He Leads Me Besides The Still Waters...

The second verse in Psalms 23 is He makes me to lie down in green pastures,

He leads me besides still waters.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures. 

The word green is talking about a tender sprout of grass. It is very soft to the touch.  The word pastures refers to a home, habitation, house, pasture, pleasant place.  It is a derivative of word meaning to be at home.  Home is considered a place of safety.

There are times in life that we need to lie down in green pastures.  The passage says, "He makes me to lie down..."

As active Christians we sometimes get battle scars from the world that is against us.  We get so caught up in the battle that we can't see what is happening.  We are assaulted from every side.  Sin is dressed up to be so appealing these days.  I will sometime find myself desiring things of the world for the wrong reasons.

Why does God make us lie down in green pastures? Because we don't take the initiative to do it on our own.  God understand that there is a time that we need to feel the comfort, the safety, the home where His salvation lies. We need the healing power of God for our weary souls.

Being led by still waters is something we need on a daily basis.  After going everyday for 2 weeks this morning I decided to sleep in.  Last night I was on empty and knew that I needed rest.  Last night my green pastures was my bed but once I got into it, it became still waters.

Why do we run ourselves so hard in life.  Looking around the world runs at breakneck speed 24/7 and it is difficult not to get caught up in it.  Some are afraid they might get left behind.  Some are afraid that they won't do enough in God's Kingdom.  Some are afraid to be led to green pastures and still waters.  Some are just afraid.

This past weekend I observed two Christian have a verbal altercation at a flea market.  The funny thing is that they were both saying the same thing but from their own perspective.  If I had ever seen two more needing green pastures and still waters it was these two.

I am thankful that God watches over me.  I thank Him that He knows best and that He makes me to lie down in green pastures and leads me besides still waters.  I need it.

I shall not want...

Earlier this year  I had been struggling with my relationship with God.  It all has to do with wants and needs.  These wants are not necessarily ones that line up with a Christian lifestyle.

As I struggled with them I found myself falling deeper into a pit that I didn't like.  It was also separating me from God.  To me there isn't anything much worse than knowing the Kingdom of God, it's benefits and the promise, then give in to the worlds temptations and realizing the kingdom of God is really out of reach.  It can make for one angry and confused person.

During brief moments of sanity I would cry out to God begging for His grace and mercy and feeling like I was hitting a brick wall.  I wasn't but this was how I felt.  Why would I feel like that?  1. Because there was so much in turmoil in my life that I could not hear God reaching back.  2. I was unwilling to let go of those ungodly wants that appeared to be taking over my life.  As I write this post I still feel the tentacles of that sinfulness reaching out to me wanting to drag me back into its den of iniquity.

What made the difference today of all days?  It was a passage in the Bible that I memorized a long time ago that entered my mind as I was driving.  It is from the 23 Psalm.  The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want.

It hit me that it was my wants that were dragging me down.

I remember the Clint Eastwood movie Pale Rider where a young girl was praying Psalm 23.  She said, "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want...  But I do want."

As humans we do have wants and needs.  Sometimes those wants and needs drag us away from the Kingdom of God.

Gill's Exposition of the Bible says "I shall not want," would be more accurately written "I shall not fail."  To quote Gill a little more, "I shall not fail or come short that is, of eternal glory and happiness; for Christ's sheep are in his hands, out of which none can pluck them, and therefore shall not perish, but have everlasting life, John 10:27.

If the Lord is our Shepherd then indeed we will not fail.   Our wants?  As we grow in Christ and our lives become Christ centered truly the Lord is out Shepherd and those wants that want to snare us lose their appeal to us and thereby keeping us safe in the Shepherd's arms.

What Would Jesus Do?

A familiar phrase over the last several years is WWJD or What Would Jesus  Do.  I have often wondered that same question over the last 40 years myself.  What would He do?

One of my life scripture verses, and one that helps define what Jesus did and what He expects us to do is Matthew 25:31-40.  It reads;

31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’

This passage has had a great impact in my life and still does today.  What does it tell us as Christians?

There isn't any point in arguing the John 3:16 point of salvation because it stands on it's own merit. Beyond the salvation point true salvation is demonstrated by the actions of one who has been saved.  The question here is what does one do after they are saved?

It is clear when considering all that is said by Jesus and reiterated by Paul that true salvation involves action from the believer.  Jesus tells us in this passage that when we feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, take in the stranger, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned we are ministering in the way that He wants us to.

Years ago I would ask people if they were Christians? Most would say yes but their life didn't reflect it. Many would say they were saved in a revival when they were six years old or a similar age. You know what I am talking about, the old once saved; always saved dogma.

Later I began asking, "Where do you attend church on a regular basis?" That is a little more direct and will bring one closer to the truth of one's salvation. Now days I ask, "How are you fulfilling the call of God in your life?"

Why is the latter question more important? Because you can determine where the person is spiritually. You will know them by their fruits.

We are to do what Jesus tells us we should do.  The bible passage above is clear.  When we do it to the least of these we are doing it to Jesus.  Then we are doing what Jesus did.  We don't like to do it because it takes us out of our comfort zone.  I believe the call of God continually takes us out of our comfort zone.  Why?  So that we learn to place our trust in Him.

If we are fulfilling the call of God for salvation, which is by the way all of our ministries, then there is a stark warning at the beginning of this passage. Jesus will have all of the nations in front of Him and He will separate them sheep from goats.  He will set the sheep on His right hand and the goats on His left.

The right hand is a place of favor and honor.  The left hand is a place to convey an impression of their worthlessness.

One can say that this thread sounds like a works to salvation theory and that would be an inaccurate assumption.  You can say that we are saved by grace and you would be correct. Ephesians 2:8 However James 2:18 says, "show me your faith without your works and I will show you my faith by my works." As true Christians we do these things out of gratitude of a salvation that isn't deserved and because Jesus encourages us to for our own benefit.

One last remark.  Oral Roberts said it best when he said that by doing this, "We know Him (Jesus) in doing His works and in doing them in as much to Him as for Him."

Forgiveness

Forgiveness is one of the hardest things for a human to do; even a Christian.

If we are to walk in the newness of Christ, forgiveness is essential to our relationship with God.  Without it God doesn't forgive us.

We are prone to not forgive others.  It is a natural part of our defense mechanism.  We are taught from an early age to not repeat things that hurt us.  Don't stick your hand in fire, hot water, electricity or turning fan blades.

Jesus tells us that as Christian's it is imperative that we forgive.  In Matthew 6:12 Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray and this passage is a part of that, "And forgive us our trespasses (or sins), as we forgive those who trespass against us."

I find it very interesting that Jesus said "as" rather than another word.  He tells us that, as a Christian,  we forgive.  There isn't any other option.  It is a natural flow contrary to the human mindset of a relationship with God.

At the end of the prayer Jesus gives us a warning that we almost never hear in the church.

"If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

So why is it that we find so many in the church unwilling to forgive?  I believe it is that old sin nature...  it is rebellion against God's Word.  It could possibly be that one has not read this passage and have not been set free by it.

Bottom line is we must do it.  To tell you the truth even for this seasoned Christian I find it difficult at times to forgive and have forgiven time after time after time again for the same transgression.  It is difficult because we don't see the person change.

A preacher once told me that my act of forgiving removes me from the work that God is trying to bring forth in the person I forgave and that with me out of the way the person in question is more apt to receive the healing that God wants to bring to them.  It is feasible that this might be true but more importantly it works for me and helps me to forgive others.

My three most difficult to forgive right now are Ted, Mike and Stan.  Some will rebuke me for saying it like this but in my book all three are asses.  But God

doesn't see them that way.  He sees them as children who have lost their way and they need Him just as much as I need Him in my life.

Lord, help us to forgive the Ted's, Mike's and Stan's of this world.  Help us to let go and let You do Your might work in their lives just like You are doing in mine.   AMEN!

Who Deserves Forgiveness?

I know a man who many years ago had a great job with a good company in a community I used to live in.  Unfortunately he fell into the wrong crowd and began smoking pot with some of his co-workers.  The same group had a sexual connection in that they would smoke pot and have orgies occasionally during their off hours.

The pot was sold and sometimes consumed in the parking lot where he worked.  As with most things like this, if you do it long enough you will get caught and they did.  The local law enforcement investigated and charged many of them including the man in this story.  He was charged with drug trafficing.  He was tried and found guilty. He admitted to it.  He was also fired from his job.

This man spent the next few years trying to get his life back together.  Fortunately he has a mother who is a Christian and she prayed for him and helped him in every way possible.

This young man served his time in jail, got out and he began counseling that he continues with to this day.

He became a Christian but even years after being forgiven by God and his mother he is still paying the price. He goes to church, he is a solid Christian, it is evident in his life, but even his own church will not let him become a decon because of his past.  People in the community, Christians, will not talk to him at all.

I was at a restaurant one day with several youth from our church when this man walked in.  One of the kids in my group made a rude comment about him.  This child wasn't even born when the man committed the crime.  I asked the child where his comments came from.  He said everyone knows he is a criminal.  I explained to the child how this man was forgiven for his sin and accepted by God.  I explained Matthew 6:15, "If you do not forgive man their sins, neither will your Heavenly Father forgive your sins."

This poor man is forgiven by God but not by many in the Christian community.

Why is it that people who call themselves Christians lack the ability to forgive people who have a past like the man in this story?  Where do they find the Biblical example to behave in this manner?

Think of the woman who was brought to Jesus having committed adultery.  What did Jesus say to her?

The story of the woman caught in the act of adultery can be found in John 8:3-12

The answer to the title of this posting can be quickly found in the title of the previous post.   Whoever Believes.

Whoever Believes

To me the two words "whoever believes" found in John 3:16 are the easiest words to understand in the bible, but for some reason they get so complicated in the world in which we live.

Whoever believes means anyone or everyone who hears the gospel of Jesus Christ and makes the choice to believe and follow in His ways.  It is such a simple concept and we complicate it.

Having been a pastor I have seen the wide range of reasons why someone couldn't possibly be a Christian because of some issue in the past.  I've heard people say, "but they must suffer the consequences their sin." In short many people who call themselves Christian think that non-believers should pay for their sin.  No, Jesus did that.  He paid for our sin.  All we have to do is received it.

John 3:17 spells it out clearly, "God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world but that the world through Him might be saved."

So if God does not condemn the world why do we?  The bottom line here is Christ came for ALL, even non-believers, even if we as believer; don't really like them, even if they make our life difficult, even if they have caused problems in our life.

He came for all.