John Piper posted a great article which looks at the Christian’s Conversation with Death.

CHRISTIAN:

Hello, Death, my old enemy. My old slave-master. Have you come to talk to me again? To frighten me?

I am not the person you think I am. I am not the one you used to talk to. Something has happened. Let me ask you a question, Death.  

Where is your sting?

 

DEATH, sneeringly:

My sting is your sin.

CHRISTIAN:

I know that, Death. But that’s not what I asked you. I asked, where is your sting? I know what it is. But tell me where it is.
Why are you fidgeting, Death? Why are you looking away? Why are you turning to go? Wait, Death, you have not answered my question. Where is your sting?

Where is, my sin?
What? You have no answer? But, Death, why do you have no answer? How will you terrify me, if you have no answer?

O Death, I will tell you the answer. Where is your sting? Where is my sin? It is hanging on that tree. God made Christ to be sin—my sin. When he died, the penalty of my sin was paid. The power of it was broken. I bear it no more.
Farewell, Death. You need not show up here again to frighten me. God will tell you when to come next time. And when you come, you will be his servant. For me, you will have no sting.

O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:55-57)  

HT: Desiring God Blog (John Piper)

 

” This little cheap god we’ve made up is one you can pal around with-“the Man upstairs,” the fellow who helps you win baseball games.  That god isn’t the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  He isn’t the God who laid the foundations of heaven and earth; he’s some other god.”

“We educated Americans can create gods just the same as the heathen can.  You can make a god out of silver, wood or stone – or you can make it out of your own imagination.  And the god that’s being worshipped in many places is simply a god of imagination.  He’s not the true God.  He’s not the infinite, perfect, all-knowing, all-wise, all-loving, infinitely boundless, perfect God.  He’s something short of that.  Christianity is decaying and going down into the gutter because the god of modern Christianity is not the God of the Bible.  I don’t mean to say that we do not pray to God; I mean to say that we pray to a god short of what he ought to be.  We have got to think of God as being the perfect One.”

A.W. Tozer – The Attributes of God Volume 1

Steven Scott has written a masterpiece in this intriguing look into The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived.  What greater person to study than Jesus Christ Himself.  Scott’s insightful look at the characteristics of Christ and His teachings unfolds some dynamic principles that are meant to be inherent in every Christ-follower.

The author begins the book with the subject of what Christ can do for you, which in short, is a chapter dealing with the life-changing power of Jesus Christ.  Scott weaves personal stories, Scripture, the teachings of Jesus and many accounts from recent history to engage the reader into discovering how Jesus can help us to live life not only successfully, but also with joy.

My favorite chapter was “Meaning that Motivates: Finding Your Why’s”.  The basic premise is, don’t just do something for the sake of doing it or even just for money and gain.  Scott reasons we must find the why we do what we do.  Why should we create a product?  Why should we serve?  Why should we live the way we do?  Answering why gives us the true meaning.  Life is for a reason and we must identify the reason for our being and for the things we do, even as it has to do with our walk with God.  It helped me think on my calling and put it into proper perspective.  That this is not just a profession and a calling.  Since reading this chapter, I have been answering the “whys” for a few weeks now.

In all, this book is a good and easy read and will help the reader to discover all that Christ has for them.  It answers many of the great questions of life, not just from a theological stand-point but from a Biblically based perspective that simply looks at the life of Jesus Christ.

Summary:

In The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived, Scott guides readers in a step-by-step application of the life-changing principles, skills, and methods that Jesus used throughout his earthly life. Although believers may spend a lifetime learning from Jesus’ teachings, it’s easy to overlook the powerful lessons demonstrated in His life. But when these incomparable lessons are learned and put to use, they enable ordinary people to achieve extraordinary success and happiness.

From Jesus’ earthly life readers will learn:

• How to break through the barriers that prevent them from achieving extraordinary success at work and relational success at home.
• How to experience a level of happiness and fulfillment that nothing the world offers can duplicate.
• How to use adversity and opposition as a springboard for greater success.
• How to love others in a way that increases their love as well.

No matter what a person’s area of expertise and in what setting a person influences others, living by the principles of Jesus’ life on earth produces extraordinary success, unprecedented achievements, personal fulfillment, and blessings for others.

Author Bio:

Steven K. Scott is the best-selling author of The Richest Man Who Ever Lived,The Greatest Words Ever Spoken, and Mentored by a Millionaire. After failing in nine jobs, he started reading a chapter of Proverbs every day—and the wisdom of Scripture changed his life. Scott and his business partners have built more than a dozen multimillion-dollar companies from scratch, achieving billions of dollars in sales. He is the co-founder of Max International, Total Gym Fitness, and The American Telecast Corporation. He is a popular international speaker on the subjects of personal and professional achievement and the application of biblical wisdom to every area of life.

You can get a copy of The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived at www.christianbook.com.

Yesterday, I wrote about my passion for preaching and how, often, our passions get out of order.  Meaning, we allow other passions to consume us more than others. 

I have a passion for souls.  I have a passion for prayer.  I have a passion to know God.  I pursue these things.  I am sure these are your passions and pursuit as well. 

Here is the question I have been asking myself this week:  Are these the things I am MOST passionate about?  Are my priorities and passions in the right order?

Often in our Christian life, we continue to be passionate about the right things.  We haven’t lost those passions altogether, it might just be that they are not as strong as they used to be.  Or, in many cases, we allow another passion to take first place.  I am constantly on a journey in my Christian walk.  I often evaluate my life in light of what God desires and what His passion for me is.  I pray as the Psalmist, “Search my heart and see if there is any wicked way in me.”

The key to continued spiritual growth is honesty with self and God.  It is being willing to open your heart and allow God to work in you.  The successful Christian will always seek to fix himself before he fixes everyone else.  When we find something that needs to be fixed, we must fix it.  If our passions are out of order, it is the time to put them back in their proper place.

In my life, I am consumed by my passion to preach, to share God’s Word.  It is what drives me and even though sermon preparation can become a chore, I press through because of my passion to preach.  As I prepare sermons, I am driven to build a message that will challenge those who hear.  To minister to those who need encouragement, to disrupt the comfortable and build up the ones who need hope.  As I study, my goal is to help others discover the truth of God’s Word and to help unpackage the Bible in a way that is memorable and that everyone learns something.  This is my passion!  It is what I am, who I am and it is the passion of my heart.

To many this is a good thing.  I have sat through many sermons that were delivered by those who were not passionate to communicate.  There is, however, a discovery that I have made in my life.  Rather, I should say that the Holy Spirit has helped me discover.  The Holy Spirit nudged me last night with a question, “Are you as passionate about prayer as you are about preaching?  Are you as passionate for souls as you are about preaching?  Are you as passionate about knowing God as you are about preaching?”

You cannot lie to the Holy Spirit!  Ask Ananias and Saphirra:) No, I am not as passionate about those things as I am preaching.  Passion for preaching is not wrong.  Our passion for preaching, however, must flow out of our passion for souls, prayer and knowing God.  If we reverse the order, we will wind up losing our passion for preaching in the end.

I have renewed my pursuit of Him.  I am stoking the fires of my passion for prayer.  I want to be able to have a passion for preaching that flows out of my passion for God.

I have been working my way through Clutter FREE Christianity, a book that helps us cut through the things that clog up our lives and helps us to develop spiritually and live in a place of rest with Christ.  I have not finished Clutter-Free Christianity, but so far it is an engaging read for those who desire a fresh walk with God that allows us to grow, not through a legalistic approach, but through finding liberty in Christ.

SUMMARY

When did the Christian life become so complicated?

Your greatest desire is to please God, but with each passing week, your spiritual to-do list grows longer. As you strive to fulfill a never-ending inventory of requirements for being a godly parent, spouse, voter, employee, and more, you feel increasingly disconnected from the God you’re trying to serve.

It’s time to cut through the clutter and get to the heart of what it means to please God. In this liberating look at the core principles of faith, Dr. Robert Jeffress reveals the truth about what God really wants from you–and what He wants to do for you.

Through solid biblical teaching and practical insights, Dr. Jeffress points you toward a revitalized faith centered on becoming more like Jesus in action, attitude, and affection. You’ll learn how to partner with God in the process of spiritual transformation as you choose to follow Christ in forgiveness, obedience, trust, contentment, service, and prayer.

Through a renewed focus on experiencing the kingdom of God right now, you’ll find your to-do list shrinking and your spiritual life deepening. It all comes with embracing Clutter-Free Christianity.

Includes a Bible study guide for personal growth and group discussion.

Author Bio:

Dr. Robert Jeffress is the senior pastor of First Baptist Dallas, one of the most historic churches in the Southern Baptist Convention. The author of sixteen books, he is a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and Southwest Baptist Theological Seminary. In addition, live broadcasts of Dr. Jeffress’ weekly messages reach millions of listeners and viewers each week, while his daily sermon series airs on 1,100 television stations and cable systems nationwide. Dr. Jeffress and his wife, Amy, are the parents of two adult daughters.

Clutter-FREE Christianity is available at www.christianbook.com.

Late Saturday night as I was getting ready for Sunday service, God dropped a Scripture reference in my heart.  I felt compelled to read Zechariah 6:15.

“Even those from afar shall come and build the temple of the LORD. Then you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you. And this shall come to pass if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God”

What a powerful promise from the Lord and what He intends to do at RFA!  Now I am on a journey to discover how to take care of the “IF”.  This verse emphatically declares, “this shall come to pass IF you.”  Promises are often conditional.  God will give us promises but there are some things that we must do also.  In this case God says we must diligently obey His voice. 

Now comes the part I must do if I want to see God fulfill His promise.  I must tune into His voice which means I must crowd out my own voice and the voice of the world.  This means that I must spend more time in His Word and in Prayer, then I can know His voice. 

Most of you know that I love coffee and I love Iced Tea.  I have tried for years to switch to decaf, but it is not even worth drinking.  It is kind of like drinking Diet Dr. Pepper instead of regular Dr. Pepper.  It is a waste of a beverage.  Needless to say I am dependant on caffeine.  I am not addicted, I just can’t live without it.  There is a difference you know.  While drinking my two cups of Dunkin Donuts Coffee this morning, I read Mikey’s Funnies and he had this take on the 23rd Psalm.  The original version of the 23rd Psalm is much better but I identified with this one this morning.

“CAFFEINE PRAYER

Caffeine is my shepherd, I shall not doze.
It maketh me to wake in green pastures.
It leadeth me beyond the sleeping masses.
It restoreth my buzz.

It leadeth me in the paths of consciousness for its name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of addiction, I will fear no Equal ™.
For thou art with me; thy cream and thy sugar they comfort me.

Thou preparest a carafe before me in the presence of Starbucks.
Thou anointest my day with pep; my mug runneth over.

Surely richness and taste shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the House of Folger’s forever.”

• Just a side note here.  I do not like Starbucks nor Folgers.  I prefer Community Coffee or my new love, Dunkin Donuts Original Blend.