Vol 2 No 38 THEO'S DEVOS
Nehemiah 1:3b The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire
As I was beginning to read Nehemiah for the umpteenth time (I really like this book) this verse caused me to reevaluate Theo's Devos this week. Jerusalem was dear to Nehemiah's heart and its walls were down. The gates had burned and I couldn't help but think of the many friends that I have in the Houston Texas area whose walls were torn down by Ike and whose homes were set on fire by this vicious storm. I have been in prayer for a number of days asking God to help those who were impacted by Ike and have felt frustrated because there is little else that I can do.
That is when Theo's Devos came to mind and I realized that perhaps there are some among our readers who could help in a significant way and I know that you all can pray. Prayer alone would be tremendous but just maybe God would lead some to do more.
The church that I served in Houston is the University Baptist Church. They have teams going out every day to serve the community in various ways. They have been housing people in their chapel and providing them with meals as they go out to help people recover their homes. They are also providing day care for workers' children and need provisions along those lines. They have not told me specifically. but I know that they could use any help possible as they provide this service. Any financial contribution would be welcome but even a phone call to find out what other needs that they have would be a great thing to do. I will put their address and phone number at the end of this week's Devo so you can get in touch with them and just let them know you are praying for them. To know that you care enough to support them in any way possible will be a great encouragement.
I just got off of the phone with a good friend of mine named Jeff Newpher who works with international students. He mentioned an interesting fact that, although most won't actually say it, there is a need for emotional support even for those who didn't lose their homes. For all of the people in the path of Ike there is deep concern that they will be able to make it in the long run. For those Christians who understand that God is in control, it may not be so bad but even for them prayer support would go a long way.
If you are like most people when something like this happens you are concerned, may pray, but are not sure just what else you can do. Well here is my suggestion. Give Robert Creech, the senior pastor, a call, or someone else at UBC and let him/them know that you are praying. Ask them if there is anything they need that you might be able to provide. Know that this would be one way to give significant support to some people in need of your help. Don't pass up this opportunity to be an encourager. Let's make this a do something Devo this week, not just a 'let's think about this.'
May God bless you as you reach out to others in need of your help. May you be richer for it. Oh and just because you are in Europe or Asia, don't let that stop you. The world is getting smaller every day.
Here is the contact information for University Baptist Church:
16106 Middlebrook Drive Web site: www.ubc.org
Houston TX 77059 Pastor Robert Creech
Phone: 281-488- 8517 Fax: 281-488-6748
Theo
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Where Are You?
Vol 2 No 37 THEO'S DEVOS 091808
Mark 4:33 He used many such stories and illustrations to teach the people as much as they were able to understand.
Where are you? I know just what you are thinking. What kind of a question is that for a devotional. But hold on for just a second. I'm not concerned about your physical location. I am more interested in where you are on this journey called life. The Apostle John refers to three stages of Christian growth. Children, young men and fathers. We have looked at the specifics of these levels of growth before. For now let's just ask this question. On the road to Christian maturity: where are you? Please be careful here. Before you jump to the conclusion that you are grown up in the Lord remember this: you can be a Christian for 50 years and still be a novice. One other point is that if you think about it you will admit that quite often people who think they are mature in the Lord are simply folk who think that they have arrived. That they have nothing more to learn. They can sit in church on Sunday and get bored because they haven't 'learned' anything that day. Before going any further why not read these verses in their context: Mark 4:30-34.
Often, as Christian leaders, we can make the mistake of thinking that everyone should be at the same place on the Christian path as we are. We think that because a person has been a Christian for several years, they must be well along toward maturity, only to find out that, once put in a position of responsibility, they act as though they had just gotten saved. Or they place their own needs and thoughts above others. They believe that the church is there for them instead of a rescue station reaching out to lost and wounded people. It is the parent that complains that their child is being affected by the unsaved kids that the youth ministry is trying to reach for the Lord. They think that the church should be a place where their kids should be sheltered from the unsaved of the world. They want to be out of the world and not of it instead of in the world and not of it. It would be like going to the hospital and complaining about all the sick people that were there.
Having said all that, where are you? If you aren't sure what to answer, you may just be honest. Can you say that you are growing? That you are further along than you were last year or ten years in the past. Our verse today touches on this. Jesus knew that everyone was not at the same point in life. He taught them things that they were able to understand and not things beyond them. It is good that God treats us in this way because, frankly, we would never be able to understand if God were to show us too far into the future. Next week exists in a fog bank because God is preparing us for what will happen then, knowing we are not ready to handle it now. God reveals what we need to know, when we need to know it and not before. He never gives us the grace we need until we need it which is why we are often blown away by what other Christians are able to go through. We don't know what we would do if that happened to us. But the good side is that He will show us what we need to know when we need to know it so that nothing threatens us. He exists in our future and is preparing us for it.
Fear not Jesus liked to say. Why? Because for the believer there is nothing to fear except trying to fight against God. If you try to do that then be afraid, be very afraid. He let His only Son die to provide us with salvation. He is not someone to play around with. Of course many of us have already found that out and we are happy to inform the rest of you of this truth. God loves you just the way you are, but He loves you too much to let you stay that way. When we are with other Christians, lets remember that they are in a process of growth just as we are and they may not be where we think they should be but, have no fear, they will get there by the grace of God, one way or the other.
May God bless you today as you walk with Him.
Theo
Mark 4:33 He used many such stories and illustrations to teach the people as much as they were able to understand.
Where are you? I know just what you are thinking. What kind of a question is that for a devotional. But hold on for just a second. I'm not concerned about your physical location. I am more interested in where you are on this journey called life. The Apostle John refers to three stages of Christian growth. Children, young men and fathers. We have looked at the specifics of these levels of growth before. For now let's just ask this question. On the road to Christian maturity: where are you? Please be careful here. Before you jump to the conclusion that you are grown up in the Lord remember this: you can be a Christian for 50 years and still be a novice. One other point is that if you think about it you will admit that quite often people who think they are mature in the Lord are simply folk who think that they have arrived. That they have nothing more to learn. They can sit in church on Sunday and get bored because they haven't 'learned' anything that day. Before going any further why not read these verses in their context: Mark 4:30-34.
Often, as Christian leaders, we can make the mistake of thinking that everyone should be at the same place on the Christian path as we are. We think that because a person has been a Christian for several years, they must be well along toward maturity, only to find out that, once put in a position of responsibility, they act as though they had just gotten saved. Or they place their own needs and thoughts above others. They believe that the church is there for them instead of a rescue station reaching out to lost and wounded people. It is the parent that complains that their child is being affected by the unsaved kids that the youth ministry is trying to reach for the Lord. They think that the church should be a place where their kids should be sheltered from the unsaved of the world. They want to be out of the world and not of it instead of in the world and not of it. It would be like going to the hospital and complaining about all the sick people that were there.
Having said all that, where are you? If you aren't sure what to answer, you may just be honest. Can you say that you are growing? That you are further along than you were last year or ten years in the past. Our verse today touches on this. Jesus knew that everyone was not at the same point in life. He taught them things that they were able to understand and not things beyond them. It is good that God treats us in this way because, frankly, we would never be able to understand if God were to show us too far into the future. Next week exists in a fog bank because God is preparing us for what will happen then, knowing we are not ready to handle it now. God reveals what we need to know, when we need to know it and not before. He never gives us the grace we need until we need it which is why we are often blown away by what other Christians are able to go through. We don't know what we would do if that happened to us. But the good side is that He will show us what we need to know when we need to know it so that nothing threatens us. He exists in our future and is preparing us for it.
Fear not Jesus liked to say. Why? Because for the believer there is nothing to fear except trying to fight against God. If you try to do that then be afraid, be very afraid. He let His only Son die to provide us with salvation. He is not someone to play around with. Of course many of us have already found that out and we are happy to inform the rest of you of this truth. God loves you just the way you are, but He loves you too much to let you stay that way. When we are with other Christians, lets remember that they are in a process of growth just as we are and they may not be where we think they should be but, have no fear, they will get there by the grace of God, one way or the other.
May God bless you today as you walk with Him.
Theo
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Even Greater Works
Vol 2 No 36 THEO'S DEVOS
John 14:12-14 “The truth is, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. 13You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, because the work of the Son brings glory to the Father. 14Yes, ask anything in my name, and I will do it!
There is so much of importance in this verse that it is hard to decide where to start. How will Jesus be able to do 'greater things' through us than He did. It is hard to imagine anything greater than raising someone from the dead or restoring a blind man's sight. Note that he He emphasizes that we would do greater things, not simply the same things.
Have you ever noticed that all the people Jesus healed eventually died. More than that where were they when He hung on that cross? You would have thought that all those healed by Jesus, or fed by Him, would have been so amazed that they would have followed Him anywhere but they didn't.
Now thing about the works of the disciples. They spread the message of Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, and those people went on to be fed to lions, killed in many horrible ways rather than recant their faith. Why? What was different about these people than the ones Jesus healed or fed. The answer to this question is that they were empowered by the Spirit of God and did things in the spirit. Rather than simply heal, which they did, they now could spread the gospel to say that by placing their faith in what Jesus had done for them on the cross they could be forgiven of their sins and made whole on the inside. They were made alive in their spirit, not just improved in their body.
This power is given to us as well. When you share the gospel with someone, end they respond in faith believing, they are changed in their spirit. They are made alive in a place where they had been dead. This, then, leads them to live a totally changed life. Not a better life, a radically changed life. They are made alive and are no longer dead in their transgressions and sins. Nowhere in the New Testament do we see Jesus doing this. He had not died on the cross. Their sins had not been paid for yet. They were in the same condition as those in the Old Testament, waiting for the Messiah to come and wipe away the need for all those sacrifices by offering Himself as the final sacrifice for sin.
In this sense He is doing greater things through us. Not only that but Jesus could only be in one place at a time. Anything He wanted to do from just being nice to performing a miracle could only be done where He was. There is not too many instances where Jesus performed a miracle at a great distance although even then it was one at a time. Think of the increased power of millions of Christians around the world offering the possibility of eternal life and think of how many people may be accepting that offer by trusting in Jesus right this minute. Not just one or two but thousands, all around the world, right now. Now that is power. Thousands of people being transformed from darkness into life because Jesus still lives in, and through, us. Does He live in you? Are you letting His love shine in your life? Are you telling others about the wonderful truth of the gospel? If so, you are letting greater things happen and you are fulfilling the purpose that God has for you. If not, then now is the time to start. Simply tell the trust about Jesus, as best as you can. And watch God work. You don't have to be a Billy Graham. That is what God is saying in this verse. You have all the power you need to see greater things happen.
You will never, ever, be the same if you have the chance to tell someone about Jesus and watch them say 'Yes' to Him. Oh and for sure, they will never be the same either. May God bless you today as you serve Him and spread His love around the planet.
Theo
John 14:12-14 “The truth is, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. 13You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, because the work of the Son brings glory to the Father. 14Yes, ask anything in my name, and I will do it!
There is so much of importance in this verse that it is hard to decide where to start. How will Jesus be able to do 'greater things' through us than He did. It is hard to imagine anything greater than raising someone from the dead or restoring a blind man's sight. Note that he He emphasizes that we would do greater things, not simply the same things.
Have you ever noticed that all the people Jesus healed eventually died. More than that where were they when He hung on that cross? You would have thought that all those healed by Jesus, or fed by Him, would have been so amazed that they would have followed Him anywhere but they didn't.
Now thing about the works of the disciples. They spread the message of Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, and those people went on to be fed to lions, killed in many horrible ways rather than recant their faith. Why? What was different about these people than the ones Jesus healed or fed. The answer to this question is that they were empowered by the Spirit of God and did things in the spirit. Rather than simply heal, which they did, they now could spread the gospel to say that by placing their faith in what Jesus had done for them on the cross they could be forgiven of their sins and made whole on the inside. They were made alive in their spirit, not just improved in their body.
This power is given to us as well. When you share the gospel with someone, end they respond in faith believing, they are changed in their spirit. They are made alive in a place where they had been dead. This, then, leads them to live a totally changed life. Not a better life, a radically changed life. They are made alive and are no longer dead in their transgressions and sins. Nowhere in the New Testament do we see Jesus doing this. He had not died on the cross. Their sins had not been paid for yet. They were in the same condition as those in the Old Testament, waiting for the Messiah to come and wipe away the need for all those sacrifices by offering Himself as the final sacrifice for sin.
In this sense He is doing greater things through us. Not only that but Jesus could only be in one place at a time. Anything He wanted to do from just being nice to performing a miracle could only be done where He was. There is not too many instances where Jesus performed a miracle at a great distance although even then it was one at a time. Think of the increased power of millions of Christians around the world offering the possibility of eternal life and think of how many people may be accepting that offer by trusting in Jesus right this minute. Not just one or two but thousands, all around the world, right now. Now that is power. Thousands of people being transformed from darkness into life because Jesus still lives in, and through, us. Does He live in you? Are you letting His love shine in your life? Are you telling others about the wonderful truth of the gospel? If so, you are letting greater things happen and you are fulfilling the purpose that God has for you. If not, then now is the time to start. Simply tell the trust about Jesus, as best as you can. And watch God work. You don't have to be a Billy Graham. That is what God is saying in this verse. You have all the power you need to see greater things happen.
You will never, ever, be the same if you have the chance to tell someone about Jesus and watch them say 'Yes' to Him. Oh and for sure, they will never be the same either. May God bless you today as you serve Him and spread His love around the planet.
Theo
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Principle Problem
Vol 2 No 35 THEO'S DEVOS
Eph 2:1-3 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
Probably one of the most difficult concepts in the Bible and one that has caused confusion and bad doctrine is found in verse one. “... dead in your transgressions...” What does Paul mean by dead? How dead were we? How does this relate to free will?
I have seen a lot of definitions of the word dead but the one that seems to be the most helpful is: 'the inability to respond.' If we are physically dead we cannot respond. Poke us, pinch us, hook us up to a machine and any attempt to elicit any kind of response falls flat. We may make a muscle jump by giving it an electrical shock but that is not the kind of response we are looking for. The indication that the brain and body are no longer alive is that they cannot respond to stimulus the way they used to.
In the same manner, spiritual death is the inability to respond to God. A spiritually dead person simply cannot do anything that God wants them to do, including responding to the gospel. It isn't as though they were sort of dead but alive enough to accept Christ as their savior. No, they are dead, period. That is why the Bible says that we are saved by grace, not of ourselves. There wasn't anything in us that could respond. We were unable to respond to God and that is why we are referred to as dead. I know that this will be hard to accept by those who think that there is something within everyone that can respond to God but God would have used a different metaphor to be sure if He wanted to convey that concept to us.
If you want to consider how clear this is just think about doing this. Imagine going to a morgue and looking down at a dead man on a slab. Now think as hard as you can and see if you can figure out a way of explaining to him that Jesus died for his sins and that he needs to place his faith in that payment in order to be saved. Can't be done. Now when you talk to a living, unsaved person, you are talking to a dead person spiritually. One who cannot, any more than a physically dead man can, respond to God. It takes God's grace to do that.
Beyond all of this, we are told that we were dead in two areas. In our transgressions and our sins. Transgressions means to misstep. To walk where we were not supposed to walk. In a spiritual sense it reminds me of a zombie that stumbles around and is not sure of where he or she is going. We cannot respond to God so our walk is virtually random in terms of what God would want. And then sins, or doing what we know to be wrong. Think about the world today. Everyday we see people doing what is wrong and want to argue that it is OK to act that way. In their heart they know better but do not want to acknowledge it. I am amazed at what we watch on TV as an example. We laugh at the most crude and ungodly things but excuse it because it is funny. I sometimes wonder if they ever were able to make dirt taste good if those people would eat it. Sickening thought isn't it but we comfortably watch things that are godless and justify it because it is funny. It would appear that just because we are no longer dead doesn't mean that we can't act as though we were.
One mark of death is that the dead thing continues to corrupt. That is why, for instance, that our entertainment industry has gotten worse and worse and will continue to until Jesus comes again. In the meantime, we as Christians, ought to act in light of the life we have been given. Let's give thought to what we watch and what we do and say. Let's take advantage of being alive in Christ and not follow the example given to us by those who are still dead, completely dead, in their transgressions and sins.
May God bless you as you strive to live more like Jesus and less like a dead person;
Theo
Eph 2:1-3 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
Probably one of the most difficult concepts in the Bible and one that has caused confusion and bad doctrine is found in verse one. “... dead in your transgressions...” What does Paul mean by dead? How dead were we? How does this relate to free will?
I have seen a lot of definitions of the word dead but the one that seems to be the most helpful is: 'the inability to respond.' If we are physically dead we cannot respond. Poke us, pinch us, hook us up to a machine and any attempt to elicit any kind of response falls flat. We may make a muscle jump by giving it an electrical shock but that is not the kind of response we are looking for. The indication that the brain and body are no longer alive is that they cannot respond to stimulus the way they used to.
In the same manner, spiritual death is the inability to respond to God. A spiritually dead person simply cannot do anything that God wants them to do, including responding to the gospel. It isn't as though they were sort of dead but alive enough to accept Christ as their savior. No, they are dead, period. That is why the Bible says that we are saved by grace, not of ourselves. There wasn't anything in us that could respond. We were unable to respond to God and that is why we are referred to as dead. I know that this will be hard to accept by those who think that there is something within everyone that can respond to God but God would have used a different metaphor to be sure if He wanted to convey that concept to us.
If you want to consider how clear this is just think about doing this. Imagine going to a morgue and looking down at a dead man on a slab. Now think as hard as you can and see if you can figure out a way of explaining to him that Jesus died for his sins and that he needs to place his faith in that payment in order to be saved. Can't be done. Now when you talk to a living, unsaved person, you are talking to a dead person spiritually. One who cannot, any more than a physically dead man can, respond to God. It takes God's grace to do that.
Beyond all of this, we are told that we were dead in two areas. In our transgressions and our sins. Transgressions means to misstep. To walk where we were not supposed to walk. In a spiritual sense it reminds me of a zombie that stumbles around and is not sure of where he or she is going. We cannot respond to God so our walk is virtually random in terms of what God would want. And then sins, or doing what we know to be wrong. Think about the world today. Everyday we see people doing what is wrong and want to argue that it is OK to act that way. In their heart they know better but do not want to acknowledge it. I am amazed at what we watch on TV as an example. We laugh at the most crude and ungodly things but excuse it because it is funny. I sometimes wonder if they ever were able to make dirt taste good if those people would eat it. Sickening thought isn't it but we comfortably watch things that are godless and justify it because it is funny. It would appear that just because we are no longer dead doesn't mean that we can't act as though we were.
One mark of death is that the dead thing continues to corrupt. That is why, for instance, that our entertainment industry has gotten worse and worse and will continue to until Jesus comes again. In the meantime, we as Christians, ought to act in light of the life we have been given. Let's give thought to what we watch and what we do and say. Let's take advantage of being alive in Christ and not follow the example given to us by those who are still dead, completely dead, in their transgressions and sins.
May God bless you as you strive to live more like Jesus and less like a dead person;
Theo
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