Category: Strength for Today

Mark 7:5
“Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands?”

Everybody has a tradition that they or their family have always done. I’ve traveled to foreign countries where their traditions have been different from mine. I’ve been to homes of people who have traditions different from mine. No matter where you go, you have to deal with traditions.

Jesus dealt with this touchy subject when the disciples sat down to eat without washing their hands. The tradition of the Pharisees was to wash their hands before eating bread. They literally felt that it was a sin to eat without washing your hands. Jesus very wisely instructed the Pharisees that not all traditions are about right and wrong; rather, some are simply a custom that has been handed down from previous generations.

I’m truly amazed of the power of traditions on one’s life. Many traditions have caused needless division that could have been avoided had those involved understood some vital principles concerning traditions. Let me give you some thoughts concerning traditions that will help you in dealing with others.

First, God’s Word is the final authority. You must never forget where the Christian’s authority comes from. It is extremely easy to get your focus off God’s Word and on traditions. This happens when we get our focus on man. There is nothing wrong with looking at how men from the past have done things, but we must always keep God’s Word as our authority. Just because someone from the past has done something doesn’t always mean it is right. You always set aside tradition when it conflicts with God’s Word. God’s Word must be the law and order of every Christian.

Second, don’t let your tradition be a source of division. When God’s Word doesn’t deal with tradition, don’t make tradition mandatory for everyone. Just because you have always done something a certain way, or just because you have seen others always do something a certain way doesn’t mean that it is law. Jesus said in verse 7, “Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Tradition is not doctrine; it’s tradition. Don’t confuse the two. If someone does something differently from you, don’t consider them a heretic just because they don’t follow your tradition.

Third, realize that all tradition is based upon opinion. If you strongly stand for truth, it can be easy to let your opinionated tradition become the measurement of truth. Don’t be so steeped into a tradition that you destroy the work of God. For instance, just because a church you previously attended did something differently than the church you currently attend doesn’t necessarily make either of them right or wrong. Don’t destroy a potential friendship over an opinion of tradition. Allow people to be different from you in how they do things.

It truly comes down to keeping your focus upon the Word of God. When God’s Word sets the tradition, that tradition then becomes doctrine and is a mandatory action for every Christian to follow. When everyone keeps God’s Word as their final authority, it will give others the freedom to practice their traditions without judging. Let me encourage you to stay focused on God’s Word and not on tradition.

Mark 1:19
“And when he had gone a little further thence, he saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the ship mending their nets.”

Jesus had just come down from the time of temptation, and the first thing He did was to go soul winning. He went to the Sea of Galilee and saw Simon and Andrew and said to them as they were casting their nets into the sea, “Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.” For most people, that would be a good day of soul winning. Imagine going home after seeing these two men get saved and telling others how the LORD used you on that day. That would be an exciting time!

Jesus didn’t stop with just the two conversions. Certainly, He must have been tired from coming down from the mount, not eating for forty days and nights, and then spending some time with Simon and Andrew showing them how to get saved. But the verse above shows us something Jesus did that every Christian needs to learn. It says, “And when he had gone a little further thence…” Jesus decided to go a little further, and because He did He was able to reach James and John with the Gospel. Imagine if Jesus would have gone home instead of going further. If He had done this, these men would not have been saved, and we would not be blessed to read about their lives and the books they were used by God to write and place in the Scriptures.

One of the things you must guard against when you go soul winning is quitting too early. Years ago, I lived in Cheyenne, Wyoming. It was a cold wintry night, and just showing up was a victory over the flesh in and of itself. A young man and I went soul winning and didn’t see anyone saved. It was late at night when I told him we needed to go back to the church. He responded that we needed to see someone saved. He went a little further and did something I’ve never seen anyone do before or since. He went out into the middle of the street and started waving his hands trying to get people to stop. A car stopped and asked if he needed help. He responded by telling them that I needed to tell them something. It was amazing! They listened as I gave them the Gospel, and they bowed their head and prayed and received Christ as their Saviour.

Just a few months ago, I was preaching in southern California. We went soul winning during the daytime, and nobody seemed to be home. It was time to go back to the church, but I told the gentlemen who I was with that we would knock on one more door before going back. Behind that one door was a young lady who was going through a rough time. I was able to give her the Gospel, and with tears rolling down her face she prayed and received Christ as her Saviour.

Friend, these are just a couple of stories. All of these happened because someone decided to go to one more person or one more door. If you are not going soul winning, you are missing out on some great experiences, and the greatest thing you are missing out on is seeing people get saved. Moreover, when you go soul winning, don’t be so quick to give up. The next time you go soul winning, try going to one more person or knocking on one more door. When you feel like quitting or you think it is time to be done, go a little further and talk to one more person. That next person could be the one who you were supposed to reach. Don’t let your flesh or faith be so weak that you quit early. Go to one more!

Matthew 22:4
“Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.”

In the verse above, a man was making a marriage for his son. In order for this marriage to be a success, someone had to prepare. It says about this man’s preparation, “…I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.” This marriage was a success because of the preparation that was made.

It can never be stressed enough the importance of preparation. Preparation is the door of execution. If you don’t prepare, you will never execute the plans needed to have success in whatever endeavor you are pursuing. Much talent has been wasted throughout the years because of one’s inability to plan. Let me give you several thoughts about planning that will help you in your everyday life.

First, if an endeavor is worth doing then it is worth planning for. I’ve never understood people who say they believe in something, but they poorly plan for that endeavor. I’m always amazed of the plans that go into a wedding, and they should plan for a wedding, yet endeavors that one is about to pursue that will affect their life for years to come are often poorly planned. If you are going to give the effort to do something, especially if it affects several years of your life or another’s, you need to give the proper time to prepare.

Second, preparation is organizing well ahead of time. You cannot give the proper attention to planning if you are doing it at the last minute. I have been around many people who seem to thrive on last minute preparations, but they wonder why people are stressed when working with them. Friend, you may be able to work at the last minute, but most people don’t work that way. Moreover, your last minute preparation will eventually hurt you. If you know you are going to do something, then start organizing that endeavor well ahead of time.

Third, plan for the expected and the unexpected. If you plan ahead of time for what you know needs to get done, you will have time to take care of the unexpected when it happens. The man in this parable didn’t expect people not to come to the first invitation, so he was able to improvise well because everything else was already planned. You limit your resources to take care of the unexpected when you don’t plan ahead. The unexpected always happens. If you have properly prepared, you will be able to handle the unexpected properly.

Fourth, preparation is completing the endeavor before it is started. You will notice that the man in this parable had everything prepared from beginning to end. That is why he was able to say, “…all things are ready…” To prepare properly, you are going to have to execute the plans for your endeavor in your head so that you will know what all needs to be done. The greatest thing about preparing is that when the event occurs, you have already lived that event several times over. That is how you plan. You have to go through the event to see what needs to be done and to what extent everything needs to be done.

Your ability to prepare will dictate your potential. You will never go beyond your ability to prepare. If you want to excel in life, you had better learn how to organize and prepare. The most successful people in life are those who prepare.

Matthew 18:11
“For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.”

One of the things you will commonly deal with in church work is trying to bring back those who have gone astray. It is very difficult for parents to have to deal with a wayward child as it pulls heavily on their heart. I have also watched many pastors and church ministry leaders grieve over a person going wayward. Seeing someone you love and someone who you have invested time and energy into go the way of the world is no easy burden to carry. Trying to bring the stray back is one of the biggest tasks I see God’s people attempting to do.

Bringing back the stray can only be done by following God’s model. It says in the verse above, “For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.” We often use this verse to talk about soul winning, and it can be used for soul winning, but when you look at this verse in context you will see that it is talking about bringing back the stray. In these verses, God shows why people go astray and what we should do in each instance.

The first story is about a man who had a hundred sheep and one of them went astray. I want you to notice that the sheep belonged to the shepherd, so the one who went astray was not a lost person, but a saved person. God is teaching through this illustration that sometimes people go astray because they get lost in the numbers. In this instance when someone has gone astray because of our inattention to them, we are to do everything in our power to go find them and bring them back. It is very easy to get so busy that you unintentionally lose the heart of someone. You are to do everything in your power to correct your inattention and bring that person back to the fold when they go astray due to our lack of attention.

The second area is where God deals with church discipline. There are going to be times when our actions have caused someone to go astray. It is in these times when we are to find where we were wrong and get it right. After we get right, we are to go to the lost and try to restore them. Unfortunately, there are going to be times when our flesh is the cause of someone being hurt. When this happens, correct what you have done wrong and then go to the individual, apologize for what you did and do everything in your power to restore them.

The third area is an area where many struggle, and that is when someone clearly rebels against God. In this instance, you are to leave them alone and let God deal with them. You will see in verses 15-17 when you have done everything in your power to be sure that you are right, but it is obvious that the other person is wrong, you are to leave that person to God. In other words, don’t go after them! Too often we focus our efforts on the rebel and forsake those who want to do right only to cause more to be hurt. The Devil would love for you to focus your efforts on the rebel because he knows it will cause you to lose more people. Friend, as hard as it may be, you must leave the rebel to God while keeping your focus on those who want to do right.

God concludes by showing that in all of these areas, prayer is the key to restoration. Verse 20 says, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” The fallen will never be restored in any of these areas without prayer. Never stop praying for those who have gone astray. Yes, your actions have an impact, but ultimately it will take God’s power to bring them back.

Psalm 101:2
“I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.”

The potential of your future will be determined by the way that you walk. A person who is careless in their daily walk will be a person who will do things that will severely limit their potential. On the other hand, a person who walks wisely and is careful with what they do in their daily walk will find their future a blessed one with increased potential. The psalm above gives us four characteristics of those who walk wisely.

First, the person who walks wisely protects their alone time. The verse above says, “I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.” What you do when you are alone is truly the indicator of your character. Many times we judge people by what they do in public, but God looks at what a person does when they are alone. You are only as good of a Christian as you are when you are alone. You must be very careful when you are alone. The Devil has destroyed many people in their alone time. If you want the LORD to richly bless your future then you must carefully protect everything you do when you are alone.

Second, the person who walks wisely will protect what they see. Verse 3 says, “I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes…” If you want a blessed conscience, you must protect what you allow your eyes to see. All it takes to corrupt a clean conscience is to see one bad image. Be careful with what you allow yourself to see on television or the internet. The Devil is a master at throwing the wrong image in front of you to cause you to ponder immoral acts. Protect what you see and your conscience will stay pure.

Third, the person who walks wisely will protect their associations. Verse 4 says, “I will not know a wicked person.” God asked in Galatians 5:7, “Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?” It is always a “who” that destroys people. Your associations have to be right if you are going to stay faithful to the LORD to the end of life. Many good people have been corrupted by wrong associations. It is always better to have a few friends who do right than many friends who will pull you away from the ways of the LORD. Solomon learned this lesson the hard way, and you are no different.

Fourth, the person who walks wisely will protect their conversations. Verse 5 says, “Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off…” I heard a wise person once say that shallow people talk about people and wise people talk about ideas. Don’t allow yourself to get caught up in the hearsay about people. Protect your conversations. Protect them from off-color jokes or conversations that are unbecoming to a Christian. Protect your conversations from the wrong words. What you say is a revelation of what is going on in your heart. Protecting your conversations will help you to ward off the wrong associations.

Walking wisely is not done by accident. These four areas of your life must be protected if you are going to successfully walk in the wise way your whole life. Protect these areas and you will protect your future potential.

Matthew 3:10
“And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.”

Any farmer who has an orchard plants the trees so they will bear fruit. That is the only way the farmer can make a living. If he planted the trees and they never bore fruit, he would quickly become bankrupt. He needs the trees that he planted to bear fruit in order to make a living.

Jesus used a tree as the illustration to teach us how to discern who to follow or to whom we should listen. There are many trees out there, but the only type of tree you should follow is the tree that bears good fruit. He says that the tree whose fruit is bad is to be “hewn down, and cast into the fire.” In this illustration, there are several principles that will help you to discern if a preacher or church is a good or bad tree. Let me give you some observations concerning these principles that will help you to avoid following the wrong tree.

First, every tree bears some sort of fruit. It doesn’t matter if the fruit is edible or not, it always bears some sort of fruit. Likewise, every church or preacher bears some sort of fruit. It is your responsibility to determine if the fruit is good or bad. A Christian who plays ignorance concerning the fruit is only trying to cover their rebellion towards God. If you are saved, you have the Holy Spirit indwelling you, and He will help you to discern the fruit if you will yield and listen to Him.

Second, fruit is a result of the tree. We know what an apple tree is because it bears apples. Likewise, when a pastor, church or Bible college has fruit that always tends to be liberal, you must take away that the tree is a liberal tree. I certainly understand that every place has its bad fruit, but, on the whole, the fruit will help you learn what the tree is like because the fruit is a byproduct of the tree.

Third, fruit should come from the old. The apple isn’t a result of an apple, but an apple is a result of the tree. Many Christians get enamored by places where they copy other apples instead of copying the tree. Proven fruit is fruit that comes from the methods of those practiced in the past. Stop justifying the fruit of places where the fruit is not a result of the old.

Fourth, fruit doesn’t kill the tree from whence it came. Could you imagine if the fruit killed the tree from whence it came? If that happened, that tree would become extinct. There are too many churches that are trying to kill the influence of those who have already gone to Heaven and have left us the paths that we should walk. If a place is going to criticize those men of God whom God used in the past but praise the modern day preachers whose fruit is not good fruit, you need to stop all associations with that place or preacher.

Fifth, fruit will perpetuate the tree, not the fruit. The fruit of an apple tree is not an apple, but its fruit is another tree. Always watch out for those places that put more emphasis on the present actions instead of the perpetuating process. If you are only concerned with what you have today without looking at where that came from, you will end up forsaking the old.

Friend, there are many places that carry the “Christian” label, but just because they carry that label doesn’t make them Christian. Look at their fruit and see if it is a result of the old. Only places that perpetuate the old should be followed.

Malachi 2:17
“Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment?”

In the last few verses of the Book of Malachi, God deals with the relationship of the husband and wife. In verse 16, He specifically warns the husband to “take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.” The spirit God was talking about was the spirit of the wife. God then says the one thing that can weary a relationship to the point of destruction are the words you speak.

It is truly amazing to me the power of words in a relationship. All it takes is one time to say the wrong thing, and a marital relationship is forever damaged. You must be careful not to weary your spouse with your words. Just like god was wearied with the words of His people, you can weary your spouse with your words and destroy a good relationship. Many relationships have been destroyed because of words spoken. Yes, the marriage may stay together, but the spirit between the married couple is destroyed because of words spoken. There are several types of words that can destroy a marriage.

First, hurtful words can destroy a relationship. What you say about your spouse in a time of disagreement can damage your relationship. Be careful that you don’t say things on purpose to hurt the spirit of your spouse. Telling your spouse that they are just like their parents won’t help your relationship. Calling them names is hurtful and will damage your relationship. You may only be saying these words in a moment of anger, but those words dig deep and may hurt the one you love.

Second, careless words can hurt your marriage. Be cautious not to be careless with what you say about your spouse. For instance, carelessly comparing your spouse to another person in a demeaning manner will hurt your relationship. If your spouse struggles with their weight, be careful that you don’t say things that would hurt their spirit. What is said in jest can be taken seriously and can destroy the spirit of your marriage.

Third, degrading words can hurt your marriage. Be careful about saying degrading things concerning special times in your marriage relationship. Friend, the tone of your voice can make words sound more degrading than what you truly meant. The best way to keep this from happening is never to degrade anything in your marriage. If your spouse has done something for you, never say something that could sound like you don’t appreciate it. Never minimize landmarks in your marital relationship. The day you first met, the time they first told you that they loved you or the day you got married should never be degraded. Those should be sacred times that are never minimized with words.

Fourth, damaging words will destroy your marriage. The word “divorce” should NEVER be used. All it takes for you to crack the door to divorce is to mention one time the possibility of divorce. Your spouse may take that as an invitation to kick the door wide open. You may later mention you didn’t mean what you said, but because you used that word they took it as an opportunity to get out of a relationship that has been destroyed with words.

One word spoken is all it takes to damage your marriage. Be careful with what you say. Realize that once you say a word it can never be retracted. The best way to protect the spirit of your marriage is to be careful with what you say.

Zechariah 1:3
“Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts.”

God is a very reasonable and fair God. When He created us, He created us with a free choice to be able to do what we want to do. God could have chosen to create us with no ability to choose and only with the ability to act upon His command, but He loved us too much to do that. No other part of God’s creation was created with reasoning and the ability to choose.

With this privilege comes great responsibility. God has left in your hands the opportunity to follow Him or to go and do your own thing. It is completely up to you. You can choose to obey God and follow Him, or you can choose to go your own way but suffer the consequences of that choice.

However, with every action you take, you must take into account that God will react according to your action. It says in the verse above, “…Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you…” Notice the reaction of God. If Israel would turn to the LORD, He would turn unto them. That means if they would have turned away from the LORD, He would turn away from them. This agrees with James 4:8 where it says, “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you…” How God acts towards you is totally dependent upon your action towards Him.

If God reacts toward our actions towards Him, that means that we hold the key to God’s blessings and favor on our lives. I’m always amazed when I talk to individuals who complain about God not being good to them. After questioning them for a short time, I always discover that they are unfaithful in their church attendance and service to God. What these individuals don’t take into consideration is that they are totally at fault as to how God is reacting towards them. They want God to be good to them, but He is a reactor. On the other hand, if you were to question individuals who started doing right, they will always tell you that God is good. The difference between the two types of individuals is their initial action. God puts the onus on the individual to determine His actions towards them.

Friend, how you see God is exactly how He sees you. If you see God as distant or aloof, it is because He sees you the same way. God totally reacts off your action. God is not the initiator, He is the reactor. God could have chosen to be the initiator, but that would have taken away your free will. God wanted you to have a choice, but you must realize that choice comes with consequences. If you choose to turn towards God, He will turn towards you. If you choose to turn away, He then will turn away from you.

With this truth in mind, you can determine the quality of your relationship with God. If you want to have a good day with God, I would advise you to start your day out in the Scriptures and prayer. If you want to have a good week with God, start your week with God in church. If you want God to be involved in every task, start that task out by including God in it with prayer. You hold the keys to the quality of your relationship with God. So, however God is acting towards you, remember that His action is a total reaction towards your initial action. If you don’t like how God is acting towards you, change your actions and you will see Him change how He reacts towards you.

Habakkuk 1:2
“O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save!”

One of the most discouraging things that many Christians face is not getting answers to prayers. The Devil loves to use the time when we perceive that God is not answering our prayers to defeat our spiritual confidence and he even attempts to get us to stop praying. He knows that if we stop praying, he can win some battles.

When you go through times of unanswered prayers, you need to understand that you are not alone. Habakkuk stated to God, “O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear!” In times like these, you must be careful not to make foolish decisions and quit praying or serving the LORD. There are several lessons you can learn from Habakkuk that will help you when you feel your prayers are not being answered.

First, God is not on trial! Habakkuk didn’t threaten God during this period of unanswered prayers. You have to decide that you are going to serve God whether or not He chooses to answer your prayers. You shouldn’t serve God only to get answered prayers, but you need to serve Him because it is right. If you put God on trial every time you pray, there is going to come a time when you stop serving Him.

Second, unanswered prayer is not a reflection of your spirituality. Habakkuk was a Prophet of God, and he didn’t get his prayer answered. It is interesting that God was speaking to Habakkuk, but He just hadn’t answered his prayers. Just because God hasn’t answered your prayer doesn’t mean you are unspiritual. In fact, if you explore the other areas of your life you will probably see that God is talking to you. Certainly, there are times when unanswered prayer is a sign of unspirituality, but that is not always true. Don’t beat yourself up because God isn’t answering the prayer you deem most important. He is probably speaking to you in other areas, so don’t consider yourself unspiritual because your prayer isn’t being answered.

Third, answered prayers must not be the source of your living. What I mean by this statement is that you can’t base your whole spiritual life off answered prayers. God shows us what we are to base our spiritual living on in Habakkuk 2:4 when He says, “…the just shall live by his faith.” Don’t let unanswered prayers affect your attitude or spirituality. If God doesn’t want you to have it or if it is not God’s timing then what you consider an unanswered prayer has been answered. Don’t become short with God or others just because you perceive your prayer or prayers are not being answered. Let your spiritual disposition be based off your faith because your faith will never change and is always present.

Fourth, keep praying! Habakkuk didn’t let the unanswered prayers influence his prayer life. In fact, in Habakkuk 3:1 it says, “A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet upon Shigionoth.” In spite of not having his prayer answered, he kept praying. When your prayers are not being answered, keep praying. When you think Heaven’s doors have been closed to your prayers, keep praying. When you wonder how long is it going to take before God answers your prayer, keep praying. Always remember, “…The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16) Your prayer is being answered in ways you may not understand because it is profiting you in some area that you don’t see. Let me encourage you to keep praying until the light comes through.