Tuesday, October 11, 2016
Don't Change
God doesn’t want you getting confused about the change He has made to you when your behavior fails to match up with the change he has made. He doesn’t want you focusing upon your behavior in order to change, but He helps you to believe in the change He has made. That’s how you live by faith. This requires a healthy focus upon the truth so you can discover and grow in the change He has made. Stay the way you are. Stay the way He thinks you are—a born from above, spot-on perfect son or daughter of His. Get comfortable with that change.
A Clean Slate on Judgment Day
There is a day coming when the world will be judged. Every human being will stand before God. Believers will do so with peace and courage from the Holy Spirit knowing that it is their Abba who judges them tenderly and lovingly, while unbelievers will stand in fear as they are condemned. Revelation 20 paints the picture vividly.
“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:11-15
This judgment is synonymous with the Judgment of the Sheep and Goats in Matthew 25:32, and the Judgment Seat of Christ in 2 Corinthians 5:10. All of these descriptions are simply different perspectives on the same judgment. God gathers everyone together once and takes care of judgment for all eternity.
You may be thinking, “This all sounds great, but what about our bad works that get burned up? Won’t God be upset at us for those?” Most people base this question, and questions like it, on 1 Corinthians 3:10-15:
“According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.”
While the passage is often taken to mean that our bad works are burned up, it is actually talking about doctrinal foundations. Paul is making the case in this section, and the preceding verses, that any doctrinal foundation not founded on Jesus Christ will be destroyed. This passage is for teachers of the gospel more than anyone. If we lay a foundation in our ministry other than the New Covenant, it will be burnt up. This means that all of our fleshly teaching, teaching that focuses on performance before God in all of its manifestations, will not survive into eternity. What good news this is! I don’t want a single fleshly teaching of mine to follow me into eternity. I only want the amazing gospel of grace with me there. Nothing else will do.
It is also important to see that even in this situation there is no disapproving God. Remember, our sins are gone. There is no condemnation in Christ! Period! This is a description of something that happens naturally as we pass into heaven. Believers truly are free from condemnation before God. He accepts us as we are and where we are because of Jesus. Now, that is good news.
- Andy Nelson
“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” Revelation 20:11-15
This judgment is synonymous with the Judgment of the Sheep and Goats in Matthew 25:32, and the Judgment Seat of Christ in 2 Corinthians 5:10. All of these descriptions are simply different perspectives on the same judgment. God gathers everyone together once and takes care of judgment for all eternity.
You may be thinking, “This all sounds great, but what about our bad works that get burned up? Won’t God be upset at us for those?” Most people base this question, and questions like it, on 1 Corinthians 3:10-15:
“According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.”
While the passage is often taken to mean that our bad works are burned up, it is actually talking about doctrinal foundations. Paul is making the case in this section, and the preceding verses, that any doctrinal foundation not founded on Jesus Christ will be destroyed. This passage is for teachers of the gospel more than anyone. If we lay a foundation in our ministry other than the New Covenant, it will be burnt up. This means that all of our fleshly teaching, teaching that focuses on performance before God in all of its manifestations, will not survive into eternity. What good news this is! I don’t want a single fleshly teaching of mine to follow me into eternity. I only want the amazing gospel of grace with me there. Nothing else will do.
It is also important to see that even in this situation there is no disapproving God. Remember, our sins are gone. There is no condemnation in Christ! Period! This is a description of something that happens naturally as we pass into heaven. Believers truly are free from condemnation before God. He accepts us as we are and where we are because of Jesus. Now, that is good news.
- Andy Nelson
The Real “Problem
Volumes have been written on what is supposedly wrong with the church. Many believe that the solution is harder work, decreased apathy, and more surrender to God. Yet, Paul seemed to have a different solution in mind:
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.” Titus 2:11-14
What does grace teach us to do? Deny ungodliness and live righteously. I’m convinced that the real problem with the church is that we do not understand how good we have it in Christ. We are not good at letting grace be grace. Bible teachers who use anything other than grace to encourage their congregations to live righteously actually set them up for failure! It’s grace that is the answer. Everything else is second rate.
- Andy Nelson
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.” Titus 2:11-14
What does grace teach us to do? Deny ungodliness and live righteously. I’m convinced that the real problem with the church is that we do not understand how good we have it in Christ. We are not good at letting grace be grace. Bible teachers who use anything other than grace to encourage their congregations to live righteously actually set them up for failure! It’s grace that is the answer. Everything else is second rate.
- Andy Nelson
The Old is Gone
I once gave a sermon called “The Crucifixion of Andy Nelson.” When the title screen came up for the PowerPoint people laughed because of the oddity of the title. During the message I focused on the astounding reality that the old Andy Nelson, the one who existed before Christ, was gone. He had been crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20). What does this mean practically? It means that the young boy who had lived life under slavery of sin no longer existed. In fact it was as if he had never existed to begin with. Not only were my poor decisions erased, I was also erased and reconstructed spiritually. I was given a brand new spiritual core. The Old was gone.
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” 2 Corinthians 5:17
I think Christians can spend too much time reflecting on the life they had before Christ. A little introspection is fine of course and can lend perspective, but too much can create problems. There are some sins that I committed before Christ that haunt me if I focus on them. I often think, “Wow, how could I have been so vile? How could I have had such thoughts?” I find that the longer I focus on these past events, the more prone I am to forget my crucifixion with Christ.
When we are raised with Christ we are given a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26). In the biblical context the heart is the innermost core of the person. It is the very foundation of who we are. When we believe in Jesus, God performs a spiritual heart transplant. We don’t see it, and likely don’t even feel it, but it happens. Christ describes the work of the Spirit in this way:
“The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8
In other words we cannot see the Spirit’s work, but we can see the result of the Spirit’s work. When He changes us, we may not see it right away but we will see evidence of this change. It may not look exactly the same way it does for someone else. Some people may show immediate signs of change, such as quitting some sinful habits cold turkey. Others may take time to escape, in practice, the habits of sin. This is why we must be patient with one another as we all figure out exactly what it means to have a new heart.
- Andy Nelson
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” 2 Corinthians 5:17
I think Christians can spend too much time reflecting on the life they had before Christ. A little introspection is fine of course and can lend perspective, but too much can create problems. There are some sins that I committed before Christ that haunt me if I focus on them. I often think, “Wow, how could I have been so vile? How could I have had such thoughts?” I find that the longer I focus on these past events, the more prone I am to forget my crucifixion with Christ.
When we are raised with Christ we are given a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26). In the biblical context the heart is the innermost core of the person. It is the very foundation of who we are. When we believe in Jesus, God performs a spiritual heart transplant. We don’t see it, and likely don’t even feel it, but it happens. Christ describes the work of the Spirit in this way:
“The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8
In other words we cannot see the Spirit’s work, but we can see the result of the Spirit’s work. When He changes us, we may not see it right away but we will see evidence of this change. It may not look exactly the same way it does for someone else. Some people may show immediate signs of change, such as quitting some sinful habits cold turkey. Others may take time to escape, in practice, the habits of sin. This is why we must be patient with one another as we all figure out exactly what it means to have a new heart.
- Andy Nelson
Thursday, October 6, 2016
You are Made For Love.
Do you know why you are here? Why did your Creator bring you into existence? To serve Him? To do something important? No, it was simply to be loved. It was to be brought into the Circle of Love that has always existed in eternity. The quality of love shared among the members of the Trinity has always been perfect. There was no way it could be enhanced, but it could be expanded. That’s why you’re here; so that you can belong to Perfect Love.
Divine love can be nothing less than perfect love.
In the beauty of the eternal plan, this love finds greater expression in quantity, not quality. The quality of love was impossible to enhance, but our wise God knew that the dance could be extended to include others, thus making it a shared experience beyond the Father, Son, and Spirit. That’s where you come into the picture. Humanity was created to participate in the great dance. We did nothing to deserve to be included, but the fact that He has included us has beautifully expanded the dance of God into a dance of grace.
Only a God who is pure love would do such a thing as that!
The Father, Son, and Spirit already knew and enjoyed a perfect relationship, so why else would He purpose to create a species with which He might share this love? What could possibly motivate Him to want to expand the circle? Love—that is the only possible reason. Our God is a selfless, generous, other-centered, giving God. He didn’t need you. He wanted you!
My friend Francois DuToit puts it well in his rendering of Ephesians 1:4-6 in the Mirror Bible.
“He associated us in Christ before the fall of the world! Jesus is God’s mind made up about us! He always knew in his love that he would present us again face-to-face before him in blameless innocence. He is the architect of our design; his heart dream realized our coming of age in Christ. His grace-plan is to be celebrated: he greatly endeared us and highly favored us in Christ. His love for his Son is his love for us.”
You aren’t simply a cog in the cosmic wheel. You are your Father’s dream come true!
The apostle Paul described us as God’s masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10 nlt). You have been embraced and bound up in Jesus Christ and are now His very offspring (see Acts 17:28). You have been set in the place of a child who is loved and accepted by the Father just as surely as Jesus Himself knows that love and acceptance.
The Word for You
If the news that God has always intended to include you in the circle of His Trinitarian life seems too good to be true, consider this biblical witness: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The New Living Translation renders the verse, “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
Why is Jesus called the Word? The answer to that, we must first define the meaning of the term itself. What is the meaning of word? It is the expressed embodiment of a concept conveyed from one person to another. In other words, it’s the way something in one person’s mind makes its way to the other person.
We know that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit all share the same essence. They live in complete openness and transparency among themselves. None has to inform the others about things they don’t know because they already all know.
So for Jesus to be identified as the Word who already existed at the beginning is very significant. A word exists for the purpose of communicating to another—but each person in the Godhead already fully knows everything the other persons know, so why did this Word exist in the beginning?
If Jesus, as the Word, didn’t need to communicate anything to the Father or the Spirit, to whom did He have something to communicate?
The answer is thrilling. The intended recipient of the Word is you. God had something He wanted to tell you before the first proton and neutron began to vibrate. What was this important news He arranged to tell you long before you were even here to tell?
It is that He loves you, that He always has and always will.
The fact that the Word was there from the very beginning, and the fact that there certainly was nothing He needed to communicate in Himself among the persons of the Trinity, is the basis of this great gospel of love that has the power to transform the whole cosmos. Look back into the place before time began, and you’ll find a loving God whose heart rejoiced at the thought of bringing you into existence so He could share His love with you.
- Steve McVey
Divine love can be nothing less than perfect love.
In the beauty of the eternal plan, this love finds greater expression in quantity, not quality. The quality of love was impossible to enhance, but our wise God knew that the dance could be extended to include others, thus making it a shared experience beyond the Father, Son, and Spirit. That’s where you come into the picture. Humanity was created to participate in the great dance. We did nothing to deserve to be included, but the fact that He has included us has beautifully expanded the dance of God into a dance of grace.
Only a God who is pure love would do such a thing as that!
The Father, Son, and Spirit already knew and enjoyed a perfect relationship, so why else would He purpose to create a species with which He might share this love? What could possibly motivate Him to want to expand the circle? Love—that is the only possible reason. Our God is a selfless, generous, other-centered, giving God. He didn’t need you. He wanted you!
My friend Francois DuToit puts it well in his rendering of Ephesians 1:4-6 in the Mirror Bible.
“He associated us in Christ before the fall of the world! Jesus is God’s mind made up about us! He always knew in his love that he would present us again face-to-face before him in blameless innocence. He is the architect of our design; his heart dream realized our coming of age in Christ. His grace-plan is to be celebrated: he greatly endeared us and highly favored us in Christ. His love for his Son is his love for us.”
You aren’t simply a cog in the cosmic wheel. You are your Father’s dream come true!
The apostle Paul described us as God’s masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10 nlt). You have been embraced and bound up in Jesus Christ and are now His very offspring (see Acts 17:28). You have been set in the place of a child who is loved and accepted by the Father just as surely as Jesus Himself knows that love and acceptance.
The Word for You
If the news that God has always intended to include you in the circle of His Trinitarian life seems too good to be true, consider this biblical witness: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The New Living Translation renders the verse, “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
Why is Jesus called the Word? The answer to that, we must first define the meaning of the term itself. What is the meaning of word? It is the expressed embodiment of a concept conveyed from one person to another. In other words, it’s the way something in one person’s mind makes its way to the other person.
We know that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit all share the same essence. They live in complete openness and transparency among themselves. None has to inform the others about things they don’t know because they already all know.
So for Jesus to be identified as the Word who already existed at the beginning is very significant. A word exists for the purpose of communicating to another—but each person in the Godhead already fully knows everything the other persons know, so why did this Word exist in the beginning?
If Jesus, as the Word, didn’t need to communicate anything to the Father or the Spirit, to whom did He have something to communicate?
The answer is thrilling. The intended recipient of the Word is you. God had something He wanted to tell you before the first proton and neutron began to vibrate. What was this important news He arranged to tell you long before you were even here to tell?
It is that He loves you, that He always has and always will.
The fact that the Word was there from the very beginning, and the fact that there certainly was nothing He needed to communicate in Himself among the persons of the Trinity, is the basis of this great gospel of love that has the power to transform the whole cosmos. Look back into the place before time began, and you’ll find a loving God whose heart rejoiced at the thought of bringing you into existence so He could share His love with you.
- Steve McVey
You Have Always Belonged.
Our God had an eternal dream that He would create you and bring you into the eternal circle of His love and life. That fulfillment of that dream initiated with Him, was activated by Him, is perpetuated by Him, and will be consummated by Him.
The traditional language of the religious world speaks of finding God, but the truth is that He is the One who has found us!
In Luke 15, Jesus demonstrated this very fact. He spoke about the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. In each case, the word “lost” could be properly used only because each thing was already objectively connected to a place of belonging. A sheep that didn’t already belong to a shepherd wouldn’t be lost. It would simply be wild. A coin could be lost only if there was an owner to whom it belonged. The prodigal son was considered lost only because his home was with a father who had always known where his son’s life was really rooted. Catherine Marshall wrote about this in her book Beyond Ourselves.
Nothing can be lost that is not first owned. Just as a parent is compelled by civil law to be responsible for his family and his property, so the Creator—by His own divine law—is compelled to take care of the children He has created. And that means not only caring for the good children, but for the bad ones and lost ones as well. If a person is a “lost sinner” it only means that he is temporarily separated from the Good Shepherd who owns him. The Shepherd is bound by all duties of ownership to go after all those who are lost until they are found.
The starting point for the sheep, the coin, and the prodigal wasn’t their lostness but their belonging—despite their current status. In each case, their authentic identity was defined by their relationship to the one to whom they belonged. Notice that in these parables, Jesus never indicates that the shepherd of the lost sheep, the owner of the lost coin, or the father of the lost son were ever angry about the lostness of their treasured possession. Far from it. They were driven by a loving passion to recover what they loved—at any cost.
When the shepherd finds the sheep, “he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!” (Luke 15:6). When the woman lost the silver coin, she carefully searches her house. “And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin’” (verse 9 NIV). When the father of the prodigal runs out to meet his son, falls on him, and hugs him, he calls out to his servants, “This son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found” (verse 24 NIV).
Lostness has no meaning apart from the reference point of belonging.
If belonging didn’t come first, nothing could be lost. This is true not only with sheep, coins, and rebellious sons. It’s true with humanity itself. As many others have said, before we were ever lost in Adam, we already belonged in Christ.
Ephesians 1:4 is completely clear: “He [God the Father] chose us in Him [Jesus] before the foundation of the world.” To be chosen in Him before the foundation of the world, we obviously had to be in Him before the foundation of the world. You have always belonged. We all have. Always.
The traditional language of the religious world speaks of finding God, but the truth is that He is the One who has found us!
In Luke 15, Jesus demonstrated this very fact. He spoke about the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. In each case, the word “lost” could be properly used only because each thing was already objectively connected to a place of belonging. A sheep that didn’t already belong to a shepherd wouldn’t be lost. It would simply be wild. A coin could be lost only if there was an owner to whom it belonged. The prodigal son was considered lost only because his home was with a father who had always known where his son’s life was really rooted. Catherine Marshall wrote about this in her book Beyond Ourselves.
Nothing can be lost that is not first owned. Just as a parent is compelled by civil law to be responsible for his family and his property, so the Creator—by His own divine law—is compelled to take care of the children He has created. And that means not only caring for the good children, but for the bad ones and lost ones as well. If a person is a “lost sinner” it only means that he is temporarily separated from the Good Shepherd who owns him. The Shepherd is bound by all duties of ownership to go after all those who are lost until they are found.
The starting point for the sheep, the coin, and the prodigal wasn’t their lostness but their belonging—despite their current status. In each case, their authentic identity was defined by their relationship to the one to whom they belonged. Notice that in these parables, Jesus never indicates that the shepherd of the lost sheep, the owner of the lost coin, or the father of the lost son were ever angry about the lostness of their treasured possession. Far from it. They were driven by a loving passion to recover what they loved—at any cost.
When the shepherd finds the sheep, “he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!” (Luke 15:6). When the woman lost the silver coin, she carefully searches her house. “And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin’” (verse 9 NIV). When the father of the prodigal runs out to meet his son, falls on him, and hugs him, he calls out to his servants, “This son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found” (verse 24 NIV).
Lostness has no meaning apart from the reference point of belonging.
If belonging didn’t come first, nothing could be lost. This is true not only with sheep, coins, and rebellious sons. It’s true with humanity itself. As many others have said, before we were ever lost in Adam, we already belonged in Christ.
Ephesians 1:4 is completely clear: “He [God the Father] chose us in Him [Jesus] before the foundation of the world.” To be chosen in Him before the foundation of the world, we obviously had to be in Him before the foundation of the world. You have always belonged. We all have. Always.
- Steve McVey
Monday, October 3, 2016
The Blunter Side of Life
But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things. –Luke 10:41
Imagine a piece of steel five feet long, twelve inches wide, and two inches thick. You are told that you cannot rest until you have driven the object completely into the ground. Your work would be cut out for you; in fact, I doubt the job could be accomplished in one day, and you would become full of frustration, depression, fear, and anger. However, if one end of the steel were tapered sharply, like that of a pencil's tip, the task would be much simpler.
The average believer experiences much fear because his life is not focused on one thing but has become blunt with diverse points of interest, activity, and concentration: marriage, children, sin, others, vocation, and failure all get equal billing with Christ. Only when Christ alone becomes the soul's focus will the believer's life become sharpened and easily able to cut through the daily problems of life. Depression and anger come only when something other than Him is placed on the mountaintop of the heart.
Would you be a happy believer? Then remember there is nothing that the presence of Jesus will not cure. With this in mind your life will have focus and the edge to drive through any hindrance.
When I tell people that Michael Wells has been the least complicated, more explicit, totally correct Christian counselor I have ever known…it is words of wisdom like these that confirm my belief about Michael. Now listen, to get all the truth of this day’s writing you MUST go and read Luke 10:38-42.
Luke’s story talks of Jesus coming to the house of the two so-well known sisters, Mary and Martha. Martha is busy, busy, busy…like always. Mary is sitting at Jesus’ feet and hearing His word. Martha, “encumbered about much serving,” complains to Jesus that He is not telling Mary to help her. Jesus then speaks directly to two of life’s most important aspects:
1. serving can be good, but not the best
2. being near to Jesus always trumps just good
Worried, bothered (KJV says “troubled”), a “blunt” life, depression, and anger ALL can creep into a life that is doing “good,” but has come to a life that is “not focused on one thing but has become blunt with diverse points of interest, activity, and concentration. (many things) “all getting equal billing with Christ.” And then gives us God’s perspective: “Only when Christ alone becomes the soul’s focus will the Believer’s life become sharpened and easily able to cut through the daily problems of life.” Well, amen. Uncomplicated, explicit, and perfect observation.
Actually, all through the New Testament, to Believer’s who have Christ living in us, worry, doubt, fear, guilt…you name it…we are told these do not fit and belong in “life as a Christian.”
What is the opposite of all this worry and trouble? Do you know the song written by Helen Lemmel? “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.” Truly a FOCUS on Jesus. THAT is a “happy Believer.” THAT is “there is nothing that the presence of Jesus will not cure.” THAT is a “mind where your life will have focus and the edge to drive through any hindrance.”
Imagine a piece of steel five feet long, twelve inches wide, and two inches thick. You are told that you cannot rest until you have driven the object completely into the ground. Your work would be cut out for you; in fact, I doubt the job could be accomplished in one day, and you would become full of frustration, depression, fear, and anger. However, if one end of the steel were tapered sharply, like that of a pencil's tip, the task would be much simpler.
The average believer experiences much fear because his life is not focused on one thing but has become blunt with diverse points of interest, activity, and concentration: marriage, children, sin, others, vocation, and failure all get equal billing with Christ. Only when Christ alone becomes the soul's focus will the believer's life become sharpened and easily able to cut through the daily problems of life. Depression and anger come only when something other than Him is placed on the mountaintop of the heart.
Would you be a happy believer? Then remember there is nothing that the presence of Jesus will not cure. With this in mind your life will have focus and the edge to drive through any hindrance.
When I tell people that Michael Wells has been the least complicated, more explicit, totally correct Christian counselor I have ever known…it is words of wisdom like these that confirm my belief about Michael. Now listen, to get all the truth of this day’s writing you MUST go and read Luke 10:38-42.
Luke’s story talks of Jesus coming to the house of the two so-well known sisters, Mary and Martha. Martha is busy, busy, busy…like always. Mary is sitting at Jesus’ feet and hearing His word. Martha, “encumbered about much serving,” complains to Jesus that He is not telling Mary to help her. Jesus then speaks directly to two of life’s most important aspects:
1. serving can be good, but not the best
2. being near to Jesus always trumps just good
Worried, bothered (KJV says “troubled”), a “blunt” life, depression, and anger ALL can creep into a life that is doing “good,” but has come to a life that is “not focused on one thing but has become blunt with diverse points of interest, activity, and concentration. (many things) “all getting equal billing with Christ.” And then gives us God’s perspective: “Only when Christ alone becomes the soul’s focus will the Believer’s life become sharpened and easily able to cut through the daily problems of life.” Well, amen. Uncomplicated, explicit, and perfect observation.
Actually, all through the New Testament, to Believer’s who have Christ living in us, worry, doubt, fear, guilt…you name it…we are told these do not fit and belong in “life as a Christian.”
What is the opposite of all this worry and trouble? Do you know the song written by Helen Lemmel? “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.” Truly a FOCUS on Jesus. THAT is a “happy Believer.” THAT is “there is nothing that the presence of Jesus will not cure.” THAT is a “mind where your life will have focus and the edge to drive through any hindrance.”
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