Tag Archives: love

Feb 23 2009

The Enemy Is You…


“We have found the enemy, and it is us”, Pogo.

A religion or belief system that does not save me from myself is not worth very much. Each of us came into the world with a built in “ME” complex that is never completely overcome. Some of a baby’s first words are usually “mine” or “me”. We never have to be taught to be selfish, it comes with the package.

The human ego, or the “self” part of each of us, is our greatest obstacle on our journey toward Christian maturity. The reason the gospel is offensive and a scandal to many is because it leaves absolutely no room for the human ego. Those who are dead in their sins and then are made alive have nothing to boast about. (Romans 3:26, 27; Ephesians 2:8-10)

It is clear that as long as I have confidence in my ability to live a life worthy of God’s ideal of sinless perfection, I will not fully embrace God’s provision for sin offered in the gospel. God doesn’t need my help or yours to make us righteous in regard to salvation. The exact opposite is true.(Romans 5:18-20) Only when we come to the end of ourselves and believe God’s record that our best behavior, on our best day, is far short of God’s righteous demands (Romans 3:9-20) are we willing to throw ourselves upon His mercy offered in the gospel of Jesus.

People who think they can enter heaven based even partially upon the basis of their good works on earth are either arrogant or ignorant. They are either so arrogant they think they deserve what God says they don’t, or so ignorant they don’t understand the absolute moral bankruptcy of the unsaved. The Apostle Paul said of himself that nothing good was in him, as to his flesh. (Romans 7:18)

Each of us on earth inhabits a body that is God’s natural enemy. That doesn’t cease to be true once we are born again. There is the constant tension within the Christian of the flesh against the Spirit.(Romans 7; Galatians 5) The two are at war for control of our thoughts and intentions and we must cooperate with what the Spirit desires to the defeat of the ego.(Romans 6:12-14)

Every religion, other than Christianity, appeals to the human ego. Each of them has the adherent doing some act, some ritual, some sacrifice to entice god into looking favorably upon him or her. This appeals to the ego in that one can take credit for what he or she has accomplished, and in most cases what has been done is observable by others. Only in Christianity is a believer received wholly upon the merit of another, namely Jesus Christ. Christians understand that while they were in fact God’s enemies He loved them, died for their sins, and rose from the dead to allow them to share in His eternal life. Becoming a Christian is in contrast to what the ego demands because the believer has absolutely nothing of worth to offer God, and even more scandalous, nothing more needs to be done. The penalty of transgressions against God has been paid in full and the believer is fully acquitted of all charges (Colossians 2:14) against him and becomes a child of God.

The loving, faith response to this lavish love is to say no to an unrighteous lifestyle (Titus 2:11, 12) and to do the good works God designed each believer to do (Ephesians 2:10). The idea that a sinner can obtain eternal life, or keep it, based upon putting in a good enough performance flies in the face of the weight of Scripture which teaches the opposite.

In the letter to the Romans Paul made it very, very clear by saying about the righteousness of God which is by faith,

“21But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

 27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.” (Romans 3:21-28)

To the struggling Christian, forsake your ego and its desires and trust Christ alone for your security. God’s truth will set you free if you will only believe His record. I hope you will.

For Him,
Royce

Feb 17 2009

Crazy Love


Today I finished reading “Crazy Love”by Francis Chan. If you want to stay comfortable just maintaining the status quo of your relationship to God I don’t recommend you read Crazy Love. If you are up for a challenge then by all means dive in.

How many times have you read the passage where Jesus instructed that if you “have done it to the least of these you have done it unto me”? And how many sermons and lessons have you heard and read on the same text? How many times have you considered that if you are not loving the unfortunate in tangible ways that you aren’t really loving God?

Is it possible that we have equated faithful attendence for worship and Sunday school, daily Bible reading, and giving with loving God? We can’t really pick and choose which of Christ’s commands we obey and still claim the religeous high ground, can we?

I warn you, Chan gets up front and personal in the bold way he presents the truth of what the Bible says about how we are to love God and others. It is a great book and will impact many hearts for the good of the cause of Christ.

Carol and I are at beautiful Lake DeGray in Arkansas, not far from Hot Springs with 49 other couple for a marriage retreat. This is our third time to attend a retreat in this location. The lakeside lodge is beautiful and the mood is positive and hopeful. Many couples have been challenged and blessed to have stronger, Christ centered marriages after having attended one of these weekends.

Our Dr. Joneal Kirby and her husband, elder Randy Kirby, one of our preachers and elder, Alan Robertson and wife Lisa, and elder Mac Owen and his wife Mary are wonderful teachers and role models for great marriages. We are so very blessed at White’s Ferry Rd Church with such a depth of talent and a host of great disciples who are sold out to Jesus. We are building families for time and eternity. Carol and I are blessed to call these great folks family.

 His peace,
Royce

Feb 10 2009

Radical Intercession


We always pray for each other,

That our God may make us all worthy of his calling,
And that we may fulfill every resolve for good,
And that every work be of faith by His power,
So that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in each
of us, and us in him, According to the grace of our God and the
Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:11,12)

What if we prayed for each other as Paul prayed for the
believers at Thessalonica? Our daily lives, the challenges we
face, and our problems are very different than those Christians
faced, but in many ways we are very much the same. One thing
is certain; Paul’s prayer for them ought to be our prayer for each other.

 Shouldn’t we want God to make us and our eternal  family a
people who live our lives in a manner that is worthy of God’s
call to us? Christians! Christ’s ambassadors on earth.
(2 Cor 5:20)

Don’t we all desire that each of us fulfill God’s purpose for us,
to do good works as a lifestyle? (Eph 2:10)

God’s best for us is that every thing we do for Him be done by trusting Him completely and depending on His power, and not
our might or wisdom. (1 Cor 2:3-5)

We should want Christ glorified and exalted in us, and we
must find our glory only in Him.

familyprayer_soft_edge1We recognize all of these benefits are the free gifts of
grace in and through the Lord Jesus Christ.

What if we prayed for each other in a purposeful, methodical
way, so that every family in our churches is specifically prayed
for, for a week, several times a year?

If only ten families, (or individuals)took the challenge and
prayed for one family each week for 52 weeks, just think how many would have been prayed for a whole week specifically
and on purpose. If 20 families took the challenge, each family
would be prayed for a week twice each year. If you had 100
families who determined to pray for other families, …well, get
the picture? (When I wrote this I had in mind a very large
congregation)

If we not only prayed for another family, but also prayed for
one ministry, one elder, and one staff member, just think how
much the whole church body would be bathed in prayer! Why
can’t we do this? No..why don’t we do this?

Recently I had a family of former members on my heart and I
sent an email saying that I would be praying for them for the
next week, every day of the week. And I asked, “What
specifically can I pray for?” Soon I received a return email from
a grateful dad with a list of 5 specific requests. I replied with a
thank you and a request that he let me know as God
answered my prayers for them. I knew he will be glad to do so.

What if you received a phone call, got an email, or was asked
at church, “What can we pray about for you and your family
next week?” And, what if that happened on a regular basis,
almost every month?

What if you had 30, or 50, or 80 families or more, excited
about praying for others, experiencing the joy of answered
prayer, bearing the burdens of others, and even being an
answer to some of their brothers and sisters requests?
And, knowing the joy of having others lovingly pray for them,
often?

What if we prayed for each other using the components of
Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians as a guide, and for specific
requests as well? Would it make us more likely to pray on a
regular basis? I think it would. Would it help those who pray
and those who are prayed for? I know it would.

What if we don’t?

In Christ’s love,

Royce

 

 

Feb 4 2009

Living to love, and Loving to Live


In Paul’s letters to the Galatians and in his first letter to the Corinthians his messages were to groups of Christians who were rife with problems. In the church in Corinth, you name it and they were guilty of it. Sexual immorality, divisions over favorite Apostolic leaders, law suits filed against each other, and even drunkenness and gluttony at fellowship meals, rudeness and selfishness in the worship assembly, and more, were the problems and character flaws of this group of immature believers whom Paul still called “saints”.

The believers in the region of Galatia had begun to abandon pure dependence on Christ alone for salvation in favor of circumcision. They were behaving as if under a witches spell. While in Corinth behaviour unbecoming followers of Jesus was glaring, the diluting of the doctrine of justification by faith in Christ was the greatest offence of the Galatian brothers. He carefully defended his apostleship and masterfully laid again the foundation of their standing in Christ.

In both situations Paul’s inspired pen rebuked and pleaded, warned and encouraged, while pointing them to Christ who is himself the standing of our faith and practice as believers. In Galations Paul wrote,

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Galatians 5:13,14)

Paul said to the Corinthians

 “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.  If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)

Then in v13 Paul sums up perhaps the most read chapter in all of his letters by saying,

“So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love”

Living to love, and Loving to live is both our mandate and mission. Love is our anchor and our attitude as we flesh out the Christ life, especially to those who are fellow followers of Jesus.

You might say “I have a Chistian duty to defend the faith once delivered to the saints, to teach sound doctrine!” Ok, but how’s your loving coming along? Are you clinging to hope, trusting that one day Christ will come and take you to himself? That is noble but how have you loved today?

Excellent theology and sound doctrine are commendable but they take a back seat to loving your brother. Being faithful in church attendence, saying all the right stuff, and doing all the right things are grand, but does the fellow who disagrees with you about some practice or doctrine feel the love?

If you are the most elequent speaker, know more about the Bible, are more wise than your peers, and give more generously, but are not a lover of those around you, you are nothing! You have the same utility in God’s kingdom as one ringing a cow bell in a symphony orchestra.

If you and I want to matter to Christ and his cause let our words be seasoned with salt and our manner marked with longsuffering and gentle kindness. Even if our enemies decide to say something about our ego driven lifestyle we should make them have to lie to do it. Ours is a call to live above the crowd and to those within and without to love them unconditionally with a pure heart and God’s help.

For love,

Royce