Month: March 2014

Hebrews 10:24
“And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:”

The family relationship and the relationship of the Christian and the church mirror each other. For instance, you show me what type of relationship you have with your spouse and I will show you what type of relationship you have with God. They are a mirror of each other. You show me what type of relationship a Christian has with their church and I will show you what type of relationship a person has with their family. You cannot separate them because one affects the other.

In the verse above, we are commanded to provoke each other. The word “provoke” means, to stimulate, to call into action or to give rise to an emotion. God was showing the Christian what it would take to keep a good relationship with Him and the church. These same actions are needed to provoke strong family relationships.

First, to provoke love in the family, each member of the family must be filled with good works. When family members become selfish and make everything about themselves, then instead of having a family filled with love you will have a family filled with selfishness. You will never have a strong family without each person in the family working to help each other. This is why I believe it’s important that the children get involved in helping their parents around the house. It teaches them to be filled with good works so that love prevails in the family.

Second, if you are going to have strong family relationships, then you must have time together. Verse 25 says, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together…” God is showing the Christian the importance of church attendance and their relationship with other brothers and sisters. If it is important for Christians to assemble together to keep a strong relationship with their church, then it’s important for families to have time with each other.

There are some times I believe that are important for families to assemble with each other. Every family should assemble to have their evening meal together. If at all possible, I believe it would be good to have breakfast together as well. These are times to talk about your day. Furthermore, I also believe you should have daily family devotions. This will provoke spirituality in the family. Moreover, I also believe it’s important to have a family vacation together. This will help the family to enjoy time away from everyone else to build ties together.

Third, strong family relationships are built by exhorting each other. Verse 25 says, “…but exhorting one another…” The family must not be a place where they compete against each other for superiority, but it should be a place where they cheer for every member’s success. Don’t let your family be a place where each member is tearing the other down, but make your family a place where encouragement is present. Every member of the family should know that they at least have their family in their corner.

Friend, you only have one family. I encourage you to strengthen your family. Let your home be a place that is filled with love, encouragement and spirituality. A home that has an atmosphere filled with these things is a home where you will find joy and close bonds.

Hebrews 3:12
“Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.”

The children of Israel missed out on the greatest blessings of God because they would not by faith obey God’s command to go into the Promised Land. For forty years they wandered, complained, murmured and many died because they doubted what God said He would do through them. It is sad that they missed out on forty years of God’s blessings. We will never know what blessings God had for them had they obeyed and went forward into the Promised Land.

It is sad to say that most of us miss out of God’s blessings just like the children of Israel. It is easy to sit in judgment as we look back at them and understand that God did come through and brought them into the Promised Land, but God also has a Promised Land for us and we must claim it by faith or else we also will miss out on God’s blessings. God shows us in Hebrews 3 the one step a person takes that causes them to miss out on His blessings.

The one step they took was not believing God’s promise. Notice it says in the verse above, “lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief…” What kept the children of Israel from going into the Promised Land? Unbelief! It wasn’t the giants of the land that kept them from experiencing God’s blessings. It wasn’t the huge walls that prevented them from enjoying God’s blessings. It wasn’t the iron chariots that hindered God’s blessings. Though these were their excuses, the reason they missed out on God’s blessings was because they didn’t believe God.

What are the excuses you have used to disobey the will of God? In God’s will are His blessings, and if you choose to use an excuse to camouflage your unbelief, then you are choosing not to have God’s blessings on your life. Your unbelief in God’s Word is the only thing preventing you from His blessings.

A person’s unbelief that God will bless them if they will tithe is the only thing keeping them from His blessings. The unbelief that God could use you to win someone to Christ is the only thing keeping you from His blessings. The unbelief that prevents you from going forward into God’s will for your life is the only thing keeping you from experiencing His blessings.

Friend, God’s blessings will only be experienced when you live the life of faith and obey. The Book of Hebrews is all about living the life of faith, and the children of Israel missed out on God’s blessings because of their lack of faith. Verse 19 says, “So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.”

I ask you, what is preventing you from entering your Promised Land? Always remember that the reason you are not experiencing God’s blessings is never His fault, but yours. Unbelief in what God tells us to do is what turns off His blessings.

I encourage you to always obey God’s voice. I know at times you may not see how it will work, but you always have to obey God to receive His blessings. There have been many times in my life when God wanted me to do something and it seemed impossible, but every time I obeyed I received His blessings. Likewise, God’s blessings are waiting for you, but you must plug your ears to the voice of unbelief and step out by faith and obey God. When you do this, you will see God’s blessings begin to pour out on your life.

1 Timothy 4:16
“Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.”

Influence is defined as the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone. Everyone has influence on someone, and nobody knows the amount of influence they have. Sadly, you never learn someone’s influence until they do something wrong or they pass away; however, the fingers of influence always go deeper than anyone can imagine.

The Apostle Paul cautioned young Timothy about his influence. What is interesting in his caution about influence is that Paul said that we not only influence others, but we also influence ourselves. In his caution to Timothy about influence, he tells him that there are three areas in which he must be extremely careful to protect his influence from becoming a wrong influence.

First, Paul cautioned Timothy to be careful how he lived. He says, “Take heed unto thyself…” How you live will influence what you become and what you lead others to do. One of the common statements I make is that you must always think about the next generation with every decision you make. The way you live may not cause you to go into sin or compromise truth, but it may cause the next generation who follows you to sin or compromise.

You must realize that someone is watching you all the time. When you think you are alone, someone is still watching. Moreover, even if nobody were watching you, what you do in your private life is influencing you to become something in the future. You must be very careful with how you live so that your influence will not lead others down the wrong path.

Second, Paul cautioned Timothy to be careful with what he believed. He says, “Take heed…unto the doctrine…” Many people have doctrinally changed throughout the years and influenced others to go down a wrong path. Friend, be careful whom and what you read. Let the Word of God be your final authority on everything. If you read a book that presents something new, don’t immediately jump on the bandwagon until you study the Scriptures. I like what one preacher told me years ago, he said if you hear something that causes you to raise an eyebrow, then you’re probably listening to something that raises God’s eyebrow.

Third, Paul cautioned Timothy to be faithful. He says, “…continue in them…” Your faithfulness to what you believe and to living what you believe is imperative to your influence. To say you believe something but to live a life contrary to what you believe only influences people to copy what you live. People will always follow your last act. You must be careful that your last act won’t influence someone to do wrong.

Christian, don’t ever forget that you have an influence on someone. These three areas where Paul cautioned Timothy are critical to protecting your influence. Don’t let your influence lead someone to do wrong, but let your influence be positive for the sake of Christ. Always remember that everything you do is your last act, and people will always follow your last act.

2 Thessalonians 3:6
“Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.”

Every parent who truly cares for their child will prevent them from playing with children who could turn them away from what they are supposed to be. I remember when I was a boy there were people my age with whom my mother would not let me spend much time. There were times my mother would not let me go to someone’s birthday party because she knew that person would be a bad influence on me. She was not trying to be mean to that family, but she was simply trying to protect her son.

If a parent will protect their child from bad influences, then why would God not protect His children from bad influences? In fact, He does! In the verse above, God makes it very clear that there are some bad influences with whom Christians should not associate. God was not talking about the bad influences that come from the world, but He was talking about Christian brethren who are bad influences. God calls them disorderly. Who are these bad or disorderly influences from whom we are to withdraw?

First, you are to withdraw yourself from the influences who don’t properly believe the Word of God. 2 Thessalonians 2:15 says, “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” When someone does not believe the King James Bible is the Word of God, then you are to withdraw from them. In other words, you don’t go to their church, read their books or associate with them. They are a disorderly influence.

Second, you are to withdraw from those who don’t hold the traditions we have been taught by our forefathers. This is interesting in that God wants us to know what those before us taught. In other words, there are people who avoid being associated with those who stood in the past, but God says to withdraw from those who would be critical of them. There are men like J. Frank Norris, Lee Roberson, Jack Hyles and Tom Malone who have shown us how to build a church and separate from liberals. Instead of being critical of their methods, God says to withdraw from those who are critical of their methods.

Third, withdraw yourself from those who won’t work. Verse 10 shows us that not working is a disorderly influence. In other words, those who are lazy both in the spiritual and earthly realm should be avoided. Don’t go to churches that are not aggressively going after the lost. Lazy churches and lazy Christians should be avoided. Likewise, those who don’t physically work are people from whom you should withdraw. God doesn’t want you to learn their disorderly ways.

What is interesting is that God says in verses 14-15, “And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.” Notice that you are not to be unfriendly to these people, but you are to be kind and treat them “as a brother” when you are around them. God is not saying that we have to be a jerk to these people, but we are to be kind to them when we see them, just don’t spend time with them.

God is interested in your spiritual well-being. God’s telling you to withdraw from someone should not be grievous to you, but it should be a sense of endearment that God cares enough about you to protect you from disorderly influences. Don’t let the disorderly make you feel bad because you withdraw. God says in verse 13, “…be not weary in well doing.” It won’t be easy to withdraw, but God knows it is best for you if you want to serve Him with your entire life.

Philippians 1:27
“Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;”

One of the sad things about Christians is that we tend to fight against each other more than we work together. With so many things that seem to be worthy of fighting, you would think that we could set aside some of our petty differences for the sake of the Gospel. If our personality conflicts could be set aside, I truly believe that we could strive together to accomplish great things for God.

Paul challenged the church at Philippi to strive together “for the faith of the gospel.” In the previous verses, he explains how there were many who were preaching Christ, not for the sake of the Gospel, but to add contention among the brethren and to add to his affliction. By challenging them to strive together, he was saying they needed to wrestle together or labor together for the furtherance of the Gospel. With this thought in mind, let me point out some things that God emphasized about striving together.

First, the focal point is the Gospel. I want you to notice that God does not say to strive together to get someone elected into office, to get legislation passed or to see a social agenda furthered. They were to strive together to spread the Gospel. The Gospel of Jesus Christ must always be our focal point of striving together.

Second, the challenge was to a local church. Paul was not challenging every church to strive together, but he gave the challenge to one local church. Often we take this challenge that every church needs to set aside their differences for the sake of the Gospel. NO! This is to the local church. We must be careful that we don’t get so focused on unity that we believe unity between churches is what God wants. God never addresses a conglomerate of churches. He always addresses the local church. The local church is to strive together for the Gospel.

Third, the challenge was to strive together for the Gospel and not the furtherance of a personality. One of the biggest problems I see in our churches today is that we get caught up in fighting for personalities and not for the Gospel. Let me make it clear that the only personality for Whom we are to fight is the personality of Jesus Christ. Stop striving for human personalities and start striving for the Gospel.

Fourth, we are not to compromise what we believe to strive for the Gospel. Notice that the challenge to strive was for the “faith of the gospel.” I’m not to lay aside the faith so the Gospel can be spread, I’m to hold onto the faith and strive to spread the Gospel. Don’t fall for the Devil’s trap that we must set aside the faith so the Gospel can be spread. If you lose the faith, then you will start spreading a different gospel.

Fifth, don’t get so wrapped up in striving that you turn to striving against each other. Be careful that you don’t get so used to fighting that you start fighting those who are fighting with you. It’s easy to get in such a fighting spirit that you get sidetracked and start fighting those along side of you. Don’t fight people, but fight for the faith. Yes, our opponent is always a human, but we must realize we are not fighting them, but we are fighting that for which they stand. Your goal should be to see your opponent reached with the Gospel you’re striving to spread.

Friend, keep your focus right. Remember it is a battle and you will unfortunately lose people in this battle, but continue to strive together with those in your local church so the Gospel can reach the lost of your city.

Galatians 5:4
“Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”

What does it mean to fall from grace? Does it mean that a person can lose their salvation? Not at all! When trying to understand any portion of Scripture, you must look at all of the Scriptures to see what a phrase means. When looking at the Scriptures as a whole, you understand that once a person is saved they will always be saved. God promised to give us eternal life at salvation. If God would have promised conditional life, then we would understand that our salvation is based upon conditions that God set up. But, God said that He gave us eternal life at salvation, that means no matter what we do after salvation we will always be saved.

The word “fallen” means, to drop away or to be driven out of one’s course. In other words, when a person falls away from grace, that means they stop living the Christian lifestyle and start living a life of sin. Verse 7 probably explains this phrase the best when it says, “Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?” Notice, to fall from grace mean someone stopped obeying the truth. To fall from grace means to drop away from living the Christian life. To fall from grace means to get off course. It means something sidetracked the Christian from living the way they were supposed to live. In other words, they stopped living the Christian life to live some other lifestyle. Yes, they are still saved, but they fell away from the life that grace gave.

Christian, when you got saved, you were saved from a life of sin to a life of freedom in Christ. Why would you ever want to go back to bondage? Why would you ever think another life would give you more freedom? God saved you to live a life of freedom. His grace is given so that you no longer have to be in bondage to sin. You must be careful that nothing sidetracks you from living the Christian life.

Throughout my lifetime I have had many dogs as pets. In recent years my dogs have been trained. Whenever my dog listens to me, they earn the freedom to be off leash when we take walks in the morning. As long as the dog obeys my voice and doesn’t get sidetracked from other dogs or people, it has the freedom to not be restrained by a leash. The freedom does not permit the dog to do whatever it wants, but rather to enjoy life under the guidelines that I set forth. At any time the dog stops listening to my voice, it is put back on the leash until it learns to obey the voice of its master.

As long as a Christian listens to the voice of Jesus Christ, they will experience the freedom of grace. The only thing that will cause a Christian to fall away from the graces of God is to start disobeying His voice. Whenever you leave the life of obedience to Christ, you fall away from God’s grace to God’s judgment.

Christian, be careful about listening to any voice that tries to pull you away from serving the LORD. Verse 7 says it was a “who” that hindered someone and caused them to fall away from grace. Any voice but God’s voice will lead you away from God’s graces. Don’t let the voices of the world sidetrack you from serving God. They may seem inviting, but freedom is only experienced by obeying Christ. Keep your eyes on God and live the life He commands you to live, and in that life you will find the greatest freedom. Sin always leads to bondage, but obedience to God’s voice allows the Christian to enjoy the freedom of God’s grace.

Proverbs 25:28
“He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.”

God says that a person who does not control their own spirit is like a defenseless city. In ancient times the only way a city had to defend itself was to build a wall around its borders. You may recall that there is much written in the Scriptures about the walls of Jerusalem. Those walls were there to protect that city from outside sources. God likens a city without walls to the person who does not control their own spirit.

The greatest kingdom you will conquer in life is your own spirit. I have watched people conquer the financial kingdom, but have it destroyed because they never conquered their own spirit. I have watched people climb the ladder of success only to destroy it by not controlling their spirit. It does not matter what kingdoms you may conquer, if you don’t conquer the kingdom of your spirit then you will find that every success will eventually be destroyed. There are some definite spirits you need to conquer in your life.

First, the spirit of bitterness will destroy your life. Bitterness has destroyed the best. One of the people I think of in the Scriptures who did not conquer the spirit of bitterness was Saul. He was bitter because David got more recognition than he, and it literally destroyed his kingdom. I certainly don’t pretend to know what has happened to you in your lifetime, but you must never let anything cause you to become bitter. You must learn to forgive, for forgiveness is the wall that protects you against bitterness.

Second, you need to conquer the spirit of haughtiness. Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” Many people have allowed success to go to their head only to see their haughtiness destroy them. I have watched financial success, education degrees and position cause many to become haughty. The only way to conquer the spirit of haughtiness is to stay humble before God and realize that you are truly nothing without Him.

Third, you must conquer the discouraging spirit. There are people who are negative about everything. This type of spirit will destroy your family and future. A discouraging spirit doesn’t change your surroundings, but it will destroy you. The only way to conquer a discouraging spirit is to allow your joy to come from within. If you don’t let outside circumstances control your spirit, then you can conquer the discouraging spirit.

Fourth, you need to conquer the know-it-all spirit. A know-it-all is truly an annoying person. It doesn’t matter what you have done, the know-it-all has always done it better. At the core of the know-it-all spirit is pride. Pride causes a person to think they know more than another. Always remember that everyone knows something that you do not know, and your journey with others should be to learn from them what you do not know. The best way to conquer the know-it-all spirit is to stop looking at what you do know and look at how much you do not know.

These are just four spirits a person must conquer in life. What spirit is it that you need to conquer? Being in control of your own spirit is imperative to your future. One of your daily prayers should be to ask the Holy Spirit to control your spirit so that you don’t destroy the work that God wants to do through your life. Don’t live your life with broken down walls, but with God’s help conquer the greatest kingdom you can conquer in life, your spirit.