Popularity

In Practical Religion J.C. Ryle states,

“If you take up heart-religion I cannot promise you the praise of man. Pardon, peace, hope, guidance, comfort, consolation, grace according to your need, strength according to your day, joy which the world can neither give nor take away,– all this I can boldly promise to the man who comes to Christ, and serves Him with is heart. But I cannot promise him that his religion will be popular with man.”

We all want to be popular. We want people to think highly of us, praise us, respect us, and ask us for advice. Whether teenagers, college students, or adults, we want to be known, liked, and admired. Yet this longing trips us up time and time again.

True faith in Jesus and a life fully devoted to Him will not win us praise from the majority in the world. But look again at the promises Ryle lists in his second sentence above: peace, hope, comfort... Yes, these are true, and they are far better than the praise and popularity from men and women of the world.

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Becoming More Like Christ Everyday - (2 Corinthians 3:15-18)

“Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:15-18

Conversion is amazing! We go from blinded to seeing, from veils covering our eyes to seeing clearly. When the Lord renews our heart, we are free to live for Him by the power of the Holy Spirit. Our motives change, our hearts change, our goals change, and we long to become more like Christ.

The work of being transformed into the likeness of Christ requires a joint effort. God clearly controls, leads, and enables, yet we need to surrender to the power of the Holy Spirit and follow Christ. We surrender and place ourselves in a position to be transformed by God. We open our Bibles and pray and let God transform our hearts and minds. We allow God to work in us by attending church and youth group meetings. And we can yield to Christ in times of praise and worship.

Our holy God calls us to be holy because He is holy. It pleases Him when we make it our aim to be like Jesus Christ, and He has given us His Holy Spirit to enable us to grow in holiness.

God is all around us, but most importantly Christ Jesus dwells in us through the Holy Spirit. We are in Christ and Christ is in us.  He enables us to reflect the Lord's glory and to be transformed into His likeness!

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23 Marks of True Christian from Romans 12:9-21

At the opening of Romans 12, Paul urges us to offer our lives as living sacrifices as a form of worship.

In verses 9-21 Paul lists 23 lists qualities that should mark the life of a genuine Christian. We are saved by faith, and not by our actions. Yet our lives should reflect Jesus Christ and demonstrate qualities in keeping with a heart transformed by the power of God.

Let’s take some time today to evaluate ourselves in each of these areas. Let’s praise God for any good fruit we see, and let’s ask for his help to grow more and more in the days ahead.

1.        Let love be genuine.

2.        Abhor what is evil.

3.        Hold fast to what is good.

4.        Love one another with brotherly affection.

5.        Outdo one another in showing honor.

6.        Do not be slothful in zeal.

7.        Be fervent in spirit.

8.        Serve the Lord.

9.        Rejoice in hope.

10.      Be patient in tribulation.

11.      Be constant in prayer.

12.      Contribute to the needs of the saints.

13.      Seek to show hospitality.

14.      Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse them.

15.      Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.

16.      Live in harmony with one another.

17.      Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly.

18.      Never be wise in your own sight.

19.      Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all.

20.      If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

21.      Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it^[i] to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”

22.      “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.”

23.      Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

***Romans 12:9-21 (ESV)

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A Child of God

In his book Practical Region, J.C Ryle writes about what it means to be a child of God. He considers Romans 8:14, “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”

Let me share two excerpts with a few questions:

“They are lead away from sin – away from self-righteousness – away from the world. This is the road by which the Spirit leads God’s children. Those whom God adopts He teaches and trains. He shows them their own hearts. He makes them weary of their own ways. He makes them long for inward peace…They are lead to Christ. They are lead to the Bible. They are lead to prayer. They are led to holiness. This is the beaten path along which the Spirit makes them to travel. Those whom God adopts He always sanctifies. He makes sin very bitter to them. He makes holiness very sweet.”

Do you know you are a child of God? How has the Spirit lead you to holy living?

“If you are a son of God, I beseech you to walk worthy of your Father’s house. I charge you solemnly to honor Him in your life; and above all to honor Him by implicit obedience to all His commands, and hearty love to all His children. Labor to travel through the world like a child of God and heir to glory. Let men be able to trace a family likeness between you and Him that begat you. Live a heavenly life. Seek things that are above. Do not seem to be building your nest below. Behave like a man who seeks a city out of sight, whose citizenship is in heaven, and who would be content with many hardships till he gets home.”

Do you know you are a child of the King? How does this change the way you live? How can you honor Him in the way you live? How can you live a heaven-minded life today?

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Iron Sharpens Iron (Proverbs 27:17)

“As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17

This simple proverb speaks of how one person can effect another.  It emphasizes the positive shaping ability one person can have on the character of another.  We can sharpen others, and they can sharpen us.

We can make this positive impact on others through the example we set for others.  When we see a friend struggling to persevere in his studies, we can encourage him to trust God and work hard.  When we see a friend deceive her parents, we can encourage her to tell the truth even when it hurts.  When we see a friend waiver in his faith, we can remind him about the character of God and share a verse from scripture.  When we see a friend wrestle with obedience to God’s ways, we can encourage her to obey God.

We can also look for godly, mature people to sharpen us.  It takes humility to admit we need sharpening, but an honest reflection of our lives reveals we get dull, and we need the sharpening effect of a godly influence.  We can get plugged into our youth group to be sharpened by our youth leader.  We can join a Bible study to be sharpened by individuals in the group.  And if we have Christian parents, we can be sharpened by their example and advice.

Who are you sharpening? Who sharpens you?

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Made Alive - Ephesians 2:4-6

I am grateful to be alive!

Ephesians 2:4-6 explains how God makes us alive.

“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 in Christ Jesus”

Before we conversion, we are spiritually dead. Our sinful nature and our sins separate us from our holy God. But, this all changes when we place our faith in Jesus Christ. God makes us alive, grants us faith, and empowers us to believe in Jesus. Jesus’ finished work on the cross restores our relationship with God. We become alive, and we can look forward to being alive forever with Him.

My personal battle with cancer gives me a whole new perspective on this passage from Ephesians. Physically, cancer was getting the best of me. Through God’s healing hand, diagnosis, and fantastic medical help, I am alive today. Spiritually, my sinful nature was getting the best of me. Through God’s loving initiative, healing touch, and Jesus’ death, I am alive today. To Him be all of the glory!

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Alive

I am grateful to be alive!

On Tuesday, August 27, 2013 I was diagnosed with cancer. Praise God, I have been in remission since January 2014.

I have multiple myeloma, cancer of the plasma of the bone marrow. It is treatable, but not curable. In all likelihood, I will be dealing with this decease the rest of my life.

The fall of 2013 was a blur. My treatment began in earnest in September 2013, and I had a stem cell transplant using my own stem cells in January 2014. I experienced both divine miracles from God and the benefits of world-class medical care.

If I had been diagnosed with multiple myeloma 40 years ago, I am quite certain I would not be alive today. The same may be true if diagnosed 20 years ago.

More than ever, I am grateful to be alive. Sometimes when I’m walking my dog trees, flowers, or the sky will catch my eye, and I will have an overwhelming sense of gratefulness to be alive. Sometimes when I’m talking with my wife and children, I will become aware that it is a privilege and a joy to be alive to enjoy them. Sometimes when I’m driving home from work, I’ll become keenly aware of the blessing to have the physical strength to work.

You may be facing a trial big or small. You may be enduring a physical ailment. You may be experiencing relational challenges. Life is hard. Life is full of difficult moments. Life can be overwhelming.

I pray that God will give you moments where you feel his love, you know he is near, and you are grateful to be alive.

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