Category: Good Life Journal

Journal Heb 1 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: (The Supremacy of God’s Son)

 

“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in  these last days he has spoken to us by his Son—whom he appointed the heir of all things—through whom also he created the world.

 

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.

 

After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name He has inherited is more excellent than theirs.”  Heb 1:1-4

 

Observation: The is one of the most majestic set of verses in the New Testament.  Hebrews is worth the work to unpack and devour.

Analysis:  How is Jesus supreme?  The writer of Hebrews says:

• Jesus is the Radiance of God’s Glory;
• He is the EXACT imprint of God’s Nature;
• Jesus upholds the universe (!!) by the Word of His Power.

Jesus says of himself: “The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand.” John 3:35

Paul uses more words: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.  For by him (Jesus) all things were created…all things were created through him and for him.  And he is before all things and in him all things hold together…For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell and through him to reconcile to himself all things…” excerpts from Col 1:15-20a

I notice how many times the adjective/pronoun “all” is used in the above.  “All” means completely everything, the whole shebang.  If I ever had to wonder about Jesus’ position, these sections of scripture nails it down: He is God.

Therefore, I can consider Jesus in the same breath, in the same thought, and in the same way that I consider God.

So, what does that mean?  I am writing this and reviewing how cavalierly I treat Jesus in my prayers and my thoughts; I think and relate to Jesus most times like He is my bud (which is ok), and forget that He is the Creator, the Sustainer, the Almighty, the fullness of God (which forgetting is not ok).

Jesus is so many things, I cannot put one aspect of Him over another—they all dwell in Him equally.  But, because I do not have that omnipotent, eternal, perspective, I do tend to stack things in a hierarchy:

“He is high and lifted up, shining with the light of His Glory…” And maybe this is where the Gospel begins…

Prayer: Burn this in my heart, O God.  Help me not be flippant towards You as I tend to be. AMEN

Journal Eph 6 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: “Bondservants: Obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ—not by the way of eye-service, as people pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart—rendering service with a good will (as to the Lord and not to man), knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord (whether he is a bondservant or is free).

 

Masters: Do the same to them and stop your threatening—knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven and there is no partiality with him.”  Eph 6:5-9

 

Observation:  What is the basis, what is the principle behind anything I do?  It is that I do everything as a bondservant of Christ.

Analysis:  One of the more difficult things I have had to navigate in my life is “when do I stand up for myself” or “when do I obey with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, doing the will of God from my heart?”

Candidly what I just now thought is, “when do I stand up for myself” and “when do I roll over?”  Sometimes it runs right through my mind that way—and especially when I am confronted with a decision.

I confess that this is hard.

Bondservant is defined as a person bound in service without wages.  I have seen it re-defined in my lifetime as an employee with the master being an employer.  That is a “soft” definition. though.  The rock-hard definition is “slave.”

No one in my generation wants to think of themselves as a slave.  Slave definitely has a context for today that is resisted if not abhorrent sounding, but the Word of God for a disciple is clear: there is an undeniable definition of “I am not my own—I have been bought with a price; I am the slave/servant of Another.”  I want to say this is radical Discipleship but that is in error—this is the baseline, minimum action for believers.

So, I am a slave to the Most High.  How does that flesh out, mirror?

However and wherever I am in public under the eye of My Lord, my actions are submissive to Jesus, the Holy Spirit’s leading, AND specifically His Word.  Increasingly, for I haven’t got it all together yet.

Paul writes “obedience with a sincere heart, really sincere as with fear and trembling; not with eye-service (putting on the dog and pony show); not people pleasers but God pleasers.  Not with looking for an earthly reward either (like an atta boy) but serving before the Lord God alone.

Therefore, the next time I am voluntold to do something I really don’t want/like to do, I remember to put on my big boy disciple pants, repent the snot out of my heart, and serve heartily, as doing it for Jesus.

Prayer:  Father, I remember this is where the rubber hit the road for me concerning Surrender.  It is easy to mouth the words “I surrender to You”, it is more difficult to say, “See, Lord? I really mean it.”  It is way more difficult to show surrender by doing something specific day after unseen day and not give the enemy a foothold.

To You, O Lord, do I surrender and give up my soul.  AMEN

 

Journal Eph 5 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.  And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

 

Walk as children of light…and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.

 

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time (because the days are evil).” Excerpts from Eph 5:1-2; 8b-10; 15-16

 

Observation: Walking is an analogy for conducting myself.  How I walk is synonymous with how I conduct myself.  So…conduct does matter.

Analysis: What is among the first things I think of when thinking of how to conduct myself?

If I were playing baseball, it would be process and rules.  Process things could look like: step into the throw; use two hands to catch; keep my hind end down when fielding a grounder, etc.  Rules could look like: 3 strikes I am out; that is a foul line; passing the runner ahead of me results in an out; etc.  The more I play, the less I must actively think about process and rules—it just comes reflexively.

What makes me think Christianity is different?

I actively use (and think) the analogy of baseball with how I think of Christianity.  One particular thought is that wearing a glove doesn’t make me a ball player just like saying I am a Christian doesn’t make me a follower of Christ.  Of course, looking at the same situation from a child’s POV, I might be stoked to think of myself as a ball player because my dad got me a glove.  Likewise, a new Christian.

Actual pursuit and dedicated application must happen to become better, whether baseball or Christianity.

I think Paul is encouraging the folks at Ephesus: Be imitators, walk in love, walk as children of light; practice discernment; look carefully how you walk; make the best use of your time.

I do well to pay attention to the verbs and adverbs of the Scriptures: do this, pay attention—the imperatives or declarations.  When I do that, I put sweat equity into my learning of doctrines, precepts and law.  I PURSUE God—I put effort behind my thoughts and study of scripture.

“Practice these things—IMMERSE yourself in them so that all may see your progress.  Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching.  Persist in this…”  1 Tim 4:16-16a

Prayer:  Father, it always seems to me that I emphasize to the man in the mirror only a few things.  I wonder if I should be concerned about other stuff in Your Word.  And then I think “What am I doing?”

Make the steady plodding to reap results in me, according to your promise.  “Keep steady my steps according to your promise, and let no iniquity get dominion over me.”  Ps 119:133   AMEN

Eph 3

Scripture:

[20] Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, [21] to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Observation:

One of my favorite verses when taken in context of understanding the mind of Christ and being filled with his love and fullness.

Application:

In my opinion, this is probably one of the most misused verses, due to being used out of context, by prosperity teachers. Name it and claim it. If you want it, tithe more and pray.
God can do abundantly more than more than you can imagine if you just tithe more. Boats, cars, houses, health, whatever.. abundantly more than you can imagine.

This is partly true – God CAN do anything way beyond what we understand, but there is more to the context of this verse.

Take the full context of vs. 14-19, and then 20 and 21.

[14] For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, [15] from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, [16] that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, [17] so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, [18] may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, [19] and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

I bow to the Father because he is good, he is holy, he is glorious. God has given us the Holy Spirit to dwell in our hearts. How? Through our faith and His grace. Why? That we be rooted and grounded in His love – to build our lives with this cornerstone. And, that we may have the strength to comprehend just how vast His love is, surpassing our knowledge – it takes strength to grasp things beyond our humanly comprehension. And, finally, that we be filled with all the fullness of God of which is beyond our comprehension without help from the Holy Spirit.  That fulness is indeed abundantly more than I can ask or imagine!

So.. this is not all about getting what we want or even what we think we need from God, this is about filling us with the fullness of God.

Prayer:

Lord I love you and glorify you. I pray you continue to fill me with your love and fullness beyond my ability to understand. In Jesus’ holy name I pray. Amen.

Journal Eph 2 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: “…we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath (like the rest of mankind).

 

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us (even when we were dead in our trespasses), made us alive together with Christ—(by GRACE you have been saved)—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places with Christ Jesus, SO THAT in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

 

For by GRACE you have been saved through faith.  And this is NOT your own doing; it is a gift of God—not a result of works—so that no one may boast.”  Eph 2:3b-9

 

Observation:  Unilateral decision by God to exercise Grace.  The above is the very clear description of what Sovereign Grace looks like—and the only exercise I get to do is exercise faith— (which is enabled by the Holy Spirit but that is another post…).

 

Analysis:  You know I write this for me, right?

I must write this stuff—because I want to remember the Gospel and I am prone to forget.  It doesn’t take long to wander down another path, to fall off the horse…and climbing back in the saddle takes more effort for me than staying there in the first place.

Also, I break up the Scripture reference in ways that make sense to me in sentence structure (syntax).  If I don’t, I tend to read in a run-on monotone—not at all like people think or talk.  Paul’s a passionate guy; therefore, I should put some passion in the passage.

So far, I think I see the “before” and the “after.”   The before: “…we all once lived in the passions of our flesh…”.  But, in the context of the letter to Ephesians, this is not a statement that ends the discussion of “over and done with or not” concerning pursuing the flesh or pursuing the Spirit.

The after: “…being rich in mercy…made us alive together with Christ.”  These are the two issues I want to remember.

Grace is difficult to define.  In God, Grace is a noun; sometimes it is a verb (giving grace).  The Microsoft office Thesaurus shows these descriptions: favor, mercy, benevolence, clemency, blessing, dignify, honor and others.  What I am learning is that Grace, as related to anything concerning the Trinity, is fully more (to the umpteenth power) than I could ever imagine defining.

Therefore, when I refer to the Grace of God saving me through faith, it is far, far, beyond in depth of anything that I could hope to have a definition I could fully relate to.  It is the WONDER of the Gospel engaged.

What isn’t beyond doubt is the next phrase: “…and this is NOT your doing; it is a gift of God—not of works—so that no one may boast.”

Grace is unilateral; Grace is sovereign.  Grace in salvation, adoption, atonement, etc., is only by God—NOTHING I can do will make me more acceptable to Him.  Only the blood of Jesus….

You know how hard that is to accept?  Unconsciously little things happen every day that I think “ah, this will draw me closer to the Mercy Seat.”  “I did [this], and I did [that], and I did [the other thing] …and I can puff my chest out and feel pleased with myself on increasing visible holiness.  “I hope that other folks saw that; it would be a witness on what to do…”  While that doesn’t seem “off”, this kind of thinking can become “off” so very easily.

How can I stay true to the Gospel?  That is the daily question…

Prayer:  Lord, I am learning more of what Grace means daily.  I am learning that it is difficult to search You and Your ways while battling the old man, that creature of sin trying to regain rule in my life.  But (and this is what I recall daily), Your mercies are new every day.  Your Grace permeates everything I see and I (if I take notice) I see your sovereign hand everywhere.

Clear the fog of the familiar from my eyes that I can see You.  AMEN

Ephesians 1:15-16 – For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give my thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers

 

Observation –

The reason Paul is referencing in the beginning of verse 15 is that we are given grace by God to glorify Him.  The believers in the church at Ephesus have placed their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  They show love to the saints everywhere.  Paul response is to be thankful and pray for them to build the believers up in Christ.

Application –

By the grace of God we are saved by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.  We are saved in order that we may use our lives to glorify God.  Best and simplest way I ever heard it preached to a group of ministry leaders is, “Our Story, His Glory!”  Our lives are to point others to God thereby honoring Him.  Our faith can and should be lived out loud by the love we have for God’s people, in our congregation, city, state, nation and all over the world.  What a great picture to honor God when we love all our brothers and sisters in Christ. Out of an abundance of love we receive, we should be in prayer for other churches and their needs.  We need to build up and encourage our people in prayer.

Prayer –

Father,

Thank you for your grace in saving me.  Let me live a life of faith by loving you and others.  May the power of the Spirit guide me in prayer, action and speech to edify all and honor you.

Journal Gal 6 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: “Brothers: If anyone is caught in any transgression, you (who are spiritual) should restore him in a spirit of gentleness.  (Keep watch on yourself lest you too be tempted)

 

Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

 

For if anyone thinks he is “something” (when he is nothing), he deceives himself.

 

But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor—for each will have to bear his own load.”  Gal 6:1-5

 

Observation: I wonder what Paul is getting at?  Could it be (gasp) that some are exercising lordship over another brother due to a perceived strength over a perceived weakness?

This doesn’t happen today, does it?  Oh, yes it does….

Analysis: Here is Paul problem solving at Galatia.

There are some obvious issues:

• Transgressions in the Church?  Oh, yeah.  See the previous chapters about what Paul was trying to address.
• Attempts at restoration?  Looks like it, attempts anyway…
• Gentle or heavy handed?  Not too much gentleness, heavy handed is firmly implied.

How about not remembering the Gospel?  It is right there, plainly referenced.

I have been on both sides of the circumstances that Paul describes: Stumbling or flat failing in my walk?  I may have been already crushed and here comes a brother, standing over me haughtily, little to no compassion being shown; Presented with a brother who is having issues?  Well, here I am exercising so-called “leadership”, talking down, because “I am so mature in Christ.”

Been there, done that.  So, what should I take away from this?

1)      No one is above another when it comes to the Gospel.  We all have sinned; we all deserve the Wrath of God because of our sin.  Salvation is only found by faith in Jesus’ work on the Cross for our Atonement.  Paul is plain spoken: “…if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, deception reigns!”

2)      I am an equal follower of Christ to another.  I walk aside, not over.  “Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work WITH you FOR your joy…” (2 Cor 1:24)

3)      My goal is to think about and take action to support another in the Faith: “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works.” (Heb 10:24)

To be clear: I will stand before the Throne on my little own lonesome, with all the criteria to talk about only what God wants to bring up.  How I conduct myself within the local Church counts for something and is a part of His Purpose.

To the face in the mirror: Beware of being “bossy” in my Christianity.

Prayer:  Father, you have so much wisdom.  You gave me a wife whom you used to challenge my perceptions of leadership in Christ.  You taught me to be trusting in You.  You taught me to be faithful in your Word.  You taught me to be gentle and persistent but not obnoxious.  You taught me to be persevering and far-sighted.  Did I remember gentle?

A beautiful statute is not made with a sledgehammer, it is made with a chipping tool.  Likewise are disciples made…AMEN.

 

Journal Gal 5 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

 

For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.

 

Now the works of the flesh are evident…as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God….The fruit of the Spirit is (see the list)…and those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires…(excerpts from Gal 5:16-24)

 

Observation: There are a lot of words being referenced here.  What is Paul addressing?  It is along the same theme as Chapter 1: moving away from the Gospel to something untrue…

Analysis:  There are times where I want to relax away from the Gospel.

It is like Mike Tyson, advertising for Shark Week: “Shark Week is hard!!”  At times, so is the Gospel.  “The Gospel is hard!!”  Yep, so it is…

But what makes the Gospel hard?

Paul is addressing it right here and throughout Galatians: it is the war against the flesh; the old man; my heart of stony sin; Adam’s seed; the thing that Jesus died for and that I repented of.

I am susceptible to the allures of sin.  Doesn’t matter what particular sin is defined, I am drawn to it.  I am just like the foolish youth described in Proverbs 8: “Come closer dear boy, the man is not home, and I am just the thing you want…”

Sin is like that.  And the Gospel fights that.  But I must engage in the battle against sin, and that through the Spirit.  To clarify, I must actively and resolutely partner with the Spirit of God to resist Sin and to pursue Godliness.

And if I don’t?  Well, there are parts of this doctrine that gets a wee bit murky for me.

Do I have faith in the Atonement for the forgiveness of Sin, and my sin in particular?  Yes.  But isn’t it true that there is an insinuation, an expectation that I am to repent from sin and pursue being a disciple?  Yeeeesss.  And what if I fail?  I am to confess my failure, repent, and continue pursuit, to persevere (at being a disciple) to the End.  And what if I fail again?  Well, scripture says He is faithful and just to forgive me my sin.

But—what if I don’t repent?  But still have a confession of faith?  That’s the muck to wade through.

Paul identifies the works of the flesh and warns the Galatian church: “…those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God.”  Pretty clear.

Just like I cannot guarantee not to run over a nail and flattening a tire on my car, I cannot guarantee succumbing to sin from time to time.  But, just like the remedy for the tire is pulling the nail out, patching the hole and re-inflating the tire, so it is with repenting from sin.

It is what I, as a disciple, am expected to do—persevere, persist, chasing after God to the END of DAYS.

Prayer: Father, the Gospel is hard.  Well, not the Gospel as such but what it, in its life-giving through the Cross, expects me to do.  Where I get lost in is imagining that I need to be perfect right now.  There lies the way of check-off box Christianity and being a Pharisee.

I cannot help thinking of how I learned Baseball, one practice at a time, layering skill upon skill, correcting my play as I grew physically, mentally, and matured in knowing the Game.  It is no different in growing as a disciple, I think.

Anyway, thanks for the analogy.  Keeps me grounded.  AMEN

 

Journal Gal 4 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)
Scripture: Paul to the Galatian church: “What then has become of your blessedness?

For I testify to you that, if possible, you would have gouged out your eyes and given them to me. Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?

“They” make much of you, but for no good purpose.
“They want to shut you out, that you may make much of them.”

It is always good to be made much of for a good purpose, and not only when I am with you, my little children (for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!).

I wish I could be present with you now and change my tone, for I am perplexed about you.” Gal 4:15-20

Observation: This looks like a continuation of Galatians 3: “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?”
Analysis: There is real anguish here. “Who has done this to you? This is so perplexing! You started off well and now have fallen off the wagon, gone off the rails. What happened?”
I am immediately taken to the concept of the Roads that Jesus talks about: (paraphrased) “Narrow is the road to righteousness; wide is the road to destruction” (Matt 7:13-14), and right back to Galatians 1 and heresy. (Gal 1:6-9)
How easy is it to the road of destruction? Just a little bit off the centerline, easy wandering, over time. Sin oozes, it does not come with a thunderclap. A thunderclap I can avoid; the drip, drip, drip from the faucet of sin is easily ignored as something of no consequence.
That appears what has happened to the Galatians Church. Focus: this is the Local Church that Paul is writing to; it is not the city of Galatia. Church members, church folk—people like me.
Who are “they” Paul is writing about? I don’t know, but I think it is simple to deduce. “They” are those folks who are changing the focus off of Jesus and “making much of Me.” “They” diminish the formation of Christ in me and are encouraging the adoration of the face in the mirror.
Brian and I, in reviewing “The Enemy Within” at Sat AM Coffee at IHOP, talked about “checklist” religion this morning: Did I do this? Check. Did I do that? Check. What about that other thing? Check. Twenty-five checkoffs later and I can say confidently, “No fault can be found in me.”
But has any of these “checkoff” kindled my heart, fanned it into flame, caused worship? Have I renewed again my “first love?” For the Galatian church, looks like the answer is “No.” I see what Paul says:
“But now that you have come to know God (or rather to be known by God), how can you turn back again to the WEAK and WORTHLESS elementary principles of the world (apparently) whose slaves you want to be once more…I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.” Gal 4:9-11
I preach to myself: “This is the easy road. Do I want to pick out the easy principles of following Christ and not be hard on myself and be a disciple, to have Christ formed in me? If so, I must make up my mind to navigate the hard, rocky, narrow road.”
Prayer: Holiness is Your life in me, O Lord. It is too easy to call myself by Your Name and be so far off the track it isn’t funny. Your goal, objective, is to make me into the image of the Son (Ro 8:29) and it is inconceivable that I resist engaging in that work, opting to do just about anything else instead of the hard work of my Heart and resisting Sin.
I think that I can coast, that I gain your image by edict and osmosis. How foolish is that attitude! Help me, make my life a prayer to you. Fan into flames the cooling embers of my heart, O Lord. AMEN

Scripture: Paul to the Galatian church: “What then has become of your blessedness?

 

For I testify to you that, if possible, you would have gouged out your eyes and given them to me.  Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?

 

“They” make much of you, but for no good purpose.

“They want to shut you out, that you may make much of them.”

 

It is always good to be made much of for a good purpose, and not only when I am with you, my little children (for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!).

 

I wish I could be present with you now and change my tone, for I am perplexed about you.” Gal 4:15-20

 

Observation:  This looks like a continuation of Galatians 3: “O foolish Galatians!  Who has bewitched you?”

Analysis: There is real anguish here.  “Who has done this to you?  This is so perplexing!  You started off well and now have fallen off the wagon, gone off the rails.  What happened?”

I am immediately taken to the concept of the Roads that Jesus talks about: (paraphrased) “Narrow is the road to righteousness; wide is the road to destruction” (Matt 7:13-14), and right back to Galatians 1 and heresy. (Gal 1:6-9)

How easy is it to the road of destruction?  Just a little bit off the centerline, easy wandering, over time.  Sin oozes, it does not come with a thunderclap.  A thunderclap I can avoid; the drip, drip, drip from the faucet of sin is easily ignored as something of no consequence.

That appears what has happened to the Galatians Church.  Focus: this is the Local Church that Paul is writing to; it is not the city of Galatia.  Church members, church folk—people like me.

Who are “they” Paul is writing about?  I don’t know, but I think it is simple to deduce.  “They” are those folks who are changing the focus off of Jesus and “making much of Me.”  “They” diminish the formation of Christ in me and are encouraging the adoration of the face in the mirror.

Brian and I, in reviewing “The Enemy Within” at Sat AM Coffee at IHOP, talked about “checklist” religion this morning: Did I do this?  Check.  Did I do that? Check.  What about that other thing? Check.  Twenty-five checkoffs later and I can say confidently, “No fault can be found in me.”

But has any of these “checkoff” kindled my heart, fanned it into flame, caused worship?  Have I renewed again my “first love?”  For the Galatian church, looks like the answer is “No.”  I see what Paul says:

“But now that you have come to know God (or rather to be known by God), how can you turn back again to the WEAK and WORTHLESS elementary principles of the world (apparently) whose slaves you want to be once more…I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.” Gal 4:9-11

I preach to myself: “This is the easy road.  Do I want to pick out the easy principles of following Christ and not be hard on myself and be a disciple, to have Christ formed in me?  If so, I must make up my mind to navigate the hard, rocky, narrow road.”

Prayer: Holiness is Your life in me, O Lord.  It is too easy to call myself by Your Name and be so far off the track it isn’t funny.  Your goal, objective, is to make me into the image of the Son (Ro 8:29) and it is inconceivable that I resist engaging in that work, opting to do just about anything else instead of the hard work of my Heart and resisting Sin.

I think that I can coast, that I gain your image by edict and osmosis.  How foolish is that attitude!  Help me, make my life a prayer to you.  Fan into flames the cooling embers of my heart, O Lord.  AMEN

Gal 2

Scripture:

[1] Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me. [2] I went up because of a revelation and set before them (though privately before those who seemed influential) the gospel that I proclaim among the Gentiles, in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain.

Observation:

Paul listened.
He came back to Jerusalem after a direct revelation from God and not because any man told him to do so.

Paul Acted.
He did not sit around. He left Jerusalem 14 years prior and was was busy spreading the gospel. He then came back because he was acting on what he heard from God.

Paul used good judgement.
Firm about the gospel, he took influential leaders aside and spoke with them so as not to argue with them in public. He knew he could convince them but didn’t want them to influence others into disbelief which could make it appear as if he was running in vain.

Application:

Listen.Act.Good Judgement.
As believers we are instructed to proclaim the gospel throughout the whole world. But how? It seems like a good and simple formula for us to follow as we live this life and follow the Lord. Listen, then Act, and use Good Judgement.

One thing is certain. Sharing the gospel is a command to us and requires action. The question becomes how are each of us as individuals called to share the gospel. I submit to you that without being quiet and listening for God to speak, through whatever means he speaks to you, you will never know how he is calling you to act.

Further, I think that once we begin to act on how the Lord is directing us, we need to look inward to the Holy Spirit for guidance and judgement based on our strong foundation of God’s Word – pray, study the bible, consult with other strong Christians.

Prayer:

Lord I love you and live to glorify you. Help me to be quiet and listen for you. Help me to discern your voce and guidance from mine and other people. Guide me in how best to apply the gifts you have given me to build your kingdom. In Jesus’ mighty name I pray. Amen.

Psalm 118:6 – The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.
What can man do to me?

Observation-
The psalm opens by focusing on the Lord’s steadfast love. God is faithful and all powerful. In verse 4 and 5 the psalmist tell us for those who fear the Lord his love will endure forever and when we call on the Lord, He will answer. Therefore, for those who fear the Lord, He is with them and they are joined together. A person with the Lord on his side, has no reason to fear. Thus the rhetorical question, what can man do to a person who has been saved by the almighty God?

Application-
This is correct position I need to place myself before God. I need to humbly fear the Lord and seek Him first. God is my creator, sustainer, savior and redeemer. Although, it would be easy to focus on the uncertainty of the times, the Lord has given us a Spirit of courage not fear. Paul reminds us by ourselves we are nothing we but can do all things through Christ. When we are in Christ and with Him, the Spirit will guide and protect us. Man can only hate and injure our physical body but God holds our eternity with Him.

Prayer –

Father,

Thank you for the truth in your word and your steadfast love for me. Help me to fear you and boldly share your gospel to honor you.

Journal Gal 1 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another one, BUT there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

 

BUT even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.

 

As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.”  Gal 1:6-9

 

Observation:  It looks like Paul is emphatic about the doctrine of the Gospel, right?

Analysis:  RC Sproul wrote a book a while back titled, “Getting the Gospel right.”  I am looking at it on a shelf right above my eyes.  He could have been referencing that book right from this section of scripture.

I read this and perceive how emphatic Paul is to the Galatian church about not moving from the Gospel they heard from the beginning from him.

But isn’t that just like me?  I recognize it in me: I learn, and then I think I know better; something new, something different, and I start twisting the Gospel.  I might not twist it hard, but even a little bit is out of shape and changes the Gospel.

What is my motivation?  I think it is a desire to find “something new”, “something not seen but sitting right in front of me”; to contribute a new and fresh idea to Christianity.  That was probably the motivation of heretics as well: full of good intent but ultimately looking for something they could call their own, “a new and different gospel.”

Thinking about it, this tendency is erupting less than 60 years after the Crucifixion and the Ascension.  “I am tired of preaching the same old thing—let’s find something new to be exciting, thrilling, stimulating, i.e., “to tickle my ears.”   Prosperity adherents, beware.

Paul even warns, “If I, me or any of my company should come to you with something different, BEWARE.  I shouldn’t be listened to; I should be accursed.”  Goodness, gracious!

And?  What I have found over the last 20 years (because I was just like what I wrote above) is that the historical Gospel, the Gospel message that survives generation after generation is BEAUTIFUL and FULL of WONDER—all by itself.

I don’t need something new.  I can study and read the godly men that have gone before, get the spaces filled out and see that the Gospel is a Jewel of great price and each facet declares the Glory of God.

This is the WONDER: The Gospel of Christ is foremost about Christ, the Trinitarian God.  The Gospel is not about me; it is not even directly for me.  If I were not a believer, if 100% of mankind did not have faith in the Atonement of Christ for their sin, all of Creation would REJOICE in the Lamb forever and ever.

I need to keep my head on straight about that, so I get the Gospel right.

Prayer:  One more time my heart erupts in praise, O God, for the Lamb that was slain to be the Atonement for the world.  I remember, and I tremble in awe of You.  Stir up more passion, more steadfastness, more dedication in me, Lord.  I want to faithfully endure to the End.  AMEN.

Journal Song 4-6 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine… (Song 6:3a)

 

Observation: Reading Song can be steamy.  For a book in the Canon, it is definitely adult fare.  It can be seen as a love story between the Son and his Bride.

Analysis:  Whew!  Song can get the ol’ mental pictures going.

Face it, I have read commentaries that really try to promote that it is Jesus’ love story to his Bride.  If I am being intellectually honest, though…. again, whew!

Still, the story of Song does have a parallelism to the picture of complete surrender to Jesus; spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and physically.  It is an allegory, a metaphor to how I am to respond to the Holy Spirit.

I think about it: How do I respond to Jesus daily?  Wholeheartedly or periodically?  Am I a complete spaz about it or does every moment of the day capture my attention in considering His beauty?

Most folks I will bet effectively turn their Christianity on and off; not necessarily daily or some sort of fixed time cycle like that, but with unconscious regularity—they just don’t think about it.  That’s probably, no, exactly what happens to me.

When was the last time I did something simple like pulling a Mary instead of a Martha?  Sat at His feet, listening and paying attention?  When was the last time I brought spiritual flowers to my Beloved?

I can’t remember.

Prayer: Lord God, there is a shame draping over my shoulders thinking about this.  I am not condemned, I know, because of the Blood and faith in the Atonement.  But because I take my immature love of you only so far, there is a shame I feel.

Modeling the image of the Bride in Song takes a stretch of imagination.  I can think of this, though: I don’t come close.

Why is that?  Is it because I think of myself as the disconnected but obedient soldier?  The wobbly priest/scholar?  A rank and file Christian nobody?  You are the Groom and I am your Bride.  You love me with an everlasting love I can’t even fully comprehend.  And me?  Most times I am like Hosea’s wife, Gomer.

Illuminate me with the love of You, fiery and fierce.   Cause me to long after your Presence in my quiet place and roar with your praise in the midst of the people.  AMEN

Journal Ps 110-114 (all references are from the ESV; changes in punctuation are mine)

Scripture: “Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments!

 

Light dawns in the darkness for the upright; he is gracious, merciful, and righteous.  It is well with the man who deals generously and lends; who conducts his affairs with justice.

 

He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.  His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks on in triumph on his adversaries.

 

He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever; his horn is exalted in honor.”  Excerpts from Ps 112:1b-9

 

Observation: Blessed or wicked: which am I?

Analysis:  One of the attitudes I had to work out of is the concept of “imputed” or “assigned” character verses “practiced” character in Christ.

There is without a doubt that I have an “imputed” version of myself in Christ.  After all, it is not called a “new birth” for nothing.  Like Paul wrote, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Cor 5:17)

This is now an attribute of my life in Christ due to it being “assigned” or “imputed.”  It is the way the Trinity looks at me.

But, does this “new birth” result in changed practices?  Does the output of my life automatically and without effort become different?  I am changed on the inside…does that change my outside?

Not necessarily.

The Psalmist describes a man.  This man has attributes that are demonstrated.  How does he begin?  Just like I should: He fears the Lord and loves (delights, GREATLY delights) his Word.  There is a benefit—he is blessed.

This is interesting: the way the sentence is structured, this man is PURPOSEFUL in his ways; he appears to not act like he is demonstrating change through “osmosis” or had a dual personality (once bad, now good—no effort involved).  This man is demonstrating change through embracing “imperatives”, rationally and emotionally embracing the Trinitarian God.

So, what?  This is another reminder to me that there is a scriptural imperative to systematically work at and towards holiness.  Yeah, there is a “holiness” given by God through conversion.  Granted, and all that through His Sovereign Mercy and Grace.  And then…there is the expectation that I am to pursue Him all my days.

Pursuit has effort; it has teeth.  Chases, hunts, searches.  It is a Quest.  Get after it!!

Prayer: “Your kingdom come; your will be done…”  Father, no wonder I must renew my mind.  And I need to let it renew all the way through to my mouth and my fingers.  It is difficult to differentiate where I see You alone, high and lifted up and then see You, holding, guiding, and changing me.  And, not only that, but working so that it is seamless in my life.

Help me to be seamless in serving You, every day.  AMEN