relational accountants

Whoever covers an offense seeks love,

but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.

Proverbs 17:9

Here is a warning as to the dangers of using offenses as a way to leverage control of relationships. I believe that most human beings are all pretty good relational accountants. We keep mental and emotional books on people that we perceive as hurtful to us. And we also keep records on the people we feel we “owe” in some way... or people with whom we want to buy favor. And great relational damage gets done when we “collect” on an offensive debt by bad-mouthing to others someone we believe has hurt us. We do great injustices in this way.

This is why gossip, slander, and reputation-bashing are all sins from which Christians must repent. And we must guard our motives. Sharing an offense thinly disguised as a “prayer concern” only makes us more guilty of separating and fracturing relationships. We must repent of our book-keeping ways!

This proverb encourages a better way for us: overlook an offense... seek to forgive an office through loving, biblical reconciliation. Love is the motive behind forgiveness. Selfishness is the heart behind gossip. How we need, as Christians, to model the forgiving reconciliation of Jesus! When we do so, we fulfill His command to love our brothers and sisters as Jesus Himself loves us!

dealing with dividers

As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.

Titus 3:10-11

Christ’s church is not to be a place of divisive quarrel and constant agitation. Divisive people who will not repent of their selfish and petty arguments are not to be allowed to disrupt the unity of the Body. Paul places divisiveness on the list of sins for which loving confrontation and church discipline must be practiced. A divisive individual is lovingly admonished, first by one, then by a group of concerned believers seeking to restore the person. If they remain divisive, they are disfellowshipped in their lack of repentance.

What constitutes this divisive sin? Paul tells Titus such a person “stirs up division”. They appear to delight in getting to “stir the stick”, in trolling other believers to get a negative reaction, in creating fights among believers in churches. This can be over doctrinal or practical issues. The sad results of such divisiveness is that these troublemaking people create even more people who become divisive, and the church boils with controversy if it is allowed to continue uncorrected. And a church full of bitter, fighting, divisive people is not a taste of heaven on earth making the gospel message appealing. It is quite the opposite, a caldron of hellfire for any who will not take sides in the divisions.

The counterbalance to this scenario is found in Titus 3:8 — Christians doing good work in the world that is excellent and profitable to the good of the gospel and the people who know them. Divisions are just the opposite of this desired impact. No wonder Jesus prayed that unity would mark the gathered experiences of His disciples (see John 17:11). Jesus brings people together. The devil divides.

most valuable

How much better to get wisdom than gold!

To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

Proverbs 16:16

I need wisdom all day long. It is more important than any possession, any goal, and any other activity. I need God to inform my thoughts, my attitudes, my choices, and my actions with the wisdom of His Word because I do really dumb things when I don’t care about His wisdom. I am convinced that the most important time of my day is right now... with open Bible, journal, and pen in hand... I start thinking hard about what God says in the Bible and why it is important for me to believe it. The value of this to my life is priceless!

I would not even begin to call myself wise, but I do treasure the wisdom in scripture. I do not understand many things, but through faith in Christ and the confidence found in God’s Word, I will trust what God says even when life has me totally perplexed! And that encourages faith for times when I do not understand what God is doing. Faith is a kind of understanding beyond my own understanding. And it too is priceless to me.

Lord,

Your wisdom is the most valuable asset of any life. And however it works out, I would pray that I end up always valuing understanding and wisdom as the eternal riches I have through Christ Jesus. May Your grace through Your gospel, Your wisdom in Your Word, Your understanding by faith, always be with me!

Amen

A prayer to be thoughtful

The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer,

but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.

Proverbs 15:28

Taking the time

     to seek God’s wisdom

will bring me to

     His home and kingdom

Thinking it over

     by looking to God’s Word

will help me say

     what should always be heard

I have no answers

     coming from my own head

so I must ponder

     what Jesus has said

My first inclinations

     tend to be sinful 

but thoughtful reflection and prayer

     will deliver me from evil

Life moves so fast

     that it’s hard to truly ponder

yet I must take time

     so my feet will not wonder

Give me a heart, Lord

     that seeks You each day

so I will dwell in Your truth

     and live in Your way!

older

Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness.

Titus 2:2

From what I can tell, this verse now applies to me in my season of life. This is the standard Christ expects of me within His church. In my own church, I am an “older man”. I have adult kids. I have a mature marriage that has/is weathering life for the long haul. I am blessed to have been well discipled from my youth up, to have had lots of other men and women over my lifetime invest in me as we have invested together in helping people love and follow Jesus. I will turn 56 in about 5 weeks. And my goal in ministry is to develop new, younger leaders.

But my character expectations need to align with what Paul describes here. My reputation needs to be serious, regarded with respect, a man who is not controlled by bad or sinful impulses, possessing solid theology in what I believe. I need to be a man known for his love, for his faith, and for his passionate stability. All those character qualities challenge me to keep following Jesus, keep repenting of my sin, keep at the intake of scripture, and keep at growth in the gospel.

Lord,

I thank You for this season in my life where I need You so that I might be the kind of older man in whom You can be seen. I need Your grace and redemption. There is lots in me that should NOT be seen! Help me make You known in all You are doing in me.

Amen

the neediest neighbor

Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker,

but he who is generous to the needy honors him.

Proverbs 14:31

My faith and theology are made quite evident in how I treat the neediest people. It is so easy to dismiss the man at the busy intersection with a cardboard sign as just another con artist. Some might be. Most are not. All are sinners in need of a Savior. The truth is there is a story... a very human story... a very God-written story... in the life of every person on the planet. To dismiss a poor person as a lazy beggar is to ultimately insult the God Who made the person and is writing their story. To ignore need is to ignore God. To turn away in disgust is to functionally believe that God messed up with His creation.

If I want to honor God, I will seek to care for those God has made. I will love the people for whom Christ died. I will honor God by helping those God may put in front of me, and though I cannot eliminate all poverty, I CAN care for the people God has created for His glory. I can care and honor God by doing so.

It is impossible for me to lift every person from a street corner by providing all they need. It is not impossible for God. My care can be used by God Who is always seeking to restore such souls. And if more Christians would care in such a way, a huge difference can be made. If we met needs and shared the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection and new life, we can help rewrite stories! God will be honored and God will bless those who truly honor Him by caring for and loving their neighbors... especially their neediest neighbors.

unceasing need for mercy

And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Luke 18:38-39

When this blind man knew that Jesus was near, he could not be stopped from crying out for Jesus to have mercy upon him and heal him. He wanted his sight restored. He believed Jesus alone could make him see. He knew Jesus was near. He would not let the cruel and uncaring crowd silence him. He begged for Jesus to show mercy and heal him. His incessant cries broke through the din of the crowd until Jesus Himself approached him, spoke with him, heard his cry for help, and mercifully gave him back his sight.

How like this blind man is every sinful soul. My soul in its natural state is as desperate as this. I need Jesus. I needed the mercy of Jesus to give me back my sight and my life. And when by faith I cried out to Him in desperate belief in the gospel, Jesus heard me, healed me, and saved me! I was that blind beggar. And in my struggles I always need my merciful Savior as my only hope.

Sin is a blinding peril. And though my world seeks to deceive those blinded by sin and self, to dissuade them to stay blind and not seek sight, the gospel speaks better to those who truly hear it. Sin is not who anyone is. It isn’t an identity or a lifestyle. It is an affront to a holy God. It is a cruel, crippling condition and a merciless master. But Jesus alone breaks that power! He sets us free! He gives sight again. Jesus has mercy!

disaster recovery

Disaster pursues sinners,

but the righteous are rewarded with good.

Proverbs 13:21

Keep the end in view. Proverbs reminds us of this simple faith fortifier all the time. Sin leads to a ruinous end for all who are selfishly deceived in it. Obeying God and seeking His righteousness is rewarded now and forever. Even though sin may seem alluring and carefree, it ends badly. And that warning should compel us to seek righteousness that only God can give us.

I wish to be led by the Spirit of God, through the wisdom of the Word of God, by faith in the completed sacrifice of the Son of God to a life fulfilling the purposes of God until I enter eternity into the home of God. Because Jesus died and rose again, I can by faith find my sins forgiven and be rewarded with His righteousness. And in following Jesus I will find good reward in my life now and for my future. Disaster overtakes sinners, but grace carries forgiven saints along in a flow of merciful care from the hand of God!

Lord,

Carry me along in Your mercy and grace. I am safe in Jesus. I am forgiven. I am declared righteous. I am clothed in Christ’s righteousness. I am a child of God in the care of my loving Savior! Forgive me when I doubt this and try to earn what You have given at great cost. May I always be grateful for Your great and free gifts that come by faith.

Amen

from bad to worse

Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

2 Timothy 3:12-13

The Christian life is not a “safe place” in the world. Jesus promised His disciples that the world would hate them because it hates Him (John 15:18). Paul taught young churches that Christians enter the kingdom of God through “many tribulations” (Acts 14:22). It isn’t easy being a follower of Jesus. It IS however filled with joy. It IS very rewarding. But we are carrying a cross... the means of our public humiliation, ridicule, and execution. And we should not expect for Christian influence to ever get easier.

Paul warned Timothy that the path for society is that all cultures will trend from bad to worse. It isn’t going to get any easier. We won’t suffer less. As society marches fiendishly forward in a headlong rush to hell, Christians will need to stay true, at the cost of increasing persecution. And we will have to fight deceptions that infiltrate the church. There will be evil people in society with influence and leadership. There will be imposters even within the church... deceiving and being deceived.

There is a prescribed path that withstands this decay. It means two commitments rule us: 1) Stay faithful to the good faith we learned from God’s Word and those who mentored us in it’s truth (2 Timothy 3:14-15). 2) Proclaim it and equip other disciples through the Word so that they may do good works in an evil age (2 Timothy 3:16-17). The sacred writings are our only sure source as things go from bad to worse. God’s truth will hold our hearts and lives steady as we see all around us people giving in to deceptions that destroy and sadly compel some to defect.

persist in prayer

And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.

Luke 18:1

Some of the most difficult work in spiritual growth and maturity is found in prayer. Jesus told the parable of the persistent widow to remind us that prayer must be constant. We must keep at it just as the widow refused to stop bringing her injustice before the judge who was reluctant to move her up the docket. Her constant requests eventually got her hearing. So we must often keep praying and asking God for the same things over and over... day after day... sometimes year after long hard year.

It isn’t because God is distracted or unconcerned that we pray so persistently and wait so long. The reasons why we must not lose heart in prayer are many. Here are just three that come to mind from my experience:

1) We battle sin in our own hearts and easily succumb to giving up. We must constantly fight the battle to stay at prayer with persistence.

2) We live in a complex world of sinners whose sinful choices and actions complicate relationships and life situations. It is easy for us to give up because the matter seems insurmountable for which we need to be praying.

3) We are bound by time and feel the urgency of ticking clocks in our mortality. And God is living from the perspective of eternity. We give up praying sometimes because we cannot adjust to God’s cosmic scale of good work that He is bringing about all things for our good and His glory.

Lord,

I want to be persistent in faithful prayer. There are situations I’ve been praying for that are ongoing... for years... with nothing seeming to change. I confess I get disheartened by these expectations too easily! Forgive my lack of faith and persistence! I will take Your courage to not lose heart in mind as I pray. Help me to persist in prayer.

Amen

God ordained work

Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread,

but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense.

Proverbs 12:11

God has created the means for people to provide for themselves. It’s called “hard work.” Those who do so for the glory of God, who apply themselves to what God provides as labor for an honest living have their needs supplied. It’s great to work. Work has always been God’s design for us. Work is what God did when He created the universe. God worked, He enjoyed the goodness of His work, then he rested from it. And He created Adam and Even to work the garden that God himself had planted. Work isn’t a curse... it is a blessing.

But temptations abound for an “easier way”. Those are all bound to be “worthless pursuits” as this proverb reminds us. We expend energy and resources that could have enhanced our work on things that distract and never truly provide. Some people do this all their lives, always shunning work for some hope for “easy money”. They are known as failures. This proverb basically says they aren’t very smart.

Work is good. Hard work is rewarding when it is accepted as God’s provision for us and done with a thankful heart for His worship. And though this life involves labor, there are cycles of sabbath for restful worship as well. God will take care of us through His means given to each of us... which is in some way “working our own land”.

no shortcuts

No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.

2 Timothy 2:4-6

Paul presses into Timothy three pictures of endurance in the face of suffering as he urges the young man to lead a church well. Timothy is to submit to His Lord Jesus like a soldier in the chain of command seeks to please and follow the orders of his commanding officer. He is to run like a trained athlete to win the race by the rules lest he be disqualified. He is to work hard, toiling consistently in the background, like a patient farmer who enjoys his harvest in due season. Single-minded submission, commitment to specific ways of service, and hard work that waits for the result are all components of ministry that is well done. 

So many church leaders want shortcuts and instant success. What else can explain the embarrassing glut of “how to” books, videos, and consultants available to pastors and church leaders? Publishing houses market strategies, programs, a stable of media star training gurus, all promising success and turnkey ministry for a price. My email box overflows with the over-hyped advertising.

Lord,

You deserve the best I can give You. There are no shortcuts for soldiers, athletes, or farmers. There are no easy street answers in the ministry of the gospel. May I submit to Your authority as I serve You alone. May I run well by Your rules to win the race. May I work hard, unseen, faithful... tilling, sowing, tending, and reaping until You bring the regular harvest.

Amen

a righteousness better than riches

Riches do not profit in the day of wrath,

but righteousness delivers from death.

Proverbs 11:4

An unfathomable wealth of righteousness has been given when Christ’s perfect holiness covered my sin. And that is what saves me from God’s wrath. I do not face hell in judgment. I am delivered by Jesus. Nothing makes eternity fearful, for Jesus is my Savior!

No amount of worldly wealth can procure this hope. No success... no acclaim... no high capacity achievement... no grappling to the top of a career pyramid. All of these are powerless to save from the perfect justice of a holy God. None can make me pure in His sight. Only the perfect righteousness of the Son of God can satisfy. Thankfully, it is freely offered in love by God to all who will turn from sin, in sorrow repent, and in grateful joy receive Christ’s forgiveness believing His death on the cross took their punishment and trusting His resurrection for new life that will last forever. In Jesus we are delivered from death!

Jesus,

I thank You for Your perfect life and Your perfect sacrifice. You died my punishing death so that I might believe and find Your righteousness delivering me on the day of wrath! That is the greatest part of my life, the richest treasure I know.

Amen

what to want

What the wicked dreads will come upon him,

but the desire of the righteous will be granted.

Proverbs 10:24

I want to want what is right. That is what it means to be a righteous man. I can do what “looks right” with totally wrong motives. I can do wrong, thinking that I have the right reasons. But if I do the right things starting with wanting the right things, the promise of this proverb can be true of me.

I want to want what is right. And the only way I know to do this is to 1) pray for God to show me what to want... 2) read His Word to find what are the right things to want... & 3) allow God’s Spirit to work in me so that I want what God wants as I am transformed. When those things happen I can enjoy the blessing that “the desire of the righteous will be granted.”

Lord,

Help me to sort through the competing desires of my heart. By wearing “gospel glasses” help me see what I want that isn’t what You want. I pray that Your Spirit will nudge me to repent of selfish, sinful, or lazy wants. And I ask for wisdom from scripture to direct my desires to be righteous.

Amen

We are all wealth managers.

They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

1 Timothy 6:18-19

Wealthy people and wealthy nations have a chance to do some of the most God-honoring, kingdom-expanding good things in this world. If (and this is a BIG “IF”) they will take a perspective on their resources that is eternal. Timothy again is given instruction by Paul to teach wealthy people well, and it seems the church in Ephesus had the means to share resources for the advance of the gospel. They were were a well-to-do congregation.

The eternal perspective that we should have about our stuff is five-fold: 1) We must see all the money and resources we have as the means to do what pleases God. That is why they were given to us. Any American above the poverty line is blessed to do this. 2) We must convert assets to good works. Money will burn come Judgment Day... but good works will go into eternity. 3) We must be generous. Don’t hold back! Bless others by giving abundantly, joyfully, with grace... not begrudgingly with a mere pittance. 4) We must be ready to give. This involves planning and strategy as well as having a means to be spontaneous. Without the plans, the tendency is to sinfully hoard or selfishly squander. 5) We must invest in eternity where the joyful interest earned compounds forever. We must see that as the goal of our life investment. We will find true life in this life and beyond when our viewpoint extends into eternity.

Don’t take the bait.

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

1 Timothy 6:10

The warning here is clear: Chasing after wealth because the stuff of this world is your first and highest love will ultimately lure you to pain and heartache. The love of money grows all sorts of bad things from its greedy root. It can lead us away from the truth and ultimately lead us to experience great pain.

It is not wrong to make money or to have resources. It is very wrong to love money like you should love Jesus! This is the problem. It becomes the worship of wealth. Prosperity is an idol and net worth is viewed as the god that provides. And in my experience many poor people bitterly buy into this thinking. It keeps casinos full and lotteries brimming with high jackpots. The painful sting of “One day I will hit it big” is never rewarded as daily bread dollars are wasted on the false promise of a wealth that never arrives.

The image of being pierced with pain is vivid... like a fish that swallowed the hook with the bait, the love of money painfully controls the person deceived by it until it is too late. The warning is not to fall for this deceit. Kingdom mindsets see our resources as a means to expanding gospel good news and faithful good works in the world. That will save us from craving wealth, loving money, and getting hooked by the false lure of easy living by wealth.

got wisdom?

Take my instruction instead of silver,

and knowledge rather than choice gold,

for wisdom is better than jewels,

and all that you may desire cannot compare with her.

Proverbs 8:10-11

Lord,

I want to learn from You. Your Word speaks wisdom to me if I will only apply myself to the pages and let Your Holy Spirit push the truth deep into me heart. I have been greatly kept from much pain by following the knowledge You have given in scripture. But I have also stumbled along the way when I did not value Your wisdom.

And I’ve seen a lot in this life. I have helped others by Your grace leading me. I have seen how Your gospel wisdom saves and redeems broken lives. I have seen how Your Word has given direction in confusion. I have seen others heed Your Word and turn from sin to find mercy and new life. It is a joy not just for me to follow Your wisdom, but to be used by You to help others do so as well. Your wisdom does amazing things to those who will treasure it.

And so this morning I commit to only one supreme value: Your Word’s instruction, knowledge, and wisdom as the only framer of my choices and actions. Nothing else comes close in value. I will treasure You, Lord, and Your words for they are with me now and for all eternity.

Amen

Súperfan of sinners

Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

Luke 15:10

On earth a soul repents. A sinner is saved by belief in the gospel. And in the grandstands of heaven angels are in exuberant cheering! Jesus Himself leads the crowd in the glorious, thrilling wave of rejoicing. Jesus, Who died for sin, Who carried all sorrows, guilt, and pain with Him on the cross is the loudest and most expressive superfan of repentant sinners. The angels are in the presence of God, with Jesus at the Father’s right hand. And in the presence of the angels the rejoicing takes place as the Father high fives the Son when a sinner repents.

Do I share the gospel, bless my neighbors with the good news that Jesus saves sinners so that this will bring joy to God? Or instead, do I act more like the Pharisees, looking down my stinking self-righteous nose from a cloistered position of false security, afraid and judgmental of those who don’t have all their moral ducks in a row? Will I have the heart of Jesus Who will passionately seek the lost? Will I be the friend of all, no matter who they are or what they’ve done, unashamedly loving them by telling them about Jesus’ offer of rescue for them?

The gospel calls me to be like Jesus. The Savior will go after the lost sheep with purpose. He will sweep the house to find  the lost coin. He will run to embrace the returning prodigal. Jesus loves sinners... sinners who are just like me... and so should I.

unfit?

“Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is of no use either for the soil or for the manure pile. It is thrown away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

Luke 14:34-25

If the disciple will not meet the conditions for discipleship he is unfit. And in so many words: “He ain’t worth _____.” Just as the mined salt around the Dead Sea had to be processed to remove the minerals that made it tasteless, and if processed wrongly resulted in worthless waste, so can false discipleship be unfit. This worthless salt couldn’t be tilled back into the soil without ruining it, and it ruined compost if dumped on a manure pile. It had to be piled way in its own special kind of worthlessness.

To avoid being a sad kind of spiritually worthless heap I must: 1) Value Jesus and following Him more than any other relationship and even my own life (Luke 14:26). 2) Follow Jesus seriously with an attitude of death to my selfish desires, carrying a cross (Luke 14:27). 3) Count the cost of following Jesus, not running after Him rashly. This is a measured and deliberate choice (Luke 14:28-32). 4) Renounce all other allegiances and follow Jesus (Luke 14:33).

Lord,

I want to be good salt. I want to be useful to You. I want to maintain the salty taste of a follower of Jesus. You are my value. I die to me to live for You. I do this seriously, carefully, aware that it costs my life. I lay my desires before You to live truly in You!

Amen

rulers as God’s microphone

And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the province Beyond the River, all such as know the laws of your God. And those who do not know them, you shall teach.

Ezra 7:25

God used Artaxerxes, the pagan Persian prince, to commission Ezra to a three-fold ministry to the returning Jewish exiles in Jerusalem. First, Ezra was sent with gold and treasure from the Persian royal vault to be used in the beautification of the temple as it was being rebuilt in Jerusalem. Ezra was sent to restore the house of worship.

Secondly, Ezra was commissioned to appoint legal civil authorities in and around Jerusalem for the establishment of law and order. These would be Jews, assisting and serving justice on behalf of the Persian Empire, among their own countrymen. Ezra was entrusted with establishing righteous leadership.

And finally, since this new self-governing would require a committed and educated citizenry, the task of teaching God’s Law to all was committed to Ezra by Artaxerxes. Those who did not know God’s Word were to be taught it. Ezra was tasked with teaching the Law of God to the people of God in the land of God’s people.

That God used a pagan king to make Ezra an architect, treasurer, governing magistrate, Chief Justice, and preacher all are proof of His amazing, sovereign power. God directs kings so that His will is done. Politics are not everything. God will direct and sometimes even speak through the actions of nations. God is over human affairs. I can trust that what God is doing is His plan, no matter what political circumstances I may see on any nation on earth.

listen up

My son, be attentive to my words;

incline your ear to my sayings.

Let them not escape from your sight;

keep them within your heart.

For they are life to those who find them,

and healing to all their flesh.

Proverbs 4:20-22

Pay attention

listen well to God’s Word.

Hold on tightly

to what you have heard,

for it is wisdom

to keep your heart

following Jesus

from the start.

Look to scripture

for wisdom to instruct your mind

for in its pages

you will always find

truth for living

so that in each choice

you can confidently follow

the Savior’s voice.

Life and healing

will attend all your days

if you pay attention

to what God says.

Your soul will be healthy;

nourished strongly and well fed...

satisfied forever in

what Jesus has said.