Identify!

Scripture: 

“But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” …And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:13-17

Study:

After Eve and Adam sinned, there needed to be a perfect sacrifice to justify humanity for his sin. Jesus, having no sin, willing accepted God's plan to "fulfill all righteousness." Jesus' first step in fulfilling God's plan was to be water baptized. He did this to identify with his people. As Jesus came from the water, the Holy Spirit descended upon him to affirm his calling, which included the cross, death, and resurrection. Then God/Father said, “I am well pleased.”

   

In the previous post, we discussed that man's first step to salvation is confession and repentance followed by water baptism. It is not the water that saves but what the baptism represents. Baptism is an outward action to identify us with Christ and the work He accomplished for us to fulfill our righteousness. As we identify with Christ we follow his example of dying to himself. We die to sinful way of life, and choose to submit to the Holy Spirits' direction in our life. In other words, by our identity with Christ, we are made righteous in Him. When this happens God/Father will be pleased. And note this, not only will God notice, but others will identify us with Christ. 

Application: Jesus identified with us and we will identify with Him. If our lives do not identify us with Jesus, the act was meaningless. Does our walk identify us with Jesus?

Prayer: 

Dear Father, Jesus, help us remember that our identity is in you, and may we live accordingly. Amen.

A Call to Die by David Nasser

We arrived in time to unpack, go to dinner, then to the conference, 2008 X-Fuge for Missions. I must say that my husband and I (age 60 and 54) were somewhat apprehensive about the trip. That is until the worship team, Spur58, led by Aaron Ivey began to challenged us to "wake up" in our walk with Jesus.

Then a small, barefoot man, David Nasser, wearing jeans and t-shirt, moved quickly to the front of the audience. He wasted no time moving us to the edge of our seats. There was no passing notes or playing on cell phones. The youth sat spell bound taking in everything that was said.  I had never heard such a dynamic speaker.

David not only knows about God, more importantly he knows God. As he entered the conference hall, the Holy Spirit came with him. His delivery and message is clear and concise. You might even say the message he preaches is "sharper than a two edged sword," for learning to die to self is not an easy task. Every chapter is power packed as he leads you in scripture lessons, that include memorizing scripture, application, and then journaling what God is calling you to do.

I purchased his book, A Call to Die: A 40 Day Journey of Fasting from the World & Feasting on God. This book is not a 2 day read. His focus is not about reading and finishing a 40 day journey. It is about leading you into 40 days where you will move from knowing about Jesus to knowing what it takes to Follow Jesus. His message in the book is as bold as his preaching.

Boot-camp is a term used to represent the hard work and discipline it takes to change your "identity"  whether militarily, weight loss, or... in following Christ. This book is a spiritual boot-camp. I challenge you to join Nasser in this 40 days journey. He says, "do not focus on changing your behavior, but more importantly, focus on letting Jesus change your identity." Jesus has changed my life. Order your book today.

The book is quite expensive, but if you look you can get a used one. I purchased mine at the conference so I did not pay the full cost, but I will say that knowing the long term value that it will have on my life, it would be worth it. This is one book on my bookshelf that I am still using as a reference book.

After you have read it, let me know what you think.

Any Asherah Poles in Your House?

No, I can say without hesitation that I do not have any Asherah poles anywhere near my house. How about you?

Scripture:

Romans 1: 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

Lesson:

I do not have any mahogany Buddha’s, or golden calves either, but before I get to proud of myself I need to consider a Mark Driscoll quote: Idols are good things turned into god things and they become bad things. W.E. Vine says, “Man is essentially constituted a worshipper. If he abandons the worship of God, some other object will be found to take the place of the Creator.”

Paul is telling us that when we turn to foolish thinking: do not worship God, do not acknowledge Him, do not show gratitude to him, do not recognize that he is the source of all good gifts, it leads to darkened minds. Exchanging truth thinking for images and that is idolatry. An idol is anything that absorbs us and takes the place of God and/or our worship.

We are so defined by what we own (cars, clothes, houses, jewelry, money, beauty, careers, position, sports, etc.) Parents wrap themselves up in a lot of things hoping to assign some sort of value to themselves and their children. These things are not idols on their own but can become idols when we view it as defining our value and devote ourselves to getting “it.”

To worship God as God, we will heed God’s message in Exodus 34:12-14, “Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land where you are going, or they will be a snare among you. Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. We will acknowledge him as Lord of all creation, including ourselves. We give up our will to his will in our lives. We should only seek our identity, purpose, significance, security, and our value in and through Jesus Christ.

application:

1.     What are some evidences of those claiming to be wise, but are foolish?

2.     Who or what has moved into your life that takes up more space that your time with God? It might be the object of your worship?

3.     What absorbs you, your thinking, your energy? What do you have or seek to have that you think will give you value in life? Where does God/Christ fit in?

4.     What do your idols look like? (children, sports, movie stars, food, drugs/alcohol, pleasure, things, houses, etc)

5.     What steps are you willing to take to tear down the Asherah poles or anything else so that you can turn your eyes back toward Jesus?

Prayer:

Dear Father, help us be honest with ourselves, and identify those created things we might have a tendency to worship and serve. Help us to put away our idols, to put you in your rightful place as the only one worthy of our worship and service, so that we can worship and serve you first, and foremost. In Christ alone. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Romans1:8 WHAT ARE YOU KNOWN FOR?

What are you known for? What will be written in your obituary when your accolades are written? I have always introduced myself as Irvin and Waynett’s daughter, Joey’s wife, Matthew’s mother, Teacher for Cleveland County Schools, resident of Twin Lake Drive, member of given church, writer of IWANNABE…like Jesus blog, gardener, and on and on.

Scripture:

Romans 1:8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world...


Lesson:

Paul was known for his letters to the churches as well as to his friends and fellow believers commending them on their faith. He went on to say in this letter that their faith was being reported all over the world.

I will have to say that I have attended several churches during my life and never have I known of any of them receiving a letter from past staff in the form of praise or challenging them to kingdom work. Then again, I have never sent any letters either. This portion of the letter has challenged me to think of those that have followed me, and to think of ways that I could encourage them.

The second thing that I find so interesting is that their faith was being reported all over the world. Keep in mind they did not have TV, radio, phones, email, Internet, and all the other media devices of our day. We have all the means to evangelize the world and yet we fail to take advantage of the opportunity to do so.

Yes, I can do a lot of things, but it is only through Christ who strengthens me. I pray that the only way one sees me is to see Christ first.

Application:

1)     How faithful are you? In other words, is your faith evident in your walk with Christ or for other areas of your life (sports, community service, politics, craftiness, arts, success, etc)?

2)     How faithful is your church? Are people coming far and wide to see what is happening at your church? Is it known for it’s reputation to holding true to God’s Word or for its music program, youth/children’s activities, political status, facility, bake sales, meals, etc.

3)      When was the last time you thanked someone and/or a church for their spiritual influence in your life? Remember them in your prayer and… and then write them a note of thanks.

Prayer:

Dear Father, I thank you for _________________ because their faith is spoken and seen everywhere they go. They have been a bold witness and have been instrumental in my spiritual growth. Work in my life that I may lead others to you. Work within my church that we will be known throughout our town and community as being faithful to you, in Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Romans 1:7 ARE YOU A SAINT?

Who do you consider a Saint, Mother Theresa or Saint Mary, yourself? I have heard such responses as, “ I am not a Saint but…” By true definition, you might be a “saint.”

Scripture:

ROMANS 1:7 ...To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Lesson:

When asked the question, “Do you consider yourself a Saint,” individuals without any hesitation will emphatically resound, “NO.”  Wonder why? Why would a Christian not want to be characterized as a Saint?

Most individuals think of a Saint as one who has either earned the title or had it bestowed to them from something they have done. However, Paul gives different guidelines as to who qualifies for the title. According to him, a person is a saint by accepting Christ as their Savior and by exalting Him not themselves.

So… by this definition, it may be a little easier to accept the title of “saint.” For it is not through our own character, or our own doing but by and through our relationship with Jesus Christ. By this definition, I will accept the title.

Application:

1.   Does your behavior characterize you as a saint?

2.   Does God love you? Have you heard God’s call and responded in obedience? By Paul’s guidelines this designates you as a Saint.

3.   Could the reason one would not be comfortable being called a Saint is because they are not exalting God by their actions.

Prayer:

Dear Father, I want to exalt you in all that I do. Help me to be proud of any title that I might possess that would help me to glorify you. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.