Pastor Brian's Article for 05/25/2008
There is a paradox in the human spirit. We
want to lose weight, but we don’t want to reduce the amount of food we eat and
we don’t want to reduce the amount of high calorie foods we eat. We want to have
a toned and sculptured body, but we don’t make time to go to the gym. We want to
have a deep, rich walk with Christ, but we don’t want to obey Him.
People who want to know Christ in a deep, rich way often make the mistake of
pursuing activities instead of obedience. Who can blame them? Southern Baptists
are notorious for saying, “If you want to be closer to God, you need to read
your Bible, pray, be in church three times a week, and be involved in as many
activities of the church as you can. I have found a lot of burned out people
over the years who are no closer to Christ than when they began.
There are many who come to church to have an emotional high. They want to come
to church and “feel” the presence of God. Church may be the only place they feel
close to God, so the requirement to be there whenever the door is open is not
burdensome to them. Please don’t misunderstand what I am trying to say. The
follower of Christ must spend time in the Scripture. He or she must spend time
in prayer. It is very important that followers of Christ come together and
worship their Lord, but a rich spiritual life does not come from activities.
Jesus spoke harshly to his disciples at times. “You call me Lord, but you don’t
do what I tell you to do.” On a different occasion He told them, “If
you love me, keep my commandments.” Praise,
worship, and adoration mean nothing if there is no obedience. If one does not
obey the commands of Christ, there is reason to doubt how genuine one’s
adoration truly is.
Obedience is not an easy
road. It begins with the unfolding of ourselves before God. Because of our sin
we do not like this task. It is not that God does not see who we are. The
unfolding of our lives before Him means that we agree with Him about our
condition. This process of repentance strips us of our pride and prepares us
for His cleansing.
The New Testament is very
clear about the obedience of Jesus. There are phrases like “obedient to death”
and “having learned obedience.” We may not fully understand such phrases, but
the intent is clear. Jesus could not have gained victory over sin, death, and
the grave if not for His obedience to the Father. We cannot have intimacy with
Christ apart from obedience to Him.
A distinction has to be
made between obedience to Christ and obedience to religious rules. Adherence to
religious rules only fills us with arrogance and pride or leaves us feeling
unfulfilled. Obedience to Christ brings Christlikness. Obedience earns us
nothing; rather it changes our hearts, and we long for God.
In the second chapter of
the book of James, we read that faith apart from works is dead. In the same
ways, the words “Lord,” “Kingdom,” “study,” and “ministry” are dead and mean
nothing if we are not obedient.
That Jesus May Be Revealed,
Brian
Taken from A Hunger for
The Holy, Calvin Miller, chapter six.
Because of a hectic
summer schedule, I am going to take a hiatus from writing an article and will
resume again in September.
 Scripture References:
Romans 13:7-8 –
A part of Christian stewardship is being a good
citizen. Taxes are to be paid when due, thus fulfilling our obligation. The one
part of Christian stewardship that can never be satisfied is our need to express
love. Loving, as expressed in giving, is an ongoing characteristic of a
Christian.
Joshua 15:10-12 – The border turned about from
Baalah westward to Mount Seir, and continued to the slope of Mount Jearim on the
north (that is, Chesalon), and went down to Beth-shemesh and continued through
Timnah. The border proceeded to the side of Ekron northward. Then the border
curved to Shikkeron and continued to Mount Baalah and proceeded to Jabneel, and
the border ended at the sea. The west border was at the Great Sea, even its
coastline. This is the border around the sons of Judah according to their
families.
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