Christian conduct. 1Thess 5

I am not perfect; I'm forgiven. While I like this saying, sometimes I think it's used as an excuse for bad behavior. Yes, Christians are forgiven if they get right with God, but it doesn't negate the way we are to behave. We must constantly strive to be Christ-like (and please don't paint me a picture of Him as a doormat either....He's far from it). Being forgiven isn't an excuse for deliberate bad behavior. 

I digress.  In 1 Thessalonians 5, Paul paints a nice picture of how to conduct ourselves. 

1. Appreciate your church leaders for what they do...and tell them, too!

2. Live in peace with everyone, which really means just try to get along with others. Remember that you're just one side of that coin. You can't control the other person or their behavior. Don't antagonize or look for vengeful ways to get back at them. Avoidance is an option here, in my opinion. 

3. Admonish the unruly. Don't take this too far. It's not our job to police others. If the folks you're hanging around are doing bad things, tell them and quit hanging around them.  You can't make moral pagans. If it's another Christian, use Christian discipline. 

4. Encourage the faint hearted. 

5. Help the weak. 

6. Be patient with everyone.  Prayer will work best here. Pray ahead of time if you know you're going to be in a position that will test your patience. 

7. Don't repay evil for evil. This one will be much easier with prayer, too.  Seek wise counsel, too. Again, you cannot control the other person. You can control just you!  Resist satan's leading here.  You're better than that. 

8. Seek the good (Phil 4:8)

9. Rejoice always (Phil4:4)

10. Pray without ceasing. This doesn't mean you're on your knees all day long.  Just have a prayerful heart and spirit.  

11.  Give thanks. Thank God for all that He does in your life.  Thank the ones around you who do things for your benefit (See #1 above). 

12. Don't quench the Spirit. In other words pay attention while you're reading and praying and receiving wise counsel. 

13. Examine everything told to you.  Don't accept everything on the merits of others, including your church leadership. 

14. Abstain from every form of evil; abstain from even the appearance of evil. If it's going to make God look bad....don't do it!  

The Christian life isn't easy. It's much easier to go with the grain than against it. You will be tempted by satan at every turn.  Expect it. Be prepared. Put on the full armor of God (Eph 6:13-17) everyday. Spend time with God reading and praying, listening.  Spend time with other Christians.  Know His Word and expectations.  PLEDGE TO BE SOMEBODY REAL (LeCrae). 

Father, thank You for all You have done for me, for being with me and there for me.  Thank you for all Your blessings:  Your Son, my church, my leadership, my family, my friends, my home and all that's in it and working, for my hard working husband, my car, my finances, my trials, etc.  Please continue to keep us safe and protected from satan.  In Your Son's name, amen. 

Attitudes towards God and money. Ecclesiastes 5

Today's quiet time was spent in Ecc 5. Why?  My Bible app had one of the verses from that chapter as its verse of the day and I ventured to read the whole chapter.  Worked for me actually.  God is awesome like that. 

I did have to re-read the chapter a time or two to understand what it was trying to tell me. I try my best to take my thoughts captive (2 Cor 10:5) at all times.  Thoughts enter and exit all the time. It's controlling them that's tricky. Some thoughts I have to hastily push out once I realize it's coming from the "father of lies" (John 8:44). Satan is persistent though. He will continue to use thoughts to get to us. This is going to be a daily battle. In verse 2, Solomon is saying that we are not to be hasty in word or impulsive in thought--struggle, I know.  Continuing to read the verses below, he goes I to more detail by explaining what he means...the quick fix.  When something is going wrong for us, we want to get rid of it pronto!  Right?!?!?  What do we do?  In our weak moments, we begin to appeal to God to take it from us and even go as far as bargaining with Him.  We tell Him we'll be better spouses, parents, Christians, friends if He'll take this away. Solomon clearly warns us not to do this. Why?   Because we don't follow through. Life gets back in the way and we forget our promise.  Never a good idea to break a promise to God. Instead, try asking Him for wisdom or strength to deal with the issue. We're callable people.  We will fail. Lets not make it worse by making promises we can't keep, to Him or anyone else. 

The second half of the chapter deals with money. It's pretty simple really:  don't put money and stuff above God.  All good things come from God (James 1:17). He just expects us to keep Him first in all we do. It's ok to be financially well off.  God provides. Enjoy it responsibly while you're alive. Use it to further His Kingdom. Solomon cautions us to not hoard.  It isn't ours anyway, remember James 1:17? We are born naked; we will also die naked (without stuff). 

False teachers

I didn't grow up in the church. Supposedly I went to church, but the effect it had on me wasn't very spectacular since I don't remember things. I've watched all of my sisters stay away or walk away, and I didn't understand it either. 

People can read and re-read the Bible and not have things click for them until years later.  Even my lead pastor has this happen to him...even now. It probably means God has waited to reveal something to you for a purpose.  I've struggled and struggled with why my family is so far from God, or why people who grow up in the church end up walking away as adults. It honestly wasn't until I found my current church, www.thecoolchurch.com, that my faith changed.  At the cool church, they prove God, Jesus, and the Bible.  I don't have to blindly follow something because 'man' said so.  My pastor doesn't read the Bible to me, but expects me to read it for myself. He expects me to study so I know context and in what timeframe each book was written. He says I need to know culture as well. He doesn't want me to base my faith on things he tells me. Who does this these days?  Sure, he teaches us each weekend, giving us the context and culture, and even geography. But, he continues to expect us to do our own studying, to have our own 'a-ha' moments. 

Pastors, ministers, and church leaders have a responsibility to God first in how they lead. They have to abide by what the Bible says they are to be (1 Tim 3-6)...nothing more, nothing less. It's no wonder Christ isn't the center of America anymore. Churches have rendered Him irrelevant.  You have churches that have women pastors (1 Tim 2:9-15), and pastors who look the other way regarding blatant sin. There are "churches" that fully accept certain sins. 

So, why are my sisters not interested in God?  Look no farther than the church!   Way to go churches!!!!!   

Now to figure out how to combat this....hmmmm

Homosexual sex and bullying

A few days ago someone posted a video of bullying, with a twist. This time it was against straight people, versus those who participate in homosexual sex.  This person had a commentary attached to the video, and regarding homosexual sex, declared that everyone should respect the beliefs of those who participate in homosexual sex. 

I have gotten right with God, the one true God. He has proven Himself thru His Word, science, history, math, archeology, and more. Since I know God to be true and real, His Word is also true.  This knowledge is completely freeing. I don't have to wonder about life or its purpose. I don't have to guess if something is right or wrong either.  It's amazing!  

Now onto the topic at hand. For me to respect someone's belief that participation in sin of any type is ok is to agree that it is indeed ok for them to participate. Since the post was about homosexual sex, let's just use it.  For me to respect a person's participation in homosexual sex is to acknowledge that it is ok to do so.  God has made it perfectly clear that homosexual sex is WRONG, therefore, participation in or being ok with said participation is also wrong.  Period.  Dot.  End of story.  I CANNOT have a different opinion from God. It doesn't work that way. 

Now, do I hate anyone who participates?   Absolutely not!!!  Will in respect their belief that it's ok?   No!!!  Why?  Because to do so tells them that it's ok in my eyes that they are participating.  What I will tell them is that I respect their right to be wrong. Their eternity is more important than their liking me in earth.  

Back to bullying...it would definitely NOT be ok for me or anyone else to harass those involved in homosexual sex. After I tell them that they are participating in an activity that will send them to hell, I should be done.  I don't need to continuously tell them or make them feel badly.  Homosexual sex is wrong, and I can respect their right to be wrong. 

I hope this clarifies how a true Christian should view this subject.  

How to help those who know you best when it comes to God's stuff (Luke 4:16-31)

Becoming a Christian is a huge decision to make.  Shoot, it took me how many years to make it??  ha ha.  Once you make this decision, it's important to realize that there are certain things that will start to change, namely YOU!  :)  Those who know you best will still remember the "old" you and resist.  Here's some interesting thoughts on the matter.

First and foremost, you need to know that some of those who are closest to you will resist this growing up in Christ.  When you read Luke 4:16-31 you quickly realize that even Christ had this problem in His hometown of Nazareth (See Matt 13:54-57).  They wanted to know why He could teach with such authority when He was "just a carpenter's son."  The people closest to you will potentially resent that you don't party with them or talk/behave in the same way (See 1 Pet 4:3-4).

You can try to change their perception of you by explaining "that was then," or explaining that you messed up in the past...own it (Prov 28:13).  Once you do that, explain to them that "this is now" and you are changing who you are.  Tell them that you are a Christian and want to be the salt of the earth and you want to shine the Light of the world (Matt 5:13-16).  To do this we have to be willing to speak God's truth regardless.  It becomes so easy to cop out with those who share our DNA and walked in our social circles.  Just remember that it is very selfish to not care about their eternity.  BUT!!!  We must do this out of love and concern for the other person.  AND!!  We must live out the truth as well. 

In life (and in poker) we must learn when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em.  Jesus had to make this decision, too, while in His hometown.  If you read Matt 4:12-13, you'll read that He left Nazareth and settled down in Capernaum.  So, if what you're holding, God's Truth, isn't going to get the job done, fold 'em.  We must not waste God's precious truth on those who will disrespect or attack it (Matt 7:6)  Kindly and lovingly tell them that you will not allow them to disrespect your Dad.  If they don't stop, you may have to sever the relationship, leaving a door open with them to come back and hear the truth.  Remember Matt 10:34-39...it happens. 

I want to thank my church, The Cool Church, for this teaching.  It is painful when your own family reacts badly to your becoming a Christian.  I know for me, I had to distance myself for a while until I was a more mature Christian...not because they attacked God so much as it was for me, because I couldn't yet resist the DNA and/or social circle temptations. I've learned how to handle it better; definitely not perfect at it yet, either.  :)