Tag Archives: faithful

The Heart is Faithful

31 Tuesday Jul 2018

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     Your heart is a faithful instrument your body needs to live from day to day, in fact, it is a faithful muscle that allows us to live from moment to moment. The other day I heard John Shannon make a remark along this line; it impressed me a great deal. On Wednesday, when it was my turn to give the invitation, I did a pitiful job at trying to convey what he said. So bad was it, I thought I might do better in a brief bulletin article.

     Without a faithful heart meeting the task the Lord designed for it, no one would survive. It is a muscle that pulls it weight and then some! With the heart, life is maintained because the heart pumps the blood of life throughout the body, the blood carries the nutrients necessary for health and oxygen for the body to survive. According to one source, the heart is about the size of a fist, weighs less than 15 ounces and beats about 100,000 times a day. When you are sitting down it is beating. When you are asleep it is beating. When you are exerting much energy it is beating. When you are resting from that exertion it is beating. The heart is a faithful muscle the Lord gave to each of us for the physical life we have. If the heart is overworked one has high blood pressure, and that brings to one its own physical complication. Is there such a thing as an underworked heart? If so, it can’t be good! A heart that is underworked or overworked is not one that places us in the best position for a long life. A properly working heart, however, is a benefit we can’t live without.

    Consider our walk with the Lord. Are we as faithful to the Lord as our heart is to us? I suspect, that each of us can say to some degree, “I have failed in that area.” If that is so, then consider the Lord’s mercy toward us as we have opportunity to read these words and reflect on that. If our walk with the Lord is as faithful as our physical muscle (heart) is to the body, think how strong each of us would be spiritually, and then add that number to the whole of the congregation, considering how spiritually strong the congregation would be! I can only imagine. Our heart is not strong when our anger issues surface, when our minds wonder from loyalty to a spouse to another person, when one gives little to the Lord in time and means, when one talks out of turn (talking about another to a third person), and when our attendance lags.

     Our heart is strong, on the other hand, when one is able to suppress the anger that boils to the top, when loyalty to a spouse is never challenged by an outside source, when the words that come from our mouth are biblical and build up people, when you give of your precious time to the Lord’s body and generous in your support to His cause and you walk alongside others in attendance.

     I may not be as strong as a farmer, construction worker or a mother, but if my heart is strong, then I am in a good position to live a productive life. In the same way, spiritually, if my heart (mind) is faithful (strong) to the Lord and His ways, then my life is blessed and His reward is waiting for me because my reward is His holiness. RT

THANK YOU, LORD

02 Tuesday Jan 2018

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On this last Sunday of the year, it has been my observation that some who call themselves Christians are more so in name than they are in actions. It can be seen in the words spoken, the actions engaged, the posts on social media and in the lack of attendance with the brethren. On such a “downer” I do not want to give any further attention; instead, I would like to commend those who do  the opposite of those who are Christian in name more than anything else.

It is the responsibility of each Christian to walk with the Lord and “work out his (her) own salvation.” Paul wrote to the saints in Philippi, Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain (Philippians 2:12-16, ESV).

To work out one’s own salvation means to

  1. Have the proper attitude (fear and trembling).
  2. Understand that God works in each of us, and this occurs, as Paul also said to the Thessalonians, And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers (1 Thessalonians 2:13).
  3. Have the proper response built on the proper attitude (don’t grumble, complain or question).
  4. Hold fast to the Lord way of thinking and that which He spoke. These are saints who are always abounding in the work of the Lord, because they know what the work of the Lord is (cf. 1 Cor. 15:58).

Those who do these things are to be commended. They know the Word of God and do their best to live it. They know the Word of God, and though each are plagued with weakness, they don’t run from Him, but bow before Him, the God of all mercy. Those who do these things make it a priority in life to attend and be with the saints each time they can; they don’t find reasons or make up excuses as to why attendance is not important; they are present, even when, sometimes, it is overly tough to be present. They understand the Lord’s exhortation about encouraging and being encouraged to be together.

These saints are to be commended, not because they have earned or merited anything, but because their love of the Lord is reflective in what is said and done. The Lord knows what is important to them, for that which they do is presented to others.

“Thank you, Lord, for each saint who has put you first in life, who attends when the congregation meets, who takes the name of Jesus into a dark world, making it a point to tell others of your love. Thank you, Lord, for those who don’t make excuses because of children, or a rough time at home to lay aside the banner of Jesus for another day. Thank you, Lord, for those who struggle in a very serious way with whatever plague they have, but these same ones turn to you all the time for strength to overcome. Thank you, Lord Father, for Jesus.” RT

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God (Philippians 4:4-6, ESV)

 

Believing What God Said (Luke 6:46)

08 Tuesday Nov 2016

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We live in a society where most express belief in God. By and large, that belief is a personal belief; this personal belief, it is thought, does not allow any other person (including a preacher) to say what is believed is wrong. Of course, all beliefs are personal to some varying degree. Personal beliefs can, however, be very much wrong. For instance…..

There are some who believe in God just like the demons, and these people are wrong in their application of what it means to believe in God. Unfortunately, many of these people call themselves Christian (cf. James 2:19)! How can a person say he is a Christian and NOT do what the Lord said? It is simple, really. One’s personal belief also redefines what a Christian is and does. Just like that which the Israelites did, these people do the same, that is, they seek to establish and walk in accordance with their own way of thinking. (Romans 9:30-10:3). Paul did not think this way (Acts 27:25; 26:19) and he certainly did not teach this way (Romans 10:17). Neither should we think we will escape God if we think and operate this way.

God Spoke on Marriage, but marriage in our society is a very confusing social contract. In truth, we live in a society that seems to hardly know what marriage is. One female to another, one male to another, one man to many women, one woman to many men. How long before a human to an animal? The Lord does not and will not regard favorable anything about what society thinks concerning marriage when it compromises His word. In the beginning God made the male and female, joining them together in communion to perpetuate the human race, thereby creating the basic foundation of a civilized community, the family (Genesis 2:21-24. Matthew 19:3-12).

God Spoke on human behavior also. Human behavior is a consequent to many contributing factors in life. What is taught, observed, responded to, developed, experienced are all contributions to one’s behavior. The best teaching known to man is that which comes from the Lord. There is absolutely no way a man, any man can improve on what the Lord provided with regard to educating a person. Human behavior for a Christian is based on a higher will than anything man can produce. It is a holy and righteous way of thinking (Romans 6:16-18).

God spoke on repentance, and many have called this God’s hardest command. I suppose it could very well be God’s hardest command when one thinks about. Consider that repentance is directly associated with one’s will (man) submitting to the will of another (God). It has been my observation that males have a more difficult time with this than the females, but whether that is the case or not, it is still the same that God demands that everyone repent of their sins (Acts 17:30-31). If one does not, then the consequences are eternally deadly. This change of thinking is easy when there is something one wants. What do YOU want?

While some think that God’s hardest command is repentance, there are many who will die in their sins before they give ground on baptism—something else that God said a good bit about. Baptism is a burial in water of a person who willingly submits to the Lord’s authority, seeking to please Him who is Lord over all of the material and non-material universe. Blessings received in this submission are the forgiveness of sins (Acts 22:16), a new set of clothes (Galatians 3:26-27), a seal of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38) and a good conscience (1 Peter 3:21). In short, if one is not baptized in accordance with the Lord’s revealed will, that one is not saved!

These are just a few topics on which the Lord spoke. Do you believe Him? Then let your mind, words and life reflect that you do. otherwise, why would you call Him, “Lord, Lord, and do not what it is that He says”? RT

Stand in the Gap

22 Wednesday Jun 2016

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“And I sought for a man among them, that should build up the wall, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none” (Ezekiel 22:30, ASV).

This does not refer to any type of clothing store, as some might understand the word “gap” to refer. It does, however, refer to men and women and their dedication to the Lord. Are you a person who will stand in the gap when called upon by the Lord to do so? No doubt you consider yourself to be of that type, yet do you know what this requires?

It requires you, potentially, to stand all alone. It requires you to stand and take all sorts of verbal abuse from those who consider your thoughts and actions out of touch with reality. It requires of you, potentially, to lose all that belongs to you, even including your family.

The Lord looked out over His people and He saw no one willing to stand in the gap; the spiritual wall of protection/defense had a hole in it that allowed the forces of evil to penetrate into the souls of the people set apart by God. Even though there may have been much resistance, it was but a matter of time before the individual saint, then the collective saints were worn down by the onslaught hurled against them.

Did not the Lord send prophets to stop the bleeding (so to speak)? He certainly did, but those in position of authority, those in position of leadership seemed not to care as much as they feigned themselves and the people they did. It was their responsibility to stop the “life-source” of God from exiting the body. But, they did not, in Ezekiel 23, the Lord spoke to how bad it actually was. Two nations loved by the Lord. One nation refused the Lord’s love and was carted off into a physical and abusive captivity (Ezekiel 23:29). The other nation saw this and learned nothing from it.

Many of the Lord’s prophets did indeed stand in the gap. It was the leaders of the nation of Israel, however, who truly failed the people. The people wanted their own way of thinking to hold “sway for the day,” and a great many kings gave it to them.

The Lord needs and wants you; be sure to do what you can, and even more, to stand in the gap. RT

Feed On Faithfulness

07 Monday Dec 2015

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Psalm 37:3-4—Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart (NKJV).

In my devotional reading earlier this week was Psalm 37, and in this Psalm are the words above. I have read them many times, but it was today (Wednesday) that I took pause to reflect on them. I like the way the NKJV reads in v. 3. Trust….and feed… These words resonate with me. When I think about the psychology of man, especially my own, I think about how the Lord can teach me to bear up under the loads and stresses of life. The answer is to trust in the Lord and feed on His faithfulness. What feeding on His faithfulness means to me is that I meditate on His Word. I learn nothing of the Lord faithfulness, but that which comes from His Word. Yes, it is true, I can speak of the Lord’s faithfulness in regards to my life. Certainly there is a feeding quality to that and not one to be minimized. Even with that, however, it is the Lord’s Word throughout the generations of man that brings me comfort and strength. Not every translation reads similar to the NKJV. The ESV reads, “Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.” This does not communicate as effectively to me as the NKJV. The ASV is similar to the NKJV, while the JPS (Jewish Publication Society) reads similar to the NKJV, but “cherish faithfulness.” Finally, the NET (New English Translation) reads, “Trust in the LORD and do what is right! Settle in the land and maintain your integrity.” The NET simply does not convey the same idea in the latter half of the verse as the translations mentioned. That does not mean, however, that it is wrong in its translation, only that the sense of the passage is not entirely the same. When read in the context of verses 3 and 4, the sense is clear and, regardless of translations, an accurate idea is conveyed. Trust the Lord, do what is right, He will care for you. RT

The Lord’s Lament

17 Monday Feb 2014

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                The psalmist said: “Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men!” (Psalm 107:15, NKJV). It was a tremendous lament of Jeremiah to watch his city being destroyed by the Babylonians because the people in the city refused to hear what the Lord had to say. Jeremiah warned and warned, but the people wanted to go about their commerce, they wanted to tend to their children’s ballgames, they wanted to be sure they had enough money in the bank so they worked when opportunity was available, and when the family called for an outing it was important to be there so whatever desire the Lord had was to be put to the side for the moment.

In the expression with the use of the word “ballgame” a point is made that can’t be missed but by the spiritually dull. Yet, it is the spiritually weak that needs to hear the Lord all over again. How does the Lord want man to give thanks to Him for His goodness? To begin, one could and should be a faithful Christian; second, one could and should be gathering with the saints whenever there is a meeting; third, one could and should teach others about Him because the life lived is a reflection of the salvation gained. Though a large number of people want salvation from the Lord, a great many of these same people expend little interest and effort in understanding and maintaining that salvation. There is a sad day coming for a great many who call themselves Christians. The Lord’s lament will be the experience gained by those too busy to give thanks to the Lord.