The Rewards of Waiting Part 1

Isaiah 40:31 (KJV) “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

This little story illustrates how we often feel about waiting.

 

A little boy was fishing but was catching nothing. A man came by and asked him, are you fishing little boy? He replied back, “No I am not fishing, I am just drowning worms”.

Waiting on the Lord often feels painful and non-productive; however, we will see in the Scripture that waiting comes with great reward. 

Isaiah 40:31 lists 4 rewards for waiting on the Lord.  We will be looking at examples from Scripture that demonstrate these rewards.  In each case, the people had three things in common:

1.       They remembered God’s promises.

2.       They rested in God’s character.

3.       They relied on God’s love.

Reward 1: Inner/Moral Strength: “shall renew their strength.”  This is strength to resist temptation and sin. It is strength to fight against the enemy and walk in victory; strength to rise above the trials of this life.

Shall renew their strength - Margin, 'Change.' The Hebrew word commonly means to change, to alter; and then to revive, to renew, to cause to flourish again, as, e. g., a tree that has decayed and fallen down. Here it is evidently used in the sense of renewing, or causing to revive; to increase, and to restore that which is decayed. It means that the people of God who trust in him shall become strong in faith; able to contend with their spiritual foes, to gain the victory over their sins, and to discharge aright the duties, and to meet aright the trials of life. (Barnes' Notes on the Bible)

Example from Scripture:

In Genesis 5:32-10:1, we find the story of Noah.  The Word tells us in Genesis 6:5, 8, and 9b “⁵And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. ⁸But Noah found favor with the Lord.^9bNoah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.” 

We know that Noah was 600 years old when the flood came.  Noah had lived for 600 years in a corrupt and wicked world.  We are not given the specific amount of time it took to build the ark; however, some scholars estimate it to be around 100 years.  During that time it is likely that Noah and his family suffered ridicule and harassment from the people of their community.   Yet Noah did not give in even when he looked like a fool for obeying God.  We see that God sustained him with moral strength as he obeyed and believed God would fulfill his promise (Genesis 6:17” And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die..”).

We, like Noah, live in a corrupt and wicked world.  We are confronted daily by the draw of sin.  We too face ridicule for living according to God’s Word.  However, as we wait and trust God’s promises (2 Corinthians 12:9, Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” 1 John 4:4 “But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.”) our strength will be renewed and we can resist the draw of sin and temptation. 

Reward 2:  Upward Strength: “they shall mount up with wings as eagles.” This is strength to rise above this world and the things that would try to hold us back from God’s purpose and best for our lives. 

The meaning of the Hebrew is simply, 'they shall ascend on wings as eagles,' or 'they shall lift up the wings as eagles;' and the image is derived from the fact that the eagle rises on the most vigorous wing of any bird, and ascends apparently further toward the sun. The figure, therefore, denotes strength and vigor of purpose; strong and manly piety; an elevation above the world; communion with God, and a nearness to his throne - as the eagle ascends toward the sun. (Barnes' Notes on the Bible)

Example from Scripture:

In Genesis 37, 39-41, we read the account of Joseph.  In chapter 37, Joseph has two dreams in which 12 stars and bales of hay bow down to him.  He tells these dreams to his father who immediately grows angry and blows him off.  Joseph is one of the 12 sons of Jacob.  10 of his brothers hate him because he is Jacob’s favorite.  They call him the “dreamer.” They plot to kill him but then sell him into slavery instead.  During his time as a slave he is falsely accused of rape and thrown into prison. There he is placed in a position of authority and interprets dreams for 2 servants of the king.  After a long time the King of Egypt has 2 dreams and the servant remembers Joseph and tells the king that he can interpret the dreams.  Joseph is brought out of prison and made second in command over all of Egypt. 

Joseph’s dreams from childhood are fulfilled when his brothers are forced to go the Egypt to buy food for their families during the famine.  They must bow down before Joseph in order to show respect for his position (they did not recognize him).  He ultimately is reunited with his father and brothers and is able to provide for them during the famine years. 

Here we see that God had a plan for Joseph from childhood.  He was abused and mistreated because of this call, but God used the plans of the wicked (his brothers) to bring about God’s purpose.  In spite of the miserable conditions in which Joseph found himself, he never failed to obey God’s laws and to believe that God would fulfill the dreams he had given him as a boy (Genesis 42:9a “And he remembered the dreams he’d had about them many years before…”). 

How often are we like Lucy in an old "Peanuts" comic strip instead of being like Joseph?

Lucy was complaining about her lousy life. Charley Brown is trying to cheer her up. "Into each life some rain must fall," he said. That didn't seem to help at all. Then he thought of another saying: "Just remember, life has its mountains and its valleys, its ups and downs." To which Lucy replied, "All I want is ups and ups and ups!"

Joseph never complained; he made to most of every opportunity and situation he was presented with.  Life is full of ups and downs, but we must keep our focus on the Lord and his promises, as we do we will soar above the circumstances and challenges of this life and fulfill the plans God has for us.  If we lower our focus we will get bogged down in the cares of life and may never reach the goals God has for our lives.

John 16:33 “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”  Colossians 3:2 “Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.”

Here we see two rewards for waiting on the Lord: Inner/Moral Strength and Upward Strength. May we keep our focus on Christ and wait on him to fulfill his promises in/for our lives.  

All Scripture is NLT unless otherwise stated.

When Impossible Becomes Possible

Matthew 19:26 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”

Today we will take a look at Mark 9:14-29 where Jesus heals a demon-possessed boy. Here’s a quick overview of the story. 

Jesus had been on the Mount of Transfiguration with Peter, James, and John. When they returned to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd surrounding them, and some teachers of religious law were arguing with them. When the crowd saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with awe, and they ran to greet him.

Jesus inquires as to the cause of the argument and discovers that a man had brought his demon-possessed son to the disciples to be healed and they could not cast the demon out. 

Mark 9:21-24 “How long has this been happening?” Jesus asked the boy’s father.  He replied, “Since he was a little boy.  The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.” “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”

Jesus then commands the demons to leave the boy and never to enter him again.  The boy is totally freed! 

Two issues/questions we are faced with in this story as it relates to us today are: How might others react when we step out in faith?  How does the impossible become possible in our lives? 

      1. When we step out in faith, there may be some (even in the church) who will discourage us from believing God for the answer.  In the story above we see the religious leaders arguing with the disciples over their inability to cast out the demon.  They took delight in the “failure” of the disciples.  The disciples took the steps they knew how to take. It was not the absence of faith on their part that prevented the boy from being delivered. They had cast out demons before. I believe the problem was that they did not hear from God in that moment because of the accusing voices of the enemy (religious leaders in this case) in their ear. 

  

      Later Jesus told them that that kind could only come out by prayer and fasting. It is important to note that the prayer and fasting don’t cause the miracle; they open up our hearts to hear the leading of the Holy Spirit more clearly.  We should never fast to gain more spiritual power or authority.  We fast to hear from God.  Once we hear our faith is increased and we will see greater power flow from our lives. 

      We can see from the struggle of the disciples in this lesson that we must not allow the voice of the enemy to drown out the voice of the Spirit.  We cannot allow discouragement or doubt to cloud our vision and decrease our faith in the promises of God!

      2. When the father asked Jesus to “help us if you can,” Jesus told him “Anything is possible if a person believes.”  The key to the impossible becoming possible is belief in Jesus’ ability and willingness to answer our prayers. 

The father’s next statement resonates with me! The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”  How often does our heart want to believe, but our mind struggles to?  How often does logic say that what we are facing is impossible? Or that God has more important things to worry about than our problems.  Or that we don’t deserve to have our prayers answered?

The reality is that we don’t deserve to have our prayers answered, but our God loves us and desires our best. He will answer our prayers and meet our needs not because we are good but because he is good!

Isaiah 64:6 “We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.”  Praise God!  We don't stand in our own righteousness but in the righteousness of Christ!! 

We are made right with God and thus recipients of his blessings and favor through the righteousness of Christ.  Romans 3:22 “We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.” 

2 Corinthians 5:21 “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.”

We must never allow doubt or discouragement to keep us from stepping out in faith for our needs or those of others.  When our faith is weak we need to fast and ask God to speak to us about our situation so our faith will increase. 

Romans 10:17 “So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.” This can also mean hearing the Word of/from Christ.  When we fast and hear the Spirit speak to our hearts, this increases our faith as well. 

Father we believe you for the impossible!  Please help our faith to grow as we hear your Word!  Help us not to give in to doubt and discouragement spoken over/to us by the enemy.  We know we have whatever we ask when we ask in faith believing we will receive (Mark 11:24 “I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you've received it, it will be yours.”)  Thank you for your Word which never changes because you never change (Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”)  

All Scripture is NLT unless otherwise stated.

Guard Rails

Proverbs 4:23 "Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life."

Guard rails are designed to protect motorists from going off the road in areas where the road is especially dangerous. As Christians our lives travel on dangerous roads every day.  Our culture seems to feel that living within boundaries is old fashioned and out of touch with reality.  How do we guard our hearts in a culture with no boundaries?  How do we protect our hearts from the perversion and sin of this world?  The answer is to set up guard rails. 

How do we set up guard rails?

      1. Guard our eyes and ears.  We need to guard our heart by guarding our eyes and ears from things that are unwholesome.  Psalm 101:3 “I will refuse to look at anything vile and vulgar. I hate all who deal crookedly; I will have nothing to do with them.”

When we allow ourselves to view television programs (or even commercials), movies, magazines, etc. that promote sinful behaviors or attitudes, sexual content, lifestyle choices contrary to the Word, etc. we open our heart up to the enemy.   Our brain has a small part in the front that is the collector of all the images we see.  Unlike our DVR it never erases.  The things we see stay in that tiny portion of our brain our entire life.  The enemy knows what data is stored there and loves nothing more than to bring them to our minds or even influence our dreams with them.  The same holds true for listening to music or conversations with vulgar language or sexual content.  It is important for us to protect our eyes and ears in order to guard our hearts. 

      2.  Guard our thoughts. Proverbs 23:7 (KJV) “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.”  Our thought life must be guarded at all costs.  We have to combat the enemy in our minds continually.  All sin begins with a thought. 

J. Oswald Sanders—The mind of man is the battleground on which every moral and spiritual battle is fought. 

2 Corinthians 10:5 “We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.”

Romans 12:2 “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” 

The Word talks about our thoughts repeatedly.  If God was concerned with our thoughts, how concerned should we be?  Guarding our thoughts goes hand-in-hand with guarding our eyes and ears.  Our thought life tends to be dominated by what we see and hear each day.  We must set up guard rails to protect ourselves from swerving into danger by what we see, hear, and think about. 

It is important to set up the rails before we run into danger.  When I am swerving toward the precipice that is not the time for workmen to be putting up the guard rail. It needs to be in place before I get to the dangerous spot. 

Some examples of guard rails:

1.     If I struggle with lustful/sexual thoughts, I might need to determine (set up a guard rail) not to view any movies or t.v. shows with sexual content. I might need to stay away from some magazines as well.

2.     If I struggle with  using profane language, I might need to stay away from people who use bad language, avoid situations where profanity is prevalent, and stay away from movies and t.v. shows or music that promote bad language. 

We each have areas that need guard rails.  We need to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal those areas to us and then to show us how to set up the boundaries that must be kept to protect our hearts from the enemies schemes.  Careening into danger zones that can be prevented is not an option.  We must guard our hearts at all costs!

All Scripture is NLT unless otherwise stated.

Little is Much

1 Corinthians 1:25-29, This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength. Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important.  As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

When God is involved little is much!

     1.     A Little Lunch Feeds 5000+ (Matthew 14:13-21):  After a long day of teaching on the side of a mountain, Jesus asked his disciples to feed a very large crowd.  The people had been there listening to Jesus all day and they were hungry.  Jesus said that if he sent them away they would faint from hunger on the way home.  The disciples brought Jesus a little boy’s lunch consisting of 5 small loaves (dinner roll size) and 2 small fish.  Jesus broke the bread and fish and with them fed 5000 men plus women and children.  Starting with only 5 loaves of bread and 3 fish they had 12 baskets of leftovers after everyone had eaten their fill. 

     2.    A Little Army Vanquishes the Foe (Judges 7:1-7): God called Gideon to lead the army of Israel.  He began with 32,000 soldiers.  God told him to let all who were afraid to go home, this left 10,000 soldiers.  God said that 10,000 was still too many. He had Gideon have the men drink from the stream. Those who lapped like a dog were sent home leaving only 300 men. With only 300 men the Israelite army routed the Midianite army.

     3.     A Little Weapon Knocks Out a Giant (1 Samuel 17:32-51): David took only a sling shot and five smooth stones when he went out to face Goliath.  King Saul tried to give David his armor and sword but being smaller than Saul and being a shepherd David was uncomfortable wearing it. He chose instead to rely on the power of God and his sling shot. With one smooth stone he knocked Goliath out and then used the giant’s own sword to cut off his head and finish the job.  God brought victory to the Israelites through a sling and a stone.

     4.     A Little Mite is Worth More Than a Big Offering (Luke 21:1-4): While Jesus and the disciples were sitting in the temple they watched a poor widow place two small coins (a mite) into the offering box.  They also witnessed many rich people give big offerings.  Jesus told them that the poor widow gave more than all of them because she gave out of her need and they gave out of their surplus.  Here we see that God does not judge our gifts by their amount, but by our hearts and what they cost us. 

We read in 1 Corinthians 1:25-29 that God’s uses the foolish things of this life to confound the wise.  He uses small things, weak things, and unlikely things.  He takes the little we have to offer and uses us to do extraordinary things for his Kingdom.

Jesus took fishermen, tax collectors, tradesmen, and a zealot and created a team who would change their world with the Gospel.  Peter, for instance, denied even knowing Christ three times, yet on the Day of Pentecost he preached the first sermon of the New Testament Church, resulting in the conversion of 3000 people. 

We all have talents and abilities that we can offer God.  None of us can take credit for anything we do for the Lord because the Word tells us that apart from him we can do nothing (John 15:5).  It is the Spirit who gives the gifts, talents, abilities and it is our job to use them for Christ.  (1 Corinthians 12:11). As we yield our will to his and allow him to direct our steps he takes our little and makes it usable for the advancement of his Kingdom and his will. 

Let us strive to offer up our little and allow God to make it much!!!!

All Scripture is NLT unless otherwise stated.

Finding Rest

Psalm 62:5-8 "Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge."

Webster's Dictionary gives the following definitions for rest: peace of mind or spirit: freedom from activity or labor: a state of motionlessness or inactivity.

I don't know about you but I find that rest by any definition is not easy to come by in my life. There are always things to do, trials to face, battles to fight, giants to slay.  Some of these are physical battles like laundry, dishes, grocery shopping, homework, or maybe illness. Others are spiritual such as spending time in the Word, praying, church attendance, Bible study, and working for the Kingdom. Still others are emotional: fear, worry, anger, depression, etc. 

We need rest!  I need rest! How do we find it? Where does it come from?

Here are some observations about rest.

     1.   Rest is found only in Christ.  Matthew 11:28-29 Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ”

     2.   Unrest is a real condition that affects the Church.  How many times have you heard someone say or have you said, “I'm worn out, I'm tired, or I'm exhausted?”  I've said them all just this week.

Let's read Matthew 11:28-29 from the Message translation.  “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”   

Wow!  I love that!  Here Jesus is asking if we feel tired, worn out, and burned out. All the complaints I listed are addressed in this verse. If this wasn't an issue in the church Jesus wouldn't have addressed it.

     3.   Jesus offers a solution to our restlessness.

a.      Come to him. In 1 Peter 5:7 we are invited to give him our cares and to allow him to carry them, “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.”

b.     Get away with him. We read in Mark 6:31 that even Jesus and the disciples had to get away on occasion. “Then Jesus said, ‘Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.’ He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn't even have time to eat.”

Getting away with Christ may look different for each of us but the common goal is to take time to sit in his presence.  To give our cares up and exchange them for peace, joy, and rest.

c.     Walk with him. We must invite Jesus into every facet of our life.  If we seek his guidance in every area and set our priorities to match his we will find our lives are less stressful and more restful.  I read a devotion this week by a lady who at age 32 was diagnosed with cancer.  She had led a busy life full of hustle and bustle and not much rest.  When she was diagnosed with cancer her life had to change.  While she was in treatment she had to put aside all the activities she had once participated in, all the activities that had seemed so vital.  During that season she learned to seek God’s will in her priorities.  She realized that there had to be a balance between busyness and rest.  

d.     Learn the rhythm of grace. Webster’s Dictionary defines grace as: a special favor :  privilege:  disposition to or an act or instance of kindness, courtesy, or clemency:  a temporary exemption: reprieve

2 Corinthians 12:9a “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.”

I believe there is a two-fold meaning in the phrase “Learn the rhythm of grace.”

1.     We must learn to extend grace to others when they interfere with our schedule.  Often our busy day grows busier through the actions and decisions of others.  We must learn to show grace rather than growing impatient in those times.

2.     We must learn to extend grace to ourselves.  How many times have you had a “to do list” for your day and never reached #5 out of 10?  If you are like me (for your sake I hope not J) you go to bed at night (much later than we should) thinking of all the things still left undone and unaccomplished and wake up to begin the rush to achieve your goals again the next day. Living like this is a drain to our emotions, spirit, and body.  We must learn to prioritize and then take one task at a time.  Life is too short to rush through.  When we set our hearts and minds on fulfilling a list of things each day, we often miss the God moments.  We may overlook someone in need and we will never find rest.  We must give ourselves the grace to slow down and rest.  The grace to leave things undone and move on without guilt, anxiety, or frustration. 

I decided to use the tools my husband the Bible scholar showed me and translate Matthew 11:28-29 from the Greek myself.  Keep in mind that I am no Greek scholar but it was fun!  Below please find my interpretation and some special notes I found in the Greek lexicon** on line as well as my own personal notes J.

Matthew 11:28-29 (Larabee Translation)

"Come here toward me everyone who is weary, tired, exhausted (with toil, burdens or grief) and place your burden upon (me), and I will permit or give you rest and draw you up**.  Put this (my) yoke (burden) (all the heavy commands of the law**) upon you and be in the habit of separation.  Since my disposition is mild and gentle of spirit, I exist to be present.  You can find what you've sought after and receive rest.  I will breathe the breath of life into you." 

**of troublesome laws imposed on one, esp. of the Mosaic  law, hence the name is so transferred to the commands of  Christ as to contrast them with the commands of the  Pharisees which were a veritable 'yoke'; yet even Christ's  commands must be submitted to, though easier to be kept 

**Draw you up can mean: to bear away what has been raised, carry off: to take off or away what is attached to anything

JJesus actually takes off the burden that was placed on us or attached to us (by ourselves or others) and carries it on his shoulders.

When we take on the yoke of Christ, we still must walk in obedience, however, it is easy to obey one who loves us so very much.  We must also remember that it is not in our strength that we obey, but by his grace and his power, by his Spirit!!!

I also found it interesting that where other interpreters used the definition “rest for your souls” at the end of verse 29, another definition in the lexicon was breath of life.  When we come to Jesus for rest, he breathes the breath of life into our souls bringing refreshing and rest!!!!

All Scripture is NLT unless otherwise stated J

Bearing Fruit

John 15:1-8 “I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn't produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.  Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.”

I want my life to be fruitful.  I believe most of us do.  John 15 tells us how we can bear fruit for the Kingdom.   

The first step is abiding in the Vine.  This means having total dependence on Christ.  John MacArthur writes:  The word "abide" basically means "to remain." Every Christian remains inseparably linked to Christ in all areas of life. We depend on Him for grace and power to obey. We look obediently to His Word for instruction on how to live. We offer Him our deepest adoration and praise and we submit ourselves to His authority over our lives. In short, Christians gratefully know Jesus Christ is the source and sustainer of their lives.

Next, we must yield to the pruning process.  Jesus tells us that his Father is the gardener.  He cuts off any branches that are in the vine but not producing fruit. As the vinedresser, God also prunes every fruit bearing branch in the vine so it can produce even more fruit. 

What does the pruning look like?  It may be trials God allows to strengthen our faith.  It may involve the severing of relationships that are not healthy.  It may be the convicting power of the Holy Spirit showing us areas of sin or unyieldness.  It may involve financial strain that causes us to look to God as our source rather than relying on our own strength.

Whatever it looks like in our life, one thing is certain, if we yield willingly to the gardener and allow him to prune away the dead, wilted branches we will bear much fruit. 

Hebrews 4:12-13 (NIV) “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

The Holy Spirit uses the double-edged sword to prune away the unholy to make room for that which is holy to grow.  1 Peter 1:16 “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must be holy because I am holy.’”

We need to die to ourselves and our desires before God can properly use us. John 12:24 “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives.”  Jesus, by his death, brought life to us; our death-to -self will allow us to minister life to others.  John 15:16 “You didn't choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.”

Finally, the Word must abide in us. Luke 8:5-8 “A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it. Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture. Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants. Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!” When he had said this, he called out, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

For the Word to abide in us, we must have good soil in our hearts.  Good soil is soil in which the seed can grow.  It is a heart that is surrendered to God and is willing to be a doer not just a hearer of the Word.  When we hear or read something from the Word and the Holy Spirit begins dealing with our heart about: it, we must pray into it, meditate on it, and even share it with our accountability partner or group.  Luke 8:15 says, “And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.”

Special Note: If we are not seeing fruit born from our life, it is not because there is anything wrong with the seed.  The Word is always good; it is the dirt it is planted into that determines how much, if any, fruit is produced.  If we have hearts with good soil (yielded, submissive, repentant, humble, etc.)  we will bear much fruit.  If our hearts are stony (unyielded, rebellious, selfish, prideful, etc). we will not bear fruit. The type of soil in our hearts is up to us.  We can choose to cultivate good soil or bad soil. 

Let us stay firmly rooted in the vine, yield to the pruning process of our loving Gardener, and ask the Holy Spirit to analyze the soil in our hearts and help us cultivate fertile soil.  Then we will bear much fruit!!

Rekindling Our Love

Mark 12:28-30, One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’”

What does this mean for us today?  How do we love the Lord with all of our being? 

1. We need to begin by acknowledging that without Christ we are lost, without hope.  

Acts 4:12 “There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.” 

1 Thessalonians 1:7b-9 “He will come with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power."

2. We need to think about why we chose to love Jesus to begin with. 

1 John 4:19 (KJV) “We love him, because he first loved us.”

Romans 5:8 “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”

3. We need to recount for ourselves the blessings God has given us. 

a. Salvation                         e. Health

b. Family                             f.  Peace

c. Friends                             g. Provision

d. Life                                  h. Joy

These are but a few of the things most of us could list.  In your list you can be more specific, naming family members, friends, etc. 

Psalm 103:2 “Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.”

Psalm 107:43 “Those who are wise will take all this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love of the Lord.”

4. We must love the Lord with every area of our life. Mark 12:30 “And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.”

a.    With all our hearts (our emotions): God created us to be emotional beings.  Jesus demonstrated great emotion when he wept at the tomb of Lazarus. Our emotions lead us to make choices every day.  These choices can be for good or not.  While Jesus felt strong emotions, he never allowed them to lead him to sin.  We must yield our emotions to the Lord and allow him to work through them a greater good in our lives than we could work on our own.  His desire is for us to be emotionally healthy.  Being emotionally healthy involves handling our emotions as they require without extremes and without sin. 

For example, anger is a God-given emotion.  The Word admonishes us: Ephesians 4:26 “And ‘don’t sin by letting anger control you.’ Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry.”  Herein is the key to being emotionally healthy; not allowing our emotions to control us. 

b.   With all our souls (our understanding): Our relationship with Christ cannot be based solely on emotions because emotions change.  Our relationship must be built on our understanding of who God is and on the trust we have placed in him.  Romans 15:13 “I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”

c.     With all our mind (our thoughts): Philippians 4:8 “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”

As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives.  ~Henry David Thoreau

What are we allowing to dominate our thoughts?  What kind of pathway is being created in our mind?  Are we obeying Philippians 4:8? Or have we allowed ourselves to focus on things of this world?  Colossians 3:24 “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

d.     With all our strength (our physical abilities): We are instructed in the Word to do everything we do as if we were doing it directly for Christ.  When we do everything to bring glory to Christ we are loving him with all our strength. 

Ecclesiastes 9:10a (NIV) “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.” 

Colossians 3:23 “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.”

Whether we have been a believer for a few months or many years we can always do with a bit of rekindling in our love for him!  

All Scripture is NLT unless otherwise stated.