Tag Archive | ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.” 12 So then

So Heavenly minded, no earthly good?

Have you ever heard the phrase, “That person is so Heavenly minded that they are no earthly good?” I was thinking about this phrase this morning and have come to the conclusion that it is total bunk! If a follower of Christ is truly Heavenly minded, they are aware of the fact that one day every person who lived will stand before the Creator of the Universe and give an account for their actions. The idea of eternity is not just a random concept to a Heavenly minded person but it is a reality. They KNOW that the time we spend here is precious and will determine where we spend all of eternity! A truly Heavenly minded person does not get caught up and waylaid by the cares of this world. They realize that distractions that draw us away from Christ are to be avoided at all costs! When they look at people they see their potential in Christ and make every attempt to share Jesus with them, knowing that that is the heart of the Father.

Heavenly minded people are the intercessors. They are the drone workers willing to help when there is work for the Kingdom to be done, regardless of how menial it may seem. They are not easily distracted because eternity is never far off from their thoughts! Though they love their families and friends, they choose to keep Christ first in all their decisions. Though they are far from perfect, their eyes are on Jesus, knowing the reality of seeing Him face to face one day and because of this they are continuing to grow more like Him!

In the book of Colossians, Apostle Paul actually admonishes us to keep our eyes on things above!

Colossians 3:1-4 NIV 3 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ²Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. ³For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. ⁴When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Jesus told us that one day every man, woman and child will bow before Him and acknowledge Him as Lord!

Romans 14: 10-12 NIV 10 For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. ¹¹It is written: “As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.” ¹²So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

With this in mind, the Heavenly minded person makes daily decisions with eternity in mind. “Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we will die,” is not going to suffice! Instead they choose to heed Paul’s words found in Phillipians 2:12-18 NIV

¹²Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, ¹³for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.¹⁴Do everything without grumbling or arguing, ¹⁵so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky ¹⁶as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain. ¹⁷But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. ¹⁸So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

Now I realize that often when the phrase “too Heavenly minded” is tossed around it is usually tossed by people that are very uncomfortable with a person having the type of faith that actually changes their behavior. Perhaps they are too “radical,” too focused on “Jesus,” instead of being the average run of the mill Christian who believes in Jesus but doesn’t believe He needs to be Savior and LORD of their lives. My prayer is that all who call themselves Christian will become truly that! They will realize the need for repentance, salvation, filling of the Spirit, baptism and a NEW LIFE. These are all the hallmarks of a true follower of Christ. As we continue to grow in our walk with Christ we are to study the Word of God and allow the Spirit of God to make us more like Jesus. If we do, we too will become Heavenly minded. We will begin to look at others differently, knowing that one day they too will stand and give an account before God. This will motivate us to care more, intercede more, share the gospel more, reach out more.

The truth is, a truly Heavenly minded person is more earthly good! They choose to live their life in obedience to Christ and serve in whatever capacity they are called to serve. They are not sitting around contemplating the stars, they are growing more like Jesus and are actively doing the works Jesus did! They are interceding for the lost, they are reaching out to the downtrodden, they are living a life of obedience, with Heaven never too far from their thoughts!

Lord please make each one of us more Heavenly minded! When we meet others, let us keep eternity in mind and let it motivate us to share the gospel with them! When we see the hurting and downtrodden remind us of the importance of not turning a blind eye but instead to reach out and help! Let us keep eternity in mind every day as we run the race you have set before us! In Jesus name, Amen

Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV 12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ²fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Arm twisting not allowed!

Nov21

Too often we complicate things in our walk with Christ. We find ourselves getting caught up in all kinds of things that only serve as distractions from abiding in Christ and loving others. We may differ in opinion with some of our brothers and sisters in matters but when we allow that difference to remove our peace and cause us to try and convince them of our opinion instead of praying for them and loving on them we have strayed from our purpose. I’m not talking about fundamental truths of God’s Word, but of things the scripture is not clear and where there is some room for interpretation.

When the Holy Spirit has convicted us of something we are to honor God and obey Him in this matter. He knows us intimately and knows what may cause us to stumble. Again outside of fundamental truths, we cannot put that same conviction on someone else. That may not be an area where they struggle and therefore they may not have the same conviction. The Holy Spirit is beautiful at His job of bringing conviction about a matter and drawing us to Jesus. It is His job, not ours.

I love Apostle Paul’s words in Romans 14:1-23 NIV 14 Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. ²One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. ³The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. ⁴Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

⁵One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. ⁶Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. ⁷For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. ⁸If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. ⁹For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

¹⁰You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister^]? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. ¹¹It is written: “As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.” ¹²So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

¹³Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. ¹⁴I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. ¹⁵If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. ¹⁶Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. ¹⁷For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, ¹⁸because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.

¹⁹Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. ²⁰Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. ²¹It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

²²So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. ²³But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.

We are to obey God in the things He has shown us and not try and force our opinions on others in some of the grey areas. The same Holy Spirit that convicts us is able to convict our brother or sister. Arguing and disputing over any matter will not bring about Godly change in either persons life. If we believe God has shown us some truth that we feel we need to share with others let’s do so kindly and without arm twisting and after we’ve shared it, leave it up to the Holy Spirit to bring conviction or clarity on the matter. It’s important that we don’t allow our differences to cause division. As Paul says, “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”

livingmoreabundantly

Fearfully & Wonderfully Made Psalm 139:14