Relationship with Jesus – Page 2 – Resounding Shophar Ministries

C G and C

Many people are haunted with memories of their past. They struggle with thoughts and regrets of how they should’ve handled things better, and now they are in an emotional prison of sorts. I’m not talking of things for which you had no control over, but rather instead those times when you had the opportunity of handling or responding to situations differently than you had. While there may be better and more sophisticated ways of addressing these, I want to simplify things by breaking things up into three groups, condemnation, guilt, and conviction.

I’ve found that a lot of people I’ve talked to in the past are confused about what condemnation, guilt, and conviction are or look like, and because of it they don’t know how to deal with them. The first group called condemnation is a nasty one. Sometimes others are the source of condemnation, and other times it is self-inflicted. Condemnation is fairly easy to spot, but not so easy to deal with. Regardless of its source, condemnation devalues and degrades people. With condemnation you will hear statements like; “you’ll never amount to anything”, “I’m no good”, “I’ll never be good enough”, or “you’re not worth it”. All these and other like statements do is destroy your self-esteem and sense of self-worth. These statements basically knock you down, and then work to keep you down. Do these statements, or thoughts, reflect how God views you? NO! God knows and believes you are very, very special, and He has a very special plan for you. God wants you to not only know that, but to also believe it. God will never belittle you or make you feel hopeless or worthless. He sent His Only Son, Jesus, to come and die so that you could have life and life eternal. You are worth it to Him!

The second group is guilt. There is a good or healthy type of guilt, and there is a bad and unhealthy type of guilt. The bad and unhealthy type of guilt are those things that you take upon yourself when they are not yours to take. These could look something like feeling guilty because your distant cousin three states away fell and broke his leg the other day while you were home working in your garage. This may be a bit of an extreme scenario but I think you get the point. Some people have a way, one way or another, of feeling guilty over things that they have absolutely nothing to do with. This is unhealthy guilt. The good and healthy guilt is when you it is for things that you were responsible for. Guilt comes when we become aware of or acknowledge we should have done things differently in a given situation. Guilt tells us that the way we responded or treated someone was wrong, or that we went somewhere that we shouldn’t have, or that we should’ve said or done something when we didn’t. Guilt is knowing that something we said or did, or didn’t say or do, was wrong and we should have done differently. Many people deal with guilt and never get past it. The more guilt they feel the greater the chances are that they will begin to feel condemnation in their life. The more they feel guilty the harder it is for them to move on in life.

The third group is conviction. This is similar to guilt but with one added twist to it. Guilt tells us we were wrong in something, but conviction tells us that we were wrong in something and gives us hope by giving us direction on how to make things right and to be free of it. Granted, sometimes the direction conviction gives us to make things right is not what we are wanting to hear, and therefore we see the conviction as guilt with nothing we can do about it. God’s Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, and the purpose of it is so that we will make the necessary changes to make things right in His sight. God’s heart is that we be right with Him in all our ways, and because of that He will let us know what we need to do to make that happen. Conviction gives us hope that we can rise above what we’ve done if we follow and obey His lead in how to make things right in His sight. Conviction is what leads us to salvation, where we recognize that we are lost and dead in sin, and with that He gives us the instructions we need on how to get free of it and be made right in His sight through a life surrendered to Jesus. Some people think that the moment we responded to His conviction of sin and accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior then it’s a done deal. All our sin is taken care of with nothing more to worry about think, but this is a bit off. Yes, Jesus’ death made provision for all our sins, past, present, and future, but if all our present and future sins are already covered then why should the Holy Spirit convict us of sin? Some don’t recognize God’s conviction as conviction in order to avoid making life changes that are pleasing in His sight. And as I mentioned earlier, some don’t recognize conviction because they don’t like or accept any of the instructions God is giving them to make things right in His sight. Conviction is something that we should all welcome in our lives as it works to make us more like Jesus, and it prepares us for that trumpet sound we are waiting to hear. To squelch conviction in our lives, and we can do that, we are in essence quenching this role of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The more we ignore conviction we become harder in our heart and more stubborn in our ways, and this can have dire eternal consequences in our life if left unchanged.

So, hopefully this helps clear up the confusion regarding condemnation, guilt, and conviction. In Romans 8:1 we’re told that there is now no condemnation for those who live according to the Spirit, but there is condemnation for those who live according to the flesh. Condemnation is not what God has for us as His followers, but if we are living according to the flesh then we are subject to it. Good and healthy guilt can help us recognize when we’ve done wrong, which is important in order to for God to help us with it. And conviction is vital in the life of every Christian, and not just convicting the sinner to salvation, because it helps us know when we’ve violated God’s will and nature in our lives and shows us how to make things right with Him and others. If we are living to honor and please God with our lives, and to accurately represent Him to the world as His ambassadors, then we need to welcome conviction instead of ignoring or pushing it aside.

John Johansson

Pushing It

A couple weeks ago while watching a football game on TV, someone commented about how much the players push themselves physically. Immediately I thought of the words of the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians 9:24-27. In this passage he talks of how he disciplines his body and puts it into subjection so that he wouldn’t become disqualified. I have to ask myself whether or not I’m following the example Paul has left us to follow. Am I disciplining, or pushing myself, as I ought to in my pursuit of and devotion to Christ? What about you? When was the last time you asked yourself that question?

It’s easy for us to say we’re doing good if we haven’t fallen into any of the “big” sins dancing in front of us wherever we look, but does that mean we’re pushing ourselves as we should be? Probably not. Think about it. We can pat ourselves on the back if we haven’t been involved in adultery, drugs, alcoholism, or murder. But what about gossip, compromise, gluttony, and other not so big and subtle sins? Have we pushed ourselves to stay clear of these, or have we played “patty-cake” with them thinking we’re still okay, and that God “understands”?

It’s sometimes rather funny, and yet sad at the same time, to hear of some of the rationalizing people devise within themselves to make allowances for behavior that is contrary to the heart and nature of God. We are called to be transformed into the image of Christ, to be His ambassadors to a lost and dying world. As such, we should then be pushing ourselves to live in a way that is honoring and pleasing in God’s sight, refraining from and dying to the sins that so easily beset us. We are all tempted to sin, no matter how big or small it may be. James tells us in James 1:12-16 that we are tempted when we’re drawn away by our own desires and enticed. Our flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit and the nature of Christ, and to surrender to those desires is simply sin. Are we content with living as we have been, or are we pushing forward to become more like Christ in all we do? You know, to be content with living as we have been, making allowances for things in our life that should not be, that in itself is sin, the sin of complacency.

People talk about how hard it is to turn from the different temptations and sins we face continually. The writer of Hebrews reminds us in Hebrews 12:4 that we have not yet resisted to bloodshed striving against sin. Where is our resistance to sin, and where is our pursuit and commitment to live as we ought for the sake of Christ and the Gospel? Is this something we can do on our own, with our own will power, or do we need help to do this? We cannot resist sin and purpose to live as we ought in our own will power. We need the help of the Holy Spirit to do this, and that requires us to be sensitive to His voice and obedient to His leading, but it is up to us to resist and depend on Him, leaving the rest to Him.

I think it is safe to say that we all could be doing a better job of pushing ourselves for the Kingdom. As the day of Jesus’ return for His bride draws ever so close, it becomes more and more important that we push ourselves for Him. If the Apostle Paul, himself, was concerned enough about finding himself disqualified for salvation to the point that he trained and fought as though only one wins the prize, then how much more should we as we consider Paul’s resume compared to our own? Let us this day renew our commitment to live for and pursue Him, to surrender our desires and very life to Him, so that we too can be assured of winning the prize.

John Johansson

Forgiveness of Sins

Here is the third of a series of blogs I will be putting out to help us prepare for the soon return of Jesus for His Bride. If you were to give a name to this series of blogs I would have to call it “The Rapture Prep” series. This isn’t so much a series on explaining the rapture and what it is or is not, but instead the focus is to help us prepare for His return. The previous two blogs of this series was called “Recalibrating Our Thoughts” and “Are You Watching?” In this blog I want to address the subject of forgiveness.

To begin with, Jesus mentioned forgiveness a number of times in the New Testament. Many try to discount them citing that they were teachings before He died and resurrected, but these are not teachings to ignore. In fact, these teachings of His were different from what we find in the Old Testament. In the Old Testament we continually read of people asking God for forgiveness, or asking for forgiveness on the behalf of others, but very little instruction was given for people to forgive others. In fact, instead we read of what many live by “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth”. So, why would Jesus call people to change the way they lived in regards to forgiveness if it was going to be invalid in about three years? This doesn’t make any sense.

Jesus’ teachings actually raised the bar on how we are to live. In the Old Testament the people were judged and deemed righteous or not based on their words and actions, but Jesus took it to a new level when His focus was on the heart and its attitudes and motivations. Nowhere do we read of Jesus telling us, before or after His resurrection, to disregard any or all the commandments. What we do read is that He gave us two commandments to live by, and He further went on to say that the law is fulfilled in obeying the two He gave us. In the Old Testament, a person could hide to a point what was actually in their heart and present themselves as righteous, but in the New Testament we learn that God now looks right past our words and actions and focuses on our heart. There is no hiding from Him, and while we may be able to keep others from seeing sin in our heart or the wrong attitudes and motivations of the heart, we cannot hide these from God.

What Jesus was teaching us was definitely based on the relationship we could have with the Father after His ascension. We could never really call God Father until we had relationship with Him through Jesus, but Jesus teaches us to call God Father, something we couldn’t do before. Jesus taught a message of love and grace that we can’t really do apart from the Holy Spirit, especially towards those who hate, despise, or take advantage of us, but He also taught a message of obedience to Him and His commandments. Jesus would mention what the law would say, and then He would tell us to live it in our heart and not just in word or action. For example, He mentioned the law that says not to commit murder, but He raised the standard when He focused on our heart and that any hate we may have for another is the same thing in the eyes of God.

Having said that, we need to remember what Jesus said in regards to forgiveness. He indicated that we are to forgive others, so strongly did He make that point that He went on to say that if we don’t forgive then the Father will not forgive us. In what we know as the “Lord’s Prayer”, even then Jesus makes the statement, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive others their trespasses against us”. Some argue that this does not apply to us since it was prior to Jesus’ resurrection, but that is far from the truth. Jesus was teaching us how to pray when He would no longer be with us. This is especially evident, as we indicated earlier, because He taught us to call God “our Father” in the same prayer, something we could not truly do until after the resurrection when relationship with God was made possible.

When we look at the parable of the unforgiving servant we learn something more about forgiveness. The point of a parable is to relay a truth that might not be otherwise understandable by the hearer, and Jesus is making a point in this parable that we need to learn. In this parable the king represents God, and the servants represent Christians. At a designated time the king decides to settle accounts with his servants. One of his servants owed him a VERY significant amount of money and the king was going to sell him, his wife and children, and all that he had to pay the debt. The servant begged for more time with a promise to pay back all that he owed. The king had compassion on him and forgave him his debt. This same servant went out and found a fellow servant who owed him penny’s by comparison to what the king forgave him of, and after demanding payment laid hold of that other servant and had him thrown into prison. Later word came to the king of what this servant did, and he was grieved and called for him. The king called him a wicked servant, who after being forgiven of much did not share the same compassion towards another that the king had given him, and the king then sent him to the torturers until he paid all. Jesus concludes with telling us that God will do the same for anyone who, from their heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.

Again, some argue that this doesn’t apply to us, but it does. It reinforces what Jesus has already told us, God will not forgive us if we don’t forgive others their trespasses against us. This is not typical Old Testament teachings, but instead New Testament teachings for the dispensation of grace we would soon be living in after His resurrection.

You know, something else that crossed my mind a few years ago. In the Lord’s Prayer we are told to pray, “forgive us as we forgive others their trespasses against us”. What if God were to really forgive us as we forgive others, not just in whether or not we forgive, but if we have conditions and/or requirements that must be fulfilled before we are willing to forgive? How many of us would want God to forgive us on the same basis that we forgive others? Scary thought.

One more thing. We know that Christ’s death was sufficient to pay the debt of all our sins, past, present and future, but how is that applied? Was asking God for forgiveness when we accepted Christ as our Savior sufficient to the point that we no longer have to ask for it? Some argue that since we asked for His forgiveness of our sins when we got saved, then we no longer have to worry about asking forgiveness of sins since it was already covered. This way of thinking is inconsistent with Scripture. Yes, His death was sufficient for all the sins we have or will ever commit, but that doesn’t mean we don’t acknowledge sin in our life and ask for His forgiveness of it later on in life. When John, the disciple of Jesus and His Apostle wrote in 1 John, he makes the statement “if we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”. Did you notice anything about this? One, he says “if we confess our sins”. He is including himself when he says “we”. If we no longer have to ask for God’s forgiveness then why is John including himself in that statement? He’s not saying it as something from the past, but instead the present and the future. He also does not indicate that the sin was already forgiven, but that it would be forgiven. The forgiveness given us by God through Christ is only applied to the sin in our life that we acknowledge and ask His forgiveness of.

Also, the writer of Hebrews tells us in Hebrews 12:1, speaking to Christians and himself, that we are to “lay aside every weight, and the sin that so easily ensnares us …”. The writer here is basically telling us to get rid of the sin that we get caught up in so easily. In Romans 6 it is very clear that we as Christians are not to continue in sin even though we are under grace. The Apostle Paul tells us that as Christian’s sin does not have dominion over us since we are no longer under the law but under grace. But, he also tells us that even though we are under grace we are not to continue in sin, and that we become slaves of whatever we submit ourselves to. To repent of and ask forgiveness of sin in our life means that we are to turn from that sin and no longer continue in it. That’s what true repentance is about, to turn away from sin. This is where we return to 1 John 1:9 where we’re told if we confess our sin, which involves acknowledging it, asking forgiveness and turning from it both in our heart and actions, He is faithful and just to forgive us. We are so blessed to have that assurance.

So, in conclusion, Jesus’s death was sufficient to cover all our sins, past, present and future. While at the point of salvation all our past sins are covered, any sin we do afterwards needs to be acknowledged as sin with the understanding that we need to ask for forgiveness and no longer continue in that sin. To refuse to do so shows a prideful heart that doesn’t see the need to acknowledge it, much less turn from it. Even though we do live under grace, it is very clear in scripture that we are not to continue in sin as we will then become the slaves of it. Just because we sin does not automatically or immediately result in broken relationship with Jesus, but it is clear that if we continue in sin with a heart that says it’s okay to continue in it we run the tremendous risk of dying spiritually. Paul is clear in Romans 8 that Christians living according to the flesh will die spiritually if they continue in it. Prior to salvation we are all spiritually dead, so Paul’s words about those living according to the flesh dying is in reference to Christians who had become alive in Christ.

When I was in high school someone I know stressed something to me, and that was the fact that unlike the Old Testament that was focused on words and actions, the New Testament starting with the teachings of Jesus focuses on the heart with its motivations and attitudes. Where is your heart? This is what God is looking at. As we see the return of Jesus for His bride getting ever so close, it is now more important than ever before that we make sure we place our sins under His blood through acknowledgment and true repentance. Just because there is sin does not mean we will miss the rapture, but if our heart finds ways to justify staying in sin then we do run the risk we will be left behind. I don’t want that to happen to me or to you. Praise God for salvation which gives us the opportunity to no longer live in or be in bondage to sin! Let us live worthy of such salvation!

Recalibrating Our Thoughts

The way things are currently developing both within the country and around the world, I am compelled to address a series of topic over the next several weeks. A 40 day period Jews observe called Teshuva begins the evening of August 17, 2015, a period of time set aside for the purpose of repentance and preparation for Rosh Hashanah. Actually, the first 30 days is to prepare for Rosh Hashanah with the hope and prayer they will be resurrected up and not have to continue the following 10 days which they believe no one really wants to go through. Yes, those remaining 10 days are that bad. These 40 days are closely connected to the rapture, or the catching up, of the Church and the following 7 year tribulation period that will see the judgments of God poured out on the earth. So, over the next several weeks I hope to bring a series of blogs to helps us do just that, to re-evaluate our walk with Christ with the desire that we will make the necessary changes in our lives in preparation for when that trumpet sounds signaling our call home to be with Jesus.

Several weeks ago someone made some comments in Sunday school, an echo of what others have said to me over the years that concerns me. Some of the individuals that have made similar comments love God, and yet others their love for God could be questioned. Some have even voiced these comments more to justify their behavior than as a sincere belief they held, and I believe my dad could have possibly been one of those.

So, what are these comments that I’m referring to? Based on the idea that anything prior to Christ’s resurrection is of little or no relevance to us as we are now living in the dispensation of grace, this person in Sunday school commented that we are free from the law and rules, and that whenever one lives according to rules or commands they are really being legalistic. Is this truly the case, or is something missing with this way of thinking? If this way of thinking is wrong, is it really all that important? And if it is important, what is the danger in holding to such views?

Yes, we do live in a dispensation of grace. Yes, our salvation is not based or maintained by the keeping of rules and laws. And, yes, we are free from the bondage and the penalty of sin. So, where does that leave us? Does this mean that the keeping of any laws or rules is legalistic, or is our thinking off some in this area?

To begin with, some have mentioned the words of Jesus in John 8:36 as the basis for their reasoning that we are free from having to keep any laws or rules, but in context that is not what this passage is indicating. Jesus is talking about being free from sin, not laws and rules, yet some choose to use this as their reasoning for living free from having to keep laws and rules. Is this way of thinking consistent with all scripture, or for the most part after Christ’s resurrection for those who discount anything taught by Him before hand? No, it doesn’t.

As I mentioned before, some think that keeping or living according to any laws or rules is legalistic and should not be a part of a Christians walk with Christ. The fact that our salvation is by grace and not of works or in the keeping of the law confuses some into thinking rules and laws should not be a part of our lives, and this is a misconception held by many. Those who hold to such views fail to realize the presence of rules and commands throughout the New Testament in the lives of the early believers.

One of the first commands we see in the New Testament after Jesus’ resurrection, and just prior to His ascension, was a command in Matthew 28:19-20. In this passage Jesus is telling His followers to make disciples of all nations, teaching them to do all that He had commanded them. Did you catch that? Jesus is telling them, and us, to teach others to do ALL that He had commanded them?

In Acts 15:6-29 we read of the Jerusalem Council, headed by James the half-brother of Jesus and the disciples, how after much consulting among themselves and prayer presented a series of guidelines, or rules, by which gentile Christians were to live by. These were not rules they had to follow for salvation, but instead rules providing a set of guidelines by which they were to live by, guidelines that set them apart from non-believers, and the Holy Spirit approved of these.

We also have the Apostle Paul giving instructions on multiple occasions on how we are to live, a set of rules we are to follow. He tells children to always obey their parents, wives to be subject to their husbands, husbands to love their wives as Christ loves the Church. He also tells all of us to obey those in authority over us, to obey the laws of the land, and to grow in maturity in our faith, among others we can see throughout the New Testament. These are all commands that we are to live by as we become more like Jesus, commands that also work to separate us from looking or behaving like those who are not believers. Not only that, Jesus told us that if we truly love Him we will obey all His commandments, and He went further by stating that if we don’t follow all His commandments then we truly don’t love Him as we think we do.

Again, I am not talking about how to obtain or maintain ones salvation as that is another subject, but instead to refute the idea that there is no place in the life of a Christian for rules or guidelines by which we are to live by. After all, if that is the case, then why stop at stop signs, file taxes on April 15^th, pay for items at a store, or drive on the right side of the road? When one embraces a mindset of a life free of rules and laws, they are attempting to distance themselves from any accountability for their decisions and behaviors, and that is bad. When my dad, an otherwise strict and to some extent a legalistic person, held to such views, he was using it merely as a means for justifying his decision to keep God’s tithe for himself to control and give as he wanted. He was less concerned about honoring God with all he had or to reflect the Lordship of Christ in his life than he was in his intent on keeping control of his money for himself. Motivation is key, and to have a motivation that doesn’t seek to please or honor God is a motivation that seeks the satisfaction and the gratification of self.

It is becoming more and more evident that the return of Christ is right around the corner, and if that is the case as I and many others believe, then it is important for us to make sure we are ready for that day when it comes. I’m not saying that holding to such views as I’ve been addressing will keep someone out of heaven, though it might, but to not carefully and prayerfully consider these things could be very dangerous to your soul and your salvation. It’s time for us to check and see if our thinking needs to be recalibrated to match up with the Bible, and if it doesn’t then we need to take steps to get them readjusted to match God’s word. It’s not worth playing Russian roulette with. Wouldn’t you agree? Think about it.

John Johansson

As Unto the Lord

Do as unto the Lord. A phrase that is often times heard within church circles giving both instruction and encouragement to fellow Christians, but I wonder how many of us really know or have any idea of what that means. For that matter, how many of us can actually say we’re doing that?

For the past several weeks I’ve found myself doing something I don’t like or enjoy doing, and the question that has been asked of me, and that I have even asked of myself on multiple occasions, is this, am I doing it as unto the Lord? Each time the question has been asked I have answered it in the positive, but this past week I have found myself really pondering the phrase and asking the Lord what does it mean exactly. Now, what I’ve been doing isn’t something that I’ve been forced into, but it is something I’ve been willing to do on a very temporary basis, which raises the question all the more. So, with that I have really been seeking to know exactly what that means and to see if I can, in clear conscience, say I have been doing that.

Where does the phrase “do as unto the Lord” come from? We get this from the Apostle Paul’s letter to the church in Colossians (Colossians 3:23). We live in a society that has the mindset it can decide when and how we ought to “do as unto the Lord”, but right off the bat the Apostle Paul tells us it should be in whatever we do. Some people try to find ways to justify or rationalize why they don’t have to do so, or even to find “loopholes” that give them an excuse to do otherwise, but Paul makes it clear it should be in whatever we do. Have you ever heard someone ask the question, “what part of ‘no’ do you not understand”, or something very similar? In much the same way, when people attempt to justify or find excuses to not do things as unto the Lord in a situation I find myself asking the following question, “what part of ‘whatever’ do you not understand”? It doesn’t matter what we are doing, where we are at or even who we are with, but it is important for us to do everything as unto the Lord.

So, what does it mean for us to do whatever we do as unto the Lord? Are there indicators to help us know whether or not we are doing things as unto the Lord? As I’ve pondered things the past week or so a number of things have come to mind as indicators for us to pay attention to, and I encourage you to evaluate all the areas of your life as we go through some of the indicators I will address.

The first indicator of whether or not we are doing things as unto the Lord is found in the same verse. Paul tells us to do things as unto the Lord and not unto men. If we are doing things to gain the approval or acceptance of others then we are not doing them unto the Lord. If we are more concerned about what they think or what they may do than we are of the Lord, then that is an indicator we are not doing things as unto the Lord. Our motivation and attitudes in what we are doing are reflections of where our heart is and whether or not we are doing them as unto the Lord.

Another indicator of whether or not we are doing things as unto the Lord is in the area of integrity. In 2 Corinthians 5:20, we are told that we are ambassadors of Christ and as such we represent Him to those around us. As ambassadors of Christ it is vital that we do things with integrity as that is the heart of God and accurately represents the God we serve. Many times over the years, and especially lately, I have been tempted to cut corners in what I’m doing. Sometimes it involved doing things just enough to say I did it, or to cut corners instead of doing things right and properly, or even to report I did something I know I didn’t do. The few times I did give in to such temptations it was quickly followed by conviction when the Spirit of God would tell me it was dishonoring to Him and that it was wrong and dishonest, and in those instances I’ve had to go back and correct those things, and when necessary confess and apologize to the powers that be. If we are not doing things with integrity the conclusion is simple, we are not doing them as unto the Lord but instead unto ourselves or others. To do things as unto the Lord requires that we do them with integrity no matter the cost. As someone who trained professional bus drivers, one thing I would stress to them is that a mark of someone being professional was that they did things right, proper and safe, no matter how inconvenient or ridiculous it may appear even if no one is around to witness it. As Christians and ambassadors of Christ, the standard by which God expects us to do things should at least match this mindset if not exceed it.

In going back to Colossians 3:23 we find another indicator of whether or not we are doing things as unto the Lord. Paul tells us that we need to do it “heartily”. Now does this mean we are to like or enjoy what it is that we are doing? I don’t believe this is what is being said here. When I think of Joseph who was sold into slavery and sent to prison on trumped up charges, I find it hard to think that he liked or enjoyed being a slave or a prisoner. What I do believe is that in the midst of these times he made a point of honoring God in all he did no matter where he was or why he was there, and that should our mindset as well. So, what does it mean to do it “heartily”? I believe the idea is that we don’t attempt to do things as unto the Lord begrudgingly or because we’re supposed to, but instead we are to desire to do whatever it is as unto the Lord because of our love for Him and what He’s done for us. If we do things with this attitude and mindset it makes things a lot easier to do them with integrity and character even when others are not around to see whether or not we’re doing them right and proper.

Another indicator of whether or not we are doing things as unto the Lord is the level of excellence we consider acceptable and strive for. If we determine the quality and performance characteristics of what we do based on what others are doing, or on what those in the world considers acceptable regardless of whether or not it is right or wrong, then we are not doing them as unto the Lord. God expects us to live by His standards, standards that far exceed what the world’s standards are. To do so often times puts us in the cross-hairs of others who don’t live by the worlds standards and are usually convicted by it, and then another test of whether or not we are doing things as unto Him is whether or not we “cave” to such attacks. God is a God of excellence, and one of the indicators that we are His is reflected in our pursuit of doing things at a level of excellence that mirrors the standards by which we are to represent Him to others.

One last thing to consider as we look at this is the potential or realized fallout of not doing things as unto the Lord. I have heard of many, as I’m sure you have, of people who have looked at how Christians have done things or conducted business and as a result did not want anything to do with Christianity. Sometimes they have questioned why they should have relationship with Christ if Christians live or do things no differently than others who are not Christians. Others have been offended to think that Christians would be so “shady” in their doings and have concluded they did not want anything to do with Christianity because of the hypocrisy they see. These people usually don’t verbalize these thoughts or decisions, especially to the ones that have offended them or were hypocritical in some way, but God knows and He holds us accountable if those people did not make it into heaven as a result of how we did things. Granted, not everything that offends people or makes them think a Christian is hypocritical is correct and true as it sometimes is based on perceptions rather than truth, but we are to be mindful of how and why we do things and have a clean and clear conscience before God in it. It’s not so much a matter of forgiveness as some would have it, but instead a matter of representation and living in a way that honors God no matter what others may think or do.

So, are there areas in your life and work habits that you found do not honor God, or that you’re not doing them as unto the Lord? If so, then you need to first repent to God for it, then simply turn away from doing things as you have been and start doing them in a way that both honors God and reflects doing them as unto Him. In some cases, it may mean you need to simply stop what you are doing if there is no way you can honor Him and do it as unto Him. Take it to God in prayer and be open to His small, still voice for His guidance and instruction. For many, what you’ve read in this blog will be God’s words to you and will be sufficient in His sight whether or not you choose to accept and embrace it, so be careful not to be quick to discount it as possibly God speaking to you through it. May your life and all you do be one that can be said you did it as unto the Lord. None of us will perfectly obtain that in every area of our lives on this side of eternity, but it needs to be seen in our attitudes and our daily decisions and choices that it is clearly both our priority and truly our heart and not just words we say.

John Johansson

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Living Life

Within the past few days I had a conversation with someone who was sharing about someone who had just passed away. When asked if the person died knowing Christ, the person I was talking to didn’t know but had sufficient reason to be concerned for this person’s salvation. He further went on to share what this person was like and how much the lifestyle of socializing and partying was in their life. For the rest of the day I found myself thinking about this person and the life they lived, and how so many find themselves living the same type of lifestyle this person did.

In Matthew 24:36-44, and also in Luke 17:26-36, in describing what the days of His return would look like, Jesus likened them to the days of Noah and Lot. In both passages He indicates that people will basically be caught up with life itself and its many different pleasures, a description we can easily make for the times we are now living in. As I pondered these things I found myself asking a simple question, what does it mean to live life, and to live life more abundantly? In John 10:10, Jesus tells us that He came so that we can have life, and life more abundantly, but what does that mean?

I’ve talked to many a person over the years who have shared with me what living life looks like to them. Some of the people were Christians, and some were not, but I would have to say the majority of those who were Christians seemed to say the same thing that non-Christians would say. They would talk of their embracing and enthusiastically pursuing some of the pleasures this world has to offer them, and in some cases would note how they enjoyed themselves so much that they couldn’t remember what they did. While there is nothing necessarily wrong with enjoying some of the pleasures this life affords us, I can’t help but wonder if this is what Christ was talking about. Did Jesus come so that we could enjoy and find pleasure in the things the world offers us, and all the more abundantly? Or are we missing what it was He was talking about?

If what Jesus was referring to was our ability to participate in and enjoy the different pleasures of this life, then why did He come and die for us? After all, we can clearly see that the world has more than mastered that, enjoying the various pleasures of this life in passion, fervor, and enthusiasm. Everywhere we look we see people enjoying and loving “life” with everything within themselves, even to the point of living their life for the pleasures awaiting them. Some of these people live it in various forms of recreation, whether it is a weekend on the lake, a game of soccer with the guys, a day of shopping with the girls, various social activities and parties, or the tinkering on of an old car or scrapbooking, many are living for the recreation and enjoying it immensely. Some people live it in entertaining others, or by being entertained by music, TV, sports, videos or movies. And others live life in the pursuit of riches, fame, material possessions and power. And still others find it in the passionate pursuit of what we sometimes call “vices”. You know what I mean, for some it is the pursuit of the pleasures they receive from alcohol, drugs, and various sexual conquests and experiences. No matter the form, everywhere we look we see people living life, and living it with gusto, but is that what Jesus came to give us?

The other thing that comes to my mind stems from the fact that we are spiritually dead apart from Christ and the sacrifice He made for us. How can we identify what life is and what it means to live it based on people who are spiritually dead? That doesn’t make sense, yet so many times that is exactly what we do. That’s like a doctor walking up to a dead corpse and saying life is where one doesn’t breathe because that is what the corpse is doing. There is something definitely wrong with this picture. Jesus said He came to give us life, why, because we were dead. We can read the New Testament, especially the writings of Paul, and we will see that we were dead because of sin, but that through Christ we were made alive. Paul even breaks down the differences in our behavior between when we were dead and now that we have become alive in and through Christ. What was characteristic in our life before Christ in how we lived and what our priorities were should not be the same now that we’ve given our lives to Him and subsequently made alive.

I think often times we determine what it means to live life, and more abundantly, based on what we see in the lives of people living without Christ. Some may argue that they are looking at how other Christians are doing so, but even then it often times mirrors what the world is already doing. We tend to think that because we see other Christians doing the same things then it must be the way it should be, but is that deception at its best? I heard that a minister once said that one of the greatest weapons the enemy of our souls has leveled against is if found in one word, entertainment. We live in a society that is addicted to entertainment and recreation, and if they don’t have it they go into withdrawals becoming depressed and grumpy if they don’t have it to partake in. Many times people even become quite demanding in order to fulfill these desires, and that isn’t pretty. In the passages mentioned in the second paragraph, it is evident that people are caught up in living life, and Jesus doesn’t refer to this as a good thing. In fact, Jesus views it as a bad thing in that these people will not be aware of His return and be caught off guard and left behind.

So, the question remains, what does it mean for Christ to bring us life, and life more abundantly? Obviously, to answer that question based on how the world lives life will give us the wrong answer, and it would imply that Jesus didn’t really know what He was talking about if it was nothing different than what the world was already living. Some would argue that it is the ability to live in the moment without fear of eternal consequences because Christ died so that we could have the forgiveness of sins, but that is really no different from how the world lives. People in the world live for the moment with no regard for any consequences, much less eternal. So, that can’t be what Jesus is talking about either.

When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, they lost relationship with God and spiritually died. It could be argued this was because they were being self-centered thinking to please themselves more than God, but it could also be argued that they were thinking of others more than God as well. Yes, Eve was deceived into thinking that God was holding out on them, which is where we can find the self-centeredness, but Adam knew what he was doing and it could be argued that he was thinking of Eve more than being obedient to God. I think either argument could be summed up with one thing, that they lost relationship with God and died spiritually because they didn’t seek to please and honor God first and foremost in their lives, no matter how it played out.

So, when Jesus talks of giving us life, He’s talking about bringing us from spiritual death unto spiritual life and restored relationship with God, and when He’s saying life more abundantly I believe He’s talking of a life with God over and above anything Adam could ever dream of having. But what does that mean, and what does that look like? Again, many think it is the ability to live in the moment enjoying the pleasures this world has to offer, but that isn’t what we see in scripture. After all, does that mean those mentioned in the later part of Hebrews 11 were not experiencing the life Jesus came to give each of us? Or, what about the Apostle Paul who was routinely beaten, stoned and left for dead, shipwrecked and imprisoned for the Gospel, and subsequently beheaded for Christ? Does this mean he was not experiencing the life Jesus came to give us, and more abundantly? What about Peter and the other apostles who were later martyred for the Gospel? And the saints in the early church who suffered and endured various persecutions for the faith, often times leading to brutal deaths of various sorts? If the life Jesus came to give us and more abundantly is mirrored in how the world lives life, then those I just mentioned fell tragically short of it. The people I just mentioned were not concerned about living for the moment and the pleasures the world has to offer them, but instead they were more concerned about living for Christ no matter the cost, knowing that they now had a relationship with God that would give them life eternal in heaven with Him. This was the blessed hope they each lived for and clinged to in the midst of certain death. They understood that life apart from Christ and living for Him is not really life, and they understood that life with Christ and living to please Him in all they do, fulfilling God’s will for them, in that there was the most fulfilling life one could ever seek to have. When we allow God to breathe into us the breath of life, we become energized in our being for Him. We begin to realize that the value and purpose of our life goes beyond ourselves or the person next door, and that our value is now based on our relationship with Him and our purpose is locked up with being His ambassadors to a lost and dying world. To be His ambassador may look different from one person to another, but the idea is that our life is now centered on His will for us and what pleases Him. It’s not based on what we do or where we go, or even who we’re with, but it’s based on Jesus and His will for us. This doesn’t mean that we can’t enjoy some of the pleasures this world has to offer, but if we are basing what it is to have life and to live it abundantly on how the world lives life, then we are greatly missing what it is that Jesus came to give us.

Someone once said that the God we follow should be simple, and that is very true. Our life as a Christian should be very simple, yet so many times we make it complicated. I’m not saying we make it more complicated, I’m saying we make it complicated, period. How do we complicate it? We complicate it when we begin to compartmentalize our lives and what parts Christ has any access or say over. We complicate it when we choose to push Him aside and what He’s called us to for a period of time that we want to set apart for our own desires and will. We complicate it when we try to live for Him with anything less than 100% of ourselves, our time, our resources, our energies, or anything else you can think of. Jesus wants us to live totally and completely for Him, 100%, and that means placing each and every area of our lives under His leadership 100% of the time, and that is very, very simple though difficult to do at times when our flesh struggles for control in this area or another. It could be said that the life we live, and the abundance of it, is directly proportional to how much of our life we allow the Spirit of God to breathe into, which requires daily denying ourselves, taking up ones cross and following Him.

How much of the life Jesus came to give each of us are you living and experiencing for yourself? Or, are you struggling to live for Him and living according to the desires of your flesh at the same time, trying to have “the best of both worlds”? Some people argue that there has to be a balance between the two, but in this area the only balance is one where we are 100% serving and living for Him. Jesus, Himself, said we can’t serve two masters, yet many times we do just that when we try to live for Him but hang onto the desires of the flesh. Many are afraid if they sell out to Christ 100% they will have a boring life, but then again we have to ask ourselves, much like we did regarding what it means to have life and live it abundantly, if we are basing what is boring on what the world considers to be boring. Jesus said that for those who seek to save their life they will lose it, but for those who choose to lose their life for His sake will assuredly find life. What do you want more, life as portrayed by those in the world, or life as Jesus will give those who live for Him? These are just some things to think about.

John Johansson

Weakening of the Fibers

Last Sunday our pastor preached a good message on being thankful, and in his message he commented on the different types of root systems different kinds of trees have. He noted that some trees like oaks and walnuts have deep roots, and then trees like the pines and redwoods of California have very shallow roots but find their strength in intertwining with the roots of other trees. As I thought about that another thought crossed my mind.

Up until a few months ago we lived in the beautiful Sierra Foothills, also known as “the mother lode”. To give you a better idea of where we were at, we were so close to Yosemite National Park we often times referred to it as being in our backyard.

Well, about a year ago we had the third largest wildfire in California’s recorded history, known as the “Rim Fire”. The fire was so close to us that relatives was ordered to evacuate, and we were waiting to receive evacuation orders ourselves. We even had a family in the church staying with us because they had also been evacuated. Because of my job I was involved with the evacuation of residents directly impacted by the fire, taking them to shelters setup by the Red Cross.

The smoke from the fire was pretty bad for weeks, and people were being told not to go outside unless necessary, and if so they needed to wear a specialized dust mask to filter the air. People usually didn’t wear the masks though the air quality was terrible and pretty toxic. One of the things I learned from this experience involved the smoke and the trees.

I don’t remember what it was called, but one of the main elements of the smoke was pretty toxic to the trees. You would think these towering trees would be impervious to the smoke, but that wasn’t the case. Apparently the effect this smoke had on the trees was significant because it weakened the trees fibers. This would then make the trees susceptible to falling over or breaking apart. Because of this there was concern both of the trees just falling over, and whether or not they would be able to withstand the winds, rain, and snow from the coming winter.

This reminds me of what we face spiritually and the importance of being well rooted in the faith. As Christians, we are continually bombarded by the allure of sin in its many forms, a poisonous toxin to a Christian. If we have strong, established roots, deep in the Word and tightly intertwined with fellow believers who are both a support and an encouragement to us spiritually, the easier it will be to stand. However, if we absorb what the world is bombarding us with, our backbone to stand will be weakened and we’ll become more apt to fall in the storms of life.

How do we absorb that which the world is bombarding us with? We absorb it through what we listen to, the things that we see and read, the places we go to and the people we hang around with. The more we allow ourselves to be exposed to the temptations of the world, the more apt we are to absorb those things. Is it just in the “big” sins everyone talks about, or does it go beyond that? It involves, not just the “big” sins, but also mindsets and attitudes that are unbiblical and conflict with the Word, as well as the heart and mind of God. These could be seen in misplaced priorities, the greed for power, fame, prestige and financial and material gain. It could be attitudes of superiority and pride, attitudes that express a mindset absent and independent of Christ. It could be self-centeredness and selfishness, and the idea of “whatever feels good” is right and good and living for the moment. It could also be mindsets that have little or no problem with spreading gossip and slander, having little regard for confidentiality and the best interests of the other person you’re talking about.

So, the question is asked, are your fibers getting weakened? Or, are you having little or less backbone to stick with the moral standards found in the Bible, or to remain loyal to your commitment to Christ and His Kingdom? If this is you, then I challenge you to take a step back and re-evaluate your life, and to begin taking steps to change this in you. Only you can determine what you absorb into your heart, mind and life, and it is you with the help of the Holy Spirit that can make the necessary steps to minimize your absorption of what the world throws your way, and to strengthen your “fibers” and backbone for the glory of God and your spiritual health.

By John Johansson

Attitude Is Key

The other day I was watching someone on TV that made an interesting comment. In his attempt to describe the relationship Christ calls us to with Him, he indicated that once we receive salvation anything that is done in the body is pretty much meaningless, good or bad. He went on to say that if a person receives salvation, they could go out and sleep around to their hearts delight and it would have no bearing on their relationship and position with Christ. He did say that to do so would be simple stupidity, but he reiterated that it would not change their relationship with Christ and also implied that their eternal destination is secured. There is something definitely wrong with this picture, and the Apostle Paul had something to say about this type of mentality.

In the time of Christ and the Apostle Paul, the city of Corinth was the bustling place to be, a trade center it was also a place of much moral depravity and was well known for it. It was in this setting that the Apostle Paul went there and started a church with the good news of the Gospel. We have two of the three letters Paul wrote to this church in Corinth, letters that brought encouragement and direction as well as strong judgment and corrections regarding some of the behaviors of this church. One area that he addressed in his first letter to them involved a mentality that is shared by the minister I mentioned in the first paragraph. It is in I Corinthians 6:12-20 that we see Paul’s position regarding sexual immorality.

To make his point Paul starts off by reminding us of the liberty we now have in Christ, a liberty he cautions us about in Galatians 5:13 where he tells us not to use our liberty as an opportunity for the flesh. The Apostle Peter also gives the same instruction in I Peter 2:16, telling us not to use the liberty we have in Christ as a cloak for wickedness. Both Paul and Peter acknowledge the liberty we now have in Christ, but they also tell us not to use it for the benefit of our flesh or as an excuse or covering of wickedness in our life.

Later in the sixth chapter of I Corinthians Paul begins to address the sexual immorality that was prevalent in Corinth, specifically within the church in Corinth. The Christians in Corinth had adopted a view, the same as what the minister I was watching the other day is embracing, that their salvation was spiritual and what they did in and with their bodies had no effect or bearing on their relationship with Christ. As a result, the Christians in Corinth were involved in a variety of sexual immorality and thinking nothing wrong with it in regards to their relationship with God. So, Paul needed to set things straight by letting them know that their thinking was all wrong, and that in fact what they did sexually with their bodies did have an effect on their relationship with Christ. Paul goes on to say that our physical bodies are members of Christ, and that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. He then reminds us in verse 20 that we were bought with a price, and that we are to glorify God in both our body and in our spirit.

In Romans 6, Paul talks about our relationship to Christ and the place our bodies have in it. In I Corinthians 6 Paul mentions giving our members to a “harlot”, and how that should not be so, but in Romans 6 Paul takes a more general approach to this subject. To keep this in context, we need to remember that Paul is writing to the Christians in Rome, and as such tells us that it applies to us as well. In this chapter in Romans, Paul starts off with a couple of questions, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” (Romans 6:1-2 NKJV). He goes on in this chapter talking about yielding our members to sin or to righteousness, and that we become slaves to whatever we yield to. As Christians it is our responsibility to yield our members to righteousness and not sin. That doesn’t mean we will never sin again, but it means that we are now free to not sin if we are led by, walk in, and live in the Spirit. Just because we become a Christian doesn’t mean we’ve lost our free will to choose who or what we will yield to, it’s just that we are now able through the Spirit to resist sin and not walk or live in it anymore.

Paul continues in Romans 8 talking about two different kinds of Christians, those who are led by the Spirit and those who are led by the flesh. A popular verse, Romans 8:1, while I realize that some translations of the Bible omit part of it, many read and cling to the first part of that verse, and forget about or give little heed to the remaining part. Paul says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” (Romans 8:1 NKJV). As you read through this chapter you will see how Paul is comparing both the life and end results of both types of Christians. Some try to argue that those that Paul refer to as walking and living in the flesh are not Christians, but if we are raised to life with Christ because we were originally dead in our sins, how can a non-Christian die if they were never given life to begin with. The end result of a life led and lived according the flesh is that they will not be called the children of God and will die.

I admit, I am someone who tries to live and do things right, described by some as someone who is “by the book”, but I will be the first to say that I’m not perfect and have on many an occasion blown it either knowingly or otherwise. I am well aware of God’s grace and forgiveness and seek to extend it towards others, and I’m okay with that. I’m not perfect and sinless, and I don’t expect others to be either, but there is something that concerns me. It’s not so much that someone has blown it, or even if it was in a big way or not, but it’s the attitude of the person that can be very telling and disconcerting. It’s one thing for someone to stumble or fall in their walk with Christ only to get back up and “brush themselves off”, asking and being grateful for God’s grace, mercy and forgiveness with a genuine desire to not do it again, whatever “it” is. What is disconcerting is when someone that knows they’ve said or done something they know is wrong only tries to make excuses for it, adopting some type of rationalizing that “makes it okay” to blow it. These are people that need to take a real attitude check for themselves as it becomes an issue of attitude and motivations, specifically in regards to their own walk with Christ. Are they serving God because they want to, or are they doing so out of obligation or because it’s the way they were raised? When a person wants to serve God first and foremost simply because of who He is and what He’s done in their life, they’re not looking for ways to justify or rationalize wrong behavior. Instead, they’re looking with gratitude for how they can please Him in all they do, simply because they love Him and want to. When we try to make excuses and try to rationalize what we’ve said or done, that sends the message that we’re still being very self-centered, looking more to please ourselves than the One who made salvation available to each of us. It’s is during these times that we are actually being led by our flesh and not by His Spirit, which Paul addresses in Romans 8. Do we want to live being led by our flesh, or by His Spirit? It’s all in the attitude and motivations. Even I have to check my attitudes and motivations at times, making sure it’s pleasing and acceptable to Him. How about you?

The return of Christ for His bride is so close that we could say it’s imminent, and that stands to reason all the more why we should take an inventory of our attitudes and motivations regarding our walk and relationship with Christ. Are we truly living for Him, or for ourselves? Just because we get our attitudes and motivations right doesn’t mean that we will have “obtained”, as we should continually be looking to become more like Christ. How do we do that? We do that like the Apostle Paul instructs us in Romans 6, yield ourselves and the members of our bodies for righteousness and not for sin and the flesh, an ongoing task. When we talk of our members, it’s not just our hands, arms and legs, but it’s also our eyes, ears and mouth, as well as our thought life. Are we more concerned about pleasing Him or more concerned about pleasing ourselves and others?

It’s in the attitude. Maybe it’s time to do an inventory of your attitudes and motivations for living for and serving Him?

Let It Go

Prior to making our recent big move out of state, my wife and I would get together with two other couples to play some games and fellowship with each other. These would be times filled with a lot of laughter, talking, and joking around. At times someone would share an experience that was or could be hurtful to them, experiences by people within our little group or by others we would cross paths with from day to day. As time went by a particular catch phrase began to be echoed more and more amongst us, and that catch phrase was “let it go”. The idea behind this little phrase was simple, let go of that hurt or hurtful situation before it has a chance to breed bitterness and resentment. The last thing any of us wanted for ourselves or each other was to be hurt and offended in any way that could harden our hearts and hurt the witness of Christ in our lives towards others.

What a phrase! Recently, while preparing to teach an adult Sunday school class before our big move, I was remembering this phrase in light of our relationship with Christ. More specifically, our relationship with Christ as we see the day of His return for His bride approaching more and more closely each day. In my preparations I was specifically looking at the Jewish feast, Rosh Hashanah, or as some know it the Feast of Trumpets, and the 30 day period of time that precedes this feast each year. For those who are not aware of it, Rosh Hashanah for the Christian represents the rapture of the church, the bride of Christ. A lot can be said of this feast and also of the rapture of the church, but that is not the focus of this post. What I want to focus on is the period of time that precedes this feast and how it relates to the Christian.

The 30 day period of time that precedes Rosh Hashanah is called Teshuvah. Actually, this period of time actually lasts for 40 days, but the last ten days follow Rosh Hashanah and end on the next Jewish feast, Yom Kippur. The word Teshuvah is often times translated as repentance, and while repentance is the theme of this 40 day period of time, the tone changes significantly after Rosh Hashanah.

The first 30 days of Teshuvah is a time when people are to re-evaluate their lives, repent and turn from sin and wrong living, forgive and seek forgiveness from others, all in preparation for the judgment that was to come on Rosh Hashanah. Judgment on Rosh Hashanah? Yes. For the Jew, Rosh Hashanah is when God separates the wholly righteous from the wholly wicked and the intermediates, or those who are lukewarm and on the fence. The idea of the first 30 days of repentance was to be judged worthy to escape the remaining 10 days of Teshuvah, days that no one would want to willingly go through if they really knew what was in store for those who remained. Jesus tells us as His followers to do the same thing in Luke 21:34-36, to watch and pray that we are counted worthy to escape that which is coming. On several occasions Jesus tells us to watch and pray, and in Revelation 16:15, right in the middle of John’s account of the judgments of the tribulation period, Jesus tells us that those who watch are blessed and not ashamed and found naked. As Christians we are to be making sure we are ready for when Jesus comes for His bride, which is imminent and can happen any day. When I think of this I am reminded of the parable of the 10 virgins, where five were foolish and five were wise. In this parable it is mentioned that there was a time when the 10 virgins needed to trim their lamps. This trimming of the lamps is closely associated with this first 30 days of Teshuvah, and because the five foolish were not prepared they were left behind and denied entrance to the wedding.

The remaining 10 days of Teshuvah, known also as the “days of awe”, for the Jew is a time when people through their works can either get their names changed and entered into the book of life, or seal up their fate of eternal death and damnation. For the Christian, this is a time when those who want to have relationship with God and spend eternity with Him in heaven must literally give their lives unto death for Jesus and His kingdom. The parallels between the Jews observance of these feast days and the Christians view of end time events is amazing.

Okay, back to the phrase “let it go”. In looking at the first 30 days of Teshuvah, a period of time when we are to prepare for Rosh Hashanah or for the Christian the rapture of the church, I’m reminded of the words of the writer of Hebrews. In Hebrews 12:1-2, the writer tells us to lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Basically, he is telling us to “let it go”. As we prepare for the return of Christ for His bride, we need to let go of anything that weighs us down and the sin that so easily trips us up. We all have areas that we struggle with. It could be areas that are easily seen by others, or it could be the secret sins we hide. It could be misplaced priorities and loyalties in life, or it could be the hidden attitudes of hatred, prejudice, and jealousy. It could be critical and judgmental attitudes, or the “big” sins of alcoholism, drugs, and sexual immorality. It could be that of complaining, murmuring and gossip, or it could be attitudes of greed, self-centeredness, and pride. Whatever it is, as we see the ever approaching time of His return it is vitally important for us to “let it go”, whatever that “it” is in our lives.

For the Jew, the 40 days of Teshuvah begins in just a few days, but for the Christian we are in that period of time now. This isn’t the time to be playing Russian roulette with eternity by not taking this seriously and risk being unprepared for His return. Even the Jews recognize they need to be prepared so that they will not have to experience the remaining 10 days of Teshuvah, and like them we don’t want to be left to go through the tribulation period that is soon to come. The theme scripture the Jews have for these 40 days of Teshuvah is found in Isaiah 55:6.

6 Seek the Lord while He may be found,

Call upon Him while He is near.

Isa 55:6 (NKJV)

Power To Be Witnesses

I recently heard someone share on what the phrase “power to be witnesses” found in Acts 1:8 means. As he spoke I began to ponder within myself what that actually means as I’ve never really given it much thought in the past. As I asked the Holy Spirit to direct my thoughts on this He pointed me in two directions to look. No, these two directions do not conflict with each other, but instead confirm and validate the other. Follow with me as we take a brief look at what it means to have power to be witnesses for Him.

The Spirit first directed me to look at the life and ministry of Jesus while He was here on earth. He reminded me that Jesus did not live His life here according to His own deity, something that would have both negated the sacrifice of His life for our sins as well as negated His example of how we should live. In Philippians 2:5 we are told to have the same mindset as Christ, and in the subsequent verses were shown the example Christ left us to follow. In 1 Peter 2:21 we are told that Jesus left us an example for us to follow. Even though the passage in 1 Peter refers to suffering, we have to remember that to be a disciple of someone means we are to be like them in all ways, and so being a disciple of Christ means being like Him in more ways than just how He handled suffering. In John 5 Jesus tells us that He only did what the Father showed Him, and what the Father was doing. In Matthew 4:1 we see that Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit, and that is what we need to do as well.

The Holy Spirit then directed me to look at the early church and not just the apostles. The lives of those in the early church after Pentecost should give us a good picture of what it means for the power of God to make us His witnesses. Just in case people want to argue that what Jesus did was done out of His own deity and not by the leading of the Holy Spirit and what the Father showed Him, what we see from the early church should silence any argument of how the Holy Spirit empowers us to be witnesses as none of them had any deity to fall upon. Yet, what we see in the lives of the early church are very similar to what we see in the ministry of Jesus, and therefore what we see in both should give us a clear indication of what it means for the Holy Spirit to empower us to be witnesses of Christ.

There are four characteristics found in both Jesus’ ministry and the lives of those in the early church that we can attribute to the empowering of the Holy Spirit. There may be more, but these were the ones I believe the Holy Spirit showed me as I pondered the above question, what does it mean to have the power to be witnesses of Jesus?

Four elements of a person empowered by the Holy Spirit to be a witness;

Boldness to “proclaim the gospel”

The first element was the boldness to proclaim the gospel. In Acts 4:23-31, after being commanded by the religious leaders to no longer proclaim the name of Jesus, Peter and John went back to their companions explaining all that was said to them. It is believed that while their companions may have included some of the other apostles, it no doubt included those who were not. After sharing with their companions all that was said to them, they immediately went to prayer asking Jesus for boldness to speak His word. What was God’s response to this prayer? The place where they had assembled together was shaken and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, after which they spoke the word of God with boldness.

Just in case you’re thinking it was just the apostles, we have to remember Stephen in Acts 6-7. Stephen was not an apostle, but the Spirit of God gave him boldness to proclaim God’s word with authority, and the religious leaders did not like that. We, too, should have this kind of boldness to proclaim Christ to those around us. It’s not just the commitment to share the gospel whenever the opportunity presents itself, as we can see anybody can do that, but there is a boldness that goes over and above just a commitment to share.

Leads us to speak to the heart of an individual

The underlining point in all of this is that we are to be led by the Spirit of God in all that we say and do. As we are open and sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit, and grow in that, there will be times when we will speak right to the heart of an individual. We see many instances when Jesus did that with others, including the Samaritan woman, but we can also see multiple instances in the book of Acts and other parts of the New Testament. While it is true that Stephen was not talking to an individual in Acts 6-7, the things he spoke did pierce the heart of individuals as he spoke.

There were times when Jesus or those in the early church spoke to the heart of an individual bringing them hope and deliverance, among other things, but they also spoke to the heart of individuals whose hearts were wrong and wanted nothing to do with the truth. The Spirit of God leads us to speak to the heart of individuals in ways that only He can, as He is the only one that truly knows the heart of each person. He can reveal things to us about someone that only that person knows, and that in itself shows that God is acutely interested in them.

To do signs, wonders, and the supernatural

The third point that the Holy Spirit showed me was that a life that has been empowered by the Holy Spirit to be witnesses of Christ will do signs, wonders, and the supernatural. If we want to truly be His witnesses then we need to be open to allow Him to do these things in and through our lives for the benefit of the Kingdom of Christ. A person that is closed off to that being a part of being His witnesses is limiting God in their own lives, and are presenting Christ as someone less than all-powerful to those who we are reaching out to.

The apostle Paul, who was very learned being a Pharisee, in I Corinthians 2:1-5 indicated that he did not seek to reach people through his excellent words and speech, but instead through the demonstration of the Spirit and of power. Many times we limit ourselves to proclaiming the gospel through our words and intellect, but Paul who was well trained chose instead to proclaim the gospel through the demonstration of the Holy Spirit and of power.

When we go back to when Peter and John, and those who were with them, prayed for boldness, we see that they also prayed that God would stretch out His hand to heal, and that they would do signs and wonders through the name of Jesus. This was something they recognized as essential to being His witnesses to a lost and dying world.

Now before you think that was limited to the apostles, let’s go back to Stephen. In Acts 6:8, we see that Stephen, who was not an apostle, was full of faith AND power, and that he did great wonders and signs among the people. This is something that should be a part of every believer that has been baptized in the Holy Spirit and fire as John the Baptist said Jesus would do in both Matthew 3:11 and Luke 3:16. If the early church, both apostles and those who were not, prayed that they would do signs and wonders to proclaim the gospel in demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit, then who are we to say that we shouldn’t do the same thing?

When Jesus sent out the disciples to preach that the kingdom of heaven was at hand, Jesus told the disciples in Matthew 10 to “heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, and to cast out demons”. In Mark 16:15-18, Jesus told them not only to go and preach the gospel to everyone, but He also told them that signs would follow those who believe.

There is nothing wrong with asking God to do signs and wonders to validate and promote the gospel He’s called us to share with others. It’s part of being His witnesses, ambassadors of His eternal kingdom. Many are closed off to this aspect of being His witnesses, but as we see in scripture not only should it be a part of our life, but just as the early church did we must also be open to and asking God for this to be evident in our lives for Him. To deny this element, or any other for that matter, basically expresses an attitude and mindset making ourselves superior to Christ and the early church, when in reality they should be an example to us of what it means to be empowered by the Holy Spirit to be witnesses of Jesus.

To be martyrs for Christ and the kingdom

Finally, to be His witnesses means that we are willing and ready to die a martyr’s death for Him. All the apostles except for John are believed to have been martyrs for Christ. One of the signs that we have been empowered by His Holy Spirit is that we’re willing and able to be martyrs for Him. The word translated as witnesses in this passage means to be martyrs, so this is important for us to understand. There are many people in the world who are willing to die for a cause, but this goes beyond that. We are willing to be a martyr for Christ, the gospel, and for the Kingdom of God. We’re not trying to make a statement as many martyrs do, but instead we are willing to die for the one who gave His life for each of us, knowing that eternity with Jesus is far greater than anything we may ever experience in this life.

The apostle Paul in Romans 8:18 tells us that the sufferings of this present life are not even worthy to be compared to the glory that will be revealed in us. And, it is the empowering of the Holy Spirit that enables us to have the ability and resolve to give our lives for Him no matter what the cost. Not only is it believed that the apostles died a martyr’s death for Christ, but history shows that countless numbers of believers in the early church died a martyr’s death for Christ, some of which were even thrown to the lions in the Roman coliseums. Even in the day we live in now we hear of Christians who are dying a martyr’s death for Christ, something that requires the empowering of His Holy Spirit in our lives.

Have you received the power of the Holy Spirit to be witnesses of Jesus? Do you see the above elements active in your life as a disciple and witness of Him to a lost and dying world around you? I have to admit that in looking at the above attributes of one empowered by God’s Holy Spirit to be witnesses, I find myself falling short. Just as the church in Acts 4 asked God for boldness and to perform signs and wonders in His name, I need to seek Him more to fill and empower me to be the witness of Him He’s called each and every one of us to be. How about you? Are each of these elements an active part of your life as a witness of Him, or do you need to seek God for more of that empowering in your life. If you find that you lack in any of these above areas, then I encourage you to begin seeking and asking God to manifest each of these in your life in the power of the Holy Spirit. Time is short and the world needs to know and see that the power of God is more than sufficient to meet their every need.