Rebuke in the presence of all.

But wait a minute.  Wouldn't that require a judgment?  To decide if they are sinning or not?  :)

1 Timothy 5:20(NKJV)

20Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all, that the rest also may fear.

Just another example that the command "thou shalt not judge" is not the final word in the matter. 

Don't let those who know a little Scripture here and there mislead you.  We are charged by God to know our Scripture well enough so that doesn't happen.

Stir Up the Gift Baby!!!

What an awesome passage!

2 Timothy 1:6-7(NKJV)

6Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 

7For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

The first thing I get from this Scripture is that our gift from God is not a passive thing.  We are instructed to stir it up!  What does that mean?  Not sure but here is what it means to me.

To me it means to actively seek and build your relationship with God.  We are told in other parts of Scripture to diligently seek Him.  All of these things point to the fact that we need to take action to build and strengthen our relationship with God.  It isn't a passive thing 

Along those same lines I think it means we need to take life by the horns.  Live life on purpose and live it to the fullest.  Don't sit back and passively experience life. 

One of my favorite sayings is that I would rather wear out than rust out!

If you look to the Parable of the Talents, it was the one who played it safe who had the worst outcome.  The only one of the three who was penalized was the guy who played it safe.  I think the message is pretty clear there.

Why do so many play it safe?  I think it is because they live in fear.  Fear of failure or whatever.  As I have written before, how can you expect God to bless you when you live in fear, which demonstrates to God a concrete lack of faith?

Verse 7 tells us what type of spirit God has given us.  It's not a spirit of fear.  God gave us each a spirit of power, a spirit of love, and a spirit of sound mind.  Now it is up to us to use that spirit in the may God intended.

Let's stir up the Gift!

Great Advice From 1 Timothy

Wow, lots of great advice from 1 Timothy 6.  I'm going to highlight and comment.

1 Timothy 6:6-10(NKJV)

6Now godliness with contentment is great gain. 

7For we brought nothing into this world, £and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 

8And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. 

The first thing that strikes me is God telling us that as long as we have food and clothing, we should be content.  Does that mean we should settle?  I don't think so.  We are taught to strive for excellence, to win the race as Paul says.  I think it just means that from a financial perspective, we should be content with what we have.  As we strive for excellence, we most likely will earn more and that is OK because we weren't doing it for the money, the money was just a consequence of excelling at what we do.

9But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 

10For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Here is where it is reiterated that we should be motivated by doing the right thing, not out of a lust for money.  There is nothing wrong about having money in and of itself as long as you keep it in it's proper perspective.

How do we do that?  I think the next verses from 1 Timothy give us a good idea.

1 Timothy 6:17-19(NKJV)

17Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. 

18Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, 

19storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

I personally find I pretty easy.  I just constantly remind myself that it is because of God that I have what I have.  He is the one who gave me the intellect and the abilities to accomplish what I have accomplished so far in life.  It was all accomplished with His guidance.

Therefore, anything I have, God is welcome to it.  The Scripture above tells us that if we follow God, He will bless us richly, including wealth.  That wealth is given to us as a tool to serve Him.  If we are "rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share,…", God blesses us even more!

Now that is easy to say but a bit tougher to put into practice.  Wait til the first time God says to you "Hey, you know that $1,000 you got sitting in your savings account?  I need it.  Cut me a check please.".

Man you talk about a come to Jesus moment.  God will give you a chance to prove what you claim.  My advice to you is that if you really believe that God is telling you to give, then give without hesitation or regret.  Just simply trust God.  I promise you that He won't let you down.  You just simply can't out give the giver. 

After you do it the first time, God will occasionally call on you again.  It get's easier and easier to write that $1,000 check.  Then one day out of the blue God will up the ante.  "Hey, you know that $10,000 that is sitting in your savings account?  I need it."    :)

Did he ever fail you when giving Him the $1,000?  No.  Then step out on faith for the larger amount.  You will never be sorry if you always answer God's call!

 

How Come We Are So Closed Minded?

When we talk about the exclusivity of Christ we often hear that our belief is awfully closed minded.  There are many that believe that Jesus is just one way to God.  In fact there is a bumper sticker that is familiar to most that says coexist.

But is that Scriptural?  The answer is no it is not.  The Bible tells us quite clearly in more than one place that Jesus is the one and only way to be saved.  Jesus is the one and only mediator between us and God.

1 Timothy 2:3-6(NKJV)

3For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 

4who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 

5For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 

6who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, 

Now each of us has free will and can chose to believe that or not.  Each and every one of us will be held accountable for our decision.  I believe it is the truth!

Faith….with….Power!

Faith

Power

Two words that many people never think of together. 

Faith…..with….Power

Hmm.

2 Thessalonians 1:11-12(NKJV)

11Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power, 

12that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Faith with power through Jesus Christ. 

As we grow in our faith we accumulate power that goes with that faith.  That power flows to us through our belief and faith in Jesus Christ.  I've often said that faith is like a muscle.  The more you use it the stronger it gets.

Back in August of 2013 I was pondering this very issue as I was dealing with Satan screwing with me.  It wasn't any deep spiritual crisis or anything.  It was just Satan screwing with me over a week's time trying to spoil my attitude and trying to sway me from Romans 5:3-5.

You know, the verse where we are told to glory in our tribulations?  That is one of my foundational verses.  I believe that the spirit in which we deal with out tribulations is very important to God.  We need to deal with them with a smile on our faces.  Satan was trying to steal my smile and I wasn't going to allow it!

Let me first tell you that he didn't even come close to winning because I have Jesus on my side.  That is when it occurred to me that as a mature Christian, I didn't have to go whining to Jesus about mean old Satan screwing with me and begging Jesus to protect me as so many do. 

I already had the power, delegated to me by Jesus, to rebuke Satan on my own; provided I never lose sight of where that power came from!  If I were to lose sight of the fact that the power came from Jesus and started claiming it as my own, I would be headed for trouble.

It was such a comforting feeling to be able to say to Satan, "Dude you can screw with me all you want but the most you can be is a minor irritant because  I will have final victory through Jesus.  So take a hike and no you can't have my smile!"   

Would you like to experience the power of Jesus in your own life?   The first step is accepting Jesus into your life as your Lord and Savior.  The second step is to get to know Him, build a relationship with Him.  I can help you with the first step.  The second part will be up to you and will take a lifetime.  But what a great lifetime it can be!

The first step is to simply ask Jesus to lead your life.  Have a conversation with Jesus.  Let Him know what you are looking for and then ask Him into your life.  "Dear Jesus…."

This is just so weird!

There are a few things in the Bible that I just find weird.  This is one of them.

1 Timothy 2:8-15(NKJV)

8I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting; 

9in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, 

10but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works. 

11Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. 

12And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. 

13For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 

14And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression. 

15Nevertheless she will be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control.

I just don't see much difference here from what the Muslims teach about their women. 

The other thing that strikes me about it is how it is completely ignored or rationalized away by modern day Christianity. 

Now let me be perfectly clear.  I don't think women should have to learn in silence.  I think women have plenty to teach.  I don't get why this is even in the Bible. 

That being said, it is in the Bible.  It says what it says.  And yet we have many great Christian women out there teaching and preaching today.  The church I attend is led by a husband and wife team and I think it is great. 

The problem I have with it is that so many will tell you that the Bible is the inherent and infallible Word of God and yet they will totally ignore an inconvenient passage like this. 

Just seems hypocritical to me.

That Would Take A Judgment Wouldn't It?

Add this verse to the long list of verses that contradict "Thou shall not judge",  probably the best known verse by sinners.  :)

2 Thessalonians 3:6(NKJV)

6But we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly and not according to the tradition which £he received from us. 

As I've written repeatedly, the Bible is a book of balance.  The interesting thing that I've noticed about most of the Scripture that does tell us to make a judgment is that it gives us the basis for that judgment.  The above Scripture is a great example.

Who does it tell us to withdraw from?  Those not following the traditions received form the Apostles.  In other words those not walking in the ways of Jesus.  So we look to what we have been taught about the way of Jesus and compare that to a persons behavior.  That takes a judgment doesn't it?