Mat 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Two masters. We're not talking about two masters who agree, but two masters that have opposing beliefs.
There is NO reason to hate two in agreement, right? What would you hate? Sure you could bring personal nuances into play and like one for superficial reason more than the other, but as a master who directs you as a servant in the same manner- what would there be to dislike? In fact aren't there in reality plenty of servants who serve more than one master in a household. Don't they have to answer to each of those they work for? A household of seven having one servant, that servant would be required to tend to all seven. The meaning of not serving two masters is truly meant in -NOT- serving two masters who are opposed to one another. We've seen it time and time again a person with two masters- and it's usually so the person can spy on one for another, right?
The master or if you will- a leader of one gang would not want one of his members serving a leader of another gang. A leader of one army would not want one of his soldiers serving the leader of another army- we call those soldiers traitors, don't we? We are talking about beliefs here, differing beliefs. We are talking about right and wrong beliefs.
We cannot serve God and mammon, and mammon is avarice… and avarice is by dictionary definition-
insatiable greed for riches; inordinate, miserly desire to gain and hoard wealth.
Two masters one opposed to the other- one selfless, the other selfish.
We know who the two masters are. If one is God then the other is Satan. Satan encourages the love of riches. Satan wants to encourage greed. Satan wants us to be very selfish, all selfish. Satan is a master who promises a lot of material things, but that's not all he promises. He makes his promises and then is eager to strip away those promises so that blame is placed upon God. He's deceitful above all and his job is complete when he gets us to be selfish. I'm not talking selfish in the same way people imagine selfishness to be. You'll get tons of people denying they're selfish because they do share things, they do think of others, but the truth is even those who share things and think of others can be extremely selfish. To deceive a person about their own selfishness is a ruse the devil uses all the time. What better deception is there than fooling someone into thinking they are just fine when in truth they are far from it?
Mat 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
People fool themselves all the time- with their mouths they claim to love God but their actions tell a whole other story.
Jesus wants us to realize that we CAN'T serve two. We can't serve Him and Satan. We can't serve Him and our selfish desires.
Take this small test, try very hard over the next week to recognize every time you use the word 'I'.
'I don't want…' 'I think…' 'I know…' 'I am…' 'I want…' 'I have…'
Seriously, take the time to recognize how much you use that little word.
Mat 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
If we HOLD to one, and DESPISE the other does this necessarily mean it's an outward loathing? No. Why? Because we love self-deception!!! Don't shake your head, we do, we LOVE self-deception. If we can be deceived then we believe that we're not accountable for our actions, we do so love saying-' It's not my fault.' Putting the blame on another person is something we do rather well.
Only by the grace of God will we be able to love only Him, just as it is through Him we find salvation, just as we will only be in the kingdom of Heaven with Him by His love and His righteousness not by any power of our own.
We can't despair when we recognize how self-centered we really are and as a result how selfish. Satan uses despair as another trap wanting us to feel hopeless so that we don't trust in God to save us.
We need to constantly give ourselves over to our master, our God and not to self. It can't be a sporadic action but a constant one. A constant surrender of self. A constant putting our lives in the hands of the one with all the power and glory all through faith.
By His LOVE!
Amen!
Monday, May 2, 2011
Sunday, May 1, 2011
The light of the body
Mat 6:22 The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
Mat 6:23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
The light of the body is the eye.
Spiritual sight.
Mat 4:16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
People never sit in darkness on a constant basis, just sitting in the dark. This is talking about spiritual darkness and yes, people can live in complete spiritual darkness if they choose. When these people which were lost in the spiritual darkness saw the great light…Jesus, those that were without hope in the shadow of death had a light spring up in them. The truth. Jesus.
Joh 1:4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
In Him, in our Savior is life and that life was the light of men.
Joh 1:5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
Joh 1:6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
Joh 1:7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
Joh 1:8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
Joh 1:9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
Jesus lighteth every man that cometh into the world. Jesus the true LIGHT.
If the light of the body is the eye- then our spiritual sight has to be focused on the True LIGHT, not on anything dark. We have to be focused on the truth in Jesus, because the truth in Jesus is our light. When we take our eyes off Jesus, when we focus on falsehood, when we look elsewhere for truth we are no longer seeing the light. Satan doesn't want us to recognize when our sight is altered, he doesn't want us to understand that we may be in the spiritual darkness and he'll even go as far as creating a false light, a false truth so that he can deceive us.
Mat 6:22 The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
Mat 6:23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
If our eye is single we'll be filled with light.
If our eye isn't single then it is evil and we'll be filled with darkness.
If the light that is in us IS darkness how GREAT is that darkness. Because if the light in us is really darkness we are greatly deceived.
If our spiritual eye is single then our spiritual vision is clear.
Single-
G573
ἁπλοῦς
haplous
hap-looce'
Probably from G1 (as a particle of union) and the base of G4120; properly folded together, that is, single (figuratively clear): - single.
Figuratively clear. Having spiritual clarity. When we have spiritual clarity then we know that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. We understand that life is only found in our Savior and NO WHERE else. There is salvation in no other. We can't save ourselves, others can't save us, only Jesus can give us eternal life. When we don't have this spiritual clarity we fill our lives with lies, with untruths, and people who genuinely fill their lives with untruths believe they have great light but that light is ONLY darkness, great darkness filled with deception.
We can fill our minds with all sorts of things that aren't of the kingdom of heaven and tell ourselves we are still fill with light, but when ANYTHING takes the gospel from us, when anything takes the Light from our lives we are in great trouble.
Is it any wonder we are told to seek the kingdom of heaven FIRST. The kingdom of heaven is salvation through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Keeping our spiritual sight clearly focused on Jesus and the gift He offers us through His love is most important.
By the grace of God we won't ever fill our minds with things that make us believe we are in the light when we are really in darkness. May God forever be first and foremost in our minds and anything else come as a result of His being first and foremost in our lives.
By His most amazing Love!
Amen.
Mat 6:23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
The light of the body is the eye.
Spiritual sight.
Mat 4:16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
People never sit in darkness on a constant basis, just sitting in the dark. This is talking about spiritual darkness and yes, people can live in complete spiritual darkness if they choose. When these people which were lost in the spiritual darkness saw the great light…Jesus, those that were without hope in the shadow of death had a light spring up in them. The truth. Jesus.
Joh 1:4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
In Him, in our Savior is life and that life was the light of men.
Joh 1:5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
Joh 1:6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
Joh 1:7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
Joh 1:8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
Joh 1:9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
Jesus lighteth every man that cometh into the world. Jesus the true LIGHT.
If the light of the body is the eye- then our spiritual sight has to be focused on the True LIGHT, not on anything dark. We have to be focused on the truth in Jesus, because the truth in Jesus is our light. When we take our eyes off Jesus, when we focus on falsehood, when we look elsewhere for truth we are no longer seeing the light. Satan doesn't want us to recognize when our sight is altered, he doesn't want us to understand that we may be in the spiritual darkness and he'll even go as far as creating a false light, a false truth so that he can deceive us.
Mat 6:22 The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
Mat 6:23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
If our eye is single we'll be filled with light.
If our eye isn't single then it is evil and we'll be filled with darkness.
If the light that is in us IS darkness how GREAT is that darkness. Because if the light in us is really darkness we are greatly deceived.
If our spiritual eye is single then our spiritual vision is clear.
Single-
G573
ἁπλοῦς
haplous
hap-looce'
Probably from G1 (as a particle of union) and the base of G4120; properly folded together, that is, single (figuratively clear): - single.
Figuratively clear. Having spiritual clarity. When we have spiritual clarity then we know that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. We understand that life is only found in our Savior and NO WHERE else. There is salvation in no other. We can't save ourselves, others can't save us, only Jesus can give us eternal life. When we don't have this spiritual clarity we fill our lives with lies, with untruths, and people who genuinely fill their lives with untruths believe they have great light but that light is ONLY darkness, great darkness filled with deception.
We can fill our minds with all sorts of things that aren't of the kingdom of heaven and tell ourselves we are still fill with light, but when ANYTHING takes the gospel from us, when anything takes the Light from our lives we are in great trouble.
Is it any wonder we are told to seek the kingdom of heaven FIRST. The kingdom of heaven is salvation through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Keeping our spiritual sight clearly focused on Jesus and the gift He offers us through His love is most important.
By the grace of God we won't ever fill our minds with things that make us believe we are in the light when we are really in darkness. May God forever be first and foremost in our minds and anything else come as a result of His being first and foremost in our lives.
By His most amazing Love!
Amen.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
The power is God's.
Exo 9:13 And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
Exo 9:16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.
Show God's power. God's name would be declared throughout all the earth. Just imagine the scene before us here. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Joseph and subsequently the God of those of all the Hebrew people formed from the family of Abraham was a seemingly powerless God that allowed His people to become enslaved for 400 years. Abraham had journeyed through Egypt and when he did, he lied telling those in charge that his wife was his sister because he didn't want anything to happen to him because the Pharaoh of the time was known for killing husbands to get their wives. When Pharaoh took Sarai, Abraham's wife and wanted to make her part of his harem of wives the Pharaoh and his household become sick and remained so until it was uncovered that the GOD of Abraham was displeased with the situation. To remedy the situation Pharaoh had to LET Sarai go. The Pharaoh knew that there was a powerful God working there, the God of the man Abraham.
The God of Abraham was known to the Egyptians but by the time Joseph entered the picture as a slave and made his way up to the second in command of Egypt the God of Abraham was past history and not on the minds of the Egyptians at all. When Joseph brought His God into the picture again…
Gen 39:8 But he refused, and said unto his master's wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;
Gen 39:9 There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?
Gen 39:21 But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
Gen 40:8 And they said unto him, We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you.
Gen 41:16 And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.
Gen 41:25 And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.
When Joseph brought His God into the picture again and from the verses above we can see that He did just that, the Pharaoh of the time wasn't objecting to Joseph or His God. He embrace Joseph and allowed Joseph to worship the God of Abraham. Then… Joseph died and time passed and the Hebrews fell out of favor with the Egyptians because they forgot Joseph and all he'd done for them.
Exo 1:8 Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.
And this is what happened…
Exo 1:9 And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:
Exo 1:10 Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.
Exo 1:11 Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.
And we know what happened after that, they became slaves and stayed the slaves of the Egyptians for a long, long time and during that time the power of the God of Abraham and subsequently all His descendants were forgotten. Why wouldn't He be forgotten by the Egyptians- His people were their slaves.
Then...
Exo 9:13 And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
Exo 9:16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.
God raised Moses up to SHOW him HIS power, so that God's name would be declared throughout ALL the earth.
The power of God.
Exo 15:6 Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power: thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.
Glorious in power.
Deu 9:29 Yet they are thy people and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest out by thy mighty power and by thy stretched out arm.
Thy mighty power.
2Ki 17:36 But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.
With great power.
None has the power of God. None has the power of our God, none, period. We talk about power and then we imagine what should be done with that power. We try to play God imagining what God should be doing with His power and in our finite, powerless way we think we are special and have enough knowledge to do so. We have NO power of our own, none.
Remember this verse from yesterday's study--
2Co 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
The excellency of the power… may be of GOD and NOT of us.
Remember this…
Mat 6:13 ...For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
God is the power.
We need to really understand this. It's something that is easy to say but believing it might be another story altogether. We're prone to believe we have our own power.
Jesus said...
Joh 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me
Jesus emptied Himself of His power so that He could rely totally upon God's power as we are called to do. It's true. We have to rely on God's power!
Our Father which art in heaven… THINE is the power. We relinquish any power we think we might possess and rely upon God's.
Does this mean we sit about like lumps expecting God to walk us about like puppets? No. God has given us abilities to walk ourselves. God has given us the power of life itself, but that power is His to give and take away. We don't have to understand, in fact we can't understand the whys and wherefores. We may believe a lot of times that God's ways are unfair but He sees the picture of life from a perspective we can't. He sees how every single event in our lives affects another. By His grace we must give ourselves fully to Him understanding that we are given salvation by His power through Christ's sacrifice, through Christ's righteousness forever!
In His love.
Amen.
Exo 9:16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.
Show God's power. God's name would be declared throughout all the earth. Just imagine the scene before us here. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of Joseph and subsequently the God of those of all the Hebrew people formed from the family of Abraham was a seemingly powerless God that allowed His people to become enslaved for 400 years. Abraham had journeyed through Egypt and when he did, he lied telling those in charge that his wife was his sister because he didn't want anything to happen to him because the Pharaoh of the time was known for killing husbands to get their wives. When Pharaoh took Sarai, Abraham's wife and wanted to make her part of his harem of wives the Pharaoh and his household become sick and remained so until it was uncovered that the GOD of Abraham was displeased with the situation. To remedy the situation Pharaoh had to LET Sarai go. The Pharaoh knew that there was a powerful God working there, the God of the man Abraham.
The God of Abraham was known to the Egyptians but by the time Joseph entered the picture as a slave and made his way up to the second in command of Egypt the God of Abraham was past history and not on the minds of the Egyptians at all. When Joseph brought His God into the picture again…
Gen 39:8 But he refused, and said unto his master's wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;
Gen 39:9 There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?
Gen 39:21 But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
Gen 40:8 And they said unto him, We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you.
Gen 41:16 And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.
Gen 41:25 And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.
When Joseph brought His God into the picture again and from the verses above we can see that He did just that, the Pharaoh of the time wasn't objecting to Joseph or His God. He embrace Joseph and allowed Joseph to worship the God of Abraham. Then… Joseph died and time passed and the Hebrews fell out of favor with the Egyptians because they forgot Joseph and all he'd done for them.
Exo 1:8 Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.
And this is what happened…
Exo 1:9 And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:
Exo 1:10 Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.
Exo 1:11 Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.
And we know what happened after that, they became slaves and stayed the slaves of the Egyptians for a long, long time and during that time the power of the God of Abraham and subsequently all His descendants were forgotten. Why wouldn't He be forgotten by the Egyptians- His people were their slaves.
Then...
Exo 9:13 And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
Exo 9:16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.
God raised Moses up to SHOW him HIS power, so that God's name would be declared throughout ALL the earth.
The power of God.
Exo 15:6 Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power: thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.
Glorious in power.
Deu 9:29 Yet they are thy people and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest out by thy mighty power and by thy stretched out arm.
Thy mighty power.
2Ki 17:36 But the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and a stretched out arm, him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifice.
With great power.
None has the power of God. None has the power of our God, none, period. We talk about power and then we imagine what should be done with that power. We try to play God imagining what God should be doing with His power and in our finite, powerless way we think we are special and have enough knowledge to do so. We have NO power of our own, none.
Remember this verse from yesterday's study--
2Co 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
The excellency of the power… may be of GOD and NOT of us.
Remember this…
Mat 6:13 ...For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
God is the power.
We need to really understand this. It's something that is easy to say but believing it might be another story altogether. We're prone to believe we have our own power.
Jesus said...
Joh 5:30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me
Jesus emptied Himself of His power so that He could rely totally upon God's power as we are called to do. It's true. We have to rely on God's power!
Our Father which art in heaven… THINE is the power. We relinquish any power we think we might possess and rely upon God's.
Does this mean we sit about like lumps expecting God to walk us about like puppets? No. God has given us abilities to walk ourselves. God has given us the power of life itself, but that power is His to give and take away. We don't have to understand, in fact we can't understand the whys and wherefores. We may believe a lot of times that God's ways are unfair but He sees the picture of life from a perspective we can't. He sees how every single event in our lives affects another. By His grace we must give ourselves fully to Him understanding that we are given salvation by His power through Christ's sacrifice, through Christ's righteousness forever!
In His love.
Amen.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Treasure in earthen vessels
2Co 4:1 Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;
2Co 4:2 But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
2Co 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost
2Co 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
2Co 4:5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.
2Co 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
2Co 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
What treasure? What treasure lies within us? Can we cut our bodies open and have a treasure of silver fall out? Is blood liquid gold? Are bones made of diamonds? Is our heart formed of rubies? No, no, no, and no. The treasure we possess in our earthen vessels is knowledge of SALVATION, the Gospel of the KINGDOM, our Lord, our Savior!
We are taught to believe that treasure is something spectacularly corporeal. From our youth we are taught to acquire possessions and if we don't have them then to long for them especially if others around us have them. Of course there could be situations where parents raise their children to not want things, but doesn't that often in turn somehow end up making them want them anyway? I'd like to think there are places where children are raised to appreciate true treasures not those that are physical. I imagine there are those places, maybe scattered here and there. Once we are raised with the belief that treasures are possessions we can buy, possessions we can touch, possessions we claim as belonging to us and only we have the liberty of letting others use them, once this belief is instilled in us it's hard to truly imagine those earthly treasures as being worthless. So many people work hard and some have the claim to working hard all their lives to possess the things they do and therefore they're entitled to those possessions- their blood, sweat, and yes, their tears give them that right. What about those who work hard all their lives and in the end possess nothing physical? A old homeless man without much more than the clothes on his back dies and is given a pauper's funeral all the while the pity for man abounds because he died without anything, he died homeless, he died possession-of course some might not pity him because their disgust at his state of being overwhelms any pity. Then we have a rich man who dies with many possessions and people aren't pitying him but rather wishing they had part of the inheritance he left behind. Very few pity or feel disgust over a rich man dying old having had a full life.
Jesus died homeless, penniless, possession-less.
A very rich man can die without any treasure within him. A very poor man can die having great treasure within him.
When we die where do we want our treasure to have been? Within or without?
God forbid we have no treasure within no matter where we fit in on the treasures without- abundant, mediocre, or sparse.
2Co 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
The ONLY way to get treasure within is by the POWER OF GOD! We cannot put the treasure within us by ourselves. We cannot buy this treasure with all the money in the world- not all the dollars, not all the euros, not all the yen, not all the francs, not all the… well you get the picture. No earthly wealth can give anyone the treasure within, this priceless, wondrous treasure. You also can't work for this treasure, you can't demand the treasure, you can't steal the treasure, you have to be GIVEN the treasure by God!
Truly - give us this day our daily bread!
Reading on is it any wonder we need this treasure within us- given to us by the all powerful, wondrous, praiseworthy God! If we try to manufacture this treasure within it would be powerless and we need the power of God if we are to live for Him.
2Co 4:8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
2Co 4:9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed
2Co 4:10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
2Co 4:11 For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
2Co 4:12 So then death worketh in us, but life in you.
2Co 4:13 We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;
2Co 4:14 Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.
2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
2Co 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
2Co 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
2Co 4:18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
By the grace of our Lord may we receive the gift of eternal life through the power and majesty, the glory of His love towards us. May we be earthen vessels filled with the treasure of all He is all through His excellent power!
In His Love!
Amen.
2Co 4:2 But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
2Co 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost
2Co 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
2Co 4:5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.
2Co 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
2Co 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
What treasure? What treasure lies within us? Can we cut our bodies open and have a treasure of silver fall out? Is blood liquid gold? Are bones made of diamonds? Is our heart formed of rubies? No, no, no, and no. The treasure we possess in our earthen vessels is knowledge of SALVATION, the Gospel of the KINGDOM, our Lord, our Savior!
We are taught to believe that treasure is something spectacularly corporeal. From our youth we are taught to acquire possessions and if we don't have them then to long for them especially if others around us have them. Of course there could be situations where parents raise their children to not want things, but doesn't that often in turn somehow end up making them want them anyway? I'd like to think there are places where children are raised to appreciate true treasures not those that are physical. I imagine there are those places, maybe scattered here and there. Once we are raised with the belief that treasures are possessions we can buy, possessions we can touch, possessions we claim as belonging to us and only we have the liberty of letting others use them, once this belief is instilled in us it's hard to truly imagine those earthly treasures as being worthless. So many people work hard and some have the claim to working hard all their lives to possess the things they do and therefore they're entitled to those possessions- their blood, sweat, and yes, their tears give them that right. What about those who work hard all their lives and in the end possess nothing physical? A old homeless man without much more than the clothes on his back dies and is given a pauper's funeral all the while the pity for man abounds because he died without anything, he died homeless, he died possession-of course some might not pity him because their disgust at his state of being overwhelms any pity. Then we have a rich man who dies with many possessions and people aren't pitying him but rather wishing they had part of the inheritance he left behind. Very few pity or feel disgust over a rich man dying old having had a full life.
Jesus died homeless, penniless, possession-less.
A very rich man can die without any treasure within him. A very poor man can die having great treasure within him.
When we die where do we want our treasure to have been? Within or without?
God forbid we have no treasure within no matter where we fit in on the treasures without- abundant, mediocre, or sparse.
2Co 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
The ONLY way to get treasure within is by the POWER OF GOD! We cannot put the treasure within us by ourselves. We cannot buy this treasure with all the money in the world- not all the dollars, not all the euros, not all the yen, not all the francs, not all the… well you get the picture. No earthly wealth can give anyone the treasure within, this priceless, wondrous treasure. You also can't work for this treasure, you can't demand the treasure, you can't steal the treasure, you have to be GIVEN the treasure by God!
Truly - give us this day our daily bread!
Reading on is it any wonder we need this treasure within us- given to us by the all powerful, wondrous, praiseworthy God! If we try to manufacture this treasure within it would be powerless and we need the power of God if we are to live for Him.
2Co 4:8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
2Co 4:9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed
2Co 4:10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
2Co 4:11 For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
2Co 4:12 So then death worketh in us, but life in you.
2Co 4:13 We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;
2Co 4:14 Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.
2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
2Co 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
2Co 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
2Co 4:18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
By the grace of our Lord may we receive the gift of eternal life through the power and majesty, the glory of His love towards us. May we be earthen vessels filled with the treasure of all He is all through His excellent power!
In His Love!
Amen.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Moses' Treasure in Heaven
Heb 11:26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
Greater than the treasures in Egypt.
Today we know for a fact that the treasures of Egypt are immense, priceless, unfathomable. The sheer value of that treasure today is enormous. When Egypt was - what we call today - a 'super power' back in the days of Moses the wealth they possessed was fantastic. Moses was born not into that wealth but adopted into it all. He knew when he grew older that he was really a Hebrew and not an Egyptian, that he was adopted not born into the position he held.
It's somewhat easy to comprehend how a person feels towards their *natural* heritage isn't it? That kinship to a natural connection as opposed to an adopted one. That's not to say there aren't many adopted people who absolutely love their adopted families and even to the exclusion of their natural family. Yet there is a tremendous desire for adopted people to find their natural families and it's understandable, it really is.
Moses had an amazingly pampered life as part of Egyptian royalty yet he felt this pull towards his natural heritage. Could it be that Moses was witness to a lot of abuse towards those of his heritage? Seriously. Could one isolated incident really have set him off? Are abuses of masters towards slaves rare? Absolutely not. Moses grew up watching the Hebrew slaves being abused at the whims of their masters.
Read this...
Exo 2:11 And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren.
Exo 2:12 And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.
Can you tell me with all certainty that Moses went one day to look at the Hebrew slaves in the field- obviously out to wherever it was they were working whether it was in fields or on masonry projects- and because he saw an Egyptian abusing a Hebrew slave - one of his kind, one of his blood, his heritage- he just decided it'd be a good idea to kill the Egyptian? I can't fathom that. There was more to this than we realize fully, more that logic declares had to be going on.
Moses was an adopted Egyptian, given the luxurious life of an Egyptian, witness to the hard life of the Hebrew slaves. He knew that to choose the side of the Hebrews over the Egyptians would mean a complete life altering change and he didn't choose that, but he had to have had thoughts. These thoughts culminated in the choice he made that day as he witnessed the abuse of the Hebrew slave. He had to avenge his helpless brother. But still he didn't impulsively rush to the slave's aid. It says this…
'he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man,'
He looked to see if anyone was around! He didn't want to be seen helping the Hebrew slave! He wanted to help him but he didn't want to get caught doing so. Getting caught would mean HE would be in trouble and he knew this before going to help. Moses realized the ramification of his actions should he be seen and he didn't want to be seen. This wasn't some grand statement he was trying to make for his people. He wasn't making a spectacle of his act at all whatsoever.
After looking about making sure no one was there Moses killed the Egyptian and then…
'he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand. ' Hid him in the sand. He hid the body. Moses definitely did NOT want anyone to know what he'd done.
So here we have Moses changing his life irrevocably. He made a decision in that moment to SAVE a Hebrew from an Egyptian. It's fair to say that the Egyptian was in the wrong here and that the smiting he was doing was very severe otherwise Moses wouldn't have interfered. He knew enough to be able to determine that what he was witnessing in this particular beating wasn't a minor incident. It wasn't a little reprimand. Moses knew the slave would die at the hands of the Egyptian if he didn't interfere and even though he didn't want to be found out, he wanted to save the Hebrew slave, he DID save the Hebrew slave. He made a choice and he had time to realize that what he was doing meant making a choice. He turned his back on his adopted family, the family who raised him to believe they were superior to ALL slaves, that slaves could be beaten and even murdered and it didn't matter. That action of Moses' was culmination of things. No, it wasn't a preplanned murder but it was a spontaneous killing as a result of the 'right or wrong' Moses had been witnessing throughout his life. A decision was made in those few moments that reflected Moses' decision to stand up for those being wronged. He was choosing right over wrong and in doing so he was choosing to abandon the Egyptian life.
When we read this…
Heb 11:24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
Heb 11:25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
Heb 11:26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
Now read this again…
Exo 2:11 And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren.
Exo 2:12 And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.
Compare the two-
When he was come to years
When Moses was grown
Compare the two-
Refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God
That he went out unto his brethren and looked on their burdens
Yes, Moses had been in the process of making a decision for awhile.
We have to remember that Moses was raised for quite some time by his *real* Hebrew mother, among his *real* Hebrew family. Then when he was older he was sent to live as the son of the Pharaoh's daughter. From his youngest impressions he was raised to know Hebrew love, God's love. He witnessed first hand the love of God in this family and it was something He couldn't shake no matter what he was given as an adopted Egyptian prince. Take his youngest years and mingle it with the horrors committed against people he'd known to be loving as he grew to manhood and Moses was in a unique position to understand that there WAS a difference - there was the real love of God in His chosen people and there was real horror and hatred among those who were godless.
Moses CHOSE to suffer affliction rather than enjoy the sin, the pleasures, the life of ease he knew so well.
Heb 11:26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
Moses understood that it was better to suffer for God and endure all the hatred that God-hater's could give him than accept the TREASURES in Egypt. Why? Because he knew- he had respect to the recompence of the true reward found only in the salvation of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
Where was Moses' treasure???
HEAVEN!
Moses is the PRIME example of a keeping treasures in heaven. Moses is a prime example of choosing God over earthly treasures. We think it's hard to give up our lives for God, to give up our selfishness, to give up our pleasures and lives of ease, and you know what… it is hard no one is saying it isn't. We know it's hard and every single one of us will have to make the choice. We have treasures but WHAT we consider treasures and where those treasures are kept is the choices we make. If we choose to keep our treasures in heaven- our salvation in our most heavenly Savior - then we choose not to have treasure here on earth. We choose NOT to have any treasure that would keep us from our heavenly treasure.
Only by the grace of God is this possible. If we think we can do this on our own then we don't know a thing about the salvation God offers us in Christ Jesus, the kingdom of heaven.
In His love!
Amen.
Greater than the treasures in Egypt.
Today we know for a fact that the treasures of Egypt are immense, priceless, unfathomable. The sheer value of that treasure today is enormous. When Egypt was - what we call today - a 'super power' back in the days of Moses the wealth they possessed was fantastic. Moses was born not into that wealth but adopted into it all. He knew when he grew older that he was really a Hebrew and not an Egyptian, that he was adopted not born into the position he held.
It's somewhat easy to comprehend how a person feels towards their *natural* heritage isn't it? That kinship to a natural connection as opposed to an adopted one. That's not to say there aren't many adopted people who absolutely love their adopted families and even to the exclusion of their natural family. Yet there is a tremendous desire for adopted people to find their natural families and it's understandable, it really is.
Moses had an amazingly pampered life as part of Egyptian royalty yet he felt this pull towards his natural heritage. Could it be that Moses was witness to a lot of abuse towards those of his heritage? Seriously. Could one isolated incident really have set him off? Are abuses of masters towards slaves rare? Absolutely not. Moses grew up watching the Hebrew slaves being abused at the whims of their masters.
Read this...
Exo 2:11 And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren.
Exo 2:12 And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.
Can you tell me with all certainty that Moses went one day to look at the Hebrew slaves in the field- obviously out to wherever it was they were working whether it was in fields or on masonry projects- and because he saw an Egyptian abusing a Hebrew slave - one of his kind, one of his blood, his heritage- he just decided it'd be a good idea to kill the Egyptian? I can't fathom that. There was more to this than we realize fully, more that logic declares had to be going on.
Moses was an adopted Egyptian, given the luxurious life of an Egyptian, witness to the hard life of the Hebrew slaves. He knew that to choose the side of the Hebrews over the Egyptians would mean a complete life altering change and he didn't choose that, but he had to have had thoughts. These thoughts culminated in the choice he made that day as he witnessed the abuse of the Hebrew slave. He had to avenge his helpless brother. But still he didn't impulsively rush to the slave's aid. It says this…
'he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man,'
He looked to see if anyone was around! He didn't want to be seen helping the Hebrew slave! He wanted to help him but he didn't want to get caught doing so. Getting caught would mean HE would be in trouble and he knew this before going to help. Moses realized the ramification of his actions should he be seen and he didn't want to be seen. This wasn't some grand statement he was trying to make for his people. He wasn't making a spectacle of his act at all whatsoever.
After looking about making sure no one was there Moses killed the Egyptian and then…
'he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand. ' Hid him in the sand. He hid the body. Moses definitely did NOT want anyone to know what he'd done.
So here we have Moses changing his life irrevocably. He made a decision in that moment to SAVE a Hebrew from an Egyptian. It's fair to say that the Egyptian was in the wrong here and that the smiting he was doing was very severe otherwise Moses wouldn't have interfered. He knew enough to be able to determine that what he was witnessing in this particular beating wasn't a minor incident. It wasn't a little reprimand. Moses knew the slave would die at the hands of the Egyptian if he didn't interfere and even though he didn't want to be found out, he wanted to save the Hebrew slave, he DID save the Hebrew slave. He made a choice and he had time to realize that what he was doing meant making a choice. He turned his back on his adopted family, the family who raised him to believe they were superior to ALL slaves, that slaves could be beaten and even murdered and it didn't matter. That action of Moses' was culmination of things. No, it wasn't a preplanned murder but it was a spontaneous killing as a result of the 'right or wrong' Moses had been witnessing throughout his life. A decision was made in those few moments that reflected Moses' decision to stand up for those being wronged. He was choosing right over wrong and in doing so he was choosing to abandon the Egyptian life.
When we read this…
Heb 11:24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
Heb 11:25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
Heb 11:26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
Now read this again…
Exo 2:11 And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren.
Exo 2:12 And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.
Compare the two-
When he was come to years
When Moses was grown
Compare the two-
Refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God
That he went out unto his brethren and looked on their burdens
Yes, Moses had been in the process of making a decision for awhile.
We have to remember that Moses was raised for quite some time by his *real* Hebrew mother, among his *real* Hebrew family. Then when he was older he was sent to live as the son of the Pharaoh's daughter. From his youngest impressions he was raised to know Hebrew love, God's love. He witnessed first hand the love of God in this family and it was something He couldn't shake no matter what he was given as an adopted Egyptian prince. Take his youngest years and mingle it with the horrors committed against people he'd known to be loving as he grew to manhood and Moses was in a unique position to understand that there WAS a difference - there was the real love of God in His chosen people and there was real horror and hatred among those who were godless.
Moses CHOSE to suffer affliction rather than enjoy the sin, the pleasures, the life of ease he knew so well.
Heb 11:26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
Moses understood that it was better to suffer for God and endure all the hatred that God-hater's could give him than accept the TREASURES in Egypt. Why? Because he knew- he had respect to the recompence of the true reward found only in the salvation of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
Where was Moses' treasure???
HEAVEN!
Moses is the PRIME example of a keeping treasures in heaven. Moses is a prime example of choosing God over earthly treasures. We think it's hard to give up our lives for God, to give up our selfishness, to give up our pleasures and lives of ease, and you know what… it is hard no one is saying it isn't. We know it's hard and every single one of us will have to make the choice. We have treasures but WHAT we consider treasures and where those treasures are kept is the choices we make. If we choose to keep our treasures in heaven- our salvation in our most heavenly Savior - then we choose not to have treasure here on earth. We choose NOT to have any treasure that would keep us from our heavenly treasure.
Only by the grace of God is this possible. If we think we can do this on our own then we don't know a thing about the salvation God offers us in Christ Jesus, the kingdom of heaven.
In His love!
Amen.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
What is the measure of our covetousness?
There are more verses on treasure I'd like to touch on today.
Yesterday we began by studying these verses from Matthew-
Mat 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
Mat 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Today let's read this verse-
Jer 51:13 O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousness.
The measure of thy covetousness.
What other reason is there to collect earthly treasures than covetousness?
Seriously. Look around you (assuming you are at home) what sort of things do you possess? What among them do you call necessities- that are truly necessities? What among those necessities are what you would label simple necessities rather than luxurious necessities, because make no mistake our covetousness will lead us to buy luxurious necessities and we console ourselves by say they are only necessities- not really anything special.
For example- a bed. Who doesn't want a nice comfortable bed? There is nothing wrong with wanting a bed that is conducive towards a good night's rest. But if we get the most fancy bed we can afford so that it's very pleasing to our eyes, what does that mean? Aren't we supposed to want stuff that is pleasing to our senses? To what point do we indulge our senses? When do our senses become perverted? How likely are we to have our senses indulged and in the process we let Satan creep into our lives using a deceptive manner to do so.
What is the measure of our covetousness? Are we abundant in treasures? Who decides?
To my way of thinking I have very little *treasure*. To another who has absolutely nothing I have the grandest treasures they can only dream about. So how do we know what abundant treasures really are? To the very rich who indulge in their whims they have treasures far, far beyond anything I can imagine. But is it only the rich who are abundant in treasures? I don't think so. A poor person can covet something greatly, couldn't they? If a poor person has but one thing and they covet it above God, above salvation through our Savior, if they keep their treasure here on earth and not in the kingdom of heaven then where is their heart? Their heart is not with God, their heart is not in the kingdom. If our hearts are not in the kingdom then we will NOT inherit the kingdom.
Jer 51:13 O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousness.
This verse must make us think about the measure of our covetousness. We have to ask ourselves the question facing our own potential to covet, our own potential to keep our treasures right here on earth- within reach or close by with easy access.
After recognizing the measure of our own covetousness we have to pray and ask our Savior to help us, to forgive us, to guide us, to reveal the sin in our lives that we need to confess and then to help us repent. It is by HIS righteousness alone we are saved and by HIS righteousness alone we live, we hope, we love.
What is the measure of our covetousness?
How abundant are our treasures?
We can't make the mistake of thinking just because we aren't millionaires or billionaires rolling in money that we don't have the potential to covet, that what we have all around us aren't treasures. Like I wrote above- we can be poor and still have treasures here on earth not in heaven. Yes, the more money we have the harder it is to *not* gather earthly treasures- coveting the best we can afford, so yes- the rich will find it a lot harder to not covet, to not keep their treasures here on earth. By the grace of God we will keep our treasures where they belong- with our Savior, in the kingdom of heaven.
Amen.
Yesterday we began by studying these verses from Matthew-
Mat 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
Mat 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Today let's read this verse-
Jer 51:13 O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousness.
The measure of thy covetousness.
What other reason is there to collect earthly treasures than covetousness?
Seriously. Look around you (assuming you are at home) what sort of things do you possess? What among them do you call necessities- that are truly necessities? What among those necessities are what you would label simple necessities rather than luxurious necessities, because make no mistake our covetousness will lead us to buy luxurious necessities and we console ourselves by say they are only necessities- not really anything special.
For example- a bed. Who doesn't want a nice comfortable bed? There is nothing wrong with wanting a bed that is conducive towards a good night's rest. But if we get the most fancy bed we can afford so that it's very pleasing to our eyes, what does that mean? Aren't we supposed to want stuff that is pleasing to our senses? To what point do we indulge our senses? When do our senses become perverted? How likely are we to have our senses indulged and in the process we let Satan creep into our lives using a deceptive manner to do so.
What is the measure of our covetousness? Are we abundant in treasures? Who decides?
To my way of thinking I have very little *treasure*. To another who has absolutely nothing I have the grandest treasures they can only dream about. So how do we know what abundant treasures really are? To the very rich who indulge in their whims they have treasures far, far beyond anything I can imagine. But is it only the rich who are abundant in treasures? I don't think so. A poor person can covet something greatly, couldn't they? If a poor person has but one thing and they covet it above God, above salvation through our Savior, if they keep their treasure here on earth and not in the kingdom of heaven then where is their heart? Their heart is not with God, their heart is not in the kingdom. If our hearts are not in the kingdom then we will NOT inherit the kingdom.
Jer 51:13 O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousness.
This verse must make us think about the measure of our covetousness. We have to ask ourselves the question facing our own potential to covet, our own potential to keep our treasures right here on earth- within reach or close by with easy access.
After recognizing the measure of our own covetousness we have to pray and ask our Savior to help us, to forgive us, to guide us, to reveal the sin in our lives that we need to confess and then to help us repent. It is by HIS righteousness alone we are saved and by HIS righteousness alone we live, we hope, we love.
What is the measure of our covetousness?
How abundant are our treasures?
We can't make the mistake of thinking just because we aren't millionaires or billionaires rolling in money that we don't have the potential to covet, that what we have all around us aren't treasures. Like I wrote above- we can be poor and still have treasures here on earth not in heaven. Yes, the more money we have the harder it is to *not* gather earthly treasures- coveting the best we can afford, so yes- the rich will find it a lot harder to not covet, to not keep their treasures here on earth. By the grace of God we will keep our treasures where they belong- with our Savior, in the kingdom of heaven.
Amen.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Could you walk away from everything?
Mat 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
Mat 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Could you walk away from EVERYTHING you own right this minute?
Christ did NOT tell us to not have homes to live in. Christ visited homes to lodge with people and eat meals with them. He didn't go into those homes and tell the occupants that to have a place in the kingdom with Him they had to give up their homes and all their possessions and go about preaching the gospel to others. Taking things out of context can make a person want to *give up* on being a Christian because they can't fathom how they'll ever be able to do it when they can't seem to be all they perceive a Christian should be.
Are some people truly called to give up all they possess and go preach the gospel? Yes. I fully believe some people are called to that way of life. I believe others are called to be humble in the little they do possess and to preach the gospel as they are called. I also believe others are called to be stewards of much and how they deal with that wealth has to be in the manner the Lord directs them- unselfishly - as they too are to preach the gospel.
So when people get all up in arms and say we are to have nothing, we have to be realistic and ask ourselves if the Bible… if our God actually tells everyone of us to simply be preaching wanderers. It doesn't tell us that at all. Every one of the apostles spent many a night as they traveled, in a home of fellow believers without telling those believers to pack up their goods and take to the road as they were doing.
Did Christ preach the gathering of earthly treasures. No. In fact we are not to desire to hold on to ANYTHING over the desire of having Christ in our lives. We are to put NOTHING before God. We are to worship ONLY our Savior.
So asking you if you'd give up everything you own right this minute has to be followed with- if that is your calling.
Seriously. We are called and each of us are called to a different walk, a personal walk between us and our Savior. You can't judge my walk and I can't judge yours. We can accept each other has a personal walk with God and help each other in any way the help is needed.
None of our *REAL* treasures should be on earth. Our hearts must be in the heavenly kingdom not stuck in any single thing on this earth- not in any person, place, or thing here. A treasure is something we cherish. Do I have treasures? Yes. But I like to believe that none of the *thing* I consider treasures would keep me from choosing my Savior over them. If I lost everything I own in a fire my life would not be over. Would I be incredibly sad over losing what I consider family heirlooms? Yes. Would I hate the fact that many costly things would be gone. We think of pictures taken over the years. We think of books that are irreplaceable because they are personally marked. We think of toys we may have had as children. We think of costly computers, costly electronics, our clothes, you ALL know what I'm talking about-- things.
Anything that could be stolen from us, anything that can be destroyed we must not treasure over our God, and that's people included. We might lay down our lives for a loved one, or even a stranger if we are called to do so. We cannot even treasure our selves above God but be willing to lay down our lives for Him.
By the grace of our Lord and Savior may we be fully His as we seek to keep our true treasures, treasures that mean more than anything to us in heaven- the priceless treasure of the love of our Savior.
In His Love!
Amen.
Mat 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Could you walk away from EVERYTHING you own right this minute?
Christ did NOT tell us to not have homes to live in. Christ visited homes to lodge with people and eat meals with them. He didn't go into those homes and tell the occupants that to have a place in the kingdom with Him they had to give up their homes and all their possessions and go about preaching the gospel to others. Taking things out of context can make a person want to *give up* on being a Christian because they can't fathom how they'll ever be able to do it when they can't seem to be all they perceive a Christian should be.
Are some people truly called to give up all they possess and go preach the gospel? Yes. I fully believe some people are called to that way of life. I believe others are called to be humble in the little they do possess and to preach the gospel as they are called. I also believe others are called to be stewards of much and how they deal with that wealth has to be in the manner the Lord directs them- unselfishly - as they too are to preach the gospel.
So when people get all up in arms and say we are to have nothing, we have to be realistic and ask ourselves if the Bible… if our God actually tells everyone of us to simply be preaching wanderers. It doesn't tell us that at all. Every one of the apostles spent many a night as they traveled, in a home of fellow believers without telling those believers to pack up their goods and take to the road as they were doing.
Did Christ preach the gathering of earthly treasures. No. In fact we are not to desire to hold on to ANYTHING over the desire of having Christ in our lives. We are to put NOTHING before God. We are to worship ONLY our Savior.
So asking you if you'd give up everything you own right this minute has to be followed with- if that is your calling.
Seriously. We are called and each of us are called to a different walk, a personal walk between us and our Savior. You can't judge my walk and I can't judge yours. We can accept each other has a personal walk with God and help each other in any way the help is needed.
None of our *REAL* treasures should be on earth. Our hearts must be in the heavenly kingdom not stuck in any single thing on this earth- not in any person, place, or thing here. A treasure is something we cherish. Do I have treasures? Yes. But I like to believe that none of the *thing* I consider treasures would keep me from choosing my Savior over them. If I lost everything I own in a fire my life would not be over. Would I be incredibly sad over losing what I consider family heirlooms? Yes. Would I hate the fact that many costly things would be gone. We think of pictures taken over the years. We think of books that are irreplaceable because they are personally marked. We think of toys we may have had as children. We think of costly computers, costly electronics, our clothes, you ALL know what I'm talking about-- things.
Anything that could be stolen from us, anything that can be destroyed we must not treasure over our God, and that's people included. We might lay down our lives for a loved one, or even a stranger if we are called to do so. We cannot even treasure our selves above God but be willing to lay down our lives for Him.
By the grace of our Lord and Savior may we be fully His as we seek to keep our true treasures, treasures that mean more than anything to us in heaven- the priceless treasure of the love of our Savior.
In His Love!
Amen.
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