Day #181: Romans 12:6-8

BACKGROUND:

The emphasis in these three verses today is that God has given these abilities to his people. These are God’s gifts to his church, and he gives faith and power as he wills. Our role is to be faithful and to seek ways to serve others with what Christ has given us.

The gifts Paul mentions in this list fall into two categories: speaking and serving. Gifts are given that God’s grace may be expressed. Words speak to our hearts and minds of God’s grace; acts of service show that grace in action. This list is not exhaustive; there are many gifts, most of them hidden from the public—those “behind the scenes” words and actions that serve and magnify God.

The ability to prophesy, according to the New Testament, is not always predicting the future. Often it means effectively communicating God’s messages (1 Corinthians 14:1-3). These gifts are not for having, but for using. In other words, God’s gifts fulfill their value as they are utilized for the benefit of others.

If a person has the gift of serving, then he or she should use it where and when it is needed, and use it to its best and fullest capacity. The same goes for the other gifts that Paul mentions: teaching, encouraging, sharing, leading, showing kindness. Whatever gift a believer has, he or she should faithfully use it in gratitude to God. By focusing on the application of the gifts, Paul is removing the tendency toward unhealthy self-congratulation in the discovery of gifts. If we are busy using our gifts, we will be less taken up with concerns over status and power. Genuine service controls pride.

This list of gifts is representative, not exhaustive. It would be difficult for one person to embody all these gifts. An assertive prophet usually would not make a good counselor, and a generous giver might fail as a leader. When people identify their own gifts and their unique combination of gifts (this list is far from complete), they should then discover how they can use their gifts to build up Christ’s body, the church.

At the same time, they should realize that one or two gifts can’t do all the work of the church. Believers should be thankful for each other, thankful that others have gifts that are completely different. In the church, believers’ strengths and weaknesses can balance each other. Some people’s abilities compensate for other people’s deficiencies. Together all believers can build Christ’s church. But all these gifts will be worthless if they are used begrudgingly out of duty, or if they are exercised without love.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

It's not enough to just possess a spiritual gift, we must activate that gift(s). v. 6 "We have different gifts according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophecy let him use it in accordance to his faith. If it's serving let him serve. If it's teaching let him teach. If it's encouraging let him encourage. If it's contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously. If it's leadership, let him govern diligently. If it's showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully." Paul gives seven examples of spiritual gifts.

The scripture says that when you're born physically you get some physical endowments: ability to think, etc. When you're born again spiritually you are given a spiritual gift, an ability. It's not a natural talent. It may coincide with it but it's more. It's an ability that God gave you the moment you became a believer to be used for ministering to other people. Many Christians go their whole lives and never discover their spiritual gift.

Many times they use it and don't even know they have it. But whether you know what it is or not, you have one and one of your responsibilities is to find out what is my gift or gifts. The Scripture teaches there are many kinds of gifts. Nobody receives all of the gifts. No one gift is given to all. Everybody receives some gift. The reason for that is that we will be dependent on each other. If I had all the gifts I wouldn't need you. If you had all the gifts, you wouldn't need me. Nobody has it all together. That way we need each other. Just like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

What is the basis for spiritual gifts? v. 6 "We have different gifts according to the grace..." The basis for spiritual gifts is grace. That's why they're called gifts. If you had to work for it would they be of grace? You would have earned them. The fact is you were given the gift so it's an issue of grace.

1 Peter 4:10 says, "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." God's grace is manifested in the church in many different formats. We're all given a grace gift and we should use it -- we're responsible to use it -- to serve others. God gave me my gift, not for me, but for you. God gave you a gift, not for you, but for me. We're given them to benefit each other. That's because we need each other.


1 Corinthians 12 expands on what Paul is teaching in Romans 12 and has a lot more to say about it. v. 4 "There are different kinds of gifts but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service but the same Lord. There are different kinds of workings but the same God works in all of them. To each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good."

We're given gifts to benefit all of us. v. 11 "All these are the work of the one and the same Spirit and He gives them to each man just as He determines." How do you decide who gets what gift? You don't. God decides who gets what gift. That's why you don't need to pray for a specific gift. If God wants you to have that gift, you get it. He sovereignly decides. It's futile and worthless to pray for a particular gift when God says, I sovereignly decide who gets what.

The grace of God determines sovereignly who chooses what. That's why at COV we don't believe in pressuring people into any particular thing because it's God who makes the decisions.

What is the purpose of spiritual gifts? To build up the body of Christ. Gifts are only to be used in the context of the body of Christ. Not for individual glory.


It's interesting, there's only seven gifts listed in Romans 12. In 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 there's nine other gifts listed. In v. 28-29 there's a couple more listed. 1 Peter lists a couple more. Ephesians lists a couple. Why are they not all in one place? We love to categorize things. God, in Scripture, makes no effort at all to (a) categorize the gifts, or (b) list them all in one place, or (c) even define them. Why? In Romans He lists seven; in Corinthians He lists a bunch of other ones. The people in Rome didn't get the letter to the Corinthians until probably about 40 years later when it started circulating. So for 40 years did they have only seven gifts to work on?

My opinion is that the gifts listed in the Bible are simply examples. I believe that it is not a closed system. People argue Are there 17 gifts or 19 gifts? I happen to think there are those plus a lot of others. For instance, the gift of music is not mentioned in Scripture as a spiritual gift. But I think that's a gift. I think some people have the gift of intercession. They are prayer warriors. I think there are others. The point he's making in Corinthians and Romans is that all of the gifts are important.

What is the responsibility of spiritual gifts? God expects me to use the one He gave me -- or ones. I don't think necessarily you only get one. But I do believe you don't get them all. There are many stories Jesus told, like the parable of the talents. One guy takes his talents and multiplies it and another guy buries his in the ground. Jesus says that is wicked. That's the wrong thing to do. Don't bury your talents in the ground. If you've got a gift you have a responsibility. God will hold you accountable for what you did with your gift. He doesn't expect us to be like another person, but He does expect us to be ourselves. "What did you do with what I gave you?" Very simple - Exercise.

Many times in Scripture we're told to develop or sharpen the gifts. Paul told Timothy, "Stir up the gift that you were given". Develop it. God gave me the gift of exhortation or encouragement when I became a believer but I'm getting better at it. The more I grow I get better at it. Fortunately I'm not the same person I was two years ago. Fortunately I'm not the same person I'm going to be two years from now. Fortunately you're not the same person you're going to be two years from now. We're all growing, developing and becoming what He wants us to be. What are your gifts? Are you using them to build the body? If not, why not?

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #180: Romans 12:3-5

BACKGROUND:

Paul is here speaking as God’s messenger, an apostle. The authority he was about to exercise was not his own by right, but was an evidence of God’s grace. He warned the believers that inflated pride has no place in a believer’s life. This is especially significant in light of Paul’s teaching up to this point in his letter. The Jews are not better than the Gentiles; the Gentiles are not better than the Jews. Rather, all are dependent on God’s mercy for their salvation, thus there is no room for pride. Any such pride would undermine the oneness vital to the growth of the church.

God has given each believer a measure of faith with which to serve him. This expression refers to the spiritual capacity and/or power given to each person to carry out his or her function in the church. The concept of measuring your value is described further in, where Paul uses the terminology “different gifts, according to the grace given us.” It is God’s discernment, not ours, that gives out the measure for service. Whatever we have in the way of natural abilities or spiritual gifts—all should be used with humility for building up the body of Christ. If we are proud, we cannot exercise our faith and gifts to benefit others. And if we consider ourselves worthless, we also withhold what God intended to deliver to others through us.

Replacing the national identity that had once set apart God’s people, Paul gives a new picture of the identity of God’s redeemed people. They are like a body. Each of us has one body, but it has many parts—eyes, ears, fingers, toes, blood vessels, muscles. And each part has a special function. Not every part of our body can see; not every part hears. But all must work together if the body is going to move and act correctly. (1 Corinthians 12:12-27.) Just as our physical bodies are composed of many parts, so Christ’s body is made up of many believers who all perform different work. And as our bodies cannot be taken apart, so we belong to each other.

The members work together to make the body work. When it is not done, the body suffers.
We must be humble and recognize our partnership in the body of Christ. Only then can our gifts be used effectively, and only then can we appreciate others’ gifts. God gives us gifts so we can build up his church. To use them effectively, we must: realize that all gifts and abilities come from God; understand that not everyone has the same gifts nor all the gifts; know who we are and what we do best; dedicate our gifts to God’s service and not to our personal success;
be willing to utilize our gifts wholeheartedly, not holding back anything from God’s service.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

As I absorb today's passage, I think about the importance of knowing my gifts and strengths.
v. 3 says, "For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you do not think of yourself more highly than you ought. But rather think of yourself with sober judgement in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you." Be realistic. The exercise of your spiritual gift is directly dependent and influenced on your attitude about yourself, your own self concept. He says think about yourself with sober judgements.

The word "sober" is two words in Greek. It's "to save" and "mind" -- to save your mind. Do some realistic self appraisal. What are my strengths and what are my weaknesses? If God is going to use you effectively you've got to know what you're good at. What has God gifted me at? What am I not good at? To put yourself in the wrong position such as teaching because the church needs teachers but you don't have the gift of teaching, there's nothing worse than listening to a teacher who doesn't have the gift of teaching. Yet people have other gifts that are just as vital and as important.

We have the tendency to go to one of two extremes in evaluating ourselves. We either think we're indispensable or we think we're worthless. And both of those are wrong. Sometimes we get full of pride and think we're holding the world up. This poem is for you:

Sometime when you're feeling important
Sometime when you're ego is up
Sometime when you're taking for granted
That you're the prizewinning pup

Sometime when you feel that your absence
Would leave an unfillable hole
Just follow these simple instructions
And see how it humbles your soul

Take a bucket and fill it with water
Put your hand in it up to the wrist
Now pull it out fast and the hole that remains
Is the measure of how you'll be missed.

You may splash all you please as you enter
And stir up the water galore
But stop and you'll find in a minute
It's right back where it was before.

The fact is, if we don't do our part, God's kingdom is still going to go on. It is not dependent upon us. We are not indispensable. Any of us can be replaced. But on the other hand, all of us are needed. Have sober judgement. Ask yourself - What am I good at? What do I like to do? What ability has God given me? Don't overestimate. Don't underestimate. Either extreme is bad.

Many people misunderstand what humility is. They think humility means to go around saying, "I'm no good! I'm lousy! I'm junk!" Jesus Christ did not die for junk. He died for people and the very fact that He died for you indicates your value. The very fact that Paul says, "I was lost but now I'm found." The very fact that you're looking for it means it's valuable to you. You are valuable and worthwhile. Humility does not mean downgrading yourself. It means be honest. Honest about both your strengths and your weaknesses.

Another foundational truth from these verses today is this: There are no Lone Rangers in the Christian life. God says no Christian is independent. We are all interdependent. We depend upon each other. v. 4-5 "Just as each of us has one body with many members and these members do not all have the same function so in Christ we who are many form one body and each member belongs to all the others." Paul gives us an anatomy lesson. He says the church operates just like a body. This is one of the most used analogies in the New Testament referring to Christian service and referring to the body of Christ, the church. 1 Cor. 12, Ephesians 4. Many places the church is called the body of Christ.

What do we learn from this idea of cooperating with other members in the body of Christ? I think there are four important implications. They have a lot to do with our philosophy of ministry at COV.

1. Every believer is a minister. We are all different parts of the body and we all form the body together. The question is "Who are the ministers at COV?" Those who are on staff are not the ministers. The Scripture says every Christian is a minister. Not every Christian is a pastor or a director of a ministry but every Christian is a minister. Ephesians 4:12 says that pastors are given to prepare God's people for the work of ministry. God expects the body to use its gifts to minister to itself.

2. Every believer has a different function. Not all of us do the same thing. 1 Corinthians 12 says the hand doesn't do what the foot does and the foot doesn't do what the head does and the head doesn't do what the mouth does. Aren't you glad that all the members of our church don't have the same function? What if we all decided we were going to be the ear? The listening part of the church. Or the eye? Most of the time all of us want to be the mouth! But every believer is a minister and every believer has a different function. Chaos occurs in the church when we put people into positions for which they are not gifted. We force them to plug holes.

As long as God allows me to be your pastor I will not allow that to happen at COV. That causes chaos when we force people to fill positions either by using guilt or fear or whatever. That's not the way the body of Christ is meant to operate. We've all got different functions so we shouldn't expect everybody to act the same or to like the same or to do the same. A lot of churches somebody gets elected to a position when they're not even gifted to that position. It causes all kinds of problems in their lives.

3. Every ministry is important. Corinthians 12 says the hand can't say to the foot, "I don't need you." The foot can't say to the eye, "I don't need you." We're interdependent. We need each other. Some are bigger and more prominent, more obvious. Some are less obvious. I have a hand and that's obvious. I also have a liver. That's not seen but which is more important to my life? the hand or the liver? It may not be seen but it's more important. It's like the lights in my home. The most important light in my home is the little night light that keeps me from tripping over the bed when I get up in the middle of the night. That is the most significant light in my house. It's tiny but it's the most important one. There are no little people in the body of Christ.

One of the secrets of guilt free living as a Christian is to discover what is my spiritual gift? What does God want me to do? And when you know what that gift is you don't feel bad to say "No" when people ask you to do other things. There's tremendous self esteem that comes from knowing I've got a part of the puzzle that nobody else can fill. Nobody else can be this at COV. I'm part of the picture. Ponder these truths in your heart today.

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #179: Romans 12:2

BACKGROUND:

When believers offer their entire self to God, a change will happen in their relation to the world. Christians are called to a different lifestyle than what the world offers with its behavior and customs, which are usually selfish and often corrupting (Galatians 1:4; 1 Peter 1:14). Christians are to live as citizens of a future world. There will be pressure to conform, to continue living according to the script written by the world, but believers are forbidden to give in to that pressure.

But refusing to conform to this world’s values must go even deeper than the level of behavior and customs—it must go to the transforming of the way we think. Believers are to experience a complete transformation from the inside out. And the change must begin in the mind, where all thoughts and actions begin. Much of the work is done by God’s Spirit in us, and the tool most frequently used is God’s word.

As we memorize and meditate upon God’s word, our way of thinking changes. Our minds become first informed, and then conformed to the pattern of God, the pattern for which we were originally designed. When believers have had their minds transformed and are becoming more like Christ, they will know what God wants and they will want to do it for it is good, pleasing to God, and perfect for them.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world." This ties in with the idea of dedication, which we looked at yesterday. One of the reasons we're not dedicated to the Lord is because we're dedicated to the world.

When he talks about world he's not talking about the people in the world. The Bible says God loves the people in the world. He's talking about the world's values system. Don't be caught up in the spirit of the age -- "me first". That's the world's philosophy. Don't be conformed to that. He's not talking about things. He's talking about values. The Phillips Translation says: "Don't let the world squeeze you into its mold." Have you ever felt pressured by the world to conform? "That's the way everybody's doing it!"

How can the Christian relate to the world when he's living in the world but not of the world? The Christian's relationship to the world is not isolation and it's not imitation, it's insulation. Most Christians go to one of two extremes when it comes to relating to the world.

Some are isolationists. "I don't want to have anything to do with the world. Therefore I won't go to any movies, watch any television. I won't dress like the world does. I wear a different standard." They may go live in a monastery and become a monk. That's not the secret. If we isolate ourselves how are we going to win the world.

Some Christians are imitators. They imitate the world. Whatever the world does, I'll do it too. I want to fit in. The Bible says, don't imitate the world's values -- Get all you can, can all you get, set on the can and spoil the rest! If it feels good do it. Dog eat dog world!

It's not isolation or imitation. It's insulation. I love seafood. The first thing you have to do even before you taste it is to put a little salt on it. That sea bass has spent his entire life in salt water and yet when they cooked it and I ate it I had to put salt on it. If God can keep a fish in salt water all its life and let the salt not permeate it's body, God can keep the Christian in a non Christian world and keep you pure. That's insulation.

Paul is saying culture is a totally unreliable source for getting your guidance in life. Don't be conformed to this world. If everybody else is doing it, must it be OK? NO! Most people make their decisions on what is acceptable. We like to conform and we don't like to stick out. Every year magazines like U.S. News and World Report put out articles that tell us what's in and what's out. That's what you call living by the culture of this world. You're going to get your guidance in life from one of two sources -- the world or the word.

If you want to know God's will don't get your cues from the world. The problem today is that many Christians automatically accept whatever standard the world is saying even if God says it's wrong. Exodus 23:2 says, "Don't follow the crowd in doing wrong." The majority is not always right. 1 John 2:17 says, "The world and its desires pass away but the person who does the will of God abides forever."

It's simple logic that most people in the world are not following God's will. It's obvious. If you're following what most people are doing you're not going to follow God's will. You can't discover it by always worrying about what other people think.

Where do you get your cues in life on? Where do you get your guidance? What do you base your life on? the Bible? How many minutes a week do you read the Bible? How many minutes a week do you watch television? Where are you getting your values?

The boob tube is an incredible influence on our lives. What if I call you and say "I'd like to come over to your house and tell you some stories. I'll tell them to you in graphic detail -- juicy stories about adultery, rape, violence. I want you to bring your family and I'll talk with you about this." Of course you wouldn't allow that. But we will watch television and let somebody else tell it to us.

I think America has lost its ability to blush. What is your tolerance level? What does it take before you'll get up and change channels? What's your limit? Psychologists say that everything you see goes into your subconscious. Don't get your cues from the world. It's the principle of G.I.G.O - Garbage In - Garbage Out.


If you want to know God's will first dedicate yourself -- be totally sold out to Jesus Christ. Second, insulate yourself.

Third, is the principle of transformation. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." He's talking about the Holy Spirit changing us on the inside so we will know His will. The word in Greek is the word we get our metamorphosis. God metamorphosizes us. He changes the very nature of our personality. Psychologists say that your basic personality is set by the time you're aged three or four.

But your personality can be changed. God is in the business of metamorphosis. Thank God I'm not stuck in my past. Maybe you've had a bad past, mistreated, a lot of bad experiences in life, but God says "I can do a metamorphosis. I can change you from a lowly caterpillar into a butterfly." You can be free. You can fly. But the cocoon has got to go. The cocoon is the old ways, habits, patterns. Don't be conformed any more.

1 John 3:2 says, "Dear friends now we are children of God and what will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears we shall be like Him for we shall see Him as He is." Scripture says one day when you see Jesus Christ perfectly, when He returns or when you go be with Him in heaven, you are going to be instantly changed to be just like Him. That's the total metamorphosis.

In the meantime - 2 Corinthians 3:18 says, "And we who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory are being transformed into His likeness with ever increasing glory which comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." We're being changed to be like Christ, more and more, on a daily basis, little by little. Unveiled faces? Remember when Moses went up the mountain to get the Ten Commandments and God let him get a glimpse of Him.

When he came down from the mountain his face was shining brightly because he had seen God. The people said, Moses your face is shining so bright we can't stand it! So he had to put a veil over his face to protect the people. The only thing is, after a while that glory faded and Moses didn't want the people to know it was gone so he kept wearing the veil. Paul says, we don't wear a veil but we reflect the Lord's glory.

The word "reflect" -- that's the only time that word is used in the New Testament. It literally means "to contemplate", "to look at". The more I look at God, the more I look at Jesus Christ, the more I'm changed to be like Him.

How do you look at the Lord? through the Bible, His book. As I look at Christ through His book, as I read more and more about Him, I'm changed and I become more and more like Him and I'm transformed.

Romans 12. First step is dedication -- commit yourself totally to Christ. Second, insulation -- separate your self from the world, not physically but in the spiritual sense. Then transformation -- that takes place by the renewing of your mind.

The key to changing your life is to change the way you think. The Scripture teaches that the way we think determines the way we feel, and the way we feel determines the way we act. If I'm acting depressed, it's because I'm feeling depressed, and I'm feeling depressed because I'm thinking depressed thoughts. Most people try to change themselves by changing the way they feel or the way the act, rather than going to the source and changing the way they think. You cannot change the way you feel. You can't command a feeling, but God can change your mind.

All through Scripture the Bible teaches, "Be transformed by the renewing of your mind." All change starts in your thought life. Scripture says, "As a man thinks in his heart, so is he." Ephesians talks about putting on the new mind.

The question then is, "How do I renew my mind?" Psalm 119:9 says, "How can a young man keep his ways pure? By living according to Your word. I seek you with all my heart. Do not let me stray from Your commands. I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You." The way you change your life is to reprogram your mind with the word of God. The more you fill your life, your mind, with God's word the more it transforms your life.

Will you today - commit to God - that you will begin reading His word daily? Come on, go for it. You can do it.

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #178: Romans 12:1

BACKGROUND:

In Romans 12, Paul moves from a doctrinal discussion to a practical discussion, for Christian doctrine translates into action. The first eleven chapters of the book of Romans reveal God’s mercy to sinners in that he sent his Son to die on the cross for our sins. Chapter 12 explains our obligation to God. In view of all God has done for us, how can we respond in a way that is pleasing to him?

And so, because of God’s great compassion on both Jews and Gentiles in offering salvation through Christ, Paul urges believers to please God in their daily lives. The evil world is full of temptation and sin. Paul helps believers understand how they can live for God.

Paul had already told the Roman believers to offer themselves to God so that their whole bodies would be for his glory. Our bodies are all we have to offer—we live in our bodies. The body enfolds our emotions, our mind, our thoughts, our desires, and our plans. Thus, the body represents the total person; it is the instrument by which all our service is given to God. In order to live for God, we must give him all that we are, represented by our body. If our body is at God’s disposal, he will have our free time, our pleasures, and all our behavior.

When sacrificing an animal according to God’s law, a priest would kill the animal, cut it in pieces, and place it on the altar. Sacrifice was important, but even in the Old Testament God made it clear that obedience from the heart was much more important (1 Samuel 15:22; Psalm 40:6; Amos 5:21-24). God wants us to offer ourselves as living sacrifices—daily laying aside our own desires to follow him, putting all our energy and resources at his disposal, and trusting him to guide us (Hebrews 13:15-16; 1 Peter 2:5). Our new life is a thank-offering to God. Offering our body as a living and holy sacrifice to be completely set apart for God and dedicated to his service.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what i have read today?)

As I read this one single verse again today, God has spoken to my heart in a major way. I am not exaggerating when I say that I have read this one single verse 500= times, yet here i am reading it once again and God says something new to my heart. I am amazed at the power of God's Word.

Today, I want us to look at how to discover God's will and deal with our relationship to God because He says "God's will is good, pleasing and perfect". How do you discover God's will for your life?

There is no magic formula. God's will is not a formula and it's not a feeling. But there are three very powerful principles that outline what is God's will for your life.

1. The principle of dedication. v. 1 "Therefore I urge you brothers, in view of God's mercies, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice holy and pleasing to God which is your spiritual worship." Commit your total life to Christ. The secret to knowing God's will is to be willing in advance to do whatever it is. Even before you know what it is. How many people say "God, You show me what Your will is, and then after I know Your will I'll decide on if I want to do it or not." God doesn't play games. If you want to know God's will you decide you're going to do His will whatever it is.

I had a friend who preached in a church. The choir sand "Yes, Lord, yes. Yes, Lord, yes." over and over until it built to a great crescendo. Then they introduced the speaker and said, "Lord, you've already heard our answer. Now tell us what you want us to do."

That's the attitude God wants us to have. "I'm willing to do Your will, in advance, even before I know what it is." To be totally dedicated to God means to say Yes to Him for your life, your business, your home, your family.

What's the reason for dedication? "I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercies." Why should I dedicate myself to God? Because of what God has done for me. All of His mercies. What are His mercies? Romans 4-8 covers in detail what His mercies are. If God has been so good to us, surely we ought to give our lives in return to Him. The starting point is to dedicate our lives to God.

Thee are three characteristics of Christian dedication.

It's voluntary. "Offer your bodies" Offer means to voluntarily commit. The Williams translation says, "Make a decisive dedication of your body." This is the same word for making a reservation for a table in a restaurant. It means to make a reservation. The table has been set aside for your benefit. Nobody else can use that table. Put a reservation card on your life. "God, my life, my time, my money, my self completely belongs to you." It's voluntary.

It's practical. "Offer your bodies" Why would God want your body? God says, "Give me what you've got." We ought to have T-shirts printed up: "This bod belongs to God." Why doesn't God say offer your soul, or your spirit? He says bodies. If God owns your body, He owns you. Have you ever heard anyone say, "I can't make it to be meeting tonight but I'll be with you in spirit." That's great sentiment, but practically it's worthless.

Your spirit doesn't do anything if your body isn't there. It's one thing to say you'll give your money to missions. It's another thing to say, "I'm going to give my body and go spend two weeks on the mission field." When you give your body it means you're giving yourself. He's saying, be practical. 1 Cor. 6:19-20 says your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. How do you know if you've dedicated your body to God? When a need occurs, do you meet it?

It's complete. "Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice." Sacrifice means total, unconditional dedication to God.

The starting point for knowing God's will is dedication. Offer your body as a living sacrifice. Usually when we think of sacrifice we think of something dead. But this says living sacrifice. There's one problem with a living sacrifice. It can crawl off the altar. That's why it's got to be a daily sacrifice. A lot of us come to church and commit ourselves on Sunday and then on Monday we crawl off the altar. We sing "Onward Christian Soldiers" and then on Monday we go AWOL.

Note it says "holy and pleasing to God". In Greek it says, "well pleasing to God" which means it makes God happy when we commit ourselves to Him.

When you do this it is "your spiritual worship". Worship is not something you do just on Sundays. Worship is any time you commit yourself to God. Anytime you make a commitment of your life to God, you're worshiping. A commitment of your time, praise, money, life, talents, energy -- that's an act of worship. He says we can be living in constant worship of God when we have the act of dedication.

The first foundational truth we see this week is the principle of dedication: "Offer yourself, totally commit yourself to God." Will you do that right now?

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #177: James 3:17-18

BACKGROUND:

People filled with jealousy and selfish ambition think they must be first in everything. They cannot stand to see anyone else in the limelight, or have anyone else cast a shadow on what they do. This leads to desires and strategies for revenge that can lead to disaster. By contrast, the following seven characteristics of heavenly wisdom are strung together like pearls. They are what wisdom is and produces.

The wisdom that comes from heaven is . . . pure. To be fruitful for God, we must have moral and spiritual integrity. It is also peace loving. This is peace that goes beyond inner peace; it is opposed to strife. It is peace between people, and between people and God. It must be peace that affects the community. Christians must not only prefer peace, but they should also seek to spread it.

It is gentle at all times. This is the opposite of self-seeking. It does not demand its own right. To be gentle is to make allowances for others, to temper justice with mercy. It is the kind of treatment that we would like to receive from others.

This wisdom is also willing to yield to others. Heavenly wisdom is reasonable, flexible—willing to listen and to change. Just as good soldiers willingly follow orders from their superiors, people with heavenly wisdom willingly follow God’s orders and respond to his correction.

This wisdom is also full of mercy and good deeds. God’s wisdom is full of God’s gracious forgiveness. And his love leads to practical action, helping and serving others. We should be willing to forgive even when the problems we are facing are someone else’s fault.
God’s wisdom shows no partiality, meaning single-minded and free from prejudice toward people and without double-mindedness toward God. Finally, it is always sincere, meaning “unhypocritical.” God’s wisdom makes people genuine.

Peacemakers are able to plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of goodness. In Matthew 5:9, Jesus promises that the peacemakers will be blessed. Their reward will be to see right relationships between God and people. (For more on sowing wisdom and truth and reaping righteousness see Psalm 1:3; Proverbs 11:30; Galatians 6:7-10; Philippians 1:11.)

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what i have read today?)

A mark of a wise person is they don't try to hide and disguise their own weaknesses. "Wisdom is impartial and sincere." These two words in Greek sound similar. They sound like "hypocrite" and that is where we get the word from. It means "without hypocrisy" -- straightforward, right on. In the Greek theater they often would have just a couple or three actors playing an entire play. These people would change parts. They would hold masks in front of their face. One person would have five or six different masks and parts and that person, that actor, was called a hypocrite. They have all kinds of masks.

James says if you're smart and wise, you're not phoney. You don't wear masks and try to be something you're not. I've said before, if you're perfect this is not the church for you. If you're going to wear masks this isn't the church for you. This is for real people, with real sins, real hang ups, real faults, real emotional problems, real family problems. Real wise people are honest and open. They're not phoney. They're genuine. They're real and authentic. "What you see is what you get" with a really wise person.

They don't attain or pretend perfection. If I'm wise I'm not going to disguise my weaknesses. There are so many phony relationships today. People try to be something they're not. The number one place you can see this is singles' bars. Phony relationships. Where else in our society do you offer to buy something for a total stranger? Phony! Trying to be something you're not.

Proverbs 28:13 says, "You will never succeed in life if you try to hide your sins." It's dumb to pretend that you're perfect, that you've got it all together because nobody does.
When you start telling people what your weaknesses are they're not going to be shocked because they already know. Everybody knows your weakness. You're the only one who won't admit it. We see each other's weaknesses all the time. Why do we walk around pretending that we don't know? We do. It's obvious to everybody. But we don't want to admit it.

If I'm wise I won't disguise my weaknesses. People appreciate honesty, being gut level and sharing where they are. It also helps them to be more open. They might be struggling with it too.


Finally, how do I get wisdom? How do I become one of those wise people in relationships so that I have that peace that everybody is talking about? Do I just make a New Year's Resolution -- today I'm going to be wise! No. This is the difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge comes from education. Wisdom comes from God. To get knowledge you look around. To get wisdom you look up. Knowledge comes from reason. Wisdom comes from revelation. Knowledge is something you learn. Wisdom is a gift.

James 1:5 says, "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God." Wisdom is a gift from God. I sometimes ask 50 times a day, "God, give me wisdom." I want to be wise more than anything else. If I'm loving and I'm wise, I'm going to make it in life. If you're loving and wise you're going to make it in life. "Ask of God who gives generously." He loves to give.

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Be wise.

Day #176: James 3:13-16

BACKGROUND:

The wise person demonstrates his or her understanding of Christ by the way he or she lives. Our works show where our hearts are invested (Matthew 6:19-21, 33). Do our attitudes and motives match our actions? While we may not claim to be wise, we can aim at living in wise ways—a life of steady goodness. The guidance given to us in God’s word is dependable wisdom. But as we seek to do good deeds, we must watch out for pride.

Pride is having an attitude of self-importance about the talents and abilities that God has given us and using them to set ourselves up as superior or to be divisive in our relationships with others. Wisdom, then, involves both actions and attitudes in living. A wise life will display not only goodness, but also humility.

Being bitterly jealous is misguided zeal that results in contentiousness. It is anger at the accomplishments of others. Whenever we find fault with a leader, we must ask ourselves what is motivating us to feel strongly about that person’s failure. Do we actually share the same weakness? Do we imagine ourselves doing better in that role? Or are we, in fact, simply envious of the abilities or success God has allowed him or her to have? A positive answer to any of these ought to make us very careful in how we express our criticisms.

Selfish ambition is the desire to live for one’s self and no one or nothing else, only for what a person can get out of it. In an attempt to persuade others, the person may lose his sense of reason and become fanatical. Having confidence in only his knowledge, he arrogantly lords it over others. Such a person should not brag about being wise for that is the worst kind of lie.

The source and standards of this kind of wisdom are from the world and not God. Its teachers are self-centered and shallow. This wisdom doesn’t come from faith—it is earthly and unspiritual. The term for unspiritual is used in the New Testament for the person who does not have God’s Spirit or does not accept the guidance that comes from the Spirit of God (1 Corinthians 2:14).

This person teaches only the wisdom of this life, based on human feelings and human reasoning alone. The real source of these thoughts is the Devil whose purposes are always destructive; they can produce a climate in the church, at home, and at work that damages relationships. Think of how quickly our words, language, and tone of voice can create a destructive climate.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

Every day you encounter many different kinds of people. Some are very delightful. Some are very difficult. Some of them are inspiring. Some of them are irritating, fascinating, intimidating. The fact is, a lot of the problems we have in life are because of personality conflicts. We need to learn how to be wise in the way we act toward people. James, in this passage, defines real wisdom for us. Wise up and clue into this foundational passage.

The first thing he says in v. 13, is that wisdom is a lifestyle. It has nothing to do with your intelligence. It has everything to do with your relationships and your character. "Who is wise and understanding among you. Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in humility that comes from wisdom."

It's not a matter of what you say with your lips but a matter of what you live with your life. Not a matter of your words but of your works. Not so much the diplomas on the wall, but your disposition that really shows how wise you are. How do you get along with other people? That shows how wise you really are. Wisdom is a lifestyle. Wisdom has more to do with character in relationships than it has to do with education and intelligence. Wisdom creates humility. Knowledge causes pride, but wisdom causes humility.

Lack of wisdom causes all kinds of disorder and problems, chaos and confusion. James gives us four principles to live wisely.

#1. I'M WISE I WILL NOT COMPROMISE MY INTEGRITY.

"The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure..." Pure means uncorrupted, authentic. In 1 John 3:3 this word is used to refer to Christ's character. Integrity. If I'm really genuine, if I'm wise, I'm not going to lie to you, I'm not going to cheat you, I'm not going to manipulate you, I'm not going to be deceitful. I'll be a person of integrity. Because all relationships are built on trust and respect. If you don't have honesty who's going to trust you? If you don't have honesty who's going to respect you? You have to have integrity in your life.

Proverbs 10:9 says, "The man of integrity walks securely." He's not afraid of being found out because he doesn't say one thing to one group and something else to another group. Someone said, "No man has a good enough memory to be an habitual liar." Eventually you're going to slip up. If you've got integrity you've got confidence, you walk securely in your relationships. You know you're not putting people on. If I am wise I will not compromise my integrity.

#2. IF I AM WISE I WILL NOT ANTAGONIZE YOUR ANGER.

Wise people work at maintaining harmony. They're not always looking for a fight. "Wisdom is peace loving." Have you ever met someone who is always arguing, always looking for a fight? Proverbs 20:3 says, "Any fool can start arguments. The wise thing is to stay out of them." What causes arguments? Do you know? If you're wise you know because then you can avoid them. Three things that cause arguments. If you're wise you'll avoid these:

1. Comparing. "You're just like ...", "Why can't you be like ...", "When I was your age..." You're asking for a fight. "My first husband..." 2 Corinthians 10:12 says it's unwise to compare.

2. Condemning. "It's all your fault", "You should be ashamed." You lay on the guilt. "You always", "You never", "You ought to", "You should...", "You shouldn't..." Someone said, "You can bury a marriage with a lot of little digs."

3. Contradicting. How do you like to be interrupted in the middle of a sentence? It's irritating. James says, “If you are wise you don't sweat the small stuff.” William James says, "The secret of wisdom is knowing what to overlook." Some things are just not worth the fight. Wisdom is peace loving.

If I'm smart, if I'm wise in relationships, I won't compromise my integrity and I won't antagonize your anger. Proverbs 14:29 says, "A wise man controls his temper. He knows that anger causes mistakes." How many of you have ever done something stupid in anger? Anger causes mistakes.

#3. I WON'T MINIMIZE YOUR FEELINGS.

"Wisdom is considerate" and "considerate" means "mindful of the feelings of others". There is a common mistake that if I don't feel the way you feel then your feelings must be invalid or illogical or irrational or silly. James says, “Wise people are considerate; they don't minimize other people's feelings.” If I'm wise I will not minimize your feelings. I don't have to accept them but I can understand them. Proverbs 15:4 says, "Kind words bring life, but cruel words crush your spirit." Typically when we react to people's emotions we say things that hurt. Often we belittle the feeling. We put people down, or we play psychologist. "I know why you feel that way..." We're condescending toward people. James says if I'm wise in relationships I will not minimize your feelings. I'll be considerate.

#4. IF I'M WISE I WON'T EMPHASIZE YOUR MISTAKES.

"Wisdom is full of mercy and good fruit." Do you jump on people every time they blunder, every time they make a fault and fumble it? Do you always use everybody in your family as the butt of your joke. That's dumb. Wisdom is full of mercy. I won't emphasize your mistakes. Do you ever let people go, or do you keep hounding them about their past mistakes? Do you hold them in leverage, and they never can be set free even if they have asked forgiveness? "Remember the time you did..." You're always holding on and bringing up the past for leverage. That's dumb. If I'm wise, I won't emphasize your mistake. I'll be full of mercy. I'll give you what you need, not what you deserve.

How wise are you? Where do you need wisdom? Do you need wisdom in your marriage? Do you need wisdom with your kids? Do you need wisdom at work? How to relate to people? That cantankerous person who just ticks you off... a secretary... a boss... an associate -- you don't get along with them at all. Where do you get that kind of wisdom"? It's all wrapped up in Jesus Christ. The first step is to invite Him into your life. Wisdom begins with knowing God.

Psalm 111:10 says, "Reverence for the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." It starts with salvation. Ask Him into your life. Then day-by-day you continually ask Him for wisdom and fellowship with other Christians. The Bible says, as iron sharpens iron, a wise friend sharpens anther friend. A man is wise by the company he keeps. Read God's word. All God's word has wisdom. The more you read God's word, the wiser you'll be.

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #175: James 3:11-12

BACKGROUND:

A spring cannot have both fresh and bitter water. Although different kinds of water won’t bubble from the same opening, Christians’ speech can be very inconsistent. One time we may speak in a way that honors God and another time in a way that gives Satan power to operate. We can choose how we will respond. If we do not, we give Satan an opening to control us. We should produce the kind of fruit that we’ve been created and regenerated to produce—the fruit of righteousness (James 3:18)—just as you would expect to pick olives from an olive tree. Only a renewed heart can produce pure speech. If the source of our thoughts and actions is the love of God in our lives, then we will not be able to generate the kind of negative speech that James warns us against.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

The point is, whatever is in the well comes out in the water. Whatever is in the tree, comes out in the fruit. What is the likelihood of an apple tree producing cherries? Zip! My problem is not really my tongue. My problem is my heart. What's inside is what comes out. My mouth eventually betrays what is really on the inside of me. I can fool you and pretend but eventually my tongue is going to catch me. It's going to let you know what's really inside.

Have you heard this excuse? Someone says something really mean or hurtful and they say, "I don't know what got into me. It's not like me to say that. I don't know why I said that. It's totally out of character. I didn't really mean it." James would say, “Yes, it is. It's just like you. You meant it. Quit kidding yourself. What's inside is going to come out. You don't have a spring that one minute gives salt water and the next gives fresh water. That's inconsistent. It's a natural law: what comes out of the well is what is inside of it.”

Jesus said in Matthew 12:34 "For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." Jesus explained the Freudian slip years before Freud even existed. He said what's inside of you is what's going to come out. My tongue just displays what I am. It directs where I go. It can destroy what I have. But most of all, it simply displays what I am. It reveals my character.

If you've got a problem with your tongue, it's much more serious that you think. You have a heart problem. What’s the solution?

#1. Get a new heart

You've got to get a new heart, that's the problem. Ezekiel 18:31 "Rid yourself of all the offenses you have committed and get a new heart and a new spirit!" Painting the outside of the pump doesn't make any difference if there is poison in the well. I can change the outside, I can turn over a new leaf, but what I really need is a new life. What I need is a fresh start. I need to let go of all the past and be born again and start over. I need to get a new heart.

How do I get a new heart? 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new person. The old has passed away. Behold all things have become new." New life, new heart, new spirit. When you come to Jesus Christ, He wipes out everything you've done in the past. He says You're starting over. It's like being born again. You need a new heart.

We need to pray like David prayed in Psalm 51 "Create in me a clean heart, O God" because what's in my heart is going to come out in my mouth.

#2. Ask God for help every day.

You need supernatural power to control your tongue. You can't do it on your own. Your life is a living proof of that. We cannot control it on our own. We need supernatural power so we ask God to help us. Psalm 141:3 says, "Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips." Great verse to memorize and quote every morning. "God, put a muzzle on my mouth. Guard my lips. Don't let me be critical today. Don't let me be judgmental. Don't let me say things off the cuff that I then regret." You need to ask God for help daily because you need His power in your life.

Getting into God's word is a part of asking God for help. As you ask Him for help you need to read His word. Computer statement: Garbage in, garbage out. What goes into your mind, goes into your heart, and what goes into your heart, comes out of your mouth. Fill your mind with the word of God -- with positive things, whatsoever things that are true, etc. -- think on these things.

#3. Think before you speak

Engage your mind before you put your mouth in gear. James 1:19 says, "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry." There's a designation here. They go in order. First be quick to listen and then slow to speak. If you're quick to listen you will be slow to speak. If you're slow to speak, then you will be slow to become angry. If you have a problem with anger you need to work on being quick to listen and slow to speak. The result will be you'll be slow to anger.

What does your tongue say about you? What does it reveal about you? If we were to play back a tape of every conversation you've had in this past week, what would we learn about you? God hears it all. Our tongues display who we are. What direction is your tongue leading you? Some people say, "I'm just sick all the time" or "I can never do anything", "Things are just getting tougher and tougher" -- what direction are they headed? Our tongues control the direction of our lives like a rudder, a bit.

A bit and a rudder must be under the hand of a strong arm. James is saying that the only way to get control of your tongue is let Jesus Christ have control of your heart. What's in your heart is going to come out in your mouth. You let Christ's hand be on your bit, your rudder and let Him direct your life.

Maybe you need to ask forgiveness. Maybe you need to go to your kids to say, "I'm sorry. I'm inconsistent the way I talk to you. Sometimes I'm loving, sometimes I'm harsh. That shows I'm like everybody else. I'm human." We all stumble in many ways -- all of us. Maybe you need to apologize to your wife or your husband. "I'm not as loving to you in my speech as I ought to be. I tend to be apathetic, cold, indifferent. I talk to you harshly. I boss everybody around. I'm inconsistent and inconsiderate." Ezekiel says, "Get rid of all your offenses you've committed and get a new heart and a new spirit."

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #174: James 3:9-10

BACKGROUND:

How strange that the tongue is able to speak praises to our Lord and Father at one time, and then it breaks out into curses against other people. We should have the same attitude of respect for fellow human beings as we have for God, because they are created in his image. Yet we have this horrible, double-sided tongue, so that blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth.

Some people think that the only restraint against foul talk, calling people names, and bad language is social disapproval. But God’s word condemns it. James says that the reason we should not curse people is because they have been made in God’s likeness. We should not use any word or name that reduces them to anything less than their full stature as God’s created beings.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

My tongue, the way I use my words displays who I really am. It reveals my real character. It tells what's really inside of me. First James points out how inconsistent we are in our speech. v. 9 "The tongue we praise our Lord and Father and with the same tongue we curse men who've been made in God's likeness. From the same mouth come praise and cursings. My brothers, this should not be." (powerful set of verses - that's why they are our memory verses this week)

We say these things out of the same mouth. We come to church on Sunday. The highest use of your mouth is to use it praising God. We sing praises to the Lord. Then we walk out, get into the car and on the way home we argue about where we're going to eat lunch. Isn't it amazing how quickly your attitude can change? In one minute you're saying, "Praise the Lord", the next you're saying, "Shut up!" The tongue is a strange contradiction. It's so inconsistent. It's amazing how quickly it can change, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

This bothers me immensely, but more important, I know it bothers God! And you know what bothers me the most? I can be like that! I think how is it possible that we can be loving to people we love -- our kids, wives, husbands -- and the next moment be harsh, cold, mean to them? How is it possible? How is it possible in one minute to be talking to my kids in gentle, loving tones and the next minute I'm being mean to them? I hurt them. I am saying things that damage their self- esteem. How is that? I grieve over that a lot. I find myself asking forgiveness a lot in my family, especially to my kids. Do you struggle with an inconsistent tongue? James says we all have it. We speak lovingly in one breath and then lash out in the next. What gives? What's the problem? Selfishness and sinfullness.

James 4:1-2 (ESV) says,“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.”

Confess your sin to God. Confess your gossip and slander and backbiting. That's the solution to your problem with your mouth. Then make a vow to the Lord to use your mouth to build and encourage others.

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #173: James 3:7-8

BACKGROUND:




Although people can tame all kinds of animals . . . no one can tame the tongue. Why? Because it is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison. The tongue is always capable of evil; it remains untamed throughout life. With our tongues we can lash out and destroy. By recognizing the tongue’s deadly capacity, we can take the first steps to keep it under control.


No person can tame the tongue, but Christ can. To do it, he goes straight for the heart (Mark 7:14-15; Psalm 51:10) and the mind (Romans 12:1-2). We should not try to control our tongues with our own strength; we should rely on the Holy Spirit. He will give us increasing power to monitor and control what we say. For when we feel offended or unjustly criticized, the Spirit will remind us of God’s love and keep us from reacting. The Holy Spirit will heal the hurt and keep us from lashing out. We can make sure we are in the Spirit’s control by incorporating Scripture into our lives and by asking the Spirit to direct our thoughts and actions each day.




SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)


Of all the animals we've tamed, no man can tame the tongue, humanly speaking. He says it's restless. That means it's always liable to break out at any moment. When Lion Country Safari was open there was a big sign as you dove in -- "Do not get out of your car. Do not roll down the window." Why? Those animals that look so tame and peaceful could rip your head off in a second. Restless, always liable to break out. You never know what your mouth is going to say.

It's like poison. The word in Greek is literally "snake venom". Just a few drops can kill. You can assassinate somebody with your words. Assassinate their character. The tongue is a deadly weapon. What's the answer? Read the verse below;

"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."
Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)


The key to using your tongue in the proper way is to understand it is God's will for us to build others up - not tear them down. We have the choice. We can build others by encouraging them, lifting them, re-directing them, giving them a vision for their lives they currently do not have OR, we can tear them down by gossiping about them, shunning them, nitpicking their faults.

You get to choose how you will use the one and only tongue God has given you - choose wisely. And while we are free to choose how we will use our speech, we are not free to control the consequence. I know of a man who likes to ask forgiveness of others he has slandered and spoken ill of to others. That's great, but once your words leave your mouth, they take o a life of their own. You cease to have control of them. My point? James 1:19 -"Be quick to listen and slow to speak..."

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #172: James 3:2-6

BACKGROUND:

We all make many mistakes or slip up when we are off guard. We all stumble, but our most frequent failures occur when we are speaking. Because we are prone to make mistakes in our speech, we need to be even more careful to let God control what we say.

Many people may think that it is impossible to control their tongues, but most people haven’t even begun to try. The ability to control the tongue is the mark of true maturity for the Christian. When Jesus confronted the religious leaders about their accusations against him, he said that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks—showing that what is inside of a person affects what they do with their speech (Matthew 12:33-37).

He also said that we must give account for every careless word we utter (Matthew 12:36). People who can control their tongues will be able to control themselves in every other way. The wisdom and love from God and the self-restraint given by the Holy Spirit will help us exercise this control. (Proverbs 15:1-4)

Bit . . . Rudder . . . Tongue . . . Spark. What do these things have in common? They are all small but very effective controllers—they each direct something much larger than themselves. James is building a case for the damaging power of our words. We see this evidenced in history when dictators such as Adolph Hitler, the Ayatollah Khomeini, Joseph Stalin, and Saddam Hussein used their words to mobilize people to destroy others. We see it evidenced in church splits and in the ruining of a pastor’s reputation. And we see how verbal abuse in the home can destroy the very personhood and character of spouses and children.

Satan uses the tongue to divide people and pit them against one another. Idle words are damaging because they quickly spread destruction. We dare not be careless with our words, thinking that we can apologize later, because even when we do, the damage remains. A few words spoken in anger can destroy a relationship that took years to build. Remember that words are like fire; they can neither control nor reverse the damage they do.

The tongue is full of wickedness because of the damage it can cause in the world and bring to the rest of the Christian community. The uncontrolled tongue can turn one’s life into a blazing flame of destruction. This means that the tongue can destroy all the good that we’ve built up over a lifetime. While we have ministered for years and years and seen abundant fruit, if we fail to control the tongue, we can undo all the good we have built up in our years of ministry. Our speech has a power that few other capabilities possess, for our tongue can be set on fire by hell itself.

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)

The average American has 30 conversations a day and you'll spend 1/5 of your life talking. In one year your conversations will fill 66 books of 800 pages a book. If you're a man you speak an average of 20,000 words a day. If you're a woman you speak 30,000 words a day. (Like the guy who was asked, "Do you resent that your wife has the last word?" He replied, "No, I'm just glad when she finally gets to it!"

Some of us are born with a silver foot in our mouths. We have this natural ability to say the wrong thing at the wrong time. Nothing is opened more wrongly at the wrong time than our mouths. (Like the stock boy at the grocery store. Lady asked him, "Can I buy half a head of lettuce?" He walked back to the manager to ask, not realizing she was walking right behind him. He said, "You're not going to believe this, there's an old bag out there who wants to buy half a head of lettuce." He turned around and saw her standing there and said, "And this fine lady would like to buy the other half.")

Our mouths get us into a lot of trouble. James talks more about the tongue than anybody else in the New Testament. Every chapter in the book of James says something about managing your mouth. "We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check." James says, if you can control your mouth, you're perfect. He's not talking about sinless.

The word "perfection" in Greek literally means "mature, healthy". When you go to the doctor and say, “I'm not feeling well,” the first thing he says is, "Stick out your tongue." Your tongue reveals what's going on inside of you, not just physically but spiritually. James says that you've got to learn to manage your mouth. You've got to learn to tame your tongue. You've got to get your tongue under control.

WHY MUST I WATCH WHAT I SAY?

"Why must I do that? It's only words; I'm just kidding." “Words are significant”, says James. Two reasons we have to learn to manage our mouth from verses 2-6.

#1. MY TONGUE DIRECTS WHERE I GO

It has tremendous influence and control over my life. Where are you headed in life? Where are you going to be ten years from now? Look at your conversation. What do you like to talk about? What do you talk about the most? We shape our words and then our words shape us. James says, “The tongue is small, it's tiny”. And because it's tiny we think it's insignificant. But it has tremendous power. v. 3 Consider a bit in a horse's mouth. You've got a huge stallion, 2,000-3,000 pounds, and a 95 pound jockey on his back. The jockey can control the tremendous mighty horse by a little piece of metal stuck strategically over his tongue. Likewise your tongue controls the direction of your life wherever you want to go, and a little bit of a word or a phrase can influence the total direction of your life.

Then he says, “Consider a ship”. The Queen Mary has 3 acres of recreational space. The anchor is equal to the weight of ten cars. Yet a relatively small rudder directs the huge oceanliner out in the middle of the waves and winds and seas. A little rudder keeps it on course. Our tongue is like that. Our tongue is like a rudder that steers us. Ships: "... they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go." My tongue directs where I go. Your tongue is the steering wheel of your life. It is the guidance system. If you don't like the way you're headed right now, change the way you talk.

#2. MY TONGUE CAN DESTROY WHAT I HAVE

In v. 5 James gives another illustration. Imagine a beautiful forest -- tall beautiful trees everywhere. Now imagine it in one minute up in smoke, completely destroyed instantly with a little tiny match. It only takes a spark to get a fire going. In 1983 in Australia, one fire overnight destroyed 600 miles of land, villages, livestock. All from a single match. James says that your tongue can destroy like that. You can lose it all. A careless camper can destroy an entire national forest overnight. A careless word can destroy a life overnight. Thousands of lives. Gossip is like fire. It spreads quickly and it wrecks havoc. I wonder how many people because of a careless word have destroyed their marriage, or their career, or their reputation, or the reputation of another, or their church, or a friendship. The tongue not only has the power to direct where you go but also to destroy what you have if you don't learn to control it. It's like a fire.

Have you ever met a verbal arsonist? Their words are always inflammatory. James says that words, like a fire, can burn people. Proverbs 18:20 (GN) says, "You have to live with the consequences of everything you say."

vs. 6 "... it sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell." He's saying here that words can create a chain reaction. You can say something that you didn't mean to have any harm, but it can have devastating effects that are beyond your control. Just a few inflammatory statements set off a chain of events that we now look back on and call World War II. On a more personal level, you come home from work and you're tired and grumpy and cranky. The husband walks in and yells at the wife. The wife yells at the oldest kid. The oldest kid yells at the baby sister. The baby sister goes out and kicks the dog. The dog goes and bites the cat. The cat comes in and scratches the baby. The baby bites the head off the Barbie doll. Wouldn't it be a whole lot simpler if the husband just bit off the head of the Barbie doll himself? Chain reaction, the course of hell.

"Set on fire by hell" itself. A couple comes in for marriage counseling. "I said this and then she said that, then I said this..." Then what happened? "All hell broke loose". Our words can cause "all hell to break loose." James says you've got to learn to manage your mouth, not only because it can direct where you go but it can destroy what you have. You can loose your family, your kids, your career simply by what you say. It's like a fire.

Proverbs 21:23 says, "If you want to stay out of trouble be careful what you say!"

Ask God for help this morning in this area of life. Read Ephesians 4:29.

I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.

Day #171: James 3:1

BACKGROUND:

In the early church, teachers were very important. Both the survival and spiritual depth of believers depended on them. In the church at Antioch, they were ranked in status with the prophets who sent out Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:1). Teachers were the point of contact for all new believers because converts needed instruction in the facts of the gospel, and teachers would build them up in the faith. The problem, however, was that some teachers had the ability to communicate but were driven by very worldly motivations. They would take leading positions in a church, form cliques, and use their teaching positions to criticize others. In this way, they could maintain their position and importance.

In this chapter, James’s immediate concern is with the speech of false teachers who are ruining believers with their uncontrolled tongues. From that immediate concern he launches into the wider area of the use of speech among believers.

James taught that people should not rush to become teachers in the church. Many of his status-conscious readers would have desired the reputable position of teachers in the community. Coming hard on the heels of James chapter 2, one of the most honorable “works” that would immediately come to the Jewish mind would be the position of teaching. James has in mind a greater emphasis on spiritual growth and self-control before someone assumed the role of a teacher. Teachers will be judged by God with greater strictness. Teaching authority carries with it greater responsibility. As works reveal the depths of a person’s faith, so words show the depth of a person’s maturity. The teacher is held to greater accountability because of his or her key teaching role (Luke 12:42-48).

SO WHAT? (what will I do with what i have read today?)

I don't know about you, but everytime I read James 3:1, it sobers me up. It scares me. It reminds me of the high expectation God has for leaders in the church. So today, I’d like to talk with you about six essential vows for spiritual leadership. These are non-negotiables that I believe you will have to commit to if you’re going to be the kind of leader God wants you to be.

Leaders are always defined by the standards they set for themselves. Not standards set by other people, but self-imposed standards. Great leaders always expect more from themselves than they do from their followers and they willingly put forth more effort. That’s a quality of leadership.

If you were to take the phrase “make every effort” and look it up in the New Testament, you would find that phrase is used six different times. When you look at those six usages of that phrase in the New Testament, you’ll find what I call the six vows for spiritual leadership.

First let’s look at the six occurrences of the phrase “make every effort” in the New Testament then we’ll go back through them and examine what implications they have toward being a spiritual leader.

2 Peter 3:14 - “Make every effort to become spotless, blameless and at peace with Him.”

Hebrews 12:15 - “Make every effort to live at peace with all men. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”

Hebrews 4:11 - “Anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work just as God did. Let us therefore make every effort to enter God’s rest.”

Romans 14:19 - “Let us make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”

Ephesians 4:3 - “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”

2 Peter 1:5-8 - “Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; to goodness, knowledge; to knowledge, self control; to self control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive.”

I believe if you will take these six “make every effort” statements and make them personal vows in your life, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive. You will find that these qualities will increase your effectiveness as a leader.


#1. AS A LEADER I VOW TO MAINTAIN MY INTEGRITY

The bottom line, the foundation, of all leadership is integrity. 2 Peter 3:14 says, “Make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with Him.” What does it mean to be spotless and blameless? Does it mean to be perfect? Of course not. Because none of us are perfect. But it does mean to have integrity. How do you maintain integrity if you’re not perfect? By being transparent. By being authentic. By being real and vulnerable. By not hiding your faults. Those who hide their faults, the Bible says, will fail; but those who confess them and forsake them get a second chance. (Proverbs 28:13)

Having integrity also means living what you say you believe. You walk the talk. You don’t just teach it but you model it. And you believe it and behave it. Integrity means telling the truth. Did you know that there is only one letter difference between “truth” and “trust” because those two really do go together? All leadership is built on trust. And trust comes from having the reputation for telling the truth. It comes from consistently telling the truth even when it’s difficult. If you’re going to be a leader, you’ve got to have people trust you. And if you’re going to have people trust you, you must always tell the truth.

That also means that as a leader, having integrity means keeping your promises. You don’t say one thing and then do another. This way you’re able to maintain a clear conscious. When people know that you are a truth teller they then can trust you.

#2. AS A LEADER I VOW TO FORGIVE THOSE WHO HURT ME.

Hebrews 12:15 says, “Make every effort to live in peace with all men. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up.” Why? Because it “…causes trouble and defiles many.” The fact is you will be hurt in ministry. It’s a given. You will be hurt intentionally and you will be hurt unintentionally. You will be hurt by those that recognize that they’re doing it to you and by those who don’t recognize it. You cannot be in ministry and you cannot be a leader without being hurt. If you call the shots you’re going to take the shots. Pioneers always get the arrows. Once you put out your shingle, somebody’s going to start throwing rocks at it.

One of the most deadly diseases for leaders, then, is bitterness. Because if you allow bitterness to grow up in your life it will choke your heart for God, it will choke the spirituality and your love for people until your heart just shrivels.

As a leader, if you don’t make this vow, when you are misunderstood or when you are maligned or when you are criticized unjustly you’re going to be tempted to retaliate and you probably will. But you cannot get away with that and still be a leader. Spiritual leadership requires forgiveness.

Jesus was a perfect leader and yet He was betrayed. Judas betrayed Him and hurt Him. And Jesus was hurt by the other disciples as well. If you were even a perfect leader, you would still be hurt by others. It’s not always your fault. But it is your fault if you carry bitterness in your heart. That keeps you from being what God wants you to be.

Probably the greatest example of this in the Old Testament is Moses. Moses had to put up with two million crying babies for forty years. Although he had saved them from four hundred years of bondage, although he provided for them the way God told him to provide for them all the time, the people criticized him. He was constantly maligned. They rebelled at him. They wanted to overthrow him several times. Yet Moses refused to have a bitter spirit. There are only two people in the Bible who are called “meek” – Jesus and Moses. He learned how to handle criticism.

Why do people hurt leaders? There are many different reasons. Sometimes they do it simply out of jealousy. Sometimes they do it to get attention for themselves. Sometimes they’re taking up an offense for someone else they think was hurt. One of the most common problems in churches today is people getting upset on behalf of others. But really one of the main reasons is we all just have a rebellious nature. We have a problem with authority. We don’t like to be told what to do.

As a leader, you must be able to absorb the hurts of other people without having to give an explanation every time people disagree with you. Why should I forgive others? It says make every effort to live in peace with all men and don’t allow any bitter root to grow up. Why should I forgive those people who hurt me? It’s healing. And because God’s forgiven us. The Bible says so.


#3. AS A LEADER I WILL RELAX AND TRUST GOD.

Hebrews 4:11 says, “Anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His. Let us therefore make every effort to enter into God’s rest.” If you’re going to be in ministry, you’ve got to learn relaxed concern. That is, you must be concerned about the needs of all the people around you, but remember you’re not God. So you cannot bear everybody’s burden all the time.

What are some ways that I can relax and trust God more? In your ministry, how could you relax more and trust God more?

Do you think praying more would be helpful. If we prayed more instead of worry we’d have a lot less to worry about. Just realize that God is in control. He’s in control of your ministry and it’s ultimately His responsibility to make the ministry grow that you’re in. You’re to be faithful. You’re to do all you can but it’s God’s ministry. So you relax and let God be God and don’t get in such a hurry to push it.

Other ways: a quiet time; not talk so much about the problem; turn it over to God and not take it back; meditate on His promises; look at God’s track record. In 2 Chronicles 20 when Jehosophat was facing three enemy nations and they were about to be killed, Jehosophat prays a famous prayer. In that prayer he asks three questions that caused him to relax and trust God: “God, are You not… did You not…. Will You not...” First, “Are You not…?” He reminds himself of who God is. “Aren’t You the God who’s taking care of everybody? Aren’t You in control? Don’t You have the power to do anything You want to do?” He reminds himself of who God is.

Second, he reminds himself of what God has done. “Did You not take care of Moses in the past? Did You not…?” Then he says, “Will You not do it again?” God does have a pretty good track record of taking care of us and working things out in His timing.

Other ways: Keep in God’s word. Give others responsibility. Share the load. As a leader in the ministry, don't make all the mistakes yourself, share them around. Don’t feel like you have to do them all yourself. I always tell pastors, at pastors conference, “Don’t make all the mistakes yourself. Let the lay people make some of them.” You learn to minister effectively by making mistakes. That’s how other people do too.

#4. AS A LEADER I WILL BE AN ENCOURAGER.

Romans 14:19 says, “Let us make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.” Edification is a simple word that means “to build up”. An edifice is a building. The point here is that leaders build people up rather than tearing them down. If I’m going to be a leader, I’m going to be a builder upper of people not a tearer downer of people! I’m going to be an encourager not a discourager.

What are some ways that we as leaders can build up people?

Be sensitive to their needs; see their positive side; spend time one-on-one; give them praise; include them in all that’s going on; give them responsibility. People respond to responsibility. But if you treat people like babies, you’ll have to diaper them the rest of your life. In your ministry, let people share. Share the credit, the control, the creativity. Involve other people. Listen to people. When you’re listening, you’re loving. You’re loving people with your ears every time you listen to somebody. It says, “You matter and I’m paying attention to you. I value what you have to say.” Listening is a ministry.

How about being optimistic about their potential? Look beyond the problems and look at their potential. Every human being is a bundle of problems and potential. So it’s what you choose to look on. “Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God.” People tend to live up to our expectations. When you expect them to do good, they do. We tend to live up to the expectations of others. Focus on their potential, not just their problems.

I believe that Christian leaders, you, are dispensers of hope. That’s what it means to be a Christian leader. You’re a dispenser of hope. You bring hope into a hopeless situation. You help people who seem to be helpless. You say, “You can do it.” If God’s for us who can be against us? We value that positive enthusiasm.


#5. AS A LEADER I WILL BE A PEACEMAKER.

Ephesians 4:3 says, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” One of the things leaders are called to do is make every effort to reduce conflict. We are in a society and in a world that is filled with conflict. Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” How do you do that? How can you make peace. As a leader, how can I be a peacemaker at Church of the Valley?

Put others before yourself. Stop gossiping! How do you stop gossips? One, you just don’t pass it on. Two, you challenge it when you hear it. You call it for what it is. Somebody starts in and you say, “Isn’t that gossip?” That will cut it quick. Nobody likes to be caught at gossiping. And just being a non-gossiper and pointing it out when it is gossip is being a peacemaker.

One of the things you have to do as a leader, if you’re going to be a leader, is you must learn to tolerate diversity. Not everybody is like you and you have to tolerate different personalities in your ministry and recognize that people who have a different personality than you can still make a contribution to the ministry.

As a peacemaker you want to give three things to people. Triple A treatment: Attention, Affirmation, Appreciation. You want to give everybody Attention. We want to give everybody Affirmation. We want to give everybody Appreciation. If you do that in your ministry, it will explode with growth. People are hungry for attention, affirmation and appreciation. The ministry leader who involves people in a ministry and then gives attention, appreciation and affirmation will not have any problem with the ministry being done.

God can overlook lack of programs, a financial tightness, recession. He can overlook a lack of ability. But one thing God will not overlook in a church is He does not bless the church that is divided. So one of the key jobs of leadership is to promote the unity of the church. Ten times in the first five chapters of Acts it says “they were in one accord… they were in one place … they were all together… they were of one heart…” When you have the unity of Acts, you have the power of Acts. The Bible teaches very clearly that anything that causes disunity is disruptive and destroys the fellowship and it should not be tolerated. We’re to be peacemakers.


#6. AS A LEADER I WILL NEVER STOP GROWING.

Notice he gives all these character qualities because character is the bottom line. Add to your faith. That means keep going. Goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. Learning is to be the lifestyle of leadership. The moment you think you’ve got it all, that you know it all, you’re dead in the water. You must never stop growing. Growing ministries require growing leadership. So we train people constantly.

What are some ways that I can grow as a leader?

Try new things. If it doesn’t work, just call it an experiment. If it does work, call yourself a genius. Try new things, that’s one way to grow. Stretch yourself. Don't accept the seven last words of the church – “We’ve always done it that way.”

Get new people. Involve others. Listen to new people. Get ideas from other people. Never think that you’ve got it all. Often your best ideas for ministry will come from somebody who has no relationship to your ministry. They just get an idea and suggest it. Creativity is the ability to take ideas from many diverse sources and see how they relate to what your project is.

Bible study. Don’t get comfortable. The Bible says, “Woe to them who are at ease in Zion.” Don’t get comfortable. People say, “Right now I’m just in a mellow stage.” You look up “mellow” in the dictionary. Mellow is the stage fruit has right before it goes rotten. You don’t want to be mellow. Tomorrow you’ll be rotten.

Have mentors. Get a discipler. Timothy had his Paul. Elisha had Elijah. The twelve disciples had Jesus. Solomon had David. You get somebody who’s older in the Christian faith and get them to be a mentor to keep you growing, to keep you stimulated. Everybody needs a mentor and a model. Mentors can give you advice. Models can show you how to do it.

Finally, Proverbs 19:8 - “He who loves wisdom loves his own best interest and will be a success.” If you love learning, you love wisdom, you love to keep growing you will be a success.

This is the cost of leadership. I love you guys. Stay faithful. Stay the course.