Redeem the Time!

Only one life 'twill soon be passed. Only what's done for Christ will last. C.T. Studd

 As I was out doing some yard work this morning, I began to reflect back over the years of my life. I looked back at things that were milestones in my life, but I also looked back at those things that seemed so empty and meaningless, and realized that so much of my life has been wasted living for the here and now, and so little has been done for the cause of Christ.

Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I has exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun (Ecclesiastes 2:11).

To be sure, we all have our jobs and families to look after and care for. Jesus expects us to be responsible for them. To do less is to deny the faith (1 Tim 5:8).  Yet, it seems that for so many of us, our lives never rise any higher than the temporal. We say we are living for Christ, but in reality we spend our time at our jobs, at our hobbies, working for a vacation, looking to get ahead a little bit in this world. We enjoy our friends and families, which in itself is fine, but we rise no higher. At the end of the day, we are only pursuing our own interests, at the expense of Christ's.

If all we ever accomplish in this life is merely our daily routine, we have failed miserably. We are admonished to seek first the kingdom of God (Matt 6:33). It does not cut it to live out our days for ourselves, go to Church on Sunday and Wednesday evening, and think that we are on fire Christians. We are supposed to be dead to this world, our lives are supposed to be hidden with Christ. As those who are risen with Christ, we are to be seeking those things that are above (Col 3:1-3). That kind of life should be quite different from that which so many of us are used to!

Paul has this to say, "Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil (Eph 5:15-16). Walking as wise men, making the most of our time! Time goes by so swiftly. The years seem to fly by, opportunities come and go, some we will never have again! Our lives as Christians are not about us, but are absolutely, totally to be lived all out for Christ. Let us redeem the time that is left, making the most of every opportunity. Whatever is done, no matter how good the deed, noble the motive, is still empty if it was not done for Christ.

                                                                 

The Cross As A Barrier.

     But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world (Gal 6:14 KJV)

     The cross has become a barrier between the Christian and the world. We read in Paul's epistle to the Romans that our old man is crucified with him (Jesus), that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin (Rom 6:6 KJV).

     I heard a minister recently put it this way. As we go through this life, we continually bump up against the cross. We must ask ourselves this question in every circumstance we face, in every choice we intend to make; "How will this choice affect my relationship with Christ?" We are living in an age when so many professing Christians seem to flirt with sin, trying to get as close to it without "losing their salvation." Instead of this "carnality" we should follow the example of Paul who counted all things loss for the sake of knowing Christ (Phil 3:7-8).

     Our relationship with Christ should be the one great thing in our lives. The one thing that encompasses all others. Everything else should pale in comparison to Christ in us. We dare not allow anything to come between us and our Lord, to hinder the fellowship that we share with Him. This is what it means to live the crucified life.

Dead to the World.

     But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
                                                             Galatians 6:14 NASB

     The cross of Christ is a barrier between the believer and the world. By it, the disciple has died to this world; he has forsaken it for the kingdom of God. And by the cross, this world has lost its attraction for the child of God. His mind is set upon heavenly things, and his life is hidden with Christ in God (Col 3:1-3).
     In scripture we are warned that to have friendship with the world is to be an enemy of God (James 4:4). Those who love the world cannot love God (1 John 2:15-17). Even though we see such plain warnings in the world of God, we often tend to overlook them. We speak of "worldly" Christians, but the plain teaching of scripture is that we as Christians are to come out of the world and be separate from it. In reality there is no such thing as a worldly Christian, for the Christian is not of this world according to Jesus Christ (John 15:19, 17:14-16).
      Once again, the answer is found in the cross of Christ. This is the means by which we die to the world and all of its attractions. The Apostle Paul states that He is "Crucified with Christ" (Gal 2:20). Dead men have no plans or agendas. A man on the cross could do nothing. His life was over. He had no more purpose in this world but to die. Likewise, as we come to the cross in total surrender to the claims and Lordship of Jesus Christ, we lay down absolutely everything. all of our hopes and dreams, plans and purposes, all we hold dear, we forsake it all, and pick up the cross by which we must die (Mark 9:34-34).
     This is the standard for all who profess to follow Christ,
     
          Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 
                                                            Galatians 5:24 NASB

Ring that bell

     I listened to this powerful message this morning, and it brought tears to my eyes. Listen to it, and let God speak to your heart. It is so easy to get caught up in our lives and lose sight of what God has really called us to. Christianity is so much more than going to church once or twice a week, and having our bible reading plans and such. These things are good and have their purpose, but there is something lacking in so many of our lives. I believe it is a consuming passion for the souls of our fellow man. How much would we endure for Christ? How far are we willing to go to see the world around us reached with the good news of new life in Christ? Listen to this sermon and be blessed!  Ring that bell

The Spirit of a Prophet Leonard Ravenhill

Contending for the Faith: Strangers and Exiles.

Contending for the Faith: Strangers and Exiles.: All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confess...

Strive to Enter the Narrow Door.

     We seem to have this idea that the Christian life requires little or no effort on our part. It is true on the one hand that salvation is the gift of God, received by faith, and not by works (Ephesians 2:8-9). But we also have the words of Jesus as recorded in Luke's gospel,

     "Strive to enter by the narrow door; for many will seek to enter and will not be able. Once the head of the house gets up and shuts the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock on the door saying, 'Lord, open up to us!' then He will answer and say to you, 'I do not know where you are from.' Then you will begin to say, 'We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets'; and He will say, 'I tell you, I do not know where you are from; DEPART FROM ME ALL YOU EVIL DOERS.' There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth there when you see Abraham Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves being cast out. And they will come from east and west, and from north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God. And behold, some are last who will be first and some are first who will be last."
                                     Luke 13:24-30 NASB

     The word strive is a strong word that means to gain the mastery of, to agonize in contention for something. To strive is to give an all out effort in the obtaining of a prize. In this instance Christ is telling us that we must make every effort to enter through the narrow door. The four men who brought the paralytic to Jesus were an example to us of what it means to strive, or make an effort. They were not discouraged by the large crowd surrounding Jesus, but instead, dug a hole in the roof of the house where Jesus was teaching, and lowered their friend in front of Christ (Mark 2:2-4).
      We are told that many will try to enter, but will not be able. Elsewhere we read that there will be FEW that enter the narrow gate, and walk the narrow path that leads to life (Matt 7:13).
     The problem that multitudes of professing believers have is their lack of faith, evidenced by their lack of commitment to Christ and His call on their lives. They may desire to live better lives; perhaps to even give up some sinful habits, but their desires do not run deep enough to make a radical break with sin. For many, their profession is based upon an emotional experience with no depth. They may have said a prayer, made a commitment, but they failed to count the cost as Jesus tells us we must do (Luke 14:28). Just like the people in Jesus' day, there are many today who are familiar with Jesus. There are those who are content to believe the historical facts about Christ, but their faith remains in their heads and not their hearts, and their lives are unchanged. It is the same with those who are "Christian" based on the fact they grew up in a Christian home. Others are satisfied with religious forms and rituals. They, like those who ate and drank in the presence of Jesus, and heard Him teaching in the streets, will be shocked on the day they stand before Him and hear "I do not know where you are from." They have missed the new birth, through which we must enter the kingdom of God (John 3:3-7).
     Just as birth is painful and requires great effort to bring a life into the world, so also it is painful, and requires great effort to be spiritually born anew into the kingdom of God. Once again, I am aware that works will never save us, and it is impossible to earn our salvation, or to be able to impress God enough to save us. It is not a case of being able to somehow trust in God, and trust in works, and being able to get to heaven.
     You see, we must be stripped of pride, stripped of self, and this is a painful process and few can endure it, but God is opposed to the proud. Those who are humble, are those who receive grace (James 4:6-10; 1 Peter 5:5). The new birth is a radical change. We come just as we are, but we will never enter the kingdom just as we are. We come to surrender, to lay down our sinful lives, and be changed by the washing of rebirth, and the renewal of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:4-7). This surrender, this laying down of our lives is repentance, a complete change of mind and action. It is a turning from ourselves to God. It involves giving up our sin. It is painful to see ourselves as God sees us, but once we do we will turn from our selfish desires and actions and give ourselves to follow Christ.
     Jesus calls us to follow Him, and to follow Him requires that we deny ourselves, take up our cross; that we renounce all we have, that we completely lose our lives for Him (John 12:25-26; Mark 8:34-35; Luke 14:27-33). To follow Jesus requires that we obey Him (Luke 6:46; John 14:21, 15:14). Our obedience does not save us. If we are following Jesus from a motive of self preservation, we have failed to lose our life for Him. We are still in control of our life, and have failed to enter in through the narrow door. The door is indeed narrow, and one must squeeze through it painfully. We must follow Him for His sake, and love Him for His sake. It is not about what He can do for us, but about losing our lives for Him.
     It is a narrow gate and an equally narrow road that leads to life, with few on it, while the broad path to destruction is filled with souls (Matt 7:13-14). The cost is high, and few are truly willing to pay it.

The Death of Self.

     "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies it bears much fruit.
     "He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.
     "If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him."
                                     John 12:24-26 NASB

     There can be no spiritual power, no true usefulness to God, except that we die to ourselves. The world is full of busy religious people all doing things for God and His kingdom, but we see so little power, so little results, so little of the presence of God in our activities.
     Jesus tells us that a seed will not bear fruit unless it is dead and buried. We also will not bear fruit unless we are dead and buried spiritually speaking.
     He puts His finger on the problem. It is the love of life that keeps us useless for His glory. Multitudes of professing believers are caught up in the everyday pursuit of life and happiness. We live for the temporal needs of this life. We are concerned for food and clothing, and put God's kingdom in the back part of our minds. This is the exact opposite of what Jesus calls us to do (Matt 6:25-34).
     You see, Jesus calls us to hate our lives in this world. He is telling us that our plans, our agendas, our pleasures and desires, must go. It is not about us at all. As long as we retain self in any form, we cannot truly follow Him. We cannot serve two masters (Matt 6:24).
     Too many professed Christians are running around with self in control of their lives. To be sure, many of them live moral, upright lives. They have put away sins of every kind, but they, like the rich young ruler, still have an idol in their hearts (Luke 18:18-24). It is this idea of happiness, the "American dream." We seem to want to be comfortable, to retain at least some control of our lives and circumstances, to have our needs fully met, and have some pleasure as well. We seek higher education, find fulfillment in sports and entertainment, go to Church and get involved with the many programs and activities that are promoted there, but it is all for us, and about us!
     Paul said that he gloried in the cross of Christ, through which the world was crucified to him, and he to the world (Galatians 6:14). We all believe that Jesus was crucified on the cross for us, but have we been placed on the cross as well? We might not teach this today, but it is biblical nonetheless. Paul states that He has been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer Paul in charge, but the life of Christ is now lived out by faith (Galatians 2:20). In the Epistle to the Romans, Paul states that as believers we have been crucified with Christ so that our sinful nature would be destroyed. We find freedom from sin through the cross (Romans 6:6).
     The point is that dead men have no plans, no purposes, no agendas, nothing. Once nailed to that cross, it is all over. You cannot get down to go to your job, you cannot get down to go home to your families, hobbies, vacations, entertainments, or anything else. Even our plans and desires as relating to Christian service must be forsaken for God, and His higher plans for us. It is over, and this is where God calls us to be. Jesus tells us to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him (Mark 8:34-35). We are no longer our own. This is the call to surrender all, to completely and forever renounce all we have and are, and follow Christ fully. No more self, but Christ is all.
     This is where we are filled with power and purpose. We have to get rid of self, so that We can be filled with Him. If you had murky water in a container that was unfit to drink, wouldn't you first pour it out before you filled it with fresh clean water? Likewise, God wants us out of the way so to speak, so that He might live through us in power.
     Now it can be all about Him. It is no longer our will, but His. It is no longer our plans and purposes that we live for, but His. We are no longer struggling within the confines of our limited strength, but operating in the power of the Holy Spirit. Just as a seed falls into the ground and grows into a fruit bearing plant, now we too can bear fruit for God.
     Fear keeps us back. We worry about not being in control, but is not God far wiser than we are in making decisions? We worry about food and clothing, but will He not take care of us (Matt 6:33)? God has our highest good in mind. He will not leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5-6). God has a higher call upon your life than you might realize. Will you not yield to His call today?