I've started this post close to half a dozen times this morning. It's been a while since I've written, and to be completely honest I think a lot of my writing to this point has lacked proper focus. When I started this blog it was with the desire to reach the hearts of men, and help them to see and understand who God had created them to be. As I have reflected back over the past few weeks, I feel that focus was incorrect. We are not the point, and our destiny is not the ultimate goal. The Bible is not a moral compass, a field guide to getting through life. It is not science or history. The Bible is a theology book, and the subject is given in the very first sentence.
"In the beginning GOD created the heavens and the earth."
The subject of the Bible is God. The point of life is to come to know Him so that we may glorify Him. His desire is for us to know Him, so much so that He became man in the person of Jesus to show us what He is like, and left us hundreds of pages telling us who He is.
I've lost focus in my life. How many blogs have I written, how many sermons have I preached, how many studies have I led that were focused on getting people to live better lives, striving to do more or be more righteous? How much time have I wasted in pursuit of good things, neglecting the best thing?
Paul said in Philippians 3.7-11, "But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead."
The subject of life is God, and our goal must be to know Him. I want to want to know Him more. I don't want to write, or teach anything that does not help people to know God better. I don't want any focus other than Him.
TO GOD ALONE BE THE GLORY
Peace be with you
Showing posts with label Philippians 3. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Philippians 3. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
The Pursuit of God
"So with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord, and he made a trench around the altar, large enough to hold two measures of seed. Then he arranged the wood and cut the ox in pieces and laid it on the wood.... Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench." 1 Kings 18.32-33, 38
In the preface of The Pursuit of God author A. W. Tozer says, "Current evangelicalism has laid the altar and divided the sacrifice into parts, but now seems satisfied to count the stones and rearrange the pieces with never a care that there is not a sign of fire upon the top of lofty Carmel." The first time I read the book this statement didn't stand out to me, because it isn't underlined, but yesterday, as I sat with a group of men discussing the introduction and preface of the book, this statement hit me.
It is easy to get caught up in the popular trends. I've been thinking about the various books that people have flocked to. Fifteen years ago it was A Purpose Driven Life, then there was the Rob Bell craze, and then Francis Chan. I haven't read Warren's book, and I know that Bell is surrounded with controversy, but I have found Chan to be very God centered and biblically focused. The Church does the same thing, jumping from teaching styles, worship styles, or programs, trying to stay fresh and relevant. The altar has been built, and the sacrifice prepared, but we are so busy constantly rearranging the pieces of the sacrifice that we never take notice that fire has not fallen from heaven.
The question on my mind is this, do we really want God to show up?
Do we really want the power of God to move in our lives? Do we really want Him to be at work? Do we really want to live for Him? I've been convicted about this a lot recently. God's job is not to make my life comfortable, or to solve all of my problems. He does not exist to serve me, I exist to know Him and obey Him. Romans 12.1-2 says, "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." Our lives are to be laid on the altar before God, presented to Him and not taken back or rearranged.
God must be given control, we must surrender. We can have our opinions about how to follow Him. We can read the books, change the programs, but I wonder how much of it actually serves to distract us from God. How much have we complicated this whole thing with our own ideas and opinions? Tozer quotes Wesley, "Orthodoxy, or right opinion, is at best, a very slender part of religion. Though right tempers cannot subsist without right opinions, yet right opinions may subsist without right tempers. There may be a right opinion of God without either love or one right temper toward Him. Satan is proof of this."
Do we really know God, or have we created Him as we would have Him be? Maybe the reason the fire has not fallen from Heaven is because we aren't calling out to the right God. In 1 Kings 18, 450 prophets cry out to Baal from dawn to dusk, and nothing happens. For hours these men cry out to the god they have created, or adopted from another cultures creation. The altar is built, the sacrifice is arranged, but nothing happens because they do not know who God is. Elijah, who knows the true God, repairs the altar, offers a simple prayer, and immediately the fire falls from heaven. Maybe the question is not, do we want God to show up, but do we really know God?
2 Timothy 2.25-26 states that there are those who believe they follow God, but have really been ensnared by the enemy to do his work. I read a post this week that said "The devil's goal isn't to get you to do bad things but to keep you from Jesus." If Satan can distract us, ensnare us, keep us focused on the altar, we never notice that the fire hasn't consumed it. We make the mistake of thinking the altar, or the sacrifice is the point, when in reality, the fire consumes both of them.
God is the point, God as He is, not as we would make Him. I want my focus to be on the fire, not the offering, because without the fire, the offering is just rotting meat. I want my life to be a pursuit of God. I don't want this to be just another book I read, and then move on to the next thing, I want it to be the focus of my life. I want to be a pursuer of God, as Paul said in Philippians 3.14, "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
---------------------------------------------------------------
God, allow me to know You as You are, not as I would have You to be. The point of this is to know You, to experience Your fire falling from Heaven. Let this be the case in my life. Let me not be distracted by rocks of the altar or the sacrifice laid on top of it, but to be fully focused on who You are. May my life be spent in pursuit of You.
Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
In the preface of The Pursuit of God author A. W. Tozer says, "Current evangelicalism has laid the altar and divided the sacrifice into parts, but now seems satisfied to count the stones and rearrange the pieces with never a care that there is not a sign of fire upon the top of lofty Carmel." The first time I read the book this statement didn't stand out to me, because it isn't underlined, but yesterday, as I sat with a group of men discussing the introduction and preface of the book, this statement hit me.
It is easy to get caught up in the popular trends. I've been thinking about the various books that people have flocked to. Fifteen years ago it was A Purpose Driven Life, then there was the Rob Bell craze, and then Francis Chan. I haven't read Warren's book, and I know that Bell is surrounded with controversy, but I have found Chan to be very God centered and biblically focused. The Church does the same thing, jumping from teaching styles, worship styles, or programs, trying to stay fresh and relevant. The altar has been built, and the sacrifice prepared, but we are so busy constantly rearranging the pieces of the sacrifice that we never take notice that fire has not fallen from heaven.
The question on my mind is this, do we really want God to show up?
Do we really want the power of God to move in our lives? Do we really want Him to be at work? Do we really want to live for Him? I've been convicted about this a lot recently. God's job is not to make my life comfortable, or to solve all of my problems. He does not exist to serve me, I exist to know Him and obey Him. Romans 12.1-2 says, "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." Our lives are to be laid on the altar before God, presented to Him and not taken back or rearranged.
God must be given control, we must surrender. We can have our opinions about how to follow Him. We can read the books, change the programs, but I wonder how much of it actually serves to distract us from God. How much have we complicated this whole thing with our own ideas and opinions? Tozer quotes Wesley, "Orthodoxy, or right opinion, is at best, a very slender part of religion. Though right tempers cannot subsist without right opinions, yet right opinions may subsist without right tempers. There may be a right opinion of God without either love or one right temper toward Him. Satan is proof of this."
Do we really know God, or have we created Him as we would have Him be? Maybe the reason the fire has not fallen from Heaven is because we aren't calling out to the right God. In 1 Kings 18, 450 prophets cry out to Baal from dawn to dusk, and nothing happens. For hours these men cry out to the god they have created, or adopted from another cultures creation. The altar is built, the sacrifice is arranged, but nothing happens because they do not know who God is. Elijah, who knows the true God, repairs the altar, offers a simple prayer, and immediately the fire falls from heaven. Maybe the question is not, do we want God to show up, but do we really know God?
2 Timothy 2.25-26 states that there are those who believe they follow God, but have really been ensnared by the enemy to do his work. I read a post this week that said "The devil's goal isn't to get you to do bad things but to keep you from Jesus." If Satan can distract us, ensnare us, keep us focused on the altar, we never notice that the fire hasn't consumed it. We make the mistake of thinking the altar, or the sacrifice is the point, when in reality, the fire consumes both of them.
God is the point, God as He is, not as we would make Him. I want my focus to be on the fire, not the offering, because without the fire, the offering is just rotting meat. I want my life to be a pursuit of God. I don't want this to be just another book I read, and then move on to the next thing, I want it to be the focus of my life. I want to be a pursuer of God, as Paul said in Philippians 3.14, "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
---------------------------------------------------------------
God, allow me to know You as You are, not as I would have You to be. The point of this is to know You, to experience Your fire falling from Heaven. Let this be the case in my life. Let me not be distracted by rocks of the altar or the sacrifice laid on top of it, but to be fully focused on who You are. May my life be spent in pursuit of You.
Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Focus
Over the past few weeks I've really been challenged with where my focus is. Actually, it's probably been the last few years, but during the last few weeks I've really been hit with it. My pastor is one of the most God focused men I've ever met, and I'm constantly hearing him talk about the anticipation of the return of Christ. This is something he is longing for, and wanting to happen, and if I'm honest, I haven't been looking for that, or wanting it to happen. There are things that I want to accomplish in life. When I was younger it was marriage and a family. Now it's wanting to see my family grow, have a fruitful ministry, and be able to enjoy life. But the more I think about it, the more I'm reminded, and convicted, that this focus is on the temporal, not the eternal.
Heaven is going to be so much better than anything on earth will be. The return of Christ will fully usher in the Kingdom of God, bringing complete restoration, and a closeness with God that cannot be comprehended right now. Why do I spend so much time longing for, and worrying about, the here and now why I'm called to be focused on the eternal? Why do the things of this world, even the good things, matter more to me than the full restoration of God's creation?
I've spent a lot of time, too much time, living for the here and now, praying that Jesus would not come back, but that is contrary to scripture.
Philippians 3.20, "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;"
2 Timothy 4.7-8, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing."
The return of Christ is not something to be feared, but longed for. This life is not what God intended, and His return will fully bring life as He intended for it to be lived. I want to live focused on God, longing for what He intended, not focused on the momentary pleasures of this world. but focused on the eternal.
For the past four months I have been working through the Psalms. God led me there, and reading them has helped my focus be on rejoicing in God. When it comes to an eternal focus three verses have really stood out to me.
Psalm 16.8 "I have set the Lord continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken."
Psalm 101.3, "I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not fasten its grip on me."
Psalm 105.4, "Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face continually."
I want God to be my focus. I want Him to be before and my eyes to be locked on Him. I have been meeting with one of our staff pastors weekly for the past four months, and he has been challenging me in so many ways. Several weeks ago he challenged me with how I see myself, and pointed out to how I drift back and forth from two extremes. There is the strong warrior that never needs to be rescued, that's how I want to see myself, and how I want others to look at me. The reality, is that a lot of the time I see myself as the victim that is left behind and forgotten about. There is either the self sufficient loner who needs no one and does the rescuing, or the pity party who feels like no one cares. The focus is very much on me, and it says to God, "I don't need You, I got this," or, "Why have you forsaken me?"
The reality is that the focus needs to be in the middle, on the cross. God is the hero, He is the one who rescues. God has promised never to leave me or forsake me. I am not the hero, and He will never leave me behind. He has to be the focus. He has to be the one I look at and strive to obey and emulate. The wording of this verse really stood out to me the last time I read it. It states that God is at my right hand, and that because of this I will not be shaken. The reason it hit me is because it reminded me of the Spartan phalanx. In the battle formation each man holds his shield and protects the man on his left. If God is at my right hand, that means I am to His left, and His shield is covering me. If God's shield is covering me, how can I be shaken? If my focus is fully on God, He will cover me. I will never need to be the hero because He is, and I will never have to fear being left behind because He will never abandon me.
If I want my focus to be on God that means I do not want it to be on anything that is not God. Paul said in Philippians 4.8-9, "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you." Paul sets out a list of where our focus is to be, truth, honor, right, purity, lovely, good repute, excellence, and that which is praise worthy. All of these things are only true of God, and the characteristics that flow from Him.
I have spent so much time with worthless things before my eyes. I cannot tell you the hours I have wasted on my phone playing stupid games, or on my computer searching YouTube, or sitting on the couch playing video games or watching Netflix. How many hours have I ignored God in the pursuit of worthless time wasters? How much time have I lost with my family because I wouldn't engage? How many souls have been lost because I gave my time to fruitless pursuits? Last night I sat and watched a couple episodes of the Office, why didn't I spend that time in prayer? I do not want to fall away. One day I will stand before God and give an account of how I spent my time, I don't want to have to explain why I wasted it on things with no eternal value. I do not want worthless things to run my life.
If these things are not to rule my life, I must seek God and His strength. I must seek His face at all times. This world is tempting. It offers pleasure and comfort for the here and now that are so enticing, but ultimately they leave me unfulfilled, and feeling guilty for not investing in something worthwhile. The only way to overcome the world is through the strength of God, and by being focused on God. It is through seeking His face that I come to know Him, and know how He would have me invest the resources I have. His strength empowers me to say no to the temporal and yes to the eternal.
The more I think about this, the more I realize how difficult it is. Do I really want to go spend an hour reading the Bible and praying after a long day at work, when it is so much easier to sit on the couch and let my brain melt? Do I really want to forgo the comforts of life, and maybe even struggle through it, in order to help others? Is it really worth it?
Paul said in Philippians 3.7-11, "But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead."
There is nothing that this world has to offer that compares to life in Christ. There is nothing that I will sacrifice in this world that eternity will not far exceed. I want my focus to be on God, and I want the way I live to reflect that. I want to be eternally focused, and I have not been. This has caused so much selfishness and division. It has caused me to hold on to things that have cost more than I am willing to pay. I want to be able to say what Paul said, "I count all things as loss so that I may know Christ."
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Heaven is going to be so much better than anything on earth will be. The return of Christ will fully usher in the Kingdom of God, bringing complete restoration, and a closeness with God that cannot be comprehended right now. Why do I spend so much time longing for, and worrying about, the here and now why I'm called to be focused on the eternal? Why do the things of this world, even the good things, matter more to me than the full restoration of God's creation?
I've spent a lot of time, too much time, living for the here and now, praying that Jesus would not come back, but that is contrary to scripture.
Philippians 3.20, "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;"
2 Timothy 4.7-8, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing."
The return of Christ is not something to be feared, but longed for. This life is not what God intended, and His return will fully bring life as He intended for it to be lived. I want to live focused on God, longing for what He intended, not focused on the momentary pleasures of this world. but focused on the eternal.
For the past four months I have been working through the Psalms. God led me there, and reading them has helped my focus be on rejoicing in God. When it comes to an eternal focus three verses have really stood out to me.
Psalm 16.8 "I have set the Lord continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken."
Psalm 101.3, "I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not fasten its grip on me."
Psalm 105.4, "Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face continually."
I want God to be my focus. I want Him to be before and my eyes to be locked on Him. I have been meeting with one of our staff pastors weekly for the past four months, and he has been challenging me in so many ways. Several weeks ago he challenged me with how I see myself, and pointed out to how I drift back and forth from two extremes. There is the strong warrior that never needs to be rescued, that's how I want to see myself, and how I want others to look at me. The reality, is that a lot of the time I see myself as the victim that is left behind and forgotten about. There is either the self sufficient loner who needs no one and does the rescuing, or the pity party who feels like no one cares. The focus is very much on me, and it says to God, "I don't need You, I got this," or, "Why have you forsaken me?"
The reality is that the focus needs to be in the middle, on the cross. God is the hero, He is the one who rescues. God has promised never to leave me or forsake me. I am not the hero, and He will never leave me behind. He has to be the focus. He has to be the one I look at and strive to obey and emulate. The wording of this verse really stood out to me the last time I read it. It states that God is at my right hand, and that because of this I will not be shaken. The reason it hit me is because it reminded me of the Spartan phalanx. In the battle formation each man holds his shield and protects the man on his left. If God is at my right hand, that means I am to His left, and His shield is covering me. If God's shield is covering me, how can I be shaken? If my focus is fully on God, He will cover me. I will never need to be the hero because He is, and I will never have to fear being left behind because He will never abandon me.
If I want my focus to be on God that means I do not want it to be on anything that is not God. Paul said in Philippians 4.8-9, "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you." Paul sets out a list of where our focus is to be, truth, honor, right, purity, lovely, good repute, excellence, and that which is praise worthy. All of these things are only true of God, and the characteristics that flow from Him.
I have spent so much time with worthless things before my eyes. I cannot tell you the hours I have wasted on my phone playing stupid games, or on my computer searching YouTube, or sitting on the couch playing video games or watching Netflix. How many hours have I ignored God in the pursuit of worthless time wasters? How much time have I lost with my family because I wouldn't engage? How many souls have been lost because I gave my time to fruitless pursuits? Last night I sat and watched a couple episodes of the Office, why didn't I spend that time in prayer? I do not want to fall away. One day I will stand before God and give an account of how I spent my time, I don't want to have to explain why I wasted it on things with no eternal value. I do not want worthless things to run my life.
If these things are not to rule my life, I must seek God and His strength. I must seek His face at all times. This world is tempting. It offers pleasure and comfort for the here and now that are so enticing, but ultimately they leave me unfulfilled, and feeling guilty for not investing in something worthwhile. The only way to overcome the world is through the strength of God, and by being focused on God. It is through seeking His face that I come to know Him, and know how He would have me invest the resources I have. His strength empowers me to say no to the temporal and yes to the eternal.
The more I think about this, the more I realize how difficult it is. Do I really want to go spend an hour reading the Bible and praying after a long day at work, when it is so much easier to sit on the couch and let my brain melt? Do I really want to forgo the comforts of life, and maybe even struggle through it, in order to help others? Is it really worth it?
Paul said in Philippians 3.7-11, "But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead."
There is nothing that this world has to offer that compares to life in Christ. There is nothing that I will sacrifice in this world that eternity will not far exceed. I want my focus to be on God, and I want the way I live to reflect that. I want to be eternally focused, and I have not been. This has caused so much selfishness and division. It has caused me to hold on to things that have cost more than I am willing to pay. I want to be able to say what Paul said, "I count all things as loss so that I may know Christ."
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Sunday, January 10, 2016
Forged
Yesterday I was at a local coffee shop when I wrote the post. As I left a thought entered my mind. One piece of advice a pastor gave me years ago was don't put everything you know into one sermon. I think the same can be said about blog posts. The katana is an incredible image that has so many implications. Yesterday the focus was on being the katana, not the swordsmith or the Samurai, but the object that is nonexistent without the prior, and a useless dust collector without the later. Without God I am nothing.
Driving from the coffee shop to an appointment, the idea of forging came to my mind. I feel like I tend to see life as a process where the forging ends at some point and God then begins to wield the sword in battle, but the more I think about it, I'm not sure if that's correct. What if, (this is a thought, not a declarative statement) what if this life is merely the forging process, and the katana of our life is only completed at death? This thought challenges how we would see life and eternity. And if this is accurate, it puts the focus on the eternal.
I think that our understanding of heaven is off. We do not become angels when we die, and I do not believe that it will be sitting on clouds, playing harps and singing non-stop for eternity. It honestly sounds really boring, but what if there is more to heaven than that? One of my college professors said that Genesis 1 is as much creation as it is eschatology (end times study). God set the world in motion and it was perfect, exactly as He created it to be. Man sinned, and God began the process of restoration to bring everything back to the state of perfection. In the beginning, Adam had a job to do, "God blessed them; and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'" (Genesis 1.28) Adam was a caregiver who tended to creation, enjoyed fellowship with, and offered worship to, God, and lived in paradise.
Again, this is a thought, but what if the purpose of this life is simply to forge the sword and at death it is offered to God for Him to really use? I am not saying that God does not use us here on earth, the Bible clearly shows that God has instructed us to make disciples and proclaim His Kingdom. But it is crucial that we never become complacent and stop growing. The same professor quoted Wesley, "There is no standing still on the Christian journey. You are pressing forward or sliding backwards." I think that life is a process that is preparing us for eternity and all that God has in store then.
Philippians 1.6, "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus."
Philippians 3.12-14, " Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
John 16.33, "These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world."
Romans 5.3-5, "And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."
James 1.2-4, "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."
Romans 8.28-30, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified."
God is at work in us, working to perfect us until the day of Christ. We have not obtained the goal, or been made perfect, so we are to press on toward the goal of Christlikeness. There will be troubles and hardships we face, but Christ has overcome the world. Because of this the trials we encounter serve a purpose. They exist to transform us into Christlikeness by cleansing us of sin and forming us into His image. With Christ, the trials produce the traits and characteristics of God, making us fit for His presence and service. All things work together for the highest good of those who love God, which is becoming like Christ, and that results in glorification.
God is at work in us to mold us into men who are fit to enter His presence and worship and serve Him for eternity. This life is the forge, were we are heated, beaten, cleansed, and shaped to be who God created us to be. The trials we endure, the service we offer to God, are all part of this process. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13.12, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known." The best is yet to come. There will be a time when the forging is finished. There will come a time when the katana is finished, sharpened, polished, and handed to the Samurai. But I do not believe it is on this side of eternity.
I am guilty of being too focused on the temporal, and not on the eternal. I get focused on the hardships and lose sight of the end goal of the process and the result. Heaven is not the goal, Christlikeness is. Heaven is the result of becoming like Christ. When we are focused on the eternal, the trials and hardships become not only bearable, but meaningful. Losing sight of the goal has caused my life to look less like Jesus. I have not treated others as Christ would. I have not loved as Christ does. I have claimed to love Jesus, but haven't lived it. I haven't been focused on eternity, and have let the temporal rule me.
I want to live focused on eternity. I want everything I do to mold me more into the image of Christ. I have not done a good job of this recently. I have been distracted by the here and now, focusing on what I want to accomplish in this life, and not on what God wants to accomplish in me to prepare me for eternity. I want to be forged, and whenever God is done, to enter His presence ready for whatever service He has for me.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
Driving from the coffee shop to an appointment, the idea of forging came to my mind. I feel like I tend to see life as a process where the forging ends at some point and God then begins to wield the sword in battle, but the more I think about it, I'm not sure if that's correct. What if, (this is a thought, not a declarative statement) what if this life is merely the forging process, and the katana of our life is only completed at death? This thought challenges how we would see life and eternity. And if this is accurate, it puts the focus on the eternal.
I think that our understanding of heaven is off. We do not become angels when we die, and I do not believe that it will be sitting on clouds, playing harps and singing non-stop for eternity. It honestly sounds really boring, but what if there is more to heaven than that? One of my college professors said that Genesis 1 is as much creation as it is eschatology (end times study). God set the world in motion and it was perfect, exactly as He created it to be. Man sinned, and God began the process of restoration to bring everything back to the state of perfection. In the beginning, Adam had a job to do, "God blessed them; and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'" (Genesis 1.28) Adam was a caregiver who tended to creation, enjoyed fellowship with, and offered worship to, God, and lived in paradise.
Again, this is a thought, but what if the purpose of this life is simply to forge the sword and at death it is offered to God for Him to really use? I am not saying that God does not use us here on earth, the Bible clearly shows that God has instructed us to make disciples and proclaim His Kingdom. But it is crucial that we never become complacent and stop growing. The same professor quoted Wesley, "There is no standing still on the Christian journey. You are pressing forward or sliding backwards." I think that life is a process that is preparing us for eternity and all that God has in store then.
Philippians 1.6, "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus."
Philippians 3.12-14, " Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
John 16.33, "These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world."
Romans 5.3-5, "And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."
James 1.2-4, "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."
Romans 8.28-30, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified."
God is at work in us, working to perfect us until the day of Christ. We have not obtained the goal, or been made perfect, so we are to press on toward the goal of Christlikeness. There will be troubles and hardships we face, but Christ has overcome the world. Because of this the trials we encounter serve a purpose. They exist to transform us into Christlikeness by cleansing us of sin and forming us into His image. With Christ, the trials produce the traits and characteristics of God, making us fit for His presence and service. All things work together for the highest good of those who love God, which is becoming like Christ, and that results in glorification.
God is at work in us to mold us into men who are fit to enter His presence and worship and serve Him for eternity. This life is the forge, were we are heated, beaten, cleansed, and shaped to be who God created us to be. The trials we endure, the service we offer to God, are all part of this process. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13.12, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known." The best is yet to come. There will be a time when the forging is finished. There will come a time when the katana is finished, sharpened, polished, and handed to the Samurai. But I do not believe it is on this side of eternity.
I am guilty of being too focused on the temporal, and not on the eternal. I get focused on the hardships and lose sight of the end goal of the process and the result. Heaven is not the goal, Christlikeness is. Heaven is the result of becoming like Christ. When we are focused on the eternal, the trials and hardships become not only bearable, but meaningful. Losing sight of the goal has caused my life to look less like Jesus. I have not treated others as Christ would. I have not loved as Christ does. I have claimed to love Jesus, but haven't lived it. I haven't been focused on eternity, and have let the temporal rule me.
I want to live focused on eternity. I want everything I do to mold me more into the image of Christ. I have not done a good job of this recently. I have been distracted by the here and now, focusing on what I want to accomplish in this life, and not on what God wants to accomplish in me to prepare me for eternity. I want to be forged, and whenever God is done, to enter His presence ready for whatever service He has for me.
"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
To God alone be the Glory!
Strength and Honor
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