David - Learning to Love God with All Our Heart

There are 3 men in he Bible (besides Jesus) that really stand out for me: Joseph, David, and Paul.  I guess I see so much Christ-likeness in these men.  Joseph was almost perfect!  Paul, after his encounter with the Lord became pretty close to being perfect and teaches us how to live for Christ. David simply lived to glorify God and you can see how he loved God with all his heart, soul and mind.  I must admit I am forgetting, at this point, the sins that David committed.  But once he was convicted and after confessing his sin, God continues to love David and forgives him of his sin, as He does for us. Amazing how God can forgive and forget!  Paul says he was the worst of sinners, yet God also forgives him.  There really is room at the cross for all of us.  Thank you Lord for your so great salvation!  How I praise and worship You, O Lord!

It's easy to praise the Lord for what He has done for us ... isn't it?  How great Thou Art, O Lord God Almighty!  You, O Lord, are my Rock, my Fortress, my Strength. Without You I can do nothing.  With You, nothing is impossible.  Thank You Lord. Have your way in my life, I pray. Fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I might serve You and live for You and glorify your name. Hallelujah Lord Jesus!  We certainly can learn how to praise and worship and cry out to the Lord from the Psalms that David wrote for us.

David is an example for all of us on how to:
Praise the Lord, Pray to the Lord, Glorify the Lord, Receive our strength from the Lord, Wait on the Lord, Rest in the Lord, Trust in the Lord, Minister to the Lord, Sing to the Lord, Dance unto the Lord, Serve the Lord, Be friends with the Lord, Fight for the Lord, Cry out to the Lord, Fear the Lord, Bless the Lord, Thank the Lord, Honor the Lord and His anointed, and the list goes on!

You can see why David is considered a man after God's own heart.  (Almost) everything he did, say, and think about was done for Lord and to glorify the Lord.

That's a life well lived.  He was a forgiven sinner who lived for God, desired to do His will, rejoicing in the Lord, praising Him, giving Him thanks and talking to Him in prayer regularly (if not always).  I sense from reading Paul's epistles, Paul also learned much from David's life and character just as we can.

Let's all have hearts that are bent towards God and that are becoming like God's heart, full of love for others!

Saul - A Carnal King

There is something about Saul I don't really like.  Actually there is much about King Saul I don't like.  I hope I am not being carnal by saying that!  I know for sure I never want to be Saul-like!  Now if we were talking about Saul in the New Testament whose name was changed to Paul ... he is someone that I am confident we would all like to imitate ... Paul even encourages us to do that.  I think we can all agree that he is a good example of Christ-likeness!

 
But as far as King Saul is concerned, there is nothing in his character that I would want any of us as shepherd-leaders to become like.  If you see something I am not seeing, please let me know!

Sure he was tall (very tall), dark and handsome!  But who cares about these physical characteristics.  What kind of man was he on the inside?  God gave him his Spirit and empowered him to perform the role of king and even allowed him to rule as the first man-king of Israel for 40 years but he sure messed up ... by not walking and being led by the spirit and at least waiting for Samuel to seek direction from the Lord and obeying what he was told to do by God.  I can see how easy it would be for Saul to fall into this trap.  We need to learn from King Saul's mistakes.

Last week we looked at the story of Ruth and Boaz and when we examine their character, we couldn't find anything that we didn't like about these two.  They lived what we would call a Christ-like life and we hope that their character qualities will show up in all our lives as we are transformed into His likeness by the Word and His Holy Spirit.

We need to learn to be filled by the Spirit and walk in the Spirit as Paul instructs us and not do the works of the flesh which are sins of our old nature.  Let's look briefly at some of the the characteristics of King Saul who I consider to be quite carnal (operating in the flesh), even though he had God's spirit at least for a while.  Unfortunately, as believers and followers of Christ we can slip and become carnal if we are not careful. Paul addresses this in 1 Corinthians 3 and Galatians 5 and a few other places.

Here are a few negative Saul-like character qualities that stood out for me as I read King Saul's story. He seemed very insecure right from the beginning.  He wasn't strong and courageous.  He was foolish and disobedient and impulsive or impetuous and impatient (just couldn't wait!),... etc.  He consequently did things his way rather than God's way which got him into trouble and in my opinion tarnished his character. We know as we read the rest of his story that he becomes very jealous of David, angry and even bitter to the extent that he tried to murder David several times.

I am surprised at how well King Saul's son, Jonathan turns out, considering he was such a bad example for his kids to follow.  Jonathan was very much the opposite of his dad and became a true, faithful friend to David.  You can definitely learn some great things when you examine Jonathan's character more closely.    

I am sorry to have to say (again) that Saul is obviously, to me, someone I hope none of us become like regardless of our role and position in life!

Ruth - Much to Glean

After reading the book of Ruth which is a relatively short story, I wondered what "gleanings" could I get that would help us become better shepherds.  As we do our studies in The Story, I am looking for character qualities, attitudes and principles for living that can help us all to become more like Jesus.  As we seek to become like Him, I believe others notice and see the fruit of the spirit being lived out in our lives.

If you read the story of Ruth quickly and don't stop to think about it you may not "glean" too much.  In fact if you read any part of the Word quickly and don't take time to meditate on it, you don't get much out of the Word and have probably wasted your time. Here are a few Ruth-like characteristics that are very Christ-like.

Commitment: Ruth was committed to staying with and helping her mother-in-law, Naomi and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob even though she was a foreigner originally from another land (Moab), where she grew up worshiping other gods. She didn't have to stay with Naomi.  She could have returned to live in the land of Moab and probably remarried there but she loved Naomi and loved her new life under her new true God.

Faith of a Child: Following Naomi, not knowing where they would live, how they would feed themselves and survive and not knowing what would happen to them, living with tremendous uncertainty ... took faith. Following Jesus into the unknown and doing things that are new also requires this same kind of faith.  We need to trust Him that He will care for us and direct our steps.

Teachable and obedient:  Ruth didn't know the customs and culture of the land she was going to ... but Naomi did and she was able to instruct Ruth....which field to glean in, what to do, how to act, how to dress, etc. Ruth listened to he mother-in-law and did what she said and the Lord worked things out so that Boaz falls in love with her and becomes Ruth and Naomi's kinsmen redeemer, Ruth's husband, and eventually great-great grandparents to David from whose lineage, 28 generations later, Jesus is born.  God sees the BIG picture and knows how we all fit into it.  You never know how God is going to use your life but God does and He has a great plan indeed as we trust and obey and remain teachable and willing to trust Him..

A good reputation:  Ruth's reputation proceeded her.  Word gets around!  Boaz was able to find out who Ruth was and learn about how she was caring for Naomi and that she was a "woman of excellence". Wow! I am sure we would all love to be known as a man or woman of excellence when someone inquires about us.

Others are watching and taking notice of what kind of person we are. They see our smile, our good deeds, our tears of compassion, our love for one another and hear our words of encouragement. They see our gifts and our potential. Opinions are formed and we develop a reputation.  Unfortunately, people also see some stuff that is rooted in our old carnal nature (un-Christ-like qualities) which Paul encourages us to put aside or put off (see Colossians 3:8,9).  We need to clothe ourselves in Christ-like qualities. (see Colossians 3:12-17) and remain in Him and learn to walk in the Spirit.

Thank goodness we can all get back on track when we mess up and confess our sins because we too have a kinsmen-redeemer who loves us and cares for us and paid the ultimate price for all our sins so that we can become part of his church and his bride.

Take time to read Ruth again slowly and pick out some other qualities that you see in Boaz's, Ruth's and Naomi's life that are worth imitating.

Caution! There is something in Naomi's life that was exhibited for a while that we don't want to copy.  She wanted to be called Mara because she was bitter over her circumstances ... but she didn't remain there!.  Don't be known for being a bitter person as it leads to a host of problems and it is easily noticeable..  
   

Idolatry - Avoid This Ride

Merry-Go-Round (or Sadly-Go-Round)

In the book of Judges, we read great stories about some great heroes who are called by God to save God's children (the Israelites) from oppression and slavery again and again ... and again.  As a believer and follower of Christ, I sometimes shake my head and find it hard to understand how the Israelites kept on getting on the "merry-go-round" that they were on ... choosing to disobey God, worshiping other Gods, soon realizing that God wasn't on their side anymore, crying out to God asking to be delivered, God showing His compassion and mercy and providing a saviour (Judge), experiencing peace and the good life for awhile and then soon falling into the trap of idol worship again after the Judge dies. Over and over the ride takes them through the same cycle.  And the kids don't even learn from their parents mistakes! In fact they often did what was more evil in the sight of the Lord.  Hopefully we can learn from the mistakes of others as we read these accounts in the Bible!  Unfortunately, we often don't.  And this can apply to us a Christ followers.  Our enemy can cause us to get a "free" ticket on the ride that can lead to ... well, ... let's just call them problems.
Who Me - I don't have any idols?
The Israelites got into trouble primarily because they didn't do what God told them to do initially.  They were supposed to eliminate everything that was unholy and everyone that worshiped other gods.  They didn't obey.  Some even intermarried with the Canaanites (a no, no!) and consequently began to worship false gods.  When this happens, God gets jealous and angry and lets them (and us) suffer the consequences of their (our) own sin. He doesn't protect them and care for them the way He wants to and consequently, they get taken over by other kingdoms ...trapped ...enslaved ...oppressed and miserable until they can't take it anymore and once again, they cry out to God asking to be delivered.

Guess what?  We can fall into the same trap and cycle. Our idols may be not idols like the Israelites worshiped but they still can become idols to us and keep us from worshiping and serving our Heavenly Father (God) with all our hearts, soul, mind and strength.  Here is a short list of things and activities (all somewhat innocent and "good") that can potentially become idols in our lives: TV, Sports, Fitness, Music, Food, Drink, Automobiles, "Toys", Hobbies, Reading and Studying, Work / Vocation, Money, Leisure Time, Our Kids, Computers, Cell Phones, Friends, Movies, etc. and then there is a whole list of knowingly sinful activities that we can become addictive to if we are not careful.  As followers of Christ we have many good things available to us that can easily become our idols and keep us away from seeking first the kingdom of God and making Him # 1.
Flee Idolatry and Pursue Christ-Likeness

If you or I get caught in the trap of modern day idolatry having one or more idols in our lives, we need to smash our idols and repent and confess our idolatrous behaviour as sin! We need to turn around and be filled with the Spirit and get on the "ride" that allows us to rest in the Spirit and walk in the Spirit.

Galatians 5:22-24 says, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self control."  We need self control even when we participate in "good" things.  Don't let them take control and become an idol.  ..."Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires".

2 Peter 1:5-8 also gives us some great
instruction on what kind of life to pursue as we seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. When we do this He cares for us and provides all our needs and watches over us as His children.

The (Spiritual) Battle is On

I must admit that I enjoy reading Chapter 1 of Joshua.  Joshua has been mentored by Moses for 40 years. His faith has increased and He knows that God is on their side as a people.  He and Caleb are the only survivors within their age group and now he has the job of being a leader and taking a large number of people into the promised land.  He will have to "clean house" of all the other little kingdoms who worship other gods. There is going to be a number of battles to be fought and Joshua was going to have to lead the way.  He wasn't feeling very comfortable about his role.  In fact he was afraid and God knew it.  (God knows everything!)

I love what God says to Joshua (and us). "As I was with Moses, so I will be with you (your name goes here); I will never leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous ... be strong and very courageous ... Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not  be discouraged for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:5-9. Two times God says He will be with Joshua (and us) and three times he tells Joshua (and us) to be strong and courageous.  Don't be afraid.  I am asking you to lead.  I will be with you and instruct you and in fact you will see that I will fight your battles.

The people say that they will follow Joshua and also speak a word of encouragement to Joshua..."Be strong and courageous!" Sound familiar!  God encourages them and demonstrates that He is with them by allowing them to cross the Jordan on dry land.  God parts the Jordan just like He did the Red Sea when Moses was their leader. I think their God-confidence level just went up several notches.  The people who were currently occupying the promised land were now the ones who were afraid.

Many battles occur at Jericho, Ai, and many more other kingdoms - 31 in all.

We too are in a battle as we move towards the promised land the Lord has for us.  The world that we live in is currently run by the devil.  We are foreigners in it.  "Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" - Ephesians 6:12.

The battles Joshua fought were often ruthless.  The city and people in it had to be destroyed because they were following and worshiping false gods.  We too must be ruthless when we root out the sins in our lives ...even the so called "respectable / acceptable" sins.  These days there are many sins that are done in secret and many sins of omission (i.e. not doing the things we ought to be doing).

Read Colossians chapter 3.  It provides a good summary of some things that we should "put to death" and things that we should "clothe" ourselves with to represent the Lord well.

In Colossians chapter 4 ... Paul also reminds us to "devote ourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful".  Guess who doesn't want us to pray and will do whatever he can to keep us from it.  You're right ... the devil.  He knows that there is power in prayer?  If we are prayer less (a sin of omission) he has us where he wants us..

Moses prayed much.  Joshua prayed much. Daniel prayed much. Jesus prayed much.  Paul prayed much. We ought to pray much. We need to make prayer a priority if we want to be the holy nation that God wants us to be while here on earth. Pray for one another. Pray to be filled with His Holy Spirit.


Don't be afraid.  Be strong and courageous as you set the example for others.  May they see Christ in us and want more of what we have as we let our light shine and reach out in love.  Our goal is to fix our eyes on Jesus and to know Him more and to become like Him in character and deed.


To do this we will have to be found praying and reading the Word and knowing the Word and meditating on it and doing it (applying it) by faith. He will transform us into His likeness as we trust and obey and root out any sin in our lives.  Be ruthless in dealing with sin ... confess it, repent of it and ask God to replace any bad habits with good / Godly habits.

  

Grumbling, Complaining ... never a good thing!

Imagine living with the Israelites and being in Moses shoes having to lead them out of Egypt and slavery to the promised land. No wonder Moses was frustrated and literally wanted to die.  He was fed up with God's people.  God was also getting pretty angry with them too but kept His "cool - sort of) and we see Him disciplining His "kids" a number of times in their wanderings ... a journey that should have taken only a few short months to do.

Imagine having to put up with people grumbling, complaining and rebelling all the time.  This happened over and over again.  This type of "cancer" even spread to Aaron and Miriam as they began to question Moses' position and authority resulting in Miriam being punished and becoming leprous for 7 days and forced to live outside the camp.

Moses even grumbled (under his breath) when He didn't follow God's instruction for providing water and angrily stuck the rock.  This act of disobedience was punished by God not letting him enter the promised land!

Later when Moses sends out 12 spies to check out the land, 10 of them bring back a report saying that the people are too big and we could never beat them and take their land.  But Caleb and Joshua had a different report ... with God on our side there was no problem entering into the land of promise.  The people believed the majority and they grumbled and complained again about their situation and they end up paying for their mistake.  They get to wander around for 40 years until everyone under the age of 20 dies off and they never stepped foot into the promised land. Only Caleb and Joshua and the young folk would get to enter.

Grumbling and complaining do not allow you to receive God's blessing.  He hates this type of attitude from his children.  It shows that you don't trust Him and that you have a rebellious heart.

So what should we do and what characteristics or attitudes should we be incorporating into our lives to please God?  Paul could have been a grumbler and complainer based on the situations he found himself in but he wasn't because he wanted to be like Christ.  He gives the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi and us some great practical instruction.  If you have the time, I would encourage you to read the entire book of Philippians slowly.  Here are a just a few things that counteract grumbling, complaining, and a rebellious heart.

1. Rejoice in the Lord, be anxious for nothing, pray about everything with thanksgiving, ... Philippians 4: 4-9






2. Learn to be content  in whatever circumstances you are in (like Paul was)  Philippians 4:11



3. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus ... He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross. Phillipians 2:2-13



4. Do all things without grumbling and disputing. Philippians 2:14


Paul says "practice these things" (Philippians 4:9).
This is excellent advice for shepherds who want to be good examples to their flocks who are watching and following and learning from them.

So ... don't be a grumbler and complainer as the consequences are terrible!  Be like Paul and Christ Jesus.  The reward is out of this world.

Moses - Friend of God

As you know, I have been trying to extract a few principles of leadership or "shepherding" from each of The Story chapters that we have been going through.  This helps me learn to be a better leader / shepherd (I hope) and I also trust that those who read the blog receive some benefit as they seek to grow in their role of shepherding and being part of a small group.

Normally I try to do my blog and get it out on Thursday each week.  Unfortunately I had to be away to "fight" a speeding ticket. I broke the "law" ... yup, I sinned ...but I had some legitimate reasons (excuses).  God was with me and I didn't have to "fight". For various "it just so happens", the fine was significantly reduced!  Another lower story for another time!

This morning I received a message asking whether I could fill in for Pastor Jeff and do the Adult Sunday School this coming Sunday. After writing last week about Moses and the excuses he tried to give, it was pretty difficult for me to say, "No ... Thank you for the offer ... but ... I don't think I can fill Jeff''s shoes, I can't speak like him, I don't have the knowledge Pastor Jeff has. Do you think you could ask someone else?"  Obviously, I said yes! I better practice what I am trying to teach and trust God that He will be with me and speak through me and give me the words to say.  So ... this afternoon I will be preparing for Sunday School as tomorrow is Thanksgiving and our family will be gathering and I am very thankful for all that He is doing in our lives!

This week the chapter was titled "New commands and a New Covenant".  However, in looking for leadership principles, I focused on Moses and how he was doing his job as a leader.  Here are 2 things that seemed to pop out to me:

1.  Be Holy  God wants us to be Holy and live Holy and righteous lives. That's what the 10 commandments are all about which were later summarized by Jesus when he spoke to a lawyer, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.  This is the great and foremost commandment.  And a second is like it. You shall love your neighbour as yourself".

When we love others like God loves us, and when we love others like God does by allowing the Holy Spirit to transform us into Christ-likeness, we become Holy.  We become the people of God that he has called us to be.  Peter reminds us that we are "a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God" (1 Pe 2:9) and Peter also exhorts us "to be holy in all you do; for it is written: Be holy, because I am Holy. (1 Pe 1:15,16)

2. Pray, Pray, Pray

When reading this week's chapter of The Story I couldn't get over how much time Moses spent with God talking things over with Him and receiving instructions from Him. He didn't call it prayer because he was actually talking with God and hearing His voice.  He spent 40 days, two times, at the top of Mount Sinai when receiving God's commandments for His people which includes us.  And after the covenant was made, we see that Moses spends much time every day in the Tent of Meeting just outside the camp. Moses had questions and frustrations. He needed instruction and wisdom to do the huge job he was given. God listened to Moses and He talked with Moses just like a friend. (see Exodus 33:11) God provided all that Moses needed day by day.
Remember that Moses was the reluctant leader!  He didn't want the job of leading two million plus people out of Egypt.  Would you want the job?  He could only perform this job with God's help. He needed His wisdom, His presence, His power, His direction, His words.

We are like Moses.  We can't really do anything of real value for God and His people and His kingdom unless we also spend time in prayer.  Paul says pray without ceasing.  We ought to be getting alone with God in our prayer closet daily to talk with Him and listen to Him. But "as we go", we should remember that He is also with us always and we can pray (talk with Him) anytime and anywhere and ask Him for wisdom when we are doing all the things we are responsible for each day.  Walk with Him.  Talk with Him. Listen for His voice by the Holy Spirit giving you instructions. Watch for those divine appointments where He wants you to be His hands and feet and lips. Watch for the way He works things out according to His plans.

With the Holy Spirit's help and indwelling, we can be like Moses, (and Jesus), a friend of God who talks with God.  Others will notice when we have spent time in prayer with Him.  Others will also notice when we haven't spent time in prayer with Him.

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