God Breathed

The fact that we can actually reflect the dynamics within the God-head by living-out our God-ordained roles as men and women is a VERY COOL thing! We are not only blessed by God as we seek to live according to His Word, but we also have the opportunity to reveal His character to others as well. For a watching world, this is one of the greatest tools of evangelism. In fact, the way we live day-in & day-out can have a huge impact on the way others perceive the the Lord, the Gospel and Christianity at large. Paul points this out as he writes to his young protege, Titus, with regard to the roles of men & women in the church:

 ”But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine. 2 Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. 3 Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers of slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, 4 and so train the young women to love their own husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive, to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.”-Titus 2:1-5

Paul begins this passage by addressing the men; specifically, men in official leadership roles or positions. He describes the type of character that is to under-gird their conduct in the church. Then, Paul moves onto address the women in like manner. This is just as relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago when Paul penned this passage. Regardless of our official roles or positions within the church, we should all strive to attain our respective character traits anyway (as my husband pointed out, each character trait listed for those in leadership is also listed elsewhere in God’s Word for every believer). But what I really want to draw our attention to is the reason that Paul gives for such character: “… that the word of God may not be reviled.“

As Carolyn Mahaney puts it in her book Feminine Appeal: Seven Virtues of a Godly Wife and Mother (an excellent book, by the way ):

“[Women] are not commanded to love our husbands and to love our children so we can have strong, happy families like those from a previous era. To be sure, we experience enjoyable and fruitful family relationships when we follow God’s instructions. But there is a far higher call… The commands found in Titus 2 have been given to us for an all-important reason that transcends time and culture. That reason is the gospel of Jesus Christ. These virtues are not about our personal fulfillment or individual preference. They are required for the sake of unbelievers–so that those who are lost might come to know our Savior…

Our conduct has a direct influence on how people think about the gospel. The world doesn’t judge us by our theology; the world judges us by our behavior. People don’t necessarily want to know what we believer about the Bible. They want to see if what we believe makes a difference in our lives. Our actions either bring honor to God or misrepresent His truth….

How sobering it is to realize that our behavior has the potential to discredit the gospel. But how exciting it is to think that we can actually commend the gospel!” (p. 26-27)

 Mrs. Mahaney says it all! As a famous preacher once said, “Preach the gospel at all times. When necessary, use words.” Ladies, let’s not discredit, but commend the gospel through our attitude, speech, actions, and conduct toward the men in our lives… then, look for what the Lord may be doing through it in the lives of those around us!

It is important to see that woman’s role of submission was part of God’s good & perfect plan from the beginning. However, it is also important to note that her submissive role in no way makes her in any way inferior. Man & woman are spiritually equal (Galatians 3:28). However, God, in His divine omniscience, ordained a sort of hierarchy, which consists of those in authority & those in submission. In His creative order, man holds the position of authority, while the woman is in the position of submission. God Himself reflects this hierarchy, as God the Father holds absolute authority over God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Even though God the Son is co-equal with God the Father (Phillippians 2:6), He is in a position of submission to God the Father. To further illustrate the point, God the Holy Spirit is absolutely co-equal with God the Father AND God the Son, but He holds a position that is in submission to them Both… I find so much encouragement in that!

It is also encouraging to think that this hierarchy actally exists to allow women to compliment their male counter-parts in a way that brings honor & glory to God! As we graciously and humbly submit to the men, who God has placed in authority over us, we are actually reflecting God’s character. As we allow the men in our lives to exercise their God-given right (duty, really) to lead, we are complimenting their leadership role as we graciously & willfully submit… we are living-out the dynamics of the God-Head!

(… to be continued )

During our evening devotions, my husband & I came across a really great prayer that I thought I would share. It is found in a collection of anonomous Puritan prayers & devotions, called “The Valley of Vision.” This one was titled, “Christ Alone”:

“Thy main plan, and the end of thy will is to make Christ glorious and beloved in heaven where he is now ascended, where one day all the elect will behold his glory and love and glorify him for ever. Though here I love him but little, may this be my portion at last. In this world thou hast given me a beginning, one day it will be perfected in the realm above. Thou hast helped me to see and know Christ, though obscurely, to take him, receive him, to possess him, love him, to bless him in my heart, mouth, life. Let me study and stand for discipline, and all the ways of worship, out of love for Christ; and to show my thankfulness; to seek and know his will from love, to hold it in love, and daily to care for and keep this state of heart. Thou has led me to place all my nature and happiness in oneness with Christ, in having heart and mind centred only on him, in being like him in communicating good to others; this is my heaven on earth. But I need the force, energy, impulses of thy Spirit to carry me on the way to my Jerusalem. Here is my duty: to be as Christ in this world, to do what he would do, to live as he would live, to walk in love and meekness; then would he be known, then would I have peace in death.”

May the Lord grant me the grace to make this prayer my aim in life!

As a Christian women in the 21st century, it is amazing to note the vast difference between the message that the world proclaims to women and the message of the Bible. While this has evolved over the past few decades, currently, the message that comes through our American media, social groups, politics, coorporate world, and general western-society at large, regarding my role in this world as a woman, is that I will find my greatest saticefaction in: high self-esteem, a good education, a great career, a handsome husband, a large house in the suburbs, a white picket fence, a two-car garage, 2.5 children, and a dog.

However, the “American Dream” is completely contrary to the message of the Bible. God specifically tells women that their deepest saticefaction can only be found in living out the role that He has designed especially for them. God has designed all mankind to worship Him as their Maker and their God. Consequently, He has given general mandates for all believers to help us worship Him in this fallen world through our thoughts, speech and actions. God has also given women a specific role to carry out as an act of worship to fulfill His divine plan for marriage, the family, and society at large.

 We see this first in Genesis. Even before the fall, God’s design for woman was that she be a “helper comparable to [man].” (Genesis 2:18). Woman’s submissive role was not the result of Adam or Eve’s sin… it was part of God’s good & perfect creative plan from the beginning!

When you hear those words, “fasting & prayer”, what goes on in your mind? Do you cringe? Do you get excited? Do you use it as an opportunity to loose weight? Or maybe you are like me when I was a little girl: I use to hear those words and get an image of an old, white-haired, long-bearded, solom-looking man, who is “exercising his spiritual disciplines”. The wide-variety of reactions to even the suggestion tells alot about the misconceptions of it. 

So, let’s take a minute & set things straight:

First of all, there is no mandate (aka “command”) in the Bible to fast. There are patterns or examples of people doing that & God never commands us not to do it, so based on the facts we can conclude that it is not a sin to do so. But I think it is important to remember that we are not sinning if we don’t do it & we aren’t sinning if we do do it…. it’s a personal preference.

Secondly, the primary purpose of fasting is to remind ourselves that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. In other words, we need bread (aka food) in order to sustain our bodies & live. However, food is not the only thing that we need to sustain us in life. We also need “every word that comes from the mouth of God” (aka the Bible) because God reveals Himself & His Gospel message through His Words, as recorded on the pages of the Bible. So, by fasting, we are essentially reminding ourselves that it is God & His Word that truly sustains us in life.

Lastly, most people think of fasting together with prayer. They go so well together because when we fast, our bodies become hungry. God, in His intricate design of the human body, created our bodies to notify us when it needs food by creating a sensation of hunger. When that goes unnoticed, our bodies growl & create noise to capture our attention. This is a really cool thing & from a biological/physiological point of view… a lot goes on inside the body to make this happen. But when we are fasting, we essentially are making a conscientious choice to deprive our body’s sensations & cravings. Our minds discipline themselves to deliberately not gratify our body’s desire for food. It is a great spiritual exercise in mastering your fleshly cravings & “buffeting your body” (as Paul says for the purpose of righteousness. However, there another reason that these two practices, fasting & prayer, tend to go together. As our body’s create sensations of hunger, they remind us of our “spiritual hunger” for God & His Word. It serves as a sort of biological alarm-clock. Every time our bodies send us a physical sensation of hunger, we can automatically turn that sensation into a reminder of our spiritual hunger & pray. As we begin to feel weak and tempted when fasting, again, we can turn those into opportunities to pray for strength and protection.

I could write more, but in short, I would say that fasting helps remind us of our spiritual need for God and turns us to prayer when we feel the sensation of hunger or when we feel weak.

I recently heard a sermon on the biblical view of sex (homosexuality, specifically) and I was totally encouraged to be reminded that sex is a good thing! In fact, it is one of the greatest blessings that God has bestowed upon man… BUT only when it is done according to God’s design. The speaker, Dr. Street, said it this way:

“The desire for sex is not wrong. It is the orientation and the context of sex that becomes a moral issue. For God has designed sex for a particular orientation, that is heterosexuality, and a particular context, that is monogomous marriage.“-Dr. Street, “Truth & Life Conference”, 2003

 So for all those who fall outside of these perameters, sex is sin. BUT, when engaging in heterosexual sex in a monogomous marriage relationship, it is one of the most beautiful blessing that our loving God could bestow upon man… amen!

Every spring, at Grace Community Church in southern California, a few thousand Pastors gather from all over the world for the annual Shepherd’s Conference to hear solid preaching & exhortation from the Word of God . At the Shepherd’s Conference last year, during one of the general sessions, Dr. R.C. Sproul delivered a GREAT message from Romans 1:18-25. In his concluding remarks, Sproul made the following statement:

“Our propensity for idolatry is the most foundational, basic sin of the human-heart and it is not instantly cured by conversion.”

So simple, yet so profound… and so true. Our hearts were made to worship. Specifically, they were made to worship their Maker. But for those who do not know Him, they find other things to worship: false gods, idols, todum poles, money, status, sex, their spouse, their own bodies, their children, etc. However, even for those who do know Him, the temptation is always there to turn our hearts away from the true & living God to worship empty vanities. In fact, it could be said that the essence of sanctification is the process of ridding our hearts of the desire for anything other than the Lord, our God, so that we might someday return to that pure, unadulterated worship of our Maker. Of course we will never fully realize that in this life-time, but it is definately something great to strive for now and something even greater to look forward to in heaven

In preparing for a lesson on purity, I have been studying its definition and application to the believer’s life. I recently came across one definition that I particularly liked. Wayne Grudem, in his work, “Systematic Theology,” defines the purity as it relates to the church (collectively) this way:

“The church’s degree of freedom from wrong doctrine and conduct, and its degree of conformity to God’s revealed will for the church.“

This is such a clear and consice definition of the way a believer’s life (individually) is also to be marked: by “freedom from wrong doctrine and conduct” and by “a high degree of conformity to God’s revealed will” as revealed in His Word. May we each seek to strive toward that end by the means of the Lord’s many graces!

“Christians, God and angels are spectators, observing how you [conduct] yourselves like children of the Most High; every exploit your faith doth against sin and Satan causeth a shout in heaven; while you valiantly prostrate this temptation, scale that difficulty, regain the other ground you even now lost out of your enemies’ hands. Your dear Savior, who stands by with a reserve for your relief at a pinch, his very heart leaps within him for joy to see the proof of your love to him and zeal for him in all your combats; and will not forget all the faithful service you have done in his wars on earth; but when though comest out of the field, will recieve thee with the like joy as he was entertained himself at his return to heaven of his Father.” -William Gurnall, ‘Armour (p. 17)

Lately, I have been trying to get back into the habit of memorizing Scripture. I have been taking key verses with me (scribbled out on 3″ x 5″ note cards) with me on my morning walks and repeating them to myself as I stroll. I probably look a little strange mumbling to myself , but it has been really encouraging!

One verse I came across recently was 2 Corinthians 10:5 (let’s see if I can recall it all from memory ):

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God and take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.“

As I mulled it over in my mind, phrase by phrase, I saw it in a new light. It took on a more vivid color than before. It was powerful!

Fist of all, I was struck by the verbs in this verse. They are very dynamic and active. There is no sense of the “Let go, let God” philosophy here. It encourages a proactive response to things that may contradict the things of the Lord, not a passive one. Note the opening phrase:

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God…“

It has the idea of completely destroying something, leaving nothing standing. Udder demolition! Then, in the following phrase, Paul encourages his reader:

“… and take captive every thought… “

This has the idea of actively pursuing something until it is laid hold of for the purpose of possessing, binding or enslaving. We are called to have that type of attitude toward our sinful thoughts. Then, in the very last part of the verse, Paul instructs the reader:

“… to make it obedient to Christ.“

It is not enough just to take the thought “captive.” But we are also to change that thought into a righteous one.

This is really the biblical pattern that you find all throughout the Scriptures. When we find ourselves in a pattern of sin (whether they be in our thoughts, attitudes or actions), then we are to stop what we are doing immediately! We are to seek the Lord & His grace to enable us to change the pattern into something that is more Christ-like. For example, if you are thinking lustful thoughts about a man/woman who is not your spouse, then immediately stop your train of thought. Recall to mind what Scripture says about the issue: “But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28). Acknowledge your sin and confess your sin before the Lord. Then, make your train of thought obedient to Christ, by praying for His grace to help you put off those sinful thoughts and put on Christ-like purity in its place (Ephesians 4:22-24).

This was a great reminder! It is so easy for me to simply put my mind on “auto-pilot” sometimes (especially when I am tired) and allow my thoughts to freely flow through my mind, uninhibited and unrestrained. However, after meditating on this passage I was convicted of my constant need to continually guard my thoughts and evaluate them. Hold them to the light of Scripture. Whenever one is found not meeting the standards of Scripture (which is often), then I must be pro-active about capturing it and correcting it, to the praise and glory of Christ! May He grant me the grace for such a task :-/