Quantity or Quality Membership

18 “Listen, you who are deaf! Look and see, you blind! 19 Who is as blind as my own people, my servant? Who is as deaf as my messenger? Who is as blind as my chosen people, the servant of the LORD? 20 You see and recognize what is right but refuse to act on it. You hear with your ears, but you don’t really listen.”

Isaiah 42:18-20 (NLT)

I was given a copy of a collection of writings by E.M. Bounds on prayer.  The entry for November 16 caught my attention.

"There is a blindness in the church with regard to members choosing a life of sin over God's way of life.

The truth is, there is such a lust for members in the church, that the officials have entirely lost sight of the members who are living in open disregard of God's Word.  The idea now of quantity in membership, not quality.

Prayer can change this.  Through prayer, members would either confess their sins, or leave the church."

"I pray, God, that you will open the eyes of Your people.  Especially those in leadership positions in Your church so they will focus more on quality than quantity of members.  Amen."

-- taken from The Power of Prayer by E.M. Bounds, compiled by Kobus Sandenbergh, published by Christian Arts Gifts

Thanksgiving 2010 Revisited

Thanksgiving Reflection

What a marvelous day we enjoyed yesterday! One family, four generations and over twenty-eight people celebrating God’s goodness and love over the past year. I woke up this morning marveling at God’s power and grace because I come in contact with many people for whom this kind of event would not likely happen. I know of families where people can’t be in the same room with certain aunts, uncles, cousins, brothers, sisters mothers or fathers without an argument or something worse happening.

God has been very good to us.

Psalms 51:11 (NIV)


11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.


Dr. Paul David Tripp in his book Whiter Than Snow, Meditations on Sin and Mercy, asks some penetrating questions. He asks:


o What is the thing in the world for which I am most thankful?

o The loss of what thing do I fear the most?

o The existence of what in my life gives me meaning, purpose, and that inner sense of well-being?


If I am completely honest with my answers, and not simply giving the answer that I think should be correct, I will see a true reflection of my heart. I have to come to grips with the fact that it may not be a pretty site. As I look at my life I will see that my actions follow the passions of my heart.


All of us fear losing something. The loss of God’s presence in the Psalmist’s life is what he feared most. What is it that you fear most?

Jesus reminds us in the Gospel of Matthew, 19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-21 (NIV)

What is the treasure of your heart?

As we transition from Thanksgiving to advent let us celebrate the treasure we have been given in our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving 2010

18 Then Moses said, "I pray You, show me Your glory!" 19 And He said, "I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the LORD before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion."

Exodus 33:18-19 (NASB)
 

Blessed be the Name of the Lord

Holy and blessed is Your Name

We gather in Your Name to celebrate Your goodness to us

You are good

And everything You do is good

Your grace is sufficient

Blessed and holy is Your Name

Not Watching and Not Hearing

19 Who is blind but my servant, and deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one committed to me, blind like the servant of the LORD?

Isaiah 42:19 (NIV)

In a previous post I mentioned how sometimes God's Word brings conviction.  This passage is a warning against worldly thinking and selfish attitudes (42:17).  It reminds me of how easily I can fall into these traps.  It is addressed to those who have entered a covenant relationship with the Lord.  It describes my relationship to God as servant; and  my job is described as messenger. 

I am well aware of the limitations poor eye health can bring.  There are things I cannot do very well right now because I cannot see very well. 

And what about hearing?  How can a messenger deliver a message he cannot or does not hear?

What am I to do to break out of this silent darkness?

I need to look closely for the evidence of the things around me that only God could have done.  And because often my hearing is not so good, I need to draw close to the Lord, so I can hear the message He wants me to deliver.

For To Me, To Live Is Christ - Part 3

21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Philippians 1:21 (NASB)
 
What is the one thing that gives you purpose and meaning in your life?  Is it your job?  Is it your car? Is it your family?  Is it Dunkin' Donuts?
 
Click on the the link below to hear the message I presented on October 3, 2010 at New Testament.
 
New Testament Sermon Blog

God's Word

16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NASB)
 
Sometimes God's Word is a source of comfort and strength.  Other times it delivers powerful conviction. 
 
Certainly this passage suggests that an encounter with God's Word is intended to bring about change in our lives.  Whether it is for education or training in righteousness, or correction; God's intention is clear.  He means to bring about change in our lives, "so that the [men and women] of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work."  For all of us that requires some sort of change. 
 
Once again, I am reminded of the Old Testament image of the implements used in worship in the Tabernacle.  These implements were sanctified, that is, set apart, cleansed, for holy use. 
 
Under the New Covenant, those implements are us.  It is God's intention, as today's passage suggests, that we be sanctified, set apart for God's holy use.  For all of us this requires God's redeeming grace.  For all of us this requires the gift of the blood of God's only Son.  Only by accepting this gift can we make a difference for God, equipped for every good work.
 
The result is change.  But change can be really, really hard.  Left to our own devices, we will return to our old ways, the habits and lifestyles that place us on the throne that belongs to God.  This is why it is really, really important that we encounter and engage God through the study of His Word daily. We need to take the time to wrestle with it, ask the tough questions, and seek His answers.
 
From start to finish it took me seven long years to get my college degree.  When it comes to the Word of God, I am so aware that I must be a lifetime student.

Speaking With Spiritual Authority - Is Your Message Veil Worthy?

Exodus 34:29-35 (NASB77)
²⁹ And it came about when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai (and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moses' hand as he was coming down from the mountain), that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with Him. ³⁰ So when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. ³¹ Then Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the rulers in the congregation returned to him; and Moses spoke to them. ³² And afterward all the sons of Israel came near, and he commanded them to do everything that the LORD had spoken to him on Mount Sinai. ³³ When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face. ³⁴ But whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with Him, he would take off the veil until he came out; and whenever he came out and spoke to the sons of Israel what he had been commanded, ³⁵ the sons of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone. So Moses would replace the veil over his face until he went in to speak with Him.


There are people in my life that I pay special attention to if they have something to say.  Especially if they have something to say about spiritual matters.  And even more especially if it has something to do with my spiritual health and well being.

What gives these people the right or authority to speak to me about these things?  Why do I stop and listen?  Is it the person, the message or both that catches my attention?  Why is it that these people earn my special respect?

Today's passage may give us some insight into these questions.  As we consider Moses, because of his stuttering problem, he would not be considered to be a great public speaker.  I don't think people would flock to hear the marvelous tone and eloquent vocabulary of Moses.  His past was even a bit sketchy.  Would we be impressed by his resume?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  What was it about Moses that made people stop and listen to him that day so many years ago?

The reason people stopped and listened was because Moses had been in the presence of God.  Scripture tells us that Moses' face glowed in Exodus 33:11.  We read that God spoke to Moses face to face just as a man speaks to his friend.  It was evident to all that Moses had been in God's presence. His life, in fact his face, reflected that fact.  He was changed, even in appearance, because he had been with God.

There is something about the important people in my spiritual life that I recognize as God's spirit upon them, too.  How they live their life, and the things they say reflect the fact that they have spent time with God.  They too, shine for the Lord.  If they have been in God's presence, they speak with spiritual authority.  I know their words will be kind and constructive.  They will be redemptive to my soul.  They will not be harsh and destructive.  They will not promote themselves at my expense.  Rather, they will build me up.  They will invite me to join them in the awesome presence of God.  The power of God speaking through their words will heal my soul.

I have to return to A.W. Tozer who said in The Pursuit of God, "Men of the breaking hearts had a quality about them not known or understood by common men.  They habitually spoke with spiritual authority.  They had been in the presence of God and they reported what they saw there."


Pastors, elders, deacons, parents, teachers, government officials have authority due to their position.  Their power is in their position.  They may earn our respect or not.  Their lives may reflect God or not. They may or may not have spiritual authority as well as positional authority.   But there are also people who have no special position, who possess spiritual authority by the powerful presence of God in their lives.


I need people like the ones Tozer described to be involved in my life,  "[people] of breaking hearts who have a quality about them not known or understood by common men."  


I want to be a person who has been in the presence of God, who can report what was seen there.  My friends, this can only happen through diligent prayer and the study of God's Word.   Please join me.