Sheep Food

  Jesus reminded those followers of His: “IF...you love Me, keep My commandments.” (John 14:15) In other words, IF...we love Him, we will do what He says. “Why call me Lord and then not do the things I say?” (Luke 6:46). Do you think it’s possible that many sincere folks who started out following Jesus...failed to experience genuine transformation in their lives because they were unwilling to ‘do whatever He tells you’? (John 2:5) Oh, I bet you were told somewhere along the way that when you ‘accepted Christ’, that your ‘spirit was made perfect and righteous’, which was good enough to get you saved; and if you wanted to really live the ‘abundant life’ (John 10:10) then over time your ‘flesh man’ would be refined but not totally until you got to heaven. No wonder Paul expressed concerns that many might be ‘deceived as Eve was’ and end up following another Jesus and gospel, even receiving another spirit’. (2 Cor. 11:3-4). That, my friends leads to nothing better than walking in a...

  I was sharing with someone recently in a follow up discussion to one of my posts ,about a time my wife and I attempted to get serious about decluttering our house back in Texas. And this was well before moving to California was anywhere close to being on our radar. You just tend to collect a lot of ‘stuff’ over the years, especially when staying in one place for an extended period of time like we did. And we had a pretty good sized house then too. For some reason, I agreed to start the process in a closet located in my ‘office’ which is where I stored a lot...of stuff. And it was easy for Kathy to just start rummaging through asking...”Why do you need this?”, or...”this can go , right?” I found myself quickly vetoing her on every suggestion. It became apparent, rather quickly...that I was not that serious about wanting to ‘declutter’. Friends...this is pretty much what ‘boot camp’ entails when we first come to Jesus and ‘supposedly give Him our whole heart’. In fact, I have ...

  Jesus went to ‘boot camp’ immediately after He was baptized by John in the Jordan River. (Mark 1:12-13). I’m led to believe His hair may have still been wet. What do we like to do these days with newly baptized converts? Oftentimes, we get them ‘plugged in to ministry’ with the hopes they will ‘grow in Christ’ and keep coming back. We seem to think it’s important for folks to begin exercising their ‘giftings’ for the kingdom of God, so we get them singing or playing drums or guitar or working in children’s ministry, etc. I’m not here to debate common church practices today and what churches should or shouldn’t be doing. But I do think we have missed some vital parts that have crippled many sincere converts and if we are not careful, we could make them a ‘two-fold child of hell’ that Jesus accused the Pharisees of doing with new converts. (Matt. 23:15) So just what is this ‘boot camp’ I speak of? I would submit to you for prayerful study that it has everything to do with te...

  So why do you suppose so many sincere believers hit a wall in their walk and come to a place where they are convinced that ‘Christianity is not working for them’? I would submit that some vital steps were left out in their early training and they are paying for it down the road. Imagine if you would a young 18-19 year old signs up to enlist in the Navy or Army and envision themselves working in a Special Forces outfit like the S.E.A.L.S or Rangers. Then, by some fluke mistake their paperwork gets lost or mixed up and it is just assumed they have gone through their basic training (which they haven’t) and are then deployed on some special mission overseas. Next thing you know, they are being sent home in a body bag having had their head blown off the first week after they were deployed. What happened? Probably the same thing that happens to many converts today who are encouraged to go out and ‘fulfill their destiny in God’ before having even dried off after their water baptism....

  It was an interesting observation that Paul pointed out there in Romans 2 that can easily go unnoticed if we are in a hurry to ‘finish the chapter’ so we can check off our daily Bible reading box. It came right after that verse where he states that “not the hearers of the law who are just in the sight of God, but the doers...of the law will be justified.” (13). Yeah, that one makes our heads hurt as well. But, he continues on... “...for when the Gentiles who do not have the law, by nature do...the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves who show the work of the law written in their hearts...” (13-14) God said He was going to do that, you know – write His law on our hearts and minds, and then cause us to ‘do them’. (Heb. 10:16; Ezek. 36:26-28). Take a second and go mark that passage from Ezekiel in your Bible if you would. It’s a good one. ;-) So now we have these Gentiles (non-Jews) coming to the Lord and being filled with God’s Spirit. ...

  “Turn the other cheek”, Jesus taught. “Love your enemies, bless those who curse you and do good to those who hate you”. (Matt. 5:38-44). I don’t think that is the message any of us really like to hear, is it? Especially when we are wronged by people who have hurt us. Am I right or am I right? And yet, how did Jesus demonstrate God’s love toward us? “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom. 5:8; John 3:16) It’s called showing ‘mercy’ and is the what ‘loving your neighbor’ embodies, and even more so- it is what God’s law encompasses as explained in the parable of the good Samaritan. (Luke 10:-25-37). Jesus told the inquisitive lawyer who was asking what he must do to inherit eternal life... that he in turn must ‘do this and you will live’. (28). Do what? Go and show mercy – “Go, and do likewise.” (37) You have to admit, Jesus was pretty consistent with His messaging. “As I have loved you... you also love one another. By this all will know you are My disciples.....

  “Go...and spend no more!” Is it possible that just maybe...we were taught wrong when it comes to some of our basic Biblical lessons? You know, like this idea of how we ‘are sinners’ vs. we ‘were sinners’? I’ve used this illustration before and will take the liberty to do so again today. A young adult has a spending problem with their credit cards and rack up insane amounts of debt that will be nearly impossible to pay off given the high interest rates they are being charged. Discouraged and feeling quite defeated, they humble themselves and go to their parents seeking help. In an unanticipated act of kindness, Mom and Dad offer to pay off all their child’s debt with one single payment, being able to do so given their boundless wealth. But there was a condition attached to this act of charity and it was a request that their child would forego the credit cards, as in tear them up and use them no more. The adult child agrees to do so...in principal. However, instead of gettin...