"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.
Meditation: What do grapes, thorns, figs, and thistles have to teach us about the kingdom of God? The imagery used by Jesus would have been very familiar to his audience. A certain thornbush had berries which resembled grapes. And a certain thistle had a flower, which at least from a distance, resembled the fig. Isn't it the same today? What we "hear" might have a resemblance of the truth, but, in fact, when you inspect it closely, it's actually false. False prophets or teachers abound today as much as they did in biblical times. What's the test of a true or false teacher? Jesus connects soundness with good fruit. Something is sound when it is free from defect, decay, or disease and is healthy. Good fruit is the result of sound living — living according to moral truth and upright character. The prophet Isaiah warned against the dangers of falsehood: Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness (Isaiah 5:20). The fruits of falsehood produce an easy religion which takes the iron out of religion, the cross out of Christianity, and any teaching which eliminates the hard sayings of Jesus, and which push the judgments of God into the background and makes us think lightly of sin. How do we avoid falsehood? By being true — true to God, his word, and his grace. And that takes character! Those who are true to God know that their strength lies not in themselves but in God who supplies what we need. The fruit of a disciple is marked by faith, hope and love, justice, prudence, fortitude and temperance. Do you cultivate good fruit in your life and reject whatever produces bad fruit?
"Lord, may I bear good fruit for your sake. Help me to reject whatever will produce evil fruit. And help me grow in faith, hope, love, sound judgment, justice, courage, and self control."
Sunday, October 19, 2008
The Tree and its Fruits
Monday, October 13, 2008
God's Word- Our Lifestyle
How do we make God's Word our lifestyle? By applying God's Word to our lives! How do we apply God's Word to our lives?
Let's look at Romans 12: 1-3 to find out how.
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
Now....How do we apply God's Word to our lives?
1. We are to present our bodies a living sacrifice. How do we do that?
When we present something to someone we are literally saying, "Take this. It's yours. Do what you want with it." This is what we are to do with God.
When we give our lives to God we die to sin and come alive to Him- totally, completely, and whole-heartedly! We need to say, "God here is my life. Take it. It's Yours. From now on I am dead to sin and alive to You. Take my life and do what You want with it. Help me to live according to Your Word."
Everything we say and do should glorify God! Our plans for the future, our goals, and our ambitions need to line up with the Word of God and His Will for our lives for us to be pleasing and acceptable to Him.
2. This verse also says to be holy.
One way we can do that is to be separated from sin and all evil. God's Word even says not to put yourself in a situation where it looks like you are doing something evil. To be holy we have to be dedicated to God and His Will for our lives.
To be acceptable to God we have to give our lives to God and we have to be dedicated to doing His Will for our lives. We need to possess a great passion and desire to live a life of holiness and purity to God. To do this we have to separate ourselves from the world and draw closer and closer to God every day.
3. Do not be conformed to this world.
If you look like the world, act like the world, smell like the world, talk like the world, and dress like the world why would anyone want to be a Christian? If they don't see anything different about you than people of the world, how can you show them that being a Christian is better than living the way the world does?
4. Be ye transformed.
Stop going around trying to "fit in" by dressing like others. Stop trying to "fit in" by smoking. Stop trying to "fit in" by acting the way people of the world do. Stop trying to "fit in" by the way you either laugh at dirty jokes or even tell them. We are not to "fit in" we need to live the difference Jesus makes in our lives!
We must take a stand against the things of this world. This world we live in is full of evil. We have to live in this world but we don't have to partake in the evil that is so prevalent in this world. We need to refuse to yield to the various types of evil out there in this world.
There is so much evil out there that we are constantly surrounded by, greed, selfishness, envy. hate, filthy language, ungodly entertainment, drugs, alcohol, and sexual impurity just to name a few. We are to hate all these things and again TAKE A STAND AGAINST THEM! As Christians we need to, "JUST SAY NO!" to all these things.
Our minds need to be transformed from our humanistic way of thinking to God's Divine way of thinking. How is this done? By reading and meditating on the Word of God!
5. Renew your mind
How do you renew your mind? By the Word of God! We need to read and study God's Word DAILY! We need to fill our minds with God's Word on a daily basis. When we renew our minds with the Word we will see God's Will for our lives. Everything we need to know is in the Word. God's Word has transforming power to transform our lives no matter what our circumstances are. Do you see how important the Word of God is to our lives?
Did you know that what you dwell on or think about is what rules your life? Well it does! When you think about something long enough you give in to that thought whether it is good or bad. So we MUST guard what goes into our mind diligently. The only way to do that is to fill your mind with the Word of God.
What do we dwell on or think about day in and day out? Do we think about the races? Do we think about the stock market? Do we think about what others think about us? Do we think about what they expect out of us? Do we think about everything but God?
What about God? Where does He fit in at in our thoughts? Do we think every day about what God expects of us? Do we think about the good things of God? Do we meditate on the Word of God?
If we fill our minds with the Word what comes out will be pleasing and acceptable to God. The Word will come out in our actions, in our words, the places we go, etc.
Meditating on the Word of God and applying God's Word to our lives is what will transform us into the person God wants us to be. When our lives are transformed and our minds renewed to be what God wants then we can prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
6. Not to think more of yourself than you ought to.
We have got to get rid of PRIDE! Not one of us here is any better than anyone else! God loves us all equally. He doesn't love you any more than He does me and He doesn't love me any more than He does you! That is a lot of people's problem they get to thinking "I am doing this and I am doing that" when it is GOD doing those things. But they get self in the way and that is when they fall. God's Word says pride cometh before a destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.
God has given us all the same opportunity and the same saving faith. We should not boast or brag about what WE have done. We should brag about GOD!
So in closing it is important that you get this into your spirit....God's Word is to be our lifestyle!
If we present our bodies a living sacrifice to God, strive to be holy, not be conformed to this world, be transformed or changed, renew our minds with God's Word, and get rid of pride we can live the lifestyle God wants us to live as His children.
Let's look at Romans 12: 1-3 to find out how.
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
Now....How do we apply God's Word to our lives?
1. We are to present our bodies a living sacrifice. How do we do that?
When we present something to someone we are literally saying, "Take this. It's yours. Do what you want with it." This is what we are to do with God.
When we give our lives to God we die to sin and come alive to Him- totally, completely, and whole-heartedly! We need to say, "God here is my life. Take it. It's Yours. From now on I am dead to sin and alive to You. Take my life and do what You want with it. Help me to live according to Your Word."
Everything we say and do should glorify God! Our plans for the future, our goals, and our ambitions need to line up with the Word of God and His Will for our lives for us to be pleasing and acceptable to Him.
2. This verse also says to be holy.
One way we can do that is to be separated from sin and all evil. God's Word even says not to put yourself in a situation where it looks like you are doing something evil. To be holy we have to be dedicated to God and His Will for our lives.
To be acceptable to God we have to give our lives to God and we have to be dedicated to doing His Will for our lives. We need to possess a great passion and desire to live a life of holiness and purity to God. To do this we have to separate ourselves from the world and draw closer and closer to God every day.
3. Do not be conformed to this world.
If you look like the world, act like the world, smell like the world, talk like the world, and dress like the world why would anyone want to be a Christian? If they don't see anything different about you than people of the world, how can you show them that being a Christian is better than living the way the world does?
4. Be ye transformed.
Stop going around trying to "fit in" by dressing like others. Stop trying to "fit in" by smoking. Stop trying to "fit in" by acting the way people of the world do. Stop trying to "fit in" by the way you either laugh at dirty jokes or even tell them. We are not to "fit in" we need to live the difference Jesus makes in our lives!
We must take a stand against the things of this world. This world we live in is full of evil. We have to live in this world but we don't have to partake in the evil that is so prevalent in this world. We need to refuse to yield to the various types of evil out there in this world.
There is so much evil out there that we are constantly surrounded by, greed, selfishness, envy. hate, filthy language, ungodly entertainment, drugs, alcohol, and sexual impurity just to name a few. We are to hate all these things and again TAKE A STAND AGAINST THEM! As Christians we need to, "JUST SAY NO!" to all these things.
Our minds need to be transformed from our humanistic way of thinking to God's Divine way of thinking. How is this done? By reading and meditating on the Word of God!
5. Renew your mind
How do you renew your mind? By the Word of God! We need to read and study God's Word DAILY! We need to fill our minds with God's Word on a daily basis. When we renew our minds with the Word we will see God's Will for our lives. Everything we need to know is in the Word. God's Word has transforming power to transform our lives no matter what our circumstances are. Do you see how important the Word of God is to our lives?
Did you know that what you dwell on or think about is what rules your life? Well it does! When you think about something long enough you give in to that thought whether it is good or bad. So we MUST guard what goes into our mind diligently. The only way to do that is to fill your mind with the Word of God.
What do we dwell on or think about day in and day out? Do we think about the races? Do we think about the stock market? Do we think about what others think about us? Do we think about what they expect out of us? Do we think about everything but God?
What about God? Where does He fit in at in our thoughts? Do we think every day about what God expects of us? Do we think about the good things of God? Do we meditate on the Word of God?
If we fill our minds with the Word what comes out will be pleasing and acceptable to God. The Word will come out in our actions, in our words, the places we go, etc.
Meditating on the Word of God and applying God's Word to our lives is what will transform us into the person God wants us to be. When our lives are transformed and our minds renewed to be what God wants then we can prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
6. Not to think more of yourself than you ought to.
We have got to get rid of PRIDE! Not one of us here is any better than anyone else! God loves us all equally. He doesn't love you any more than He does me and He doesn't love me any more than He does you! That is a lot of people's problem they get to thinking "I am doing this and I am doing that" when it is GOD doing those things. But they get self in the way and that is when they fall. God's Word says pride cometh before a destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.
God has given us all the same opportunity and the same saving faith. We should not boast or brag about what WE have done. We should brag about GOD!
So in closing it is important that you get this into your spirit....God's Word is to be our lifestyle!
If we present our bodies a living sacrifice to God, strive to be holy, not be conformed to this world, be transformed or changed, renew our minds with God's Word, and get rid of pride we can live the lifestyle God wants us to live as His children.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Our Merciful Father in Heaven
Luke 11:13 "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" In these words, our gracious Father who is in heaven, permits us to decide an important point by the conviction of our own consciences. He appeals to our feelings as parents, in order to encourage our hope, and enliven our confidence. "If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone?" (Luke 11:11). If a hungry child come to a father, saying, "Father, I am starving for want, give me bread to eat;" would the father (unless he were worse than a brute) give his child a stone, to mock him? "Or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion," to destroy him? Certainly not. "How much more shall your heavenly Father," whose affection for His poor sinful children is so infinitely superior to yours for the offspring of your bodies, "give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?"
I am a poor, ignorant sinner. I want to know myself as a sinner before God, and as exposed to His just indignation. I want to know Jesus Christ as a Saviour to my poor soul; for to know Him is life eternal. But this saving knowledge I can only derive from divine teaching. God has promised His Holy Spirit, to lead the poor ignorant sinner, that feels his ignorance (for that is the point), into all truth necessary for his comfort and salvation. "O Lord, let Thy Holy Spirit be my teacher."I am a poor helpless sinner. I find I have no power to believe on the Son of God. Yet faith in Him is essential to salvation. My conscience is distressed on account of my sins. I want to "know him, and the power of his resurrection" (Philippians 3:10). But I can no more believe, by any mere exertion of my own powers, than I can make a world. God has promised His Holy Spirit, to create faith in the heart of every humble suppliant. "O Lord, help me to believe, to the peace of my conscience, the joy of my heart, the sanctification of my nature, the salvation of my soul, and the eternal glory of Thy Name."God giveth His Holy Spirit to them that ask Him. We can do no good, we can do nothing but sin, and so destroy ourselves, without His special assistance. Do you feel you want it? And do want and absolute necessity drive you to a throne of grace for this comprehensive blessing? Do you ask as a hungry child asks his father for bread? Are you sensible of your ignorance, so as earnestly to seek His divine teaching; and of your helpless state, so as to ask help of God? "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you" (Matt. 7:7). Consider, God cannot break His Word. If you have asked without receiving, it is because you did not ask in earnest. You do not feel your want. Ask of God to give you to feel your wants, and then He will supply them; ask Him to teach you to pray. Come to Him as a poor, ignorant, helpless child, for "Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 18:3).
"Lord, give unto us this childlike spirit."
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