Firm Gentleness

"God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth" (Matt. 5:5).

Gentleness means kindness and friendliness in your interaction with others. It is the exact opposite of self-assertion where you and your own interests comes first. Self-assertion is in fact a denial of God and His omnipotence to intervene or take action. Gentleness is acknowledging your total dependence and genuine selflessness.

Gentle people are contented, in contrast to those who are greedy. The latter are the "grabbers" in life and they desperately cling to everything they can get hold of. Gentle people are the "givers" who want to make others happy. God smiles through their eyes.

Jesus is the epitome of gentleness: "See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey" (Matt. 21:5 NIV). His gentleness was not soft or weak, but decisive and powerful. He taught us to forgive those who wrong us and to return evil with good.

The world doesn't belong to the brutal, but to the gentle - and so does God's new world. Behind every gentle person stands an Almighty God who takes care of them. Only the Holy Spirit can lead you to this Christian virtue (see Gal. 5:22-23). And this virtue leads you into God's kingdom.

Yearning for God

As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for You, O God (Ps. 42:1).

 

Unconditional surrender to God’s will brings incredible happiness and blessing. Christ Himself said, “God blesses those who realize their need for Him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs” (Matt. 5:3). This indescribable blessing begins when we realize our total inability, and place our full trust in God, obeying His will to such an extent that, we become citizens of His Kingdom.

 

The world says, “Grab everything you can, and hold on to what you have.” The Christian says, “He must become more and I must become less.”

 

Most people find it difficult to be dependent. Our independence and self-reliance mean so much to us. But this independence is an illusion - the big lie that Satan plants in our hearts. The rich fool’s sin was not that he was rich, but that he left God out of the equation.

 

Can you be happy if you hand over control of your life? Yes, if you hand it over to Jesus Christ. Then you will know a quiet happiness that no one can take from you. Real happiness in life can only be found when you have become completely dependent on God.

 

The essence of sin is selfishness and self-interest. The essence of salvation is surrender and dedication. Then your thirst is quenched and your hunger satisfied, because the Good Shepherd has brought you to green pastures and quiet waters where there is peace.

Why would you call Me Lord but not do what I ask?

Luke 6:46

Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?

Peter Says “No Lord”

When Jesus was washing the disciples feet to leave them an example for how they are to serve one another, He came to Peter, and Peter said, “No, Lord, You shall never wash my feet” (John 13:8). Peter was acknowledging Him as Lord but not doing what He asked. Then after Jesus told Him that He must do this, Peter again basically said, “No, Lord, not just my feet, but my hands and head as well” (John 13:9). So twice in one conversation Peter tells Jesus, who he claims to be “Lord,” no! How can this be? If He is Peter’s Lord and Peter tells Him no, then is he really Peter’s Lord? I am not saying that Peter was not saved, but to tell Jesus no is to not be making Him the Lord of your life.

Again, No, Lord!

Just before Jesus went to Calvary to die for the sins of the world, Peter again told Jesus no. Jesus had just told the disciples that He was going to be delivered into the hands of the elders, the chief priests, and teachers of the law and that He must be killed, only to be raised to life again (Matt. 16:21), but then Peter took Jesus aside and told his Lord, “Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you” (Matt. 16:22)! Read that again. Peter just said no to He whom he calls Lord. Can we say no to the Lord and still rightly call Him Lord? To acknowledge Jesus as Lord is to do what He says and never say “no” to Him. If we say no to the Lord, is He really the Lord of our lives? Jesus rebuked Peter for being Satan’s agent when Peter told Jesus no because he was thinking only in humanly terms and not on the things of God (Matt. 16:23).

Lord of All or Not Lord at All

I have heard this phrase before: If He is not Lord of all, then He is not Lord at all. There is truth to that because Jesus says that the person who hears their Lord’s words but doesn’t obey them is like someone who is building their house with no foundation, and when the overflowing streams of life come, it is simply swept away (Luke 6:49). But the one who hears and does what his master says builds his or her house on a rock-solid foundation, and when the floods come, it remains (Luke 6:47-48). Floods are symbolic of God’s judgment, so whoever hears and does what God says will not be swept away in judgment when it comes (Rev. 20:12-15), and it is coming. I have a friend who says he was baptized many years ago, but his lifestyle is nothing like a subject of the Lord, Jesus Christ. He uses God’s name in profanity, he gets drunk, he watches R- and X-rated movies, and his lifestyle is not bearing godly fruit, but fruit of the Devil (John 15). I have tried warning him many times that he can say “Lord, Lord” all he wants. But if he isn’t obeying what the Lord says, is he really his Lord? I asked him to read Matthew 7:21-23 where Jesus warns that not everyone that says to Him “Lord, Lord” is going to be saved.

A Closing Prayer

Oh Righteous Father, please help me to be more obedient and to never say no to my Lord when He commands me to do or say something. I do not want to be lord of my own life but want to have Jesus as my Lord and do what He tells me to prove that, indeed, He is my Lord, and in His name I pray.

Amen

What type of role model are you for children in your life?

Deuteronomy 4:9

Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children.

More is Caught than Taught

I believe it is true that more is caught than taught, and the fact is that children may not hear what you are saying because your actions may be drowning out your words. It’s hard to deceive children, isn’t it? We can teach them one thing, but if we do something different, they can clearly see through our hypocrisy. If we teach our children one thing, yet do just the opposite, we’re really teaching them to do what we do rather than what we say. If they see you regularly reading your Bible, they’ll see that you value the Word of God. The more you read the Bible to your children, and grandchildren for that matter, the more the Word of God will get into their minds and hearts, and teaching our children is the best way to ensure that they might live a longer life (Deut. 4:10).

Provoked to Anger

It is so easy for parents to provoke their children to anger and then have them grow discouraged (Col. 3:21), but parents should bring up their children using discipline and instructing them in the ways of God, but doing so out of love (Eph. 6:4). If you are a grandparent, you are also told to teach them what you have learned from God as well (Deut. 4:9). God the Father disciplines us since He corrects every one of His children (Heb. 12:6), but He does it in love. We must model discipline in our own lives and in our children’s lives for their own best interests, even when it goes against the grain of society. Just like a parent disciplines the children he or she loves, so, too, does God discipline us, His own children (Deut. 8:5), and those who the Lord disciplines are actually blessed (Psalm 94:12). If we avoid disciplining children, then it shows we really don’t love them (Prov. 13:24), so the way God looks at it is that love equals discipline and discipline equals love. I’ve talked to many prisoners who wished that their parents would have disciplined them more.

Love Them Like Jesus Does

Jesus loves children and actually loves them more than we do so He never wants us to hinder the children when they need to come to us since Jesus always received children and bid them to always come to Him (Luke 18:15-17). Parents can learn from children because they are humble, they are teachable and little ones with this type of nature will be the ones who will inherit the kingdom of heaven (Matt 19:14). When my youngest daughter asked me once to have a “tea party” with her, I found time; when she asked me to tickle her, I did and once she even asked me to wear a tutu (although I’d deny it in public) but I did, so I found time for her when she wanted her daddy. I wanted to receive her when she came to me just as Jesus received the children and bid them to come to Him.

A Closing Prayer

Great God, You have given me my precious children and grandchildren as gifts, but they are only mine for a time. They are really Yours, and I pray You keep them, protect them, and bring them into a personal relationship with You and Your Great Son, Jesus Christ, in whose name I pray.

Amen

BE TRANSFORMED

And do not be confused to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2).

 

Many individuals in the Body of Christ are persevering without progressing. They wrestle with areas that have been conformed to the world instead of transformed. This is particularly true of us Pentecostals who often emphasize the gifts of the Spirit and exciting services. It is imperative that, while we keep our mode of expression, we understand that transformation doesn’t come from inspiration. Many times preachers sit down after ministering a very inspiring sermon feeling that they accomplished more than they actually did. Transformation takes place in the mind. 

 

The Bible teaches that we are to be renewed by the transforming of our minds (see Eph. 4:23). Only the Holy Spirit knows how to renew the mind. The struggle we have inside us is with our self-perception. Generally our perception of ourselves is affected by those around us. Our early opinion of ourselves is deeply affected by the opinions of the authoritative figures in our formative years. If our parents tended to neglect or ignore us, it tears at our self-worth. Eventually, though, we mature to the degree where we can walk in the light of our own self-image, without it being diluted by the contributions of others.

 

The Lord wants to help you realize who you are and what you are graced to do. When you understand that He is the only One who really knows you, then you pursue Him with fierceness and determination. Pursue Him!

Good Morning

WHAT IS YOUR SOUL WORTH?

Matthew 16:26

For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

Denying the Self but Not Christ

For much of my Christian walk, I did just the opposite. Instead of denying myself but not Christ, I denied Christ and didn’t deny myself much of anything. This, of course, is not walking with Christ as a disciple. Instead of dying to self, I put Christ to death in my life. I have tried to do better and not deny Christ in public before others, but deny myself before others and not Christ. Jesus said one little powerful word, and it was “if.” If we want to follow Christ, we must deny ourselves (Matt 16:24). If we want to save our life, ironically, we’ll lose it. If we desire to lose our life, we will find it (Matt 16:25). Once more, I tend to do just the opposite.

What Does It Profit?

If we can gain all that we can for a temporary life that is like a vapor (James 4:14), we have gained nothing because life is short, but eternity is a very, very long time. Can you put a value on a soul that is lost for all eternity? A man and a woman’s soul is priceless, and nothing can compare to its worth, but how worthless will it be if that life is forever banished from the presence of God with no hope of ever being reconciled (Rev 20:12-15)? The soul’s value cannot be estimated. Jesus’ point is that we can gain all that there is, but lose or forfeit our very soul for this life. If we do that, then we’ve lost everything because you can’t take anything in this life into the next, unless it is done for Christ. Those rewards that are done in His name are going with us to heaven. You can’t take it with you, but you can send it ahead and have it waiting there for you. In other words, the good we do for Jesus and for God’s glory will remain. Nothing else really matters.

Take Up Your Cross

If we are to take up our cross as Jesus said, what does that mean? Today’s equivalent would be to take up the electric chair or take up the lethal injection and die to ourselves. We must crucify the flesh in order to please God, Who is Spirit (Gal 5:24). That basically means nailing our desires and passions–that sinful nature of ours–to the cross, slaying our own desires for the desire to serve Christ and others, and doing it with the express purpose of glorifying God (Gal 2:20). If we are walking by the Holy Spirit’s leading, we’ll be putting to death earthly desires and passions (Gal 5:16). It is only those being led by God’s Spirit who are the children of God (Rom 8:14), and to live by the flesh will be dying in the flesh, but the Spirit will put the deeds of the flesh to death (Rom 8:12-13). In this way, your own soul will have infinite value, but if you’re living only in the flesh, you forfeit everything.

A Closing Prayer

Great God in heaven, I am so far short of Your glory (Rom 3:23), and there is nothing good in me (Rom 3:10) except your Spirit. Please help me yield to Your Spirit and to slay the flesh so that I might strive to not gain the whole world and lose my soul, but rather help me deny myself, take up my cross, die to self, and live for you. In Jesus’ name I pray.

Amen