Prince (or Princess) versus Pauper

     I don't propose to have the solution to the problem most of us face when dealing with our evangelistic call. I'm not going to suddenly turn you into the personal evangelist of the year, but I just might help you a little in your efforts with this post.

     While I was praying and meditating yesterday I was thinking about two verses and I had a lightbulb moment. The two verses I was pondering were Romans 8:16-17 and 1 Peter 2:9.

Romans 8:16-17 says, "The Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are children of God: ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified with him." while 1 Peter 2:9 tells us, "But ye are a elect race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, that ye may show forth the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:"

     What do these two verses together mean? It means that we (God's elect) are Royalty! The problem is, we don't live like a Prince or a Princess, we live like a Pauper. Now consider if you will, which would you rather be, a Prince/Princess or a Pauper? It really shouldn't be that hard a decision. The royalty get all the benefits, do they not, while the common folk pay the taxes and do all the work, right? Exactly.

     Now, consider the average "Christian" approaches living for God. The act like Paupers, instead of Royalty. We "pay our taxes" when we give, and we "obey royal edicts" when we show up at services or do any of the other works we are called to do. We are completely wrong in our approach to serving God!

     No wonder so many people we talk to don't want to be like us! They see us living the life of a serf and a servant, and think that, by comparison, they are free. Who would give up perceived freedom to live like a vassal? No one in their right mind. And that is why we are often so ineffective. 

     So what is the answer? Live the life of a Royal! Live a life that truly reflects what Romans says, that we are God's children. We aren't just children of a king, we are the children of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! Let your spirit reflect the fact that we are the Royal offspring of the Lord God Jehovah Almighty, Creator and Sustainer, Ruler of all Eternity, Time, Space and every other dimension possible! We are not poor homeless paupers living under a cruel king, but rather Royal emissaries traveling out of their kingdom to invite others in!

     Imagine then what would happen if your life truly reflects who we are? People will be drawn to us! They will see the difference between our freedom as Royalty and their enslavement as spiritual paupers.

     Celebrate your royalty by living the life that God called us to, rejoice in the fact that we have the privilege of tasting glimpses of our eternal glory when we worship or serve. If we have this attitude, then we would do almost anything legal, ethical and moral to be there when the doors open, to join the small groups on different nights, to be open and inviting to others whenever we get the chance! 

     Change your attitude, and your change will become evident. I think maybe now I am beginning to understand what was meant when Matthew recorded, "Let your light so shine before men; that they may see your good works ,and glorify your father which is in heaven." (Matthew 5:16, ESV) Why would men glorify God for our good works? Because we are simply reflecting the Royalty we have been adopted into!

     May God Bless you today as you transform your attitude and approach to God from Poor Pauper to Precious Prince or Princess  -  Robert

Morning Prayers and Mourning Prayers

     I'm not a good early riser, which means I don't get a lot of prayers in during the morning hours. Today happened to be one of those days when I woke up a little ahead of my wife and the littles (the bigs are at Winter Retreat), so I got to start my Bible reading early. Normally, my Bible reading ends up coinciding with breakfast, since that is usually my only sit-down time in the a.m.

     All of this led to my looking at Facebook for a few minutes while I ate my delicious oatmeal muffin the Mrs. had whipped up last night and drank my coffee. Within just a couple of minutes on Facebook I had come across three prayer requests and a reminder of the state of our nation. Morning prayer became a priority.

     My prayer this morning was a prayer of requests; prayers that our nation might recover from the road she is on, prayers that myself and my family would stay faithful no matter what, prayers for a family suffering through the delivery of a term baby who has already passed on, prayers for those in a plane crash related to the Iron Dog race. These prayers were requests, but also prayers of mourning; for our country, for a grieving set of parents; for those injured. My morning prayers became my mourning prayers, and suddenly my prayers took me back to Afghanistan, where I prayed over every injured and dead service member I came in contact with, every one that I worked with or encountered there.

     I mourned the situation that had brought us there, and I prayed that whatever was happening in each person's life, that it would cause them to seek God, to strengthen their relationship with Him, or correct it. That the effects would spread like ripples in the water, affecting not just those touched by whatever incident, but those around them; family and friends, neighbors and co-workers.

     We are told that "All things work together for good to them that love the Lord, to those that are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28) My prayer in Afghanistan, and my prayer this morning was that everything I was reading about and praying about would work for good, to bring souls to love the Lord, to become those who are called. I want my prayers of mourning to become prayers of victory.

     Is this wrong? I certainly cannot find a Biblical example of this kind of prayer. I know that God can use painful circumstances to bring people to obedience. Look at Saul's conversion, or the jailer's. I know that God hears the prayers of those who are seeking Him, but are not yet saved. Cornelius and his household tell me this. But nowhere do I find a prayer that asks for these things to happen specifically. However this has become a prayer that I pray so often, because I don't know how else to ask God to take awful circumstances and use them for good for those who are not His elect, yet.

     I do know that as part of this prayer, I need to be asking God to use me to effect that change, if possible. I am sure that I fall short so often, but I pray that even the tiniest seed will find good soil. I had a very hard time in Afghanistan, and being reminded of it still causes me to question my effectiveness there. I pray that some good will come of what I said or did for someone.

     My prayer for you today is that you would pray these prayers also, that when we pray prayers of mourning, when we pray for good to come from evil, that we all would strive to be the one to help someone through the bad to turn to the Eternal Good.

     Blessings  - Robert

Going Through the Motions

     This past week had been a confluence of events. I received a post from Rich Little entitled, Jesus Was Not a Good Man. The link is here: http://richlittle.org/2013/02/05/jesus-was-not-a-good-man

     I've been hearing this song on the radio by Matthew West called, Going Through the Motions. One of the lines in this song asks, "What if I had given everything, instead of just going through the motions?" 

     I finished a book on world missions in which the author describes missionaries who are natives of a country moving to a new village to start a church. These missionaries take their families with them, including their children. One of the oddities about this situation is the missionary is not allowed to purchase food or milk within the village until someone from the village vouches for them. This means that the missionary, his wife and children end up going hungry for days or even weeks until they make a convert within the village. 

     All of these remind me of the story of the rich young ruler, when he is told the only thing he lacks is to go sell his possessions and follow Jesus. (Matthew 19:21, Mark 10:21)

     And I started to wonder, "Are we (meaning American Christians) like the rich young ruler? Are we "just going through the motions?" We certainly aren't willing to go hungry to spread the Gospel, let alone our children. We would be called child abusers. In fact, most of us are somewhat proud that we "tithe" or even give a little bit more. Maybe it is because we think, like Rich Little says, that Jesus was simply a good man, and we don't need to change our lives.

     Then a what if came to mind. What if we truly evaluated our situations and said that we were going to "take up our cross daily?" I'm not even talking 100% commitment. Simply take stock of your situation, evaluate everything, and dedicate one half to God. One half of your income, one half of your time, one half of everything! What would that mean? We would have to move into smaller houses, because our rent or mortgage usually takes up a large portion of our income. We would probably have to change our diets, especially if we are in the habit of eating out. Hobbies? Most likely gone. Clothing expenditure? Try Pick n Pay or Value Village. 

     What if we did this? Work 40 hours a week, and spend another 40 hours spreading the Gospel, studying Gods word, praying, having family devotionals, serving others. Take 1/2 our income and give it to the church, the homeless, the poor. Get rid of the television and get out of the house. Meet your neighbors and invite them to a neighborhood Bible study or prayer group at your house. Talk to the grocery store clerk about God. 

     What if we did this? What would people think? What would they call us? Freaks? Weirdos? Bible Bashers? Would it matter?

     The crazy part about this is, it's not even what we are called to do. Jesus said to take up our cross daily and come follow Him. (Mark 8:34, Luke 9:23). We are supposed to give Him everything. We sing songs saying that we do, None of Self and All of Thee, All to Jesus I Surrender, etc. The first century church was willing to do this. They willingly gave up their homes, their lives, their possessions for Jesus and they set the world on fire! 

     We go to these conferences on how to reach the lost. We invite dynamic speakers to try and encourage people. We have children's ministries and youth ministries, coffee and pastries before services, jumbo screens and praise teams and where does it get us? Is the world on fire for Jesus? Are we the talk of the town because we are reflecting the glory of the Lord like we are called to do or can anybody even tell the difference between us and the rest of the world? We are supposed to be called out, not blending in!

     The sad reality is, most who read this won't change a thing. Even if this post were seen by millions, the number who would change their lives to be 50% people would number maybe in the hundreds. How about you? Are you willing to change? Are you willing to give yourself to Christ?

     May the Lord God Almighty Bless you as you make changes in your life to be the self-sacrificing servant we are called to be!  -  Robert

Linen Tunics and Booty Shorts

     My daily Bible reading plan has me in Leviticus right now. Leviticus is a review of the laws of the Levites, or priests. It has been so striking to read through this book from the perspective of how it applies to me, since we as Christians are told that we are now God's priests. 1 Peter 2:9 tells us, "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. (ESV, emphasis mine - RJA)

     I have only recently begun to think of myself as Jehovah God's priest, and I have to tell you that it has made an impact in my life. To read through the descriptions of what the priests are dedicated to, how they are to live their lives in such a way as to be able to offer sacrifice at nearly any time. These priests can only offer sacrifice if they themselves are pure. And isn't that what Peter is emphasizing also, the idea that we belong to God, we are no longer in darkness, but are to live lives of purity at all times?

     
     Which brings me to a consideration. In Leviticus chapter eight, we read of the clothing placed upon Aaron and his sons for their duty as priests. These items were first described in Exodus chapter 28. When you read through this description we find that these priests were to were breeches that essentially covered them to their knees (vs. 42) and tunics (vs. 42) which is found in Strong's concordance as the Hebrew word kethoneth which comes from the root word katheph meaning to cover. It is defined as covering the shoulders, and hanging down below. From Exodus 28:40 we know that they were long enough to need sashes to take them in at the waist. So what does all this mean in for me as a priest under the New convenant?

     Since the Old law was given to instruct us or prepare us for the New (Romans 15:4), then as a priest under the New Law, isn't the minimum given in the Old a great place to start? That means that at all times outside of my bedroom or bathroom, I should be attired from neck to knees, with covering of the upper part of the arm. If you are a New Testament Christian, than this should be your starting place as well.

     Why do I bring this up? I do so for a couple of reasons. These garments in the Old Testament were designed to cover, not accentuate. This seems to be a lesson that some of the ladies, and especially young ladies in the worship need to address. As Job put it so aptly, “I have made a covenant with my eyes; How then could I gaze at a virgin?" (Job 31:1, NASB) It becomes really hard to keep that covenant on Sunday mornings, evenings or even Wednesday nights or other church-related activities with what many supposedly Christian women are wearing. I do my best to imitate Job in this respect, but ladies, if I spill some juice, or dump some crackers in your lap some Sunday, you'll understand why, won't you?

     A second reason for this post is that it is the time of year here in my home state when many are planning their spring vacations to warmer locales. These locales usually tend to include beaches. Just because you're not at home doesn't mean you're not still a priest of God with the attendant qualifications and duties. So, if you plan to "hit the beach" make sure you are covered in a way that God would approve of. For me, that means board shorts and a rash guard shirt. For my wife and girls, board shorts and a modest one piece. If a modest one piece can't be found, they go for the board shorts and rash guard shirts as well. Also, if you plan to "hit the beach", it's probably a really great idea to find one that isn't so popular, so us menfolk can keep our covenant that Job stated.

     I haven't stated anything new here today, nothing earth-shattering, nothing mind-blowing, but a simple reminder that we are the priests of Jehovah, and we must act accordingly!

     May God bless us all as we strive to glorify Him and serve Him diligently as His priests under the New Covenant  -  Robert