Cleansed!

Tuesday, January 24, 2023

But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.                       1 Corinthians 6:11

Paul makes the point that trusting Christ has forgiven us, brings with it the sense that we’ve been cleansed from our sins, made right with God.  It is also hardly necessary to say, we should, as his serious disciples, continue to live cleansed.

In the full-disclosure department, I’m as prone to do goofy stuff as much as any other human…sometimes more!  Last week I had one of those moments.  I was running a little bit behind schedule, and was picking up the pace to get on track.  We had finished a late breakfast.  We use paper plates to go easy on the dishwasher, so one of the last moments of a meal is letting Wellie (our resident dishwasher) lick the plate clean.  For a small dog, that tongue does a big job, removing every last reminder there was ever food on the plate.

Carrying the silverware, coffee cups, and Wellie-cleaned paper plates into the kitchen, I put the cups and forks in the sink.  Staring at the paper plates in my hand, time stood still for just an instant.  I had a moment of indecision-muddle, whether to put the paper plates in the sink, garbage, or with the clean dishware in the cabinet.  It was a disturbance of my peace, to say the least.

I know, and have always known, eating off the same plate a dog has cleaned (even my sweet mutt), is a disgusting prospect.  But, there it is…an unguarded moment, thinking about getting out the door for our appointment, not the task at hand; I nearly chose the cabinet.  After all, we had paid six-cents apiece for those little plates; a second use would cut the price in half!

It was then reality kicked-in.  In that moment, confronted with saving three-cents, (Six-cents if you factor-in reusing my wife’s plate too….don’t you dare tell her), in that two or three nanoseconds of indecision, common sense arrived.  There was no justification for saving three (or six) cents, stacked-up against the zillions of dollars I’d spend at the doctor’s office battling whatever exotic germs my dog had brought-in on his tongue from rummaging around on the ground in the back yard.  The plates immediately entered the kingdom of trash.

My “goofy moment” is an analogy of what’s going on in our minds, spiritually, with the whole issue of temptation.  There are things a six-year-old understands to be wrong, yet we entertain them; we give sin a foothold.  Given time, prayer, and a heart willing to align with God’s will, our decision-making becomes much stronger, rejecting the impulses we have, which our enemy, Satan is more than willing to use in ruining our witness and peace in Christ.

John Wesley’s advice on getting the best use of our time and call to minister God’s Word and blessings to others, speaks volumes to my tendency to be preoccupied, and vulnerable to the enemy’s tactics:  Be always moving, and never in a hurry.

For You Today  

Let’s let apostle Peter have the last word about this day’s caution:

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  1 Peter 5:8

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,000 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper on today’s topic, explore some of these: 

The Problem with Dirty Laundry  and  When Innocence Shines

Images:  Title Pixabay.com   Images without citation are either personal property of the author, or in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

When Demons Pray

Wednesday, December 14, 2022

When Jesus arrived on the other side of the lake, in the region of the Gadarenes, two men who were possessed by demons met him.  They came out of the tombs and were so violent that no one could go through that area.  They began screaming at him, “Why are you interfering with us, Son of God?  Have you come here to torture us before God’s appointed time?”  There happened to be a large herd of pigs feeding in the distance.  So the demons begged, “If you cast us out, send us into that herd of pigs.”  “All right, go!” Jesus commanded them.  So the demons came out of the men and entered the pigs, and the whole herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned in the water.  The herdsmen fled to the nearby town, telling everyone what happened to the demon-possessed men.  Then the entire town came out to meet Jesus, but they begged him to go away and leave them alone.  Matthew 8:28-34

There is a question here, screaming to be posed to anyone who reads this Gospel account:  Which is a better outcome…two men tortured and driven to hell, or two men healed of their madness, the consequence being a herd of pigs sacrificed?

So often I’ve heard the argument turn towards compassion for a herd of pigs (which were being raised for food), and ignoring the tormented men, possessed by demons.  The evidence of our sinful nature is seen in the epilogue to Jesus healing the men.  The whole town agrees, the pigs were more important to them than the healing of the possessed men.  By begging Jesus to leave, the entire town takes a stance against the liberating compassion of Christ, choosing instead the company of evil.  And thus it has always been.

If you take a closer look at the tortured men, the demons reveal everything that drives their decision.  Their whole activity has one purpose…to bring misery, pain, and death.  All their actions drove the men to violence and disruption.  This has been the game plan of Lucifer since being kicked out of heaven for opposing God.  Apostle Peter warned the flock about Satan’s ways:

Stay alert!  Watch out for your great enemy, the devil.  He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  1 Peter 5:8

Why is this account in Scripture?  It holds up a mirror to today’s culture…anger, violence, murder, deceit, all of which turns upside-down that which God planned for us, His creation.  He designed the fruit of the Spirit as our dwelling:

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!  Galatians 5:22-23

Ever opposing the good work of God, demons are under orders from Hell to destroy our peace, and every other work of Heaven, take us by the hand, and lead us to death’s doorstep.

For You Today  

The question of the day (always) requires choosing whom you will serve.  So let’s ask it:  What if it were YOUR herd?

Spiritual warfare is not a choice…the battle is already raging.  And in any war, the choice of which side you’ll take must be settled long before the battle begins.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,000 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper on today’s topic, explore some of these: 

   Faith That's BAD for Business and Ears Open - Heart Straight - Eyes on the Road - Sure Foot

Images:  Title Pixabay.com   Images without citation are either personal property of the author, or in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

 

Tuesday, January 4, 2022

“However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself.  Only the Father knows.  And since you don’t know when that time will come, be on guard!  Stay alert![1]     “The coming of the Son of Man can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip.  When he left home, he gave each of his slaves instructions about the work they were to do, and he told the gatekeeper to watch for his return.  You, too, must keep watch!  For you don’t know when the master of the household will return—in the evening, at midnight, before dawn, or at daybreak.  Don’t let him find you sleeping when he arrives without warning.  I say to you what I say to everyone:  Watch for him!”  Mark 13:32-37

That corner of the room where Elizabeth and I eat breakfast and have our morning devotion together is watched-over by my Mom and Dad’s grandfather clock. 

As I read Mark’s account of Jesus telling his disciples to be watching diligently for His return, the clock knew what we were reading.  I read the words of Jesus be on guard…stay alert!  Right on cue, the clock struck…BONG, BONG…just over my left ear.  I tell you; it was hard to concentrate on finishing the reading.  There is something just foreboding and portentous about the sound of those Winchester chimes bonging from the depths of that clock’s presence.  But when it arrives with the words of Jesus, STAY ALERT cannot be ignored.

We are in the first light of a new calendar year.  I would ask how those resolutions are going, but I wouldn’t be that unkind.  It’s always on God’s agenda to give us a fresh start.  Resolution is part of that process, and, for obvious reasons, staying alert is always the next step in the process.  The most important of those evident reasons is greasy tracks.  It’s been said our lives are like railroad tracks, and God always greases the tracks in the direction you choose.  If you start walking in God’s direction, he will be found.  If you walk away from Him, you’ll find it easier and easier to ignore that still small voice every day. 

Finding God’s will in your process is imperative; it’s like reading the owner’s manual.  Much like a manufacturer of computers sends updates to keep your machine working properly, God’s will is His ultimate human software patch. 

To carry any analogy too far is dangerous, but just to beg the elephant in the room (about God’s will and our programming) we must consider malware viruses.  The enemy is constantly looking for ways past your security system.  The apostle Peter echoes Jesus’ warning:

Stay alert!  Watch out for your great enemy, the devil.  He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  1 Peter 5:8

God’s will can be found in His Word – that which will seek out and dismantle any hacking attempts by the enemy. 

For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.  Hebrews 4:12

One last computer comparison:  Prayer is the activation code. 

Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.  Colossians 4:2

For You Today

In a world that has been lulled into dozing off by a myriad of distractions, keeping an alert mind that keeps in-focus and eyes on the goal of God’s will in your life.  What else could be more important than staying alert?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title and Other Images:  Pixabay.com   Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

For other posts on this text see When Job Got it Right and Job's Story - From Hero to Zero (and back)

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[1] Emphasis added to each reference to stay alert

 

Thursday, October 28, 2021

Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the Lord.  Joyful are those who obey his laws and search for him with all their hearts.  They do not compromise with evil, and they walk only in his paths.  You have charged us to keep your commandments carefully.  Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees!  Then I will not be ashamed when I compare my life with your commands.  As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should!  I will obey your decrees.  Please don’t give up on me!  Psalm 119:1-8

If you’ve ever had a peek at what’s underneath the keyboard on your laptop you have some concept of how complex and powerful are the devices that are the shapers of lives and worldview these days.  If you’ve seen a microchip, the little silicon-based brain of the computer, you have glimpsed a model of your brain, and a grand overlay to understanding the simplicity of faith.  You have the perfect metaphor for understanding what the Psalmist wrote about the integrated life.

Living a life of integrity in God’s world is not just a good idea, it is commanded.  God charges (or commands) those who would be approved in Heaven with having a daily integration of their thoughts, heart-felt desires, and actions all synced with Scripture.  Let’s see if we can open that metaphor’s motherboard and see what the Psalmist was saying to 21^st century minds.

The integrated circuit (or chip) is the basis for how a computer’s function serves to tie information strands together.  If there is a breakdown, or mis-match, the error messages will cover your computer’s screen view.  It’s not a happy time.  I say this from much frustrating experience.

In the same way that a computer with a virus is destined to degrade and eventually return to the plastic scrap heap, a life that is not integrated with the Creator’s design will come unglued.

The Psalmist ties together joy and integrity.  Much like the satisfaction you feel when your computer turns-on, boots-up, and works like it was created, so the human creature is designed by the Father to operate in the realm of God’s law and love.  Compromise with evil is to corrode the system.  Searching for God’s ways (in God’s Word) is paying careful attention to the owner’s manual.  If you don’t do that the “garbage-in/garbage-out” paradigm will be fully realized.

The tie-together of this metaphor (and our relationship with God) is humility.  At  the close of this passage ^{(verse 8),} the Psalmist prays:  Please don’t give up on me.  This is much like depending on updates for your software.  As conditions change, and spyware gets more creative to invade the integrity of your computer equipment, so the enemy of Heaven is always on the prowl[1] to destroy your walk with God.  A daily walk with Christ is like a computer software update, correcting that which has wandered, instructing that which has been asleep, and recharging the spiritual batteries.

For You Today

Three times in this Psalm the writer uses a phrase that gives us a key to living a joyfully-integrated life; he says I WILL.  Power to live that life is always a matter of God’s grace, the gift of love.  But that power never comes to those who do not choose to accept it.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!   

[1] Title and Other Images:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©    

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[1] See 1 Peter 5:8

 

When Judas Brings Darkness

 

Wednesday of Holy Week, March 31, 2021

Now Jesus was deeply troubled, and he exclaimed, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me!”  The disciples looked at each other, wondering whom he could mean.  The disciple Jesus loved was sitting next to Jesus at the table.   Simon Peter motioned to him to ask, “Who’s he talking about?”  So that disciple leaned over to Jesus and asked, “Lord, who is it?”  Jesus responded, “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl.”  And when he had dipped it, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot.  When Judas had eaten the bread, Satan entered into him.  Then Jesus told him, “Hurry and do what you’re going to do.”  None of the others at the table knew what Jesus meant. Since Judas was their treasurer, some thought Jesus was telling him to go and pay for the food or to give some money to the poor.  So Judas left at once, going out into the night.  John 13:21-30

When you’re very familiar with a story, having read it many times before, you can miss some important phrases.  This morning they jumped off the page to grab me by the heart and throat. 

Satan entered into him…is a chilling reminder of how someone who chooses to believe in Jesus can turn on a dime if their belief is mixed with self-serving.  Judas was the treasurer, and being too close to the money was too much of a temptation for him.  (This, by-the-way, is not a blanket indictment of those who handle the financial necessities of church organizations.  I have known, and worked with treasurers of many churches – my own father included…mostly they are humble, honest, and only willing to serve God).  I believe Judas let the growing purse influence his understanding of God’s Kingdom.  He idolized the cash flow, and it began to pave the way for Satan to open his heart’s door.

So Judas left at once, going out into the night.  Going out into the night wasn’t just describing the time after the sun went down in the sky, but how the light of Christ’s love was forsaken in favor of following after the purse.

The fact that Judas was still with Jesus at the Last Supper indicates he still had a choice.  Scripture records that Jesus offered the piece of bread after dipping in the bowl, a sign of friendship and an offer of shared intimacy between close friends.  Taking the bread was the response of welcome, and shared joy.  This was the choice Judas made to betray Jesus.  His actions declared love for Jesus; his heart was counting on filling the purse with 30 pieces of silver.

And this is the danger for any of us who openly bear the name of disciple; our hearts are not hardened bastilles, they are vulnerable.  Our compassion makes us so, willing to be servant, helper, doers of good.  Satan is more than willing to use that against us.  This is why we are cautioned to be on guard, vigilant against the evil Satan wants to carry into the open doors of our hearts.

Stay alert!  Watch out for your great enemy, the devil.  He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  1 Peter 5:8

Most of us would not name a child “Judas”.  The name carries too much weight of betrayer, or not-to-be-trusted.  As such, when we hear that name, it is too easy to simply think of the despised cheat.  We miss the greater threat we each face, understanding that we are also following the same master and subject to the same temptation as Judas. 

·       It may be the purse, like Judas

·       It may be ambition like James and John wanting inner-circle privilege

·       It may be cowardice to witness like Peter, denying his Master at trial

It could be any of our little weakness proclivities that Satan knows how to exploit and nurture into full-blown betrayal. 

Is there any wonder we are called to a daily walk, a moment-by-moment conversation with our God that never really puts an “amen” to the end of our  prayers…but remains an open line of short accounts?

For You Today

A good check on how close to being Judas, (for any of us), is to set an hourly alarm reminder to consider if we’ve been on the alert to share Christ with someone, or thinking of that person who needs a word of encouragement, or if we’ve been mindful of God’s leading in every area of our life and relationships.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title Image:  By Nikolai Ge, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons                                                              Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

Fruit of the Spirit - Part 8 SELF-CONTROL

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Thursday, May 30, 2019

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  There is no law against these things!  Galatians 5:22-23

I have learned to pay attention to Grandma.  Now, that certainly applies to the Grandma I live with, but it also reveres the tons of wisdom that flow from Grandma’s hearts everywhere.  My Mother’s Mom, Grandma Carrie, had a favorite expression that Solomon would’ve loved:  Enough is too much!

Over the years I have learned to decode this piece of wisdom that corresponds so well to the Godly advice of Scripture.  Now, it seems a contradiction that having enough isn’t right, but Grandma said it was too much.  The arguable point here is that our natural appetites for anything we like will always take us over the top if we get what we want. 

Consider Solomon’s advice on the matter:

Do you like honey?  Don’t eat too much, or it will make you sick!  

Don’t visit your neighbors too often, or you will wear out your welcome.

Proverbs 25:16-17

Does that sound like Grandma to you?  Who can argue against those warnings?  My Dad would shout a loud “amen” here, especially to that honey thing.  During the Great Depression my Dad was a teenager.  His parent’s home was an apartment in New York, on the second floor, right over a neighborhood delicatessen.  The owner took a liking to my Dad, and every day handed him several samples of cheeses when he was coming or going. 

It was great, free cheese!  But after six months of the fabulous cheese giveaways enough became too much!  To the day he died my dad couldn’t be comfortable in the same room with cheese!

This brings us to the spiritual warning of too much cheese or anything else for which we would sacrifice moderation:

A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls.

Proverbs 25:28

The obvious reference here is a city or nation that lets its guard down becoming easy prey for the enemy.  If you’re going to remain free, the cost is to remain vigilant.  That means more than being tough to keep the bad guys out of your business, it also means taking care to guard your appetite for too much of any good thing, because it will make you easy prey for the chief enemy:

Stay alert!  Watch out for your great enemy, the devil.  He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  1 Peter 5:8

This advice from Grandma Carrie (by way of Solomon) about enough being too much is proved out in Scripture, even in Satan’s life.  Ultimately, his over-the-top appetite for “devouring” the spiritual life of God’s children will be his enough undoing.  That war against God that he loves so much will be his too much!

For You Today

Like a city without walls is hard to defend, so is your spirit without self-control.  So, pay careful attention to developing moderation and self-denial; you either rule your spirit or lose it!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

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[1] Title Image: Pixabay.com  
             Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from The New Living Translation©

Snake In the (Church) Grass

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Wednesday, August 22, 2018

“Where have you come from?” the Lord asked Satan.  Satan answered the Lord, “I have been patrolling the earth, watching everything that’s going on.” 

Job 2:2^(NLT)

One time Jesus entered a house, and the crowds began to gather again.  Soon he and his disciples couldn’t even find time to eat.  When his family heard what was happening, they tried to take him away.  “He’s out of his mind,” they said.  But the teachers of religious law who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “He’s possessed by Satan, the prince of demons.  That’s where he gets the power to cast out demons.”  Jesus called them over and responded with an illustration.  “How can Satan cast out Satan?” he asked.  “A kingdom divided by civil war will collapse.  Similarly, a family splintered by feuding will fall apart.  And if Satan is divided and fights against himself, how can he stand?  He would never survive.  

Mark 3:20-26^NLT)                                                  

It was, as Yogi Berra put it, déjà vu all over again!  Just before our worship service this past Sunday there was a report of a snake in the copy room…specifically, the serpentine visitor was curled-up in the printer.  We’re on a tight schedule scurrying from an early service at our first congregation, so I hadn’t arrived yet.  By the time I got there, ol’ Slewfoot had been evicted from the sanctuary. 

Now, the last thing a pastor wants to hear just a few moments before the worship service is something as disturbing as a four-foot-long black snake seeking asylum in our building.  (Pastors hear enough of the difficulties and trials of life to choke an average-sized team of plow horses; worship ought to be uplifting and celebratory).  The last time this happened (about 15 years ago) the church member came to me literally three minutes before the service with this on her lips….uh, preacher; we got a problem here.  I’ll probably write about that one tomorrow.

So, what does this have to do with the plot against Job and Jesus casting out the devil?  I’m glad you asked.

People are not surprised at all when a seedy, back-alley bar, abortion clinic, or house of ill-repute is called a Satan’s den.  But there’s always something on the scale of uneasy surprise, indignation, or even volcanic-like anger, if you suggest Satan might be on the church membership roll.  I’ve seen it!

To the point – doesn’t it make sense?  Satan already has the corporate bigwigs who are making it impossible for the poor to get out from under the weight of not having enough.  He has the Hitlers, Sadaam Husseins, and the Jeffrey Dahmers or Ted Bundys; they gave-in to Beelzebub long ago.  If there is any credence at all to the concept of spiritual warfare, that Satan is doing whatever he can to trip-up and capture Christians, why would he stay home from church on Sunday mornings?  I would venture a guess and suggest the slithering slime-ball never misses a service! 

Notice what the Apostle Peter cautioned:

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  1 Peter 5:8^(NLT)

So, yes, indeed…Satan is hiding in church!  If it were not so there wouldn’t be so many arguments and so much petty pride and attitudes.  People’s feelings wouldn’t get hurt so easily and leave the one place Jesus said we ought to gather.[2]

Satan is not only IN the church; that buzzard is RUNNING IT these days!

(Now save the cards, letters, and emails…I didn’t just call your pastor the devil; I only meant to call attention to the fact that Satan is engineering all sorts of discord, delay, discontent, and any other kind of disruption he can to the church’s ministry and mission.  Although, he probably does do it through more pastors than we might imagine!)

These days I don’t get very rattled when a snake is found in the church building; it serves as a good reminder that the unseen snake, Satan, is still on the prowl.

For You Today

Peter’s advice to be on guard is a non-negotiable must for the Christian who wants to live and serve Christ faithfully.  We do that by worshipping and fellowshipping with our family of believers in the church, Bible Study, constant prayer, giving, and being a living witness for Christ in the community. 

That’s the kind of activity that will chase Satan Snake-Eyes out of the church!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

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[1] Title Image: Photo Courtesy of Julie Stickler

[2] And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.  Hebrews 10:25^(NLT)