Tag: Living for Jesus

Forward to Christian Maturity: How do I Obtain a Blessing | 1 Peter 3:8-12

The story goes: A wealthy man took a journey carrying a great treasure. A thief joined him to steal the treasure. But the rich man was wise enough to be careful of newfound friends. At night, they stopped at an inn. The rich man let the thief bathe first. Then he hid the treasure under the thief’s pillow. As the rich man bathed, the thief searched for that treasure in vain. He finally gave up. As he departed, the rich man told him, “The treasure was closer than you thought.” 

This is a sad parable of how many Christians seek to obtain a blessing. In far too many instances, our own search for treasure and blessings is no different than walking the face of the planet, to search the world for one proverbial needle in a field of a thousand, thousand-mile-high haystacks when we only need to look directly in front of our eyes and trust without question that which we first see without making any effort at all. God is always in front of us and around us too.

1 Peter 3:8-12 NKJV

Called to Blessing

8 Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be [a]courteous; 9 not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing. 10 For

“He who would love life
And see good days,
Let him [b]refrain his tongue from evil,
And his lips from speaking deceit.
11 Let him turn away from evil and do good;
Let him seek peace and pursue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
And His ears are open to their prayers;
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.

1 Peter 3:8-12 is a needed reminder that the blessed life is closer than you think if you are a Christian. These verses are transitional. They link what Peter has said about Christian submission and what he will say about Christian suffering.

The themes of submission and suffering acknowledge that following Jesus does not ever guarantee an easy life. But that narrow gate and hard way lead to life. 

The process of a Christian “growing up” (maturity) can be painful. There are ups and downs, twists and turns, “forks in the road” along the way, and from time to time, we trip and skin a knee or bloody a nose from falling on our faces.

We are summoned! We are exhorted! We are covenanted, as children of God who are born-again in Christ, towards purity of heart, the pursuit of peace, compassion, mercy, and godly living… and yet this epistle is written during a time of severe suffering and increasingly intense Christian persecution.

Peter cautioned the Church that in the midst of this heightened hatred for God and escalating animosity towards those that are His, we are to maintain a clear conscience in thought, word, and deed, and to endure the inevitable suffering, with a dignified and nurturing and mature and maturing, Christ-like courage.

Peter reached back into the book of Psalms to endorse his directive, and to demonstrate that repaying evil with good comes from the very heart of God – for we read that, “The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry.” However, are the “righteous eyes” turned towards God?

“Growing up” is the objective of the Christian life as well (Hebrews 5:12—6:1). Over time, the believers addressed in Hebrews had grown older in the faith, but they had still not grown up! Few things are more concerning to God than the life of any believer who is either unable or is unwilling to develop themselves from a steady and daily exposure to God’s Word and the host of His promises therein.

First Peter 3:8-12 God gifts to us a nine-point profile for Christian maturity.

[1] A Unity of Purpose (v. 8 “harmonious”; cf. John 17:21-23). Unity does not mean uniformity. It means cooperation in the midst of differences. We won’t always agree on how things should be done, but we should agree on what needs to be done and why we go forth for the sake of God’s glory and kingdom. Unity through worship and obedience overcomes our petty, peripheral differences.

[2] A Sympathetic Nature (v. 8; cf. Galatians 6:2; Romans 12:15; 1 Corinthians 12:26). Sympathy depends on our willingness to forget self and to identify with the pains and sorrows of others. It often involves personal sacrifice. Sympathy and selfishness cannot co-exist. Jesus said, “pray, bless those who curse you!”

[3] A Brotherly Affection (v. 8; cf. John 13:34-35; 1 John 3:14). Look around any community or neighborhood street corner. Go ahead. These are your brothers and sisters in Christ, at least some of them. By virtue of our family connection, we have the obligation to love one another without regard to any differences.

[4] A Tender Heart (v. 8 “kindhearted”). Jesus consistently demonstrated tender-heartedness. Jesus was moved by compassion (Matthew 9:36).

[5] A Humble Spirit (v. 8). Biblical humility is not the same as false modesty, but a deep-seated dependence upon God. It manifests itself in a desire to serve, rather than to be served, and a refusal to demand personal rights (entrusting themselves to God) Matthew 20:20-28, Mark 10:35-45.

[6] A Forgiving Heart (v. 9). Jesus calls us to go beyond the mere refusal to retaliate; he calls us to love those who wrong us, blessing them in word and deed. When your “go to response” is to give a blessing rather than an insult, it’s a sure-fire sign that you are growing in Christian maturity (Matthew 18:21-35)

[7] A Controlled Tongue (v. 10; cf. Proverbs 16:28; James 3:8-10). People who have learned to refrain from gossip and from passing on unverified comments are not only maturing people, but they are also the kind of people that we all want in our lives. They can be trusted. They believe the best in people. They choose trust over suspicion. (Matthew 15:16-20)

[8] A Life of Purity (v. 11). Once we have pulled in the reins of our tongue, we are then to spur ourselves onward to a life of moral purity. We are his image bearers so our words and our actions should reflect the grace and love of the Lord Jesus. We are to turn away from evil, do good! (Mark 4:26-29, 30-34, Luke 19:1-10)

[9] A Peacemaker (v. 11). Someone has hurt you, ridiculed you, or talked about you behind your back. Question: Are you actively pursuing peace with them?

If you are not, you are sinning against them and against God, and you are now actively, aggressively, stunting your own spiritual growth (Matthew 5:9).

Jesus came to bring peace among men and between God and man—so when we act as peacemakers, we are his sons and daughters. We imitate him. So please, in the coming days and weeks ahead, seek peace with those with whom there is presently tension. Do what you can (Jeremiah 29:1-7) (Romans 12:18).

Why is it important that we seek to cultivate these nine-character traits?

“Because the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, and His ears attend to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” (v. 12). God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5)—and we want God’s grace, not his opposition! So how are you and I doing in these areas?

“Are ye able,” said the Master,
“to be crucified with me?”
“Yea,” the sturdy dreamers answered,
“to the death we follow thee.”
Refrain:
Lord, we are able. Our spirits are thine.
Remold them, make us, like thee, divine.
Thy guiding radiance above us shall be
a beacon to God, to love, and loyalty.” (Earl Marlatt, 1926)

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Heavenly Father, thank You that Your eyes are over those that are cleansed by the blood of the Lamb and that Your ears are ever open to our prayers. Have mercy on those who have not accepted Your gracious offer of salvation and use me as a witness to Your goodness and grace. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.

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Living for Jesus: Don’t Grow Weary in Doing Good to All – Galatians 6:9-10

God’s tireless Prophet Jeremiah enduringly wrote some 2650 years ago; blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is in the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and he will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit. (Jeremiah 17:7-8 NKJV)

The person who loves God is like a tree with deep roots. During a drought, when all the other trees are perishing, the single tree planted by the river will remain healthy and strong – drawing its nourishment from all the waters flowing by it. There is no anxiety, for the commitment of that single tree reaches far beyond the circumstances, life threatening effects, of the drought which surrounds it.

If we are to succeed in the midst of the swirling circumstances which threaten to continually define and continuously overwhelm our day-to-day existence, and if we are not trying to quit on God or our neighbors or ourselves when the going gets tough, we need to get our roots planted by the rivers of living water steadily flowing forever down unto us from the very throne room of God itself.

We need to set a covenant goal to commit our life unto our Savior Jesus Christ. A covenant commitment which plants, then grows stronger, matures far beyond than what overwhelms us, until only the commitment to Christ remains known.

Galatians 6:9-10 The Message

9-10 So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up or quit. Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the very people closest to us in the community of faith.

The Word of God for the Children of God. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Amen.

The major theme of Paul’s letter to the Galatians is that we are saved by faith, and not by works. Yet what I do as a believer is important. True salvation is not just my accepting Jesus into my heart with an eye toward heaven in the future. It is an ongoing relationship with Jesus as my Lord. And that is what is reflected clearly in this closing instruction in Paul’s letter to the churches of Galatia.

Do not become weary in doing good to all. Especially to other believers. We are summoned, “Called to Do Good” But what does that mean to ‘Do Good’?

What Does it Mean to Do Good?

‘Doing good’ is not the same thing as doing no harm. Doing no harm is a quiet passive activity – it is staying seated upon our couches in our living rooms. But doing good is all active. It is something that takes effort on my part. Something that I could grow weary of. And something that is directed toward other people.

Doing good means that when I see an opportunity to help another person, I take it. It may be something simple and with little cost. Or it may be more costly and time consuming too. Doing good simply means that I do what I can to help you.

For God so loved the world, He sent His Son to us to continually love us, not to continuously condemn us. He came unto us that we might find goodness and abundance beyond our ability to comprehend or to receive in one lifetime. This instruction to do commit to a lifestyle of being abundantly good, sharing all of God’s abundant goodness is all inclusive, all of the time, has all people in mind.

Even those who are not believers. And even those that I may not get along with. If I can do good for someone, regardless of my relationship to them, I should.

But it is especially true for those within the family of believers. They are the ones I should care most about. I should actively seek out, look for ways to do good; to be helpful and hopeful and joyous to them. As you live your life with Christ, be doing good to all people, especially within the community of faith.

The simple gospel of grace is to come to Christ and believe – for we are saved by grace alone and not by doing good works, lest any may should boast. But once we do believe and are saved, we should then become a true disciple and take up our cross, follow daily after Jesus – for this is God’s desire for all His children.

If we are going to root ourselves in Christ, if we are to truly grow in grace and mature in the faith, we are to do the good works that God has already prepared for us to do. If we are to mature in the faith and press onward to the goal of our calling, we ought to be living our lives as unto the Lord – and “not lose heart in doing good, for in due time, God’s time, we will reap, if we do not grow weary.”

“Give me one hundred preachers who fear nothing but sin, and desire nothing but God, and I care not a straw whether they be clergymen or laymen; such alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven on Earth.”
― John Wesley

“Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.”
― John Wesley

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us pray,

Loving Father, I want to press on in my Christian life, to become more and more like the Lord Jesus. I know that it will require me to put my hand to the plough and press on, with the patient endurance that only comes from You. I pray that I may not lose heart or fatigue or growing weary in doing the good works which You have prepared for me to do. Thank You that in due time I may reap a fruitful reward, if I do not give up on you. In Jesus’ name, Alleluia! Alleluia! AMEN.

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