“One thing every husband (or would-be husband) needs to know
is this: love is a commitment, not a feeling. We should never love our
wives for what they do, how they make us feel, how they look, or even
who they are. That kind of love is shallow and subject to change. As
husbands, we love our wives simply because God tells us to!
This kind of love brings safety into marriage - meaning your
wife can trust you to always love her, whether she makes you happy or
mad. This is the kind of (unconditional) love that God shows us; and
it’s our responsibility to demonstrate this in our marriage.
When you make the choice to love your wife - without
waiting for the right ‘feelings’ - that choice will produce the kind of
joy and happiness that every couple is looking for.”
Showing posts with label emotion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label emotion. Show all posts
Monday, August 20, 2012
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Bless The Lord!
Psalm 103:1 “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!”
The 103rd Psalm is a well-known passage of scripture. We read it often, quote it, and even sing it. But all too often we skip ahead to verse 3, where David starts listing all the things that God does for us! But look again at the very first thing David wrote. This Psalm isn’t about God blessing us - it’s about our soul blessing Him!
If you remember, we are made up of three parts: spirit, soul, and body. When we were born again, the real us (our spirit) was totally recreated! Before salvation, our spirit was dead in sin - but now it is alive in Jesus Christ! 2 Corinthians 5:17 shows us this: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” Now that we’re born again, our spirit craves the things of God. We desperately desire God’s Word, we long to obey His commands, and there’s nothing we enjoy more than to spend time with Him and His people. This is true of every born-again believer!
So why do these desires sound foreign to so many of God’s people? It’s because they still think their soul is the real them! The soul is a person’s thoughts, desires, and emotions. Actually, let me clarify - it is a person’s natural thoughts, desires, and emotions. The Hebrew word for soul is “nephesh.” This word speaks of the natural mind. In fact, the soul is truly a part of nature - even animals themselves have souls, as limited as they may be. Animals think things through, make decisions based on their surroundings, and even possess emotions like fear and contentment. You see? What truly separates us from the rest of nature is our third part - our spirit!
When you’re born again, you are given a brand new spirit, but your soul remains the same! All of a sudden, your godly spirit begins to desire everything that God has. This brings it into conflict with your soul, which is still thinking the same thoughts and desiring the same things. This is the fight every believer faces for the rest of their time on earth - spirit vs. soul, new vs. old, spiritual vs. carnal. When I’m teaching kids I call it, “The Battle Of The Two Mes.” It all boils down to one thing - are you going to obey God or do your own thing?
Some may say, “If being born again leads to this conflict, then why didn’t God just give us new souls too?” Trust me on this, you’re glad He didn’t! Everything you’ve ever learned. from “don’t touch a hot stove” to “now I know my ABCs”, is stored in your soul! If God replaced your soul, you would have to re-learn everything you know right now! Going even further than that, your soul holds all of your memories. Aren’t there things in your life (even before salvation) that you want to remember? Important memories - such as memories of loved ones, cherished times, and lessons learned the hard way - are also stored in your soul. God never intended to replace your soul - He intended you to renew it!
Romans 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
How do we win the battle of the soul? By renewing your mind with God’s Word. This is what the Bible refers to as the salvation of your soul. We see this in James 1:21, “Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” God’s plan was to help you tame your soul and bring it under the control of your recreated spirit!
So what does this have to do with Psalm 103? Listen again to what David said: “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!” We know that David was a worshipper. It seems as if worship just flowed out of Him! But in Psalm 103, David seems to be reminding himself to worship God. Why? He was stirring up worship from his soul!
Most believers think that real worship only happens when they get all emotional. They mix up worship from the spirit and worship from the soul. True worship always comes from the spirit. Our new nature loves to worship God - it flows out of our spirit naturally. Our spirit will worship God as a default - for Who He is! But worship out of the soul - from the mind, will and emotions - is kind of shallow. This kind of worship comes and goes based on the way we feel. So the key to true worship is remembering where it really comes from: your new nature.
Be that as it may, I do enjoy getting my soul involved in worship! We’ve already seen that David did too! I want to show you the right way to get your soul into your worship. The key isn’t going to church, sitting next to the right person, turning the lights down just right, and singing the right song. The key to having your soul agree with your spirit in worship is found in the very next verse...
Psalm 103:1,2 “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits...”
This is why David began to list the blessings that God gave him; to stir up his soul! When you begin to remember all the things that God has done for you, and list them out loud, it stirs up your mind and your emotions. You begin to realize how much He deserves for what He’s done for you. Then you begin to stir up your desire - even your soulish desire - to worship your Heavenly Father.
Do you remember His benefits? If you’ll read the next few verses, David will list some of them. Meditate on what God has done for you - this will stir your soul into worship. When you’re worshipping God from your spirit, soul and body; then you can truly say, “Bless the LORD...all that is within me, bless His holy name!”
The 103rd Psalm is a well-known passage of scripture. We read it often, quote it, and even sing it. But all too often we skip ahead to verse 3, where David starts listing all the things that God does for us! But look again at the very first thing David wrote. This Psalm isn’t about God blessing us - it’s about our soul blessing Him!
If you remember, we are made up of three parts: spirit, soul, and body. When we were born again, the real us (our spirit) was totally recreated! Before salvation, our spirit was dead in sin - but now it is alive in Jesus Christ! 2 Corinthians 5:17 shows us this: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” Now that we’re born again, our spirit craves the things of God. We desperately desire God’s Word, we long to obey His commands, and there’s nothing we enjoy more than to spend time with Him and His people. This is true of every born-again believer!
So why do these desires sound foreign to so many of God’s people? It’s because they still think their soul is the real them! The soul is a person’s thoughts, desires, and emotions. Actually, let me clarify - it is a person’s natural thoughts, desires, and emotions. The Hebrew word for soul is “nephesh.” This word speaks of the natural mind. In fact, the soul is truly a part of nature - even animals themselves have souls, as limited as they may be. Animals think things through, make decisions based on their surroundings, and even possess emotions like fear and contentment. You see? What truly separates us from the rest of nature is our third part - our spirit!
When you’re born again, you are given a brand new spirit, but your soul remains the same! All of a sudden, your godly spirit begins to desire everything that God has. This brings it into conflict with your soul, which is still thinking the same thoughts and desiring the same things. This is the fight every believer faces for the rest of their time on earth - spirit vs. soul, new vs. old, spiritual vs. carnal. When I’m teaching kids I call it, “The Battle Of The Two Mes.” It all boils down to one thing - are you going to obey God or do your own thing?
Some may say, “If being born again leads to this conflict, then why didn’t God just give us new souls too?” Trust me on this, you’re glad He didn’t! Everything you’ve ever learned. from “don’t touch a hot stove” to “now I know my ABCs”, is stored in your soul! If God replaced your soul, you would have to re-learn everything you know right now! Going even further than that, your soul holds all of your memories. Aren’t there things in your life (even before salvation) that you want to remember? Important memories - such as memories of loved ones, cherished times, and lessons learned the hard way - are also stored in your soul. God never intended to replace your soul - He intended you to renew it!
Romans 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
How do we win the battle of the soul? By renewing your mind with God’s Word. This is what the Bible refers to as the salvation of your soul. We see this in James 1:21, “Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.” God’s plan was to help you tame your soul and bring it under the control of your recreated spirit!
So what does this have to do with Psalm 103? Listen again to what David said: “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!” We know that David was a worshipper. It seems as if worship just flowed out of Him! But in Psalm 103, David seems to be reminding himself to worship God. Why? He was stirring up worship from his soul!
Most believers think that real worship only happens when they get all emotional. They mix up worship from the spirit and worship from the soul. True worship always comes from the spirit. Our new nature loves to worship God - it flows out of our spirit naturally. Our spirit will worship God as a default - for Who He is! But worship out of the soul - from the mind, will and emotions - is kind of shallow. This kind of worship comes and goes based on the way we feel. So the key to true worship is remembering where it really comes from: your new nature.
Be that as it may, I do enjoy getting my soul involved in worship! We’ve already seen that David did too! I want to show you the right way to get your soul into your worship. The key isn’t going to church, sitting next to the right person, turning the lights down just right, and singing the right song. The key to having your soul agree with your spirit in worship is found in the very next verse...
Psalm 103:1,2 “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits...”
This is why David began to list the blessings that God gave him; to stir up his soul! When you begin to remember all the things that God has done for you, and list them out loud, it stirs up your mind and your emotions. You begin to realize how much He deserves for what He’s done for you. Then you begin to stir up your desire - even your soulish desire - to worship your Heavenly Father.
Do you remember His benefits? If you’ll read the next few verses, David will list some of them. Meditate on what God has done for you - this will stir your soul into worship. When you’re worshipping God from your spirit, soul and body; then you can truly say, “Bless the LORD...all that is within me, bless His holy name!”
Monday, June 11, 2012
Rewarded - Part 3
Isaiah 40:10 “Behold, the Lord Yahweh shall come with a strong hand, And His arm shall rule for Him; Behold, His reward is with Him, And His work before Him.”
2 Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”
There will be a day when every believer will stand before the throne of Jesus to be judged for what they have done after their salvation. This is not a judgement to decide Heaven or Hell - that was already decided in the moment you gave your life to Him. No, this judgement is to determine our eternal rewards.
Last time, we discovered five things that the Bible specifically says bring rewards. But there’s even more! You see, God is a very rewarding God! I believe He’s given us opportunity after opportunity to earn (that’s right, I said earn!) rewards! Salvation is free by grace, but that same grace will push us to do “good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
So here are a few more things I’ve in God’s Word that bring a reward. Again, this list is by no means exhaustive...and if you find any more, let me know! Remember, these acts bring rewards to the believer - but you cannot earn salvation by them! Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone!
#1 - When you do an act of love in secret and without recognition
Matthew 6:3-4 “But when you do a charitable deed (loving act), do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.”
If, after you’ve spent a lot of time and energy helping someone, you get upset because no one recognized your effort - you may want to examine your priorities! When you do a “charitable deed” without getting the credit, your reward is far greater than anything you could receive here on earth!
#2 - A sincere and diligent prayer life
Matthew 6:6 “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”
The day’s coming when we’ll know who really had a healthy prayer life and who didn’t!
#3 - True fasting
Matthew 6:17-18 “But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”
The kind of fasting that brings a reward doesn’t announce itself. It doesn’t play the “rules game” - that is, “Can I drink broth? Can I eat soup? Can I keep a hard candy in my mouth? Should I only drink water?”
According to Jesus’ own words - if other people know you’re fasting, you’re doing something wrong. Don’t complain about how hungry you are. Don’t engage in theatrics when someone invites you out to lunch. Keep your fast between you and God, and you’ll get the reward from it!
#4 - Accepting a prophet (or any other minister of the Gospel) for the sake of their office, regardless of their personality
Matthew 10:41 “He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.”
I believe Jesus was showing us how to receive from a preacher, even when his personality doesn’t “click” with our own. He said, “When you receive a prophet because he’s a prophet (not because you like his style) you’ll receive the same reward as he does!”
Don’t get caught up in styles and personalities in ministry. Your focus should be on Jesus Christ and His calling. When you’re sitting in a church service that’s less than exciting, refuse to let your emotions steal what’s being ministered! You don’t have to be bored - you can choose to listen to what is being said, in spite of how it’s being said.
#5 - Preaching/Spreading the Gospel
1 Corinthians 9:16-17 NIrV “But when I preach the good news, I can't brag. I have to preach it. How terrible it will be for me if I do not preach the good news! If I preach because I want to, I get a reward. If I preach because I have to, I'm only doing my duty.”
Firstly, you have to open your mouth and preach the Gospel. You can’t stay silent! Your friends, your family, your coworkers may die today...where would they go? If they end up in Hell, would it be because they’ve never heard the good news of Jesus Christ?
Secondly, you have to preach the Gospel willingly. Don’t keep putting it off and putting it off until you finally feel so guilty and convicted that you have to tell them about Jesus. That may be good for them (they finally get to hear the message of Jesus!), but what’s the reward in that? That’s only doing your duty.
Instead, you should be excited to tell others about Jesus! And why wouldn’t you be? This is the greatest thing the world has ever known, and anyone can get in on it! So let’s do this because we want to, not because we have to!
2 Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”
There will be a day when every believer will stand before the throne of Jesus to be judged for what they have done after their salvation. This is not a judgement to decide Heaven or Hell - that was already decided in the moment you gave your life to Him. No, this judgement is to determine our eternal rewards.
Last time, we discovered five things that the Bible specifically says bring rewards. But there’s even more! You see, God is a very rewarding God! I believe He’s given us opportunity after opportunity to earn (that’s right, I said earn!) rewards! Salvation is free by grace, but that same grace will push us to do “good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
So here are a few more things I’ve in God’s Word that bring a reward. Again, this list is by no means exhaustive...and if you find any more, let me know! Remember, these acts bring rewards to the believer - but you cannot earn salvation by them! Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone!
#1 - When you do an act of love in secret and without recognition
Matthew 6:3-4 “But when you do a charitable deed (loving act), do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.”
If, after you’ve spent a lot of time and energy helping someone, you get upset because no one recognized your effort - you may want to examine your priorities! When you do a “charitable deed” without getting the credit, your reward is far greater than anything you could receive here on earth!
#2 - A sincere and diligent prayer life
Matthew 6:6 “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”
The day’s coming when we’ll know who really had a healthy prayer life and who didn’t!
#3 - True fasting
Matthew 6:17-18 “But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”
The kind of fasting that brings a reward doesn’t announce itself. It doesn’t play the “rules game” - that is, “Can I drink broth? Can I eat soup? Can I keep a hard candy in my mouth? Should I only drink water?”
According to Jesus’ own words - if other people know you’re fasting, you’re doing something wrong. Don’t complain about how hungry you are. Don’t engage in theatrics when someone invites you out to lunch. Keep your fast between you and God, and you’ll get the reward from it!
#4 - Accepting a prophet (or any other minister of the Gospel) for the sake of their office, regardless of their personality
Matthew 10:41 “He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.”
I believe Jesus was showing us how to receive from a preacher, even when his personality doesn’t “click” with our own. He said, “When you receive a prophet because he’s a prophet (not because you like his style) you’ll receive the same reward as he does!”
Don’t get caught up in styles and personalities in ministry. Your focus should be on Jesus Christ and His calling. When you’re sitting in a church service that’s less than exciting, refuse to let your emotions steal what’s being ministered! You don’t have to be bored - you can choose to listen to what is being said, in spite of how it’s being said.
#5 - Preaching/Spreading the Gospel
1 Corinthians 9:16-17 NIrV “But when I preach the good news, I can't brag. I have to preach it. How terrible it will be for me if I do not preach the good news! If I preach because I want to, I get a reward. If I preach because I have to, I'm only doing my duty.”
Firstly, you have to open your mouth and preach the Gospel. You can’t stay silent! Your friends, your family, your coworkers may die today...where would they go? If they end up in Hell, would it be because they’ve never heard the good news of Jesus Christ?
Secondly, you have to preach the Gospel willingly. Don’t keep putting it off and putting it off until you finally feel so guilty and convicted that you have to tell them about Jesus. That may be good for them (they finally get to hear the message of Jesus!), but what’s the reward in that? That’s only doing your duty.
Instead, you should be excited to tell others about Jesus! And why wouldn’t you be? This is the greatest thing the world has ever known, and anyone can get in on it! So let’s do this because we want to, not because we have to!
Monday, March 19, 2012
What's Different About Your Peace?
Romans 14:15 “for the Kingdom of God is...righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
Luke 17:21 “The Kingdom of God is within you.”
The part of God’s Kingdom on earth right now is inside of us, His people. This part of His kingdom is made up of righteousness, peace, and joy. We’ve already learned that joy is not necessarily an emotion, but a decision based on faith. So it shouldn’t be surprising that our peace is also based on faith.
The world is looking for peace. They wish for it every time they get a microphone. They write songs about it. They’ve turned Christmas into the season of world peace. Sadly, there will be no peace in this earth until Jesus comes back to set up the rest of His kingdom. You can read about that in Revelation 20:1-6. Until then, this world is going to see more and more wars - that’s a promise!
You see, the world describes peace as “the absence of conflict.” Everyone in the world is seeking that in their own life. They just want peace and quiet where nothing goes wrong. But that will never happen in a sinner’s life! Isaiah 48:22 says “There is no peace for the wicked.” As long as someone is outside of the Kingdom of God, they will never find peace. Luke 2:14 agrees with this - it says, “Glory to God in the highest. And on earth peace, goodwill toward men.” That’s the English translation. But the Greek literally says “on earth peace toward men with whom He is pleased.” That’s a little different than we’ve heard every Christmas!
Peace for a believer is much different. Jesus said in the first part of John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.” You see? His peace is not like the world is looking for! The rest of this verse tells us why it’s different. “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.“
The believer’s peace is the responsibility to keep our hearts from being afraid! Peace for a believer is when we’re calm on the inside when all hell is breaking loose on the outside. Just like our joy, our peace is not based on what happening to us. It’s based on what God’s Word promises us. Two chapter later, in John 16:33, we see that our peace is directly connected to what God has said. “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.”
So how does a believer stay in this peace? Here are four keys to having the peace of God in your life:
First of all, guard your heart! Jesus directly commanded us not to let our hearts be troubled. Proverbs 4:23 says “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” Not everyone should have the privilege of speaking into your heart. In fact, I would say this; don’t take anything that anyone (your friends, your spouse, your family, your television) says to heart unless you know it agrees with what the Bible teaches! Your heart is too important to let careless words weigh it down.
Guard your mind. Keep it focused on heavenly things. When you’re focused on eternity, temporal things lose their urgency. Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.” When your mind is stayed on Jesus - it brings peace. Philippians 4:8-9 says the same thing. “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” When you keep a tight control on what your brain is thinking, it will lead to peace!
Pray and trust God. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Be anxious for nothing, 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 minds through Christ Jesus.” This is one of the simplest commands, but it’s still one of the hardest! When your facing a situation, don’t worry! Pray for it in faith and then thank God for the answer! Then the peace of God will guard your heart and your mind!
Stay in God’s Word. Psalm 119:65 “Great peace have they which love Your law (or His Word): and nothing shall offend them.” When you love God’s Word it brings great peace! Not only will you have peace in your life when you love God’s Word, but nothing will be able to offend you! Actually, this is a great test for why you may not have peace in your life. If nothing can offend someone who loves God’s Word, and you’re offended...well you can see the problem, right? I would almost bet that if you’re offended, you’re also in need of peace in your mind. The cure for both offense and inner turmoil is falling in love with God’s Word!
These four things - guarding your heart from careless words, keeping your mind on heavenly things, faith-filled prayer, and a love for God’s Word - will bring God’s peace for you. But only a consistency in these things will keep His peace in your life!
Psalm 4:8 “I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”
Luke 17:21 “The Kingdom of God is within you.”
The part of God’s Kingdom on earth right now is inside of us, His people. This part of His kingdom is made up of righteousness, peace, and joy. We’ve already learned that joy is not necessarily an emotion, but a decision based on faith. So it shouldn’t be surprising that our peace is also based on faith.
The world is looking for peace. They wish for it every time they get a microphone. They write songs about it. They’ve turned Christmas into the season of world peace. Sadly, there will be no peace in this earth until Jesus comes back to set up the rest of His kingdom. You can read about that in Revelation 20:1-6. Until then, this world is going to see more and more wars - that’s a promise!
You see, the world describes peace as “the absence of conflict.” Everyone in the world is seeking that in their own life. They just want peace and quiet where nothing goes wrong. But that will never happen in a sinner’s life! Isaiah 48:22 says “There is no peace for the wicked.” As long as someone is outside of the Kingdom of God, they will never find peace. Luke 2:14 agrees with this - it says, “Glory to God in the highest. And on earth peace, goodwill toward men.” That’s the English translation. But the Greek literally says “on earth peace toward men with whom He is pleased.” That’s a little different than we’ve heard every Christmas!
Peace for a believer is much different. Jesus said in the first part of John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.” You see? His peace is not like the world is looking for! The rest of this verse tells us why it’s different. “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.“
The believer’s peace is the responsibility to keep our hearts from being afraid! Peace for a believer is when we’re calm on the inside when all hell is breaking loose on the outside. Just like our joy, our peace is not based on what happening to us. It’s based on what God’s Word promises us. Two chapter later, in John 16:33, we see that our peace is directly connected to what God has said. “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.”
So how does a believer stay in this peace? Here are four keys to having the peace of God in your life:
First of all, guard your heart! Jesus directly commanded us not to let our hearts be troubled. Proverbs 4:23 says “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” Not everyone should have the privilege of speaking into your heart. In fact, I would say this; don’t take anything that anyone (your friends, your spouse, your family, your television) says to heart unless you know it agrees with what the Bible teaches! Your heart is too important to let careless words weigh it down.
Guard your mind. Keep it focused on heavenly things. When you’re focused on eternity, temporal things lose their urgency. Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.” When your mind is stayed on Jesus - it brings peace. Philippians 4:8-9 says the same thing. “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” When you keep a tight control on what your brain is thinking, it will lead to peace!
Pray and trust God. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Be anxious for nothing, 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 minds through Christ Jesus.” This is one of the simplest commands, but it’s still one of the hardest! When your facing a situation, don’t worry! Pray for it in faith and then thank God for the answer! Then the peace of God will guard your heart and your mind!
Stay in God’s Word. Psalm 119:65 “Great peace have they which love Your law (or His Word): and nothing shall offend them.” When you love God’s Word it brings great peace! Not only will you have peace in your life when you love God’s Word, but nothing will be able to offend you! Actually, this is a great test for why you may not have peace in your life. If nothing can offend someone who loves God’s Word, and you’re offended...well you can see the problem, right? I would almost bet that if you’re offended, you’re also in need of peace in your mind. The cure for both offense and inner turmoil is falling in love with God’s Word!
These four things - guarding your heart from careless words, keeping your mind on heavenly things, faith-filled prayer, and a love for God’s Word - will bring God’s peace for you. But only a consistency in these things will keep His peace in your life!
Psalm 4:8 “I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”
Friday, March 16, 2012
Are You Happy?
Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness...”
Romans 14:17 “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
Have you noticed that people aren’t happy anymore? Everywhere you go, it seems like everyone woke up late, couldn’t get their hair straight, and drank a half-gallon of lemon juice! It is a very rare thing to encounter a truly happy person right now.
But the Bible says that a believer’s life should be full of joy! Romans 14:17 says that joy is one-third of the Kingdom of God within you. Galatians 5:22 says joy is a fruit that should naturally be a part of a Spirit-filled life.
Has this been your experience? Or have you, like me, been having a hard time seeing the difference between the attitude of the world and the attitude of believers? We’ve gotten so caught up in all the bad news and in the condition of this world that we’ve forfeited our happiness.
What we need to realize is, happiness and true joy are not the same thing!
Happiness is fickle. It comes and goes based on the silliest things.
“I’ve got a new pair of shoes, I’m happy now!”
“I got a shaving cut this morning, now I’m not happy.”
Happiness is probably one of the most fragile emotions humans have. It doesn’t take much at all to ruin it. The thing that Christians been to remember is this, happiness is always based on external situations. When those situations change, your happiness changes with it!
The church has been so busy trying to find its own happiness - just something to make me feel good! We’ve forgotten that Jesus never promised us happiness in this life! As long as we’re in this world, things are going to change. And as long as things are changing, happiness will come and go. What we as believers need, is something more lasting. We need joy.
Joy is not based on surroundings - it’s based on faith. 1 Peter 1:8 says, “Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.” The joy that comes from the Holy Spirit says, “it doesn’t matter what I see or don’t see, I trust in God - and because of that, I’m going to rejoice.”
Joy is lasting. As long as your faith is in God, your joy remains. In John 15:11 Jesus says, “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.” Jesus wants our joy to be lasting, to remain regardless of what’s going on around us.
Joy is a choice, not an emotion. We all know Nehemiah 8:10 - “the joy of the Lord is your strength.” But did you know that Nehemiah was talking to a group of sad, bummed-out people? He was encouraging them to stop looking at their circumstances and rejoice in the Lord! Well, they listened to him. Despite the way they felt, they decided to rejoice. But here’s the best part, as they obeyed Nehemiah and rejoiced, the happiness returned! Remember when I told you that happiness is fickle? Well, true joy (based on faith) will actually produce happiness!
Joy is built up from God’s Word. Jeremiah 15:16 - “And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart.” If we go back to John 15:11, we can see that joy is based on Jesus’ words. When we spend time in God’s Word, it builds up our joy. Actually, that makes perfect sense! After all, faith comes by hearing God’s Word (Romans 10:17) - and joy is rooted in faith!
Christian, whenever you are feeling discouraged, depressed, sad or fearful; that is the time you need to fall back onto faith and joy. You need to make a decision to rejoice for what you believe! You need to get into the presence of God (Psalm 16:11 “In Your presence is fullness of Joy) and remember what He has done for you. As you do this, as you build yourself up in joy, your happiness will usually return!
The bottom line is, true christian joy is not an emotion! It is a decision from your spirit to trust what God has said!
Romans 14:17 “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
Have you noticed that people aren’t happy anymore? Everywhere you go, it seems like everyone woke up late, couldn’t get their hair straight, and drank a half-gallon of lemon juice! It is a very rare thing to encounter a truly happy person right now.
But the Bible says that a believer’s life should be full of joy! Romans 14:17 says that joy is one-third of the Kingdom of God within you. Galatians 5:22 says joy is a fruit that should naturally be a part of a Spirit-filled life.
Has this been your experience? Or have you, like me, been having a hard time seeing the difference between the attitude of the world and the attitude of believers? We’ve gotten so caught up in all the bad news and in the condition of this world that we’ve forfeited our happiness.
What we need to realize is, happiness and true joy are not the same thing!
Happiness is fickle. It comes and goes based on the silliest things.
“I’ve got a new pair of shoes, I’m happy now!”
“I got a shaving cut this morning, now I’m not happy.”
Happiness is probably one of the most fragile emotions humans have. It doesn’t take much at all to ruin it. The thing that Christians been to remember is this, happiness is always based on external situations. When those situations change, your happiness changes with it!
The church has been so busy trying to find its own happiness - just something to make me feel good! We’ve forgotten that Jesus never promised us happiness in this life! As long as we’re in this world, things are going to change. And as long as things are changing, happiness will come and go. What we as believers need, is something more lasting. We need joy.
Joy is not based on surroundings - it’s based on faith. 1 Peter 1:8 says, “Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.” The joy that comes from the Holy Spirit says, “it doesn’t matter what I see or don’t see, I trust in God - and because of that, I’m going to rejoice.”
Joy is lasting. As long as your faith is in God, your joy remains. In John 15:11 Jesus says, “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.” Jesus wants our joy to be lasting, to remain regardless of what’s going on around us.
Joy is a choice, not an emotion. We all know Nehemiah 8:10 - “the joy of the Lord is your strength.” But did you know that Nehemiah was talking to a group of sad, bummed-out people? He was encouraging them to stop looking at their circumstances and rejoice in the Lord! Well, they listened to him. Despite the way they felt, they decided to rejoice. But here’s the best part, as they obeyed Nehemiah and rejoiced, the happiness returned! Remember when I told you that happiness is fickle? Well, true joy (based on faith) will actually produce happiness!
Joy is built up from God’s Word. Jeremiah 15:16 - “And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart.” If we go back to John 15:11, we can see that joy is based on Jesus’ words. When we spend time in God’s Word, it builds up our joy. Actually, that makes perfect sense! After all, faith comes by hearing God’s Word (Romans 10:17) - and joy is rooted in faith!
Christian, whenever you are feeling discouraged, depressed, sad or fearful; that is the time you need to fall back onto faith and joy. You need to make a decision to rejoice for what you believe! You need to get into the presence of God (Psalm 16:11 “In Your presence is fullness of Joy) and remember what He has done for you. As you do this, as you build yourself up in joy, your happiness will usually return!
The bottom line is, true christian joy is not an emotion! It is a decision from your spirit to trust what God has said!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)