Jim Wilson's Blog, page 28

David's Charge to Solomon

1 Chronicles 28 records David's charge to his son Solomon. It is great!

“And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with whole-hearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever” (v. 9).

Notice that the reason for whole-hearted devotion is that the Lord searches every heart, and the reason for a willing mindis that the Lord understands every motive behind the thoughts.

 

Written March 1985.

This post coordinates with tomorrow's reading in the To the Word! Bible Reading Challenge. If you are not in a daily reading plan, please join us at TotheWord.com. We would love to have you reading with us.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

Repentance: A Sequence of Events

The Christian church as we know it started at Pentecost about two months after Jesus rose from the dead. There were three thousand new members that day. The last few words they heard before they passed from death to life were these:

“Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Men and brethren, what shall we do?’ Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.’ And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, ‘Be saved from this perverse generation’” (Acts 2:37-40).

The first of these final words was repent. One chapter later, another two thousand people were added to the church. A key sentence in that message was “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out” (Acts 3:19).

There was a sequence of events before these final words. The first event in each case was a miracle that gathered a crowd. This was the miracle before the conversion of the three thousand:

“All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language” (Acts 2:4-6).

Next was a miracle before the two thousand were converted:

“Then Peter said, ‘Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.’ Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him” (Acts 3:6-10).

The next event was the preaching of the gospel.

“Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. This man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. David said about him: ‘I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.’ Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, ‘The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.’ Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:22-36).

 

“When Peter saw this, he said to them: ‘Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see’” (Acts 3:12-16).

The third event was the command to repent.

“Peter replied, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’” (Acts 2:38).

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord” (Acts 3:19).

“When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways” (Acts 3:26).

The fourth event was the conversion of thousands.

“With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day” (Acts 2:40-41).

“But many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand” (Acts 4:4).

To be continued on Monday.

Excerpted from Repentance & Restitution—the Missing Ingredient in Repentance , available at ccmbooks.org and Amazon.com.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

Dealing with Opposition

“He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it” (Titus 1:9).

This sentence is a part of the qualifications of an elder in a church in a town in Crete. The elder is to encourage and refute. In order to do this properly, the elders must hold firmly to the message.

We find other qualifications in 1 Timothy 3:2, like "gentle" and "not quarrelsome." The reason I bring this up is the requirement to refute the opposition and yet not be quarrelsome. We see a statement in 2 Timothy 2:4 which confirms this teaching: "and the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Those who oppose him, he must gently instruct.”

There is increasing opposition today to sound doctrine and to Christians. Christians must refute those in opposition, but they must do it gently, kindly, and without quarreling.

 

Written May 1984.

This post coordinates with today's reading in the To the Word! Bible Reading Challenge. If you are not in a daily reading plan, please join us at TotheWord.com. We would love to have you reading with us.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

A Word for Perfect Christians (aka Perfectionists)

This is written for Christians who are perfectionists and have lost their joy.

First, perfectionists are created. They do not get there by training. If they did, I should now be a perfectionist: I went to a college run by perfectionists, a military college—U.S. Naval Academy. The Academy had four years to make me a perfectionist and did not succeed. I was born something else.

Second, it is a good thing that God made perfectionists and many of them. As a result, all man-made erected things from houses to airplanes are put together right.

Third, problems occur. Students in university dorms are put together in the same room. One of them is a perfectionist. The other is a slob. Both of them were born that way. One of the two is unhappy. Which one?

Fourth, perfectionist standards are not virtues. Unfortunately, some perfectionists think they are.

Fifth, besides all of the good qualities of a perfectionist, there are difficulties that he is not aware of, or if he is he does not know how to handle them.

He has a different standard from God’s. It is not higher than God’s standard, but it is treated with more importance than God’s.

He works at meeting that standard. If he fails to meet it, he has no grace or forgiveness for it.

Sometimes he has no grace or forgiveness for the others who do not meet the standard. When that occurs, he gets impatient and angry with the other people. This is sin, but he might not recognize it and confess it because he has justified the anger.

When he himself falls short, he may fall into other habits like overeating, biting finger nails, or depression. (Of course, there are perfectionists who are balanced, godly Christians. I am not speaking of you.)

He has a tendency to be introspective. He finds that his imperfection is a “downer,” not an “upper.” His introspection is accusatory and condemning, not convicting. The accuser of the brothers is Satan (Revelation 12). Conviction that leads to forgiveness is from the Holy Spirit (John 16), When he introspects, he is feeding the accuser.

Some perfectionists become obsessive-compulsive in their behavior. It is difficult to recognize this as sin. Consequently, they do not confess it as sin and then are not forgiven for this sin. They are not living in the joy of their salvation because they are being disciplined by God. They adjust to all of this because it is their normal lifestyle.

There are several solutions to these difficulties.

1) Measure your feelings with the fruit of the Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:22-24).

Love: “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. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor 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. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13).

Joy: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4).

Peace: “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere” (James 3:17).

Patience: “But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God” (1 Peter 2:20).

Kindness: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).

Goodness: “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness…. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness” (2 Peter 1:3, 5).

Self-Control: “And to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness” (2 Peter 1:6).

You will find out that when you are impatient you are also not kind, loving, joyful, or at peace. Confess it as sin.

2) Look at how your perfectionism affects those around you. Are you building them up in love?

3) You are not allowed to be a critical Christian. You are part of the body of Christ. Recognize that your standards are not virtues.

4) Take each one of your standards and put it next to one of God’s standards. Then choose to follow God’s standard, not yours. If you fail God’s standard, there is forgiveness (1 John 2:1).

If you fail your standard, there is no forgiveness, because you have no grace to give out. If you are obsessive compulsive and want to wash your hands, refuse to do it. If you want to clean your room, refuse to do it. Keep on refusing to do it. You might think you will die, but you will not die. It is not that important to God. Imagine (or actually go) to be a missionary to a tribe that washes once a week, or month, or year. The people stink, and their houses stink. You love for them has to be senior to your standards. And they have to know that you love them.

Now transfer this thinking to include your wife and children. You, as a Christian, may not be impatient. Your standards have to be subservient to God’s. It may be that you have to set aside your standards all together and substitute God’s standards. It will be a good trade.

 Written in 2016.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

A Famine of the Word

“‘The days are coming,’ declares the Sovereign Lord, ‘when I will send a famine through the land—not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord. Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it’” (Amos 8:11-12).

I have no idea whether this prophecy has ever been fulfilled in any specific sense, i.e., time and place in history. It may have been fulfilled fifty years after Amos when the Northern Kingdom was destroyed.

The Southern Kingdom had two revivals, both related to reading the Scriptures. One under Josiah (1 Chronicles 34:14-33) and the other under Ezra (Nehemiah 8).

The famine today is not in the unavailability of Scripture. In Josiah’s day, there was only one copy, and it had not been looked at for several generations. We have the Scriptures, and we do not read them daily. There is spiritual decay in the land.

 

Written September 1988.

This post coordinates with tomorrow's reading in the To the Word! Bible Reading Challenge. If you are not in a daily reading plan, please join us at TotheWord.com. We would love to have you reading with us.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

How I Love Thy Law, O Lord

 

How I love Thy law, O Lord

Daily joy its truths afford;

In its constant light I go,

Wise to conquer every foe.

 

Thy commandments in my heart

Truest wisdom can impart;

To mine eyes Thy precepts show

Wisdom more than sages know.

 

While my heart Thy word obeys,

I am kept from evil ways;

From Thy law, with Thee to guide,

I have never turned aside.

 

Sweeter are Thy words to me

Than all other good can be;

Safe I walk, Thy truth my light

Hating falsehood, loving right.

 

 

          - Jim Wilson, 2010

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

Honoring Parents

“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you” (Exodus 20:12).

The basic unit of civilization is the family. Jesus’ statement, “Where two or three are gathered together, there am I in the midst” describes a family. That is the basic assembly.

The family is the basic church. The father is the pastor.

We are to honor our parents. This is quoted in Ephesians 6:1-2. “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’—which is the first commandment with a promise.” Honoring in this instance is obeying. There is a promise attached to it: you will live long on the earth.

We all have parents. They might not be Christians; they might not be alive; they might be divorced several times. They might not be good parents. We are to honor them, not because they are honorable, but because they are our parents. Respect has nothing to do with the person respected. He does not need to be respectable at all. Respect has to do with the respecter.

 

Written in 2015.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

Not Intellect, but Obedience

"If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own" (John 7:17).

The golden rule for understanding spirituality is not intellect, but obedience. If a man wants scientific knowledge, intellectual curiosity is his guide; but if he wants insight into what Jesus Christ teaches, he can only get it by obedience. If things are dark to me, then I may be sure there is something I will not do. Intellectual darkness comes through ignorance; spiritual darkness comes because [there is] something I do not intend to obey.

-       - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says" (James 1:22).

 

Compiled August 1991.

This post coordinates with today's reading in the To the Word! Bible Reading Challenge. If you are not in a daily reading plan, please join us at TotheWord.com. We would love to have you reading with us.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

Six Things the Lord Hates

“There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers” (Proverbs 6:16-19).

Let's look at these things the Lord hates again.

Arrogance is number one on the list. God is concerned about highself-esteem. “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought” (Romans 12:3).

Lying is numbers two and six. "A lying tongue" is speaking of a habitual liar. "A false witness" is perjury—lying under oath.

Murder of innocent people is number three. This murder is a special kind of murder, including abortion.

Premeditated evil is number four. Immediate, unpremeditated evil is number five.

Sowing discord among brothers is number seven. Although these are all very common today, it is the last I would like to draw to your attention. Stirring up dissension may be unintentional, or it may be the result of gossip. It is the cause of church splits, family fights, and unhappy communities. It is communication made up of lies, half-truths, and innuendoes, and it is communicated about people instead of to the people.

 

Written September 1994.

This post coordinates with today's reading in the To the Word! Bible Reading Challenge. If you are not in a daily reading plan, please join us at TotheWord.com. We would love to have you reading with us.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships

Meeting the Conditions for Harvest

There are promises in the Bible which are conditional. When we do not receive the thing promised we often come to false conclusions. It does not occur to us that we have not met the conditions of the promise. Yet this is the most obvious explanation.

For example, “For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor; others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.” (John 4:37,38). 

If we do not reap we conclude that we are sowers. This is a false conclusion. The Lord clearly said, “I sent you to reap.” If we were sowers we would also be reapers, as the following true statements from the Word indicate.

“He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Corinthians 9:6). We can add a legitimate extension to this: “He who sows nothing will also reap nothing.” If we reap nothing it is not because we are sowers but because we are not sowers. The harvest is in direct proportion to the amount sown.

The harvest is of the same kind as that sown. “For he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption; but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary in well doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not lose heart” (Galatians 6:8).

The harvest depends on how we sow: “May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy! He that goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him” (Psalm 126: 5,6).

Of these passages in context only the first is talking about evangelism. The second is about giving money, the third on character, and the fourth probably is about sowing real seed. But in every case the harvest and the reaping are the normal consequences of sowing and the passage of time.

“A sower went out to sow” (Mark 4:3). Much of the seed fell on poor ground and never came to harvest, it is for one or more of the following reasons:

1)    We have sown and are now waiting with patience to the time of harvest.

2)    We have not sown.

3)    We have sown the wrong kind of seed.

4)    We have sown sparingly, and all of it fell on poor ground.

5)    We have sown, the harvest is ripe, and we refuse to reap.

The first is the only legitimate position; the rest are tragic.

Written in 2013.

How To Be Free From Bitterness and other essays on Christian relationships