Vol 2 No 17
Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40All the other commandments and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”
In the last few years I have been shocked. To know that there are people in the world who believe that killing others in the name of religion pleases God. It is astonishing to me. Someone asked me the other day why there are so many jokes about the pope. I didn't know and they responded, “Because you won't get killed if you tell one.” People have gotten their heads cut off because they joked about a certain deity. Newspapers will not run some stories, including pictures, for fear of being bombed.
Our verses today are a perfect example of how Christianity is so different from other world religions and, I believe, are an argument for the truth and strength of the Christian faith. They tell us that essential Christianity is all about love. Loving God for sure but also loving our neighbor. Not just loving our family and friends. Not just loving good people. The second commandment referred to here is to love our neighbor. Even if that neighbor would like to see us dead in some jihad. Even if that neighbor hates us. We are to be the kind of people who love.
What is astounding is that Christianity continues to proliferate around the world in spite of the fact that at least one of the other world religions, and the one growing super fast, does so at the end of a sword. Wherever they take control, the religion becomes entwined with the state and therefore mandated by all who live there.
We are told that there is a problem with illegal aliens these days. Men, women and children swarming across our southern border to take up residence here in the United States. Why? Why are there so many people who want to live here? Why are we the only nation on the face of the earth with a waiting line to get in legally? Because, at the end of the day, no matter what other faults we have, these verses have taken root in our collective soul. We never thought to put up a wall to keep people out because we wanted to be an open and free society. We are coming apart at the seams to decide how we can follow the teachings of Jesus on this point and still maintain our immigration policy. And, on top of that, it also is causing us to wonder how we should deal with those illegal immigrants who are within our borders now. This will not be an easy situation to fix because the arguments will involve how to love these neighbors and still maintain our immigration laws.
I don't know what the solution to that one is. If I did I would run for office. I do know this: Christianity is all about love. If you live and breathe you get loved. This teaching, according to Jesus, is the very essence of Christianity. It is essential Christianity. It is the most attractive thing about our faith and one that makes me glad to be a Christian. I have admitted to having difficulty with some aspects of our faith. I am imperfect and wrestle with some issues. However when all the dust settles, my heart is gladdened by the fact that we are called to love God and our neighbor. Our neighbor has no reason to fear us. Our neighbor will get loved even if he or she doesn't love, or ever like us.
How does that make you feel? What thoughts does this bring to your mind? Let me know if you have the time. I am very interested. Do you feel loved today? You are! God loves you and so do I. These devotionals are my little way of letting you know that. You are in my thoughts as I write them and it is for your personal, spiritual growth that I send them to you for free. I know that God loves me and it warms me to pass that love along.
May He bless you today.
Theo
I have begun to place Theo's Devos on Blogspot. If you wish to revisit them please go to http://theosdevos.blogspot.com/ ,. As time goes on there will be several listed. Thanks
Thank You for subscribing to THEO'S DEVOs. This subscription is free and no email address will ever be given to anyone. To un-subsribe just reply and put un-subscribe in the subject line. Thank You
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
Spiritual Discernment
Vol 2 No 16 THEO'S DEVOS
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Have you ever tried to talk about spiritual things to a non-Christian and have them respond in a way that makes you wonder if they heard what you were saying? I remember watching a panel on television quite a while ago where there were several people of different positions in terms of belief. There was a conservative Christian, a liberal Christian, an atheist, and a couple others of questionable faiths. The conservative Christian, in trying to explain Bible's teaching about salvation, quoted John 3:16. As soon as he had gotten done, the atheist said: “Well that is your interpretation.” Now this Christian had not interpreted the verse at all. He had simply quoted it but, since the atheist did not believe, she had to put the interpretive 'spin' on it.
One of the proofs of salvation is that the Christian has a spiritual discernment that allows him, or her, to understand the simple teachings of scripture so that they are no longer confusing. That does not mean that we will understand everything about the Bible for there are some things that are beyond human understanding which I think is great because it is what I expect of an infinite God who is explaining reality to me. How Jesus be 100 per cent God and 100 per cent human at the same time is beyond my understanding. How God be totally sovereign and yet allow for human responsibility is also beyond me. But the simple truth of salvation, that Jesus died for my sin so that by believing in him I could have eternal life, is easily understood by anyone with spiritual discernment but beyond those whose minds are still darkened by the devil.
This is important because we seek to be guided by God and the only written tool that we have is the Bible. As we read it we need the discerning power of God to understand and apply these infinite truths. As we read, and reread, we begin to develop, what the Bible calls the mind of Christ. To begin to understand what Jesus would do in all the circumstances of life no matter how difficult they may be or become.
This is also where prayer comes in. James tells us that we should pray for wisdom. It is interesting that he does not say we should pray for knowledge. We are supposed to study in order to get knowledge. What is the difference? Well knowledge is the gathering of facts and the understanding of concepts so that we can answer questions about life and faith. Wisdom however, is the application of knowledge and it is a much more important quality. To have knowledge but to not know how to apply it is disastrous. It explains why very intelligent people can do some very stupid things. Someone has said that common sense is not very common any more. I agree.
So if there are some things that are spiritually discerned then we should be constantly asking God for that discernment so we can apply the things of scripture accurately in our lives. It is a prayer that I pray for myself and for you. That God would help you not only understand scripture but put it to work in your life and to be able to know the difference between truth and error concerning spirituality. Remember, howerver, that you can be a Christian for 50 years and still be a novive when it comes to spirituail things.
May God help you with your ability to disecrn today and may that enable you to follow God's guidance even bette. May He bless you richly today.
Theo
You can now read Theo's Devos on Blogspot. If you wish to revisit them please go to http://theosdevos.blogspot.com/ ,. As time goes on there will be several listed. Thanks
Thank You for subscribing to THEO'S DEVOs. This subscription is free and no email address will ever be given to anyone. To un-subsribe just reply and put un-subscribe in the subject line. Thank You
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Have you ever tried to talk about spiritual things to a non-Christian and have them respond in a way that makes you wonder if they heard what you were saying? I remember watching a panel on television quite a while ago where there were several people of different positions in terms of belief. There was a conservative Christian, a liberal Christian, an atheist, and a couple others of questionable faiths. The conservative Christian, in trying to explain Bible's teaching about salvation, quoted John 3:16. As soon as he had gotten done, the atheist said: “Well that is your interpretation.” Now this Christian had not interpreted the verse at all. He had simply quoted it but, since the atheist did not believe, she had to put the interpretive 'spin' on it.
One of the proofs of salvation is that the Christian has a spiritual discernment that allows him, or her, to understand the simple teachings of scripture so that they are no longer confusing. That does not mean that we will understand everything about the Bible for there are some things that are beyond human understanding which I think is great because it is what I expect of an infinite God who is explaining reality to me. How Jesus be 100 per cent God and 100 per cent human at the same time is beyond my understanding. How God be totally sovereign and yet allow for human responsibility is also beyond me. But the simple truth of salvation, that Jesus died for my sin so that by believing in him I could have eternal life, is easily understood by anyone with spiritual discernment but beyond those whose minds are still darkened by the devil.
This is important because we seek to be guided by God and the only written tool that we have is the Bible. As we read it we need the discerning power of God to understand and apply these infinite truths. As we read, and reread, we begin to develop, what the Bible calls the mind of Christ. To begin to understand what Jesus would do in all the circumstances of life no matter how difficult they may be or become.
This is also where prayer comes in. James tells us that we should pray for wisdom. It is interesting that he does not say we should pray for knowledge. We are supposed to study in order to get knowledge. What is the difference? Well knowledge is the gathering of facts and the understanding of concepts so that we can answer questions about life and faith. Wisdom however, is the application of knowledge and it is a much more important quality. To have knowledge but to not know how to apply it is disastrous. It explains why very intelligent people can do some very stupid things. Someone has said that common sense is not very common any more. I agree.
So if there are some things that are spiritually discerned then we should be constantly asking God for that discernment so we can apply the things of scripture accurately in our lives. It is a prayer that I pray for myself and for you. That God would help you not only understand scripture but put it to work in your life and to be able to know the difference between truth and error concerning spirituality. Remember, howerver, that you can be a Christian for 50 years and still be a novive when it comes to spirituail things.
May God help you with your ability to disecrn today and may that enable you to follow God's guidance even bette. May He bless you richly today.
Theo
You can now read Theo's Devos on Blogspot. If you wish to revisit them please go to http://theosdevos.blogspot.com/ ,. As time goes on there will be several listed. Thanks
Thank You for subscribing to THEO'S DEVOs. This subscription is free and no email address will ever be given to anyone. To un-subsribe just reply and put un-subscribe in the subject line. Thank You
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Consider it Joy
Vol 2 No 15 THEO'S DEVOS
James 1:2-4 Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. 3For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything .NLT
Ok so there are one or two verses in the Bible that I don't have a great reaction to. James 1:2 is one of them. It would be nice if we could just live a trouble free life but that is not going to happen and isn't even in God's plan for us. I think the thing that bothers me is that when I go to the gym (I don't as often as I should) I am prepared for the pain. You know: No Pain, No Gain? But the problem with life is that these troubles come when you least expect them and often at the worst possible time.
That is where reading and studying scripture is so key. If you had never read James exhortation to welcome trouble you would never expect it and it would always strike you as wrong and illustrative of the apparent fact that God may not love you. However, in reading what James has to say it changes everything and actually prepares you for some of the most productive things that can happen to you.
Listen, if you know that troubles are coming. And you know the reason for them as is spelled out in verses 3 and 4 then you will not be overcome with surprise and can react, or I should say, respond, correctly. If you wake up every day expecting the worst and hoping for the best you will never be disappointed. In expecting the worst you are saying that you are ready to be tested and to grow strong in the faith and in character. Someone has said: :”If it doesn't kill you it will make you stronger.” I am not sure that I totally agree with that statement but it is, quite often true. And this I do know: When troubles come, and they will, God will use them to produce in you the kind of character that He is looking for.
I know that some of you have gone through some very difficult things and I have prayed for you about them. I also know that God has used those things to make you who you are today. If you responded correctly, you are stronger for it and, if you responded incorrectly, you may still be struggling and God may have to hand you some more trouble to help you grow.
Look my problem is that none of us like trouble. I think we can all agree with that. However, if I am willing to follow God's lead then I need not fear trouble. I can look it in the face and let God guide me through it. Remember David in Psalm 23 when he said “Even when I walk through the dark valley of death, I will not be afraid...” He could say that because not even the valley of death threatens us. If you truly believe that God is in control, it will help you sleep at night. It will allow you to move forward no matter what the circumstance. You will establish a testimony for God that has no parallel. That is my prayer for you: that you would never fear. That you would walk tall and hold you head up no matter what life troughs at you. God is at your side whether you know it or not. He will not abandon you. He will always give you strength. Never forget that.
You are a believer/priest for the King of Kings. Live like it!
I got the inspiration for this devo from a prayer letter sent out by my daughter Debbie. If any of you would like more information about the youth ministry that she is with please drop her a note at deb@oakpointe.org I am sure that she would love to add you to her prayer letter.
Theo
James 1:2-4 Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. 3For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything .NLT
Ok so there are one or two verses in the Bible that I don't have a great reaction to. James 1:2 is one of them. It would be nice if we could just live a trouble free life but that is not going to happen and isn't even in God's plan for us. I think the thing that bothers me is that when I go to the gym (I don't as often as I should) I am prepared for the pain. You know: No Pain, No Gain? But the problem with life is that these troubles come when you least expect them and often at the worst possible time.
That is where reading and studying scripture is so key. If you had never read James exhortation to welcome trouble you would never expect it and it would always strike you as wrong and illustrative of the apparent fact that God may not love you. However, in reading what James has to say it changes everything and actually prepares you for some of the most productive things that can happen to you.
Listen, if you know that troubles are coming. And you know the reason for them as is spelled out in verses 3 and 4 then you will not be overcome with surprise and can react, or I should say, respond, correctly. If you wake up every day expecting the worst and hoping for the best you will never be disappointed. In expecting the worst you are saying that you are ready to be tested and to grow strong in the faith and in character. Someone has said: :”If it doesn't kill you it will make you stronger.” I am not sure that I totally agree with that statement but it is, quite often true. And this I do know: When troubles come, and they will, God will use them to produce in you the kind of character that He is looking for.
I know that some of you have gone through some very difficult things and I have prayed for you about them. I also know that God has used those things to make you who you are today. If you responded correctly, you are stronger for it and, if you responded incorrectly, you may still be struggling and God may have to hand you some more trouble to help you grow.
Look my problem is that none of us like trouble. I think we can all agree with that. However, if I am willing to follow God's lead then I need not fear trouble. I can look it in the face and let God guide me through it. Remember David in Psalm 23 when he said “Even when I walk through the dark valley of death, I will not be afraid...” He could say that because not even the valley of death threatens us. If you truly believe that God is in control, it will help you sleep at night. It will allow you to move forward no matter what the circumstance. You will establish a testimony for God that has no parallel. That is my prayer for you: that you would never fear. That you would walk tall and hold you head up no matter what life troughs at you. God is at your side whether you know it or not. He will not abandon you. He will always give you strength. Never forget that.
You are a believer/priest for the King of Kings. Live like it!
I got the inspiration for this devo from a prayer letter sent out by my daughter Debbie. If any of you would like more information about the youth ministry that she is with please drop her a note at deb@oakpointe.org I am sure that she would love to add you to her prayer letter.
Theo
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
God Confidence
Vol 2 No 14 THEO'S DEVOS 041008
TITLE: God Confidence
Hebrews 6:18-19 So God has given us both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can take new courage, for we can hold on to his promise with confidence.
19This confidence is like a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain of heaven into God’s inner sanctuary.
Once again we see a verse that challenges modern psychology. Time and again we are told, as we grow up, to have self-confidence and yet, deep inside, we often lack it. I strongly believe that having self-confidence is a setup. Have you ever trusted someone and had them let you down? I bet you have. Well it is possible to trust oneself so much that we set out too far and rely on our own resources only to find that they just aren't there and we fail. Time and again, however, the Bible encourages us to have God confidence. To believe that He is caring for us and will guide us no matter what the circumstance of life is.
So what is the difference between God confidence and self-confidence. I believe the answer is clear. To have God confidence is to, first of all to be in prayer to Him about all the things of your life. It is to find yourself in the scriptures, looking for those principles of life that will lead you along the right path. It is then to test the thing you are concerned about and decide if it is something that will further God's influence in your life. If it is, then the right thing to do is to go for it and let God guide you every step of the way. We can have confidence to know that He will never lead us in the wrong direction and will always correct ouir path if we head in the wrong one.
Self confidence is not a bad thing on the surface, but if we replace it with God confidence we can be sure that a much more powerful force is entering our life and one that knows what tomorrow will bring. You see all the self-confidence in the world can never know what is coming around the corner while God does. It may feel the same, self and God confidence, but true concern for what God wants in our life, and earnestly acting on that desire will clearly differentiate between the two and you will find a true confidence well up from the inside and one thing will clearly dissipate. The one element that will slip away when you are acting on God confidence is fear. When you are following God's lead there is no fear. When you follow your own design there will always be uncertainty.
Theo
TITLE: God Confidence
Hebrews 6:18-19 So God has given us both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can take new courage, for we can hold on to his promise with confidence.
19This confidence is like a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain of heaven into God’s inner sanctuary.
Once again we see a verse that challenges modern psychology. Time and again we are told, as we grow up, to have self-confidence and yet, deep inside, we often lack it. I strongly believe that having self-confidence is a setup. Have you ever trusted someone and had them let you down? I bet you have. Well it is possible to trust oneself so much that we set out too far and rely on our own resources only to find that they just aren't there and we fail. Time and again, however, the Bible encourages us to have God confidence. To believe that He is caring for us and will guide us no matter what the circumstance of life is.
So what is the difference between God confidence and self-confidence. I believe the answer is clear. To have God confidence is to, first of all to be in prayer to Him about all the things of your life. It is to find yourself in the scriptures, looking for those principles of life that will lead you along the right path. It is then to test the thing you are concerned about and decide if it is something that will further God's influence in your life. If it is, then the right thing to do is to go for it and let God guide you every step of the way. We can have confidence to know that He will never lead us in the wrong direction and will always correct ouir path if we head in the wrong one.
Self confidence is not a bad thing on the surface, but if we replace it with God confidence we can be sure that a much more powerful force is entering our life and one that knows what tomorrow will bring. You see all the self-confidence in the world can never know what is coming around the corner while God does. It may feel the same, self and God confidence, but true concern for what God wants in our life, and earnestly acting on that desire will clearly differentiate between the two and you will find a true confidence well up from the inside and one thing will clearly dissipate. The one element that will slip away when you are acting on God confidence is fear. When you are following God's lead there is no fear. When you follow your own design there will always be uncertainty.
Theo
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