Road work ahead: Christian growth demonstrated

Posted on March 14, 2016 by | Comments Off on Road work ahead: Christian growth demonstrated

road work ahead signRoad work is something that seems to plague modern civilization. For many of us, just the sight of the orange diamond sign sends a wave of frustration and panic into what would normally have been a fairly uneventful drive. Family vacations can become quite stressful as those all-too-familiar signs begin to warn of road work ahead. If you’re like my family where our adventures to visit family takes us through larger cities such as Nashville and Knoxville (Tennessee) and Jackson (Mississippi), it seems as if those signs are a permanent part of the landscape. On a recent trip to visit family, I began to wonder if others can see such signs as road work ahead as we journey through our faith. I once heard an old country preacher explain during a sermon that if a person isn’t growing, they are dying.

Road work ahead: our spiritual growth is ongoing

For those of you who follow this blog on Facebook, a few weeks ago I shared how I had gotten rid of about fourteen inches of CDs. I love music and still have a variety of music that includes everything from classical to heavy metal – or at least I had. Since about November of 2015, the Holy Spirit began leading me into a direction that at first I resisted: get rid of music I knew was holding me back from spiritual growth. At that time, my Bible reading had taken me to Psalms, but one verse seemed to leap off the page at me: I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me (Psalms 101:3). As I continued reading that morning, I felt the tugging of the Holy Spirit urging and pleading with me. I didn’t listen to the CDs when my daughter was home because I didn’t want her exposed to the lyrics on them. I justified keeping them because I liked the music, but as the Holy Spirit began working on my heart I realized that if I didn’t want my daughter to listen to them, I probably shouldn’t listen to them either. 

As we begin to grow and mature in our faith the Holy Spirit begins to do road work on the path that our life will take us. Jesus told us about the work of the Holy Spirit during His earthly ministry: But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you (John 14:26). Once we have received Jesus as our personal savior, the Holy Spirit begins its work to mold us into the new creation God wants us to be.  Where the Holy Spirit began a work on my heart to rid myself of music I shouldn’t listen to, He may be doing a work in your life calling you to give up something else, such as a toxic relationship, a habit or addiction, a television show, or yes, even some sort of music. When we are obedient to the leadership of the Holy Spirit we actually please the Lord: And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams (1 Samuel 15:22). Yes, I had complete free will to either obey or reject the leadership of the Holy Spirit; if I sincerely desire to place the Lord’s will above my own, then the choice becomes simple.

Rest assured, if you are a child of God, even if you do not see it, there are areas of your life, as there still are in mine, where the Holy Spirit will lead us to change. It relates directly to what the apostle Paul strove to teach the early Christians in Corinth: Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty (2 Corinthians 6:14-18). What Paul is describing in this passage is that God calls us to prepare for road work in our lives. He tells us to be ready for it!

Road work ahead is proof the Lord really cares

Each year, the local department of transportation evaluates roadways and traffic patterns around the cities within its jurisdiction. From these periodic evaluations, decisions are made to widen some roads, redirect traffic flow from others, to build new routes, and in some cases, to stop service and maintenance to others. This accurately describes what the Holy Spirit does in the life of a believer.  As uncomfortable as road work can be for the traveler, it can also be uncomfortable in the life of a Christian. The Bible clearly teaches this in two verses: Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chasteneth thee (Deuteronomy 8:5) and For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth (Hebrews 12:6). The work of the Holy Spirit within our lives is proof of the love of  the Lord towards us. The Lord would not waste the effort to correct, to mold, to direct the life of someone who rejects Him. Even Hosea the prophet testified to this: My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children (Hosea 4:6).

We continue to grow spiritually and should look forward to the growth with great excitement. Yes, there are going to be growing pains and there will be times when it seems that we are being asked to surrender more than our share. Just keep in mind that each of us are on a different path in our walk of faith with the Lord.

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The lost generation: a spiritual disaster

Posted on March 11, 2016 by | Comments Off on The lost generation: a spiritual disaster

college studentsThe lost generation is not a myth. I have heard many talk about this developing phenomenon for years but it truly became real to me in February. As many of you know, I teach history at a local community college in rural Kentucky. While I do not openly discuss my faith in Jesus Christ in class, when a student comes to me during my office hours or will contact me outside the classroom and asks, I will boldly and with great excitement, share my faith in Jesus as the opportunity provides itself. The apostle Peter reminded the early Christians, But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear (1 Peter 3:15) and it is still good for us today to be ready to share the gospel of Jesus when the moment makes itself available.

The lost generation begs to be heard…

This semester has been incredibly challenging to me for several reasons – and it hasn’t even reached mid-terms! Like most semesters, I have had to deal with the average problems most college instructors would tell you about: lack of fundamental writing skills, a diminished work ethic (doing just enough to get by), poor attendance, and so on. That’s not where the challenge has been; the challenge has tried to balance the role of college instructor AND counselor to a group of young people who are having an incredibly difficult time in various aspects of life. Earlier this semester and after a lecture on the emerging role of the black church after the Civil War, a young female student came up to ask questions. At first, the questions were about the lecture materials and what books I could recommend her read about the development of the black church but soon developed into more personal questions about the generalities of Christian faith, human psychology of religion, and my own personal faith. 

In our conversation she said something that shook me to my core: “I’m 23 years old, grew up here in Henderson and past by a dozen or so churches every day. I’ve never been to church…” Immediately my mind went to a verse in Deuteronomy: And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up (Deuteronomy 11:19). Now I understand that as Christians, we are under grace and not the Law, there is still great wisdom in following the precepts of the Law and in this case, to use every moment to teach our children – the younger generation – about the goodness of God. This young woman was asking questions that she needed answered. She needed to be heard.

It wasn’t that I was offering her any advice that any other Christian couldn’t. It was that I was taking the time to engage in conversation with her, on a personal level, and took the time to understand what she was asking and trying to say. We live in a fast-paced world where we are bombarded with electronic communication, we get our news from 30 second sound bites, and our dinners take only a fraction of the time to prepare than did the meals our grandparents and parents shared just a few decades ago. Everywhere you turn, you see someone talking on a cell phone, posting to Facebook and Twitter. Yet it is the younger generation that in spite of all these means of communication, has become the lost generation. They are unsure how to ask questions in a personal dialogue in front of another person; they search for answers on the Internet but realize that even if they are reading truth, something is still missing from it. They are seeking answers, are asking questions, but too many Christians have also become wrapped up in the Internet world and are helpless to respond to the questions.

The lost generation is looking for answers…

A while back I heard an older person at Wal-Mart make the comment that the younger generation are ungrounded in reality and have no understanding of what life really is about. The conversation then turned into a discussion about sexuality, entertainment, work ethics, and ended with an indictment against the new emerging (and fleshly) focused culture. While I was in agreement with much of what this man and the cashier were discussing, I began to think of how the younger generation – this lost generation – is looking for answers to their questions. Jesus taught, For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened (Luke 11:10); it is important to remember that when people seek, not only does the Lord reveal himself, but Satan will reveal counterfeits to whatever the Lord offers. I cannot help but to wonder how many young people chose the counterfeit because it was easily available at hand, was appealing, and seemed to offer what they were seeking.

Continued on the next page.

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Spirit of Christmas: Keeping it all year (Pt 3)

Posted on January 25, 2016 by | Comments Off on Spirit of Christmas: Keeping it all year (Pt 3)

spirit of ChristmasThe spirit of Christmas, as we have shared in the previous blogs, is not about trees decorated in lights, garland, and brightly wrapped presents. It’s about us celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus. To carry the spirit of Christmas with us throughout the year, we have seen through scripture that we 1) must have a personal relationship with the Lord and 2) We must be willing to show His love for us through our love for others and through our fellowship with others who believe in Jesus. There is one more crucial part that must be presented before we can end this series and it is the importance of bearing fruit for the Lord.

Spirit of Christmas: the source of all Christian fruit

The love we have for the Lord should spring up inside our hearts and should cause us to bear fruit. The fruit is the evidence of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us, of the love for the Lord within our hearts, and at the center of the Christian fruit we bear, our love for Christ must permeate the fruit. Anything we do, we must do it out of our love for Jesus and not some misguided attempt to fulfill some sense of Christian duty. Ask any married couple or any parent with children and they will tell you the difference between a loved one doing what’s desired because they want to versus because they have to. If we know the difference then we must realize that our Lord knows the difference when it comes to what we do for Him.

The reason the first part of this series deals with our relationship with the Lord is because of what Jesus told his disciples, Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me (John 15:4). This truth – that our relationship with Jesus and the free gift of salvation He offers – is the seed from where all our fruit springs forth. Jesus would later say, Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples (John 15:8), which is an interesting scripture. Within it is this simple truth – when we bear fruit we do bring glory to God. We bear fruit because we are the disciples – a word rooted in ancient Greek that simply means we are students of Jesus.

Spirit of Christmas: our fruit should be evident

The fruit we bear should be obvious, it should be visible to others, and we should bear fruit unashamed. Our fruit should bear witness of the Lord, should make it obvious we are His, and be a testimony to His tender mercies towards us. We should do these things, sharing the gospel message, sharing the love of Christ, and showing others tenderness and mercy not because God expects us to, but because we are doing it out of nothing other than our love for the Lord. Again, the teachings of Jesus show this concept: Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven (Matthew 5:14-16). If we apply this to our lives, our fruit should be obvious because we have been transformed on the inside; Paul best describes this transformation: For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light (Ephesians 5:8). This light should burn so bright in our hearts that it glorifies our Lord and draws others to Him. Peter describes this concept a little differently: Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation (1 Peter 2:12).

Spirit of Christmas: reaching out sacrificially

Often when we think of sacrifices, we think of sacrificial giving to missions or to fulfill some special need of a member of our family, a friend, or others. When we give sacrificially, we do it without any expectation of anything in return. We simply want to help or to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Jesus taught about this very type of reaching out to others sacrificially: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me (Matthew 25:35-40). Those who were doing all these things never expected to receive any sort of reward. They simply had compassion on others and a love for their Lord that they simply demonstrated God’s love and compassion for others.

Even the apostle Paul taught and demonstrated this sacrificial reaching out to others: And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me (Acts 26:15-18). Once he accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior, Paul understood the task the Lord laid before him. If we were to study the life of Paul, we would see that he constantly demonstrated his love for others, even if it meant he could lose his life or be persecuted for sharing the love of Christ with others. Paul spoke of the condition of his heart, But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God (Acts 20:24). If we were to study Paul’s life, we would see that everything he did, from his preaching the gospel in every town he entered to every letter he wrote, were done out of sacrificial giving and love for the Lord. If we are to keep the spirit of Christmas alive throughout the year, then we must be willing to sacrificially give, as our Lord and Savior did for us.

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