Posted in Bible, Holy Spirit, Jesus, religion, tagged annual report, Blog in my eye, He Dwells, Jesus, nike the winged goddess of victory, saxaphone, stats helper monkeys, Sydney Opera House, The concert hall, tiger woods kissing, trophies, trophy on December 31, 2013| Leave a Comment »
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2013 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 29,000 times in 2013. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 11 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.
Posted in Bible, Christianity, discipleship, religion, sanctification, tagged be an example, Christian meditation, Do all things without complaining, Exhortation, godliness, Noah Webster, trophy on June 12, 2012| 1 Comment »
Despite that fact that Philippians 2:14 tells me to, ‘Do all things without complaining,’ I still occasionally find 
myself silently grumbling in church. Each Sunday it seems, I am able to find something not quite right with the music, the sermon, the fellowship, or some other aspect of the worship. I’m sad to say that there have even been times that the thought of pasturing my own church (to do church properly of course) has crossed my fleshly mind.
But what if others within the church I attend emulated my ‘not-always-so-great‘ example? Are the words of my mouth, my behavior, my love, my spirit, faith, and purity, consistent models worthy of imitation? Thankfully I keep most of my negative thoughts to myself (and confess them to the Lord), but what if I regularly voiced them? What would the church look like?
We all know the answer, which is why Paul admonishes Timothy to not go that direction. Paul is implying that grumbling is a part of our sinful nature and it is something that we, through Christ Jesus, have the power to overcome, and therefore counsels Timothy (and the church) how to proceed.
Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress (thy profiting, KJV) may be evident to all. 1 Timothy 4:13-15
Reading
The Apostle Paul instructs us that there is a methodology towards the pure conduct he previously addressed in verse 12. Simply put, it begins with our need to be in the Word of God. This is the primary way that the Father has chosen to speak to us. If we’re not partaking of His instruction every single day, there exists the likelihood we will react amiss when things do not go as smoothly as we desire (and thus be a bad example).
Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path. Psalm 119:105
Exhortation
According to Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary, exhortation is the act of ‘inciting (people) to laudable (praiseworthy) deeds.’ In contrast, if the incitement causes folks to do what is not good or commendable, it is not exhortation. Exhortation (in the Christian sense) is an encouraging, compelling, and inspired work of God.
“Exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” Hebrews 3:13
Doctrine
It’s critical for Christians to stick to the contextual teachings of the Bible. It’s far to easy a thing to take a verse or two out of context and errantly use them to build a case for or against a particular issue. The wisest course of action is to receive the full council God provides, remembering that He does not change or contradict Himself.
But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. Galatians 1:8
Implementation
God has given each believer gifts, so it stands to reason we are to properly utilize them. Gifts are in a sense the tools that the Father Himself has put in our hands to do the work He has predestined us to do. If we are neglecting to use the things that He has provided, it typically means (that in our flesh) we’ve picked up something ungodly. Not only is that an act of futility, it’s a sinful act of disrespect to God.
If you’re uncertain as to what your gifting is, then draw upon the grace, the faith, and the Holy Spirit you’ve been given trusting that soon these other things will be revealed.
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Matthew 7:7-11
Meditate
As it pertains to reading the Word of God, exhorting other believers, adhering to proper doctrine, and utilizing the gifts God has provided, Paul wants us to think deeply and soberly, attending carefully to them all. The word meditate here also means to put into practice. The idea (according to 1 Timothy 4:15) is that others will take notice of our profiting and progression in God’s will and endeavor to emulate the behavior, not for their glory, but for His.
Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? — unless indeed you are disqualified. 2 Corinthians 13:5
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Posted in Bible, Bible Prophecy, faith, Holy Spirit, investment, Jesus, religion, sports, tagged Christ Jesus, david, giving testimony, God, Holy Spirit, Jehoiada, Jesus Christ, King David, Religion and Spirituality, testimony, tiger woods, trophy, trophy case on October 25, 2010| 1 Comment »
And Jehoiada the priest gave to the captains of hundreds the spears and the large and small shields which had belonged to King David, that were in the temple of God. Then he set all the people, every man with his weapon in his hand, from the right side of the temple to the left side of the temple, along by the altar and by the temple, all around the king. 2 Chronicles 23:9-10
What is a Trophy?
Trophies are the tangible proof; the irrefutable evidence of triumph. Consider Webster’s 1828 Dictionary definition: Among the ancients, a pile of arms taken from a vanquished enemy, raised on the field of battle by the conquerors…Any thing taken and preserved as a memorial of victory, as arms, flags, standards and the like, taken from an enemy.
Webster’s explanation seems to imply that trophies are less for the recipient and more for those who might witness their display—sort of like our testimonies. Think about that in the context of today’s Bible passage. Jehoiada the priest goes to the Temple and equips Judah’s army with King David’s trophies! These men were fortified, if you will, by the testimony David had left behind for God’s glory.
Is that not the purpose of a saintly testimony? Surely the testimony giver is blessed in the sharing, but isn’t it the hearer who is encouraged and empowered? Reflect upon that the next time you witness an athlete hoisting a trophy over his head. Were you in any way encouraged or empowered? Unless that contestant was glorifying God, the only one being elevated was himself.
God’s Trophy Case
Giving God all the honor, glory, and praise, King David placed all the trophies in the Temple, revealing that awards of this kind belong to God. Webster would likely agree for in his last entry (to his trophy definition) he writes ‘Present every hearer to Christ as a trophy of grace, ’ thus demonstrating that the trophy belongs to Jesus. Christians don’t receive trophies; we are the trophy, and accordingly we elevate Christ Jesus as champion.
So where are your trophies? Are they in the temple for all to see (and hear) or are they collecting dust? Let us endeavor to share them with others so that God can have victory in their lives too!
These ramblings are typically (but not always) a byproduct inspired by God through my personal Bible study at SearchLight with Pastor Jon Courson and with my pastor at Calvary Chapel Coastlands.
Posted in Bible, faith, Jesus, religion, tagged Alka-Seltzer, corrie ten boom, humberto alfaro, Jesus, new york theological seminary, trophy on July 22, 2008| 5 Comments »
Dr. Humberto Alfaro, a professor of practical theology at the New York Theological Seminary in New York City was our teacher/pastor this week for Bible Hour in Ocean Grove and he shared with us this morning a wonderful story.
Pastor Alfaro had returned to his native El Salvador on one of his many mission trips home and was called to preach in a remote part of the country. After sharing a ride with a horde of chickens in the back of a rickety pick-up truck, he found himself on horseback for the remaining six hour journey. When he finally arrived at the out-of-the-way church, he was very sore and very tired.
After bringing the message, he was ready to find a secluded area where he could sleep, but was stunned to see the entire congregation (of perhaps 500 saints) lining up for prayer. The church’s pastor told him, “This is our time of healing…We pray for each person.”
I wanted to sleep, ” Pastor Alfaro confessed to us, “but if this is what they do, I had to do it—sleep would have to wait.”
Pastor Alfaro continued, “So one after the other the people approached the altar for prayer. ‘I have a headache, ’ one would say. The next would announce, ‘My stomach is upset, ’ and then yet another would, ‘I have an itch.’ Frustrated (and in need of sleep), I turned to he pastor and whispered, ‘Don’t you have Alka-Seltzer or Tylenol for these people?’ ”
“Brother Humberto, ” he said, “All we have is Jesus.”
The discovery, as paradoxical and extraordinary as it seemed, was that their physical, economic, and emotional poverty led them to spiritual wealth. Oh that we could be that close and in that much need of our Lord and Savior.
Corrie Ten Boom likely said it best when she declared, “You may never know that Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you have.”
And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
2 Corinthians 12:9
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Posted in Bible, discipleship, Jesus, religion, tagged Adam and Eve, evolution, genesis, Jesus, trophy on July 16, 2008| Leave a Comment »
It’s safe to say that most folks don’t believe in a divinely-orchestrated, six-day Creation. So how then do we go about presenting these Old-Testament truths as facts to those who would rather believe you and I crawled out from beneath a rock billions of years ago?
Bring it Back to Jesus
Can you see yourself in the Genesis 1 account above? I can. Like the earth, God also created me. Sin on the other hand left me without form or purpose. Void of godly recognition, darkness prevailed. But then came the cleansing by God’s word. Where’s that? It’s in the water, for we see it throughout the Bible as a symbolic reference to His word, as in:
Some illumination will help:
Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. Genesis 1:3
Now enlightened, it isn’t long before we discover that the word is none other than Christ Jesus!
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. John 1:1-2
But That Won’t Convince Anyone
Are you sure? If your friends believe in evolution ~and~ Jesus, perhaps they are unaware that He (Jesus) believed in Adam (and that he was created by the Father), so much so Adam is included in His genealogy. If you believe in Jesus and if you also believe He is not capable of lying, then it has to be true: God created Adam and Eve, thus making evolution the lie. Continue reading Genesis and endeavor to see Jesus in every verse.
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Posted in Bible, exercise and fitness, religion, tagged bone spur, church softball, high blood pressure, plantar fasciitis, trophy on July 9, 2008| Leave a Comment »
Does your church have a men’s softball league? Ours does and I am the catcher. If you know anything about men’s church softball, then you know that behind the plate is where they stick the old, fat, and outta shape guys who still feel compelled to show up for the games. However, let it be known that I chose to be behind the plate. Do you know why?
Pride
That’s right, I didn’t want the coach telling me (and the world), “Dave, you’re old, and fat, and outta shape, so get back there.” Instead I chose a self-imposed exile.
Anyway, we had a game on Monday evening and I broke my foot. Well, I didn’t break my foot, but I thought I broke my foot. I later discovered (at the emergency room) that I am suffering from a bone spur on my heel and a thing called plantar fasciitis, which is Latin for, “It feels like you broke your foot, but you’re just old, fat, and outta shape.”
Why Me God?
Yes, I did ask God that question, but not in a lamenting kinda way, but more in a ‘I think You’re trying to get my attention, God and I’m listening now,’ kinda way.
“Are you telling me to slow-down God?”
No, that couldn’t be; I’m a lazier than a snail prozac. Surely God wants me to be more active.
“Do You not wanting me playing softball?”
Couldn’t be that either. I don’t believe God wants me to stop having good Christian fellowship.
I figured it out later on – right after the orderly person took my pre-emergency-room-
release blood pressure reading. It was off the wall (especially that stink’n bottom number). I told the on-duty doctor that I stopped taking my blood pressure medication because I had lost some weight, implying that I didn’t need it anymore. He gave me the look that seasoned physicians always give that say, “You’re an idiot.”
Long story short, I am back on my blood pressure medicine and for the time being and I am believing the Lord allowed my injury to occur in order that I would wind up before a responsible adult who would shame me into taking the very thing that might keep me from dying prematurely. For now, it (the God-thing) is the only thing that makes sense.
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