Receive and Run With It
James 1:17-25 states, "Every good and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures. So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. but he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does."
These verses are wonderful for us to meditate on during this Christmas season. Here are some things that we learn from these few verses...
First of all we are all reminded that any good and perfect gift that we enjoy is from God (verse 17). Do you have a roof over your head? Praise God that He has seen fit to give you one! Do you have running water? Again, praise the Lord! Do you have an amazing church to learn, grow, and serve the Lord at? We all need to remember that ALL these things that we take advantage of are GIFTS from above!
It is also amazing to think that it was His will to give each of us life (verse 18). He decided a LONG time ago that you would be a part of His beautiful creation. He decided that you'd still be on earth in 2007! Don't forget this as each of us is here for a purpose. Be encouraged to seek the Lord before the New Year to find out what He desires you to do in the year 2008.
After reminding us that we are here because of Him and everything we have has been given to us, James now urges us to be a listener (verse 19). He warns us to be "slow to speak." So many of us always have something to say. In James 1:2, we are told, "if anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body." No wonder God desires us to be "slow to speak." We ALL mess up with our words because none of us are perfect. It seems that the less we say, the less we will stumble! Now, I'm not encouraging all of us to go around in silence... please do not misunderstand. I believe that James is writing this to us to remind us that God has something to say to us if we will truly listen. HE IS THE ONE WHO GAVE US LIFE in the first place... so if we walk around thinking or pretending that we have all the answers, we surely will stumble because "pride comes before the fall." Let it be a challenge for all of us to listen to what God has to say to us this year through our personal devotions, our pastor, our leaders, our circumstances, and our trials.
This leads to the next lesson where James tells us to be "slow to wrath" (verse 19-20). This word for "wrath" can mean "anger, indignation, or vengeance." He goes on to explain that this kind of attitude does not produce the righteousness of God. As we are in the stores and the malls this season, let us remember this command! Let us show the world the righteousness of God!
If we can be grateful for all that God has given us and lay aside our selfishness, pride, and anger; then we will be able to "receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls." Yes, His Word will be implanted in our hearts and we all should desire to RECEIVE it with MEEKNESS. To "receive" His word means to "accept" His Word and "take" His Word. We all are familiar with the verse in Hebrews that tells us that the Word is living and active. Well, when was the last time the Word became alive to you? If you cannot remember the last time it did, it has probably been too long! Dive in fellow servants! Listen to your Creator so that He can lead you, encourage you, and hold your hand! Once the Word becomes alive to you, RECEIVE IT, ACCEPT IT, and TAKE IT!!!!!! For it surely has the power to save our souls!
Finally, in verses 22-25 James reminds us to "be doers of the Word and not hearers only... he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does." Do you want to be blessed fellow believer? Of course you do! The way is easy... DO what the Bible says! After receiving it, accepting it, and taking it.... JUST DO IT!!!! Let us find out what the Lord wants us to do this day, this week, this month, next year and may we all be blessed by our GIVER of LIFE!
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Righteous Judgment
In John 7:24 Jesus states, "Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."
It is so easy to fall into the trap of the enemy when it comes to judging others. The enemy would like us to believe the worst of everyone so that we immediately put up walls around our heart. If we think the worst of others, then we won't reach out to them. We will begin to believe the lie of whatever perception we have of others which causes disunity. This is especially harmful when we do this in our own church.
Even within our own group of volunteers this is easy to do. We see one another each week. Some of them we know, but most of them we don't really know. Because we don't have a relationship with some, it is easy to come up with a perception of those people because of the way they look or the way they seem. We need to realize that these are not "righteous judgments."
Before we know another person's heart, we ought to pray those evil perceptions away. Ask God to help us to be able to be unified as one body working together for His glory. Be reminded that "the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (1 Sam. 16:7b)
Two practical ways we can drive these judgments away is to pray for the individual we are judging and to be bold enough to go up to the individual and begin to develop a relationship with them. Be honest with the person and find out that they are probably a lot like you!
Psalm 133:1 states, "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!"
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Righteousness and Justice
Psalm 33:4-5 state, "For the Word of the Lord is right, and all His work is done in truth. He loves righteousness and justice. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord."
These verses really stuck out to me when I read them because there were a couple of things that happened to my daughter recently that I thought were unfair! I was literally up almost all night one night because I was so hurt for my daughter. As a mommy, I love righteousness and justice...especially when it comes to my children!!! It really lifted me up to read these verses and meditate on the fact that God loves righteousness and justice. If I care that much about my 6 year old being "left out" or being called a loser, how much more do you think God cares about His children (us) when we are not treated with justice. This verse is a clear reminder to me that He does care and that He sees EVERY time we are treated unfairly.
So I pray this can be an encouragement to all of us that are treated unfairly. Whether it is in traffic, at home, at work, or anywhere else, always remember that God isn't "okay" with injustice. He loves righteousness and justice and will soon and very soon make everything right and just for each of His children. Until then, may we rest in the TRUTH of God's Word. Psalm 37 is "extra credit" for those of you who want an extra boost on this topic! It has soooooo many beautiful truths! I'll give you a taste..."Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart....Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret--it only causes harm. For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth....But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace...."
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Sacrifice and Relationship
Psalm 51:16-17 state, "For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart- These, O God, You will not despise."
The dictionary definition of sacrifice is "an act of giving up something valued for the sake of something else regarded as more important or worthy." Sometimes we humans believe if such and such of a person made this sacrifice for me, then I need to make this sacrifice for them. Although this shouldn't be the case, we often feel this way... at least I do!
As I search the Scriptures, I cannot find God commanding us to make this kind of a worldly sacrifice. This to me is one of the most freeing truths in the Bible! Here we have Jesus making the ultimate sacrifice for us and He doesn't have a "to do" list for us to meet Him half way. God only desires for us to have a broken spirit and a contrite heart! He doesn't even command it... He only DESIRES it! He desires it because He desires to bless us! Yes, this is unconditional love!
This truth gives me the desire to give the Lord the sacrifices that He is pleased with. This is what I found...
Psalm 107:22 "Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare His works with rejoicing."
Psalm 141:2 "Let my prayer be set before You as incense, the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice."
Ecclesiastes 5:1 "Walk prudently when you go to the house of God; and draw near to hear rather than to give sacrifice of fools..."
Hosea 6:6 "For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings."
Hebrews 13:15 "Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name."
Notice that NONE of the sacrifices God desires from us include doing anything difficult... or even challenging. He doesn't want anything EXCEPT to have a relationship with us. How awesome to ponder! If you haven't made time for Him this week, why wouldn't you want to? We have the freedom to talk to the Creator of all things, the King of Kings, Jesus, God of all! Let's give Him His desire and get to know Him!
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Seek Wisdom
Ecclesiastes 10:10 states, "If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen the edge, then he must use more strength; but wisdom brings success." It seems if we ponder this verse that if we are continually seeking to gain wisdom, then we won't have to work so hard for success... success will just be the product. I noticed that it must be CONTINUAL though. When you use an ax, it will continue to get dull and need sharpened. So, we too need to CONTINUALLY be sharpened. So, how then do we gain wisdom each and every day for the rest of our lives so that we don't become dull? Solomon explains in Proverbs 2 that we must "seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures... For the Lord gives wisdom."
As we continue to search for this given wisdom, we find that wisdom is very much connected to the Spirit of God. 1 Corinthians 2:4-5,9-13 states, "And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. But as it is written: 'Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.' But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spiritsearches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in word which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual."
So as we seek to find wisdom, we find that the source is through the working of the Spirit in us! How easy and wonderful! So, how do we get the Spirit of the living God to be actively working in us? Everyone knows the EASY answer! Yes... Jesus, in His own words tells us in Luke 11:9-13 the following: "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you... For everyone who asks receives... If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone?... If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"
ALL of us are guilty of trying to do many moments without the wisdom of God that is AVAILABLE to us through His Spirit if we would only ask! Yesterday, I was guilty as I tried in my own strength to send this e-mail out to all of you. The Lord was faithful NOT to allow that to happen! I didn't have the wisdom or strength. Have you asked for the wisdom of His Spirit today? If not, tap into this wonderful GIFT and see if He doesn't give you SUCCESS!
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Set the Lord Before You
Psalm 16: 8,9, & 11 state, "I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will rest in hope. You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore."
Many believe that this entire Psalm could have been the thoughts or prayer of Jesus before He was crucified. Paul & Peter quoted parts of this Psalm applying it to Jesus in the book of Acts. Although this is considered to be a Messianic prophecy written by David, I want us to focus on using these words of truth in our own lives.
The hardest part for many of us to accomplish is the first part..."I have set the Lord always before me...." Placing the Lord before ourselves ALL THE TIME is difficult. Why? I believe it is because we are such a selfish people...at least I am. Many times when situations come up that will affect our plans or our lives, (if we are honest) our first thought is, "What is in this for me?" Of course the FIRST question should be, "What is in this for God?" Thank the Lord that Jesus set God before Him when deciding to be obedient to death on a cross!
Our encouragement this week is to SET THE LORD ALWAYS BEFORE YOU! If we can accomplish this, then we will have the benefits that Jesus had! Let us take a look at some of the benefits.
First, the psalm says we "shall not be moved." In other words, we will STAY on the path the Father has laid out for each of us! We won't waver, slip, or fall away from His perfect plan!
Secondly, "our heart is glad!"
Next, our "flesh will rest in hope!" I love the meaning of "rest" & "hope" in the original Hebrew. "Rest" means "to reside or permanently stay." "Hope" means "a place of refuge or safety, both the fact (security) & the feeling (trust)." So...our flesh will permanently stay in security and trust! I like that!
Again we are promised that God "will show me the path of life." What comfort to know we won't have to worry about which way to go!
Finally, there is "fulness of joy" & "pleasures forevermore." In other words SATISFACTION & HEAVEN! It doesn't get any better than that!
So, who wants to try harder to see the Lord ALWAYS before you???
I DO! I DO!!!! Let us put our selfishness aside fellow servants and enjoy the benefits we learn about from this Psalm of David!
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Stay Confident
Hebrews 10:35-39 state, "Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: 'For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.' But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul."
Here is a powerful reminder for all of us to stay confident! What is confidence? A dictionary definition I like is "firm trust; the state of feeling certain about the truth of something." In the original Greek, this word can mean "assurance or boldness of speech." All of us have had moments when we have gained confidence in the Lord. Maybe a specific prayer was answered, God helped you through a very hard trial, or you witnessed something that you knew deep down in your heart "had to be a God thing." After such experiences we feel so close to the living God... almost as if we have been able to touch Him.
Today, let us be reminded of these times in our personal lives and ask the Lord to give us the same confidence each and every day of our lives. Be confident that God desires a relationship with you each day. Be confident that He loves you and knows your deepest desires! Be confident that He will finish what He started in you. Be confident that He hears you when you pray. Be confident that His Word is true and sure... that His mercies are new every morning! FIRMLY TRUST in these promises! Why should we want this confidence? The writer of Hebrews reminds us that such confidence will have "great reward." He goes on to state that we "will receive the promise." Yes we all need to endure to be able to finish the will of God... but soon and very soon the Lord will not tarry!!!! He will come for those of us who are living by faith! All of His promises WILL be fulfilled. Are you confident fellow servant of Christ? Let us live moment by moment with such confidence so that all those around us yearn for the hope we have in Christ!
1 John 2:28 states, "And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming."