The inspiration for this post comes from T. Austin-Sparks' Daily Open Windows (courtesy Emmanuel Church, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA), p. 134, and from my pastor, David O'Steen, who is teaching through Acts on Wednesday evenings.
"The Holy Spirit is positive, and not negative, and if the Holy Spirit is really Lord in our lives, our lives will count for something. There will be an influence from our lives which will be eternal. Thank God for the Holy Spirit! Let us be sure to ask the Lord that the anointing shall have a free way in our lives. The effect of the Holy Spirit may be to condemn some people, and it may be to redeem others, but He cannot be neutral, and if the anointing is upon you and upon me, the devil will take account of it. May the Lord help us to see that that may not be a bad thing! Do you want the devil to say: 'Oh, that man, that woman, does not matter. You need not bother about him, or her!' I had a friend once who, whenever we were parting and going our different ways, took hold of my hand and said: 'Goodbye, old man. The Lord make you a nuisance to the devil!' Well, that is how it will be if the Holy Spirit is really upon us, for that it how it was with the Lord Jesus."
[Doctrinal note: the only Pauline reference to anointing is to one that all believers received at salvation, per 2 Cor. 1:21 (note "hath anointed us...hath...given the...Spirit in our hearts"). I think that Sparks may be referring to the anointing in 1 John 2:27, which is not doctrinally aimed at the body of Christ, but rather to kingdom saints in the first century historically and to saints in the great tribulation prophetically.]
"A nuisance to the devil" reminded me of what the devil-possessed man said to the seven sons of Sceva in Acts 19:15, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?" The Lord Jesus and Paul, respectfully were nuisances to the devil:
1. The Lord Jesus "went about healing all that were oppressed of the devil" according to Peter in Acts 10:38.
2. Handkerchiefs and aprons that merely touched Paul's body were used to exorcise evil spirits in Ephesus (Acts 19:12), so I assume that many such spirits were exorcised there. Paul had also exorcised at Philippi (Acts 16:18) and likely other places.
It's not necessary, of course, to exorcise to be a nuisance to the devil. Faithfully preaching the gospel will also do it (Acts 24:5--a pestilent fellow), and also a powerful prayer life (Eph. 6:12, 18).
The Lord make YOU a nuisance to the devil!
Sunday, July 7, 2013
Friday, July 5, 2013
Who's at the Top of YOUR Prayer List?
From Christian History & Biography (CH&B), Issue 88 (Fall 2005), re: C.S. Lewis' ministry during World War II:
"But perhaps the most practical thing Lewis did in his war service was to pray for his enemies, praying every night for the people he was most tempted to hate. He told his brother in a letter that Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini were at the top of his prayer list. He wrote to another correspondent that, when he prayed for Hitler and Stalin, he tried to recollect how his own cruelty might have blossomed under different conditions into something as terrible as theirs, to remember that Christ died for them as much as for him, and that, at bottom, he himself was not "so different from these ghastly creatures."
I'm also reminded of Festo Kivengere and his remarkable book, I Love Idi Amin (1977). Kivengere, an Anglican bishop from Uganda, was expecting arrest from Amin, the African dictator routinely referred to as "Africa's Hitler," and escaped the country on foot in early 1977. Within the year he had published the book. He survived Amin's reign, and after Amin's ouster was able to return to Uganda for years of fruitful ministry. He died of cancer in 1988 (aged 69). [Source: CH&B, Issue 94, Spring 2007]
For further inspiration, read 1 Timothy 2:1-6 in the King James Bible.
"But perhaps the most practical thing Lewis did in his war service was to pray for his enemies, praying every night for the people he was most tempted to hate. He told his brother in a letter that Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini were at the top of his prayer list. He wrote to another correspondent that, when he prayed for Hitler and Stalin, he tried to recollect how his own cruelty might have blossomed under different conditions into something as terrible as theirs, to remember that Christ died for them as much as for him, and that, at bottom, he himself was not "so different from these ghastly creatures."
I'm also reminded of Festo Kivengere and his remarkable book, I Love Idi Amin (1977). Kivengere, an Anglican bishop from Uganda, was expecting arrest from Amin, the African dictator routinely referred to as "Africa's Hitler," and escaped the country on foot in early 1977. Within the year he had published the book. He survived Amin's reign, and after Amin's ouster was able to return to Uganda for years of fruitful ministry. He died of cancer in 1988 (aged 69). [Source: CH&B, Issue 94, Spring 2007]
For further inspiration, read 1 Timothy 2:1-6 in the King James Bible.
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Tertullus the Eloquent Liar vs. Paul the Plainspoken Preacher
In Acts 24 the Lord gives us a graphic contrast of speech in the orations of Tertullus and Paul before Felix, the former being recruited by the Jewish elders as a prosecutor.
One can't help but notice Tertullus' florid speech. He uses big words (seven are unique in scripture) to flatter Felix and misrepresent Paul, showing himself a liar on both accounts--albeit an eloquent one!
Paul uses plain speech to defend himself, in keeping with his statements in 1 Cor. 2:1 ("...I..came not with excellency of speech...") and 2 Cor. 3:12 ("...we use great plainness of speech"), and it truly is a "demonstration of the Spirit and of power" (1 Cor. 2:4).
Nothing wrong with eloquence, as long as it's used for the glory of God. Apollos provides a fine example of that for us in Acts 18:24-28. He's eloquent, but also a sincere truthseeker who humbly receives correction from Aquila and Priscilla.
Moral: big words are not what win the day, but a big God working through men with big hearts!
One can't help but notice Tertullus' florid speech. He uses big words (seven are unique in scripture) to flatter Felix and misrepresent Paul, showing himself a liar on both accounts--albeit an eloquent one!
Paul uses plain speech to defend himself, in keeping with his statements in 1 Cor. 2:1 ("...I..came not with excellency of speech...") and 2 Cor. 3:12 ("...we use great plainness of speech"), and it truly is a "demonstration of the Spirit and of power" (1 Cor. 2:4).
Nothing wrong with eloquence, as long as it's used for the glory of God. Apollos provides a fine example of that for us in Acts 18:24-28. He's eloquent, but also a sincere truthseeker who humbly receives correction from Aquila and Priscilla.
Moral: big words are not what win the day, but a big God working through men with big hearts!
Monday, June 3, 2013
What Exactly Is Worldliness?
A weighty quote to share on this, from J.G. Mantle's Beyond Humiliation:
"What, then, is the world, and what is it to be, worldly or unworldly? Worldliness is a spirit, a temper. It is not so much an act as an attitude. It is a pose, a posture. It is a certain disposition toward God. It is a certain inclination, a certain aspect of the soul. Worldliness is human activity with God left out. Worldliness is life without heavenly callings, life without ideals. life without heights. Worldliness recognizes nothing of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus: Worldliness has no hill country. Worldliness is horizontal life. Worldliness has nothing of the vertical in it. It has ambition; it has no aspirations. Its motto is success, not holiness. It is always saying, "Onward," never "Upward." A worldly man or woman is a man or woman who never says, "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills." --Dr. J.H. Jowett
Are you worldly?
Whatever passes as a cloud between
The mental eye of faith and things unseen,
Causing that brighter world to disappear,
Or seem less lovely, or its hope less dear,
This is our world, our idol, though it bear
Affection's impress, or devotion's air.
"What, then, is the world, and what is it to be, worldly or unworldly? Worldliness is a spirit, a temper. It is not so much an act as an attitude. It is a pose, a posture. It is a certain disposition toward God. It is a certain inclination, a certain aspect of the soul. Worldliness is human activity with God left out. Worldliness is life without heavenly callings, life without ideals. life without heights. Worldliness recognizes nothing of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus: Worldliness has no hill country. Worldliness is horizontal life. Worldliness has nothing of the vertical in it. It has ambition; it has no aspirations. Its motto is success, not holiness. It is always saying, "Onward," never "Upward." A worldly man or woman is a man or woman who never says, "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills." --Dr. J.H. Jowett
Are you worldly?
Whatever passes as a cloud between
The mental eye of faith and things unseen,
Causing that brighter world to disappear,
Or seem less lovely, or its hope less dear,
This is our world, our idol, though it bear
Affection's impress, or devotion's air.
Are You Getting the "Message"?
The Bible study lesson in church this morning touched on 1 John 1:5, and one word in that verse captured my attention: "message."
Through a quick referral to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, I found that this word is only used seven times in the Authorized Version, as summarized below:
1. Judg. 3:20: Ehud's "message from God" for King Eglon of Moab (a dagger!)
2. 1 Kings 20:12: Ahab's defiant message for Benhadad, as he laid siege to Samaria
3. Prov. 26:6: Sending a message by a hand of a fool is harmful
4. Hag. 1:13: the LORD's message unto the Judean remnant through Haggai
5. Luke 19:14: the rebellious citizens' message to the nobleman in the parable of the pounds
6. 1 John 1:5: a doctrinal aspect of the kingdom gospel preached by the Lord Jesus (Mt. 4:17, 9:35, 15:24; John 1:11; Rom. 15:8) concerning God's character
7. 1 John 3:11: a practical aspect of the kingdom gospel--loving the brethren
So in the AV, "message" is used in a prophetic, kingdom context every time it appears. It's not used by the apostle Paul in his epistles a single time. True, our gospel of grace is indeed a message, but it's interesting that Paul doesn't use the word.
I believe that the AV's use of a word fixes its connotation within the Bible and in life itself. So if you come across a "Bible" called The Message, you might proceed with caution, if you're trying to follow Paul. The Message is a free paraphrase of the scripture, not a word-for-word translation of the Hebrew, Chaldee, and Greek texts like the AV, so it's technically not a Bible at all. In my opinion, if one heeds The Message, it will lead him away from Paul, who commanded us to "Consider what I say;" (e.g. words he used or didn't use), and to "Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim. 1:13).
The point of this post is this: take note of how the AV uses or doesn't use certain words, and let that guide you as to whether something is good or bad. For homework, look up the words philosophy (Col. 2:8) and policy (Dan. 8:25). Both of these words are used one time in the AV. Good or bad contexts? What has your real life experience been with these words? Paul's wasn't very good (Acts 17:18) :)...
Through a quick referral to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, I found that this word is only used seven times in the Authorized Version, as summarized below:
1. Judg. 3:20: Ehud's "message from God" for King Eglon of Moab (a dagger!)
2. 1 Kings 20:12: Ahab's defiant message for Benhadad, as he laid siege to Samaria
3. Prov. 26:6: Sending a message by a hand of a fool is harmful
4. Hag. 1:13: the LORD's message unto the Judean remnant through Haggai
5. Luke 19:14: the rebellious citizens' message to the nobleman in the parable of the pounds
6. 1 John 1:5: a doctrinal aspect of the kingdom gospel preached by the Lord Jesus (Mt. 4:17, 9:35, 15:24; John 1:11; Rom. 15:8) concerning God's character
7. 1 John 3:11: a practical aspect of the kingdom gospel--loving the brethren
So in the AV, "message" is used in a prophetic, kingdom context every time it appears. It's not used by the apostle Paul in his epistles a single time. True, our gospel of grace is indeed a message, but it's interesting that Paul doesn't use the word.
I believe that the AV's use of a word fixes its connotation within the Bible and in life itself. So if you come across a "Bible" called The Message, you might proceed with caution, if you're trying to follow Paul. The Message is a free paraphrase of the scripture, not a word-for-word translation of the Hebrew, Chaldee, and Greek texts like the AV, so it's technically not a Bible at all. In my opinion, if one heeds The Message, it will lead him away from Paul, who commanded us to "Consider what I say;" (e.g. words he used or didn't use), and to "Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim. 1:13).
The point of this post is this: take note of how the AV uses or doesn't use certain words, and let that guide you as to whether something is good or bad. For homework, look up the words philosophy (Col. 2:8) and policy (Dan. 8:25). Both of these words are used one time in the AV. Good or bad contexts? What has your real life experience been with these words? Paul's wasn't very good (Acts 17:18) :)...
Sunday, May 19, 2013
The Real Problem with Bible Study
This post won't be anything original, but rather a quote from someone else. The quote is so weighty, though, I couldn't resist putting it here for your edification. It comes from a wonderful little book entitled, 444 Surprising Quotes about the Bible by Isabella D. Bunn, Bethany House Publishers, Bloomington, MN, 2005.
"We fail in our duty to study God's Word not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work. Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion. Our problem is that we are lazy." R.C. Sproul
1. Difficult to understand?
- Prov. 8:9, "They [the words of God's mouth, v. 8] are all plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge."
- John 7:17, "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself."
- John 16:13, "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth:..."
- 1 Cor. 2:12, "Now we have received...the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God."
- 2 Tim. 2:7, "Consider what I [Paul] say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things."
2. Dull and boring?
- Much, if not the majority of the Bible, is action-oriented, e.g. the ACTS of the Apostles. Consider that a major section of the old testament is the historical books, Joshua - Esther (385 of 1158 pages in an Oxford wide margin), which is running narrative with only occasional genealogical or geographic interludes (e.g. Josh. 15-21; 1 Chr. 1-9). That's 1/3 of the OT, not counting Genesis (50 ch.), over half of Exodus, and the other narrative sections of the law, wisdom books, and prophets.
- When we come to the new testament, we see a similar proportion: 207 of 348 pages. are the gospel and Acts narratives, well over half of it, not counting the Revelation (22 more pages).
- Beloved, God could have made it all like Ex. 25 - Lev. 8 (very slow stretch of the scriptures) or one long philosophical discourse, but he didn't, and I think that part of his design may have had our infirmities in mind. Thank you, Lord.
3. Work!
- Eccl. 12:13, "...much study is a weariness of the flesh."
- 1 Tim. 5:17, "...[the elders] who labour in the word and doctrine."
- 2 Tim. 2:15, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
4. Lack of intelligence?
- In "the time of the end," (Dan. 12:4), "knowledge shall be increased."
- Also, men in the last days will be "Ever learning," (armed with Google and Wikipedia) "and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth."
5. Lack of passion?
- "...the spirit indeed is willing,..." (Mt. 26:41)
6. Laziness!
- "...but the flesh is weak." (Mt. 26:41)
- "...and prayer [and Bible study--DJ] is, after all, work--the most strenuous work in all the world." Amy Carmichael, Amy Carmichael of Dohnavur, Christian Literature Crusade, Fort Washington, PA, 1996.
- "If thou wert sick for want of God, how swiftly wouldst thou move." F. Faber
Conclusion
- "herefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, alway abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord." 1 Cor. 15:58
- "Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine...Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them...Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them..." 1 Tim. 4:13-16
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Sword Drill: Adjectives for the word of God
Here is a long list of adjectives for the word of God (from A to W). You supply the references :).
For an excellent comparison of the written word with the incarnate Word (watch your spelling!), please see Danny Doege's In the Beginning Was the Word (Bible Baptist Bookstore).
- Able
- Engrafted
- Everlasting
- Exceeding broad
- Faithful
- Good
- Gracious
- Great
- Holy
- Incorruptible
- Lively
- Perfect
- Powerful
- Precious
- Pure
- Quick
- Right
- Righteous
- Righteous altogether
- Settled
- Sharp
- Sore (hint: Isaiah)
- Stedfast
- Strong
- Sure
- Sweet
- Tried
- True
- Unsearchable
- Upright
- Very pure
- Wholesome
- Wonderful (Ps. 119:129)!!!
For an excellent comparison of the written word with the incarnate Word (watch your spelling!), please see Danny Doege's In the Beginning Was the Word (Bible Baptist Bookstore).
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