You’re Not Lost Until You Know You Are Lost

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (and) the wages of sin is death… But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord… God demonstrates His own love for us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us (so) whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved… If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. Romans 3:23, 6:23a, 6:23b, 5:8, 10:13, 10:9-10 

Satan’s Job

The job of satan (at least in part) is to keep us so in-the-dark that we do not know we are lost and frankly, as we look around the world today, he is doing a pretty good job of it. Currently in these United States practically ‘anything’ goes; a person can essentially find an accepting coalition for any behavior or action he or she can dream up and what was once rightfully considered sinful fifty years ago is now conventional and very often encouraged. Somewhere, somehow, we have falsely established an authority over God determining [for ourselves] a measure of sin suitable to our lifestyle and the fact that we witness similar conduct in our churches today is the abominational icing on the cake.

You Are a Sinner

You are a sinner, I am a sinner, your sweet old granny is a sinner, and yes, even Mother Teresa was a sinner. There is no need to get all bent out of shape about it; it’s just the way it is. The problem with sin is that God hates it, so much so that if you lived to be one hundred years old and only committed one stinking little sin, that minor imperfection would keep you forever separated from God.

God Demands Perfection

God demands perfection, and odd as it may seem, so do we.

We might not think we are perfectionists, but isn’t it true that we demand excellence from the folks we deal with? Would any of us fly an airline that advertised, “We Get You There…Most of the Time, ” or a doctor who asks, “I am not big on cleanliness; is that a problem for you?” Why then do we get all flustered when we learn that the God who created us also demands excellence, after all, we are made in His image.

There is Only One Solution

By that I mean there is only one solution for our separation-problem: the sin which separates us from God and denies us entrance into Heaven. And honestly, if God provided two ways, we would ask for three; if He provided ten ways, we would ask for eleven, one thousand ways, one thousand and one. Let’s be forever grateful that God kept it extremely simple and gave us one way only: Jesus Christ. If you are involved in a religion that has laid all sorts of required ritual burdens on you, then you are doing a whole bunch of extra stuff that the Lord never asked you to do. The Lord’s deal is a done deal; all you need do is accept it as the gift it was always meant to be. Jesus said…

For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. Matthew 11:30

We Receive With Open Hands

Like I said, your salvation (once received) is a done deal; there is nothing else you ever have to do accept take procession of it—that is in fact the Good News. If you choose to keep this Good News to yourself, it is your prerogative and your salvation will not be in jeopardy, but it’s GOOD NEWS MAN, how can you keep it to yourself? Tell someone! You are saved; you have discovered the cure for death—go give it away!

How Will You Be Remembered?

I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, does not receive us. Demetrius has a good testimony from all, and from the truth itself. 3 John 9 + 12

Legacy

The third book of John tells us about three people, two of which I want to discuss today: Diotrephes and Demetrius. Both considered themselves to be followers of Jesus, but yet Diotrephes emulated that which was evil. It would help us to know a little bit about what was going on when John penned this letter.

In these days there were itinerant preachers that would go from town to town sharing the Good News of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Inns were not a common sight, so these folks were often put-up by other Christians (at no cost) which aided these preacher/teachers immensely. John tells us that Diotrephes was one of these traveling teachers. However, Diotrephes was a prideful man–he thought himself to be the preeminent teacher of the day and therefore would not support any other Christian in their effort.

The truth may be that Diotrephes was an awesome teacher of God’s word, but because his pride prevented him from expressing godly love towards others, he will be forever remembered as the evil one we should not imitate (3 John, verse 11).

Good is Good

Then there is Demetrius. What does the Bible have to say about him? No very much, only that everyone who knew him only had good things to say about him. The truth is we have no clue who this man is or what this man did. However, in his humility, Demetrius will travel through eternity being known as the guy who was a good example and a good witness for the faith.

Sufficiency

Would that legacy be sufficient for you? The lesson here is that if we want our preeminence now, God will surely let us have it. Though, if we hang-back and walk as Jesus would have us walk, a much greater reward awaits us. It would serve us all well to remember this the next time we find ourselves envious of those shine in the spotlight. Oh, I am not suggesting that they (or Diotrephes for that matter) will not make it to Heaven, only that those who serve with humility and in anonymity will receive the greater reward.

How Do You Want to Be Remembered?

Someone Has to Die

Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
1 John 3:15-16

We Know

The born-again Christian knows intuitively — we might not always be able to verbally express it, but we know. And when you think about it, much of our spiritual-walk revolves around the concept of knowing Jesus better. Amazingly, as we grow spiritually, we recognize that we do not have to do much of things associated with our faith, but rather that we get to do them. Somehow the Lord plants a seed of desire to be in His Word, to be in fellowship, to share our faith, and to be in communion with Him. In so doing we learn more about ourselves as God reveals our true hearts to us.

You have heard that it was said to those of old, ’You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. Matthew 5:21-22

Jesus taught us that we can kill with our words as well as our actions. Have you ever stopped to think what actually occurs when we mockingly roll our eyes when someone else speaks? In a very real sense it’s the same as an evil word or gossip — whether it is true or not, that other person becomes whatever it is we say or gesture about them. Jesus tells us we are committing murder and Proverbs 18:21 serves to remind us that…

Death and life are in the power of the tongue

Someone’s Gotta Die

As we grow in the Word we gain a deeper understanding of what Christ did for us, and in so doing, we gain access-ability and a desire to do similarly for others. Again, all the more reason to be in the Word, in fellowship, and in prayer. However, with all this knowledge we soon learn that there is an obstacle that lies in the path of actually applying it: our flesh. With Jesus as our example we discover someone is going to have to die.

What?

I am not talking about salvation (Jesus died once for all men—this deed does not have to be repeated), but rather growth through reconciliation. In order for there to be peace (for God’s love to flow freely), the Christian needs to die to self; the selfish needs of the Christian need to be willingly (not grudgingly) put aside. In order for love to gush forth, our agendas need to be pushed off the stove, not merely shoved to a back burner. While it sounds difficult, in Christ Jesus it is not. His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

Nothing to Lose

But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? 1 John 3:17

In a very real sense, the Christian has it all, or at least we should understand we have all that we need. When we have a dispute with another person, what is it we are really holding on to and truly, what is it we are afraid to give away. It is in these times we need to ask the Lord to examine our hearts so that we might see the silly, prideful thing we selfishly cling to. We can say we love folks all we want, but if we are unable to express this love by letting go of something that is near and dear to us (like our pride), how true is our love? Does Jesus ‘really’ abide in such a person?

My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. 1 John 3:18

Let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

Satan’s Play Book

For all that is in the world–the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life–is not of the Father but is of the world. 1 John 2:16

Imagine you are a football coach and you got a hold of the opposing team’s playbook discovering that they only had three plays: a run to the left, a run to the right, and a run up the middle. If you suspect that with this knowledge your team would do well, you would be correct.

Satan’s Playbook

Our coach Jesus loves us so much, He has provided us with satan’s playbook which consists of (you guessed it) only three plays. 1 John 2:16 tells us what they are: lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. We see these three enticements first displayed in Genesis 3:6 when satan tempted Eve.

So when the woman (1) saw that the tree was good for food, that it was (2) pleasant to the eyes, and a tree (3) desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate.

How does our Lord recognize these things? Hebrews 4:15 tells us…

For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

When we realize that all temptation comes in only three basic forms, we can begin to understand how Jesus endured all that satan had to offer—everything satan throws at us, he threw at Jesus first. There are several places where the Bible records these attacks, but probably the clearest is found in Matthew 4:1-10. We see that satan first tries to appeal to our Lord’s flesh…

“If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” 

Satan’s next challenge is to tempt Jesus with pride:

“If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down, ”

Then finally lust of the eyes: 

“took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.”

The temptation was real, but Jesus did not take the bait. We’re bombarded similarly. It would serve us all well to remember that, “The world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”  In other words, God’s offerings are exceedingly better and they are everlasting.

Now That We Know

Knowing that every single temptation we face will fall into one of these three categories does not mean we won’t ever be duped again. However, when we know the plays beforehand, we will be better equipped to defend against them. We do that by being in the Word, being in prayer, and being in fellowship with like-minded Christians.

Hot and Cold

“I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.” (Revelation 3:15)

I’ve heard many interpretations of what Jesus meant when He uttered those words. Let’s suppose that ‘hot’ simply means a person who is saved and a ‘cold’ person means he is not. I believe that contextually it makes the most sense despite begging the question, why would Jesus wish that some of this group were unsaved?

The answer is also simple: unsaved people can be reached with the Gospel. That notion kind of reminds me of golf instructors. They prefer their students have no golf training whatsoever so they do not have to unteach bad habits. The lukewarm person has acquired many bad habits. Jesus goes on to describe them – they say of themselves, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing.” In their self sufficient state, they cannot comprehend that they are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.

Now consider the ‘hot’ person, who in reality he is nothing more than a cold person who came to realize his wretched (sinful) situation, his miserable (hell-bound) future, his (spiritual) poverty, his blindness (to Gospel truth), and naked (uncovered) condition. Jesus was referencing these cold folks when He said (in John 4:35), “Lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest.” Jesus also said that these same people (those who ‘realize’ their spiritual shortcomings) are blessed! “And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh.” (Luke 6:20-12)

What does Jesus say to the wretched, miserable, poor, blind, naked, lukewarm person?

“Woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep. Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you!” (Luke 6:24-26)

The church descriptions given to us in the Book of Revelation are there to warn us, but sadly lukewarmness is the condition of the church today. For almost 2000 years the church has been cautioned, yet it is what we’ve become.

We can debate how far we’ve gone, but regardless we live in the age where lukewarmness is becoming the norm. It is an era of self-sufficient and self-satisfied pew-dwellers being led in prayers where guarantees of better earthly lives and Heavenly access are given. Far too often there is no recognition of sin or sin’s consequence, no Godly sorrow, no desperation, and no repentance. Subjection, commitment, or obedience to Christ Jesus is nowhere to be found. God’s word has been watered-down, added to, and subtracted from. What’s good is perceived as evil, and evil is perceived as good. Rebuke, correction, and chastisement have become four-letter words. And finally, the Jesus they worship is a construct of the mind who accepts you (and your favorite sin) just the way you are.

By the grace of God, we are not all there, but this deplorable condition is clearly evident wherever we look. Thankfully the course is correctible.

Revelation 1:3 promises, ” Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.”

One of those blessings is found in Revelation 3:20-22:

“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.”

A lukewarm person is like Pharaoh, in that his or her heart is hardened against the truth of God. Despite counting themselves as believers, when queried it’s discovered the doctrine they follow is not Biblical. Blind to their own blindness, they are convinced that their self-sufficiency proves their faith’s legitimacy. However, if you recognize the error, there is hope: repent.

The Bible reminds us that the beginning of wisdom is discovered in the fear of the Lord. What does that mean exactly? Well it begins with the understanding that Hell is a real place and although it was made for satan and his minions, it is where those, who like satan, reject Jesus, will go. A normal person (a cold person) should be fearful of that, while a lukewarm person might likely deny that Hell even exists.

Why Are You Doing This?

“Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” (Revelation 2:5)

It’s not what we do, but why we’re doing it.

This church in Ephesus simply forgot why they were doing the things they were doing. While those things were commendable, their motivation and direction was not of Jesus. In a way it reminds me of all the great Ivy League universities – all founded by Godly, Christ-centered men, but today, despite doling out degree after prestigious degree, Jesus is no longer their focus or even a part of these institutions. No one can deny that it is ‘pleasing and commendable’ to work hard and earn a diploma, but if Jesus isn’t the focus and foundation, all the effort merely burns up in the end.

“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8:36)

So it can be with our Christian efforts. What may have begun as an obedient service of and for the Lord, ended up a chore where the act and the actor were lauded rather than Christ Jesus. Before I go any further, I confess that I’ve been guilty of it often. I would also add that all those deeds, regardless of how commendable they may have been, will burn to crisp when He judges them at the Bema Seat.

So we must ask: is this thing we do for and of Christ? Who is honored: the deed, the doer, or Jesus? Does the activity bring His light into dark places or is the only radiance that of the spotlight that shines brightly upon ourselves?

If this is the case, Jesus says to go back to the place where it became about you instead of Him; back to where you pushed Jesus out of the pilot’s seat, and make the necessary corrections.

The Apostle Paul said it this way: “And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:1-2)

We Cannot Thwart God’s Plan

“We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old. How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, and plantedst them; how thou didst afflict the people, and cast them out. For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them.” (Psalm 44:1-3)

It matters not if we act to serve God or act to work against God, if we believe in God or do not believe in God, if we believe in God and transgress or if we believe in God and do not transgress. Create any scenario you like, at the end of the day, or more precisely, in God’s perfect timing, HIS WILL, will be done! God has a plan and He is going to stick to it, regardless if it’s for the short term or the ‘big’ picture prophetically – God’s orchestrating the entire thing and He always has been.

Consider the ‘blessing debacle’ with Isaac, Jacob, and Rebekah. All three, despite being Godly folks, were operating sinfully, while not realizing that God’s plan (for Jacob in the short term and for mankind in the long term), was going to happen regardless if this trio worked with God righteously or against Him sinfully – the result was always going to be the same. The fact that God allowed the event to occur as it did and then use it to convey the Divine principle to us now, just demonstrates His sovereignty and the unfathomable intricacy of His plan.

I’m not suggesting that as followers of Jesus Christ we might as well sin. That would be so very foolish (as brother Paul confirms in an epistle), as we always want to be working on the side of righteousness. But aren’t you comforted in knowing that if we sin, or if we make mistakes, or if for a moment or a season we ignore the pleadings of the Holy Spirit, that God’s plan is moving forward anyway?

I don’t know about you, but that gives me much peace.

I believe (at least in part), this is what Jesus was talking about when He said His yoke was EASY and His burden is LIGHT. Consider the ‘burden’ that all Christians are called to share (the Gospel) and how so many of us are weighed down by the thought of doing it, so much so that many don’t.

Why?

Because we’ve made what was supposed to light, heavy.

Remember, God’s plan is going forward regardless of what we do, and He is responsible for drawing believers unto Himself. Our ‘very light’ burden is to just start the conversation, a conversation by the way He will equip us for. The bulk of the burden falls on God, not us. More importantly, if God wants a particular person to hear the Gospel and we fail in our obedience, God will make another way for it to happen, but how very foolish we are if we choose to not participate in God’s plan. Our salvation is not threatened, but know we have forfeited the opportunity to bless and please God, and there will be loss of some sort.



As I write this blog, the nation is suffering greatly from a decimating virus, an unrepairable financial deficit, riots, looting, and destruction. The solution is Jesus, and everything He brings to the table. The world’s solution, such as dismantling our police departments, is insanity, especially in light of the knowledge that God’s plan is going to prevail in the long run.

This is the message the Church needs to be bringing, while simultaneously not being burdened with the notion that we carry the weight of saving America (or the world) on our shoulders. We preach it, we teach it, we share the information, and God will take it from there. For us, we just want to be on the right side of it all.

Learning to Pray

“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.” (Romans 8:26)

I remember my first time(s) praying corporately. It was a little unnerving due to a lack of confidence and the awkwardness associated with public speaking. Looking back I see what an amazing and Godly learning experience it was. Not only did I learn how to pray stylistically (by listening to others), but I was simultaneously being taught that my trepidation was steeped in pride and selfishness. Today if somebody says, “Prayer changes the pray-er,” I know where they’re coming from.

Praying privately or corporately is now an easy thing (generally speaking), however that does not mean I fully know how to pray. The Romans 8:26 passage reminds me that learning how to pray, or perhaps more precisely what to pray, is a never-ending process. The key I found is in paying attention to what I prayed for and then how God responded. Did what I specifically pray ‘for or about’ come to fruition, or was there another result?

That’s of course where the Romans verse applies. When I pray amiss, the Holy Spirit steps in and essentially tells God (as I imagine), “Father, this is what Dave meant to say…” and God answers that prayer. It’s still my prayer, but God tweaked it and in so doing made it doable, in that His will and my will were now in harmony, thanks to the Spirit’s interceding. My role as a learner (disciple) is to pay attention to the changes that He made and adjust my future prays accordingly, while submitting myself to Him for the changes in me that need to be made.

“Okay, I prayed for this, but God did this instead. Hmm, what do I need to allow God to change in me so I do not make that same error again? Was my prayer selfish or prideful? Did I not see the bigger picture? What was it?”

God says yes to these prayers.

In fact, God never says no to our prayers when the Holy Spirit prays with us. If we think or believe God has said “No,” it is because we have forgotten, or do not know that the Holy Spirit was interpreting for us, and/or we were not paying attention to what God ultimately did as it relates to our initial prayer. So while it may seem He said no to us, in reality He said yes to the Holy Spirit.

God cannot deny Himself.

And lest we forget, while this is all going on, Jesus is also making speaking on our behalf.

“Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.” (Romans 8:34)

It’s a win-win in regard to prayer, as long as we’re paying attention and willing to learn. If God is for us, He is for us.

Does This Seem Harsh to You?

“Break the arms of these wicked, evil people! Go after them until the last one is destroyed. The Lord is king forever and ever! The godless nations will vanish from the land. Lord, you know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you will hear their cries and comfort them. You will bring justice to the orphans and the oppressed, so mere people can no longer terrify them.”(Psalm 10:15-18)

This Psalm is King David’s and it is essentially a prayer. Does it seem harsh to you? That’s because it is harsh, so it deserves an explanation.

First, keep in my mind that God has told us that vengeance is His, not ours, but He is not saying we can seek justice through our legal system when we are wronged. The vengeance being spoken of (and implied in David’s Psalm) is as severe as it can get and the type of punishment only God is able to dispense. It is also eternal.

Second, we don’t know who is deserving of this kind of punishment. We think we know, but only God knows. For example, we look at Hitler and think, “Surely he should go to hell,” but the truth be told we ALL should go to hell; Hitler could have ‘sincerely’ repented and came to believe in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, just as we did. Let us not waste our time in pondering that that was highly unlikely. Accept these 2 facts: we do not know and Jesus does know. Consider the Apostle Paul. The guy was a mini-Hitler. Instead of Jews, he exterminated Christians, but yet he saw the light and repented. Aren’t you glad that some vengeance-minded posse didn’t take him out?

I am.

King David’s prayer reflects his understanding of God’s sovereignty in this regard. And since we cannot inflict our own sort of revenge, and since we don’t know who will be damned (by God) and who will not, our call is to love our enemies, that is to say to love them enough to share the Gospel message with them, wearing our faith and ambassadorship on our sleeves. We surely don’t condone evil behavior, but if given the opportunity (by the Holy Spirit, mind you) we attempt to side-step evil to reach the soul of the one doling it out.

In summary:

1) If you’re wronged, try to settle it in a Biblical manner. If you don’t know what that is, ask your pastor or google it.
2) Protect yourself and others as the law permits.
3) Call the police, a lawyer, etc. if necessary.
4) Vengeance is God’s. Don’t go there. Pray has David did.

Any Other god

“I know the greatness of the Lord—that our Lord is greater than any other god. The Lord does whatever pleases him throughout all heaven and earth, and on the seas and in their depths.” (Psalm 135:5-6)

The Psalmist, in comparing our Lord to any other god, is not suggesting that these other gods are legitimate divinity. These gods are only real in the sense that men have created them in their own minds and errantly worship them. Having said that, we should consider Allah for a moment.

Allah, is the Arabic word for God. Christian Arabs have no other word for ‘God’ than ‘Allah’, so in this circumstance, the God of the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, can legitimately be referred to as Allah.

Muslims obviously use the same word, however their Allah is a perversion of the one true and living God. In other words they have taken the God of the Bible and changed His attributes and altered Bible-truth to harmonize with the false, Muslim faith. Therefore, the Allah of the Muslim religion is a false god. I don’t say that maliciously. I surely do not hate Muslims, I am just proclaiming the truth. Their god and their religion is detrimental to their eternal future.

For the record, there are many religions that have hijacked the God of the Bible and perverted His true identity by adding too, or subtracting from God’s Word. Sadly, many of them masquerade as Christian.

Looking at it another way, imagine some one took the likeness of Colonel Sanders (of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame), and began promoting him as a purveyor of hamburgers. We all know the truth, so we could boldly and truthfully say that they are lying; they have perverted the Colonel’s true identity and the person they are presenting, despite the familiar picture, does not exist in real life.

There can only be one God – Jesus made that absolutely clear. You would recall that our Lord and Savior was humiliated, brutally tortured and murdered. His sacrificial death served as sufficient atonement for our sin. God did this to His Son. Jesus asked of His Father if there were some other way. There was not. This was the only way. If there were another way or some other god that could have paved the way for our eternal security, then God allowed His Son to suffer a horrifying death for nothing.

It would all just be a nice story, a myth, or folklore, if Jesus our Messiah had not risen from the grave.