Category: Thoughts and Meditations

“So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church.” – 1 Corinthians 14

Paul was writing to a church that was having a bit of an arms race regarding spiritual gifts. We are told that every Christian receives at least one gift from the Holy Spirit – an ability, skill, or passion that did not previously exist before we believed in Jesus. In Corinth, Christians were using their gifts in a sort of competition to be the best super-Christian. What a bunch of nonsense! These gifts aren’t given for our entertainment or to enhance our status. The Spirit gives gifts so that we can build up the local church.

The wide variety of gifts (knowledge, wisdom, teaching, helping, administering, hospitality, etc.) are distributed to believers as Christ sees fit to strengthen His church. As Christians, we’re responsible for putting our gift(s) to work. The best way to identify our gifts is to try serving in various ministries and see which surprise us with supernatural joy or excellence we didn’t anticipate. Often our gifts are pointed out to us by other faithful Christian who notice them before we do.

The best way to use our gifts is to actually put them to work. Knowing your gift is inadequate. Every Christian of every age has a role to play in building up the church – in reaching those who don’t yet know Christ or in loving and discipling those who do. No Christian should be “sitting on the sidelines” even if there is a pandemic going on. We must each find ways to put our gifts to work to glorify the One who gives us these gifts!

“And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” – 1 Corinthians 13:2

As political season kicks into an even higher gear, it’s helpful for Christians to remember this truth!

No matter how valid our critique, how high our IQ, how many our degrees, how insightful our facts, how long our experience, or how deep our understanding of the issues may be, if our expression of all that isn’t motivated by love and fails to communicate the authenticity of our love, we are nothing.

No matter how deep and life-changing our faith may be, if we aren’t actively and obviously operating out of love, not only is our faith in Christ critically deficient, but we are working against the advance of the Kingdom of God. We are nothing.

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are people of truth. We must obviously speak and type truth at all times. But that truth must be wrapped in the deep love of God that we ourselves are unworthy recipients of. If our lips aren’t communicating love, we should close them and if our fingertips aren’t typing love, we should remove them from our devices until such time as we are so full of God’s love that it overflows out of us.

“As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.” – 1 Corinthians 12:20

Christians were not made or meant to go it alone. As individual temples of the Holy Spirit, we are re-made in Christ to worship, fellowship, love, and support one another in churches. Each of us is made and gifted to be an important part of a local church. Together, we form the local body of Christ.

In recent years, there have been many who claimed to love Jesus but argued they could worship God and live apart from any church for their whole life. This is ultimately a trick of the devil! Of course any Christian can worship alone from time to time. But we were made, shaped, called, and commanded to be a part of the larger body of Christ – for our spiritual health and for the glory of God!

A long-term un-churched Christian is about as likely to be spiritually healthy and growing as an amputated big toe lying on the floor is likely to be healthy and growing! Of course being part of a church runs the risk of being hurt. Of course it can be inconvenient and messy. Nonetheless, that’s how Christ created the church and how He commanded us to be. We need to get over any illusions about loving Jesus while avoiding His bride – that’s a friendship that isn’t going to last!

We’ve been made to be part of the body of Christ. Let us joyfully embrace the opportunity that active membership in a local church offers for health and growth, both for ourselves and more importantly for God’s Kingdom!

“Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.”
– Psalm 97:2

Christians in America often seem to view righteousness and justice as an either/or proposition. Some Christians are very focused on righteousness (holiness and right behavior aligned with God’s standard) but are largely unconcerned about seeking and promoting justice for all persons, regardless of race, ethnicity, social status, or financial standing. We zealously proclaim and pursue God’s standards for ourselves and others, while remaining blind to the plight of those around us.

Other Christians are very focused on issues of justice while neglecting to defend and pursue God’s good design for human flourishing. An admirable devotion to justice is accompanied with minimal concern for personal holiness or the proclamation of the good news of forgiveness of sin through faith in Jesus Christ. The seriousness of sin is ignored or downplayed.

Both approaches are inadequate in followers of Jesus! Righteousness AND justice are the foundation of God’s throne. He is perfectly righteous AND perfectly just and so every Christian should care deeply about both. He is absolutely committed to pure holiness AND deeply concerned for the just treatment of the most vulnerable among us.

As followers of Jesus we must learn to be zealous for both righteousness and justice. We must also prepare ourselves to be disliked and attacked by Christians and non-Christians alike if we actively pursue both in our lives and in the world. That’s okay, for we must live to serve and please only the One Who is both righteous and just

“But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.” – James 3:17

Here’s an incredibly valuable tool for our age of outrage and information overload. If the ”wisdom” you’re reading, hearing, speaking, tweeting, re-posting, liking, or sharing isn’t all these things, it isn’t from God. Period.

Ask yourself before letting opinion and interpretation soak into your soul or come out of your mouth/fingertips:

• Is this pure (meaning holy)?
• Is it peace-loving or does it stoke conflict and division?
• Is it gentle or harsh?
• Is it open to reason or so pridefully confident that no disagreement will be tolerated?
• Is it full of mercy or lacing compassion?
• Is it bringing about good fruit or poisonous fruit?
• Is it impartial or prejudiced?
• Is it sincerely believed or merely said to get attention and further an earthly agenda?

If what you’re reading, watching, or hearing isn’t ALL those things, it isn’t from heaven above. It doesn’t matter who‘s saying it or their purported credentials, don’t let it sink in and don’t pass it along!