Not everyone who calls me Lord

Not everyone who calls me Lord

Scripture:

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ Matthew 7:21-23

Observation:

In this chilling passage, the Lord reminds us not to ever take our salvation for granted. Of those who call Jesus Lord, there are two groups. The first group does the will of our Father God in Heaven. Instead of doers of evil, they are doers of good. They really know Jesus as He truly is and Jesus knows them. It is they who will enter Heaven.

The second group who call Jesus Lord can claim evidence of miracles and prophecy in the Lord’s name among their deeds. Yet, they are called evildoers, and Jesus says that He never knew them. They do not do the will of God the Father and they will not enter the kingdom of Heaven.

Again, we are reminded not to be taken in so much by the outward appearance of things but look deeper.

Application:

What are the main things we need to focus on in our Christian lives? To seek God the Father’s will, to seek to really know Jesus in a close personal relationship and to shun evil. Prophecy and signs and wonders are great gifts to the church, but we are not to run after these things as evidence of God’s presence. As they come, they come and we praise God, but the core important thing in our lives is to seek God’s will, know Christ intimately and stay away from evil.

Prayer:

Praise thee, Father in Heaven, for You hold all things in Your hands. Let my heart always seek Your will, I pray, Your good, pleasing and perfect will. Teach me to walk in Your will and Your presence day by day, even as I follow You, Lord Jesus. Keep me far from evil I pray, lead me to do good things, even as I seek Your reality in my life. In Jesus name, Amen.

                                                                         

                                 

By their fruit you will recognize them

By their fruit you will recognize them

Scripture:

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. Matthew 7:15-20

Observation:

In this passage, our Lord Jesus gives us a stern warning to watch out for false prophets. The Lord does not say “watch out in case false prophets come”, he says “watch out for them”. It is a given that there are false prophets and they are here among us on earth. What are their characteristics? Firstly, they come in sheep’s clothing. They give the appearance of innocence and purity on the outside. The warning for us time and again is not to judge from the outward appearance.

The truth is inwardly, they are ferocious wolves. In other parts of Scripture, Jesus likens Himself to be the good Shepherd, and those who follow Him to be His sheep. These false prophets who come in sheep’s clothing would claim to be fellow sheep like us, also following the good Shepherd, but in reality their intention is to lead us astray to follow another. The false prophets appear the same as us, but they are different.

How do we recognize them? Our Lord tells us to watch for what fruit they bear in themselves, and those who follow them. What is the meaning of this fruit the Lord speaks of? John the Baptist famously declared “produce fruit in keeping with repentance”, and examples of those who took his word to heart included tax collectors who charged no more than they ought and soldiers to be content with their pay and not extort others. There was an inward change leading to righteous outward behavior.

In Ephesians 5:9 Paul speaks of the fruit of the light, consisting in all goodness, righteousness and truth, and in Galatians, the fruit of the Spirit is described as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The mark of most cults actually sees the leader dominating the congregation, threatening them with loss of salvation if they do not follow his teachings. Instead of peace, there is fear, instead of gentleness, there is manipulation and domination.

Application:

The best defense against influence by false prophets is for us ourselves to produce the fruit of righteousness in Christ. Jesus said “I am the vine, you are the branches, and that those who remain in Him will grow good fruit”. We need that strong relationship with our Lord Jesus, seeking His guidance and fellowship daily, that will naturally enable us to bear forth good fruit. Are we seeking goodness, righteousness and truth in our lives? Are we trusting the Lord to develop this fruit of the light in us? Meditate on the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Ask the Holy Spirit to develop in us each characteristic in greater and greater fullness as we trust the Lord. As we ourselves bear good fruit, we too will have increasingly keen spiritual discernment to sense false prophets and false teachings that we need to reject.

Prayer:

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for Your warnings and Your teachings which are carefully made for our instruction and Christian living. Give me spiritual eyes of wisdom O Lord, that will teach me to steer away quickly from false prophets and erroneous teaching. Teach me Lord and help me remain always in You, as branches in the vine. Teach me Your ways, Lord Jesus, that I might bear good fruit that blesses others. Precious Holy Spirit, let Your fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control become more and more evident in my life. In Jesus name, Amen.

The wide and narrow roads

The wide and narrow roads

Scripture:

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Matthew 7:13-14

Observation:

In this beautiful, picturesque lesson, the Lord gives us two images, a narrow gate leading to a narrow road, and a wide gate leading to a wide road. And the choice is given to us, to follow the wide road, or the narrow road. Most choose to follow the wide road, while only a few follow the narrow road. The wide road, though large, leads to destruction, while the narrow road, though small, leads to life. The Lord says that only a few find it, indicating that it is not easily perceived by the majority.

In today’s world population, one third profess to be Christian in some form or other, but it is difficult to estimate how many of these are regular churchgoers or simply Christians only in name rather than in practice. Even in church, majority would tend to be merely Sunday Christians, and Monday to Friday, one could hardly discern any notable difference between Christians and the rest. But just how few are the few who find the narrow gate?

In another portion of Scripture, Jesus says “I am the gate.” Therefore, the road to salvation is already narrowed to one way, through faith in Jesus Christ. Many seek alternative ways to get the Heaven, but the Scripture says that there is no other way under Heaven by which men can be saved.

In the original language, the Greek word used by Jesus indicates “strive” to enter the narrow gate, indicating that it is not easy. It is one thing to say we follow Jesus, but another to actually do it. Following Jesus means denying ourselves and taking up our cross. In the parable of the seeds, we see how easily those who hear the Word of God can be easily waylaid by the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things.

We are saved by grace, through faith, not by any works, but in following Jesus, in living by the Spirit, there is that important process of letting go of our old desires, and letting the Spirit take control. It is a struggle, an internal battle between our old man and new man, and that is why our Lord used the word “strive”.

In the book of Revelation, we see a great multitude of those who are saved. Therefore, we can see that though a few find the narrow road compared to the wide road, it is still a very large, uncountable number. As taught to us, in Hebrews, we have a great many heroes of faith who have gone on before as examples for us and they are an encouragement that we too can finish the race and join them. Therefore, we need not be discouraged.

Application:

Praise God first of all, that we have found the narrow gate, which is found by faith in Jesus Christ. Then, remember that we are to follow the narrow gate. The ways of the world and its pleasures seduce the masses but we are called to live different lives, following our Lord Jesus as our Shepherd, seeking to know His ways. We need to remember that following Jesus can be a struggle, especially within ourselves, but we have a great many witnesses who have gone before us, and they are our encouragement for us to likewise press on and finish the race set before us.

Prayer:

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for revealing the narrow gate to me, the source of my salvation which is through You. Lead me O Lord I pray, even as I walk along the narrow road. Keep me safe from harm and from temptation. Let me never wander to the wide road of destruction, no matter how tempting and attractive it may be. Praise You, Father, for the great many witnesses which have gone before, through this narrow gate and found life in You. Help me each step of the way as I walk this road of life O Lord, till I find my eternal Home in You one day. Praise You, Lord. In Jesus name, Amen.

As you would have them do

As you would have them do

Scripture:

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Matthew 7:12

Observation:

Starting off with the Beatitudes, and then showing His disciples their role as the salt and light of the world, Jesus declared that He came not to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it. Then He went on to set out an even higher standard of conduct that His disciples were to follow. The Old Testament law forbade the actual actions of murder, adultery, and decreed “an eye for an eye” as a just and equitable solution. It allowed divorce and the written law focused more on the outward actions with less emphasis on the inner motive.

The conduct taught by Jesus was of a much higher level. We are not to remain angry with our brother, not to look lustfully at a woman, to turn the other cheek, to love our enemies, never to divorce. The attention is shifted from the outward actions to the inner condition of the heart that would have preceded the action. Anger would be the prelude to murder, lust to adultery. The motive behind the acts of giving to the poor or praying was specially emphasized by the Lord. What we need to understand that the key to following the Sermon of the Mount, comes not from outward actions or even inward control but by a submission to the Holy Spirit, who gives us a new divine heart, that is able to forgive the unforgiveable, to turn the other cheek, to trust God in simplicity even in the eye of the storm.

Our Lord sums up the Sermon of the Mount by saying “do to others as you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets”. Interestingly, in Deuteronomy 22, we see a very typical illustration of this concept. If we are to see neighbor’s ox or sheep straying, we are not to ignore it, but to take it back to its owner, even keeping it for them if we don’t know who owns it. It is the law of empathy, considering how we would want ourselves to act, if we were in the other person’s shoes. It has nothing to do with whether the other person deserves the action or not, but wholly what we would hope for and appreciate if we were them. Some of us have maids or employees. If we were maids or employees, how would we appreciate our boss treating us? If we were bosses, how would we expect our employees to put in work fairly for us? Some of us have children. If we were children, how would we like to be brought up (over the long run)? We all have parents. How would we want our children to treat us?

Can we apply the “do to others as you would have them do to you” principle in our approach to our Lord? If we were God, what would we expect from our creations, whom we considered as our children? Trust, love and obedience and forbearance and kindness for our fellow created beings no doubt. And this is how we should come to God, with deep trust, love and desire to be obedient to Him for that is what He deserves as our Creator and God!

Application: 

Meditate on the principle of empathy, of doing to others as you would have them do to you. Look around us, do we make a practice of considering the other person’s point of view? Are we open and ready to show kindness, to step out of the way to do something the other would appreciate? There are boundless opportunities to show empathy to so many throughout the day. Even as we think of God, have we taught from His perspective, how He would expect His creation and children to respond to Him?

Prayer:

Bless thee, Heavenly Father, for the wisdom You teach us through Your Word. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for this great teaching on empathy, that would really go so far to make this world a better place. Let this teaching remain with me day by day, I pray, that I might be open and ready to show empathy to whomever You may lead me too. Teach me to look to more and more from Your point of view, O Lord, to respond with the trust, love and thanksgiving only You deserve. Praise You, precious Lord. In Jesus name, Amen.

Of Asking, Seeking and Knocking

Of Asking, Seeking and Knocking

Scripture:

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

⁹ “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹ If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! Matthew 7:7-11

Observation:

In this infamous passage, we are taught by our Lord Jesus three things that we ought to do – ask, seek and knock. And the Lord gives us three corresponding results, receiving, finding and having doors opened to us. Then He goes on further to explain us that if even earthly fathers know how to give good gifts to their children, how much more will our Father in Heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him. We are reminded yet again of the image of our loving Heavenly Father as a generous God, pleased and desirous of giving good gifts to His children down on earth.

What then should we ask for? Does it mean God will answer our every prayer? What if we ask for millions of dollars, or great fame and power, or to be married to a beautiful actor or actress? Will God give us these things just because we ask? Of course not! Many of these things, though greatly desired by the world, and which look great on the outside, may actually be immensely detrimental to us, if we do not know how to handle it. The asking that Jesus speaks of here does not refer to this kind of worldly or selfish asking. Rather, the asking spoken of here refers to a deeply spiritual kind of asking.

Consider the three words – ask, seek and knock. When we think knock, the image of knocking on Heaven’s door immediately comes to mind. When we think seek spiritually, we naturally think seeking to know our great God in Heaven, or even seeking the find true meaning and satisfaction in life. In the same context, asking here would be asking to know God’s will, asking for God’s power here on earth to serve others, asking for God’s wisdom to live life, asking for God’s counsel and favor and blessing in our daily life. We can see a parallel passage in Deuteronomy 4:29, where Moses told the Israelites “if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul.”

In the prayer of Jabez, we see these three actions in motion. Jabez cried out to the God of Israel (He was seeking God, he was knocking on Heaven’s door) “Oh that you would bless me indeed and enlarge my territory. Let your hand be with me, and keep me from evil that I might not cause pain” (Spiritual asking). It is perfectly fine and Scriptural to ask God for blessing and enlargement. But going further, we see Jabez’s heart desiring not only material blessings and business expansion but also for God’s presence to be with him, and in praying to God to keep himself from evil, we see Jabez’s heart’s desire to be righteous before God’s eyes. And the Scripture records, God granted Jabez’s request!

Another aspect to asking, seeking and knocking can be seen in the Proverbs, where we are called to look high and low for wisdom, seeking it as more precious than gold or silver. That wisdom of course is true, godly wisdom, and in James, God promises to give generously without finding fault to all who lack wisdom but ask Him. Godly wisdom ultimately comes back to the fear and reverence of the Lord and shunning evil, elements again found in Jabez’s prayer.

In regard to the Greek verb for asking, seeking and knocking, we must also take note that it literally means keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking. It is not a once off action, but a continuous, persistent asking, seeking, knocking. Therefore, it is a call for us to persevere in asking, seeking and knocking as we look to our great and generous Father in Heaven.

Application:

When was the last time we really set time aside to seek God, to seek that true meaning of life, to seek to know our Creator and Father in Heaven? When was the last time we knocked on Heaven’s door, seeking that precious communication with our great God in Heaven? When was the last time we asked humbly for His grace and blessing, for His presence, for His righteousness in our daily life, like Jabez of old did?

Prayer:

Praise thee, Father in Heaven, for the great and generous and loving God that You are. You give generously to all who seek You without finding fault, and You give wisdom to the weak, to the poor, to the least deserving. Let my heart always look towards You, precious Father, to seek Your presence, to knock on Your door, and desire precious communion with You. Praise thee, Heavenly Father, for you grant our hearts desire and give us happiness and peace and protection on earth. Let Your reality be more and more eminent in my life I pray O Lord. Let me know You more and more. In Jesus name, Amen.

A speck of dust

A speck of dust

Scripture:

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.  “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.“ Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces Matthew 7:1-6

Observation:

Coming to Chapter 7, our Lord now teaches us some very simple and logical lessons about judging others. Quite simply, He commands us not to judge, as in to condemn others in our minds because with the measure we judge others, we too will be judged the same way. This same vein is similar to how our Lord taught earlier:- forgive others that your Heavenly Father may forgive you.  

Our Lord then goes on to give us a very comical example of a man trying to take a speck of sawdust from his brother’s eye when he has a plank in his own eye. The Lord teaches us here to first look at our own shortcomings before rushing to judge others. It is only with the attitude of humility in knowing that we are all fallen sinners saved by grace that we can effectively help our others.

In concluding this subject, the Lord then gives us the curious illustration of being careful not to give dogs what is sacred or to throw pearls to pigs. Putting this in context, it seems to refer to situations where a person with some degree of maturity may genuinely try to correct the fault or misperception of another but his actions, instead of being gratefully received, is met with hostility and anger.

A great example of this was when Stephen the martyr taught wisdom and precious Word to the Jews but his listeners, instead of being repentant, turned on Stephen and stoned him to death. There is a time, place and method to impart wisdom and we need a spirit of discernment to adjudge whether our listeners will receive what we may tell them.

Application:

Some of us are too quick to judge others, in our family, in our workplace, and we even judge strangers in the restaurants and public places. The solution to curb a judgmental spirit is to in humility, considering others better than ourselves. In situations where we feel a calling to speak out, to share a word of correction perhaps, we need to be mindful of the Lord’s warning not to throw pearls to pigs or sacred things to dogs.

Prayer:

Praise thee, Lord Jesus, for the beauty and simplicity of Your teachings. Forgive me O Lord, for the many times I have been so quick to judge. Give me a humble spirit, to learn to reflect and know myself and my weaknesses that I may be able to help others gently yet effectively. In helping others, grant me, Heavenly Father, Thy spirit of discernment, that I may know the right person who will receive Your wisdom and the right time to speak. Bless thee, Heavenly Father. In Jesus name, Amen.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Worry not about tomorrow

Worry not about tomorrow

Scripture:

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life^[e]?

²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 6:25-34

Observation:

Straight after His teaching on storing treasures in Heaven, the Lord then moves on to a really lovely exposition on the important subject of worry. As human beings, we tend to worry a lot, about our lives, about what we will eat or drink or how healthy we are. Many, especially the fairer folk, pay a lot of attention to their clothes, how they will look, what others might think of them. The Lord tells us not to worry about these things but instead look around and observe the birds of the air and the flowers of the field.

If God in Heaven cares for the birds of the air and the lilies of the field, even dressing them with great splendor, how much more will our Heavenly Father take care of our daily needs. Instead, daily, we are told to seek first our Father’s kingdom as well as His righteousness, and just entrust Him to take care of our needs. And the Lord closes this subject beautifully by telling us not to worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself, and each day has enough trouble of its own. We are to take life one day at a time, trusting God moment by moment, seeking His will, His righteousness.

Application:

Some of us may be currently plagued with great worries about the future. Let us remember that worrying can’t add a single hour to our lives. Instead, let us focus on today, this current moment. I have problems, yes. It could be health, it could be family, it could be work, finance, politics or a relationship. Let us choose to leave it to God day by day. Instead of worry, let us instead focus our mind and thoughts to our Heavenly Father. Let us ask God “What is Your will, Abba Father? Lead me in Your righteousness, precious Lord, this very moment.”

Prayer:

I praise thee,  Heavenly Father, for You hold all things in Your hands. I entrust my life to You, and all my worries I lay at Your feet. You are my Lord and God, and I will look to You for salvation. Day by day, let my heart depend on You, for You supply my every need, the food I eat, and the clothes I wear. I lack nothing because You, O Lord are with me. Help me focus always on Your will, Your kingdom, Your righteousness. Lead me Lord in Your eternal ways. In Jesus name, Amen.