Unprovoked Love

lwwconline — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:49:27 +0000

When I was a kid my parents and I used to watch a comedy-variety show that had a segment on it called, “Kids Say The Darndest Things” (In the late 90’s CBS turned this concept into a series hosted by Bill Cosby). Basically, the host would ask kids questions on various subjects and the responses would always be hilarious. One time the host asked some kids what they thought about the subject of “love.” Here are some responses:

One kid who had apparently witnessed the marital struggles of his parents said, “Love is that first feeling you feel before all the bad stuff gets in the way.”

“Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.”

“Love is what makes you smile at each other – even when you’re tired.”

One little girl said, “Love is when mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure that the taste is OK.”

A little boy said, “If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you don’t like to play with.”

One observant little girl said, “Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, and then he wears it everyday.”

“Love is when mommy sees daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.”

In Colossians 3:13-15, the Apostle Paul says, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

Notice the phrase: “Put on love.” Paul describes this act as if we are putting on several garments and he says that the ‘overcoat’ that needs to cover the other attributes should be love. But what does it mean to put on love? If love is the last thing you put on before you go out the door – the one thing your ‘life-outfit’ would be incomplete without – what does that look like and how do we do it? I think to answer that we need to understand what ‘love’ means here. The ‘love’ Paul is talking about is the ‘agape love,’ which basically means it must be an unconditional love.

If agape love is unconditional and the reverse of the way that conditional forms of love work, then agape love isn’t an ‘if/then’ type of love or a ‘because of’ kind of love, rather, it’s an ‘in spite of’ kind of love! Agape love chooses to love in the face of betrayal, in the face of rejection and in the face of evasion. In other words, agape love is an unprovoked love.

Think of it this way: We read of unprovoked violence and aggression all the time. We hear things on the news like: “There was a John Doe minding his own business at the bus stop who was beaten and robbed for no apparent reason.” Many have had acts of aggression forced upon them that were unprovoked. I suggest if we’re fully ‘dressed’ and prepared for our day and wearing agape love as our most outer garment, we should be demonstrating some unprovoked acts of love. How about a news report that sounds like this: “There was a John Doe minding his own business at the bus stop when a man approached him and in spite of the fact that Mr. Doe was a grumpy selfish person who never gave a dime to charity – out of the blue this unknown man blessed him with enough money to ride the bus for the rest of the month!”

Agape love seeks those who never saw it coming and even those who never had it coming. It shows up unannounced, unexpected, and completely undeserved. It isn’t predicated on our beauty, our popularity, our intelligence or our worthiness. It is a love that pursues. This is the way that God loves us. His love for us is indeed undeserved and unprovoked. Let’s put on this unprovoked love and endeavor to give it away as we go through our everyday life.

Pastor Jeff

pastorjeff@lwwconline.com

The Man That Changed Everything!

lwwconline — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 19:49:54 +0000

Museums all over the world are filled with displays of the work of individuals who impacted our lives in one way or another and forever changed life as we know it today. The Wright Brothers changed how we travel and made the world seem like a smaller place we travel through the air from coast to coast. Alexander Fleming was growing some bacteria when a stray spore drifted into his lab and landed in his culture plate and later became what we know as penicillin. Consider how our world has been impacted by the invention of plastic by a man named Leo Baekeland. Of course this list could go on forever, but I want us to focus on the one life that had a greater impact on humanity than all others combined. Through His life, death, and resurrection, Jesus Christ literally changed not one – but every aspect of our lives! His life changed our perspective on how we walk out our faith, how we live out our life and even how we approach death. I love what an anonymous individual once expressed about this incredible truth:

“More than 2000 years ago there was a Man born contrary to the laws of life. This Man lived in poverty and was reared in obscurity. He did not travel extensively. Only once did He cross the boundary of the country in which He lived and that was during His exile in childhood. He possessed neither name, wealth, nor influence. His relatives were inconspicuous, uninfluential, and had neither training nor education. In infancy He startled a king; in childhood He puzzled the doctors; in manhood He ruled the course of nature, walked upon billows as if pavements, and hushed the sea to sleep. He healed the multitudes without medicine and made no charge for His services. He never wrote a book, and yet all the libraries of the country could not hold the books that have been written about Him. He never wrote a song, and yet He has furnished the theme for more songs than all the songwriters combined.

He never founded a college, but all the schools put together cannot boast of having as many students. He never marshaled an army, nor drafted a soldier, nor fired a gun, and yet no leader ever had more volunteers who have, under His orders, made more rebels stack arms and surrender without a shot being fired. The names of the past proud statesmen of Greece and Rome have come and gone. The names of the past scientists, philosophers, and theologians have come and gone; but the name of this Man abounds more and more. Though time has spread 2000 years between the people of this generation and the scene of His crucifixion, He still lives. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever were built; all the parliaments that ever sat and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has that one solitary life.”

Jesus Christ had this unprecedented level of influence because on the third day after His crucifixion on a cruel cross, He rose from the dead. I know it isn’t Easter Sunday, but I encourage you to reflect today on the greatest event that has ever happened and celebrate the reality that He is alive! And because He’s alive – you and I are free to live!

Pastor Jeff

pastorjeff@lwwconline.com

Who He Says I Am

lwwconline — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 22:30:50 +0000

I love this time of year because there is always a sense of optimism and a feeling of fresh starts. We say goodbye to 2011 with mixed emotions because we’ve all had successes to hang our hat on and failures to hang our head over. Regardless of where we are in life, I would suggest that all of us have a desire to make 2012 better than 2011. In prayer this week I believe God specifically spoke a word of encouragement to me that I feel was for the Church. While praying and seeking direction for my own life, my family and the Church He’s blessed me to Pastor, the Spirit of God spoke to my heart and shared with me what I believe to be the answer to a spiritually successful year. Simply put, what He said to me was that in order for us to walk in victory, the number one thing we need to know is who God says we are and what He thinks of us. See, it’s not that we don’t know what God wants (the Bible is full of the details), the problem is that we don’t know who we are as God sees us. In other words, the voices in our head are louder to us than the voice of our Father that knows us better than anyone else knows us. I ask you to consider these truths about what God says about you. Accept them. Believe them. Own them. Let them become your new identity. When this happens, no one can talk you out of anything that God tells you to do. You will not be defeated by discouragement because you will know who you are. You will have courage to fight your giants because you will know how God sees you. Yes, friend, this could change everything in the upcoming year. Here are a few of the things God says about you:

1) You Are His child – He is Your Father – 1John 3:1-2, “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Dear friends, now we are children of God.”

2) You Are His Friend – John 15:15, “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

3) You Have Been Adopted Into His Family – Ephesians 1:4-5, “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.”

4) You Are Blessed With Every Spiritual Blessing – Ephesians 1:3, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”

5) You’ve Been Given Promises – 2Peter 1:3-4, “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”

6) You Are Redeemed and Forgiven – Ephesians 1:6-8, “to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.”

7) You Are Free From Condemnation – Romans 8:1, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

8) You Have Been Given The Mind Of Christ – 1Corinthians 2:16, “For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.”

9) You Are A New Creation – 2Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”

10) You Are The Temple Of God – 1Corinthians 3:16; 6:19, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? “

11) You Are A Member Of Christ’s Body – 1Corinthians 12:27, “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”

12) You Are A Saint – Ephesians 3:4, “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.”

13) You’ve Been Rescued From Satan – Colossians 1:13, “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves”

14) You Are Hidden In God With Christ – Colossians 3:3, “For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.”

15) You Are Chosen Of God – Holy and Beloved – Colossians 3:12, “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”

16) You Have Spiritual Authority – Luke 10:19, “I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.”

17) You Are To Be Salt and Light – Matthew 5:13-14, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 14 “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.”

18) You Are Appointed to Bear Fruit – John 15:16, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.”

19) You Are To Do The Works Of Christ – John 14:12, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.”

Happy New Year!

Pastor Jeff

pastorjeff@lwwconline.com

No Triumphs Without Trials

lwwconline — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 22:59:08 +0000

All of us, at one time or another, have experienced turmoil or storms in our lives and you might be dealing with something like that right now. And even though the circumstances may be different for all of us, there’s one thing that we all have in common when it comes to the storms of our lives – we want them to stop…and we want them to stop NOW! And often times when we cry out for it to stop, it not only doesn’t stop, it gets worse. And we find ourselves on our knees asking God why He has allowed this. And the first lesson we learn when navigating through a life-storm is that there are no easy answers to that question. But know this, friend: If there were no great trials in life, there would be no great triumphs! Someone much smarter than me once said, “The same hammer that shatters glass, forges steel.” And many times it’s in the hardships of life where great things are born.

Consider when the Apostle Paul was imprisoned and under strict house arrest. It was during these unfortunate times of his life that he wrote some of his most inspiring letters. Many times when you go through difficulties, storms or just downright hard times, you can learn things about yourself and discover your strengths and weaknesses you could not learn anywhere else or any other way. And if you handle the storm correctly, you can even use the storm to your advantage and let the winds and the waves propel you to the other side!

This thought is also found in Psalm 23. In this chapter we find the pleasant and calming scene of sheep grazing on the tall, luscious grass and drinking from the cool mountain springs. And we love this picture of the green pastures and still waters. But, David doesn’t stop with that description…he continues on: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4). Yes, there will be those times when our Father will take us to the green pastures and still waters, but Thank God, He will also be with us in the deep, dark, scary valleys as well. And in those valleys we can learn as many important lessons as we can learn in the green pastures. God has a purpose and a plan for you in the storms of life. And you can rest assured that He is with you in your storm as it blows you to a new shoreline.

Pastor Jeff

pastorjeff@lwwconline.com

Know The Difference

lwwconline — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 16:34:49 +0000

When I was a boy my father and I spent a lot of time in the woods together hiking, working his dogs and just hanging out. Well, I thought we were just ‘hanging out,’ but what I realize now is that a great Professor in the study of ‘Life’ was actually exposing me to the greatest college classroom experience I could ever have and I was learning great life lessons. One day while following an old barbed wire fence trying to navigate out of a new patch of woods we were exploring, we came upon a large dog that had gotten himself trapped in the old fence and was wrapped up in the old, rusty barbed wire and was obviously enduring great pain and discomfort. With each twist and turn the old dog would whimper, whine and wail as the barbs dug deeper into his flesh. Without hesitation my dad ran over to the hurting animal with the intention of freeing him and easing his pain. As we approached, the dog seemed to have almost a look of “Thank You” on his face and even let my father close enough to rub his head. But every time dad would attempt to remove the dog from its bondage, a deep growl would come from the dog and he would show his teeth with a fierce snarl that sent a chill down my spine. More than once the dog would snap at dad and tried his best to take a hunk out of his hands and arms. The animal was turning on the very one who was trying to rescue him. Read that sentence again: “The animal was turning on the very one who was trying to rescue him.” Dad and I talked about it the rest of our trek through the woods.

That is how some people are. You try to help them, and they turn on you. They’re trapped and all you’re trying to do is help, but before you know it they’re snarling and trying their best to take a bite out of you. This is the idea Jesus was speaking of in Matthew 7:6 when He said: “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.” And just for clarification, I’m obviously not calling the people that won’t listen to counsel ‘pigs,’ but the fact is, sometimes people don’t want to hear what we have to say. I’m sure you’ve found yourself in a position where you’re trying to talk to someone about your faith, and they have clearly turned you off and in many cases verbally told you they’re not interested and wished you would go away! The natural inclination is to press on and press in. And I know we do this because we desire they hear the truth about Jesus and give their life to Him, but if someone doesn’t appreciate the truths of God’s Word, if we keep pressing, we’re trying to do the work of the Holy Spirit and convince them of something on an intellectual level that must really happen on a spiritual level.

Right before Jesus was crucified the Bible says that He was brought before King Herod. And while He was in Herod’s presence, He did not say a word. Why? Because Herod didn’t want to hear the truth, and Jesus knew that so He kept His mouth shut. Friend, there are some people who aren’t ready to hear or simply don’t want to hear the message of Jesus Christ. But thankfully, there are other people who do! You and I need to pray for the discernment to know the difference.

Pastor Jeff

pastorjeff@lwwconline.com

Give Thanks!

lwwconline — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 23:11:03 +0000

I love this time of year – more specifically, I love Thanksgiving. The hour our family Thanksgiving celebration (a.k.a. The Coma-Inducing Feast) ends, I start looking forward to next year. But I’ve noticed something in the last several years: stores, merchants and businesses don’t really seem to know what to do with Turkey Day. While it’s still blazing hot outside and the kids are just going back to school you start seeing Halloween decorations and paraphernalia on the shelves of your local mega-mart. And as quickly as the goblins are removed from the displays, Santa appears. Oh, I get it, there are big bucks to be made in these two holidays, but I find it a little disheartening that we don’t really know what to do with Thanksgiving! And it’s really sad when you consider Thanksgiving is very spiritual in it’s origins. In fact, in 1789, Thanksgiving was designated by President George Washington as a national day for giving thanks to God.

And before I’m misunderstood, this isn’t a subtle backhand against Halloween and I’m certainly not suggesting we take any emphasis off of the day we celebrate the birth of our Savior. No, what I’m suggesting is that we don’t gloss over this day of thanks too quickly. Rather, I think we should stop, take inventory of our lives and give thanks to our Creator, God for His incredible blessings in our life. And then put things into place that will consistently remind us of just how blessed we are from one Thanksgiving to the next.

Ah, but you might be thinking, “That’s all well and good, but you don’t know me and if you did, you’d realize I don’t have a lot to give thanks for.” And on the surface it may really look that way. Perhaps you are having financial troubles that leave your pockets empty at the end of the month. Maybe your health problems are getting you down. Maybe there is conflict in your family that has left scars and tension that you don’t know how to begin to deal with. I empathize with all of these things and would never downplay them in any way. But, friend, we need to put things into perspective. Every week a million plus men and women will not survive to see a new day, and if you woke up with this morning with more ‘good’ than ‘ill’, you’re more than blessed! If you didn’t wake up in a foxhole, behind bars, starving or being tortured, you’re ahead of more than 20 million people worldwide. If you attend a church meeting in your local house of worship without fear of being harassed, arrested or even killed, you are more blessed than about three billion people across this globe. If you have even the slightest morsel of food in your refrigerator, clothes on your back and a roof over your head (regardless of the condition of that roof), you are richer than 75 percent of the world. And let’s say none of those things apply to your situation right now…you still have a reason to praise and give thanks because God is good and His mercy is new every morning! The psalmist wrote in Psalm 107:1, “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.”

Friend, I believe we have a lot to give thanks for today. I encourage you to never forget that the main reason we were put on this earth as human beings to begin with is to glorify God and to give Him thanks. Let’s never fail to thank Him for his goodness and mercy.

From my family to yours: “Happy Thanksgiving!”

Pastor Jeff

pastorjeff@lwwconline.com

Redeem The Time

lwwconline — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 19:04:38 +0000

Redeem The Time

The Apostle Paul said a pretty heavy thing in 1Corinthians 10:41, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” It’s pretty intimidating to think EVERYTHING we do must be for the glory of God! For years I kind of thought that it was an exaggerated statement so the writer could make his point and I ignored its seemingly excessive demands. Then when I realized it meant exactly what it said, I found this verse paralyzing because I would dissect every decision I had to make to the degree that I accomplished very little.

Another set of verses that I always found a little overwhelming are Ephesians 5:15-16, “Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil.” Did you see the phrase, “Making the most of your time”? Now consider both of these principles together and ask yourself, “How does a follower of Jesus Christ make the best use of his or her time so that in all they do they glorify God?” Great question! I believe we can accomplish this in two ways.

First, we have to be painfully honest with ourselves and make a real list of common actions and tendencies in our life that are obviously not God-glorifying. Things that steal our time away like idleness, laziness, excessive sleep, gluttony, idle chatter, mind-numbing distractions and so on. These time thieves keep us from being productive in the kingdom and being faithful with the time we’ve been given.

A second way Christ followers can make the best of their time so they can positively glorify God is to be intentional and strategic in our quest to grow in godliness and sanctification. 1Thessalonians 4:3 tells us, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification.” For believers, growing in godliness should be our first response when desiring to bring God glory because an ungodly heart will never, ever, at any time, not in a million years, ever seek to glorify God in anything! The unholy, unsanctified heart and mind (called the ‘carnal’ mind in some translations) is the master thief of our time. Friend, the first step in glorifying God in all that we do is to purify our hearts through repentance following an honest evaluation of our walk with Jesus. Only then will we be able to make the most of our time and do all we do for the glory of God.

Pastor Jeff
pastorjeff@lwwconline.com