Category Archives: Envy / Jealousy / Coveting

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You Shall Love Your Neighbor As Yourself

For those of you who read our article yesterday, the introduction to this companion article will be redundant, but we pivot to focus on the last 6 commandments in this article where we focused on the first 4 yesterday. (You Shall Love The Lord Your God With All Your Heart)

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The ten commandments do not represent the sum total of God’s law or instruction for His people. However. He saw fit to focus on these 10 as He addressed the people. Much more detail was shared with the people through Moses and is available for us to study and learn in scripture. The point is, that learning and obeying these 10 commandments is not sufficient but it is a good place to start.

Some immediately want to say that this is out of date, “Didn’t Jesus say to love God and love others was all we need to do?”

Matthew 22:34-40

     34But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered themselves together. 35One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, 36“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37And He said to him, “ ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ 38“This is the great and foremost commandment. 39“The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ 40“On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”

Context is important. This is not a new commandment replacing the others. Jesus lived obeying the law of Moses and quoting from it in His teaching. He explicitly said He did not come to change the law.

Matthew 5:17-19

      17“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. 18“For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19“Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

What Jesus is essentially saying is that He can summarize God’s instruction down to loving God and loving one another. However, we don’t get to define what that means on our terms. All too often people today define that as accepting sin and encouraging people that they do not have to repent of sin to be in right relationship with God. God already defined what it means to love God and love one another. As a starting point, we can use the 10 commandments. The first four are about our relationship with God and the next 6 are about our relationship with each other. This is not an all inclusive list, but it is a good place to start and to a health check on our relationship with God and others. We focus today on our relationship with others.

Deuteronomy 5:16-21 (the last six commandments)

    16‘Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, that your days may be prolonged and that it may go well with you on the land which the LORD your God gives you.

      17‘You shall not murder.

      18‘You shall not commit adultery.

      19‘You shall not steal.

      20‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

      21‘You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, and you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field or his male servant or his female servant, his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.’

Let us first observe that loving God comes first, before loving others. This is true in the order in which the commandments were given by God and also the order in which Jesus spoke about them… love God and love one another… the order is important.

Honor your father and your mother. God has commanded us to honor our parents. In particular this is important for children when they are in the care of their parents before they grow in wisdom and relationship with the Lord. Their parents are there to protect and provide for and guide them. Even as adults we should honor father and mother. Children do not need to agree with parents in order to honor them.

You shall not murder. Too often this is mistranslated as “do not kill”. There is a difference between killing (e.g. in self defense) and murder. God’s people were often called to defend their nation in battle or to take the promised land at God’s command. God Himself provided a legal system in which some offenses are punishable by death. These are not the same as murder even though people die. On the other hand, abortion is the taking of an innocent life… it is murder. This will be tough for many to accept and internalize. However, keep in mind that Christ has died for our sins and so we can be forgiven.

You shall not commit adultery. Sadly, this should be obvious to anyone who loves their spouse, but our culture seems to be less and less concerned with calling out this sin. It is almost accepted as not ideal or flattering, but commonplace. It really should be considered a terrible offense and not lessened in significance just because so many fail in this area. It rips apart marriage, which is intended as a very close, personal bond between a man and a woman for life. It rips apart and damages families and children. It is very destructive on our society and culture.

You shall not steal. We do not love others by taking what is theirs. That is extremely selfish and hurtful.

Thou shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Do not lie to get someone else in trouble. Speak the truth and treat people honestly and with integrity.

You shall not covet. Coveting is an everyday part of our lives. For America, and much of the world, it is the new favorite national pastime. Marketing constantly tries to make us covet what others have so we go buy it. People go deep into debt buying things they don’t need and can’t afford (e.g. houses, cars, clothes, phones, anything and everything) because they covet. People hate others and resent others because they covet. Do not let this sin sneak into your life because it is so accepted in our culture. Look for it and ask for God’s help for you to be content rather than coveting.

Think you are scoring well? Let’s take a look at how Jesus told us to judge against these commandments.

Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28

      21“You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ 22“But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.

      27“You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY’; 28but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Jesus shows us how high God’s standards are. We don’t get to redefine them so they are easy just because we fail. They are the righteous standard and good reference point to measure our progress in becoming more like Christ and less like the world. It should be clear by now that we all truly need the grace of Christ’s offer of forgiveness through grace by faith based on His death on the cross for us. None of us can meet God’s holy standard.

Consider this a health check on your relationship with God and others. Do you love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength? Do you love others as yourself? Most of us would admit we have further to go to live up to this standard… and we need God’s help to get there. Ask for Him to help you love Him more. Then look to understand more about how to demonstrate love for God through your decisions and attitudes of submission and obedience to Him.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Bitterness / Resentment, Complaining, Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Grace / Patience, He Appears Before You, Help / Serve Others, Interceding for Others, Justice / Judgment, Merciful, Mercy, Miracles, Offering Sacrifices, Repenting from Sin, Through Prophets, Tongue / Gossip / Slander, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Do Not Choose To Complain When God Calls You To Repent

Korah lead a rebellion in the beginning of Numbers 16. The Lord punished him and his family and those who also led the rebellion. They were swallowed up by the earth in a sign that could only be of the Lord. It was public and visible. One would assume then that the rest of the people who had been spared would be humble and repent before the Lord for their rebellion against Him. They did not. Instead they grumbled and complained, again jealous and blaming Moses and Aaron and never looking inward to judge the hardness of their own hearts in a way that could lead to repentance.

While it seems quite amazing, if you think about it in the lives of people around you every day, even those who say they believe and follow Jesus, you will see it is quite common. People have a tendency to excuse or overlook their sin and rebellion to God and blame others when things do not work out how they like. They do not internalize this issue of rebellion as originating with them… as their fault.

What an amazing response by Moses and Aaron… rather than just stand there and let God wipe out the rebellious people, they spring to action and make an intercessory offering and prayer on behalf of the sinful people. Though the people did not repent, the intercessory prayers of the righteous were enough for God to spare the people further destruction. What a great example of how we as God’s people should respond to those who struggle in their relationship with the Lord. Let us not be vengeful, but rather gracious in seeking to pray on their behalf before the Lord.

Numbers 16:41-50

Murmuring and Plague

     41But on the next day all the congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You are the ones who have caused the death of the LORD’S people.” 42It came about, however, when the congregation had assembled against Moses and Aaron, that they turned toward the tent of meeting, and behold, the cloud covered it and the glory of the LORD appeared. 43Then Moses and Aaron came to the front of the tent of meeting, 44and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 45“Get away from among this congregation, that I may consume them instantly.” Then they fell on their faces. 46Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put in it fire from the altar, and lay incense on it; then bring it quickly to the congregation and make atonement for them, for wrath has gone forth from the LORD, the plague has begun!” 47Then Aaron took it as Moses had spoken, and ran into the midst of the assembly, for behold, the plague had begun among the people. So he put on the incense and made atonement for the people. 48He took his stand between the dead and the living, so that the plague was checked. 49But those who died by the plague were 14,700, besides those who died on account of Korah. 50Then Aaron returned to Moses at the doorway of the tent of meeting, for the plague had been checked.

When God calls you to repent, do not choose to complain instead. Take care not to be like those who sin and then grumble, always blaming the righteous for what goes wrong and never internalizing your own sin and relationship with the Lord.

Look also for the opportunity to pray for others, even those who would do you harm or say bad things to and about you. What a way to be a light to the world!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Bitterness / Resentment, Complaining, Consequences of Sin, Contentment, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Faith / Trusting God, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Justice / Judgment, Miracles, Obeying God, Through Prophets

Trust In God’s Calling For You

We are all different. God has made us with different personalities, different passions, different skills, etc. He has made each of us for that which He wishes for us to pursue and accomplish on His behalf as part of the body of Christ. Take care to trust God, seek out His calling for your life, and be content … even joyful… with it. Envy not the role He has selected for others and seek not to force your own way for your own glory. When we focus our thoughts on ourselves instead of the Lord it is too easy to slip into rebellion with the Lord even if we try to position ourselves in ministry or the church.

Numbers 16:1-40

Korah’s Rebellion

     1Now Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took action, 2and they rose up before Moses, together with some of the sons of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, chosen in the assembly, men of renown. 3They assembled together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “You have gone far enough, for all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is in their midst; so why do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?”

      4When Moses heard this, he fell on his face; 5and he spoke to Korah and all his company, saying, “Tomorrow morning the LORD will show who is His, and who is holy, and will bring him near to Himself; even the one whom He will choose, He will bring near to Himself. 6“Do this: take censers for yourselves, Korah and all your company, 7and put fire in them, and lay incense upon them in the presence of the LORD tomorrow; and the man whom the LORD chooses shall be the one who is holy. You have gone far enough, you sons of Levi!”

      8Then Moses said to Korah, “Hear now, you sons of Levi, 9is it not enough for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the rest of the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to Himself, to do the service of the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before the congregation to minister to them; 10and that He has brought you near, Korah, and all your brothers, sons of Levi, with you? And are you seeking for the priesthood also? 11“Therefore you and all your company are gathered together against the LORD; but as for Aaron, who is he that you grumble against him?”

      12Then Moses sent a summons to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab; but they said, “We will not come up. 13“Is it not enough that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to have us die in the wilderness, but you would also lord it over us? 14“Indeed, you have not brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor have you given us an inheritance of fields and vineyards. Would you put out the eyes of these men? We will not come up!”

      15Then Moses became very angry and said to the LORD, “Do not regard their offering! I have not taken a single donkey from them, nor have I done harm to any of them.” 16Moses said to Korah, “You and all your company be present before the LORD tomorrow, both you and they along with Aaron. 17“Each of you take his firepan and put incense on it, and each of you bring his censer before the LORD, two hundred and fifty firepans; also you and Aaron shall each bring his firepan.” 18So they each took his own censer and put fire on it, and laid incense on it; and they stood at the doorway of the tent of meeting, with Moses and Aaron. 19Thus Korah assembled all the congregation against them at the doorway of the tent of meeting. And the glory of the LORD appeared to all the congregation.

      20Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 21“Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them instantly.” 22But they fell on their faces and said, “O God, God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, will You be angry with the entire congregation?”

      23Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 24“Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get back from around the dwellings of Korah, Dathan and Abiram.’”

      25Then Moses arose and went to Dathan and Abiram, with the elders of Israel following him, 26and he spoke to the congregation, saying, “Depart now from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing that belongs to them, or you will be swept away in all their sin.” 27So they got back from around the dwellings of Korah, Dathan and Abiram; and Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the doorway of their tents, along with their wives and their sons and their little ones. 28Moses said, “By this you shall know that the LORD has sent me to do all these deeds; for this is not my doing. 29“If these men die the death of all men or if they suffer the fate of all men, then the LORD has not sent me. 30“But if the LORD brings about an entirely new thing and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that is theirs, and they descend alive into Sheol, then you will understand that these men have spurned the LORD.”

      31As he finished speaking all these words, the ground that was under them split open; 32and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, and their households, and all the men who belonged to Korah with their possessions. 33So they and all that belonged to them went down alive to Sheol; and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. 34All Israel who were around them fled at their outcry, for they said, “The earth may swallow us up!” 35Fire also came forth from the LORD and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering the incense.

      36Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 37“Say to Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, that he shall take up the censers out of the midst of the blaze, for they are holy; and you scatter the burning coals abroad. 38“As for the censers of these men who have sinned at the cost of their lives, let them be made into hammered sheets for a plating of the altar, since they did present them before the LORD and they are holy; and they shall be for a sign to the sons of Israel.” 39So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers which the men who were burned had offered, and they hammered them out as a plating for the altar, 40as a reminder to the sons of Israel that no layman who is not of the descendants of Aaron should come near to burn incense before the LORD; so that he will not become like Korah and his company—just as the LORD had spoken to him through Moses.

What more can be said to reinforce the point? Rebellion against God’s will is bad. It angers Him and glorifies no one. Seek righteousness with humility and be content with how the Lord chooses to use you.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

 

Blessed, Contentment, Discerning / Judging, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Humility, Idols / False Gods, Praise / Worship / Glorify God, Prayer, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

He Gives Us Over To The Stubbornness Of Our Hearts

Psalm 81 was written about God’s goodness and Israel’s waywardness… or behavior of going astray from God and pursuing ungodly things. God established Israel and provided for them through many mighty deeds and yet they continued to stray from Him to chase false gods and selfish pursuits. A Psalm like this one could very easily be written about the USA with a few minor changes to the historical references such as “coming out of Egypt”. Jehovah blessed our Christian nation at its birth and yet we as a nation continue to stray from God.

As a result of our rejection of Him as a nation, He gives us over to the stubbornness of our hearts and we now walk in our own devices… an immoral society overrun by sin which is normalized throughout the land. Many gods are worshipped… money, sex, power, sports, status, and perhaps most of all self. Coveting is the national pastime for many, always lusting after what others have rather than finding contentment with what God has provided.

Psalm 81

For the choir director; on the Gittith. A Psalm of Asaph.

     1Sing for joy to God our strength;
Shout joyfully to the God of Jacob.

      2Raise a song, strike the timbrel,
The sweet sounding lyre with the harp.

      3Blow the trumpet at the new moon,
At the full moon, on our feast day.

      4For it is a statute for Israel,
An ordinance of the God of Jacob.

      5He established it for a testimony in Joseph
When he went throughout the land of Egypt.
I heard a language that I did not know:

      6“I relieved his shoulder of the burden,
His hands were freed from the basket.

      7“You called in trouble and I rescued you;
I answered you in the hiding place of thunder;
I proved you at the waters of Meribah.

Selah.

      8“Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you;
O Israel, if you would listen to Me!

      9“Let there be no strange god among you;
Nor shall you worship any foreign god.

      10“I, the LORD, am your God,
Who brought you up from the land of Egypt;
Open your mouth wide and I will fill it.

      11“But My people did not listen to My voice,
And Israel did not obey Me.

      12“So I gave them over to the stubbornness of their heart,
To walk in their own devices.

      13“Oh that My people would listen to Me,
That Israel would walk in My ways!

      14“I would quickly subdue their enemies
And turn My hand against their adversaries.

      15“Those who hate the LORD would pretend obedience to Him,
And their time of punishment would be forever.

      16“But I would feed you with the finest of the wheat,
And with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

Pray for revival personally, in your family, in your local church, in your state, in the nation and across the world. Live out the revival in your daily life. Pray, study, spend time with our Lord. Ask for His guidance in your life and be prepared to give up your desires and your plans in favor of His. You may well find that what you desire was never really yours to begin with but only that which our culture indoctrinated you to pursue. What He wants for us is much better.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Addiction, Adultery / Sex Outside Marriage, Anger (unrighteous anger), Arrogance, Bad Habits, Bitterness / Resentment, Controlling Thoughts, Doubt / Lacking Faith, Drunkenness, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Faith / Trusting God, Father / Yahweh, Fortune Telling, Gluttony, Greed, Guide, Holy / Set Apart, Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Homosexual Behavior, Hypocrisy, Idols / False Gods, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Lying / Deceiving, Mockers, Murder, Pride, Rebuke Wrong Behavior, Repenting from Sin, Revenge, Righteous, Self Control, Selfishness, Sloth / Laziness, Stealing / Theft, Tongue / Gossip / Slander, Wickedness / Evil

Shall We Continue to Sin So That Grace May Increase?

It is a very important concept for followers of Jesus Christ to understand. When we ask Jesus to be our Lord and accept His offer of salvation by grace through faith that He died for our sins, we must also recognize that we are not to abuse that grace. For us to abuse grace by intentionally continuing to sin is to not truly submit to the lordship of Christ over sin and self. It is to not truly accept His offer of salvation.

We all sin, but let us never embrace it intentionally under the excuse that His grace will cover our sins. Instead let us seek to repent from sin, to turn away from it and toward the Father. Let us die to self and sin and rise in Christ to a new life. We need His help and He will provide it to those who truly invite Him in to be Lord of their life.

Romans 6

Believers Are Dead to Sin, Alive to God

      1What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? 3Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7for he who has died is freed from sin.

      8Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

      12Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, 13and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

      15What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! 16Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? 17But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, 18and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.

      20For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death. 22But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. 23For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I can well remember a variety of sinful habits that I seemed unable to break on my own power. The more I turned my life over to the Father, the more I sought to learn and understand His word and apply it in my life, the more the Holy Spirit has revealed Himself in my life to guide me and strengthen me in my daily walk… in rejecting sin. I have been able to turn away from habits and behaviors that had me beat and stay away. However, temptation remains a challenge, trying to draw us in. Remain vigilant and focused. Choose righteousness over sin. The rewards in this life and beyond are priceless.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Adultery / Sex Outside Marriage, Doubt / Lacking Faith, Drunkenness, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Greed, Homosexual Behavior, Idols / False Gods, Justice / Judgment, Mockers, Righteousness / Serving God, Sin, Stealing / Theft, Wickedness / Evil, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

The Unrighteous Will Not Inherit The Kingdom of God

All to often we are told by the culture of the world today that God loves and accepts all people regardless of behavior choices… whether they rebel against God or obey Him. The world twists scripture and reality to claim that people are born “with a tendency to sin” in a certain area and thus it is “not their fault”. Somehow, we are to believe, if someone is “predisposed” to a certain sin, then they are not expected to overcome it and turn from it. Instead we are told it is to be accepted out of love. The truth is much more clear and perhaps to some, harsh.

If I am born with poor balance and I fall often… I still get hurt. It is up to me to change my behavior to avoid the consequences of it. In this example of poor balance I should avoid walking along the edge of a roof or canyon where I may fall and die. I am responsible for my behavior.

To make it more silly… if I am born such that I will be very tall, like a basketball player… it is still up to me to make sure I adjust my behavior to avoid getting hurt by walking into the tops of low doorways or ceiling fans. The consequences are the same regardless of whether or not I have been “predisposed” to certain risk.

One area where this is still generally accepted is predisposition to alcohol or drug abuse. We do not encourage those individuals to drink and do drugs anyway… telling them it is not their fault. We encourage them to get help and change their behavior. They must choose to avoid situations that would even be tempting to them. If they drink or do drugs they still face the consequences of their actions.

The same is true of all manner of sin and we must take heed, lest we get in the habit of excusing all of it. Someone is not defined by their sin. They do not need to remain in it and accept it. It must be overcome with God’s help. To accept our sin and remain in it is to live in active rebellion to God and those who do so will not inherit the kingdom of God. Quite simply… when we actively ignore God and live in rebellion to His word it shows that we do not really believe in Him and that is a big warning sign that we are headed for hell when we die, unless we repent and submit to God.

1 Corinthians 6:9-11

      9Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. 11Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

Do not be deceived. Whether or not we are predisposed to a certain sin, the consequences of actively choosing to remain in sin are the same… separation from God and eternity without Him when we die. We do no one a favor by telling them it is ok to disregard what God has told us and just to embrace and accept their sin. We obey God and show love to others by showing them the truth with gentleness and love. We help them… not by accepting them in their sin but by leading them out of it.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Adultery / Sex Outside Marriage, Am I on the path?, Discerning / Judging, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Greed, Idols / False Gods, Righteousness / Serving God, Salvation, Thankfulness

Should A Christian Judge Others?

The topic of judging others is one that typically brings out strong emotions amongst Christians today. One can have an argument erupt without ever getting deeper into the discussion behind the word “judge”. It is important to consider context of how we use the word “judge”. It can be used to refer to determining one’s salvation in Christ or also used in regards to determining right actions and motives from wrong ones. These are two very different contexts, even though the external actions are often a reflection of the internal motives. How might we go about considering this topic? How about we pick a good role model and see how they show it should be done?

From the time we are young children we are often taught to look at role models to guide our behavior. The concept is simple… identify someone who is doing something well and that you want to “be like” and then study how they think and act. Repeat their actions and hope to repeat their successful outcome in your own life.

The right role models help us succeed in our endeavors, but the wrong role models can lead us on a path to failure and destruction. The wise take great care in evaluating proper role models to follow, but the foolish decide quickly whom to imitate based on surface evaluation of fame or money or status. What we perceive to be “success” has great influence in whom we choose as a role model. Am I pursuing a football career? or a close personal relationship with God? If both, which is my higher priority?

Pause for a moment and consider who you would use as your role model in evaluating the topic of “judging others”. Now let us consider who Paul points to in Ephesians 5.

Ephesians 5:1-21

Be Imitators of God

      1Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; 2and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

      3But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; 4and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. 5For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

      6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7Therefore do not be partakers with them; 8for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light 9(for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), 10trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. 11Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; 12for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. 13But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light.

14For this reason it says,
“Awake, sleeper,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.”

      15Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, 19speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; 20always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; 21and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.

I hear many cling to false doctrine that “I can do anything I want and the grace of God will cover it“… which essentially makes the case that we can intentionally rebel against God, or just ignore Him, instead of submit to Him and He does not mind! That is absurd.  Paul clearly teaches differently as did Jesus and all the prophets. The key message of all of them was to “repent, turn away from wrong behaviors and attitudes, submit to God, and sin no more“.  No Biblical prophet or disciple (and certainly not Jesus) ever taught that it was ok to keep sinning willfully. If you find that scripture… please send it to me. It is not there.

It should be sobering to all of us to read Ephesians 5:5.

Ephesians 5:5  5For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

Yes… our behaviors and attitudes, which are observable by other people, are a reflection of our inner faith and relationship with God. We cannot claim to be righteous and in right relationship with God just because we say so and then keep on sinning!

Romans 6:1-3 1What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?

Ephesians 5:6-7 are actually a command for us to avoid the deception of empty words! Far too many are confused and declare no one should “judge” anyone else. We are clearly instructed to discern genuine followers of Christ from liars by their actions and then to keep away from those who are not truly following God!

Ephesians 5:6-7  6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7Therefore do not be partakers with them;

It is equally true that we should test even our own actions to see if they reflect Christ or not. Let us not be complacent in that we say Jesus is Lord, but rather test our actions to see if we are living in such a way that demonstrates we believe Jesus is Lord. This means we obey His commandments, not our own desires and not the value system of the world.

Ephesians 5:11 goes on to instruct us explicitly to not participate in and even to expose the deeds of darkness rather than ignore them for fear of “judging” others who do wrong. We are not called to just go along to avoid offending other people.  We are called to use wisdom and discernment to judge right from wrong!

Ephesians 5:11 11Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them;

If we listen to many role models, even leaders in many churches, we will be told not to “judge” actions of others. But when we choose God as our role model, and the Bible as our primary source of revelation about God… an unchanging source of knowledge about an unchanging God… we see different instruction. We must wisely judge right from wrong so that we can do right and avoid wrong. To do so we must identify by their observable actions who are those that we can trust and who are those we can not. We should even go so far as to challenge ourselves by comparing our observable actions to the words we say when we claim to submit to Jesus.

As an interesting exercise, consider the following. If you were on trial, accused of being a Christian… a true follower of Jesus Christ… could anyone convict you based on actual observable facts?

James 2:18-19

18But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” 19You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. 20But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?

What changes should you consider to your life that may help build the evidence that you are a genuine Christian?  Keep in mind, of course, that doing works just to do works amounts to nothing. We must start by testing what we really believe in our heart, submit to and follow Jesus wholeheartedly, and you will want to do the works.

Said a different way, if you can not find evidence to convict you as a follower of Christ, do not try to fix the problem by starting with more works, but rather by inspecting your heart and transforming your heart to fully submit to following Jesus. Then simply live your life with a genuine love for Jesus and desire to obey His commands… and the works will just show up.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Anger (unrighteous anger), Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Family, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Suffering / Adversity

Joseph’s Brothers Sell Him Into Slavery

We continue to see the build up of envy and resulting anger toward Joseph from his brothers as his father, Israel (formerly known as Jacob), sends Joseph to check on his older brothers. We already saw earlier in Genesis 37 that Joseph’s brothers resent him for the obvious favoritism Israel bestowed upon him and for the dreams Joseph had received from God that showed his family bowing down to him. There is no evidence in scripture that Israel ever tried to deal with this growing divide in his family. Instead, Joseph is sent out, wearing his fine tunic, and will face much difficulty and suffering at the hands of his brothers.

Genesis37:12-36

      12Then his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock in Shechem. 13Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock in Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them.” And he said to him, “I will go.” 14Then he said to him, “Go now and see about the welfare of your brothers and the welfare of the flock, and bring word back to me.” So he sent him from the valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem.

      15A man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field; and the man asked him, “What are you looking for?” 16He said, “I am looking for my brothers; please tell me where they are pasturing the flock.” 17Then the man said, “They have moved from here; for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan.

The Plot against Joseph

      18When they saw him from a distance and before he came close to them, they plotted against him to put him to death. 19They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer! 20“Now then, come and let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; and we will say, ‘A wild beast devoured him.’ Then let us see what will become of his dreams!” 21But Reuben heard this and rescued him out of their hands and said, “Let us not take his life.” 22Reuben further said to them, “Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but do not lay hands on him”—that he might rescue him out of their hands, to restore him to his father. 23So it came about, when Joseph reached his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the varicolored tunic that was on him; 24and they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty, without any water in it.

      25Then they sat down to eat a meal. And as they raised their eyes and looked, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing aromatic gum and balm and myrrh, on their way to bring them down to Egypt. 26Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it for us to kill our brother and cover up his blood? 27“Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him. 28Then some Midianite traders passed by, so they pulled him up and lifted Joseph out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. Thus they brought Joseph into Egypt.

      29Now Reuben returned to the pit, and behold, Joseph was not in the pit; so he tore his garments. 30He returned to his brothers and said, “The boy is not there; as for me, where am I to go?” 31So they took Joseph’s tunic, and slaughtered a male goat and dipped the tunic in the blood; 32and they sent the varicolored tunic and brought it to their father and said, “We found this; please examine it to see whether it is your son’s tunic or not.” 33Then he examined it and said, “It is my son’s tunic. A wild beast has devoured him; Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!” 34So Jacob tore his clothes, and put sackcloth on his loins and mourned for his son many days. 35Then all his sons and all his daughters arose to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. And he said, “Surely I will go down to Sheol in mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him. 36Meanwhile, the Midianites sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, Pharaoh’s officer, the captain of the bodyguard.

Joseph’s brothers allow themselves to be driven to such anger by their jealousy that the even contemplate murdering him. This from the same group of brothers that ruthlessly sought revenge for their sister when she was mistreated. They had family loyalty in them… but allowed themselves to be blinded by jealousy against Joseph.

Reuben intervenes to prevent Joseph’s murder, but really does not take on the other brothers directly to speak against doing evil to Joseph. He tries to influence the situation but does not take it on and protect Joseph boldly. When he is not around, the others sell Joseph into slavery.

There is much deception within the family and much self-induced suffering.

Many of us today think that broken families are a new thing… that prior generations were more godly. Sometimes that is true and sometimes it is not. There is one thing for sure… division within families is not a new issue.

I urge you to pursue first the kingdom of God, including forgiveness, grace, mercy within your own family. Stand together for God rather than dividing within the family for earthly matters. Seek God together in prayer. Openly address conflict within your family rather than avoid it. Avoid favoritism at all costs.

Know that when we live by God’s rules, even broken families can be reconciled. We will see Joseph demonstrate this powerfully as we continue to follow the record of his life in Genesis. God restores the family, but only after Joseph’s brothers genuinely repent and Joseph demonstrates forgiveness on a level characteristic of a mature relationship with God.  He let’s go of bitterness and refuses to seek revenge when he has the power to get it. He returns good for evil. We should do the same.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, Family, Hearing from God, Parenting, Prophecy

Jacob’s Struggles As A Dad Hurt His Children

Jacob struggled as a husband, father, and leader of his family. He walked with God, but struggled in the area of family leadership. He had multiple wives, concubines, and even children through his wives’ maid servants. He mirrored the parenting mistakes of his parents by clearly identifying favorites within his wives and within his children. He created a fractured and broken family that was divided against itself rather than united together as a powerful force to support one another.

Genesis 37:1-11 records this leadership failure of Jacob and the impact it had on the next generation, his sons. Not only did Jacob magnify the problem of favoritism through things like Joseph’s special coat and putting Joseph in a position of responsibility over his older brothers, but the scripture gives no evidence of him helping coach or advise Joseph on how to handle this difficult and tricky situation. Joseph, as a youth, lacks wisdom of years and openly and enthusiastically shares his dreams with his brothers… fueling their jealousy even more.

      1Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had sojourned, in the land of Canaan. 2These are the records of the generations of Jacob.  Joseph, when seventeen years of age, was pasturing the flock with his brothers while he was still a youth, along with the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought back a bad report about them to their father. 3Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was the son of his old age; and he made him a varicolored tunic. 4His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers; and so they hated him and could not speak to him on friendly terms.

      5Then Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more. 6He said to them, “Please listen to this dream which I have had; 7for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.” 8Then his brothers said to him, “Are you actually going to reign over us? Or are you really going to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.

      9Now he had still another dream, and related it to his brothers, and said, “Lo, I have had still another dream; and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 10He related it to his father and to his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have had? Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow ourselves down before you to the ground?” 11His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind.

Verse 11 indicates that Jacob put credibility in the possibility that the dreams were from God especially when the dream was repeated. Jacob knew that God speaks in this way. There is no indication however that Jacob discusses the dreams and the possibility that they are from God with Joseph’s brothers. Nor is there any indication that he coaches Joseph in how to communicate on this topic with already hostile and jealous brothers.

Joseph’s brothers, left on their own, clearly understand the dream and hate Joseph even more for it. Ultimately they will be moved toward selling Joseph into slavery in an attempt to be rid of him and lie to their father that he died.

God, however, in His majesty, will not be stopped by the deceitful plotting of men.  His promises and prophecy is always true. God even uses the wrongful actions of the jealous brothers to lead to the fulfillment of all He has planned for Joseph.

For all of us that now have or came from broken families, take heart… be encouraged… God can heal the brokenness and even use it to His glory! As we continue through the life of Joseph documented in Genesis we will see Joseph living a righteous life according to God’s values and see him overcome hurt and pain without bitterness. God uses him in a glorious way and even restores the family despite all the brokenness they have experienced!

All things are possible when we seek after the kingdom of God. Pray for wisdom in your family relationships, pray that God would help all involved forgive one another as we wish to be forgiven by Him. Pray above all for God’s will to be done in your life and that of your family!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Am I on the path?, Anger (unrighteous anger), Consequences of Sin, Discerning / Judging, Discipline / Correction, Envy / Jealousy / Coveting, How do I get started?, Humility, Justice / Judgment, Obeying God, Peace / Rest, Righteousness / Serving God, Wickedness / Evil

Delight In The Will of God, For His Works Are Wonderful

God calls each of us to not only accept, but delight in His will rather than clinging stubbornly to our own. He is like a master craftsman working on a tapestry. He knows the entire picture, including not only the parts that have already been completed but also the parts that have yet to be completed. He sees the whole picture and how it works together. Each of us is but a single thread, without a view of the rest of the tapestry. He invites us to become part of His masterpiece. How often we stubbornly insist to God that we know what is best, but in truth… we see only a small part whereas He has great vision.

Psalm 37

  1Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers.

      2For they will wither quickly like the grass
And fade like the green herb.

      3Trust in the LORD and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

      4Delight yourself in the LORD;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.

      5Commit your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.

      6He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
And your judgment as the noonday.

      7Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.

      8Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.

      9For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.

      10Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.

      11But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

      12The wicked plots against the righteous
And gnashes at him with his teeth.

      13The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees his day is coming.

      14The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow
To cast down the afflicted and the needy,
To slay those who are upright in conduct.

      15Their sword will enter their own heart,
And their bows will be broken.

      16Better is the little of the righteous
Than the abundance of many wicked.

      17For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
But the LORD sustains the righteous.

      18The LORD knows the days of the blameless,
And their inheritance will be forever.

      19They will not be ashamed in the time of evil,
And in the days of famine they will have abundance.

      20But the wicked will perish;
And the enemies of the LORD will be like the glory of the pastures, they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.

      21The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and gives.

      22For those blessed by Him will inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be cut off.

      23The steps of a man are established by the LORD,
And He delights in his way.

      24When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the LORD is the One who holds his hand.

      25I have been young and now I am old,
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
Or his descendants begging bread.

      26All day long he is gracious and lends,
And his descendants are a blessing.

      27Depart from evil and do good,
So you will abide forever.

      28For the LORD loves justice
And does not forsake His godly ones;
They are preserved forever,
But the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.

      29The righteous will inherit the land
And dwell in it forever.

      30The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
And his tongue speaks justice.

      31The law of his God is in his heart;
His steps do not slip.

      32The wicked spies upon the righteous
And seeks to kill him.

      33The LORD will not leave him in his hand
Or let him be condemned when he is judged.

      34Wait for the LORD and keep His way,
And He will exalt you to inherit the land;
When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

      35I have seen a wicked, violent man
Spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil.

      36Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more;
I sought for him, but he could not be found.

      37Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright;
For the man of peace will have a posterity.

      38But transgressors will be altogether destroyed;
The posterity of the wicked will be cut off.

      39But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;
He is their strength in time of trouble.

      40The LORD helps them and delivers them;
He delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they take refuge in Him.

Submit your will to the Master and embrace His will with delight!

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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