Christian Behavior

Verse of the Week:

I am the vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in me [Christ] and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

Christian Behavior

"Lord, I am rededicating my life to you!  I love you and want to serve you so much. Help me to do things that are pleasing to you, for that is my desire.  In Jesus' Name we pray, AMEN!"

Does that prayer sound familiar?  I have prayed countless prayers in the past rededicating my life to Christ.  I would mess up.  I started to slack off on praying; my Bible got stuck in the bookshelf for several weeks; I didn't do anything to help out people; or maybe I started doing things that were wrong and would get stuck in a rut.  Then I would have that ah ha moment   somewhere whether it was at church, from reading the Bible, or talking to someone. The ah ha moment would lead me to wanting so bad to please God, that I would  once again start over.  "Please Lord, I want to serve you with all my heart and love you the way you want me to love you."

I would keep trying, trying, trying, trying, trying....doing, doing, doing, and then messing up, messing up, messing up.   Failure seems to occur left and right.  I remember people saying, it is ok if you mess up, just try again.  So I would try again, mess up again.  The cycle seemed endless.

Notice the word I kept putting down, I, I, I, I.....I try, I started, I didn't, I would, I want, I do.....I by myself kept doing it all.  Sure, I would say, I am doing things with Christ's help, but even though I said that, I didn't grasp the concept that apart from Christ, I can do NOTHING!  Christ himself even admitted that apart from his Father (God), he can do nothing.

"I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me." (John 8:28b)

Our Family pastor at church put it this way.  He was holding a water bottle in his hand, and said, "Pretend this bottle represents Christ, His new spirit inside of you, grace, love, forgiveness, etc.   When we become Christians, we get so excited about that water bottle.  We are pumped and ready to serve Christ!"  Then the pastor started to get ready to go and walk forward as if he was about to start his new walk with Christ.  He starts walking, and does something strange, he drops the water bottle and continues to walk forward.  He left the water bottle behind!  He said, that is what we do so much in our own Christian lives.  We start trying to go out and do things for Christ, but we leave Christ behind!

We leave Christ (the water bottle), behind when we try to continue our Christian walk!

Christ says that apart from Him we can do nothing.

I am the vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

We work so hard to bear fruit for God all by ourselves and can never do it, but if we remain in Christ, we bear much fruit.

Behavior in the Christian life does matter!  I know in past blogs I have said we are free from the law of the Old  Covenant and no longer have to follow the law,  but that doesn't mean we go out and start sinning (Romans 6:1).  But people who believe that we are under the law, try so hard to follow the law to please God.  In the end they end up disappointed. You see, in the new Covenant of Grace, Christ lives inside of you and through Him we bear fruit for Him. The knowledge of grace in Christ Jesus changes our behavior.  Steve McVey in his workbook, The Grace Walk Experience, puts it this way,

I'm not minimizing the place of Christian service or the importance of behavior.  I'm simply suggesting that in the modern church we often have it backward.  We think, "If I can just behave in a certain way, if I can just do certain things, then I could become godly.  Then I could become Christlike."  That is the legalistic mind-set.  The Bible teaches that when we know we are Christlike because of what He has done in us and through us, the knowledge of that truth is what will change our behavior.

Knowledge of who we are in Christ, changes our behavior, not the other way around.  For instance, I heard a friend tell me a story one time about how some children lived in the slums of New York surrounded by gangs, drugs, sex, and violence.  When you live in an environment like that, and your parents are involved in activities like that, then you tend to get involved in activities like that. Your identity is centered on what your family says and does.  However, in this one instance, these children's parents told their kids that they were princes and princesses that they were valuable and worth so much.  These kids grew up graduating high school, going to college, and having a good career and sweet families.  Why?  Because of how they viewed themselves.  They were told how valuable they were, so their behavior changed and they made choices that showed others that their lives mattered.  

When we see who we are in Christ and truly comprehend the meaning of grace and Christ's love for us, we see how valuable we are, and our behavior changes.  We try so hard to make ourselves acceptable in God's eyes by doing good, when God has already accepted us.  Romans 5:8 says, 

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

God didn't accept us as perfect people, but while we were still sinners.  So why are we trying so hard to perfect our behavior to be acceptable to God when he has already accepted us?

We try so hard to live out our Christian lives in our own flesh, that we fail miserably. Flesh as oppose to what people think is not just things like drunkenness  adultery, envy, slander, murder, etc. Flesh can look good too.  Flesh can be defined as doing things in our own strength.  Flesh can be self sufficient.  You try to live out your life in your own abilities.  Paul himself talks about not putting confidence in our own flesh (Philipians 3:3-6). 

Instead of putting confidence in our flesh and trying to do things in our own strength, lets look to Christ.  Lets trust in Him, not our flesh.  Let the spirit of Christ guide us in all truth. John 16:13 says, 

But when he, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you in all truth.

Renew mind and fill yourself with Christ (Romans 12:2).  Remember your identity in Christ and that changes your behavior.  In Christ we are righteous and holy (Eph 4:24).  In Christ, we are  unconditionally loving (2 Timothy 1:7).  In Christ, I am accepted and acceptable (Romans 15:7).  In Christ, I am worthy (Ps. 139:14).  In Christ, I am a saint (Eph. 1:1).
In Christ, I am a forgiving person (Col. 3:13).

When I go through life, I try to ask God to help me know what to do in a situation, and then I listen.  Have you ever had something inside tell you, "Don't do it!" or "Do this!" and then, like me you, ignore it and mess things up?  I truly believe that voice is God. I have asked God to make his voice inside of me louder than than the voice of my flesh.  So many times I respond to situations with my emotions, but I have found that when God's voice is louder, I stop doing what it is that my own flesh wants to do.  It sure does make my life and the lives of people around me richer!  I try to renew my mind in Christ and focus on his Grace and goodness. More importantly I TRUST in Christ, and it changes my behavior and thinking.

Behavior matters.  Are you trying to change it, or are you allowing Christ to change it?

Stronger for His Kingdom

Verse of the Week: 

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.  1 Peter 4:12-13

Stronger for His Kingdom

I had just checked our beautiful garden that was growing. The tomato plant was getting thick and bushy with yellow blooms on them.  Tiny green peppers and white blooms were poking out of our red bell pepper plant.  Strong stems were holding up the large leaves of our squash plants.  Our cucumbers, which had a rough start, were finally growing.  I was so excited. This was Brian's and my first real garden!  It was gorgeous, and I delighted in seeing God's creation grow.  Then the dreaded thing happened that no gardener wants to happen to their plants.  A hail storm hit!  Hail beat down on the plants, ripping leaves apart, breaking branches and stems.  The wind blew apart our tomato plant nearly uprooting the the giant bush.  Brian and I were so sad to see the once prosperous garden nearly destroyed in less than 10 minutes.  

Beaten down, but not destroyed

After checking our garden, we went home with heavy hearts until I remembered something in the past.  I remember such a storm hitting my parents garden one year, and those stubborn plants made their way back up and began thriving.  In fact they did so well that we had one of the best crops ever that year.  I remembered back to my little garden that I was growing in small pots.   A hail storm once again nearly destroyed my pepper plant leaving only one leaf on it, and that broken plant came back to produce many peppers for Brian and I that summer.  Hope begin to come back, if those plants could survive such tragedies, then our garden could over come this one.

Isn't our lives just like those plants?  There are times when life is going well, and then a storm hits, tearing us apart nearly destroying us. We are beaten, hit, and broken apart. Why doesn't God protect us from such events?  Why does he allow such bad things to happen?  

I was teaching a small group of children at Vacation Bible School when I asked them this question, "Does God promise to ALWAYS protect us?"  A lot of them looked at me saying, "Yes he does protect us!"  While others shook their heads saying, "No he doesn't always protect us!"  The kids began to debate back an forth on the question. We all talked about how bad things do happen, but some of the kids thought that bad things only happen to bad people.  I had to explain to them that it wasn't so.  I told them that God does love us and does protect us at times in our lives.  There are beautiful verses in the Bible that praise God for His protection.  However, car wreaks, health problems, hurt, and pain still happen to people both good and bad.  I had to explain something that people misunderstand all the time.  People think that once they become a Christian nothing bad can happen to them, but the reality is that bad things still do happen.  Jesus himself says that we will have troubles: 

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)

Here is the catch, while we still have problems, and tragedies strike, Jesus is still in charge, and all things are under his authority or feet (1 Corinthians 15:27).  However, bad things still happen because we live in a fallen world.  The moment Adam and Eve ate the fruit off of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, the world changed; people's heart changed; and the knowledge of sin came into the world.   God still allows mankind to make their own decisions even if they are bad ones.  As a result, bad things still happen.  Here is the most important thing that I told those sweet kids, even if God doesn't promise to ALWAYS protect us, he does promise one thing, and that is to be with us when we go through bad times.  Jesus himself said in Matthew 28:20, "Lo I am with you always, even unto the end of the world."  God doesn't promise to take our problems away, but he does promise to be with us when we go through them.

So what happens when a storm comes?  Just like those plants, with God's help, we can come through it stronger.  God uses storms in our lives to mold and shape us into the people He wants us to be, an image of Himself.  He uses storms to teach us about trust, patience, endurance, self control, kindness, forgiveness, and many other traits that represent our Savior.  He uses storms to bring Himself glory, and to teach us to depend on him.  Peter says in 1 Peter 4:12-13:

12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.

Growing Stronger

God reveals his glory even in the darkest of storms. Thank you Lord for storms in our lives.  Just as my garden plants will recover and grow stronger producing many fruit on their branches, may we grow and produce more fruit for your kingdom. To You be all the glory!

Studying the Bible through the Lens of Grace

Verse of the Week:

For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace. (Romans 6:14)

Studying the Bible through the Lens of Grace

There have been times when studying the Bible has brought a lot of frustration in my life.  One part of the Bible would say one thing, and then in another part it would say the opposite.  Why are there so many contradictions in the Bible?  To just mention a few of those contradictions... In one area of the Bible it talks about an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth (Exodus 21:24); in other words, whatever someone does to you, you do back, but in another area of the Bible Jesus talks about forgiveness and turning the other cheek (Luke 6:29). In one area of the Bible it talks about how God will show you kindness ONLY if you repent (2 Chronicles 7:14), yet in another passage it says that God will show you kindness FIRST and that the kindness He gives causes you to repent (Romans 2:4). There are even more contradictions in the Bible than what was just mentioned. 

For the past few months, I have been studying the Bible through the lens of Grace.  This is hard to share because I know that people who, like me, have been taught something all their lives will think what I am saying is blasphemous,  but I ask that you keep an open mind, look at your Bible, and read for yourself the things that I share with you.  I have tried really hard use the verses in the correct context to back up all that I am saying.  I hope this will spark discussion among you and your family and friends as we all strive to understand our Lord better. I only want to share what the Bible says, period.

There are two vital questions the past few days that I have learned are critical in understanding the Bible (Source: Unlock your Bible, by Steve McVey): 
1. Is this passage part of the Old Covenant or New Covenant?
2. Who is the author talking to in this passage?

Most people shut down whenever they even hear the word, "Covenant" just like a computer shuts down if you pour water on it!  I was one of them, and for years I would ignore the teaching of the Old and New Covenant, but I have found that it is vital in understanding the Bible.

First off, a covenant is similar to a contract.  You do your part, and the other person does their part.  It can also be described like a will someone writes for when they pass away.  If you ever change your will, it makes the previous will you wrote outdated and obsolete.  The same thing with the Old and New Covenant of the Bible.  The Old Covenant is in the Old Testament, and can no longer be used because the New Covenant, which is the New Testament has taken its place. The Bible even describes it this way:

By calling this covenant "new," He has made the first one obsolete, and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear. (Hebrews 8:13)

Unfortunately many people try to read the whole Bible by combining Old and New Covenant together, causing so much frustration and confusion. They think the Old Covenant is supposed to be applied to our daily lives even though we are now under a New Covenant. 

You have to ask yourself, who the Old Covenant was written to?  Some people say it was written to everyone in this world,  but fortunately it isn't true. Steve McVey points out something very critical in his book, Unlock Your Bible:

The entire Bible is written FOR you, but not all of it is written TO you.

While, we can learn so many things from the Old Covenant, you will find it was written to the Jews/Israelites.  In fact the whole Old Testament was written TO the Jews.  Leviticus 26:46 says, 

These are the decrees, the laws and the regulations that the Lord established at Mount Sinai between himself and the Israelites through Moses.  

The Old Covenant is based on Laws and rules to follow. God made an agreement with Israel, that if they would keep his laws, he would bless them; if not, then He would curse them (Deuteronomy 28, Exodus 19:5-8).  

According to the Old Covenant, in order to be declared righteous, one must follow the law, which we know is impossible to do.  The Jews had 613 laws to follow, and they couldn't do it because of man's sinful nature. This is where people today mess up when reading the Bible. They look at the laws and try to follow them today, only to find themselves disappointed. They think they still have to follow some of Moses' law (particularly the moral part of the law), but Paul and James says that if you follow one part, you must follow all of it (Galatians 5:3, James 2:10). In addition to that, I have never seen anything in the New Testament that says you must keep the moral law of Moses. (***see side note on the bottom) You see, the law actually arouses sin (Romans 7:5).  The law actually gives sin its power.  1 Corinthians 15:56 says,

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

People end up getting trapped under the law.   I used to say, well the Old Covenant laws are good guidelines for us to follow and should still be taken seriously.  I used to look at the laws so that I knew how to live my life for Christ,  but Steve McVey puts it this way,

What happens, then, when a person reads the Bible soley for the purpose of finding out how to live?  Her efforts backfire because the Law does what it always does by provoking sinful behavior.

It seems that the harder I try to follow the law, the worse I do, but here is the catch, I am not under the Old Covenant (and I never was under it because I am not a Jew), but under the New Covenant.  Just like if a new will is drawn up and the old will is no longer valid, the same thing happens with the Old and New Covenants.  The Old Covenant is no longer valid, and the New Covenant is what we look to.  I am not saying the Old Covenant is bad and unimportant, the law of the Old Covenant points out that we are sinners and gives us understanding of life under the law. However, under the New Covenant, we are declared righteous through Christ Jesus.  Jesus, fulfilled the law of the Old Covenant and paid the price for our sins through his death and resurrection. Our past, present, and future sins are forgiven  and Christ now lives IN me and will continue his good work through me!  The New Covenant is not based on how well we follow the law, but rather the New Covenant is based on faith in Christ Jesus. We confess our sins once to God and believe that Jesus is our Savior, and God forgives us. That is the New Covenant, grace.

For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace. (Romans 6:14)


Here is another thought, when does the New Covenant start?  At Jesus' birth?  A covenant is always starts with the shedding of blood.  The New Covenant starts after Jesus' death and resurrection (Matthew 26:28).   WOW!!!  So that means a lot of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are still under the Old Covenant. This is important too, because when you read the words of Jesus, you will see that he still says a lot of law based stuff while also introducing and showing Grace by forgiving sins, healing people, and hanging out with sinners.  You see, Jesus was under the Old Covenant during his lifetime and had to fulfill the law in order to die for our sins.  You also have to ask who Jesus was talking to in the gospels, the Jews...not the Gentiles! He said a lot of law based things because he was talking to the race of people who were under the Old Covenant of the law. I am not saying that Jesus' words are unimportant, but we do need to read them in the right context. Many people say they are red letter believers of the Bible; in other words, they study all that Christ says (highlighted in red in the Bible)  and apply it to their own lives.  However not all that Christ says is TO them!  I would never intend to downplay what Christ is saying, that is not my point.  However, many people even limit who Christ is by only studying the gospels, when in fact Christ is the main character in the WHOLE Bible. You see, Christ in every book of the Bible.  To limit Christ to only the gospels is to miss so much of who He is! He is EVERYTHING!

When I read things in the Bible that seem contradictory, I ask myself, "Is this passage part of the Old Covenant or New Covenant?" because if it is under the Old Covenant, it is declared obsolete. If you look closely at the contradictions I wrote at the beginning of this blog, you will see that one is from the Old Covenant and the other is from the New Covenant.  Are you reading the Bible through the lens of the Law or through the lens of Grace? I have been trained all of my life to follow the Law, and I read the Bible through the lens of the Law.  

I now read the Bible through the lens of Grace and have found love and abundant life through Christ Jesus.  What lenses do you read the Bible with?



(To get more information about this topic, read Steve McVey's Unlock Your Bible and The Grace Walk Experience; Andrew Farley's the Naked Gospel, and Andre Van der Merwe's Grace the Forbidden Gospel)

***Just because we are not under the moral law does not give us the license to sin.  Even Paul says that in Romans 6:1 says: What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
People who go out and sin because they are under the New Covenant of Grace, do not truly grasp the concept of grace.  Everything may be permissible under the New Covenant, but not everything is beneficial.  1 Corinthians 10:23 says: "I have the right to do anything," you say--but not everything is beneficial. "I have the right to do anything"--but not everything is constructive. In the New Covenant, we not are led by the Spirit (Romans 8:14) Galatians 5:18.says, But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

Old Covenant	New Covenant
Found in Old Testament and gospels	Found in New Testament
Law Based	Grace Based
Obsolete	Used today
Written to Jews	Written to Everyone

Here is my Chart Notes over what I have learned!

My Journey as a Single Woman

Verse of the Week:

 "[It is] better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man." Psalms 118:8

My Journey as a Single Woman

Brian and I had the opportunity a few weeks ago to attend a wedding.  It was a beautiful  Arkansas outdoor wedding by a pond painted with evergreens, oaks, and greens of all colors.  What a special time it was to see two people in love dedicating themselves to each other for the rest of their lives in the presence of God. It is always so special to see couples join together and become one.  Seeing the wedding, however, brought back memories of the days when I was single and wondered if I would ever get married. 

 I remembered that I was just dying to meet a man and have him "complete me" as I heard so many couples say in the TV show, The Wedding Story.  If I could only have a man, then I would truly be content.  

If only I could have someone complete me, then I would be content

However, as I continued on that journey of looking for "the one," I learned a few things.  First, if I wasn't content now, what made me think that I would be content when I married?  Many couples go through so many relationships and come out bitterly disappointed.  They keep looking for that person to make them happy, but I learned something as a single woman.  Humans cannot make other people happy and content, only God can.  Psalms 118:8 says, "[It is] better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man." For awhile, I thought a man would make me happy and would make my life complete, until one night.... I remember sitting under the Texas stars in the backyard of my parent's home praying for a man, when God said something to me in the depths of my soul..."Am I not enough for you?"  I broke down into tears and said, "Yes, Lord, you are enough!"  Jesus was the one that completed me, not a spouse. From then I started to focus on God and his love and delighting in all that he did and was doing for me and serving Him with all my heart.  What a beautiful time for me.

Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalms 37:4

Even though I was delighting in the Lord, I still had that desire for a man, but I was no longer obsessed about finding one to complete me.  I found that by delighting in God, His desires became my desires!   I was content in Christ and was enjoying being single.

But then, I began to go to the other extremes. I decided that I didn't need a man, that a man would hurt my relationship with God. Paul had talked about how remaining single had its advantages. 

32 I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord’s affairs—how he can please the Lord. 33 But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world—how he can please his wife— 34 and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord’s affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband. 35 I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord.

(1 Corinthians 7:32-35)

I loved my relationship with God and didn't want my attention divided. I thought I needed to sacrifice my dreams of marriage, because a man could only hurt my relationship with Christ. I thought that my desire to be married was wrong and revealed lack of contentment on my part. I would soon realize that God loves me so much and had beautiful plans for me (Jeremiah 29:11).  I learned that my desire to have a spouse wasn't wrong, but that God places desires in us.  I wrote this poem for mine and Brian's first year anniversary.

Union 

2010

This poem is dedicated to the love of my life, Brian, who constantly challenges me in my walk with Christ. Thank you, Lord, for Brian.

One night in tears I prayed to you.

   Lord, don't send a man to me.

I'm afraid I will forget my Savior

  And the man will change my behavior

Instead of focusing on you with all my heart

  My eyes will follow an idol, a work of art

I would begin to depend on man for strength

  And hold you at arm's length

So please, Lord, don't send a man to me

   I always want to belong to you.

Like a child I clung to my Father's hand

   To be separated, I couldn't stand

Then in a gentle whisper my Lord said to me

   Child, don't you know the plans I have for you?

I will provide for you every need.

  I am going to give you a man indeed!

Not one who will turn you from your Lord.

  But one who will make sure I am adored.

He will draw you closer to me

   And through him, I will reveal my love for you.

You see my child, there will be no separation from me

   But a union between all of us three.

I realized that God loves me so much and would never leave me nor forsake me.  I thought that a man would separate me from Him,  but I soon realized that NOTHING can separate me from God's love.  I also learned that He can provide me with a man who will love me with Christ's love.  I learned that a man after God's own heart does indeed exist.

For all you singles out there, be patient.  Don't try to take things into your own hands,  you will only mess it up.  Instead, trust the Creator of the world, the God who loves you so much to bring that man/woman into your life.  Meanwhile, delight in God and enjoy his love and faithfulness.  He is the one that completes us! Even after you are married, Jesus is our source of contentment.  No human on earth can complete or give us that contentment like Jesus!