Spirit...tenderness...compassion, then be united with each other!  Come on!  Make us feel guilty, why don't ya?  It is a valid point isn't it?  He reminds a bunch of blood bought, grace saved sinners that they had a debt they could not pay and yet they were set free.  We need that same reminder.  Of course we have been encouraged by our life in Christ, we definitely have been comforted by His love.  No doubt we've experienced fellowship that can only happen through the Spirit.  So then, do we have a unified mind with other Christians?
     Do we treat our church family like family or are they just casual acquaintances?  Do we tolerate them for a couple of hours a week or do we cherish them, warts and all?  We put up with a lot from our blood family and overlook quite a bit.  But truly our Christian family is blood!  In many ways we can be closer to the church than our natural family!
     How do we become like-minded?  We have to be on the same page!  Actually the same book.  We must be grounded in the Word together.  A church will always be at odds if the standard is not God's Word.  If we all have our own opinions, we'll never agree. If we study the Word together, we'll grow together.
     If we study together, we will begin to love who and how God loves.  Something I pray quite a bit, is for God to help me see people the same way He does.  To love them like He does.  The more we see how lost we are without Jesus, the more it helps us see the great need of others.  Our purpose becomes His.  We begin to be about the most important thing in the world. Introducing people to their Savior.
     Then the toughest part comes.  Putting ourselves last.  Even more difficult is putting others first.  They aren't as good as us.  Do you know their personality?  How about what they used to do?  Or still do?  But God never graded on a curve.  All are unworthy and all are still loved.  Then Paul pours a little salt in the wound.  Act like Jesus.  If you think you don't have to humble yourself, are you better than Jesus?  We wouldn't say that out loud, but we often act that way.  I know I do.  He is God, but he emptied himself of power for a while.  All to be like us; to become one of us, to die for us.
     If Jesus could do that for you, don't you think others deserve to know that good news?  If we can humble ourselves and try to love our brothers and sisters and the lost people we come in contact with everyday, the world would be much better.  Not only would we change eternity, but we would even improve this life!  So, have you gotten anything from being in Jesus' family?  Then start acting like family!  Let's stop going to church and start being the church!  The world is watching, let's show them how family acts!
                                                        Read Philippians 2:1-11

Secret Agent Man...Whose Side Are You On?

     I always like a good spy movie.  The kind where you get so angry over the treachery and deceit that you want to jump through the movie or TV screen.  We love to hate the bad guys.  Oops, we're not supposed to hate. You know what I mean.  The best stories are ones where someone is a double-agent or traitor and they finally get what is coming to them.  I think we like those so much because we can all relate to being betrayed.  Being stabbed in the back.  Tricked.  Played for a fool.  You’ve probably got someone or some time in your life playing in your head right now.  

     The most effective enemies come from within, don’t they?  The saboteurs that inflict the most damage are ones you would never expect.  The kind that build your trust only to turn on you when you least expect it. Is your blood boiling yet?  Has that ever happened to you?  Still even harder to think about; have you ever done that to someone?  Paul challenges the Philippians to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel.  The primary characteristic of living worthy of the Gospel seems to be how unified you are with other Christians.  That’s a sobering thought, isn’t it?  

     Unfortunately, the church can be a place where people argue, gossip, and complain more than any other.  The number one reason, I believe, is because it’s made up of people.  We are imperfect and changing our location doesn’t make us perfect.  The person that gossips and complains at work 5 days a week won’t suddenly stop their favorite past time one day a week because they dress up a little.  There has to be a change of heart that takes place. To go a little deeper, I believe we have to acknowledge that their are people among us that aren’t redeemed.  I don’t mean the visitors that just haven’t obeyed the Gospel yet.  I mean the veterans that probably walked the aisle a long time ago but may have never truly surrendered their hearts and minds.  Or quite possibly some time after following Jesus, they turned their back on Him slowly but surely.  Paul said in Acts 20:29, “Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.”  FROM YOUR OWN NUMBER!  

     Regardless, when we fight or pull in different directions, we do not live worthy of the Gospel.  If we want to be what Christ has called and made us to be, we must learn to live in unity.  If you are a gossip, stop it. Zip your lip. Shut it.  If you are a complainer, close your pie hole.  The great majority of complainers never talk to the one or two people who can actually address and change the issue they are upset about.  You know why?  They are afraid that something might get done and they will be out of a job.  Complainers and gossips would not know what to do if they didn’t use their greatest talent.  So if that is you, repent!  All hope is not lost.  Try praying before you ever say a negative word to someone else.  When you hear that bit of juicy gossip, stop right then and pray for the people mentioned.  See if you still feel like spreading the news then.  If the good news can change a murderer like Paul, he can change a character murderer like you!  

      Know this.  If you continue to keep division alive and well in the church you are hurting it and maybe even killing it.  The greatest sign of the truth of the Gospel is when Christians stand together in unity, fighting FOR the faith of the Gospel.  Paul said it right there in Philippians 1.  Make it your ambition to be the kind of person that people are glad to see coming, not glad to see going.  Don’t make people lie at your funeral.  Live a life of love just as Christ did.  Stand together with your brothers and sisters, not against them. 

                          Read Philippians 1:27-30

Vampires, Werewolves, and Waterboarding...Oh My!

      Sorry Twilight fans, love isn’t all about ooeey gooey feelings. It isn’t about pasty parasites running through the forest, for that matter.  I don’t know much about Twilight because to me being forced to watch Twilight makes Water Boarding look like a Toddler Swim Class.  But, I digress.  I need to take it easy on Twilight fans because they are not the only ones who have a misunderstanding of love.  Most humans do.  We focus on all the emotion and little of the substance.  Love is a decision, it’s sacrifice.  The ooeey gooeys are a byproduct of love.  That’s why many relationships don’t last.  That girl that you “loved” in 7th grade only to agree to see other people two days later, never got to the point of sacrificial, real, biblical love.  Sadly, many adult relationships never get there either.  

     So when Paul prayed for the Christians at Philippi to grow in love, what did he want for them?  First, he wanted their love to grow deeper in knowledge and depth of insight.  To truly love requires knowledge. Knowledge of God, of yourself and others.  You must know who you are without Christ and then know His great love for you that overwhelms all of that. Then you must know the truth that is God’s Son, Jesus, and all He did for us and all the people in this world.  That knowledge will motivate you to share that love.             

     Paul also prays that their love will grow and overflow in discernment or insight.  Once we begin to grasp the great love and affection Jesus has for us, we must begin to grasp the wisdom and insight to live up to the new identity Christ has given us.  When I was a kid I had school clothes and play clothes.  You better not play in your school clothes. By His grace, God has given us new clothes in Christ.  His desire is that we bring glory to Him by not dirtying them up!  He’s called us to a new name and new standard.  

     Paul’s hope was with this greater love and knowledge, that the Philippians would choose what was best so that they would remain pure until Jesus returned.  When we try to stay pure and keep our new clothes clean, we allow that fruit of righteousness God has given to shine through and give Him glory.  

     So if you want to be able to experience real love and share real love, here’s what you do.  Spend time in the Word of God. I hope that this series of devotions will help you in that. So your knowledge and insight will grow.  You can’t share love you haven’t understood yourself.  The more you uncover about Christ’s great love for you (and even pale vampires), the more intense the need to tell others becomes.  What comes next is an overwhelming desire to be more like Jesus; and when that happens, you “look” more like Him.  When you do, you won’t be able to stop that fruit of righteousness from pouring out into the lives of others.  And that’s a whole lot better than shirtless werewolves frolicking in the forest.  At least I think so. 

     Read Philippians 1:9-11

Don’t be a Fibber    

      Allow me to let you in a little known secret.  Many times when people say, “I’ll pray for you,” they never do.  Earth shaking news, I know.  You probably were aware of that.  You may have been an “empty promise pray-er” before.  When we tell someone that we will pray for them, we usually mean well and have every intention of praying for our friend.  Unfortunately life soon catches up and takes over and we simply forget.  There are some intense prayer warriors out there that don’t relate to this but most of us are Prayer “Weekend Warriors”. 

     I find in Paul’s letter to the Philippian church a good way to help your prayer life and to be included in the lives of others.  In Philippians 1 Paul writes that he thanks God every time he remembers them and prays with joy.  How do we become that kind of person instead of the heart-burn inducing type of person?  Well, I think the text answers our question.  First, Paul writes that they have helped him while he preached the Gospel from the beginning of their relationship with Christ until now.  There was no, “Let me be fed and then I’ll sacrifice later.”  They jumped right in and gave to help others know the Good News.  He goes on in verse 7 to say that the Philippians are in his heart because they are partakers or share with him in the grace of God. Even during his imprisonment and his fearless defense of the Gospel.  The way to endear yourselves to others and be included in their prayers is to stand with them when they go through their darkest times and greatest tests.  

     On the other side of the coin, how do we become a person who prays when we say we will?  Pauls shines some light on that in verse 8.  We will become better at praying for others when we truly get to the place in our lives where we love them more like Christ does.  That’s a tall order.  We begin down the path toward Christ-like loving when we start doing what we spoke about in the previous paragraph.  We will love people more when we suffer along side them.  We’ll love them more when we weep when they weep and laugh when they laugh.  

     So, the key to becoming a Prayer Warrior and Prayer worthy?  Live life with others. Not just your family.  Stand with your brothers and sisters in Christ through the good times and bad. Be there for you neighbor who doesn’t follow Jesus. Have them in your home. Don’t just nod on the lawn mower.  You’ll love them more and they’ll love you more. You will keep your prayer promises because they will be on your heart. Then maybe, just maybe, when your name is mentioned in prayer it will be ‘Thank you, Lord’ and not ‘Help me, Lord.’

                                                            Read Philippians 1:1-8

What more does he need to do?

I hate hearing bad news.  I hate bad news about christians.  I hate bad news about myself.  Far too often I hear about another brother or sister who has failed miserably and more often than that, I look in the mirror and see how terribly I fail time and again.  No matter who the culprit is, I have to ask myself, "What more does he need to do to make you (me) love him?"  

Why do we believe urban legends, myths and folklore and yet live like the blood-bought gospel is a fairy tale?  My soul cries out because of our unbelief.  We know all the answers and say all the right things except NO!  We give in to sin and temptation so easily when we have every reason and opportunity to resist.  God, you are greater than temptation and your love covers over a multitude of sins.  May the sacrifice of the cross become enough to sway my heart to love.  Come Lord Jesus.

Loved beyond measure.

I just heard about a child that was born without a brain.  The more unbelievable fact is that the child lived.  Even more so, is the fact that the child is two years old!  The little boy's brain stem is intact which controls his breathing and the basic activities of life, but he does little else. Sometimes his arm will flail and the family holds out hope that he's learning to wave.  The reason they hold out hope is there are some brain cells on the stem, so it's hard to say what he is capable of or not. 

 

Do you want to know something almost as amazing?  The child is adopted.  His birth parents did not feel that they could handle the stress of raising a child that could not function on the lowest levels and could die at any time.  So a family that has a reputation for foster-parenting children like this boy, took him in and eventually adopted him! Amazing, they knew his struggles, knew what lay ahead and still took him in.  According to a friend that has met the family, they shower love on him, though often with little response.  The boy that was unwanted became wanted and loved beyond measure.

As I listened to this amazing story, I was hit between the eyes by the fact that this child's story is not so different from my own.  I seemingly had nothing to offer, was unlovable in the eyes of many and yet still I was loved.  Jesus looked at my sin-filled life and in spite of what I had done he looked to who I could be.  His child!  He adopted me, took me into his family and made me one of his own. He showers love on me though I can never repay Him or truly give back to Him like he's given to me.  It's good to know that there is still hope for the unwanted.

Read:      Romans  5:8;   Galatians 4:4-7