Nothing to do with it

“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.  People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God– having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.  They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires,  always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth.”  2 Timothy 3:1-7

This was a bad week for our nation, and a foreshadowing of times to come.  Sadly, it confirmed what “terrible times” we are indeed in.  We saw a nation of people blindly following a conceited, narcissistic, slanderous, Godless  leader, and an evil ideology.  What is even sadder, is that WE have allowed this tragedy to happen.  WE have allowed God’s word to be perverted, without resistance.  WE have allowed our  homes and churches to be places of ungodly “tolerance”, rather than beacons of light in a dark world.  WE have vilified God himself, and rejected HIS word by our complacency.

Let’s be clear – socialism is NOT a Christian value – the redistribution of wealth is the embodiment of covetousness – wanting…stealing… the fruit of the labor of others IS SIN.

And what of “social issues”?  I’m not about to pussy-foot around on this one.  Abortion IS murder.  Period.  A child is not a “choice” once he or she is conceived.  Abortion is about a life, not a social issue.

And as for me paying for your birth control, well – if you sold your vote for a few bucks worth of pills or prophylactics, then you sold your integrity and virtue.  Ladies, if that is something that you opted for, then you are one of the “weak-willed women” that the Bible talks about – loaded with sin, and swayed by your evil desires.  I say that with a sincere hope that you will re-examine yourselves and return to God and his truth.  The Bible tells us that the wounds from a friend can be trusted (Proverbs 27:6), so please take my words as just that – the wounds from a friend.

And gay marriage?  God calls homosexuality “detestable”.  (Leviticus 18:22)  It is a sin, NOT to be celebrated.  Are there other sins that we all experience?  Of course!  But we in no way celebrate those sins!  Marriage is between one MAN and one WOMAN.  Period.  And a relationship outside of marriage is adultery.  A government that spits in the face of God and codifies, celebrates and protects sin is actively rejecting God and his protections.  We are not better off when we celebrate sin.  Our “tolerance” opens the door to God’s judgment even further.

These are just a few examples of what we are to reject as Christians, and we are told, in no uncertain terms, that we are to “Have nothing to do with them.”  We must be willing to stand up for the truth – in our homes, in our communities, in our nation, and in our churches.

The question for you today is whether you are FOR GOD or against him.  God has put before you life and death.  CHOOSE LIFE!

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your protection in our lives, and your provision in our lives.  We thank you for giving us your word to guide us in our lives.  We ask you for strength to hold fast to your word, and the strength to stand by your word and in your word when those around us choose the darkness of sin.  Give us wisdom and strength to proclaim your word in a world that is filled with evil, treachery, godlessness, sin and darkness.  Lord, let us be light to those who are in that darkness.  Help us to live lives that are pleasing to you.  Thank you for the hope of salvation, and guide us to bring others into that hope.  Lord, give us inspiration today, especially when we are hurting.  Inspire us to hold on to you when our own faith is weak.  Bless us, Lord, even in these terrible times.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

 

 

Lying Lips

“The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”  1 John 2:4

Are you a liar?  Hmmm…..

Do you claim to know Christ, but yet you fail to do what He tells us to do?  Well, do you?

If we inspect our lives, we can always find times and ways in which we fall short of God’s commands.  Let’s face it, we’re part of a sinful, fallen world.  Some of those times and ways are more obvious than others.  I know that there are plenty of ways that I fall short.  And God knows that.  So what does God do about our failures?  He gives us a way to be forgiven – through repentance.  Through the truth.  Through Christ.  That requires that we see those sinful things as sin, though.  And that we really do want to be closer to God, and that we really do want to be close to Him, and be His child.

But what if we claim to be a child of God, one of Christ’s redeemed, but yet we fail to obey God, and continue to insist that our own way is better than God’s way?  What if we engage in sin and celebrate that sin rather than repent from it, because, after all, we “know better” or are more “tolerant” than what the Bible teaches?  That sounds like a very harsh thing to say, but we know that some do take that path.  When we thumb our nose at God, despite having paid lip service to being “saved”, we demonstrate to God that we never really accepted the gift of salvation.  We see ourselves as smarter than God, more in tune with the world than God, and yes, better than God.  We’ve seen all too often those who claim Christ because it is a way for them to gain favor with others who value their faith, but who, in the end, never put that claim into practice in their lives.  Perhaps it’s a family member who wants to make someone happy, or to at least get someone off of their back.  Perhaps it’s  a pastor who once thought they felt God’s call on their life, but who never really wanted anything more than to have others look up to them, or to be like them, or to just make money, or to “get away” with bad behaviors because claiming Christ would cause others to trust them – and they lead their flock away from God’s truth as they perpetrate their own sins.  Perhaps it is a politician who claims that they know Christ, but who knows that such claim is blatantly false, and does everything that they can to promote the very things that are evil in God’s sight – like abortion, gay marriage, stealing inheritances, and persecuting Christians – so that they can hold on to their own power.

We must be vigilant and keep our eyes open for these wolves in sheep’s clothing.  We must guard our hearts and minds from these liars, and stay steeped in God’s word so that we don’t go down that same path of destruction.

Lord, we thank you for your word that tells us so plainly what you expect from us, and what is important to you.  Thank you for reminding us that we can’t just pay lip service to loving you, and that we demonstrate the true content of our hearts by and through our actions.  Be with each of us, Lord, every day, to guide us in our walk with you, so that we don’t stumble and fall away from you.  Turn the hearts of liars, so that they may know your truth and seek repentance for their sins.  Lord, bless us and give us wisdom, and strengthen us as we go out into the world today and every day.  Help us to recognize and avoid the lying lips around us, and help us to boldly speak your truth and to stand for that truth.  Thank you, Lord, your blessing and truth.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD.  2012.  All rights reserved.

Grafted In

” Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.  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 15:4-5

Have you ever been to a vineyard?  Have you ever seen how wine grapes are planted and grown?  It’s actually very interesting, and it has our Father’s hands all over it.

This past weekend my husband and I went to a local vineyard and actually got to participate in planting grapevines.  What we learned set bells off in my head about just what Jesus talked about in John’s gospel.  We learned that to grow a great grape, and end up with abundant, high-quality wine, you have to have a great vine.   Did you know that the finest wines are made from grapes that are grown on branches that are grafted into a hearty vine.   The vines that are the best are ones whose roots grow very deep, even through the most difficult soil, and they have a very special resistance to disease and decay that other vines just don’t have.  These special vines are also willing to receive into them the graft of delicate branches of special kinds of grapes that are perfect for making high quality wines.  The vine actually protects the branches from the diseases and decay that might otherwise harm the branches and the grapes that grow from them.

Does this sound familiar to you?

We are very much like those delicate branches.  We are easily blown around by the winds of society, easily parched by the oppressive heat of our trials in the fire, easily drowned by the flooding torrents of the rain of tears and emotions, and easily brought low by the disease and decay of sin.  But as weak vines we have the hope of restoration, growth and bearing fruit when we allow ourselves to be grafted in to the vine of Christ.  Christ’s roots in the Godhead are deep and strong in even the most difficult soil.  The hope we find in Christ allows us to be refined in the fire of our trials.  The peace we find in Christ gives us calm in the storms and waves the emotions that we experience in life.  Christ’s sacrifice – His love and mercy – His salvation – allows us to break free from the disease and decay, and death, of sin.

And how do we become grafted in to Christ?  The answer is just like it is in the vineyard.  We must be willing to be cut away from our old roots, and allow our own wounds to be bound together with the wounds that Christ received on the cross.  When we hold tight to the sacrificial love of Christ we are joined with Him, and we become strong through Him when we become one with Him.

So if you want to bear good fruit, know that today is a new opportunity to be grafted into the Vine.

Heavenly Father, thank you for showing us your truth in the world around us.  Thank you for giving us examples of your Word in the things that we see every day.  Thank you for the opportunity to be grafted in to your deep, strong roots.  And we know that sometimes being cut away from our old roots can be painful, so help us to look beyond the pain and look forward to our new life in Christ.  Bless us and teach us to bear good fruit.  Help us to remain faithful, and to abide in you when life tosses us around, when trials are long, and when emotions run high.  Thank you for your love, and for caring so much for us.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.