Body Building.

1 Corinthians 14

Since you're so eager to participate in what God is doing, why don't you concentrate on doing what helps everyone in the church? – Vs 12 MSG

If you're not careful, you could easily get hung up on all the talk about tongues and gifts in this chapter. Churches have split over interpretation of what Paul is saying. Arguments have been had. Friendships have been ended. But I think the real issue Paul is making has to do with the overall health of the body of Christ. Paul begins the chapter by commanding the Corinthians to "pursue love." That is what chapter 13 was all about. The supremacy of love in all things. Now he tellsthemto chase after it. And while you're loving one another, go ahead and pursue spiritual gifts, but always do it with love as the motivation. Even spiritual gifts can be used in unspiritual ways if we're not careful. But if they are done in the context of sacrificial love, spiritual gifts can be powerful tools in the life of the church.

So Paul says it's OK to be excited about your spiritual gift, but just remember that it's not for you. It is for the rest of the body of Christ. So use it to build up others. Use it to encourage others in their spiritual walk with Christ. The actual definition for the Greek word translated "edifies" is the act of one who promotes another's growth in Christian wisdom, piety, happiness, holiness. That's why the Holy Spirit gives us gifts. To promote one another's spiritual growth and maturity. To use your gift selfishly is to act like a child. It is to be self-centered and self-absorbed. That's why Paul says, "stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults" (Vs 20 NET). Quit thinking about your gifts with only your self in mind. Think of others.

When the church comes together, we are each to use our God-given gifts, but we are to remember to"Let all these things be done for the strengthening of the church" (Vs 26 NET). We are to build up the body, not ourselves. We are to love others more than we love the recognition of our gifts or any blessing we might receive from using them. It's as if Paul is telling us, "So here's what I want you to do. When you gather for worship, each one of you be prepared with something that will be useful for all" (Vs 26 MSG).

Father, show us how to love one another, even in the use of our gifts. They are Yours and You are only sharing them with us. Help us to give them away selflessly so that the body of Christ might grow and mature together. Amen

All You Need Is Love!

1 Corinthians 13

But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love. – Vs 13 MSG

The Beatles were only partially right. There is coming a day when all you will need is love. It's that day when we stand before the Lord at the end of the age. His kingdom will have come in all its glory and we will have glorified bodies and sinless natures. At that time there will no longer be any need for faith, because all that we have been placing our faith in will have been fulfilled. Christ's kingdom will have come. Our redemption will have been completed. All of God's promises will have been kept. There will no longer be any need for hope. Why? Because our eager expectations will have been met. There will no longer be anything we need to hope for. We will have it all! But in that day, there will be a need for love, because God Himself is love. We will spend eternity loving and being loved. Love is eternal. Love lasts. Or as Paul puts it, "love never fails."

Love is the greatest investment we can make. It's the only thing that lasts. Right now we need faith and hope. We need to use our gifts. But all of those things are useless without love. Paul says that loveless words are useless words. If I have more gifts than anybody, but no love, I'm just a nobody. If I give everything away, including my life, but don't give love, it doesn't profit me anything in God's eyes. God measures everything by love. Love is how the world knows we are His disciples. Jesus Christ was the greatest expression of God's love to us. Everything else has its time and place. Gifts are temporary, but love is timeless. Love is the currency of heaven. It gives everything else its value. It is the gold-standard of life, both now and for eternity. If all our religious actions and activities are not backed by love, they are just empty acts. They have no value. They are meaningless and powerless to produce change.

But love isn't just some feeling. It expresses itself in actions and attitudes. "Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn't want what it doesn't have. Love doesn't strut, Doesn't have a swelled head, Doesn't force itself on others, Isn't always "me first," Doesn't fly off the handle, Doesn't keep score of the sins of others, Doesn't revel when others grovel, Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, Doesn't revel when others grovel, Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, Puts up with anything, Trusts God always, Always looks for the best, Never looks back, But keeps going to the end" (Vs 3-8 MSG).

So in a way, the Beatles were right. All you need is love. Because with love, you will have everything you need to do all you need to do. Love gives meaning to our faith, confidence to our hope, purpose to our gifts, power to our actions, and value to our lives, both in this age and in the one to come.

Father, may I continue to learn the value of love. It isn't just a feeling, it is the essence of who You are and therefore it should be the expression of who I am and what I do. Thank You for loving me so much that You sent Your Son to die for me. May I learn to love others with the same intensity. Amen

One For All and All For One.

1 Corinthians 12

Now all of you together are Christ’s body, and each one of you is a separate and necessary part of it. – Vs 27 NLT

Unity. Diversity. Giving. Receiving. Caring. Sharing. Together.

The body of Christ. What an incredibly unique organism – made up of a host of individuals, but unified by our faith in Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit within each of us. Gifted for service by the Holy Spirit, we are to minister to one another in a spirit of selfless service. "A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church" (Vs 7 NLT). Like the human body, where every single part has a function and a purpose, so each member of the body of Christ has a Spirit-given purpose. No one is more important than the other. No gift is more significant than the other. Each is needed and necessary. But how many of us know what our gift is? For those who do know, how many are actually using it for the benefit of the body of Christ?

We live in an individualized society where the emphasis is all on "me." The world exists for my benefit. Others are here to serve me. I have to look out for "number one." It's every man for himself. But Paul paints a completely different picture for us as believers. We are members of a body, an organism. We are interdependent, not independent. We are unique in many ways, including in our gifting, but it is for a purpose – the purpose of unity. I have something to bring to the body. So do you. Together we complement and complete one another. We are to be, like the Three Musketeers, one for all and all for one. We are not independent agents operating in a vacuum, but team members working toward a common goal and sharing a common purpose. There is a spirit of oneness that should permeate all we do. Paul puts it this way: "If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad" (Vs 26 NLT). We are to grow together.  We are to rejoice together. We are to suffer together. We are to celebrate together. We are to worship together. All for the common good. And all for the glory of God.

Father, thank You for placing in my in the body of Christ and equipping me with the gifts to serve. Thank You for all the other individuals who make up the body and who have gifts I don't have, but that I get to enjoy. What an incredible organism You have created. May we learn to live together in a spirit of unity and share our gifts willingly and regularly. So that Your name might be glorified here on earth. Amen

Eating to Remember, Not to Forget.

1 Corinthians 11

For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again. – Vs 36 NLT

I have no idea how many times I have taken the Lord's Supper over the years, but it's been a lot. I became a Christ-follower at the age of seven and have faithfullytaken part in this ordinance of the church since then. But I have not always taken it with a right attitude or with a proper understanding of its significance for my life. I confess that, too often, it has just been another one of those things that you do in church that has little or no meaning at the moment. You just do it. It's like singing the words to a hymn and not really meaning what you're saying. The words just come out without your brain even processing what you are saying. The same can be true when taking communion. It can just become rote and repetitive, lacking in meaning and significance. But Paul says that it should be just the opposite. When we do it, we are proclaiming the Lord's death. We are declaring the reality of the Lord's substitutionary death every time we take the bread and the cup. These elements represent His body and blood, given for us, so that we might have forgiveness of sin and eternal life. Our celebration of the Lord's Supper is a public declaration of our belief in Christ's death on our behalf. We are telling everyone around us that our hope of new life is based on His death. But there is another element that Paul stresses: Jesus' future return. Paul says we are to celebrate communion until He comes again! His death was followed by a resurrection. His resurrection was followed by His glorification. His glorification will culminate with His second coming. The Lord's Supper is not just about His death. It is about His resurrection and His ultimate return. He is coming back! And we are counting on it.

So when we take part in the ordinance of the Lord's Supper, we are to do so with our eyes on the past, the present, and the future. We are to remember what He has done, what He is doing, and what He is going to do. He is going to finish what He started. He is going to complete the task He began. The redemption of man and the recreation of the world, restoring order to God's creation. So the Lord's Supper is less a memorial than it is a celebration. It is to be hope-filled and future-oriented. His death leads to life.

Father, thank You for reminding me that Your Son is returning and that every time I take the elements I am to remember that fact. Without Your Son's sacrificial death, there would be no hope for the future. There would be no salvation. But because He came and died, rose again, and is going to return again, we have hope for the future. Amen

When Man-Pleasing Is God-Pleasing!

1 Corinthians 10

I try to please everyone in everything I do. I don’t just do what I like or what is best for me, but what is best for them so they may be saved. – Vs 33 NLT

If you take this verse out of its context, you can end up taking it to extremes. You could come to all kinds of wrong and unbiblical conclusions that Paul never intended. Remember, he is talking about being sensitive to the weaker brothers around you. They are less knowledgeable about the things of God. They are not yet able to enjoy the new-found freedoms they have in Christ. They are still impacted by their past. In Paul's case, the people to whom he was writing were coming out of various pagan cults that worshiped idols. They were trying to make a clean break with their past. But more mature believers were causing them to stumble by buying and eating meat that had been sacrificed to idols. They felt free to do so because they knew there were no such things as other gods. There was only one God. So in their minds, they were free to purchase high-grade meat at low prices. But in doing so, they were causing their weaker brothers to stumble. Why? Because their consciences were telling them that it was wrong. But if they followed their brothers example and ate meat sacrificed to idols like they did, then they would end up violating their consciences and live in guilt.

Paul continues this discussion in chapter 10. He talks about the need for us to live as examples to those around us, especially our weaker brothers and sisters. He wants the believers in Corinth to be wise in their behavior and think about the ramifications of what they are doing. While "everything is permissible"— not everything is beneficial. While "everything is permissible"— not everything is constructive (Vs 23 NASB). He says, "do not seek your own good, but the good of the other person" (Vs 24 NET). This is the central theme of this portion of his letter to the Corinthians. He wants them to glorify God by seeking the welfare of others.

We have to think about the consciences of others. We cannot allow our freedoms to trump their consciences. Paul makes that clear in verses 28-29. "But suppose someone warns you that this meat has been offered to an idol. Don’t eat it, out of consideration for the conscience of the one who told you. It might not be a matter of conscience for you, but it is for the other person" (NLT). Just because you CAN eat it, doesn't mean you should. Just because you CAN have a glass of wine with your dinner, doesn't mean you always should. Just because you CAN go to an R-rated movie, doesn't mean you should. If our actions might cause a brother to struggle or stumble, we should be willing to give up our rights. We need to love them enough to say no to our desires. Now are we to live our entire lives according to the consciences of others? Paul answers that question. He says, "If I can thank God for the food and enjoy it, why should I be condemned for eating it?" (Vs 30 NLT). We shouldn't be condemned. As long as we are doing it for the glory of God (Vs 31). But when Paul says, "Whatever you eat or drink or whatever you do, you must do all for the glory of God" (Vs 31 NLT), the "whatever you do" part includes not eating or drinking. Even the willful abstinence from certain things can be done for the glory of God if our motivation is the good of others. So if I choose to give up serving alcohol in my home because a weaker brother may struggle with Christians drinking, then I am glorifying God with my actions. Why? Because I have put the welfare of a brother in Christ above my own. I have shown God that His desire for unity is greater than my desire to have my own way. His will takes precedence over my rights. And He ends up being glorified.

Father, I want my life to glorify You. Forgive me for allowing my rights to become an idol in my life. Help me to die to self and live for the sake of others. Even if it means giving up those things that are rightfully mine to enjoy. I want to live my life so that all I do is done for Your glory and not mine. Amen

Run To Win!

! Corinthians 9

Remember that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize. You also must run in such a way that you will win. – Vs 24 NLT

Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win! (MSG). Sounds like a no-brainer doesn't it? After all, doesn't everyone run to win? No, some just run for the fun of it. Others do it just to be a part of the competition. But not everyone who enters a race does so with the mindset that they have a legitimate, realistic chance to make it across the finish line first. But when it comes to our spiritual lives, Paul seems to believe that we need a winner-takes-all attitude. No second place finishes. This has less to do with the idea of winning or success than it does to our motivation and its impact on our effort. If I don't think I can win, I won't put my full effort behind it. If winning isn't a possibility, then losing becomes not only a reality, but an inevitability.

Paul wanted to end well, so he determined to run well. He embraced the idea of beginning withthe end in mind. He had a hard-and-fast goal or objective he was trying to reach. Paul was big on the idea of knowing where you're going. Compete like you want to get there – and ahead of the pack, not at the end of it. Paul says, "So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified" (Vs 26-27 NLT). Paul was willing to work at reaching his objective. He was willing to discipline himself for the purpose of reaching his goal: Godliness. He told Timothy to "discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness" (1 Timothy 4:8b (NASB). Spend your time and energy in training yourself for spiritual fitness. Have an aim. Have an objective. Paul had one. Do you?

In his book, Search & Rescue: Becoming A Disciple Who Makes A Difference, Neil Cole has this to say: "In writing his last words to his spiritual son, Paul was looking for something that would inspire Timothy to fight the good fight and finish the read as a hero, just as Paul had done. He knew that continuing on in life without transformation is not success but failure. Sometimes I fear that parents and pastors alike will be content if their children and parishioners just hold on and do not fall away. I can understand this fear, but simply holding on is not godly faith. Jesus didn't die and rise again so that we can stay the same, and for Paul this was abject failure. We are to more than mere survivors; we are to be victors in Christ." No running just to run. No mere surviving for us Christ followers. We are to run in such a way that we may win. Victory is the goal. Godliness is the objective. But finishing well requires that I run well. In other words, to win!

Father, I want my goal to be godliness. I want to run with my eye on the goal. I do not want to settle for just being in the race. I don't want the T-Shirt, I want the crown. Show me how to run the race before me with an attitude that says I am going to win in the end. Help me keep my eyes fixed on the finish line. Amen

When Rights Become Wrong.

1 Corinthians 8

But God [does] care when you use your freedom carelessly in a way that leads a Christian still vulnerable to those old associations to be thrown off track. – Vs 9 MSG

"I'm free in Christ!"

That's a wonderful statement that any believer in Christ should be able to make. We are free. Free from slavery to sin. Free to live a new life. Free from having to try to earn favor with God through our own feeble attempts at keeping some impossible set of rules. Jesus Himself said, "So if the son sets you free, you will be really free" (John 8:36 NET). So we really are free. But with that freedom comes a degree of responsibility. Because of our faith in Christ, we have been made aware of certain truths we didn't know before. We have knowledge of certain realities we didn't know before. We know we can't earn our way into heaven. We know there is only one true God. We know that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life and no one comes to God except through Him (John 14:6). We know we are saved by grace through faith any not according to our works so that none of us can take credit for it (Ephesians 2:8-9). We know we are not defiled by what we eat, but by what we say and do (Matthew 15:11). But Paul says that all this knowledge can end up making us arrogant and prideful. Especially when it comes to how we act around those brothers and sisters who don't know as much as we do. Knowledge puffs up. Love builds up.

Love trumps knowledge. Knowing all the things listed above is great, but is we allow that knowledge to get in the way of our love for our fellow believer, we have missed the point. Not everyone who attends church with us shares the same degree of knowledge or spiritual insight. There are new believers who bring to the table some immature beliefs and worldly viewpoints. They may bring inaccurate doctrine or teaching from a previous church relationship. They may bring a hodge-podge of religious and psychological input that is unbiblical, but in their mind it is real. We may have the desire to correct them, but Paul seems to be calling us to love them first. He is dealing with practical issues of faith. In his day it was the believers freedom to eat meat sacrificed to idols. The logic went like this: Since God is the only god,  idols are nothing more than man-made objects. Therefore the meat that was sacrificed to them was not polluted or unclean, because that god did not exist to begin with. So Christians were free to buy this meat from the priests who ran the temples to those gods. Their knowledge of the truth gave certain believers in the Corinthian church the freedom to eat this meat with a clear conscience.

But there were others in their fellowship who did not have the same level of knowledge. They had come to Christ out of a pagan background, having at one time worshiped those false gods. They had eaten that meat sacrificed to an idol. Now that they were Christians, they felt compelled to leave all that behind. They wanted nothing to do with their former way of life, including buying and eating meat sacrificed in the temple of their former god. Now they saw their fellow believers doing just that. They were confused. They were torn. And because of the actions of their more knowledgeable brothers, they were stumbling – falling back into their old habits and wrestling with their old beliefs. This is where Paul draws the line on our rights or freedoms. He says, "But you must be careful with this freedom of yours. Do not cause a brother or sister with a weaker conscience to stumble" (Vs 9 NLT). Sure, these more mature believers were free to eat that meat. That was not the point. The point was that their love for their weaker brother should outweigh their right to take advantage of low-priced, high-quality meat. Did they have a responsibility to share their knowledge of the truth with their weaker brothers? Yes. But until they did, they had a responsibility to love them in their ignorance. Otherwise, "… because of your superior knowledge, a weak Christian, for whom Christ died, will be destroyed" (Vs 11 NLT). Knowledge puffs up. Love builds up. Knowledge can lead to pride. Love leads to sacrifice. You can be right and oh so wrong. To stand for our rights and to cause a brother to fall at the same time is sin. Paul makes it clear. May we have the attitude that Paul had. "If what I eat is going to make another Christian sin, I will never eat meat again as long as I live––for I don’t want to make another Christian stumble" (Vs 13 NLT).

Father, thank You for the freedoms I have in You. Thank You for the rights and privileges that are mine because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. But may I never allow my freedoms to become a stumbling-block to another brother in Christ. I want my love for them to far outweigh my love for my own rights. May I learn to give up everything in order that they might not fall into sin because of me. Open my eyes and help me see where my freedoms might be causing another believer to sin against his or her conscience. Amen

Undivided Attention.

1 Corinthians 7

Now I say this for your profit; not to make things hard for you, but because of what is right, and so that you may be able to give all your attention to the things of the Lord. – Vs 35 BBE

Distractions. We all have them. They're a normal part of life and they're all around us. Especially when it comes to pursuing a deeper relationship with God. I mean, have you ever sat down to spend some time reading your Bible, only to find that your mind wanders off in a thousand different directions? You can't concentrate on what you're reading. You keep thinking about things you need to do that day. Every little noise distracts you. Things in the room that would normally be of little or no interest to you suddenly seem to have some kind of gravitation pull that slowly pulls your mind away from what you're doing

Distractions come in all shapes and sizes – family, friends, work, entertainment, noise, worries, cares, bills, dreams, the newspaper, television, etc. Paul even seems to say that being married can be a distraction. That's a tough one to understand considering all that the Bible has to say about the God-ordained institution of marriage. I think Paul was for marriage, but he was more for the Corinthians each being sold-out followers of Jesus Christ. So he encouraged them that "whatever situation you were in when you became a believer, stay there in your new relationship with God" (Vs 25 NLT). If you were unmarried when you came to Christ, stay that way. Don't let getting married become your obsession. But if you find yourself lacking in self-control and overcome by sexual desire, then get married (Vs 9). If you were married when you came to Christ, stay that way. Don't seek to get out of it. Instead, honor each other and pursue Christ-likeness together.

Then Paul says something really interesting. It's in verse 29: "Now let me say this, dear brothers and sisters: The time that remains is very short, so husbands should not let marriage be their major concern" (NLT). It's as if Paul is saying that due to the nature of the times in which we live, we should prioritize our lives in such as a way that even being married does not become a distraction when it comes to our devotion to God. And let's face it, the cares and concerns of married life CAN become a distraction if we let them. Paul wants his readers to be free from concern. But that's not always easy.Why? Because "… a married man can’t do that so well. He has to think about his earthly responsibilities and how to please his wife" (Vs 33NLT). But if his wife shares his passion for the things of God then he doesn't have to spend his time trying to please her. If he shares his wife's passion for spiritual growth and inner transformation, then she won't have to distract herself with trying to keep him pleased. That is why we are called to oneness in marriage. We are to be unified in our desire for God and our pursuit of spiritual things. In marriage, we can and should share a common love for the things of God and experience undistracted devotion to the Lord. Weshould encourage each other to put God first. If my wife is up having her time in the Word and I have to make my own breakfast, so be it. If I need to take care of the kids one night a week so she can attend a Bible study, I should be more than happy to do so. My greatest desire for her should be her spiritual maturity. And the same should be true of her for me.

Yet we find ourselves distracted by so many things: Work, kids, soccer and piano practice, volunteer opportunities, housework, yard work, paying the bills, watching TV, reading books, etc. And our interests become divided (Vs 34). We lose sight of what is really important. The things of God.

Father, I find myself so easily distracted. I feel like every little shiny thing that gets dangled in front of me distracts me and turns my attention away from You. I thank You that You have blessed me with a beautiful, godly wife and wonderful children. May we grow in our unity and common desire to put You first in all things. Forgive me for letting the things of this world draw me away from You. Show me how to lead my wife and kids into sharing a common devotion for You. Amen

Under New Management.

1 Corinthians 6

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? – Vs 20 NET

I'm a control freak. At least when it comes to controlling me. I want to control everything about me – what I do, where I go, what I think about, what I enjoy, what I classify as sin, and what I'm willing to give up. I want to control the hours in my day and how I use them. I want to control all my possessions and who I share them with. I want to control the present and the future. And if anyone tries to wrestle control away from me, they will be in for quite a fight. Sadly to say, I sometime even find myself fighting God for control of my life. Paul says that I am no longer the manager of my life. My life, my body, my soul … it all belongs to God. He purchased my life with the life of His own Son. Paul reminds me, "for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body" (Vs 20 NLT). I was purchased out of slavery to sin by God, and at a very high price. Peter puts it this way: "For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. He paid for you with the precious lifeblood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God" (1 Peter 1:18-19 NLT).

Not only did God purchase me, He filled me. He filled me with His own Spirit. I have the very Spirit of Christ living in me. So as Paul puts it, "Or didn't you realize that your body is a sacred place, the place of the Holy Spirit? Don't you see that you can't live however you please, squandering what God paid such a high price for?" (Vs 20 MSG). My body is a sacred place. It is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. I am under new management and I have a new tenant. On top of that, I am under a constant state of renovation as God transforms me into the likeness of His Son. I am being sanctified daily…a process Paul explains in verse 11: "…now your sins have been washed away, and you have been set apart for God. You have been made right with God because of what the Lord Jesus Christ and the Spirit of our God have done for you."

I am no longer in control. Sure, I try to take back control all the time. But the Holy Spirit gently reminds me that He lives in me so that He might direct my life. He knows the will of God and wants to direct me life into that will each and every day. He wants to use my body and my life to glorify God. That is what it means to be set apart or sanctified. I have been set apart by God for His use. I belong to Him. I am not to be used for anything else. My hands, feet, mind, eyes, heart, emotions…they all belong to Him. And I am not to take what is holy and use them for unholy purposes. "The person who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him" (Vs 17 NLT). I am His and He is mine. I am under new management.

Father, may my life increasingly reflect the fact that I am under new management. May I show with my actions that it is You who are is control of my life and not me. Amen

Bad Company Corrupts Good Morals.

1 Corinthians 5

What I meant was that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a Christian yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or a drunkard, or a swindler. Don’t even eat with such people. – Vs 11 NLT

Whoa! In a world that worship at the altar of inclusivity, Paul sounds like some kind of stone-age, moralistic, authoritarian figure. He's delivering people over to Satan, commanding people to "clean out the old leaven," and not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. It all sounds rather harsh and condemning. But we have to keep in mind that Paul is writing to believers, to members of the church at Corinth. He is talking about the family of God, the church, the organism that he described to Timothy as the pillar and foundation of the truth. The health of the church is vital to the spread of the truth about Jesus Christ. If the church is morally weak and indistinct from the rest of the world, the truth will appear to have no power and the Gospel message will have no attraction to it.

So Paul says to, in essence, clean house. In their case, the Corinthians had a man in their midst who was having sexual relations with his own mother. And rather than the church doing anything about it, their lack of action came across as arrogant and indifferent. They would rather tolerate this man's sinful behavior in their midst than stand up for the truth of God's Word and the integrity of the Gospel. But Paul would not tolerate it. He was going to do something about it. And so should we.

We wrestle with the idea of judging someone else, lest we be judged. But Paul makes it clear. We have every right and responsibility to judge those who claim to be Christ followers but who are dragging His name in the mud through their persistent acts of sinfulness. Listen to what Paul says:

"It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your job to judge those inside the church who are sinning in these ways. God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, You must remove the evil person from among you." – Vs 12-13 NLT

Why are we so willing to tolerate blatant sin in the church? Why are we so afraid to speak up and confront someone who we know is living a lie? Maybe it's because we fear someone discovering the hidden parts of our lives and pointing the finger at us. But we are called to live lives of distinctiveness. We are called to be salt and light. We are called to confront the sin in our own lives and the lives of those around us. We need to take our faith seriously. Paul did. Later on in this letter to the Corinthian believers he makes the often quoted statement that "bad company corrupts good morals." He tells them to "come back to your senses as you should, and stop sinning! For some of you – I say this to your shame – don't fully know God" (1 Corinthians 15:34 ISV). Paul was calling for them to live according to their new identity. Stop putting up with sin. Stop tolerating the hypocrisy that spreads through the body like a cancer. The church is the pillar and foundation of the truth. We exist to uphold the integrity of the Gospel message by the purity of our lives. Willful, continual, unrepentant sin in our midst cannot be tolerated. Paul wouldn't put up with it. So why do we?

Father, give me a boldness to speak truth even when it might hurt those who hear it. Give me the strength to stand up for what I know to be right. Forgive me for tolerating sin in my own life and in the body of Christ. May we be willing to clean house if necessary in order to restore the integrity and distinctiveness of Christ's body, the church. Amen

All Talk, No Action.

1 Corinthians 4

For the Kingdom of God is not just fancy talk; it is living by God’s power. – Vs 20 NLT

James put it this way: "I can’t see your faith if you don’t have good deeds, but I will show you my faith through my good deeds" (James 2:18 NLT). In The Message, Eugene Peterson puts the thoughts of James into words we can all understand: "You can no more show me your works apart from your faith than I can show you my faith apart from my works. Faith and works, works and faith, fit together hand in glove." In other words, we can't just talk about our faith, we have to live it out. It has to become concrete and real. Yet, too much of what we call faith is "just fancy talk," We say one thing and do another. We express in words our belief, but the words never seem to impact our behavior.

Because the Kingdom of God is not just fancy talk; it is living by God's power. It's an empowered life that radically reflects the reality of the truth – the Gospel message of Christ's redemptive work on the cross. The Kingdom of God isn't just about a kingdom to come, but it's about a kingdom that has come. Jesus came that we might have life and have it to the full, not just in the future, but right now. In his letter to Timothy, Paul put it this way: "godliness is valuable in every way. It holds promise for the present life and for the life to come" (1 Timothy 4:8 NIV). The life of godliness or life in the Kingdom of God holds promise for the here-and-now as well as the hereafter. It is powerful and life-transforming right now, not just in the future. It holds promise for today!

But is all our talk about the Kingdom just talk? Do we talk a good game, but fail to live it out on game day? Paul encouraged the believers in Thessalonica with these words: "We pleaded with you, encouraged you, and urged you to live your lives in a way that God would consider worthy. For he called you into his Kingdom to share his glory" (1 Thessalonians 2:12 NLT). Live your lives in a way…behave in a way…conduct yourselves in a way…that God would consider worthy. Don't just give lip service to your faith, put shoe leather to it. "Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity" (1 Timothy 4:12 MSG).

Father, I want my life to be characterized by Your power, not my persuasive words. I don't want to live a life that is all talk and no action. At least, not any more! I want to live as a citizen of the Kingdom of God who is backed by the full power and authority of God. I want my life to be an example of what it means to believe – in my words, my actions, my love, my faith, and my moral purity. Thank You that I can because You have given me the power to do so. Amen

God Doesn't Need Men of the World.

1 Corinthians 3

"Are you not acting like mere men?" – Vs 3b NIV

The first few verses of chapter three are very sobering. Whenever I read them they speak volumes to me. They are a reminder that I have been called to something far greater than the status quo. God didn't save me through the sacrificial death of His Son so that my life would blend in with the woodwork of this world. No, I have been chosen by God for a life of holiness. I have been set apart. I am called to a life that is to be distinctively different than the rest of the world. I have a wisdom they don't have. I have access to a power they don't possess. I have a peace they can't experience. I have an inheritance that makes their possessions look paltry in comparison. I am a child of the living God.

But I am struck by what Paul says to the Corinthians, "I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but instead as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ" (Vs 1 NET). There was a time when Paul had to talk to the Corinthian believers as spiritual babies. They were immature and weak. They lacked spiritual wisdom and understanding. He had to give them spiritual milk to drink because they couldn't handle the "solid food" of God's Word. That was normal and expected. But then Paul says something that really hits home: "…even now you are not yet able" (Vs 2 NASB). You can almost hear the disappointment in Paul's voice as he writes these words – even now. Instead of growing in their faith and maturing in their knowledge of the ways of God, they had remained just as they were. They were still spiritual babies. Paul describes them as fleshly or carnal (sarkikos). The Greek word means "having the nature of flesh, i.e. under the control of the animal appetites." It is to be governed by mere human nature instead of by the Spirit of God. Their lives look no different than the lives of the lost. They have no distinctiveness. How does Paul know this? Because their lives are marked by jealousy and quarreling. They can't seem to get along. And the sad thing is, they are fighting over spiritual matters. They have taken up sides in the church. One group has sided with Paul and another with Apollos. They had become followers of men instead of followers of Christ. They were debating over which leader was the most important for crying out loud!

Paul was looking for spiritual maturity, but what he found was spiritual immaturity. These people had been saved long enough to grow up. But they were still being controlled by their sensual appetites. They were living according to their flesh instead of the Spirit within them. Paul describes the outcome of this kind of life in Galatians 5:

It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits;the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on" – Galatians 5:19-21 MSG

Whenever we see these characteristics in our life, we know that we are walking like mere men. We are acting as if we are not saved. We are exhibiting the characteristics of the lost and not the redeemed. But Paul goes on to remind us that we belong to Christ. We are His. We have His Spirit within us. We are to be growing, maturing, changing, and becoming more and more like Him every day. Yes, we will still struggle with our old fleshly desires. When we do, it should remind us just how much we need His Spirit to lead and guide us. It should make us more dependent on Him than ever. Our sinfulness should lead us to repentance. We should desire change from the inside out. We should long for maturity. We are not mere men, but sons of God.

Father, I don't want to live my life like a mere man. I want to see Your power revealed in my life each and every day, transforming me from infancy to maturity. I want to see my childish habits fade away with time. I want to see my life characterized by the fruit of the spirit, not the deeds of the flesh. I want these things because that is what You desire for me. That is why Your Son died for me. May I continue to grow in Christ-likeness so that every day I become less and less like a mere man. Amen

It's No Longer A Mystery to Me.

1 Corinthians 2

And God has actually given us his Spirit (not the world’s spirit) so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us. – Vs 12 NLT

Having the Holy Spirit is like having that secret decoder ring that came in the serial box, except the Holy Spirit really works. He has the ability to decode the mysteries of God that had been hidden for generations, and He reveals them to us. How else would we ever be able to understand what God is doing? According to Paul, without the Spirit, no man would be able to understand the mysteries of God. "But we know these things because God has revealed them to us by his Spirit, and his Spirit searches out everything and shows us even God’s deep secrets" (Vs 10 NLT). Paul goes on to say that "…no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit" (Vs 11b NLT). So God has given us His Spirit so that we might know hidden things of God.

Think about it. Without the Spirit within us, we would be totally unable to understand what God is doing in the world and in our lives. Nothing would make sense to us. Those who do not have the Spirit of God within them, in other words, those who are unsaved, can't see God at work around them. They are incapable of understanding or comprehending God's work in the world. Paul says, "people who aren’t Christians can’t understand these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them because only those who have the Spirit can understand what the Spirit means" (Vs 14 NLT). They're like a radio receiver that is tuned to the wrong frequency. The signal is being sent, but they can't pick it up. Like an AM radio trying to pick up an FM signal, it will never happen. But we can understand the things of God. In fact, "we who have the Spirit understand these things, but others can’t understand us at all" (Vs 15 NLT). We become a mystery to those around us because we have the capacity to see, hear, and understand the things of God. We see the world from a different perspective. We can see God at work in the everyday affairs of life. We can see God working in the trials and sufferings of life. We can hear God speaking to us when we read His Word. But our lost friends and family members can't quite understand where we're coming from. Because they lack what we have: the Holy Spirit who lives within us. They operate out of a worldly wisdom. They don't have the capacity to understand God or us. "How could they? For, "Who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who can give him counsel?" But we can understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ" (Vs 16 NLT).

We have the mind of Christ. Thanks to the Holy Spirit who lives within us, we can know the things of God. The mystery has been explained. We understand what God is doing in the world and in our lives. It all has begun to make sense. And now, "…we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us." – Vs 12 NLT

Father, thank You that You chose to reveal the mystery of your kingdom to me. Your Holy Spirit opened my eyes so that I could understand the gospel message and accept it. I could see that I was a sinner in need of a Savior and that You had prepared a way for me to have a right relationship with You. There are still so many things about You and Your Word that I don't understand, but Your Spirit is speaking to me every day as I read Your Word and listen to what He has to say to me. Help me to remain sensitive to His leading and obedient to His promptings. Amen

You'd Have To Be A Fool To Believe This.

1 Corinthians 1

I know very well how foolish the message of the cross sounds to those who are on the road to destruction. But we who are being saved recognize this message as the very power of God. – Vs 18 NLT

Have you ever stopped to think just how foolish this thing called the gospel sounds to someone who's lost? Paul says the message of the cross is foolishness to them. It's silly, absurd, ridiculous. It just doesn't make any sense. In spite of the fact that they are facing eternal destruction and the gospel message offers them salvation, they can't accept it because it just sounds too far fetched to even be believable. Christ, the Messiah, was crucified on a cross in their place in order to pay for the penalty God demanded for their sins. Christpaid a debt they owed and that they could never pay in order that they might be reconciled or made right with God. To the world this whole thing sounds like some kind of ancient myth created by men and perpetrated by the weak-minded and the ignorant. Nobody with an ounce of intelligence would believe a story like this. Or would they?

Paul says that same message about the cross and Christ crucified makes perfect sense to those of us who are being saved because of it. The cross represents the power of God. It is a symbol of His defeat of death and our ultimate victory over sin. This message of salvation made possible by the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ on the cross sounds completely idiotic to the lost. They're too smart, too clever to buy into something so silly. But Paul says, "where can you find someone truly wise, truly educated, truly intelligent in this day and age? Hasn't God exposed it all as pretentious nonsense?" (Vs 20 MSG). Their wisdom is no match for God's wisdom. They can't explain or explain away the message. So they simply try to ignore it.

But to those of us who have placed our faith in the reality of the cross and it's representation of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection, we not only embrace the message, we live by it and hope in it. And we acknowledge that even we are examples of God's power. Because we couldn't save ourselves, He did it for us.

God alone made it possible for you to be in Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made Christ to be wisdom itself. He is the one who made us acceptable to God. He made us pure and holy, and he gave himself to purchase our freedom. – 1 Corinthians 1:30 NLT

Paul says, "God deliberately chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose those who are powerless to shame those who are powerful" (Vs 27). God's ways are inexplicable and incomprehensible. We can't explain or understand them. But we accept them. God's ways are not our ways. He doesn't do things the way we would do things. He chose to use a Roman instrument of torture and death to bring about salvation and eternal life. God chose to send His Son as a sinless, sacrificial substitute to satisfy His own demands for justice and to pay the debt incurred by men for their sins.

The foolishness of the cross. I don't know about you, but this fool loves it. I would be lost without it. I don't fully understand it, but I most certainly accept and appreciate it. It is the wisdom of God and the power of God. It is hope of man and the key to eternal life. And this fool is eternally grateful.

Father, thank You that Your ways are not my ways. Thank You for coming up with a plan that on the surface looks completely ridiculous and sounds completely far-fetched, but it is a demonstration of Your incredible wisdom and power. Your plan leaves us completely dependent on You and allows no one to boast in their own self-effort. We are weak, ignorant, foolish, and shameful. Yet You chose to save us. Thank You! Amen

Smart Enough To Know Better.

Romans 16

I want you to see clearly what is right and to stay innocent of any wrong. – Romans 16:19 NLT

We live in a world where right and wrong are often confused. There seems to be no consistent moral standard that governs behavior and it all seems eerily reminiscent of the period of the Judges when "each man did what he considered to be right." Everybody is doing what they think is right, and even as Christians it can all become confusing. So Paul winds up his letter to the Romans by telling them, "I want you to see clearly what is right and to stay innocent of any wrong." He wants them to be wise and skilled in righteousness, to be experts in what is good and right. He also wants them to be "pure of the mind, without a mixture of evil, free from guile, innocent, simple." That's the meaning of the Greek word akeraios that he uses in this verse. We are to be smart about doing good and innocent when it comes to doing wrong. Paul is simply echoing the words of Jesus when He said, "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves" (Matthew 10:16 NASB). And this is not a new theme for Paul. He said virtually the same thing in back in chapter 12: "Hate what is evil; cling to what is good" (Romans 12:9 NIV). Paul also shared this same thought with the believers in Philippi: "Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise" (Philippians 4:8 NLT).

This isn't about coming up with a list of dos and don'ts for us to follow. It's not about the need to establish rules and regulations that everyone must adhere to. It is to be wise of knowledgeable about what is right, worthy, beneficial, honorable, and good. It is to think about these things and to make them a priority in your life. But it is also to "stay innocent of any wrong." And we do that by concentrating on what is right. Too many of us rationalize our love affair with the world by claiming that we are just trying to be relevant and contextual. But we are called to be in the world, but not of it. We are NOT called to be ignorant of evil or to avoid it altogether, because we can't hate what is evil if we don't know what it is. But the best way to learn to hate evil is to learn to love what is good. The more familiar I become with the things of God, the more repulsed I will be by the things of this world. I won't want to watch the same TV shows I used to watch. I won't find the same movies as entertaining as I once did. I won't feel comfortable with the habits that once marked my life.

The reason so many of us still struggle with the same old sins is that we are not renewing our minds, and our ignorance regarding what is good and right ends up showing through. Rather than being wise in what is good and able to clearly see what is right, we find ourselves confused and lacking focus. We become easy targets for false teachers whose "smooth talk and flattery" lead us away from the truth. Paul's desire is that we be smart enough to know better. But that requires that we be in God's Word. Itmeans we need to fill our minds with the things of God, not the things of this world. Or as Paul put it in Philippians: "filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious – the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse" (Philippians 4:8 MSG).

Father, I want to be wise in what is good and innocent of what is evil. I desire for my life to be characterized by an obsession with those things that are true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, and gracious. I know that will only happen as I fill my heart and mind with Your truth. Continue to motivate me and drive me to Your Word. Surround me with brothers and sisters in Christ who desire the same thing. Amen

Please Please Me.

Romans 15

Please Please Me is the first album recorded by The Beatles, rush-released on 22 March 1963 in the United Kingdom to capitalize on the success of singles "Please Please Me" (#1) and "Love Me Do" (#17). The hit single for which the album was named proved wildly popular on both sides of The Pond – in England and the States. But I doubt the title would have sat well with the apostle Paul. At least not according to what he had to say in Romans 15:

But we who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not just please ourselves. – Vs 1 NET

This Paul, not the co-author of the tune, would probably have taken exception to the lyrics "Please Please Me." Instead, he would say that, "we should please others. If we do what helps them, we will build them up in the Lord" (NIV). I know the song has to do with a boy's frustration with his girlfriend and her seeming lack of reciprocal love, but even so, Paul the apostle would probably suggest that whatever kind of love this young man is expecting in return, he has missed the whole point. For Paul, Jesus was the greatest example of someone not pleasing themselves. "For even Christ did not please Himself," Paul reminds us. If He had, He would not have gone to the cross – the greatest expression of love there is or will ever be. But listen to the mournful words of the fictitious lover in the song:

You don't need me to show the way, love.

Why do i always have to say "love," C'mon...

Please please me, whoa yeah, like i please you.

I don't wanna sound complainin',

But you know there's always rain in my heart (in my heart).

I do all the pleasin' with you,

it's so hard to reason With you,

whoah yeah, why do you make me blue.

Last night i said these words to my girl,

I know you never even try, girl, C'mon...

Please please me, whoa yeah, like i please you.

– Lennon & McCartney

This poor guy can't seem to get no satisfaction, to borrow a phrase from another popular British 60s pop group. He was doing all the pleasin'. But all it left him was blue. What if he had taken Paul's advice? What if he had lived by the maxim "we should please others. If we do what helps them, we will build them up in the Lord?" It might not have improved his love life, but it would have given him a new perspective on what true love really is in the first place. Jesus Himself said, "For even I, the Son of Man, came here not to be served but to serve others, and to give my life as a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28 NLT). He came to serve and to love. To give away Himself on behalf of others. Jesus wasn't concerned about his own pleasure. Paul says, "He didn't make it easy for himself by avoiding people's troubles, but waded right in and helped out. 'I took on the troubles of the troubled,' is the way Scripture puts it" (Vs 3 MSG). Jesus took on the troubles of the troubled and pleased His neighbors by providing a way to reconcile their lives with God. And according to Paul, that same ministry is our today. "All this newness of life is from God, who brought us back to himself through what Christ did. And God has given us the task of reconciling people to him" (2 Corinthians 5:18 NLT).

Life isn't about pleasing me, it's about pleasing God and helping others find the pleasure of having their lives restored to a right relationship to a holy God. That's not always going to be a pleasurable assignment. But it will be a fulfilling one.

Father, I want my life to please please You, not me. I want to live my life to please my neighbors instead of myself. I want to learn to give myself away just as Your Son did. So that my life might be a pleasing aroma to You. Amen

Differences That Divide.

Romans 14

Now receive the one who is weak in the faith, and do not have disputes over differing opinions.. – Vs 1 NET

"How can he be a believer? Just look at that tatoo!"

"How in the world can anyone worship to that kind of music!"

"I saw him drinking beer in a restaurant. How can he call himself a Christian?"

"I can't believe all these guys who wear suits to church – like it makes them more spiritual or something."

"He won't come over and watch the Cowboys play on Sunday because he says, 'It's the Lord's day.' What a religious fanatic!"

Differences of opinion and issues over personal preference. They're inevitable – even in the church. And they can be highly destructive. Paul knew that to be true, which is why he addresses the problem in chapter 14 of his letter to the Roman believers. Throughout his other letters, Paul dealt with the problem of sin in the church. But here he deals with something just as potentially dangerous to the church's health and unity: the attitudes and behaviors that can destroy fellowship and fruitfulness in a local body of believers.. In a church you will always have mature believers and immature believers. You will have those who have been following Christ since they were children and who were raised in the church. Alongside them you will have those who are new to church life and have no experience with the traditions and doctrinal issues associated with the church. They bring with them their past experiences, habits, hang-ups, and yes, preferences. This blend of personalities, opinions, and personal preferences can be a potentially toxic blend if we're not careful. And Paul knew this.

So he addressed those in the church who were more mature to "receive the one who is weak in the faith." Rather than judge him for the things he does that you disapprove of, receive him. That word in the Greek means "to take to one's self, to take or receive into one's home, with the collateral idea of kindness." And this is not a suggestion, it's a command. Paul is telling the more mature believers to love and accept the newer believer. Stop judging and start loving. How easy it is to sit back and pass judgment on someone who doesn't dress like me, act like me, or worship like me. Without even knowing them, I can pass judgment on them and categorize them as less-than-serious about their faith. But they may be simply immature. Or they may just have different personal preferences than I do. They may be mature in their faith, but perfectly fine with having a beer with their pizza. They may love the Lord just as much as I do and have no problem with sporting a tattoo. Rather than judge them based on the externals, Paul says I am to receive them. I may be shocked to find that the one I thought was weak in the faith is actually quite strong. But doesn't share my personal tastes in clothes, music, or worship styles.

This whole chapter is about unity and love. I am to die to my rights and personal preferences in order to show love to another brother or sister in Christ. I am to be concerned about their walk with Christ. I should care about how my actions might influence them. Paul is talking about those grey areas of life that are not explicitly condemned as sin in the Scriptures. If I happen to be the one who sees nothing wrong with having a glass of wine with my meal, I am free to do so, as long as my conscience doesn't condemn me. But if I take advantage of that right while having another brother in my home who just might struggle with the issue of alcohol in his life, and I cause him to stumble, then I have sinned. I have let my rights become a stumbling block to another believer. This isn't about letting someone else's personal tastes dictate how I live my life. It is about being sensitive to the spiritual well-being of those around me. Paul says, "For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Vs 17 N:T). We worry way too much about issues regarding tastes, style, preference, and opinions. Paul says we should put all that on the back burner and worry more about living lives of goodness, peace, and joy. In other words, living lives of righteousness.

Father, You have called us to live in love. You have called us to put others first. You have called us to die to self. That is hard to do. Especially when others don't share my opinions and personal tastes. I find it easy to find fault with others because they differ from me. But their differences have little to do with anything other than my own personal preferences. Help me to put those aside and receive them as one of Your own. To love them and care for them. Forgive me for passing judgment so often on those whom I know nothing about. May we be a fellowship where love wins out over differences of opinion. Amen

What's Love Got To Do With It?

Romans 13

Love does no wrong to anyone, so love satisfies all of God’s requirements. – Vs 10 NLT

Love has everything to do with it. Love it the key to life within the body of Christ AND within the world in general. As Christ-followers we are called to a life characterized by love. We have been shown love and we are to show love. We are to be loved in the same way in which we have been loved – selflessly, expecting nothing in return. Paul stressed the quality of love in chapter 12 and he expands on it in chapter 13. Listen to what he said in chapter 12:

Don’t just pretend that you love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. – Romans 12:9-10 NLT

Now in chapter 13, in the middle of talking about how we should relate to those in authority over us, Paul once again brings up the topic of love. He's talking about paying taxes to the government when he says, "Pay all your debts, except the debt of love for others. You can never finish paying that! If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill all the requirements of God’s law" (Vs 8 NLT). I don't know about you, but the words taxes, debt, and love just don't seem to go together. I don't know that I have ever paid my taxes with any degree of love as part of the process. I just don't LOVE to pay my taxes. I don't LOVE to pay back debt. So what is Paul saying? I think his point is that we have a greater responsibility than just being good citizens who pay their taxes on time and their debts in full. We are to be living lives that are characterized by love. How many times have you heard a pastor or speaker use Paul's statement, "owe nothing to anyone" as a proof text against borrowing money or going in debt? But is that really Paul's point? I don't think so. His real message is about love. His point is that "love is the fulfillment of the law" (Vs 10). When we love, we are keeping the law of God in its entirety. You can't love and commit adultery. You can't love and murder. You can't love and steal from someone else. You can't love and covet what someone else has. You can't love and refuse to pay your taxes. You can't love and neglect to pay back money you have borrowed. You can't love and not honor the government, whether you agree with it or not. And that includes the guy who occupies that oval office whose political agenda you just might not agree with.

All this talk about love makes me think of the great "Love Chapter" in 1 Corinthians where Paul eloquently elaborates on the topic of love.

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love. Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn't want what it doesn't have. Love doesn't strut, Doesn't have a swelled head, Doesn't force itself on others, Isn't always "me first," Doesn't fly off the handle, Doesn't keep score of the sins of others, Doesn't revel when others grovel, Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, Puts up with anything, Trusts God always, Always looks for the best, Never looks back, But keeps going to the end. Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit." – 1 Corinthians 13:1-8 MSG

Then Paul sums it all up with the words, "There are three things that will endure––faith, hope, and love––and the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:13 NLT). When it is all said and done and we find ourselves standing before God in heaven, we will realize that only one thing remains a constant: Love. We will no longer need faith or hope. Our faith will be realized and our hope fulfilled. But we will continue to love and be loved for all eternity. So if that is the case, what should be our greatest priority now? Love. We are to love, knowing…

…how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for the coming of our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So don’t live in darkness. Get rid of your evil deeds. Shed them like dirty clothes. Clothe yourselves with the armor of right living, as those who live in the light. We should be decent and true in everything we do, so that everyone can approve of our behavior. Don’t participate in wild parties and getting drunk, or in adultery and immoral living, or in fighting and jealousy. But let the Lord Jesus Christ take control of you, and don’t think of ways to indulge your evil desires" (Romans 13:11-14 NLT).

What's love got to do with it? Everything.

Father, You have called us to be a people who love. But I have to confess that I find that hard to do sometimes. I want to hold back my love. I want to love selectively. I want to love those who love me back. I want to love conditionally. I want my love to always be accompanied by warm, fuzzy feelings or emotions. But You have called us to love one another and to love our enemies. You have said that the primary way the world will know we are Your disciples is because of how we love one another. Love is the key. Help me to love more. Help me to realize that nothing I do has any value if it is done without love. Love really is the key to it all. The same kind of love Your Son showed for me on the cross. Amen

TRANSFORMERS.

Romans 12

Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. – Vs 2 MSG

This is one of those verses that just about everyone knows or at least has heard on more than a handful of occasions. We're highly familiar with it, but that doesn't mean we necessarily live it on in real life. It is a call to be different. It is a command to live a life that is set apart and unique. Paul has just urged us to present our bodies "a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship" (Vs 1). The Message paraphrases his thoughts this way: "Take your everyday, ordinary life--your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life--and place it before God as an offering." What strikes me is that Paul is talking to a group of believers, not just individuals. He is speaking of the body of Christ. Together, we are to live in such a way that our everyday existence is a holy sacrifice to the Lord. That's why Paul spends the rest of the chapter talking about using our gifts in the context of the body of Christ. But each of us is to be going through a process of transformation. Instead of conforming, we should be transforming – going through the process of change from the inside out. In other words, to "let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think" (NLT). In many of the translations of this passage, you will see the phrase, "renewing of your mind." That word "renewing" can be translated "renovation." God is out to renovate the way we think, the way we view the world. He is giving us a new perspective on life and how to live in it. We begin seeing things differently. We can suddenly see trials and difficulties as opportunities for God's power to be revealed and our faith strengthened. We find ourselves "rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation" (Vs 12). The command to "abhor what is evil, cling to what is good" (Vs 9) becomes increasingly more a part of who we are. We stop paying back evil for evil, hating our enemies, and taking revenge. We stop thinking so highly of ourselves and negatively about others. We prefer serving rather than being served. We give more than we receive. We open up our homes and our wallets – willingly and gladly. We find out what our spiritual gifts are and use them to minister to the rest of the body of Christ.

We can do all this because we are being transformed – changed from the inside out – in our hearts, our minds, our attitudes, and ultimately, in our behavior. Our daily lives are a test or living proof of the reality of the life change going on within us. When we do all the things listed above, we give evidence or proof of the transformation that is taking place within us. We are living out in daily life the will of God, "that which is good and acceptable and perfect" (Vs 2). God is bringing out the best in us. We are walking testimonials to the amazing grace and power of God as He develops well-formed maturity in each of us. And we prove it all in the context of the body as we live our lives together.

Father, thank You for Your transforming power going on in my life. Thank You that You are changing the way I think. You are using Your Word to alter my mindset and how I view life and the world. You have given me the ability to think and live differently. I pray that you would continue to renovate my thinking to such a degree that the characteristics Paul lists in this chapter would becoming increasingly a normal part of the way I live my life and the way we as Christians live our lives together. All for Your glory.  Amen

What A God!

Romans 11

Oh, what a wonderful God we have! How great are his riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his methods! For who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who knows enough to be his counselor? – Vs 33-34 NLT

Chapter 11 is one of those chapters you read, then re-read and then scratch your head and wonder what Paul is really saying. It is deep and difficult to completely understand what he means. There are as many opinions as there are commentaries. But even Paul seems to reach a point where he simply has to put down his pen and kneel before the throne of God. The closing verses of this chapter seem to be Paul's acknowledgment that His God is greater than his capacity to understand Him or figure Him out. He says, "How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his methods!" We can sit and debate and argue over all that Paul has said regarding the future of the Jewish people, and there's nothing particularly wrong with that, or we can acknowledge that there is so much we don't know and may never know until the Lord returns. And there is so much of God and His ways that we will never be able to understand and figure out with our finite minds. Isaiah said it this way: "No one can measure the depths of his understanding" (Isaiah 40:28). His decisions are unsearchable. His methods of doing things are undiscoverable and mysterious. We so desperately want to box Him in and figure Him out, but He is the infinite God of the universe.

In the book of Job we read these words: "Can you solve the mysteries of God? Can you discover everything there is to know about the Almighty? Such knowledge is higher than the heavens––but who are you? It is deeper than the underworld ––what can you know in comparison to him? It is broader than the earth and wider than the sea" (Job 11:7-9). Our God is a great and awesome God. He is beyond our ability to understand. Anything we know of Him, He must reveal to us. The Bible is His revelation of Himself to us. In it we can discover His character, His will, and get a glimpse of His ways. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God within us. Without Him we would be unable to understand anything about God or His ways. But even with all that, we will still never be able to figure God out. Like the universe He created, He is without end and seemingly limitless. So what should our response be to the greatness of our God? Paul sums it up in the last verse of this chapter. Listen to how The Message paraphrases it:

Everything comes from him; Everything happens through him; Everything ends up in him. Always glory! Always praise! Yes. Yes. Yes.

Always glory! Always praise! Yes. Yes. Yes.

Father, I praise You this morning for your greatness. You are beyond my ability to understand. Yet You have chosen to reveal Yourself to me. I can't even begin to understand Your ways and yet You have shown me Your truth time and time again through Your Word. Forgive me when I think I have all the answers or have You figured out. How arrogant. Who am I to try and solve the mysteries of God or to try and discover all there is to know about You and Your ways. Let me rest in the simple knowledge that You are exceedingly great and incredibly good. Amen