IMMERSION

“So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.” (Romans 13:12b-14)

          Paul’s letter to the Roman Church was written in Corinth while he was on his way to Jerusalem with funds he had collected for the poor. He had never visited Rome to this point and was hoping to lay out a systematic presentation of the Gospel so as to win the favor of the Romans. This would enable him to utilize Rome as a missionary center or home base, if you will, to launch from. He had designs on visiting Spain with the Gospel and Rome would be a perfect launching point.

          Here we see Paul encouraging those believers in Rome to set aside dark deeds and put on the armor God offers to every believer. This armor is discussed at length in Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church. We are not to act one way in plain sight of others during the day and be involved in highly questionable activities after the sun has set. Paul tells us directly to clothe ourselves in Christ. When we place clothing on our bodies it hangs on us and covers us. Clothing protects us from exposure to the elements. In like manner Christ protects us from all evil and directs us into all truth. We are to put on Christ as we would a garment and wear it daily so as to protect ourselves from the wiles of our adversary. The devil will do his best to trip us up so it is crucial that we become immersed in Christ. That goes further than Paul’s statement of clothing ourselves. I believe it goes much deeper than that. Immersion doesn’t always imply being dipped in some sort of liquid. It can also mean “involve oneself deeply in a particular activity or interest”. We need to involve ourselves in Godly endeavors. We need to make sure we avoid places and activities that provide unnecessary temptations. A Christian’s life is not a boring one filled with a lot of restrictions, but rather an exciting life where we live for God and watch His will unfold right in front of us. We must be paying attention to see it and must be attuned to what He is doing or we will miss it. God knows what He’s doing. Immerse yourself in Christ today and see what happens. Immersion isn’t salvation, but rather the next step which brings a closeness and understanding. Make Christ the focal point of your life.

WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!

LOVE REPLACES THE LAW

“Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 19:18)

 

          The editor’s title for the section in Leviticus from 17:1 thru 26:46 is ‘Instructions for Holy Living’. While we are no longer bound by the Mosaic Law as current Jews are, we are still to live lives that are examples to the world of the love our God has for all of mankind. We are to forgive and not hold a grudge. We are to never seek vengeance on another, but rather show mercy. We are to show love to our neighbors. Our neighbors, as the below note tells us, are not limited to those within our community of faith, but rather those who are alien to our beliefs. Therefore, we are to show love to all. As an outcropping of that love, we are to exhibit patience, compassion, mercy and grace. It isn’t always easy, especially in the face of ridicule or ignorance; however, the scriptures are clear, we are to show all men the same level of love and mercy.

          Let’s clarify the whole Mosaic Law deal with regards to our having to obey it. We are not bound to it and that it true, but when we receive Christ, having our sins expunged, we are to begin to live differently. As we draw close to God, we learn what it means to truly serve Him. In our efforts to serve Him we invariably end up living out the Mosaic Law even though it is not required of us. We are not bound to it as if it were some sort of ball and chain holding us back or weighing us down. We are able to freely live as Christ would have us live, according to the precepts which line up to the will of God. These precepts are based on love, mercy, grace and forgiveness. We don’t have to make a yearly sacrifice to God any longer, but rather, are to be show the world what it means to live in obedience to God’s word. There must be a standard of living for us to follow. The only one, in my mind, that is constant and worthy of adhering to is the Word of God, which maps out our course. To know it is to read it and reading it should compel us to live it. We are not to be door mats for the world to have their way with us, but rather examples of the love God has for those who are lost and floundering in this life.

WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!

NOTE: Leviticus is part of the material Yahweh revealed to Moses on Mount Sinai.
NOTE: A “neighbor” was anyone with whom there was contact, whether Israelite (v. 17) or alien (v. 34; Matthew 22:39-40; Romans 13:9). [ Both notes taken from the Asbury Bible Commentary ]

RANDOM RAMBLINGS 73

          I’m a big ice hockey fan.  My team: the New Jersey Devils.  They are mired in an 0-5-4 slump that could knock them out of the playoff picture.  We were at the game last night and once again their offense was woeful. They out shot their opponent 39-11 yet were shutout 2-0.  Ugh!  Why do I bring up all this?  I am frustrated by all this and I have no vested interest other than the cost of the tickets.  I can’t even begin to imagine what the players’ level of frustration is. Frustration is a part of life.   

          We are not exempt from frustration as Christians.  We deal with it just like anyone else.  As we read God’s word and get to know Him intimately as I have been saying, we will slowly begin to understand what it is to have peace in frustrating situations.  It isn’t magic or some sort of voodoo; it is nothing more than shifting our focus onto God and off of the thing or things that are causing our angst.  Hockey isn’t life or death and in the eternal scheme of things is pretty unimportant.  Yet a case could be made that it is a microcosm of life itself where there are highs and lows, exhilaration and desperation.  Place your focus on the solver of all problems and release your frustration. rlk

 

A PROPER DENIAL

“And he said to them all, ‘If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.’” (Luke 9:23-24)

 

          These are heavy words. What must we do in denying ourselves? Surely we aren’t to deny ourselves life’s essentials: food, water and clothing. What are we to deny ourselves then? We are to renounce selfish ambition. We must remove ourselves from the center of our lives and enthrone Christ there. We must, figuratively speaking, carry the cross each day of our lives. We are ambassadors of the cross; Christ’s representatives. If we shun this responsibility and go our own way, thinking it too hard a path, we will lose our life in the process. If we seek to serve God in all we do, slipping and falling at semi-regular intervals, we shall save our lives in the end. It is not perfection God seeks, but rather our trying to emulate Him in all we think, say and do that pleases Him. Eventually, as we follow Him, we will get it. Through diligent effort we will begin to think, speak and act a little more like our Lord each day. It is a long, slow, arduous task that we undertake. A reward is waiting for those who finish this race. Perseverance is supremely important. Sprinters will not be successful in this endeavor. It is the one who paces himself that will win in the end. Seeking to serve our Lord requires us to place all personal agendas, hopes and plans at the feet of Jesus and allow Him to morph them into something far more desirable and satisfying. Our walk is an individual walk. We don’t go as a group. We must take this journey on our own, all the while knowing we are never actually alone at all. God is with us and in us by His Holy Spirit. Even when it seems like we are by ourselves in the fray, God reminds us in unique and undeniable ways that He is with us. The only way to fully realize all God has in store for us is to make a full commitment to Him. All selfish ambition must be allowed to die as we push forward in obedience to God’s call. It is truly the only way we will ever save our lives, by a complete and total surrender of self to the will of God.

WALK WITH THE KING AND BE A BLESSING!

HEALING

“ … He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)

 

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

 

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)

 

          While I believe that God heals us today just as He did back when Christ walked the earth, I believe there may be something a little deeper in the meaning of the above scriptures than a  physical healing. We hear the verse from Isaiah spoken whenever someone wants to elicit faith that God heals in the here and now; however, could it not be speaking of our sin as the disease that has afflicted us rather than a mere illness. I use the word ‘mere’ because physical maladies, no matter how serious could never usher us into hell were we to die from them. Sin, however, can.

          There is no doubting the fact that Christ bore incredible pain and suffering for each of us even though He was deserving of none of it. The scourging alone, which tore chunks of flesh from His body, would have killed most men. He was pierced and crushed for our sins. He who had never known sin became sin that we might be viewed upon as sinless by God. Let that sink in. Any misdeed throughout your lifetime up to the point of your conversion was heaped upon Christ. Now multiply that by millions upon millions of souls whose sins needed to be purged and we have a heavy laden situation that only one man could eradicate properly and completely; that being the God-man Jesus Christ. Without Christ there is no forgiveness. Without Christ there is no healing from the deadly disease of sin. Is our God not worthy of our praise and adoration? Should we not be willing to dedicate our lives to the service of Almighty God? We need not serve God out of some sense of duty or religious requirement; we should want to serve Him out of a love that was born when we first came to know Him. It is only through our drawing close to Him that we shall truly know Him for intimacy only comes through time spent with someone. God desires our fellowship and loving obedience. It is not to restrict us, but rather to set us free.

WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!

FORGIVEN

“… God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

 

          Have you ever done something for someone you didn’t know? Okay, now would you lay your life on the line for that person; would you literally die for that person? Since we tend to love our lives and not want to lose them or have them taken away from us, I would seriously doubt that anyone would lay down his life for a stranger. Do you understand that that is exactly what God did for us? We weren’t strangers to Him; He created us. God was a stranger to us.

          God knows us better than we could ever know ourselves and loves us more than we will ever comprehend. Knowing that love is not passive, but rather requires action, God gave us a living, breathing example of His undying and unconditional love by sending His own Son, Jesus Christ, to live among us. Once Mary was with child God’s plan of salvation was put into action. When we knew Him not He came, ministered to us, healed us, showed us mercy and compassion, loved us and then took the fall for us. We were the sinners, not Him. We were the ones who were disobedient to the precepts of God. It’s as if we were the ones nailing the spikes in His wrists. We were the ones who deserved to be on that cross, not Jesus.

          So here we are, proclaiming that we are a Christian. What does that truly mean to us? Do we understand the price that was paid for our souls? Do we? Is our finite mind even capable of grasping the magnitude of what has been done for us? I know I try to comprehend it, but the immensity of it escapes me. I was a sinner, now I stand with my sins completely paid for by someone I didn’t even know at the time. As I ponder that thought I realize that my life would be radically different had I remained in my sins. It was a conscious, freewill choice I made a little over 34 years ago.

          1 John 4:10 reiterates the glorious truth of the ‘buy back’: “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” We will sin again. No man, save Jesus Himself, shall ever be sinless, but 1 John 2:1 reveals to us that we have an advocate in Christ whose atoning sacrifice covers all sin. All we need to do is confess it to God with remorse in our heart, seeking the forgiveness He so willingly gives to all who request it. Be of good cheer. If we have surrender our souls to God's care, we are forgiven.

WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!

ANGELS

“Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrew 1:14)

“A ‘ministering’ spirit is one that is employed to execute the will of God.” (Barnes’ Notes on the Bible)

 

          The writer of Hebrews is making two important points for us in this statement. 1) that angels are lower than Christ, in that they have no redeeming power, nor do they sit at the right hand of the Father; 2) they are commissioned by God Himself to assist believers on their path to glory.

          One example we find in scripture is in Daniel 9:22-23 when Gabriel is dispatched to deliver a message to the prophet. We also know an angel came to tell Mary she was to bear the son of the Most High God. An angel came to Joseph and told him the same so that he would marry Mary. An angel came to Lot prior to destroying Sodom and Gomorrah, and this is just the tip of the ice berg regarding the appearance of ministering spirits in scripture.

          Luke 15:10 shows us that angels have an interest in man and are joyful when one sinner repents. Angels take special interest in all the facets relating to the redemption of man as evidenced by the aforementioned visit to Mary and Joseph. The angels also announced the birth of the Messiah to shepherds in the fields. Angels came to minister to Jesus after He had been tempted by Satan. An angel gave Jesus strength in the garden of Gethsemane. Angels were there at the grave where Jesus was buried. Angels were there to announce Christ’s resurrection. They were also present at Christ’s ascension, assuring the disciples of His return.

          Angels appear to defend and protect God’s people as well (Psalm 34:7; Genesis 19:1, 15; Acts 5:19; Acts 12:7-8). Angels are sent to give us the strength we need to turn our backs on temptation (Luke 22:43, 53). Fallen angels, the minions of Satan, are thwarted by the pure angels of God on our behalf. Angels aid and comfort us in our affliction and usher us into God’s presence when we pass from this life into the next.

          God’s ministering spirits are active and ever present in the world to aid those who have committed their lives to Christ. There is no such assistance available for the unsaved unless we approach the throne of grace on their behalf; however, angels are servants of Almighty God to do His bidding on the behalf of His children. If you have sought and received forgiveness for your sins, you are a part of God’s family and have nothing to fear, for angels are near to protect and assist you at all times.

WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!