Gift of Exhortation

An exhorter speaks words into another person's life that can give direction, instruction, and help that person apply the truth of scripture to their lives. The exhorter is an encourager.

Encouragement is an interesting word. When most of us think of encouragement, we think of affirming another person's behavior or achievement. We may also think of comforting or consoling. "Way to go!" "Good job!" "You can do it--keep going!" "You're almost there!" "You'll do it next time!"

Merriam-Webster Dictionary gives these definitions:

• to inspire with courage, spirit or hope
• to attempt to persuade
• to spur on

I like the definition of "to inspire with courage."

What I have found in my interactions with fellow believers, is that often exhortation/encouragement comes in the form of spurring them on in an area where God wants growth, change of attitude or behavior, or stretching. In that case, I find myself speaking words that give them the courage to (with God's help) make the change.

You see, we can speak truths, but unless we also have the words of "giving courage" or "spurring on," those truths may not be applied in the live of the hearer. The exhorter, led by God, is able to help the person hear the truth and see the possibility of applying it.

When I think of exhortation, I usually think of encouragement--speaking truth and encouraging application, but I also think of timing. Timing is born of the Spirit. He gives the right word at the right moment, and the exhorter's job is to listen to Him and follow His lead.

"The right word at the right time is like
precious gold set in silver." Proverbs 25:11

Thoughts? Write a comment!

Gift of Mercy

The spiritual gift of mercy is defined this way:

"to be understanding, compassionate and loving; to have pity on, to be compassionate by word or deed, and specifically by divine grace"

Mercy is a spiritual gift that is evident in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. Consider the story of the woman caught in adultery, the story of the death of Lazarus, the feeding of the five thousand, his healing the lepers, his association with "tax collectors and sinners," and the way he reached out to those who society shunned. Jesus was known as a friend to sinners. In Luke 4, Jesus quoted a passage from Isaiah:

"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn." Isaiah 61:1-2

Those with the spiritual gift of mercy are often found ministering to those who society ignores. The ones called unlovable or unacceptable by others.

Consider Mother Teresa of Calcutta. She lived a life of mercy. She reached out to the poor, homeless, sick children around her. She fed them, nursed them to health, and spoke words of comfort to them. She also inspired others to do the same.

I believe that when we are given the spiritual gift of mercy, that we also receive mercy as well. If we did not, then we would at risk of becoming really burdened by all we see around us and after a time we would literally begin to burn out. Mother Teresa felt very burdened by what she saw, but it was probably her prayer life that kept her on an even keel.

We are all called to mercy.

He has shown you, oh man, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

God tells us all to love mercy. But it could be said, I suppose, that those with the gift of mercy have an extra measure of mercy to offer. They are the ones that somehow know what you need in your time of distress.

Gift of Prophecy

Prophecy, in some ways, gets a bad rap. When many people think of prophets (those with the gift of prophecy), they think of false prophets. They think of those foretelling prophets whose prophecies have not come to pass--Jim Jones, Harold Camping, David Koresh, and Jack Van Impe, to name a few.

While it is my belief that God still can and will use prophets to foretell future events as He will, (after all, He's God and He can do what He wants, right?) this morning, we talked about the gift of prophecy, focusing on the forth-telling part of prophecy. Forth-telling we defined as "the ability to declare truth boldly on God's behalf."

We have prophets among us, and maybe you are one. You may know that you are in the presence of one with the spiritual gift of prophecy when they consistently speak truth to those around them, bringing correction and conviction with an intent to restore.

Prophets can be seen as harsh, and in truth they most of the time have to seek the Lord's strength in developing the "soft side of love." Prophets can be seen as critical, especially by those who come under their correction. Prophets can be seen as black and white and we have to weigh what they say against the truth of God's word, for in truth there are lots of gray areas in God's word.

A proper response to a prophet is to turn to God's word and seek the Lord to see if what is spoken to you is true. A man whose heart is filled with pride and arrogance may have a difficult time hearing truth in correction that is directed at him. But God calls us to humble ourselves and seek whether a prophet is pointing out something that He wants to change in us. We must learn to receive it as love from Father God.

Thoughts?

A Vessel for Noble Purposes

"In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common use. Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work."
II Timothy 2:20-21

On Sunday morning we talked about Paul's words to Timothy (verses 14-26) where he urged young Timothy to be a vessel with a noble purpose. But today I want to talk specifically about verses 20-21.

Father God, the Potter, sees us as vessels for a noble purpose. We are new creations according to II Corinthians 5:17. The problem comes when we don't see ourselves that way.

Our brokenness is not a challenge for God. He took care of that on the cross by the death of Jesus Christ. It doesn't matter what "kind" of brokenness we have--childhood abuse, sexual sin, addictions, or simply the brokenness of being born with a sinful nature--God has made provision for a remedy.

Some of us see ourselves as "more broken" than others. Our sin is too bad. Our past is too painful. Our habits are too difficult. That kind of thinking keeps us stuck and leads to an undesirable outcome.

We have an upside down view of being a noble vessel, I think. We put the cart before the horse. We intellectually know, because we've read the Bible, that we don't have to "clean up" to come to God. But some of us act like we do. Yes, we've asked Jesus into our hearts and have become a Christian, but we don't fully commit ourselves to being that noble vessel because we see ourselves as an ignoble (un-noble) vessel.

As long as we see ourselves that way, we will have one foot in the world and one foot in the kingdom as it were. We may feel like a phony if we live like a noble vessel, because inside we don't feel noble. We have a past. We still see ourselves as broken.

Folks, we need to see ourselves as the beautiful vessels that God created for His purposes. We need to ask God to let us see through His eyes. Then, when we have consecrated ourselves we can live like people set apart and, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we can live the life we have committed to live.

Thoughts? Write a comment!

Walking in His Will

"Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view
of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as
living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--His good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:1-2

Why is there a battle between our will and God's will? I think there are a number of reasons, but here are a few for you to chew on:

1) Romans 12:2 tells us that we are to have our minds renewed and that in doing so we will be transformed. It would appear that if we don't give ourselves--mind, body, and spirit--to the Lord, that we are still living in the world. The world's way is to get what I want, when I want it, and how I want it. When our minds are renewed and transformed, we will much more want what God's wants. That brings me to my next point.

2) A renewed and transformed mind will see God more clearly, and we will realize that He is good.

"For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations." Psalm 100:5

3) Not only is God good, but He desires good things for His children.

"For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless." Psalm 84:11

4) Not only does He desire good for us, but He has promised good for us.

"Sovereign LORD, you are God! Your covenant is trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant." II Samuel 7:28

"Many, LORD my God, are the wonders you have done, the things you planned for us. None can compare with you; were I to speak and tell of your deeds, they would be too many to declare." Psalm 40:5

So we know that God is good, and the only thing that come come from a good God is a good plan. We will understand that more and more as we leave the ways of the world and allow God to make us more like Him.

What is the risk? Well, I suppose we would have to give up our plans that often go awry and end up causing us a big mess to clean up. Sure, once in awhile we hit a bull's eye and our plan goes perfectly. But even when that is true, I wonder if we have traded the best for something less.

Door Number One is God's plan. It comes with a guarantee of joy and contentment. The only requirement of you is that you enter that door completely and fully.

Door Number Two is your plan. It comes with risk and responsibility of working the plan. It may fail, and could result in lots of pain and sorrow and loneliness.

Put that way, which would you choose?

Thoughts?

Decision vs. Commitment

Let's review! We differentiated between making a decision to follow Christ and being committed to Him. Remember the illustration we used of the pig and the hen who are discussing donating a couple of bacon and egg breakfasts to the local charity fundraiser? The hen gives an egg or two (a donation) but the pig's contribution of a ham constitutes a commitment!

We used Romans 12:1-2 as our text:

"Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view
of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as
living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--His good, pleasing and perfect will."

A living sacrifice? Being a sacrifice is definitely a commitment! It is much more than a decision. It is a commitment to give all for the Lord. Time. Talent. Resources. Everything. We talked about making a commitment to grow. We emphasized the importance of commitment to the local body. We also looked at the need for commitment to ministry.

In practical terms, what does it look like to make a decision, and how is that different from a firm commitment?

Well here are some examples:

In the area of commitment to spiritual growth:

Decision - I decide to study the Bible more. I do it for a week or so, but then get distracted and fizzle out.

Commitment - I commit to study the Bible more, and I do it. I ask for accountability on it, and give my accountability partner permission to check in with me about my struggles. I KEEP GOING!

In the area of commitment to a local body:

Decision - I decide that my family will be in church every Sunday and that we all will get involved in small groups. We go faithfully for a few weeks, but then we make other plans on a given Sunday. It happens again three weeks later, and then two weeks after that. Within a few weeks, we are back to our old ways.

Commitment - I commit to being in church every Sunday and getting into a small growth group. I go faithfully on Sundays and when "activities" come along, I choose to work the other activity around my church commitment. My small group becomes important to me, and I regularly attend and participate. When I must miss either of these because of vacation or being sick, I notice that I miss it a lot!

In the area of commitment to ministry:

Decision - I decide to join the weekly prayer ministry. I attend meetings for several weeks, but find it difficult to remember to pray for people between meetings. Gradually I start missing prayer meetings.

Commitment - I commit to join the prayer ministry. I attend meetings and make notes of what the prayer needs are. I put the list in my Bible so I can pray for people during the week. I also start sending cards of encouragement to those that are on the list.

A decision is like "trying something out to see if it works." A commitment is saying "no matter what, I will do this until God says not to."

What are your thoughts?

Being the Body of Christ

Today we talked about the practical side of being the Body of Christ. Most of us accept the concept of praying for or encouraging one another. And many of us understand the concept of practical help with finances, food, rides, childcare, etc. Most of us readily sign up to reach out and help.

But what about when we are the one who NEEDS help? That is usually where the difficulty comes. We don't ask. We believe that we should not need help. We believe that if we do need help then it is our fault so we shouldn't ask someone else to help "clean up our messes." We also believe that if we need help it is a sign of immaturity. Lies. All lies.

In Acts 2:41-47, read how the early church lived together in community:

All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper and to prayer. A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

They lived in community--sharing, giving, receiving with no one being more or less than anyone else. Apparently, the norm of the day was learning to walk in the Spirit of Christ and exhibit His fruit in relationships--

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Galatians 5:21-22

Paul wrote about carrying one another's burdens. He exhorts the church in Galatia to "carry each other's burdens" and that "each one should carry his own load." While that might seem like a big contradiction, I think it is simple and clear. We are not to be purposely lazy and let others do for us while we sit by and watch, but there are times when we cannot carry a burden by ourselves, nor should we.

We are, as believers, to be people who live like we belong to God. That means putting off the old way of independence and self-sufficiency and then humbly acknowledging that we agree with God when He says that we need each other.

So the next time you need help, ask. In doing so you will be obediently glorifying God by living as He intended those in His Church to live!