If I Could Be Like...Jesus

This commercial brings back a lot of memories while calling to mind the desire of children (and adults too!) to emulate their heroes. Who are you seeking to emulate today? Who are your heroes? Is the life you are living in front of your friends, co-workers and kids inspiring them to be more like Christ? Is your hero Christ? Is the desire of your heart to be like Christ? Do your actions prove it?

Pastor James

Justified...Are You?

Christians usually use the term "justified" to indicate one's standing before God. So, usually, the word "justified" means "to be declared "ok" and "good" by God because of one's faith in the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross for his or her sins." However in James 2:24 the scripture says, "You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone." Have we got it all wrong? Are we declared "ok" and "good" by God through something more than our faith in Jesus???

If we look at the context of the passage in James we see he uses the word "justified" differently than Christians most often use it. James is using "justified" in terms of vindication or evidence. Our actions give evidence and prove our faith in Christ to be real. In this case the word "justified" indicates the surety of our relationship with Christ. James says in 2:18, "I will show you my faith by what I do." Our actions, more so than our words, should give proof and vindication of our faith in Christ (what we believe and trust to be true about Him).

So, are you justified before God and the world today? Is your faith proven real by your works? Is the faith you profess with your mouth making a difference in your life? Can others see that difference? James said in 2:17, "faith without works is dead faith." Dead faith cannot justify a person before God nor will it justify him before man because such faith is simple lip service. Make sure you have real, saving faith that makes you justified before God (declared good and in right standing) and justified before man (proven true by the change seen in your actions). True, living faith that justifies a person before God produces obedience to Him (Romans 1:5). Don't be fooled by any imitations...make sure you have the real thing; make sure you have real faith in Jesus!

Pastor James

Where Has The Time Gone?

Recently I took some time to consider that very soon I will be 40 years old and became very aware of the brevity of life. Forty years have flown by like sand through the hourglass, literally! Soon I will be looking back at 80 years, God willing, bewildered at where the time has gone.

How are you spending your precious God given gift called time? The book of James tells us we are a "mist that appears for a little while then vanishes." We have only a short while on this earth and then are gone to eternity. As the old poem says, "Only one life t'will soon be past; only what's done for Christ will last." Make sure you are living a life with eternity in mind. Don't waste the opportunity to live a life that matters for the Kingdom of God. Live a life that brings glory to God and makes impact for eternity.

Pastor James

We Have No Creed But The Bible

We do not recite the Apostle's Creed, Nicene Creed or any other creed in the worship of the church I pastor. Nor do we require acceptance of a creed prior to welcoming a person into church membership. We have always championed the Bible itself as our only "creed" and advocated acceptance of the truth contained therein as the only criteria necessary for membership. I believe this to be the Biblical way of doing things but in following this theology we must regularly ask ourselves the question...have we allowed extra-biblical ideas, traditions and methods to trump the Scriptures in our life of faith?

I challenge you to consider areas of your life and belief which may find their basis in traditions, influences and philosophy outside of the Bible. Is your relationship with God scripturally based or have you allowed extra-biblical influences to sidetrack you and place you in spiritual bondage? Make certain your faith is rooted in the truth of God's Word!

James

Great Testimony From Matt Chandler

Matt Chandler is lead pastor of The Village Church in Dallas. He found out over the Thanksgiving holiday that he has a brain tumor. The link below is to a video he made a few days before having brain surgery. This video is powerful testimony to God's grace and power even in the darkest of times.

http://hv.thevillagechurch.net/blog/hvpastor/

James

Christmas!

Waiting to Do The Work The Right Way

Waiting does not come easy for most of us. Waiting in line, waiting for Christmas, waiting for your wedding day...not much fun! Waiting requires patience and most folks in our "microwave society" have far too little of this precious comodity. But to those who practice patience and wait on the Lord the rewards are excellent.

Jesus told His disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit and THEN they would be witnesses for Him. The disciples were sitting on the biggest story ever but were told to wait and not share it just yet! How does this make any sense? The crucifixtion and resurrection were hot of the presses big news! Yet, they were told to wait until God came upon them and then, in God's time, they would be turned loose on the population as God's witness.

The results...The apostles preached with power in the language of ever person present at Pentecost...at the same time! The Greeks heard the apostle's testimony in Greek, the Jews in Hebrew and the Arabs in Arabic! Every man, woman and child heard the witness of the apostles in their own tongue without need of a translator!

When we wait upon God we do things in His power, His way and with the results only He can bring. How do we wait on God??? We pray, read His Word, listen and go to the work when He opens the door and sends us...not a moment before He convicts and sends!

Doing the work right means doing it in the Lord's time, empowered by the Lord and exactly as the Lord asks us to do it...the results of doing so are nothing short of remarkable!

Pastor James

Love God, Be Available and Obey: Being a Part of God's Plan

I was reading Luke 1 and 2 yesterday as will be my custom often during Advent and God spoke a word to me concerning His grace and sovereignty. Think about the people and their story in these chapters. What did any of them do to be chosen and used by God for His glory? An aside here...to glorify God is to be a demonstration of his character and power...Each person in these chapters was used of God to further His plan of redemption and bring glory to Himself. All they did to be a part of God's plan was love Him and make themselves available to Him!

Want to be a part of God's plans and bring glory to Him? Love Him, make yourself available to Him and when the call comes...obey Him! You don't have to work hard to become "useful." You don't have to earn a place at the party! God loves us and wants us to be a part of what He is doing in the world and by His grace He will make a way for that to happen. Love Christ and be ready to obey Him Him when He calls!

Pastor James

Back to Reality

How is life today? Where has your focus been since you woke up this morning? For what or whom have you been living? Is Christ the center of your life right now?

Do you trust God? Do you have faith in Him? Do you believe He loves you and gave His Son up for you?

What you believe to be true in many ways becomes your reality...make sure your heart and mind are in the right place before the rest of the day gets away from you!

Pastor James

Haggai...A Prophet For Today

I don't know if you have spent much time in the Old Testament lately but there really is a LOT of good stuff there! I once had a professor in college who contended we really have a much smaller Bible than we claim since most Christians do not read many of the books contained therein. I fear she may have a point when you consider how seldom books like Obadiah and Haggai show up in our devotional literature.

I want to point you to a verse in the little book of Haggai today. Haggai 1:4 reads, "Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?" God is the speaker in this verse and the "house in ruin" is the Temple of God. The people in Haggai's day were rebuilding Jerusalem after 70 years in exile but their priorities were all wrong. They were self-centered and their priority was on the rebuilding of their own homes rather than God's Temple and His work in their midst. May we never find ourselves in such a self-centered place! "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you." -- Matthew 6:33

Pastor James

Cool Story...

Have you seen God today?

Often times we go about our day in our own little world and we are in such a routine that we miss some amazing blessings from God.  In just two days I have received two different emails from friends who have shared how they saw God in their lives.  Both completely different stories, and both blessed in different ways but both receiving exactly the blessing they needed at that moment!  

Isn't that just like God?!  He hears our prayers and cares about every single thing going on in our lives.  And if we stop and rest long enough we will see the way He is blessing us.  He may choose to bless us through another person, a situation, an unexpected surprise, or even an intimate moment with Him!  Wouldn't you be sad if you were too busy to notice it?!!  He even reminds us to do this in His Word - Be Still and know that I am God... Psalm 46:10.  I hope you will take time to be still today!

Jogging The Treadmill...Consistently

I head to the gym most weekday mornings to walk/jog (mostly walk) on the treadmill for half an hour. I imagine this will have some long term health benefits. I am told I am making my heart stronger and I admit I do have more energy since I started. The fellow who works at the gym recently commended me on my consistent attendance and encouraged me that the consistency would pay off. I suppose I am starting to see some of that "pay-off" in how I feel.

Consistency is a rule of life to which most of us pay too little attention. Whether it is a physical, mental or spiritual work out only consistency will produce results. Too often we spend a little time with God or occasional time with God and are disappointed in the lack of "results." Only consistent time with God develops a relationship and a changed life. You cannot build physical muscles with an occasional trip to the gym nor can you build a relationship with your husband, wife or God with an occasional conversation or prayer. The consistency of our actions will build the successes or failures of our life. Spend regular time with God...start today!

Jeremiah Was a Bullfrog...And There Was One Who Was A Prophet Too

During my time with God this morning I was reading in the book of Jeremiah and a verse in chapter 5 really spoke to me. “Your sins have deprived you of good.” When we get to Heaven I bet we will be surprised at how many blessings we missed on earth because of our sin.

God has a lot of blessing to pour out on our life but sin can cause Him to withhold them. Does this make God a mean God? Absolutely not! This makes God a great and perfect Father. When God withholds blessing it is for disciplinary purposes. God loves us too much to let us live in sin without some kind of corrective action on His part.

God wants all of us to have the best life possible and the best life is one fully committed and surrendered to Him. Pray and ask God to help you overcome the sin in your life; the sin that keeps you from experiencing all of the blessing God wants to give you.

God spoke another word to Jeremiah in chapter 3 verse 22, “Return faithless people; I will cure your backsliding.” If you are struggling with some sin in your life turn it over to God, run to Him in prayer and trust Him at His Word. God will cure your backsliding, help you be faithful and give you strength to overcome the temptation that overwhelms you. Only God can cure your backsliding! Self-effort, self-discipline and determination will never be enough to overcome sin in your life. Only God can cure us of our backsliding, get us on the road to right living and empower us to have the kind of life which experiences all of the blessing God intends for us to have. God wants you to begin experiencing His best today!

Spend a Latte time with God today

Like many other people in a America I have developed an expensive habit... Starbucks.   My morning is just not complete without it.  I never thought this would even be a temptation for me because I do not like coffee at all - that is until I discovered the Grande Non-fat six pump Chai Tea Latte... Yes I am one of those people!  Something is just not right in the morning if I haven't had my chai.  There are mornings when I'm running late when I have no choice but to skip the chai, but those mornings it may take me a little more time to get my pep up!  I have also tried to help the budget by substituting a homemade chai but it just isn't the same - no steamed milk, no fun to go cup - not the Starbucks experience!  

Isn't this exactly how we should view spending time with God?  It should be the thing in the morning that we look forward to the most!  It should become a daily habit and when we don't do it we should feel like something is missing in our day.  It should be something that makes us start the day with a pep!  And just like our favorite drink, there is nothing that can substitute for it!  

The next time you indulge in whatever your "chai" is... ask yourself if you have had your time with God today.

A Game of Inches

I watched my Cowboys fall to the Broncos today; the difference between victory and defeat was 2 yards. The Cowboys had the ball on the Bronco 2 yard line with only seconds left in the game but the 'Boys couldn't punch the ball into the end zone. Game over, Broncos win and the Cowboys face a 2-2 start to the season. So often the difference between victory and defeat is a matter of mere inches or in this case a mere 2 yards.

Live 100% surrendered and fully obedient to Christ this week! Anything less places our life in position to lose intended victories, victories Christ intends for us to enjoy, by mere inches.

Taking Down The Goalpost

Have you ever been at a football game that ended with fans rushing the field to tear down the goalposts? I have yet to experience such a game but would certainly like to do so someday. I did attend a baseball game a few years ago in which Kenny Rogers pitched a perfect game for the Texas Rangers. The adrenaline and excitement made the night unforgettable. There was such expectation with every pitch! The fans and players were united in their hope and desire to see Kenny successful at doing what only a handful of pitchers have ever done. Wouldn't it be something if we could experience the same excitement, expectation, energy, hope and unity in worship services across the country in the morning! I'm praying for just such a revival!

2 John and Somesuch

I am preaching a series in this little book of the Bible over the next couple of weeks. The Apostle John wrote 2 John primarily to help us see the absolute indestructible marriage between love and truth for the Christian. Christ is both love and truth so if you are walking with the truth you will necessarily walk in love; a love for God as well as others. The test of fellowship is love. Love God, love others, serve the world!

Why "Love God...Love Others...Serve the World"

I was recently reading a book in which the authors highlighted a church whose "Purpose Statement" was "Love God, Love Others, Serve the World." I like it! The simplicity challenged me to rethink how I was "doing" ministry.

Life can be a complicated! However, more often than we care to admit, the complexities of life are due to the choices we have made along the way. I want to challenge you to think about your life in terms of the simple words of Jesus, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself."