"What do you have that you did not receive...."

Pride is so destructive!

Think about what our pride costs us -

Relationships with others.

Lost love, joy, peace, etc.  (the fruit of the Spirit).

The inability to receive and enjoy God's grace.

Countless other relational and emotional issues that start with thinking too much of ourselves!

Consider the following passage,  particularly vs. 7!

1 Cor. 4:5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.

⁶ Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively transferred to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that you may learn in us not to think beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up on behalf of one against the other. ⁷ For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it? (NKJV)

Now I may have some gift and abilities that others don't, and surely many are far more gifted than I, but if I have any gifts, abilities or success in my life, where did it come from, and what about all my shortcomings, how quickly do I forget those as I look down on others?

If I am not in hell for my sin now, I need to thank God! So am I really in a place to think I am better than anyone? Now we all are morally responsible for the choices we make, but I confess that anything good in my life (a sinner by birth and choice) in this world (fallen and cursed as it is), must be accredited to God and His mercy, not to any inherent goodness in me!

So all glory to Him, and I need to stop thinking I am better than anyone!

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

It All Comes Down to Trusting God!

It has been almost a year since I resigned from the church I was pastoring and even longer since I wrote anything on this blog.

It has been a strange and difficult year, but I definitely agree with the Apostle Paul's words in Phil. 4:11 "... I have learned in whatever state I am in to be content." Now I can't say that I am always content, there are plenty who could testify that I am not at times. However, I am more and more convinced of my own tendency to look for contentment in circumstances and things, and the futility of doing so. God continues to teach me through the challenges of this life that He is in control of my circumstances and if that is so then contentment is as close as me acknowledging His Power, wisdom and love for me.

If God truly is all powerful, perfectly wise, and loves me (as He has proven in Christ's sacrifice), then it all comes down to trusting Him and being content or not trusting Him and finding contentment fleeting at best.

I am trusting Him as I write this, but I may relapse into temporary idolatry at any moment. Thankfully part of the contentment Paul spoke of in Phil. 4:11, is knowing God will be faithful to use His power, wisdom and love on behalf of His children, even when we aren't trusting Him as we should at a particular moment.

 I am beginning to look for a place to serve in full time ministry, in the meantime I am working part time for a Christian ministry that serves the homeless. If anyone hears of a ministry opening that might be a fit please send me the contact information, and of course prayer is always appreciated.

Bill Nye, is he being dishonest, or is he not at all bright?

It is hard to believe this was meant to be a serious discussion of abortion issues?

 

OK, so Bill Nye says the reasons women should be able to get abortions include:  

1. Because many eggs never get attached to the uterine wall and pass from the woman’s body on their own?

Really? Does that have anything to do with a child being ripped from the womb who has already developed to the point of being recognizable as a human?

2. Because the woman may not like the man who got her pregnant?

OK, now what if she does not discover he is a jerk until the baby is 6 months old? Should she kill the baby then? What does the life of the baby have to do with how much the mother likes the father?

3. Because we would not even know about how eggs are fertilized or many other things without science.

Again, how does what we know about reproduction from science translate into making killing unborn babies ok?

      4. Laws restricting abortion are in nobody’s best interest.

I think the baby would disagree!

Please see picture below, and send my cat some money!

 

I took this picture of my cat "Flop". If you wanted to use it for any reason, I would let you do so for no charge, but now PETA is attempting to gain animals the right to own the copyright on their art.

Link - PETA sues to get animals copyrights!

However, as the bank will not let my cat open an account, how unfair, please make any checks for Flop out to me, and I will use the money on her behalf!

Great insight from Phil Johnson!

I was listening to a very good sermon called Christ, the Door  by Phil Johnson on Fighting for the Faith and he made a great point, this is a paraphrase:

When Oprah and others who reject Jesus say all religions lead to the same place they are right, all human religions, any path to God besides faith in Jesus Christ, do in fact lead to the same place - Hell!

Great Sermon by D. Martyn Lloyd Jones

Follow this link to Fighting For the Faith and enjoy this sermon about how the Bible alone diagnoses our problems!