Crowd Surfer

Matthew 21:9-10 “The crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David; BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Hosanna in the highest!" When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, "Who is this?"

Many Christians in today’s modern church are no different than these citizens of Jerusalem. Wherever the “crowd” is gathering, the people will be drawn. Whatever the “crowd” is doing, the people will do. Whatever the “crowd” is saying, the people will say. In essence, people are like cattle, they will follow the herd. These citizens of Jerusalem gathered, not for Jesus, but for the “crowd”. They even shouted the same words as the “crowd”, not for any other reason than, “Well everyone else was doing it, so I might as well.” They were all excited, shouting and dancing, but they didn’t even know who Jesus was. Does that sound like some Christian friends that you have? Does that sound like you? Do you attend church, Bible study, or prayer groups to get to know Jesus Christ? Or do you attend just to be part of the “crowd”?

It is wonderful to have Christian fellowship, but not as important as having fellowship with Jesus Christ. The book of 1st John is about fellowship; first, with Christ, then with people. In 1st John 2:3 it says this “By this we have come to know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.” Do you know Jesus Christ? Not just know “of Him”, but truly know Him?

The word that John writes (translated "keep") is actually a word for obedience. We only truly know Jesus Christ when we become obedient to His word. Knowing Jesus Christ doesn’t come from hanging with the "crowd", waving palm branches, and shouting. Knowing Jesus Christ comes from obedience. Everyday, many Christians falsely refer to Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Although they have been saved by faith in the Gospel and know Him as Savior, they have never come to “know” Him as the Lord of their life through obedience to His Word. If He is truly the Lord of your life then you will apply the Word of God to the experiences of life. The Church has a Savior, what we are in dire need of now is a Lord. Make a commitment today to get to "know" Jesus by becomimg obedient to the Word, and a stop following the “crowd”.

You Can Be My Hero!

Hebrews 11:1-2 “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval.”

Have you ever read any of the citations for the Medal of Honor winners from the United States Military? As a soldier, I read through the many “super human” feats of selflessness, bravery, gallantry, and fearless determination, and doubt that I could ever do such things. We, as Americans, look at our heroes with such awe and fascination that we catch ourselves thinking, “If I were put in the same situations could I, or even would I, react in the same manner?” To most of us the answer is “no”, but we still ponder the “what ifs”.

Hebrews Chapter 11 is the who’s who of faith. It’s like the Medal of Honor book for Old Testament champions of faith. These men and women listed between Hebrews 11:4 and 11:40 are truly heroes of faith. When we read of these men and women, we are to imitate their faith, learn from their experience, and follow their example in our daily walk. But just like reading the book of Medal of Honor winners, we don’t see ourselves measuring up. Moses led the Hebrews out of slavery in Egypt. I never see myself doing something that great for God, do you? David slew Goliath with a single stone and went from Shepherd to King, from musician to warrior. We can’t relate to enormous feats of faith performed by most of these “heroes”, yet we are to imitate their faith. One person that we can imitate is Abraham. Abraham led no armies, wrestled no lions, parted no seas, or conquered kingdoms by his faith. Abraham did what we all can do, “Abraham believed God!!” Romans chapter 4 verse 3 says, “For what does the Scripture say? "ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS."

All we have to do in order to become a hero of faith is “believe God”. If you find it hard measuring up to the likes of Moses, David, or Joshua just remember that we can all follow the example of Abraham and trust Almighty God by faith. Abraham believed, trusted, and relied on a promise! Claim a promise from the word of God, trust it by faith, and you can become a daily hero who sets the example of faith for others to follow.

What Do You See in Me?

Philippians 1:20 "...Christ will be exalted in my body, whether I live or die"

How many people do you come into contact with each day? We tend to develop personal relationships with the people that we see on a daily basis, whether at home, work, the store, or some establishment that we frequent on a regular basis. People need other people. Have you ever stopped to think, "What do people get out of a relationship with me?". The simple answer is, people get what you give them. If you give them you, then they will get you, but if you give them Christ, then they will definately get Christ. As ambassadors for Jesus Christ, we represent Him by our attitudes, words, and actions whether good, bad, worthy, or unworthy.

We need to ask ourselves this question when encountering people throughout our daily grind; "When people leave an encounter with me, did they see Christ through me and the value of the cross, or did I do something or say something that separated them from Him?"

God makes no mistakes and nothing is an accident or coincidental. Every person that crosses your path needs to see Jesus Christ and the grace of God through you. He becomes evident in the words that you say, the things that you do, and the attitude in which you have. If you just talk a big game for the cross of Jesus Christ and don't live "the CROSS", then Christ is no more real to others than He is to you. In order to talk the talk, we must walk the walk. All we have to offer people of real value is our hope in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is not our words that witness nearly as much as it is our lives.

"Exault Christ in your body", treat people the way that He would treat them, say the words that He would say to them, and keep the attitude that He would keep with them. By doing this you become a living, breathing, walking, talking witness for Jesus Christ, and then, it is no longer you that they seek for a relationship, but because of Christ in you, they seek HIM.

Mission Accomplished

2Timothy 4:5 “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”

I think that you will agree with me when I say that everyone who teaches the word of God has their own style of teaching. Even though all pastors share the same gift, the Holy Spirit designs it specifically for the individual. Most pastors use their personality, perceptions, and personal life experience to help the hearers gain a better understanding of the message that God intends for them to hear. When the Word of God becomes personal, the people listening profit because they can relate to the principles that are being taught by the pastor.

I tend to use a great deal of military analogies because I can relate my personal military experience to Scripture and gain a better understanding, not only for my self, but also for those who are listening.

The Apostle Paul also used a great deal of military analogies in his writings due to his experiences with the Roman military. During Paul’s house arrest, he was chained to a different soldier every eight hours. This experience gave him the ability to relate the Christian way of life to soldiering in the military.

New soldiers arriving at basic training are humbled, disciplined by consistent training, and taught to submit to the authority of their superiors. In this verse alone, there are four military style commands. When receiving a command from a ranking officer, the subordinate must obey the order. Paul, called to be an Apostle, writing under the influence and inspiration of the Holy Spirit is absolutely speaking with God given authority. Paul commands us to be sober (be sound in judgment), endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, and fulfill our ministry.

To be sound in judgment is to have a mind that is transformed by the word of God. Hearing the word is the first step of transformation.

To endure hardship, you must trust in the promises of God. To trust is to believe that the word of God is absolute truth, infalliable, and one hundred percent trustworthy.

To “do the work of an evangelist” is to obey the Great commission by applying the command of Jesus Christ,"MakeDisciples".

“fulfill your ministry.” Fulfilling is synonymous with completing. As a Christian soldier, you are are expected to complete the mission that God has given you. If you hear the word of God, believe what you hear, and apply what you believe, then God will complete His plan for your life by fulfilling the ministry that He appointed you before the creation of the world.

Hearing, believing, applying, and completing are the keys to a life of faith. When you see your Savior, in all His glory, don't you want Him to say, "Well done fatihful and loyal servant. Mission Complete!!"? Take the time to study the Word and get to know Jesus Christ, believe Him to be absolute truth, and live His life by applying His mind to all situations in life. God will complete His Word in you by conforming you into HIS image, and that is truly MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!!!!!!

Something Old Something New

2 Tim 4:10 "for Demus, having loved this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica."

Every Sunday around the world Christians assemble together in the local church to fellowship, worship, pray, learn, and grow together. The next time that you go to church, look around, scan the faces. Is there someone who used to come on a regular basis that you don't see anymore? Has one of your Christian friends given up on God and the Christian Way of Life? Maybe you haven't been spending as much time with the Lord as you did in the past. Maybe you feel yourself losing the desire that you once had. Why do some Christians walk away from God and the Christian way of life?

We have wonderful examples of "steadfastness" in the Bible. John was the longest living apostle. Paul persevered through beatings, hatred, shipwreck, and imprisonment. Then we have people like Demus. Demus was a faithful, fellow worker of Paul, but became tired of it all and set it aside. To Demus, the Christian life became old. Some of us know someone like Demus and then again, some of us are quickly becoming like Demus.

Today, pastors are consistantly trying to come up with some new sermon, new program, or new way to inspire the congregation with hopes of an increase in attendence. For some reason people flock to something new. Our generation has become so "new and improved" oriented that once the newness wears off, we become indifferent and look for something else. You have to understand that God is the same today as He was yesterday. He does not change. As Christians we need to stop looking for something "new and improved" from the word of God and start "applying" the the truths that have become old through lack of application.

In Leviticus 19:18 we are told to "love our neighbors". Fifteen hundred years later Jesus was saying the same thing. After the ressurection and ascention of Jesus Christ, Paul and John taught the same thing. The only reason truth gets old is because we fail to become consistently obedient. Someone once told me that if it is "new" then it probably isn't "true". What is old in teaching constantly becomes new through "experience". If you want the Christian life to become new for you, stop trying to learn some new mystery or some new viewpoint. Start trying to apply the old ones that you already know and every day will become a new day for the Lord.

Pencil Him In

Ps 76:11 “Make vows to the LORD your God and fulfill them;”

We have become a society of appointments. Everyone carries a day planner, calendar, palm pilot, or appointment book in order to keep track of the many engagements that clutter the waking moments of the day. In the typical day of the average person there is a time to wake up, a time to go to work, time for lunch, time for meetings, time for phone calls, time for kids, time for dinner, time for television, and time for bed. The only “time” our schedule gets broken is when we develop a physical ailment. If we are sick, we schedule an appointment with the doctor. If we have a toothache, we schedule an appointment with the dentist. If we have problems, we schedule an appointment with a counselor. We are a society on a schedule. We don’t miss an appointment that can “fix” the sickness, the pain, or the problem.

When do we schedule an appointment with God? How often do we keep it? You must understand that everyday we wake up with a Spiritual ailment. This ailment can only be remedied by a daily commitment to the Lord. We must set aside some of the worthless appointments that fill up our day, make an appointment with God, and keep it. One day a week is not sufficient to transform your Spiritual ailment into Spiritual blessing. Commit a portion of your day, everyday to the Lord. Pray for wisdom, study the scriptures, and apply the principles and promises of God’s precious word to your life. If this appointment becomes a priority then you will be continually transformed from Spiritually sick and contagious to Spiritually well and contagious. Your Spiritual well being will spread to all those whom you come into contact with during your busy, appointment-filled day.