Monday, March 25, 2013
Friday, March 22, 2013
Idol #4: Image
Last day girls! Here we go! The last idol that we are prone to is the idol of image. Examples of this would be appearance, keeping up with the Joneses, health, youth, exercise, weight, material things, homes, cars, vacations, status, money.
Well, if you have lived in Western culture longer than five minutes you might have gotten caught up in at least one of these categories! We are laden down with images of what we should be everywhere we turn! Marketers have made a fortune recognizing the gap of satisfaction we are always trying to fill and they work to help us “stuff” something into it that will temporarily fix the problem.
No, it’s not eye cream, it’s dark circle corrector, no it’s not for bags it’s for thinning skin, no it’s not like a moisturizing cream, it’s like an exfoliant...etc; Who can keep up with it?
I recently watched an interview with Apple’s new CEO and he said their employee marketing slogan is: “Creating things you never knew you wanted but after getting them realizing you can’t live without them!” And that is the nature of marketing in our country on every front. Ladies, we have to be wise enough to identify the subtle deceit and realize that these temporary things will never satisfy the eternal longing within us. Eternal people need more than temporal things to satisfy..that is why the eternal God is the only thing that fits the eternal longing within us!
If you are chasing things whether it be image, health (for the baby-boomer - no price is too high for vitamins, premium food, healthcare etc;), youth (the surge in botox, juvederm parties etc;), money and things you will find satisfaction for a time. Let’s face it: there are some high watermarks in our lives when these things satisfy: the new car, the new house, the new dress, the goal on the scale, the goal at the gym, the promotion, the bonus, the vacation etc; But if you have lived any time at all you realize that the longing will creep up before the ink is dry on the promotion and the luggage is put away from vacation. This, in and of itself, should be enough to keep us from idolizing image...but it doesn’t!
Another way we idolize image is being obsessed with what others think of us. Putting up fronts, pretending to be something we aren’t or a lack of transparency are all ways that we guard our images. Social media has created a whole world around “cyber” images. People can morph and shape themselves into who they really want to be by carefully crafting posts, displaying only favorable pictures of themselves and overall “marketing” themselves in a “half-the-story” kind of way. This consistently perpetuates the idol of image among us.
Turn to 2 Samuel 6:13-16; 20-23
Michal was Saul’s daughter and David’s first wife. In this passage David is caught up in pure worship before the Lord. The ark has been absent from Jerusalem for some time and it is finally being brought back to its rightful place. God’s presence was back among His people and David was ecstatic, grateful and caught up in worship.
However, Michal, more concerned with image than anything else, including worship. She despised David in her heart and then she dressed him down with her words. Essentially she was saying, “You’re the king! Why are you acting like an undignified commoner, dancing around in the street wearing clothes like that?”
Michal was more concerned with image than she was worship. I know someone else who was more concerned with image than worship - Martha. We won’t turn there but Martha was more concerned with making sure she was seen as a good hostess rather than worshipping Jesus. Ladies, this is dangerous territory. When we become so concerned with image that we fail to worship we usurp the Lord’s blessing and invite His discipline!
How many times have we felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit and failed to act on it at the end of a service because of image? How many times have we been motivated to give to missions or an effort in the church but failed to give because we wanted that money for our own comfort? How many times have we been moved to speak up or step up to a greater level of holiness in our lives but concern over what people thought has held us back? There are times when we want to raise our hands in worship but we don’t because of image. God help us when we become like the Pharisees and we are more concerned with the praise of men instead of the praise of God!
Thankfully, there is one woman in scripture who cared nothing about her image. Turn to Luke 7:36-39;
This woman is also known as the woman with the alabaster flask. Scripture is clear that in contrast to the Pharisees she was a “sinner”. The literal translation is “immoral woman” and it is likely she was a prostitute. It’s interesting that this would be her description considering that whether you are moral or immoral you are still a sinner. The difference was she was a sinner that knew it! And her need for a Savior, her need to worship the Savior superseded any worry over image.
You see, first, she was a woman. There would have been no women invited to this meal. Women were not among the invited guests. Second, she was a prostitute which made her presence even more scandalous. Thirdly, she would have “made a scene” with her weeping. She was crying so much that she was able to wash Jesus’ feet with her tears and wipe the tears with her hair. I don’t picture her silently crying. I almost picture uncontrollable weeping where the tears just won’t stop. Lastly, you would have smelled her presence. Taking a costly vial of perfume, she poured out the expense on the feet of her Savior. Her worship could not be ignored!
In light of all of the idols we have studied today, here is one woman, who remains nameless that goes down in the scriptures for her worship. She had no care for relationship, she had no care for control, she had no care for emotion and she had no care for image. She only cared about worship..at any cost.
When we come encounter the Savior all idols fall at His feet. We become consumed with worship of the One True God, at all costs. True worship is costly. It costs our pride, our relationships, our control, our emotions and our image; it costs our very lives. We lay ourselves at the feet of Jesus and surrender ourselves over as a sweet smelling sacrifice. Ladies, what are you holding onto that is worth more to you than Jesus? Lay it down today!
Well, if you have lived in Western culture longer than five minutes you might have gotten caught up in at least one of these categories! We are laden down with images of what we should be everywhere we turn! Marketers have made a fortune recognizing the gap of satisfaction we are always trying to fill and they work to help us “stuff” something into it that will temporarily fix the problem.
No, it’s not eye cream, it’s dark circle corrector, no it’s not for bags it’s for thinning skin, no it’s not like a moisturizing cream, it’s like an exfoliant...etc; Who can keep up with it?
I recently watched an interview with Apple’s new CEO and he said their employee marketing slogan is: “Creating things you never knew you wanted but after getting them realizing you can’t live without them!” And that is the nature of marketing in our country on every front. Ladies, we have to be wise enough to identify the subtle deceit and realize that these temporary things will never satisfy the eternal longing within us. Eternal people need more than temporal things to satisfy..that is why the eternal God is the only thing that fits the eternal longing within us!
If you are chasing things whether it be image, health (for the baby-boomer - no price is too high for vitamins, premium food, healthcare etc;), youth (the surge in botox, juvederm parties etc;), money and things you will find satisfaction for a time. Let’s face it: there are some high watermarks in our lives when these things satisfy: the new car, the new house, the new dress, the goal on the scale, the goal at the gym, the promotion, the bonus, the vacation etc; But if you have lived any time at all you realize that the longing will creep up before the ink is dry on the promotion and the luggage is put away from vacation. This, in and of itself, should be enough to keep us from idolizing image...but it doesn’t!
Another way we idolize image is being obsessed with what others think of us. Putting up fronts, pretending to be something we aren’t or a lack of transparency are all ways that we guard our images. Social media has created a whole world around “cyber” images. People can morph and shape themselves into who they really want to be by carefully crafting posts, displaying only favorable pictures of themselves and overall “marketing” themselves in a “half-the-story” kind of way. This consistently perpetuates the idol of image among us.
Turn to 2 Samuel 6:13-16; 20-23
Michal was Saul’s daughter and David’s first wife. In this passage David is caught up in pure worship before the Lord. The ark has been absent from Jerusalem for some time and it is finally being brought back to its rightful place. God’s presence was back among His people and David was ecstatic, grateful and caught up in worship.
However, Michal, more concerned with image than anything else, including worship. She despised David in her heart and then she dressed him down with her words. Essentially she was saying, “You’re the king! Why are you acting like an undignified commoner, dancing around in the street wearing clothes like that?”
Michal was more concerned with image than she was worship. I know someone else who was more concerned with image than worship - Martha. We won’t turn there but Martha was more concerned with making sure she was seen as a good hostess rather than worshipping Jesus. Ladies, this is dangerous territory. When we become so concerned with image that we fail to worship we usurp the Lord’s blessing and invite His discipline!
How many times have we felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit and failed to act on it at the end of a service because of image? How many times have we been motivated to give to missions or an effort in the church but failed to give because we wanted that money for our own comfort? How many times have we been moved to speak up or step up to a greater level of holiness in our lives but concern over what people thought has held us back? There are times when we want to raise our hands in worship but we don’t because of image. God help us when we become like the Pharisees and we are more concerned with the praise of men instead of the praise of God!
Thankfully, there is one woman in scripture who cared nothing about her image. Turn to Luke 7:36-39;
This woman is also known as the woman with the alabaster flask. Scripture is clear that in contrast to the Pharisees she was a “sinner”. The literal translation is “immoral woman” and it is likely she was a prostitute. It’s interesting that this would be her description considering that whether you are moral or immoral you are still a sinner. The difference was she was a sinner that knew it! And her need for a Savior, her need to worship the Savior superseded any worry over image.
You see, first, she was a woman. There would have been no women invited to this meal. Women were not among the invited guests. Second, she was a prostitute which made her presence even more scandalous. Thirdly, she would have “made a scene” with her weeping. She was crying so much that she was able to wash Jesus’ feet with her tears and wipe the tears with her hair. I don’t picture her silently crying. I almost picture uncontrollable weeping where the tears just won’t stop. Lastly, you would have smelled her presence. Taking a costly vial of perfume, she poured out the expense on the feet of her Savior. Her worship could not be ignored!
In light of all of the idols we have studied today, here is one woman, who remains nameless that goes down in the scriptures for her worship. She had no care for relationship, she had no care for control, she had no care for emotion and she had no care for image. She only cared about worship..at any cost.
When we come encounter the Savior all idols fall at His feet. We become consumed with worship of the One True God, at all costs. True worship is costly. It costs our pride, our relationships, our control, our emotions and our image; it costs our very lives. We lay ourselves at the feet of Jesus and surrender ourselves over as a sweet smelling sacrifice. Ladies, what are you holding onto that is worth more to you than Jesus? Lay it down today!
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Idol #3: Emotions
Okay, girls, almost there! Today we will study the third idol we are prone to as women: the idol of emotion. This manifests itself when an emotion becomes the driving force behind our lives. Examples would be: loneliness, anger, resentment, bitterness, jealousy, envy, hatred, sorrow, happiness, euphoria, comfort, nostalgia.
Let me elaborate on this definition. Do you remember the question from the very first day’s Q&A: “Analyze your most uncontrollable emotions, especially those that are most painful. Do they drive you to do things you know are wrong?” Often times we have a tendency to allow our emotions to become idols. When emotions go unconfessed they can fester into emotional idols. Emotions like anger when unconfessed can fester into revenge or bitterness can eventually lead to hatred. Emotions like envy when unconfessed can lead to covetousness and so on.
Have you ever come across someone who is angry? You may not even have anything to do with the real reason behind their anger but you just happen to be the target for the moment. When we allow emotions to become idols they eat away at us and eventually take over our lives.
Last year about this time there was a blog series that dealt with forgiveness and the sin of holding onto a past hurt. This is an example of idolizing emotions. When we take things that have happened to us in the past and continue to use them as excuses for the future then we can be sure we are taken up with an idol. We have allowed that circumstance to keep us from future blessing and obedience and ladies, this is sin!
Remember when we talked about flourishing or thriving? What was the verse? Proverbs 28:13, “She who conceals sin will not prosper (flourish or thrive). This is exactly what this verse is talking about! Hidden and unconfessed sin will keep us from experiencing the fullness of God’s blessing.
So we have established that negative emotions like sorrow, loneliness, jealousy, envy and resentment, if not confessed will be our idol. There are certain things that serve as good indicators of emotional idolatry. The first indicator is if you are always telling yourself, “No one understands how I feel, they just don’t understand - they don’t know what it’s like to be me!” A second indicator is a desire or actually going so far as to only identify with other people who share the same emotional idol! Be very wary when you get to this point because likely you have isolated yourself and made your emotion, whatever it is, your God.
Does the name Wanda Webb Holloway mean anything to you? Probably not. Until I say, “The Texas cheerleader Mom”. Wanda Holloway’s daughter, Shanna, didn’t make the JUNIOR HIGH cheerleading squad. Wanda was so angry over her daughter’s loss that she hired a hitman to murder the mother of cheerleading rival in hopes that the girl would be so distraught that she would quit the squad thereby giving Shanna an opportunity.
Wow! In reading the details the story sounds so extreme. However, I would chance to say that Wanda Holloway was a normal mother who, prior to the incident with her daughter, would have said that this story was extreme as well. This is a prime example of how emotions when unconfessed can cause us to act out in ways that are out of character and often evil.
So, I think we understand how anger can spiral out of control but what about other emotions. I want to give one other example before we move on. My father-in-law passed away in February of 2012. My mother-in-law immediately found herself thrust into a life alone after fifty three years of marriage. Her response out of her grief could have caused her to turn inward, isolate herself and fall into despair. She could had chosen to exclude herself from anyone that couldn’t identify with her loss. Instead, she allowed the Lord to walk with her through the water, holding tight to His promises. I am consistently amazed at how well she is doing because she has relied completely on the Lord in her grief.
But what about emotions like happiness, comfort, euphoria or nostalgia? How could these seemingly good emotions become idols? When they lead us to unrealistic expectations or we are constantly searching for the high of these emotions then they have become idols. Unmet expectations, expectations that are unattainable and cycles of disappointment are indications that you may be harboring one of these “positive” emotions as an idol.
Now, I get to tell on myself. Christmas is my favorite time of the year! I love everything surrounding the season from over decorating, overeating and over giving. As far as I’m concerned, one cannot have enough lights, tinsel, cookies, fireside chats, church activities, wrapping, carols etc; I usually start as soon as Thanksgiving is over and begin the planning of menus, festivities and all around merriment that lasts through December 31st.
The holidays represent the best of Jesus, family, food, memories and rest. But this year, Christmas didn’t come to the McBride house...just the flu. On the 23rd, Landon came down with the flu. On Christmas Eve, Kraig hit the deck and needless to say, our home was full of halle’flu’jah instead of hallelujah. I spent my day cleaning and trying very hard not to be angry over the fact that I had completely missed Christmas! And, just to continue the fun, Kraig went back to the doctor on New Year’s Eve with double pnuemonia!! I really felt like this was some kind of cruel joke set off by Ebenezer Scrooge!
In that time, I laid my heart bare before the Lord and asked Him to reveal to me why I was ready to jump off a cliff over one day on the calendar! Of course the Lord is always teaching lessons to me before I pass them on to you! I had been working on my lessons so I didn’t have to look very far to see clearly the idol in my heart. I had idolized the emotional high surrounding the holidays. I had worked so hard to get everything perfect so that I could relish the euphoria rather than the Savior. My focus had become the season not the reason for it.
The truth is, December 25th is just another day on the calendar. Christmas, the way the world celebrates, is so far off the mark that sometimes it is good to be reminded why we have Christ-mas. The date is not the point. But Christ coming to seek and to save begins with a baby in a manager and that makes everyday on the calendar Christmas! It was good for me to have my heart emptied, my idol confessed and my priorities re-oriented on Jesus as my greatest gift.
Now let’s look at our biblical examples. They come out of the same passage of scripture however, one shunned and one clung.
Turn to Ruth 1:1-21
Our example of someone who let her emotions become her idol is Naomi. You can almost see the decline of her emotional grief into an idol in this chapter. She begins in verse 11 and by verse 13 she is in total despair. Once she reaches Bethlehem in verse 20 she is scornful toward those who are welcoming to her. You can almost hear the scorn in her voice as she speaks.
On the contrary, look at Ruth’s response. Ruth has suffered great loss as well but has chosen to trust the Lord with her hurt. The entire book focuses in on the godly character of Ruth, her complete dependence on the Lord and her eventual place in the lineage of Christ! I love it! I love the fact that God is so faithful to His people when we allow Him rightful rule in our lives! What emotion are you allowing ultimate place in your life? What emotion is driving you? If it’s not gratitude motivated by the grace that covers your sin then chances are, it is an idol that needs to be uprooted. Grab your shovel, hit your knees and get to work!
Let me elaborate on this definition. Do you remember the question from the very first day’s Q&A: “Analyze your most uncontrollable emotions, especially those that are most painful. Do they drive you to do things you know are wrong?” Often times we have a tendency to allow our emotions to become idols. When emotions go unconfessed they can fester into emotional idols. Emotions like anger when unconfessed can fester into revenge or bitterness can eventually lead to hatred. Emotions like envy when unconfessed can lead to covetousness and so on.
Have you ever come across someone who is angry? You may not even have anything to do with the real reason behind their anger but you just happen to be the target for the moment. When we allow emotions to become idols they eat away at us and eventually take over our lives.
Last year about this time there was a blog series that dealt with forgiveness and the sin of holding onto a past hurt. This is an example of idolizing emotions. When we take things that have happened to us in the past and continue to use them as excuses for the future then we can be sure we are taken up with an idol. We have allowed that circumstance to keep us from future blessing and obedience and ladies, this is sin!
Remember when we talked about flourishing or thriving? What was the verse? Proverbs 28:13, “She who conceals sin will not prosper (flourish or thrive). This is exactly what this verse is talking about! Hidden and unconfessed sin will keep us from experiencing the fullness of God’s blessing.
So we have established that negative emotions like sorrow, loneliness, jealousy, envy and resentment, if not confessed will be our idol. There are certain things that serve as good indicators of emotional idolatry. The first indicator is if you are always telling yourself, “No one understands how I feel, they just don’t understand - they don’t know what it’s like to be me!” A second indicator is a desire or actually going so far as to only identify with other people who share the same emotional idol! Be very wary when you get to this point because likely you have isolated yourself and made your emotion, whatever it is, your God.
Does the name Wanda Webb Holloway mean anything to you? Probably not. Until I say, “The Texas cheerleader Mom”. Wanda Holloway’s daughter, Shanna, didn’t make the JUNIOR HIGH cheerleading squad. Wanda was so angry over her daughter’s loss that she hired a hitman to murder the mother of cheerleading rival in hopes that the girl would be so distraught that she would quit the squad thereby giving Shanna an opportunity.
Wow! In reading the details the story sounds so extreme. However, I would chance to say that Wanda Holloway was a normal mother who, prior to the incident with her daughter, would have said that this story was extreme as well. This is a prime example of how emotions when unconfessed can cause us to act out in ways that are out of character and often evil.
So, I think we understand how anger can spiral out of control but what about other emotions. I want to give one other example before we move on. My father-in-law passed away in February of 2012. My mother-in-law immediately found herself thrust into a life alone after fifty three years of marriage. Her response out of her grief could have caused her to turn inward, isolate herself and fall into despair. She could had chosen to exclude herself from anyone that couldn’t identify with her loss. Instead, she allowed the Lord to walk with her through the water, holding tight to His promises. I am consistently amazed at how well she is doing because she has relied completely on the Lord in her grief.
But what about emotions like happiness, comfort, euphoria or nostalgia? How could these seemingly good emotions become idols? When they lead us to unrealistic expectations or we are constantly searching for the high of these emotions then they have become idols. Unmet expectations, expectations that are unattainable and cycles of disappointment are indications that you may be harboring one of these “positive” emotions as an idol.
Now, I get to tell on myself. Christmas is my favorite time of the year! I love everything surrounding the season from over decorating, overeating and over giving. As far as I’m concerned, one cannot have enough lights, tinsel, cookies, fireside chats, church activities, wrapping, carols etc; I usually start as soon as Thanksgiving is over and begin the planning of menus, festivities and all around merriment that lasts through December 31st.
The holidays represent the best of Jesus, family, food, memories and rest. But this year, Christmas didn’t come to the McBride house...just the flu. On the 23rd, Landon came down with the flu. On Christmas Eve, Kraig hit the deck and needless to say, our home was full of halle’flu’jah instead of hallelujah. I spent my day cleaning and trying very hard not to be angry over the fact that I had completely missed Christmas! And, just to continue the fun, Kraig went back to the doctor on New Year’s Eve with double pnuemonia!! I really felt like this was some kind of cruel joke set off by Ebenezer Scrooge!
In that time, I laid my heart bare before the Lord and asked Him to reveal to me why I was ready to jump off a cliff over one day on the calendar! Of course the Lord is always teaching lessons to me before I pass them on to you! I had been working on my lessons so I didn’t have to look very far to see clearly the idol in my heart. I had idolized the emotional high surrounding the holidays. I had worked so hard to get everything perfect so that I could relish the euphoria rather than the Savior. My focus had become the season not the reason for it.
The truth is, December 25th is just another day on the calendar. Christmas, the way the world celebrates, is so far off the mark that sometimes it is good to be reminded why we have Christ-mas. The date is not the point. But Christ coming to seek and to save begins with a baby in a manager and that makes everyday on the calendar Christmas! It was good for me to have my heart emptied, my idol confessed and my priorities re-oriented on Jesus as my greatest gift.
Now let’s look at our biblical examples. They come out of the same passage of scripture however, one shunned and one clung.
Turn to Ruth 1:1-21
Our example of someone who let her emotions become her idol is Naomi. You can almost see the decline of her emotional grief into an idol in this chapter. She begins in verse 11 and by verse 13 she is in total despair. Once she reaches Bethlehem in verse 20 she is scornful toward those who are welcoming to her. You can almost hear the scorn in her voice as she speaks.
On the contrary, look at Ruth’s response. Ruth has suffered great loss as well but has chosen to trust the Lord with her hurt. The entire book focuses in on the godly character of Ruth, her complete dependence on the Lord and her eventual place in the lineage of Christ! I love it! I love the fact that God is so faithful to His people when we allow Him rightful rule in our lives! What emotion are you allowing ultimate place in your life? What emotion is driving you? If it’s not gratitude motivated by the grace that covers your sin then chances are, it is an idol that needs to be uprooted. Grab your shovel, hit your knees and get to work!
Idol #2: Control
“I was in misery, and misery is the state of every soul overcome by friendship with mortal things and lacerated when they are lost. Then the soul becomes aware of the misery which is its actual condition even before it loses them.”
― Augustine of Hippo, Confessions
The second category we are prone to as women is the idolatry of control. This can reveal itself through manipulation of others (crying, complaining, nagging, the silent treatment, sulking, pouting), being a perfectionist, being bossy or trying to make everyone happy. More precisely, using emotional power plays to get others to do what we want or dragging people on our emotional roller coaster.
Now, I am pretty sure that none of us has ever used any of these tactics to get our way in relationships, right? You have never tried to use manipulation to persuade others. I know that all of us, at one time or another have attempted to manipulate and control a situation through emotional power plays.
We attempt to make others feel bad if they have hurt our feelings or push them to apologize. We sulk so that people will ask if everything is okay? We tell people what to do or we exhaust ourselves trying to make everyone happy with themselves and with us. Or, we attempt to be perfect, make our kids perfect, make our husbands perfect and in the process drive everyone crazy!
The truth is, each of these things is a means of trying to control others. Ultimately, we want someone else to respond in the way that makes us most happy. If we go back to our definition of idolatry - the exaltation of self - isn’t that what control really is? It is an attempt to make everyone bow to our desire, our happiness and our wants.
We have to be especially sensitive to this as women because some of it is ingrained within us..deeply ingrained. From little, little girls we learn that pouting, crying or “acting mad” can get us a lot of attention and often times get us what we want. This is dangerous territory because eventually someone will call our bluff and when they do, it can drive us again, to extreme measures.
Let’s look at another one of the “Matriarchs”. Although these women are heralded for their place in Israel’s history God certainly doesn’t clean them up in any way! I don’t know about you, but I find it totally comforting that these women were not spiritual giants before God used them. In fact, they got it wrong more often than they got it right! And God, in His goodness, displays all of their warts, in living color, on the pages of scripture...for all to read. Can you imagine some of your biggest mistakes and sins being recorded in the best selling book of all time? It makes living in obscurity a welcome blessing! I digress..
Turn to Genesis 25: 27-28; 27:1-17
The key to understanding chapter 27 lies within those 2 verses in chapter 25: “Rebekah loved Jacob.” Right away we can identify one of Rebekah’s idols: her relationship idol in Jacob her son.
Before we move on, it is important to point out that even though we are to have One God that we serve, He can be replaced with many idols. Every single one of these idols that we will study this week I have had in my life at any one time and sometimes all four at once! Just as sin is likened to yeast that grows and multiplies, so idolatry begets idolatry.
So Rebekah is again taking it upon herself to fulfill God’s will instead of allowing God to have it His way. Do we see a pattern here? I mean, let’s learn a lesson from these women, off the page instead of taking the field trip! So, what happens? Yes, Jacob gets the blessing but a family feud of epic proportions ensues! Jacob flees in fear of his life and Rebekah, because she has idolized control, has caused her children to hate one another...although her relationship idol of Jacob was a simmering pot that didn’t need much help to boil!
Now turn to the book of Esther. Esther 4:15-17; 7:1-6
In sharp contrast to the blatant deceit and manipulation in Rebekah, Esther sought the Lord through fasting and prayer. She patiently waited on the Lord for His timing. This is so very important in our lives. More often than not, we rush into things because we attempt to submit our plan for God’s stamp of approval rather than submitting our lives to His sovereign will!
Ladies, when we are at a point when we have determined what we want and we are not willing to take “no” for an answer, when we have tunnel vision and are praying for one particular thing rather than God’s will, when we are looking for anything or anyone who will affirm our plan then we have made control an idol.
When we are in this state of mind we will shut ourselves off from anyone or anything that might talk contrary to what we want. Scripture is clear that it is completely foolish to eschew WISE COUNSEL! Don’t be stiff-necked! Although we may attempt to manipulate and control God by manipulating and controlling people, scripture is crystal clear that God’s plans cannot be thwarted! (Job 42:2)
As we close today, I admit that this idol is very near and dear to me. It seems to be the one that I cling to most closely. I lay it down for a while but then it doesn’t take long for me to pick it up again. I find myself constantly confessing what ultimately boils down to a lack of trust in God’s sovereignty in my life. In my heart, I am deceived into believing that I know not only what is best for me but also what is best for every other person on the face of the earth. It is in those times I am sweetly reminded by the Holy Spirit to “humble myself under the mighty hand of God: (1 Pet. 5:6)
Beloved, any control we think we might have is completely an illusion. We have control over our own attitudes, our obedience in response to the Holy Spirit through the Word and...well, that’s about it! Everything else falls into the hands of a mighty God. I was recently asked how we can really know that God is good. My response to her is my encouragement to you: “If God is not really good then why Jesus and why the cross? Look at the cross sweet one...look at the cross.
― Augustine of Hippo, Confessions
The second category we are prone to as women is the idolatry of control. This can reveal itself through manipulation of others (crying, complaining, nagging, the silent treatment, sulking, pouting), being a perfectionist, being bossy or trying to make everyone happy. More precisely, using emotional power plays to get others to do what we want or dragging people on our emotional roller coaster.
Now, I am pretty sure that none of us has ever used any of these tactics to get our way in relationships, right? You have never tried to use manipulation to persuade others. I know that all of us, at one time or another have attempted to manipulate and control a situation through emotional power plays.
We attempt to make others feel bad if they have hurt our feelings or push them to apologize. We sulk so that people will ask if everything is okay? We tell people what to do or we exhaust ourselves trying to make everyone happy with themselves and with us. Or, we attempt to be perfect, make our kids perfect, make our husbands perfect and in the process drive everyone crazy!
The truth is, each of these things is a means of trying to control others. Ultimately, we want someone else to respond in the way that makes us most happy. If we go back to our definition of idolatry - the exaltation of self - isn’t that what control really is? It is an attempt to make everyone bow to our desire, our happiness and our wants.
We have to be especially sensitive to this as women because some of it is ingrained within us..deeply ingrained. From little, little girls we learn that pouting, crying or “acting mad” can get us a lot of attention and often times get us what we want. This is dangerous territory because eventually someone will call our bluff and when they do, it can drive us again, to extreme measures.
Let’s look at another one of the “Matriarchs”. Although these women are heralded for their place in Israel’s history God certainly doesn’t clean them up in any way! I don’t know about you, but I find it totally comforting that these women were not spiritual giants before God used them. In fact, they got it wrong more often than they got it right! And God, in His goodness, displays all of their warts, in living color, on the pages of scripture...for all to read. Can you imagine some of your biggest mistakes and sins being recorded in the best selling book of all time? It makes living in obscurity a welcome blessing! I digress..
Turn to Genesis 25: 27-28; 27:1-17
The key to understanding chapter 27 lies within those 2 verses in chapter 25: “Rebekah loved Jacob.” Right away we can identify one of Rebekah’s idols: her relationship idol in Jacob her son.
Before we move on, it is important to point out that even though we are to have One God that we serve, He can be replaced with many idols. Every single one of these idols that we will study this week I have had in my life at any one time and sometimes all four at once! Just as sin is likened to yeast that grows and multiplies, so idolatry begets idolatry.
So Rebekah is again taking it upon herself to fulfill God’s will instead of allowing God to have it His way. Do we see a pattern here? I mean, let’s learn a lesson from these women, off the page instead of taking the field trip! So, what happens? Yes, Jacob gets the blessing but a family feud of epic proportions ensues! Jacob flees in fear of his life and Rebekah, because she has idolized control, has caused her children to hate one another...although her relationship idol of Jacob was a simmering pot that didn’t need much help to boil!
Now turn to the book of Esther. Esther 4:15-17; 7:1-6
In sharp contrast to the blatant deceit and manipulation in Rebekah, Esther sought the Lord through fasting and prayer. She patiently waited on the Lord for His timing. This is so very important in our lives. More often than not, we rush into things because we attempt to submit our plan for God’s stamp of approval rather than submitting our lives to His sovereign will!
Ladies, when we are at a point when we have determined what we want and we are not willing to take “no” for an answer, when we have tunnel vision and are praying for one particular thing rather than God’s will, when we are looking for anything or anyone who will affirm our plan then we have made control an idol.
When we are in this state of mind we will shut ourselves off from anyone or anything that might talk contrary to what we want. Scripture is clear that it is completely foolish to eschew WISE COUNSEL! Don’t be stiff-necked! Although we may attempt to manipulate and control God by manipulating and controlling people, scripture is crystal clear that God’s plans cannot be thwarted! (Job 42:2)
As we close today, I admit that this idol is very near and dear to me. It seems to be the one that I cling to most closely. I lay it down for a while but then it doesn’t take long for me to pick it up again. I find myself constantly confessing what ultimately boils down to a lack of trust in God’s sovereignty in my life. In my heart, I am deceived into believing that I know not only what is best for me but also what is best for every other person on the face of the earth. It is in those times I am sweetly reminded by the Holy Spirit to “humble myself under the mighty hand of God: (1 Pet. 5:6)
Beloved, any control we think we might have is completely an illusion. We have control over our own attitudes, our obedience in response to the Holy Spirit through the Word and...well, that’s about it! Everything else falls into the hands of a mighty God. I was recently asked how we can really know that God is good. My response to her is my encouragement to you: “If God is not really good then why Jesus and why the cross? Look at the cross sweet one...look at the cross.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Idol #1: Relationships
Well, let's not hesitate, let's jump right in! The first category of idolatry that we are prone to as women is the idol of relationships. Some examples of this would be: co-dependent friendships, romantic relationships,marriage, children or a lack of any of these relationships.
How do we idolize relationships? First, women are relational beings. God created us to be more relationship oriented than men so naturally it is easy for us to elevate relationships above the Lord as women. But that doesn’t mean it is right. When we place the importance of having a relationship or even placing a relationship we are already in as an ultimate thing in our lives we are in trouble!
I see this all the time and it begins at a very young age in girls so Mom’s of daughters listen up! Girls become keenly aware of where they rank among their female peers. They will work for relationships that they deem important and often do things that they know are wrong or are completely out of character in order to get or keep a relationship with another girl. Chances are they are either idolizing the other girl or the status that that relationship brings to them. Their “worship” is misguided and it is up to us to teach them otherwise.
Very soon into adolescence girls begin the same pattern with young men. They will work for attention from men. Once they have achieved that attention they will go to great lengths to keep it. Again, othen doing things that are sinful or out of character in order to keep him.
Unfortunately, these patterns don’t often go away with age. How many of us as adult women can identify with the need for acceptance or attention in relationships with other women? Even though we think we are past that, often times, if we look at our hearts, we really aren’t.
We find ourselves doing things in our friendships, dating relationships and in our marriages that aren’t healthy in order to keep their attention.
Then we have children and our children become our idols. We work for them to have and get ahead, we shield them from hurt or obsess over their happiness. We stress perfection in their grades, in their friendships, in their appearance. How much sleep do we lose as mothers over our children? Even our adult children?
The question that were asked as part of the first day of this study now come into play. If you haven’t had opportunity to answer them then stop here and do so before you continue on in the lesson. Question number one asked, “What do your thoughts effortlessly go to when there is nothing else demanding your attention? Another way to put it, what do you enjoy daydreaming about? If this is consistently a person, a relationship or lack of a relationship then it could be your idol.
Let’s look at 2 examples of women who were faced with idolizing a relationship. One honored God, the other did not.
Turn to Genesis 16: 1-9;15-16;
The story of Sarah. Throughout the generations of the Patriarchs, barrenness was prevalent. Sarah, Rachel and Rebecca were all barren. And having a male heir back then was not just about wanting a child it was what their society held up as success for a family. If you have ever seen the movie “Fiddler On the Roof” it is about a Jewish man who had all daughters. He loved his daughters but he lamented never having a son.
The eldest son was the pride of the family and his accomplishments were paramount to how the family was viewed in society. So for Sarah, the pressure of this promise resting on her, year after year, not being able to conceive turned her need for a child into an idol.
It is interesting that the very family that God had chosen for His people had trouble conceiving and even becoming a people. But, without this suffering the glory of the Lord as mighty, faithful and sovereign would have been diminished. How awesome is a God who allows a 99 year old woman to conceive?
Let me go off on a tangent for a second: ladies, don’t waste your suffering. God is using this time to refine you and to strip away everything that is idolatrous in your life. Every major trial, even every little trial, the Lord - IF I WILL LET HIM - reveals things that are idols to me. And usually, what makes the trial difficult is the fact that I am about to lose an idol! Does that speak to anyone?
The things we fear, the things that cause us immense hurt are often idols - why? Because if it weren’t important to us - it wouldn’t hurt! Suffering is God’s chisel, the instrument in His hands to shape us into Christ! Don’t despise the loving hand of the Potter. Trust Him for what you can’t see and know in the end, you will be GORGEOUS! I just keep that in mind when I feel beaten down - this too shall end in my GORGEOUSNESS!!
Back to Sarah. So, Sarah, in her idolatry, gave Hagar to Abram as his wife - can you say mistake number one! Then, Hagar conceives! Can you even imagine the level of insult to injury? So, scripture says that Hagar despised Sarah. Everything we could say would be speculation - maybe she despised her because she didn’t have any choice in her marriage to Abram. Maybe she despised her for pinning her hopes all on her! Who knows! Regardless, Sarah quickly realized that Hagar despised her and then she did what?? She shifted the blame!
Sarah blamed Abram and demanded that he fix it! Oh my word! If this is not a woman! “I have done this but it is your fault so you fix it!” Abram, wise man that he was, determined to give Sarah the authority to handle Hagar but she, in her idolatry, treated Hagar harshly and Hagar fled. What a mess! The domino of relationship idolatry in Sarah’s life had caused one sin right after the next.
Sarah had placed her own feelings, her own wants, desires and needs above the Lord and made an idol out of having a baby. She had taken it upon herself to fulfill God’s will for her life instead of allowing God to have His way. Mmmm, did anyone pick up on that? Did anyone pick up on that last statement?? Let me say it again: Sarah had taken it upon herself to fulfill God’s will for her life instead of allowing God to have His way. How many of us reading this today are doing the very same thing, for different reasons, in different areas? How many of us are taking it upon ourselves to not only choose God’s will but attempt to fulfill God’s will for our lives instead of letting Him have His way?
Dangerous ground girls, dangerous ground! God will not have it! He will not compete with you for rightful rule in your life - He doesn’t have to - it belongs to Him already but you can make a mess of things until YOU figure it out. Sarah surely did! She took her own desires and tried to forge her own path and it got her a WHOLE lot of thorns - permanent thorns! Ismael was a reality and he was never far from her sight or far from her mind.
Now turn to 1 Samuel 1:1-5; 12-19; 24-28. In stark contrast to Sarah’s story here is Hannah. Hannah waited on the Lord and when the Lord answered her prayer she was faithful to give him back to the Lord. Can you imagine? Hannah has finally gotten what she wants and then she gives him back? What a woman of faith! I know of another woman who gave her Son up as well..to the atrocities of a cruel cross..what a foreshadowing in the person of Hannah!
As we conclude for today, as you hear the Lord speaking, if you are captivated by a relationship idol then do not wait. Acknowledge, confess and forsake it while it is still today. This is hard but good work that the Lord is doing in our lives! This is one less thing to keep us enslaved and one more step towards freedom!
How do we idolize relationships? First, women are relational beings. God created us to be more relationship oriented than men so naturally it is easy for us to elevate relationships above the Lord as women. But that doesn’t mean it is right. When we place the importance of having a relationship or even placing a relationship we are already in as an ultimate thing in our lives we are in trouble!
I see this all the time and it begins at a very young age in girls so Mom’s of daughters listen up! Girls become keenly aware of where they rank among their female peers. They will work for relationships that they deem important and often do things that they know are wrong or are completely out of character in order to get or keep a relationship with another girl. Chances are they are either idolizing the other girl or the status that that relationship brings to them. Their “worship” is misguided and it is up to us to teach them otherwise.
Very soon into adolescence girls begin the same pattern with young men. They will work for attention from men. Once they have achieved that attention they will go to great lengths to keep it. Again, othen doing things that are sinful or out of character in order to keep him.
Unfortunately, these patterns don’t often go away with age. How many of us as adult women can identify with the need for acceptance or attention in relationships with other women? Even though we think we are past that, often times, if we look at our hearts, we really aren’t.
We find ourselves doing things in our friendships, dating relationships and in our marriages that aren’t healthy in order to keep their attention.
Then we have children and our children become our idols. We work for them to have and get ahead, we shield them from hurt or obsess over their happiness. We stress perfection in their grades, in their friendships, in their appearance. How much sleep do we lose as mothers over our children? Even our adult children?
The question that were asked as part of the first day of this study now come into play. If you haven’t had opportunity to answer them then stop here and do so before you continue on in the lesson. Question number one asked, “What do your thoughts effortlessly go to when there is nothing else demanding your attention? Another way to put it, what do you enjoy daydreaming about? If this is consistently a person, a relationship or lack of a relationship then it could be your idol.
Let’s look at 2 examples of women who were faced with idolizing a relationship. One honored God, the other did not.
Turn to Genesis 16: 1-9;15-16;
The story of Sarah. Throughout the generations of the Patriarchs, barrenness was prevalent. Sarah, Rachel and Rebecca were all barren. And having a male heir back then was not just about wanting a child it was what their society held up as success for a family. If you have ever seen the movie “Fiddler On the Roof” it is about a Jewish man who had all daughters. He loved his daughters but he lamented never having a son.
The eldest son was the pride of the family and his accomplishments were paramount to how the family was viewed in society. So for Sarah, the pressure of this promise resting on her, year after year, not being able to conceive turned her need for a child into an idol.
It is interesting that the very family that God had chosen for His people had trouble conceiving and even becoming a people. But, without this suffering the glory of the Lord as mighty, faithful and sovereign would have been diminished. How awesome is a God who allows a 99 year old woman to conceive?
Let me go off on a tangent for a second: ladies, don’t waste your suffering. God is using this time to refine you and to strip away everything that is idolatrous in your life. Every major trial, even every little trial, the Lord - IF I WILL LET HIM - reveals things that are idols to me. And usually, what makes the trial difficult is the fact that I am about to lose an idol! Does that speak to anyone?
The things we fear, the things that cause us immense hurt are often idols - why? Because if it weren’t important to us - it wouldn’t hurt! Suffering is God’s chisel, the instrument in His hands to shape us into Christ! Don’t despise the loving hand of the Potter. Trust Him for what you can’t see and know in the end, you will be GORGEOUS! I just keep that in mind when I feel beaten down - this too shall end in my GORGEOUSNESS!!
Back to Sarah. So, Sarah, in her idolatry, gave Hagar to Abram as his wife - can you say mistake number one! Then, Hagar conceives! Can you even imagine the level of insult to injury? So, scripture says that Hagar despised Sarah. Everything we could say would be speculation - maybe she despised her because she didn’t have any choice in her marriage to Abram. Maybe she despised her for pinning her hopes all on her! Who knows! Regardless, Sarah quickly realized that Hagar despised her and then she did what?? She shifted the blame!
Sarah blamed Abram and demanded that he fix it! Oh my word! If this is not a woman! “I have done this but it is your fault so you fix it!” Abram, wise man that he was, determined to give Sarah the authority to handle Hagar but she, in her idolatry, treated Hagar harshly and Hagar fled. What a mess! The domino of relationship idolatry in Sarah’s life had caused one sin right after the next.
Sarah had placed her own feelings, her own wants, desires and needs above the Lord and made an idol out of having a baby. She had taken it upon herself to fulfill God’s will for her life instead of allowing God to have His way. Mmmm, did anyone pick up on that? Did anyone pick up on that last statement?? Let me say it again: Sarah had taken it upon herself to fulfill God’s will for her life instead of allowing God to have His way. How many of us reading this today are doing the very same thing, for different reasons, in different areas? How many of us are taking it upon ourselves to not only choose God’s will but attempt to fulfill God’s will for our lives instead of letting Him have His way?
Dangerous ground girls, dangerous ground! God will not have it! He will not compete with you for rightful rule in your life - He doesn’t have to - it belongs to Him already but you can make a mess of things until YOU figure it out. Sarah surely did! She took her own desires and tried to forge her own path and it got her a WHOLE lot of thorns - permanent thorns! Ismael was a reality and he was never far from her sight or far from her mind.
Now turn to 1 Samuel 1:1-5; 12-19; 24-28. In stark contrast to Sarah’s story here is Hannah. Hannah waited on the Lord and when the Lord answered her prayer she was faithful to give him back to the Lord. Can you imagine? Hannah has finally gotten what she wants and then she gives him back? What a woman of faith! I know of another woman who gave her Son up as well..to the atrocities of a cruel cross..what a foreshadowing in the person of Hannah!
As we conclude for today, as you hear the Lord speaking, if you are captivated by a relationship idol then do not wait. Acknowledge, confess and forsake it while it is still today. This is hard but good work that the Lord is doing in our lives! This is one less thing to keep us enslaved and one more step towards freedom!
Monday, March 18, 2013
The Heart of the Matter
“The heart wants, what the heart wants - or else it does not care.” ~ Emily Dickinson
This famous quote by Emily Dickinson has been used in more than a dozen movies and quoted in many circles as a means of expressing the unwavering, steadfast desires of the heart. In fact, this quote is very true. The heart does want, what the heart wants. All of us have been in circumstances or situations when our hearts were set on a person or a thing. In that moment, all that mattered was what the heart wanted “or else, it did not care.”
Turn to Jeremiah 17: 9-10
However much this resonates with us: the heart wants, what the heart wants, when held up to the truth of scripture we find that: “The heart is deceitful above all else and desperately wicked. Who can know it?” (Jer. 17:9) Ultimately, the heart is an unreliable, fickle, wicked thing that has its character rooted in deceit. To put it plainly - the heart is filled with sin.
The heart of the problem: If this is the case, then all sin is a heart problem. From our viewpoint in the 21st century it would seem that idolatry has its roots in pagan religions. But idolatry really has its roots in the human heart of every person that has ever lived. It has been said that “the heart is an ‘idol factory’” and scripture agrees on every front. Idolatry is a heart problem.
Let’s unravel this a little farther. So, we have established the wickedness and deceit of the heart. We have established that the heart is full of sin. We have established that idolatry is a heart problem. At this point, things don’t look good for our hearts!
Then to seal the deal, if you weren’t convinced already, because of the wickedness of our hearts, we do not have an accurate gauge for directing our own paths. In fact, Proverbs 3:5-6, which should be very familiar, states, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will direct your paths.” To put it plainly, our hearts are miserable compasses in determining God’s will and directing our paths. Scripture even states that our own understanding isn’t reliable.
Idolatry isn’t something new. It is written all over history and all over the pages of scripture! From the very beginning, no less than 3 chapters into the Bible, the heart begins to “want what it wants.” Eve put her heart’s desire above God and she sinned. Then in Genesis 6 this verse encapsulates the pervasiveness of sin: “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.” From there, the Lord determined to destroy all the inhabitants of the earth, save 8, through the Great Flood - SIX chapters in and only THREE chapters after the Fall.
From the very first sin, woven through the books of the Old and New Testament, idolatry is there. All sin is ultimately rooted in idolatry deep down in the soil of our darkened hearts.
This leaves us in very bad shape! But thankfully, we have a God who is very concerned with our hearts. He died for our hearts and it is that immaterial part of us that will live on. Yes, we can discipline our bodies to live moral lives but if our hearts are never filled with light, if we are never given hearts of flesh, if idols are never pulled up by their roots in our hearts then we are hopelessly lost!
But in the midst of all this dismal talk, in the very next verse, Jeremiah 17:10, after the question is asked, “who can know the heart?” The Lord answers, “I, the Lord, search the heart!” This week, God is personally searching our hearts. He is searching to uproot idols, to tear them down, burn them and replace them with true worship!
Toby Mac released a great song a few albums ago called, “Made To Love”. The beginning of the chorus goes like this:
I was made to love you
I was made to find you
I was made just for you
Made to adore you
I was made to love
And be loved by you
The lyrics paint a simple picture of a greater reality; we were made for worship. It doesn’t take long to see that as people we will worship anything! An easier way to identify what we worship is to look at what we cherish or celebrate: sports, fashion, health, fitness, wealth, success, fame, love, relationships, acceptance, power, education, politics, religion, family or feelings: happiness, comfort, an experience, euphoria or nostalgia.
Let me give you an example: Christmas. It used to be that we got through Halloween and Thanksgiving and around December 1st we began to see Christmas trees and decorations show up in Department Stores. We got the Best Products catalogue or Sears or JC Penneys. And then you started to get excited for Christmas about the first or second week in December. Now when do we see Christmas decorations?
We have skipped right over Thanksgiving and gone straight to “gimme”! On top of that, look at what a major event every holiday has become! Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Cinco de Mayo (and last I checked, we aren’t Mexican!), Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day and then straight to Halloween. Have you ever seen anything so out of control as Halloween? Even adults are having full on Halloween parties complete with costumes, games and candy! Why? Because we will celebrate anything! We will worship anything!
Just look at the wedding industry: I can’t believe the level that the wedding industry has risen to in just 15 years! And now, engagement parties, wedding showers, bachelor and bachelorette parties, rehearsal dinners, bridal showers, bridal luncheons and let’s not even get into the baby showers!!
Yes, we were made for worship, that is evident but our worship is broken, misdirected and tainted. We will spend the rest of this week identifying idols that are prevalent in the lives of women, most specifically. After identifying and defining each idol, we will study women in scripture who got it wrong..and women who got it right. We have a long but good road ahead. Hang on for the ride!
This famous quote by Emily Dickinson has been used in more than a dozen movies and quoted in many circles as a means of expressing the unwavering, steadfast desires of the heart. In fact, this quote is very true. The heart does want, what the heart wants. All of us have been in circumstances or situations when our hearts were set on a person or a thing. In that moment, all that mattered was what the heart wanted “or else, it did not care.”
Turn to Jeremiah 17: 9-10
However much this resonates with us: the heart wants, what the heart wants, when held up to the truth of scripture we find that: “The heart is deceitful above all else and desperately wicked. Who can know it?” (Jer. 17:9) Ultimately, the heart is an unreliable, fickle, wicked thing that has its character rooted in deceit. To put it plainly - the heart is filled with sin.
The heart of the problem: If this is the case, then all sin is a heart problem. From our viewpoint in the 21st century it would seem that idolatry has its roots in pagan religions. But idolatry really has its roots in the human heart of every person that has ever lived. It has been said that “the heart is an ‘idol factory’” and scripture agrees on every front. Idolatry is a heart problem.
Let’s unravel this a little farther. So, we have established the wickedness and deceit of the heart. We have established that the heart is full of sin. We have established that idolatry is a heart problem. At this point, things don’t look good for our hearts!
Then to seal the deal, if you weren’t convinced already, because of the wickedness of our hearts, we do not have an accurate gauge for directing our own paths. In fact, Proverbs 3:5-6, which should be very familiar, states, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will direct your paths.” To put it plainly, our hearts are miserable compasses in determining God’s will and directing our paths. Scripture even states that our own understanding isn’t reliable.
Idolatry isn’t something new. It is written all over history and all over the pages of scripture! From the very beginning, no less than 3 chapters into the Bible, the heart begins to “want what it wants.” Eve put her heart’s desire above God and she sinned. Then in Genesis 6 this verse encapsulates the pervasiveness of sin: “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.” From there, the Lord determined to destroy all the inhabitants of the earth, save 8, through the Great Flood - SIX chapters in and only THREE chapters after the Fall.
From the very first sin, woven through the books of the Old and New Testament, idolatry is there. All sin is ultimately rooted in idolatry deep down in the soil of our darkened hearts.
This leaves us in very bad shape! But thankfully, we have a God who is very concerned with our hearts. He died for our hearts and it is that immaterial part of us that will live on. Yes, we can discipline our bodies to live moral lives but if our hearts are never filled with light, if we are never given hearts of flesh, if idols are never pulled up by their roots in our hearts then we are hopelessly lost!
But in the midst of all this dismal talk, in the very next verse, Jeremiah 17:10, after the question is asked, “who can know the heart?” The Lord answers, “I, the Lord, search the heart!” This week, God is personally searching our hearts. He is searching to uproot idols, to tear them down, burn them and replace them with true worship!
Toby Mac released a great song a few albums ago called, “Made To Love”. The beginning of the chorus goes like this:
I was made to love you
I was made to find you
I was made just for you
Made to adore you
I was made to love
And be loved by you
The lyrics paint a simple picture of a greater reality; we were made for worship. It doesn’t take long to see that as people we will worship anything! An easier way to identify what we worship is to look at what we cherish or celebrate: sports, fashion, health, fitness, wealth, success, fame, love, relationships, acceptance, power, education, politics, religion, family or feelings: happiness, comfort, an experience, euphoria or nostalgia.
Let me give you an example: Christmas. It used to be that we got through Halloween and Thanksgiving and around December 1st we began to see Christmas trees and decorations show up in Department Stores. We got the Best Products catalogue or Sears or JC Penneys. And then you started to get excited for Christmas about the first or second week in December. Now when do we see Christmas decorations?
We have skipped right over Thanksgiving and gone straight to “gimme”! On top of that, look at what a major event every holiday has become! Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Cinco de Mayo (and last I checked, we aren’t Mexican!), Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day and then straight to Halloween. Have you ever seen anything so out of control as Halloween? Even adults are having full on Halloween parties complete with costumes, games and candy! Why? Because we will celebrate anything! We will worship anything!
Just look at the wedding industry: I can’t believe the level that the wedding industry has risen to in just 15 years! And now, engagement parties, wedding showers, bachelor and bachelorette parties, rehearsal dinners, bridal showers, bridal luncheons and let’s not even get into the baby showers!!
Yes, we were made for worship, that is evident but our worship is broken, misdirected and tainted. We will spend the rest of this week identifying idols that are prevalent in the lives of women, most specifically. After identifying and defining each idol, we will study women in scripture who got it wrong..and women who got it right. We have a long but good road ahead. Hang on for the ride!
Saturday, March 16, 2013
The four-letter word in the Bible...
O-B-E-Y. Obey. Even the sound of the word evokes rebellion within us. The thought of someone or something having dominion over us or telling us what to do smacks of centuries gone by. The new order is one of entitlement, self-discovery and freedom right? The problem is, scripture is full of commands and full of instruction to us to obey those commands.
There are usually two camps on either side of this issue. The first would be the camp of legalism. Legalism says, “follow the law and God will be pleased with you”. The second camp would be the camp of antinomianism. This is a big word that simply means “against (anti) “the law” (nomian). Antinomianism says, “follow love and God will be pleased with you.” So it would seem that these two are on opposite ends of the spectrum. But are they really?
Stick with me here. First, let me point out that God is only pleased with His Son. We don’t follow the law or love to the point of pleasing God. Paul even stated that if the law was able to save there would have been no need for Jesus (Gal. 2:21). Likewise, if “love is all you need” but truth says, “God is love” then without God we would not know love. So we are stuck between two seemingly opposing viewpoints.
Granted, these are both very extreme ends of the spectrum and generally, the truth lies somewhere in between. In this case, it does. Paul says that the Law is a tutor that drives us to see our need for a Savior (Gal. 3:24). So, if the Law drives us to the gospel then why would it ever be bad? On the contrary, scripture says that the Law is good (Rom 6:16b).
Love is also good. I don’t think I need to argue this point because I don’t know of anyone who would disagree. If we had to choose between the two camps likely we would choose the camp of “love” as a safer bet. But, scripture is also full of love talk. The thing is, love is a LAW. Yes, love is commanded. “Love your neighbor as yourself”(Lv.19:18; Matt. 22:39), “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”(Luke 6:31), “as God so loved us, we ought also to love one another: (1 Jn 4:11). So, if we disregard the law then we disregard love.
Furthermore, Jesus also said “if you love Me keep My commandments”(Jn.14:15) and “if you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love” (Jn.15:10). In Jesus’ mind - which would be the mind of God- the two cannot be separated. For those of us wanting to choose a side, we are left straddling the proverbial fence. But, it is so important for us to realize the importance of loving God by keeping His commandments. This will be foundational to our study but also foundational to our lives as believers.
Ladies, obedience without love is legalism. Love without obedience is license (antinomianism). Both are hypocrisy. If we are simply following God’s “rules” but we don’t love the Lord then we are only living an outwardly moral life but inwardly we are “full of dead men’s bones.” This is hypocrisy. God is not snowed or pleased by outward morality. On the contrary, He hates it. Outward morality with a heart that is far from God is simply another form of idolatry.
Likewise, love without obedience is hypocrisy. Jesus had scathing criticism for hypocrisy. He said to the Pharisees, “why do you call me Lord, Lord and do not what I say?” The truth is, we cannot claim a genuine love for the Lord and then willfully choose disobedience to the commands of scripture. This too is idolatry. We have once again placed ourselves and our selfish desires above the Lord in our hearts.
Hebrews 10:22 states, “let us draw near with a sincere heart.” The term “drawing near” is a term of endearment. When we draw near to someone we are moving close to them in love. I almost picture a child snuggling up to a Daddy. Ladies, we can be obedient to the Lord, we can follow His right and rule and never draw near to Him in love with a sincere heart.
The Shema, based out of Deuteronomy 6:4-9, is the most important prayer for the Jew. They recite this when they wake in the morning and when they go to bed every night. The focal verse begins, “You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, and strength. In the gospels Jesus was asked to identify the greatest commandment. What did Jesus say was the greatest commandment? The Shema. He reiterated it and then He added this phrase, “and the second is LIKE it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Then he adds, “all of the law and the prophets hang on these” (Matt. 22:36-40).
Love for others grows out of a love for the Lord. Love for the Lord has to be a singular-focused love that encompasses every part of who we are: heart, soul, mind and strength. Therefore, we are to have no other gods before the One True God, including self. Jesus is completely satisfying, completely filling and when we encounter Him through this study we will realize that He alone can rescue, complete and redeem us! Jesus alone provides eternal soul satisfaction.
Next week we are going to identify and examine idols in our lives. Then we will sacrifice those idols and replace them with worship of the one true God. As we study we want to be fully aware of God’s rightful rule in our lives as He LOVINGLY exposes our idols to bring us out of bondage, out of the house of slavery!
There are usually two camps on either side of this issue. The first would be the camp of legalism. Legalism says, “follow the law and God will be pleased with you”. The second camp would be the camp of antinomianism. This is a big word that simply means “against (anti) “the law” (nomian). Antinomianism says, “follow love and God will be pleased with you.” So it would seem that these two are on opposite ends of the spectrum. But are they really?
Stick with me here. First, let me point out that God is only pleased with His Son. We don’t follow the law or love to the point of pleasing God. Paul even stated that if the law was able to save there would have been no need for Jesus (Gal. 2:21). Likewise, if “love is all you need” but truth says, “God is love” then without God we would not know love. So we are stuck between two seemingly opposing viewpoints.
Granted, these are both very extreme ends of the spectrum and generally, the truth lies somewhere in between. In this case, it does. Paul says that the Law is a tutor that drives us to see our need for a Savior (Gal. 3:24). So, if the Law drives us to the gospel then why would it ever be bad? On the contrary, scripture says that the Law is good (Rom 6:16b).
Love is also good. I don’t think I need to argue this point because I don’t know of anyone who would disagree. If we had to choose between the two camps likely we would choose the camp of “love” as a safer bet. But, scripture is also full of love talk. The thing is, love is a LAW. Yes, love is commanded. “Love your neighbor as yourself”(Lv.19:18; Matt. 22:39), “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”(Luke 6:31), “as God so loved us, we ought also to love one another: (1 Jn 4:11). So, if we disregard the law then we disregard love.
Furthermore, Jesus also said “if you love Me keep My commandments”(Jn.14:15) and “if you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love” (Jn.15:10). In Jesus’ mind - which would be the mind of God- the two cannot be separated. For those of us wanting to choose a side, we are left straddling the proverbial fence. But, it is so important for us to realize the importance of loving God by keeping His commandments. This will be foundational to our study but also foundational to our lives as believers.
Ladies, obedience without love is legalism. Love without obedience is license (antinomianism). Both are hypocrisy. If we are simply following God’s “rules” but we don’t love the Lord then we are only living an outwardly moral life but inwardly we are “full of dead men’s bones.” This is hypocrisy. God is not snowed or pleased by outward morality. On the contrary, He hates it. Outward morality with a heart that is far from God is simply another form of idolatry.
Likewise, love without obedience is hypocrisy. Jesus had scathing criticism for hypocrisy. He said to the Pharisees, “why do you call me Lord, Lord and do not what I say?” The truth is, we cannot claim a genuine love for the Lord and then willfully choose disobedience to the commands of scripture. This too is idolatry. We have once again placed ourselves and our selfish desires above the Lord in our hearts.
Hebrews 10:22 states, “let us draw near with a sincere heart.” The term “drawing near” is a term of endearment. When we draw near to someone we are moving close to them in love. I almost picture a child snuggling up to a Daddy. Ladies, we can be obedient to the Lord, we can follow His right and rule and never draw near to Him in love with a sincere heart.
The Shema, based out of Deuteronomy 6:4-9, is the most important prayer for the Jew. They recite this when they wake in the morning and when they go to bed every night. The focal verse begins, “You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, and strength. In the gospels Jesus was asked to identify the greatest commandment. What did Jesus say was the greatest commandment? The Shema. He reiterated it and then He added this phrase, “and the second is LIKE it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Then he adds, “all of the law and the prophets hang on these” (Matt. 22:36-40).
Love for others grows out of a love for the Lord. Love for the Lord has to be a singular-focused love that encompasses every part of who we are: heart, soul, mind and strength. Therefore, we are to have no other gods before the One True God, including self. Jesus is completely satisfying, completely filling and when we encounter Him through this study we will realize that He alone can rescue, complete and redeem us! Jesus alone provides eternal soul satisfaction.
Next week we are going to identify and examine idols in our lives. Then we will sacrifice those idols and replace them with worship of the one true God. As we study we want to be fully aware of God’s rightful rule in our lives as He LOVINGLY exposes our idols to bring us out of bondage, out of the house of slavery!
Thursday, March 14, 2013
I AM and there is NONE besides ME: Part 2
Four days in and we have already learned so much! Yesterday we studied the ten commandments as a whole and looked briefly at how each one is linked to idolatry. We finished up by saying a few things about authority and that is where we will pick up today. However, now that we have laid a foundation, let’s back up and take a specific look at the first commandment.
In order to best understand the purpose of the ten commandments we need to make sure we grasp the context which includes the original audience. Moses was addressing the Israelites after the exodus from Egypt but before their entrance into the Promised Land. Israel had been in slavery for 400 years in Egypt so several generations had passed. No doubt traditions, morals and values that were specific to them as God’s chosen nation had faded as they fell deeper into captivity.
As slaves, they would not have been given the freedom to worship God but they would have been repeatedly exposed to Egypt’s system of worship which included many gods. The journey into the wilderness served many purposes but one specific purpose was preparation. God was taking that time to prepare His people to serve Him and make His name great among the nations. But first, He had some housekeeping He had to do.
To recap, the first commandment is “thou shall have no other god’s before Me” but rather than just starting there God gives a brief introduction that is very important. Look at Exodus 20:2.
God’s rightful rule in our lives:
God establishes His right: What does He say? “I am the Lord, your God..” God is naming Himself and giving Himself personally to the the Israelites. First He names Himself exclusively, THE LORD, not a Lord, but the Lord, the One and Only. This is all caps LORD - which means Yahweh, the covenant God. Israel would have recognized this as the strongest name for the the one, true God. This sets up God’s right to give the 10 commandments.
God establishes His rule: Then, after calling Himself by His strong, authoritative, powerful, sovereign name, He commits Himself to them personally as YOUR God. This sets up God’s rule in their lives. Let me give you an example. I have one Dad. My Dad has right or authority in my life because of who he is - he’s Dad, that gives him authority!! He also has the ownership to tell me what to do because he is MY Dad. I don’t answer to other Dads like I answer to my own. They don’t have right or rule over me.
It is the same with God. God has authority or “the right” because of who He is - He is God. But God also has “rule” over us because we are His creation and His children. Does that make sense?
God establishes His love: But He doesn’t stop there, He then recounts to them what has just happened to them and who is responsible. He says, “who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery?” This is showing God’s loving protection and care for His own. This is where God shifts the focus from Himself as Father, to Abba, to Daddy. I think somebody needs to hear that. It is going to get confrontational and the road will get rocky before it smooths out again. We need to be reminded not only that God is rightfully our Father but that He is our Daddy and He loves us and when He tells us there are to be no other gods before Him, He is doing so not out of a power trip but out of our best interest.
God loves His people so much that He brings them out of bondage, out of slavery, to make them sons and give them their own land with Himself as King. However, before all of that can happen He has to set up a few rules in order to live in His kingdom and He begins by saying, “You shall have no other gods (little “g”) besides me.”
Ladies, if you and I are to live as part of God’s kingdom and not live out the fate of Israel in our lives, we must begin by having “no other gods.” First, because there are no other gods. God is gracious to His people in educating them - by establishing He is their rightful Lord who loves them. There are no others. Second, He is gracious in His warning because scripture says, “He knows what is in a woman’s heart” (1 Chr. 28:9; 2 Chr. 6:30). The Lord ultimately knows that every one of us is prone to idolatry so He is reminding us for our own good.
We must learn to be obedient to God’s right and rule but also to recognize and respond to His love. This is how we begin to tear down the idols in our lives. Tomorrow, as we close out week one we will look at the importance of obedience in love to God’s commands. We are establishing a firm foundation which will allow us to identify, uproot and replace all of the idols in our lives. Stay tuned...
In order to best understand the purpose of the ten commandments we need to make sure we grasp the context which includes the original audience. Moses was addressing the Israelites after the exodus from Egypt but before their entrance into the Promised Land. Israel had been in slavery for 400 years in Egypt so several generations had passed. No doubt traditions, morals and values that were specific to them as God’s chosen nation had faded as they fell deeper into captivity.
As slaves, they would not have been given the freedom to worship God but they would have been repeatedly exposed to Egypt’s system of worship which included many gods. The journey into the wilderness served many purposes but one specific purpose was preparation. God was taking that time to prepare His people to serve Him and make His name great among the nations. But first, He had some housekeeping He had to do.
To recap, the first commandment is “thou shall have no other god’s before Me” but rather than just starting there God gives a brief introduction that is very important. Look at Exodus 20:2.
God’s rightful rule in our lives:
God establishes His right: What does He say? “I am the Lord, your God..” God is naming Himself and giving Himself personally to the the Israelites. First He names Himself exclusively, THE LORD, not a Lord, but the Lord, the One and Only. This is all caps LORD - which means Yahweh, the covenant God. Israel would have recognized this as the strongest name for the the one, true God. This sets up God’s right to give the 10 commandments.
God establishes His rule: Then, after calling Himself by His strong, authoritative, powerful, sovereign name, He commits Himself to them personally as YOUR God. This sets up God’s rule in their lives. Let me give you an example. I have one Dad. My Dad has right or authority in my life because of who he is - he’s Dad, that gives him authority!! He also has the ownership to tell me what to do because he is MY Dad. I don’t answer to other Dads like I answer to my own. They don’t have right or rule over me.
It is the same with God. God has authority or “the right” because of who He is - He is God. But God also has “rule” over us because we are His creation and His children. Does that make sense?
God establishes His love: But He doesn’t stop there, He then recounts to them what has just happened to them and who is responsible. He says, “who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery?” This is showing God’s loving protection and care for His own. This is where God shifts the focus from Himself as Father, to Abba, to Daddy. I think somebody needs to hear that. It is going to get confrontational and the road will get rocky before it smooths out again. We need to be reminded not only that God is rightfully our Father but that He is our Daddy and He loves us and when He tells us there are to be no other gods before Him, He is doing so not out of a power trip but out of our best interest.
God loves His people so much that He brings them out of bondage, out of slavery, to make them sons and give them their own land with Himself as King. However, before all of that can happen He has to set up a few rules in order to live in His kingdom and He begins by saying, “You shall have no other gods (little “g”) besides me.”
Ladies, if you and I are to live as part of God’s kingdom and not live out the fate of Israel in our lives, we must begin by having “no other gods.” First, because there are no other gods. God is gracious to His people in educating them - by establishing He is their rightful Lord who loves them. There are no others. Second, He is gracious in His warning because scripture says, “He knows what is in a woman’s heart” (1 Chr. 28:9; 2 Chr. 6:30). The Lord ultimately knows that every one of us is prone to idolatry so He is reminding us for our own good.
We must learn to be obedient to God’s right and rule but also to recognize and respond to His love. This is how we begin to tear down the idols in our lives. Tomorrow, as we close out week one we will look at the importance of obedience in love to God’s commands. We are establishing a firm foundation which will allow us to identify, uproot and replace all of the idols in our lives. Stay tuned...
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Idolatry Day Three: I AM and there is NONE besides ME
“When the mind is most taken up with an object and the heart and affections most set upon it, this is soul worship; and this is the honor due only to the Lord, to have the first, the highest place, both in our hearts and minds and endeavors.” ~ David Clarkson
Idolatry is defined in many ways by many different people. I suppose the reason that idolatry is defined in so many different ways is because idolatry has so many different faces. It manifests itself in so many different and subtle ways that by the end of this study you may be faced with a whole treasure trove of idols you didn’t even know you had! That’s exactly what happened to me! In studying I would repeatedly find myself faced with one idol after another - some good things and some sinful things - but all had become ultimate things.
However, the definition of idolatry is not merely worship or elevation of things or people above the Lord. Idolatry is ultimately an elevation of self above the Lord. You may have heard that at the root of all sin is pride and pride is an elevation of self which is idolatry. So, even though idolatry has many different faces, some of which we will explore next week, idolatry is ultimately about self-exaltation.
I want us to begin our study looking at the Ten Commandments, so turn to Exodus 20. There are idols mentioned in scripture prior to Exodus 20 but this is God’s direct treatment of the subject to His people. I think what we find here will be interesting.
Read Exodus 20: 1-17.
So, this scripture shouldn’t be anything that is new to us. Most of us have heard the ten commandments multiple times before and other than the first two commandments dealing directly with idolatry it seems that God then moves on to address other subjects. However, that is not the case. The ten commandments, all of them, are based on idolatry. Why? Because they all address sins that are connected with putting self above God. God made no mistake in the way He ordered the ten commandments. He placed the one on which all of the other nine would hinge, first.
The first four commandments deal with our relationship to God. The last six deal with our relationship to one another. Let me clarify however, our relationship to one another is still wrapped up in our relationship to God. Scripture is clear, you don’t love God and hate your neighbor or love your neighbor and hate God (Matt. 25:36-40; 1 John 3:11;4:20-21). They are inextricably linked. Jesus named our love of the Lord and our love of others as the summary of the Law - that is basically what is being said here in greater detail! (Matt. 22:36-40)
The second commandment clarifies the first. Just in case you were wondering what could be an idol, here’s the list and oh, by the way, that’s anything! You can make anything an idol! The 3rd commandment addresses something we learned about in studying the Lord’s prayer - not “hallowing” the Lord’s name. Not worshipping the Lord properly. And then the 4th commandment goes with that - honoring the Sabbath. So, when we don’t exalt God or the Lord’s Day, then we are placing what we want above the Lord...self-exaltation..idolatry.
Moving on to five through ten: each of these deals with a specific sin toward another person. Murder, adultery, stealing etc; are all about what we want ABOVE God. If we murder, if we commit adultery, if we steal what we have said is, “God, I know that I am not supposed to commit adultery but I don’t really care, it’s what I want and I am my own god”. Again, self-exaltation is idolatry.
Before we close today I want to say one thing about obedience. Yes, the dreaded word, obedience. One thing I learn more and more each day is that if I fail to be obedient to the earthly authority that God has placed over me (government, employers, church elders, parents, teachers etc;) then I will never be obedient to God’s authority over me. God has set up and appointed all earthly rule (Romans 13:1-6). When we are rebellious toward earthly rule we are automatically rebellious toward God. It is a lesser to greater mentality.
Moms, this is also a serious lesson for you personally but also parentally. If you have a rebellious spirit toward authority - even if you THINK your children are fooled - they are not! How do you respond when your child talks about their teachers? Do you affirm them or remind them to respect authority? Do you talk about your boss, the elders at your church and others in authority over you in a negative light? Do you remain silent but rebel in with your actions? Facial expressions?
My encouragement for you today is to begin to self-observe your HEART attitude toward authority. One thing we will come back to again and again is the heart. God is always concerned with the heart first. If the heart is clean (the inside of the dish) then behavior will reflect it (the outside of the dish). We cannot claim complete obedience to the Lord and have a stiff-necked, rebellious spirit towards earthly authority. Ask the Lord to grant you grace and change your heart. Ultimately, our obedience toward earthly authority is obedience toward the Lord. You can’t have one without the other.
Idolatry is defined in many ways by many different people. I suppose the reason that idolatry is defined in so many different ways is because idolatry has so many different faces. It manifests itself in so many different and subtle ways that by the end of this study you may be faced with a whole treasure trove of idols you didn’t even know you had! That’s exactly what happened to me! In studying I would repeatedly find myself faced with one idol after another - some good things and some sinful things - but all had become ultimate things.
However, the definition of idolatry is not merely worship or elevation of things or people above the Lord. Idolatry is ultimately an elevation of self above the Lord. You may have heard that at the root of all sin is pride and pride is an elevation of self which is idolatry. So, even though idolatry has many different faces, some of which we will explore next week, idolatry is ultimately about self-exaltation.
I want us to begin our study looking at the Ten Commandments, so turn to Exodus 20. There are idols mentioned in scripture prior to Exodus 20 but this is God’s direct treatment of the subject to His people. I think what we find here will be interesting.
Read Exodus 20: 1-17.
So, this scripture shouldn’t be anything that is new to us. Most of us have heard the ten commandments multiple times before and other than the first two commandments dealing directly with idolatry it seems that God then moves on to address other subjects. However, that is not the case. The ten commandments, all of them, are based on idolatry. Why? Because they all address sins that are connected with putting self above God. God made no mistake in the way He ordered the ten commandments. He placed the one on which all of the other nine would hinge, first.
The first four commandments deal with our relationship to God. The last six deal with our relationship to one another. Let me clarify however, our relationship to one another is still wrapped up in our relationship to God. Scripture is clear, you don’t love God and hate your neighbor or love your neighbor and hate God (Matt. 25:36-40; 1 John 3:11;4:20-21). They are inextricably linked. Jesus named our love of the Lord and our love of others as the summary of the Law - that is basically what is being said here in greater detail! (Matt. 22:36-40)
The second commandment clarifies the first. Just in case you were wondering what could be an idol, here’s the list and oh, by the way, that’s anything! You can make anything an idol! The 3rd commandment addresses something we learned about in studying the Lord’s prayer - not “hallowing” the Lord’s name. Not worshipping the Lord properly. And then the 4th commandment goes with that - honoring the Sabbath. So, when we don’t exalt God or the Lord’s Day, then we are placing what we want above the Lord...self-exaltation..idolatry.
Moving on to five through ten: each of these deals with a specific sin toward another person. Murder, adultery, stealing etc; are all about what we want ABOVE God. If we murder, if we commit adultery, if we steal what we have said is, “God, I know that I am not supposed to commit adultery but I don’t really care, it’s what I want and I am my own god”. Again, self-exaltation is idolatry.
Before we close today I want to say one thing about obedience. Yes, the dreaded word, obedience. One thing I learn more and more each day is that if I fail to be obedient to the earthly authority that God has placed over me (government, employers, church elders, parents, teachers etc;) then I will never be obedient to God’s authority over me. God has set up and appointed all earthly rule (Romans 13:1-6). When we are rebellious toward earthly rule we are automatically rebellious toward God. It is a lesser to greater mentality.
Moms, this is also a serious lesson for you personally but also parentally. If you have a rebellious spirit toward authority - even if you THINK your children are fooled - they are not! How do you respond when your child talks about their teachers? Do you affirm them or remind them to respect authority? Do you talk about your boss, the elders at your church and others in authority over you in a negative light? Do you remain silent but rebel in with your actions? Facial expressions?
My encouragement for you today is to begin to self-observe your HEART attitude toward authority. One thing we will come back to again and again is the heart. God is always concerned with the heart first. If the heart is clean (the inside of the dish) then behavior will reflect it (the outside of the dish). We cannot claim complete obedience to the Lord and have a stiff-necked, rebellious spirit towards earthly authority. Ask the Lord to grant you grace and change your heart. Ultimately, our obedience toward earthly authority is obedience toward the Lord. You can’t have one without the other.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
American Idols: Introduction Cont'd
Today will complete the introduction to our study. I hope that you took the time to answer the questions from yesterday. This is an extremely important step in identifying idols in your life. Scripture says, “The one who covers her sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” (Proverbs 28:13)
There are only a few things I want you to really take away from the introduction to this study and the first is this: God’s revelation of our sin to us is ALWAYS a good and merciful thing. God never reveals our sin to condemn us. On the contrary, He reveals our sin that we might confess and become clean. Condemnation is not of the Lord. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1)
The condemnation comes when:
The enemy goads us with guilt even after sin is confessed.
OR
We choose to ignore our sin, make friends with it or blame someone else for our shortcomings.
I don’t want any of us to fall into either one of these categories. I want us to see ourselves through the eyes of scripture, also called “scripture reading us”, and then repent, so that we might be vessels that are clean! Conviction never FEELS good but scripture says it is necessary that times of refreshing might come.
This concept of scripture reading us is best described as taking scripture and like a mirror, holding it up and gazing at our lives through it. This is not a means of using scripture to say what you want it to say but allowing scripture to search us and reveal our shortcomings in light of truth. James says that when we fail to do this we are like women who look at ourselves in the mirror, walk away and forget what we have seen (James 1:23-25). In other words, we must be hearers of the word and doers of the word as well.
So, my exhortation to you as we begin is to be honest and open allowing the Holy Spirit to do His work. But often times we stop half way. We feel the conviction but we never confess. Or if we confess then we fail to forsake. Repentance is confessing and forsaking..just as the verse in Proverbs just said. If we pray for the Lord to do a work in our lives and He reveals something to us it is complete and utter sin to ignore it and those who do WILL NOT PROSPER.
Do you feel like you aren’t prospering? I’m not talking about prosperity. I’m talking about prospering. Another word for this would be flourishing. To flourish is defined “to grow luxuriantly, or thrive in growth, as a plant.” In Psalm 1 the Lord talks about the righteous being like trees planted by rivers of water that bring forth fruit in due season, whose leaves do not wither or fade and...whatever they do shall prosper!
We want to be like firmly planted, flourishing trees but as scripture teaches - that is up to us! If we CHOOSE to conceal our sin then we will not prosper. Ladies, let’s be diligent to go the distance in confessing and forsaking our sin so that we might find mercy! Let’s be a forest of gorgeous, strong, thriving trees that clap our hands, raise our branches and reflect the majesty of our Savior, Jesus Christ!
There are only a few things I want you to really take away from the introduction to this study and the first is this: God’s revelation of our sin to us is ALWAYS a good and merciful thing. God never reveals our sin to condemn us. On the contrary, He reveals our sin that we might confess and become clean. Condemnation is not of the Lord. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1)
The condemnation comes when:
The enemy goads us with guilt even after sin is confessed.
OR
We choose to ignore our sin, make friends with it or blame someone else for our shortcomings.
I don’t want any of us to fall into either one of these categories. I want us to see ourselves through the eyes of scripture, also called “scripture reading us”, and then repent, so that we might be vessels that are clean! Conviction never FEELS good but scripture says it is necessary that times of refreshing might come.
This concept of scripture reading us is best described as taking scripture and like a mirror, holding it up and gazing at our lives through it. This is not a means of using scripture to say what you want it to say but allowing scripture to search us and reveal our shortcomings in light of truth. James says that when we fail to do this we are like women who look at ourselves in the mirror, walk away and forget what we have seen (James 1:23-25). In other words, we must be hearers of the word and doers of the word as well.
So, my exhortation to you as we begin is to be honest and open allowing the Holy Spirit to do His work. But often times we stop half way. We feel the conviction but we never confess. Or if we confess then we fail to forsake. Repentance is confessing and forsaking..just as the verse in Proverbs just said. If we pray for the Lord to do a work in our lives and He reveals something to us it is complete and utter sin to ignore it and those who do WILL NOT PROSPER.
Do you feel like you aren’t prospering? I’m not talking about prosperity. I’m talking about prospering. Another word for this would be flourishing. To flourish is defined “to grow luxuriantly, or thrive in growth, as a plant.” In Psalm 1 the Lord talks about the righteous being like trees planted by rivers of water that bring forth fruit in due season, whose leaves do not wither or fade and...whatever they do shall prosper!
We want to be like firmly planted, flourishing trees but as scripture teaches - that is up to us! If we CHOOSE to conceal our sin then we will not prosper. Ladies, let’s be diligent to go the distance in confessing and forsaking our sin so that we might find mercy! Let’s be a forest of gorgeous, strong, thriving trees that clap our hands, raise our branches and reflect the majesty of our Savior, Jesus Christ!
Monday, March 11, 2013
American Idols: Introduction Q&A
When you hear the word idol what comes to mind? Do you think of the little Buddha fountains that you see in Chinese restaurants? Do you think of totem poles? Do you think of American Idol or someone famous?
Now, when you turn that around to yourself what comes to mind? To help you out, I have put together a few questions to get your thoughts moving in the right direction. As we begin our study, it will be very important to know those things that you idolize in order for the study to be effective. My only request is that you be brutally honest with yourself. Pray and ask the Lord to reveal what you truly worship in your heart.
1. What do your thoughts effortlessly go to when there is nothing else demanding your attention? Another way to put it, what do you enjoy daydreaming about?
2. What do you habitually think about to get joy and comfort in the privacy of your heart?
3. What does your money flow most effortlessly toward? Where do you find yourself overspending or constantly trying to exercise self-control?
4. How do you respond to your most important unanswered prayers and frustrated hopes? Do you respond with explosive anger or deep despair?
5. Analyze your most uncontrollable emotions, especially those that are most painful. Do they drive you to do things you know are wrong?
6. Is there something that you must have at all costs? If so, what is it?
7. Are you fearful because something in your life is being threatened that you think is a necessity when it is not? If so, what is it?
8. Are you so down on yourself because you have lost or failed at something that you think is a necessity when it is not? If so, what is it?
9. To who or what do you look for life-sustaining stability, security and acceptance?
10. What do you really want and expect out of life?
11. What would really make you happy?
12. What would make you an acceptable person?
13. Where do you look for power and success?
14. Has something or someone besides Jesus the Christ taken title to your heart’s functional trust, preoccupation, loyalty, service, fear and delight?
Now, when you turn that around to yourself what comes to mind? To help you out, I have put together a few questions to get your thoughts moving in the right direction. As we begin our study, it will be very important to know those things that you idolize in order for the study to be effective. My only request is that you be brutally honest with yourself. Pray and ask the Lord to reveal what you truly worship in your heart.
1. What do your thoughts effortlessly go to when there is nothing else demanding your attention? Another way to put it, what do you enjoy daydreaming about?
2. What do you habitually think about to get joy and comfort in the privacy of your heart?
3. What does your money flow most effortlessly toward? Where do you find yourself overspending or constantly trying to exercise self-control?
4. How do you respond to your most important unanswered prayers and frustrated hopes? Do you respond with explosive anger or deep despair?
5. Analyze your most uncontrollable emotions, especially those that are most painful. Do they drive you to do things you know are wrong?
6. Is there something that you must have at all costs? If so, what is it?
7. Are you fearful because something in your life is being threatened that you think is a necessity when it is not? If so, what is it?
8. Are you so down on yourself because you have lost or failed at something that you think is a necessity when it is not? If so, what is it?
9. To who or what do you look for life-sustaining stability, security and acceptance?
10. What do you really want and expect out of life?
11. What would really make you happy?
12. What would make you an acceptable person?
13. Where do you look for power and success?
14. Has something or someone besides Jesus the Christ taken title to your heart’s functional trust, preoccupation, loyalty, service, fear and delight?
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