Marks of no faith or true faith…

Oh that I had in the desert a travelers’ lodging place, that I might leave my people and go away from them! For they are all adulterers, a company of treacherous men. They bend their tongue like a bow; falsehood and not truth has grown strong in the land; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know me, declares the Lord. Let everyone beware of his neighbor, and put no trust in any brother, for every brother is a deceiver, and every neighbor goes about as a slanderer. Everyone deceives his neighbor, and no one speaks the truth; they have taught their tongue to speak lies; they weary themselves committing iniquity. Heaping oppression upon oppression, and deceit upon deceit, they refuse to know me, declares the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: “Behold, I will refine them and test them, for what else can I do, because of my people? Their tongue is a deadly arrow; it speaks deceitfully; with his mouth each speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he plans an ambush for him. Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord, and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this? (Jeremiah 9:2–9)

Some of our friends have been violently persecuted by family members when they left family tradition and became Christians. Imagine what anguish this would cause. Imagine the way they would feel had they not changed faith but were treated like that anyway.

This passage describes God's response to those who claim to know Him but do not. They show their lack of faith by the way they treat others who make the same claim. From this, the simple application is “examine the way I treat other Christians.”

The NT description of measuring true faith is the same:

By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous. . . . We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. (1 John 3:10–18)

Love is an action word, not an emotion or mere talk. It is about meeting needs. It is also about loving enemies as well and not taking revenge when mistreated.

Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:17–21)

Being this kind of person is a daily challenge. To me it includes the crazy driver who cuts me off in traffic, the clerk who short changes with a smirk, the belittling remark of another Christian about my ministry, and the unkind reception of a relative to gifts. Love all, even enemies.

Jesus, You love like no other and set the high example for me. Bless You for not only showing how but making this amazing love for others possible.

Listen to my conscience…

Now there were four men who were lepers at the entrance to the gate. And they said to one another, “Why are we sitting here until we die? If we say, ‘Let us enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also. So now come, let us go over to the camp of the Syrians. If they spare our lives we shall live, and if they kill us we shall but die.” So they arose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians. But when they came to the edge of the camp of the Syrians, behold, there was no one there. For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians hear the sound of chariots and of horses, the sound of a great army, so that they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Egypt to come against us.” So they fled away in the twilight and abandoned their tents, their horses, and their donkeys, leaving the camp as it was, and fled for their lives. 
And when these lepers came to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent and ate and drank, and they carried off silver and gold and clothing and went and hid them. Then they came back and entered another tent and carried off things from it and went and hid them. Then they said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come; let us go and tell the king’s household.” (2 Kings 7:3–20)

These four did just that. At first the king thought it was a trap to get his army out of the city where they would be vulnerable, but they discovered that the Syrians had left suddenly abandoning everything just as the lepers reported, so they plundered the abandoned camp. This had been predicted by Elisha who also said the gatekeeper would be trampled for saying God could not do this. He told that man, “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.” And so it happened to him, for the people trampled him in the gate and he died.

I’ve heard people without faith say God cannot or will not meet all needs. Sadly, some who say they believe also pray as if they do not expect much in reply. What touches my heart in this account is that God spoke through the human greed of the lepers. They were outcasts in that society and skeptics, certain that no matter what they did, they would die. However, in their plundering at this unexpected miracle, God spoke and convinced them of their sin and to do the right thing; share the bounty with those who cast them out.

This is what should make Christians different. Love enemies. Do good to those who hate us. Be like Jesus when He said, “Father, forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing.”
Sometimes others misunderstand me and I feel frustrated, even alienated. I need to remember these four, and most of all what Jesus said as His enemies drove in the nails. God not only protects me from the Syrians by driving them out of my life, He also wants me to meet the needs of those who leave me out of their lives.

Jesus, too often I get annoyed when misunderstood, or stared at as if I had three heads. The lepers did the right thing by listening to You speaking to their hearts and telling those who rejected them about the bounty You provided. Forgive me and fill me with Your grace that I can be less touchy and more loving.

The Lord knows…

 

A NT verse says that the Lord knows who belongs to Him. Sometimes we don’t. Instant fellowship may not happen. Or that person does not go to church, so assumptions are made. Or they do go to church but are not believers. What I love about 1 John is that He gives some clues that help many Christians affirm their own faith as well as those who might be a puzzle. One of them is the admission and confession of sin:

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:8–10)

Another one shows up in the things that seem priorities. While Christians can fall into this trap too, it will fade away when confessed:

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2:15–17)

For certain, the mark of a true Christian is not about church attendance but the way we live:

You may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him. . . . Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.

Righteous is demonstrated by love. “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him” and “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” 

Love is expressed in obedience. Those who know God have a rapport with one another, but those who are not are not very interested in what true Christians have to say.

While true Christians have the Spirit and confess that Jesus is the Son of God, this love is not always perfect. For that reason, He works to change our lives, and to cast out all fears so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment. “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.” 

The Lord also works to change His children, giving them the ability to overcome the pull of the world by increased faith. If someone has new life, it is because they have Jesus. 

And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. (1 John 5:11–12)

PRAY: This encourages me for I know several people who puzzle me with righteous living yet I’m not sure if they belong to You, Jesus. For this, You tell me if I see sin in others, I should pray for them: “If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and You will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; and You do not say that I should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.” (1 John 5:16–17 personalized) Praying for others to grow in their faith is as important as praying that they have faith. May Your Spirit and Your will shine in the lives of all, particularly those that are a puzzle to me. Amen.

When the lowest score wins…

While baseball’s hall of fame hitter Hank Aaron was exaggerating, he expressed the frustration of many golfers by saying, “It took me 17 years to get 3000 hits in baseball. I did it in one afternoon on the golf course.”

There is more than one “G” activity where a low score is the best score. It is GOSSIP. I can imagine how coming up to bat or to hit a golf ball is like gossip being observed by the Holy Spirit to see whether or not I will score.

This is because with gossip, scoring is about doing nothing, saying nothing, and being positive to the ‘crowd’ around me. Actually, gossip is usually not about keeping score, but more about getting even, trying to make myself look better than someone else, or smarter, or more knowledgeable about the sins of others. Yikes, even a ‘hole in one’ is not low enough to escape the judgment of God on telling tales that should not be told.

The OT says this:

Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered. (Proverbs 11:13)
A dishonest man spreads strife, and a whisperer separates close friends. (Proverbs 16:28)
For lack of wood the fire goes out, and where there is no whisperer, quarreling ceases. (Proverbs 26:20)

Betraying a confidence ruins relationships, adds to conflict and ruins lives. The NT lists it with other sins that are much easier to look down my nose at, yet God isn’t overlooking this one at all. He even points to those the most apt to do it — people who have better things to do but spend their time gossiping: “Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not.” (1 Timothy 5:13) These NT lists clarify the seriousness of idle chatter aimed at those who are not present to defend themselves:

For I fear that perhaps when I come I may find you not as I wish, and that you may find me not as you wish—that perhaps there may be quarreling, jealousy, anger, hostility, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder. (2 Corinthians 12:20)
They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. (Romans 1:29–32)

My beautifully transparent sister once told me her method for stopping those who gossiped. She said, “I start gossiping about myself.” 

Actually, gossip is a form of being judgmental. Jesus had much to say about that. In a nutshell, He tosses this evil talk back at those who do it:

Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. (Matthew 7:1–2)

Jesus does not have to judge me to make Himself look better than I am. He does not expose my follies to others so they are impressed with His insights. He judges me to show me where I need to repent and confess — and that would not happen if He did it behind my back. He also does it to enable me to become more like Him. Instead of gossip, love either gently confronts the object of such talk or prays for that person and keeps my mouth shut.

PRAY: Jesus, too many times my gossip score rises above zero and I need You to hit me with my own imperfections and swat me with my need to treat others with that same loving care as You treat me. You are gracious and so quickly forgive me. May I be more like You and score nothing in that sinful G game by not playing at all, or perhaps learning to ‘gossip’ about myself, or better yet, tell people about the virtues of others.


 

Apply this. . . .

Piper’s devotional for today gives an example of summarizing a passage to apply it.He used Luke 18. I tried it with Philippians 4 and here is the result. . . . 

Stay Firm

Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.

Stay United

I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord. Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

Stay in Peace

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. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Stay Mindful

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Stay Contented

I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Stay Generous

Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Stay Loving
To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen. Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar’s household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. (Philippians 4:1–23)

This could be divided into more sections and have even more applications. I picked those that first caught my attention. Besides this, God spoke to me again in a dream. I was feeling yucky last night and complained about it. In my dream, He clearly said, “Choose joy” and reminded me of my ‘hero’ at church who is always “just fine’ when he has many things wrong with his body. His joy is infectious and an example of always being filled with the Holy Spirit who is the author of joy.

PRAY: Jesus, again You give me much to think about and to do. Stand strong in faith, promote unity not division, pray about everything, think godly thoughts, be satisfied and joyful no matter what, and be loving and generous to all. In other words, be like You! Thank You for living in me. Otherwise all this would be totally out of reach.

Distracted by a non-issue

God graciously explains the struggles of last week. He reveals that I was concerned about a “what if?” instead of something that was actually happening. The distraction was: “If you do all that God says, the enemy will constantly attack and you will be in a joy-destroying battle until the end of your days. To avoid such misery, you need to choose what you will do.”

This reminds me of a friend who wanted to go to the mission field with the caveat that where she was sent didn’t have a lot of big insects and other crawling critters. She soon learned that loving others meant dropping personal preferences!

Yesterday’s sermon was about cultivating love. The application: 1. Cultivate community…reach out to lonely people, go bless someone else. 2. Practice generosity. It is always a greater joy to give than receive. Besides, generosity is an act of worship. 3. Contemplate God’s love and be driven to gratitude. (There is even an app to help that!) Remember why I am here.

This made me think about my anxiety and realize I was supposing and fearful rather than facing any issues in faith. God was not asking me to do something difficult or make a great sacrifice, nor was the devil trying to stop me from any direct command. Fighting an imaginary war is like a nightmare; not real but still feels as if it is — for a shot time.

Today’s readings describes the wisdom of God in making Jesus our Mediator. He is fully God and fully man, not distant from either, near to both in nature, possessing all of both except without sin.

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:15–16)

Jesus had a nature to be compassionate to us and victorious for us, to pity us and be patient to bear with us. If he had been only God, he would not have had an experimental sense of our misery; and if he had been only man, he could not have vanquished our enemies; had he been only God, he could not have died; and had he been only man, he could not have conquered death.

The justice of the law had been honored by man’s sufferings, but in Christ the holiness and equity of the law had been honored by man’s obedience. Charnock writes that the life of our Savior is a conformity to the precept, and his death is a conformity to the penalty. The transgression of the law was condemned in the flesh of the Redeemer, and the righteousness of the law was fulfilled in His person, and imputed to the believing sinner.

For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. (Romans 5:19)
For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:3–4)

As he died for us, and rose again for us, so he lives for us. His work is finished and now I can rest in it and not worry about anything. Worry is pride in action. That is why God says…

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6–7)

Today’s devotional says that our anxieties refer to “distraction of mind” but God’s care signifies “fixation of mind.” This speaks to me and my ADHD, mild as it is but a target for the enemy! He uses it on me far too often. However, this verse helps…

You keep (her) in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because (she) trusts in you. (Isaiah 26:3)

PRAY: Jesus, this experience was something like a vivid bad dream, so vivid that it seems real after waking up and requires strong self-talk to quiet the emotions. The enemy hits my mind like that, producing vivid emotions. He hits my body too, but You are in my mind and have given me the will and a stronger desire to love and serve You. The cost of obedience cannot destroy any of my new life. It simply points to the reality that I belong to You and am Your child, and even my body is in Your total care and protection. Not my will but Thine be done.

Favoritism tested . . .

 

Partiality tests come in numerous ways. James gave this as one example:

My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? (James 2:1–4)

Jesus, the Lord of glory was not partial. Even though He is “the Word (who) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14) and “in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily” (Colossians 2:9) the Pharisees knew. They “sent their disciples to him,  “Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances.” (Matthew 22:16)

Jesus told parables that also revealed His impartial attitude. In one, He spoke of a wedding where those invited did not show up so the father of the groom told his servants, “The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.” They went out and gathered “both bad and good.” (Matthew 22:1–14)

I tend to be partial to those who obviously love Jesus and don’t enjoy the company of those wrapped up in themselves. They remind me of how my own short-comings concerning ‘me, myself, and I’ can easily be a favorite topic, yet whatever the reason for favoritism, God keeps telling me to be impartial, to be interested in everyone and kind, no matter who they are or how they behave.

Yesterday our church hosted the funeral of a man who once attended the church we once attended. Many came from that former church, some of prominent in leadership and some who showed up only now and then. It seemed important to meet and greet all of them, plus the strangers, and including our friends and the leaders in our church who conducted the service. After several hours of visiting with everyone, fatigue hit, but also a sense of having done what God wanted — no favoritism or impartiality.

James illustrated being impartial regarding what people were wearing. That happens in church. Yesterday there were men in shorts and men in suits, women in jeans and women in dresses. One pushed a walker. Some wore masks. Some sang the hymns, others did not. I did notice that I wanted to talk longer with those who praised the Lord but that didn’t seem like being partial so much as wanting a bright and transparent spot in a sea of people who were wearing polite funeral faces.

PRAY: Lord Jesus, thank You for being impartial and granting Your people that same grace. I note that You also called sin for what it is in the lives of the Pharisees and other religious people who rejected You. We still have “respected, religious leaders” who were threatened by Your humble, meek and powerful manner, much like those of Your day. Reaching out to others with no favoritism does not mean acceptance of their sinful behavior or that of anyone else. You never patted people on the head and told them they were okay when they were not. Being like You is a challenge in that You reached out to all but still called a spade a spade. How I need You to show me how to live!

PONDER: Matthew 22:1-14 describes the kingdom of heaven and likens God to a king whose son was going to be married. How does this parable show impartiality yet also shows God’s attitude toward sin?