Dog versus Man (Part one)

Can your devotion to your Master match a dog’s devotion to its master?

Some years ago, I wrote an article about a dog's adoration for its master as an example of what our worship of God should be.

Recently we adopted the most adorable pitch-black Africanis puppy, our first dog in a long time. Ogies is now 16 months old, and once again, she makes me intensely aware of the kind of worship we should have in our hearts toward the Lord. Those who have and know dogs will have firsthand experience of what I'm talking about. 

While I give examples of how Ogies adore me as her master, please see how you can apply those in your worship to the Lord.

When we adopted Ogies, we were told she was found at the rubbish dump. She was with a tramp and faced the bleak future of living off whatever food her master found at the dump, and spending her years living a boring, dump-stricken life. When we came into her life, the receptionist at the vet, who prepared her for adoption, said she had landed on her feet and struck gold. She did, because she walked into a life of provision, joy, intimacy, and lots of excitement and activity. Where she would have just existed, fed half-rotten, rejected food and suffered illnesses like the skin condition she had when we inherited her, she now has an abundant life, eats good food, and her coat is in excellent condition, shining like a bottle.

 In John 10:10, Jesus said, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. You have a choice: either to exist only, living off the scraps that life outside of Christ offers you, or to live life abundantly. Living off the scraps doesn't only apply to unbelievers. Anyone who chooses to go through the motions expected of them by religion and not have a living relationship with Jesus is missing out on the abundant life that Jesus offers.

Among others, this abundant life has nine specific qualities. I’ll discuss two in each part of this series.

1. Love is in abundance. Because we love Ogies, she has nothing to fear. She knows it, and therefore relaxes in our presence – more about this in later posts. The Lord loves you, but unless you realise it and bask in His love, trusting Him and casting your cares on Him, rather than fending for yourself and stressing about the things the enemy throws at you, you will not experience the abundance He offers.
2. Joy is a direct result of this love. Because Ogies knows she is loved, since she can see it in our actions, she is happy. The tail gets lots of exercise. How does she know she is loved? She looks at what we do. If we are more aware of what the Lord does for us than of what life throws at us, we will be happier. (Do not worry - Matthew 6:25-34) Looking at our circumstances, feelings, and challenges makes us miserable, but rejoicing in the Lord’s faithfulness makes us forget about ourselves.

What do I mean by saying that being religious makes you miss out on the abundant life Jesus has for you?

Let's look at the example Ogies shows us.

Ogies takes what she wants, and over the next number of messages, we'll look into that.

All dogs love their masters, but not all masters love their dogs. Some dogs only exist and do not enjoy life because they are left outside to make do, and are fed, and that's it.

When Ogies was a puppy, I started to train her to fetch a ball and bring it back to me. She loves doing it, like most dogs who do it, but one secret she has learnt is that she must return it to the thrower in the way expected. She has her own personality and sometimes tries other ways of doing it, i.e. the way she wants it done, which I allow at times because it falls within my plan, but she mostly does it the way we want it.

 The Lord has certain ways in which He wants things done, and He has spelt them out clearly in His Word. If we want His abundant life, we ought to do things exactly as He directed in the Bible. Personally, I don't believe the Bible is meant for endless Bible studies, but for hearing what the Lord wants to tell you and getting to know His ways, so we can obey and apply that knowledge to everyday life. The Lord allows freedom for individual personalities, but His ultimate purpose is to have His plan fulfilled, and for that He needs us to be obedient and disciplined.

To be continued

Bless and don’t Curse (Part 3)

Please read parts one and two to get the context.

Jesus said in John 13:35: “By this all people will know that you are my
disciples, if you have love for one another”. When I’m in the company of certain people calling themselves Christians, I wonder whether Jesus didn’t make a mistake, because based on some Christians' conversations, He should have said, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have judgment for one another”. This is said light-heartedly, but what is your experience with yourself? Which of the two is the criterion you live by? I have to check myself constantly.

I conclude with a passage that refers to those who persecute us, but it can be applied to any relationship we're involved in. Romans 12:14: Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.

I leave James 3:3-12 with you: When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

Bless and don't Curse (Part 2)

Please read part one to get the context.

As you read, have you been thinking about our introductory passage: The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit? Your words can kill, and they can give life. Your words can harm people's reputation, close doors for them, damage their relationships, etc. Those are the fruit mentioned, and what you sow, you will reap.

What if what is said is the truth, you might say? Other people’s lives and activities are none of your business. Jesus said in Matthew 7:1-5: “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Ask yourself, do I want others to share the kind of gossip about me that I am about to share about this person? Do I want others to hear about me, the kind of gossip I am about to listen to right now? No one is in a position to judge, criticise, or discuss other people's lives or activities because we all have our own sins to deal with. When... no... IF we manage to get the plank, and the next one, and the next one, to the power of a million, out of our own eye, then only can we discuss the speck in our neighbour's eye.

 

And, if you are so self-righteous that you think you have no sin, I want to remind you of 1 John 1:8: If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If you honestly search your heart, you will find many planks.

You see, the Bible is watertight. It has the answers to everything.

In what areas do we generally curse people? Think of your words when you’re driving, and another driver annoys you, or, for that matter, is directed towards anybody who annoys you, your opinions about the government, family members, colleagues, customers, spouses, and those we consider lower than ourselves. I continuously need to confess the sins of my tongue. Do you realise the curses you speak? Do you admit those to be sinful? Do you confess them?

My concern is that when things are tough, we curse people, circumstances, and ourselves instead of blessing them, and then we bring a curse over ourselves. But when we bless in such circumstances, we create a lifeline for ourselves. A couple of days ago, I experienced a practical example of the positive side of this. I always joke that if there is one thing that will cause me to lose my salvation, it would be other drivers and my reaction to their behaviour. In front of me was a slow driver who slowly started to annoy me. I don’t think I was tailgating, but I stayed close enough to be able to pass quickly the moment I got a gap. He probably experienced my behaviour as tailgating. The opportunity to pass him came when a double lane was added to improve traffic flow. Now, you ought to remember that by then, this guy has gathered for himself quite a following in the form of impatient drivers behind me. He, however, saw the opportunity to annoy this impatient tailgater behind him even more by driving next to an equally slow driver in the slow lane, making it impossible to pass him. This is where I passed the test. I knew he was watching me in the rearview mirror and was probably waiting for the middle finger, which I have never used before, but the Lord’s grace took over, and I waved at him, blowing him a kiss. That blessing worked, for he accelerated past the slower vehicle and gave way. As I passed him and looked at him, he was laughing. Had I cursed him by means of the middle finger, I would probably still be driving behind him 😊. 

To be continued

Bless and don’t Curse (Part 1)

We, as believers, must watch our tongues. We read in Proverbs 18:21: The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit. While you're reading on, keep this passage in mind, and when you speak, also keep it in mind.

When we converse with friends, what topics do we discuss? Are the topics science, art, or the like? In my experience, the conversations are often about other people, aren't they?

When people talk about other people, do they praise their good qualities? In my experience, however, this is not the case. They often gossip, don't they?

We read in James 3: 9 & 10: With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.

How do we curse human beings? When we talk negatively about them, we permit evil forces to harm them. How do we do that? I once asked the Lord how fortune-telling works, because Satan is not all-knowing, and the Lord won't involve Himself with it. He told me that the fortune teller can tell the client anything, whether good or bad, and if the client believes it, Satan has the mandate to make it manifest.

The same principle applies to gossip or talking about others. If we say negative things about people, we give Satan the mandate to harm the person we're talking about. We, therefore, curse them. The Greek word used for curse in this context means speaking doom over them. If we speak good things about a person, on the other hand, we give the Lord the mandate to affect them positively, and we therefore bless them.

The above was the spiritual side of it.

What is the realistic and practical outcome of gossip? When someone tells you something about someone you've never met, what happens? You already know something about the person, don't you, even though you've never met them? If you then see the person, without being introduced to them yet, what do you think of them? Isn't it what you've heard of them? Do you think that this knowledge will affect your opinion of them or that it might affect your relationship with them? You have this idea of a person you have not even met, and it sometimes makes you reluctant to meet them, doesn't it? Have you ever looked at someone's tattoos or weird hairstyle or hair colour and thought they're weird, but when you met them, they're the most wonderful people? The same applies to gossip. Isn't it unfair? Don't we miss so much when we get involved with it? Gossip is evil - both speaking it and listening to it.

James used the following comparison in James 3:5 to 6: Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

Have you ever seen a forest fire? We experienced several wildfires while we lived in a town in the mountains. They are not easily stopped. They keep on running relentlessly, devouring everything in their way. James compared gossip to such a fire.

A pastor once called in a member of his congregation who gossiped about him and gave them some bird feathers, asking them to place the feathers in several strategic places in town. When the person returned after having completed the task, the pastor asked them to collect the feathers again. The person exclaimed that the wind would have blown all the feathers away by then. "Precisely," the pastor said, "so it is with gossip, you cannot stop the words from spreading and can never get them back."

To be continued

The Love Challenge (Part 11)

We are busy looking at love from 1 John 4. I recommend reading the other posts first. 

1 John 4:19: "We love because he first loved us." We know that the Lord first loved us by giving Jesus to pay for our sins, but as I wrote this, another angle to this crossed my heart. I spoke to a young father the other day. We were discussing child rearing, and he told me how he has tried to teach his children certain social behaviours by explaining them, but they were slow to get it. He, however, had a certain habit of saying “bless you”, and before long, he noticed the children copied his habit before they had applied what he tried to teach them. The point he wanted me to get is that the children learn much more by example than they do by being taught.

God first loved us, verse 19 states. He set the example, and if we watch Him love, for instance, by copying Jesus’ actions as recorded in the Bible or by looking out for divine opportunities to love as we see others do, we will be challenged by it.

Without being in the Lord, and Him in us, we as humans are unable to love. We are inherently selfish. Even our good works have selfish motives. But if we are in Him, and He in us, we have His unconditional love working through us to sow wherever we go.

Verse 20 is self-explanatory. I need not say anything about it. 1 John 4:20: Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.

We all need to search our hearts and ask ourselves in which ways we lack love towards our neighbours. We can also ask the Lord to show us the latter. How often do we put our hands up in church singing "I love you, Lord", yet out in the world we act loveless?

The word "hate" in here sounds very strong. You might quickly say "I don't hate my neighbour", but isn't hate just the opposite of love? If I don't love my neighbour as per the standards of 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, what do I do then? "Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." I counted 15 characteristics. How about scoring your daily love out of these 15 characteristics of love?

1 John 4:21: And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

There you have it. The title of this series is The Love Challenge.  Be challenged to love as Jesus did. If all believers do it daily instead of only living for themselves, imagine the difference we'll see in the world.

The Love Challenge (Part 10)

We are busy looking at love from 1 John 4. I recommend reading the other posts first.

Verse 18 had me thinking a lot, as I listened to how the Holy Spirit explained it.

1 John 4:18: There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

This passage can be interpreted from various angles.

Our Father loves us. He only has good intentions for us. The fact that He loves us and will be kind to us drives fear away, since He is going to be patient and kind, and possesses all the characteristics described in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.

If we love Him as He loves us, we will be obedient and have no reason to fear His discipline (punishment). Jesus used words similar to John 14:21 several times in John chapters 13 to 15: "Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them." Do you think it may be important to Jesus if He put so much emphasis on it?

Therefore, the one who fears probably doesn't love God enough to live in perfect obedience to Him, and therefore has a reason to fear discipline/punishment.

The passage in 1 John 4:18 above can also be applied to the love among people. If I love someone, my expectations of and the way I treat them should not instil fear in them. 1 Corinthians 13:7 states: "Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening] (Amplified Bible).

Our love for others should cover their trespasses toward us. We should not judge or accuse them. We should rather pray for them that God will help them see their error and then help them to change. At the same time, one can pray that God will do the same for you. One can discuss issues lovingly.

We should make a point to believe the best of them and reject critical thoughts about them entering our minds.

We should hope the best for them because God can change anybody. We should also be careful what we say. Proverbs 18:21 "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life]". Gossiping about people and cursing them by saying critical things about them comes easily, doesn't it? Let's rather replace our tendency to judge with love and give the Lord the mandate to help them through loving them, instead of giving Satan the mandate to destroy them through cursing them with our criticism and gossip.

It's not easy to live with something you believe is wrong, but you should always realise you don't know all the facts. Rather, play it safe by letting love help you endure what irritates you until the Lord comes through for you. 

(To be continued)

The Love Challenge (Part 9)

I want to apologise for taking so long to publish this next post in this series. I've been distracted, and the Lord already slapped my fingers. I promise to be faithful in publishing at least once a week from now on, but I will attempt to do more.

We are busy looking at love from 1 John 4. I recommend reading the other posts first.

1 John 4:16: And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.

The words "and so we know..." mean that, since we acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God and therefore submit to Him as Lord, we will understand the love God has for us and rely on it. He loves us, so why should we fear or worry? If he loves us, He only has good in mind for us, and therefore we can trust Him.

Then verse 16 reads: “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God,
and God in them.” Do you remember the passage in Acts 17:28: ‘For in him we live and move and have our being’ and the vision I had of us being in the cloud (see here)? I want you to see the cloud as love. God is love. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 is therefore a definition of who God is: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” So, if we love like this, we are one with God, and He is in us.

In the preceding three verses of 1 Corinthians 13, Paul describes the religious churchgoer who goes through all the motions of religion, but does not love like God is: 1 Corinthians 13:1-3: "If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing." Does it sound familiar? Have you caught yourself being like this? Have you come across people who are like it?

1 John 4:17 is profound and to be carefully understood: "This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus." What is the purpose of understanding love and being obedient in doing it? It is so we don't have to fear the day when we will stand before the judgment seat. We can be confident that we complied with all of the Lord’s expectations for us. Think of a time you had to face an interview panel for a job position. Have you prepared well for the interview? Have you ensured you have complied with all their expectations? Did setting yourself up for the job and the interview by doing everything they expected of you give you confidence to pass the interview?

What is the expectation for us to be confident during God's interview to enter heaven?

Love should be complete among believers.

How is love made complete among believers?

In this world, we are like Jesus. I.e., if we do the things Jesus did and have His attitude towards fellow believers and people who need Him, we will all love like He does, and love will be made complete among us.

How is Jesus?

Go and read the gospels and do what Jesus did, to the letter. Stop being churchy and religious.

To be continued.

The Love Challenge (Part 8)

We are busy looking at love from 1 John 4. I recommend reading the other posts first.

1 John 4:14-15: And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God.

How do we have it now? Jesus said in John 3:3 & 5: "Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again," and in verse five Jesus answered, "Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit," and in 1 John 4:7-8 as we discussed earlier in this series: Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Then, there is the clear indication in several passages that obedience is a prerequisite to salvation. What needs to happen for salvation is that the Lord needs to be your first love. That's what a love relationship is all about, isn't it? Imagine a woman meets someone and promises commitment to him, but their relationship consists of her saying hi to him every morning, and that's about it. He never sees her apart from when she greets him, and the occasional asking for help when she has exhausted all other options. He sits there longing to spend time with her. Do you think he'd want a relationship like that? The Lord desires a relationship with those who love and need Him at all times, not only when it's convenient for them.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:21-23: Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ 

What Jesus said here is that those whose attitude is one of using His power for their own benefit won't be accepted into the Kingdom of God, but only those who have a childlike relationship with Him and obey His Father, acknowledging Him in all they do. As we obey Him, we get to know Him and build a relationship with Him. That's why He said, "I never knew you". It's like using the name of a well-known person to open doors for you, but you never meet them. Then, one day, you happen to see him at a meeting, and you walk up to him, saying, "Hello, I'm John. You have opened wonderful doors for me." He'll just look at you and say, "Who are you?" 

A believer's first priority is to build a relationship of trust with Father God, by the Holy Spirit, through the Son, Jesus. Everything else flows from it by faith and in obedience. The focus should never be on the believer, but on and to the glory of the Master who does the work through the believer.

These words in 1 John 4:15, "If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God", therefore encompass all the passages relating to salvation we've mentioned above. Acknowledgement is more than just saying that Jesus is the Son of God
Acknowledgement is living in obedience as if Jesus, the Son of God, is your Lord. 

It's like a little child waiting for the next step from her parents. She
knows she cannot do it on her own and acknowledges her complete dependence on them, exercising the resulting obedience to them. This is why Jesus said in Matthew 18:3: "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

From this will flow all the other prerequisites for salvation - rebirth, love, and obedience in doing the love acts He has prepared for you.

To be continued