Category: Discipleship

Kingdom Gifts (By Dr. Ray Ashmore)

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

(Dr. Ashmore is a dear friend and former professor of mine. He is the author of several books: Thy Kingdom Come: Just Don’t Bother Us With It, Thy Will Be Done: Recognizing Temptation and Remaining Faithful, All Things To All Men: Developing an Incarnational Ministry, Let Your Light Shine: Recovering The Biblically Prophetic Church, and On Earth As In Heaven: The Christian Family In God’s Image.)

God has given spiritual gifts to the Church in order to develop spiritual gifts in the Church. “But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. This is why it says: ‘When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.’ So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:7,11-13 NIV)

Please consider this: how well does the institutional pattern of “Pastor and congregation” develop the people of God for works of service? Most Christians (around 80%) just sit, soak, and sour rather than becoming functional parts of Christ’s body. I know, I know. The other gifts ceased at the close of the Canon. Really, now. Then why didn’t the pastoral gift cease as well? After all, why do we need pastors when we have the Bible? Isn’t the Bible enough? “Well,” you say, “somebody has to be in charge and lead.” Hmm. You mean Christ isn’t enough of a leader to shepherd His own people? Reminds me of the old days; that is to say, the Old Testament days, when the people of God demanded a king to rule over them, rejecting the spiritual rule of God.

So, what happened to the other leadership ministries created by Christ to develop the children of the Most High? Did they disappear? Or we’re they simply neglected, redefined, or cast off? Sam Pascoe in Jacksonville, Florida made this world famous observation: “When Christianity was in Palestine it was a fellowship. When it located to Greece it became a philosophy. When it moved to Rome it became an institution. When it spread through Europe it became a culture. And when it came to America Christianity became an enterprise.” And we know that enterprises must have CEOs, or pastors as the case may be.

As for the Reformation, the doctrines of grace were recovered, but nary a hint about a recovery of the organic Church. The reformers simply adopted the Roman Catholic pattern of “institution,” minus the bells and whistles, icons, banners, incense, etc. From Priest/Congregant to Pastor/Congregation it was the same old stuff, just dressed down. And how is this pattern justified? By developing a false doctrine that denies the continuing existence of the five-fold team ministries.

The fact is, the five-fold ministries still exist. And in fact, they are being revived (spiritual CPR) in these final days in order to recover the Church from religious institutionalism and into the Kingdom body of Christ, fulfilling Christ’s prayer in John 17. Oh, and by the way, these ministries are not “titles,” created by the pompous to exalt themselves in the eyes of men. They are ministries of Christ in the truest and most biblical sense. After all, Jesus loves us, this we know. He won’t leave us in the clutches of hirelings, but deliver us into the care of those who are truly called to represent Him in His redemptive work.

Soldiers, Athletes, and Farmers

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

“Timothy, my dear son, be strong through the grace that God gives you in Christ Jesus. You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others. Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. Soldiers don’t get tied up in the affairs of civilian life, for then they cannot please the officer who enlisted them. And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules. And hardworking farmers should be the first to enjoy the fruit of their labor. Think about what I am saying. The Lord will help you understand all these things.” (II Timothy 2:1-7 NLT)

Soldiers, Athletes, and Farmers have one obvious thing in common don’t they? HARD WORKERS!! Just the mention of these guys conjures up images of grueling hours of training and plowing and drilling, and I get tired just thinking about it. Yet, Paul purposefully selects these descriptors to impress upon Timothy what it’s like to walk with Jesus-it aint all Daises and Petunias!

The athlete part of these verses is most relevant to me now as over the last 9months, I have evolved into an avid runner. Yeah, last August, a friend of mine challenged me to get serious about my health and make some real life changes. This has led to my being more athletic now, at the age of 50, than I’ve been since I was a kid. I run six days a week, have lost over 65 pounds, and it has been ABSOLUTELY GRUELING! There were days (are still days) when I didn’t feel like working out, days when I wanted to quit, injuries, and real frustration, but you just keep on going. Why, because like we’ve always heard, “No pain, no gain.” I wish it were different, but it’s not.

Paul wanted Timothy to know that the Christian walk involves hardship. The soldier, the athlete, and the farmer have “sanctified” themselves. They set themselves apart from other things that they could be doing so that they can achieve a particular end. They each have devoted themselves to working hard in order to get the results they desire. We need to be of the same mind regarding our walk with Jesus. There are times we don’t “feel like it.” There are days when we get frustrated and may want to quit. We may even fall or get injured along the way, but we press on towards the Prize who is Jesus himself!

The cool thing is, we don’t accomplish any of this through our own strength, but rather the strength we receive through God’s grace he freely gives us in Christ (“Timothy, my dear son, be strong through the grace that God gives you in Christ Jesus…”). It is God working in you, strengthening you, who equips you to run the race. I love what Paul prayed in Ephesians 3.

“I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.”(Ephesians 3:16-21 NLT)

I want to encourage you today to press on in the things of God. It’s hard sometimes. It’s that way for all of us. But, as you walk with him, as you experience more of his love, you become stronger and are able to not only run yourself, but are equipped to teach others how to do the same thing. 

But God

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

Generally, when someone is spoken of as being dead, it’s over. For the dead, there is no hope. And that’s just how Paul describes the condition of the believers at Ephesus (and us) prior to coming to Jesus- dead! “And you were dead in the trespasses and sin in which you once walked following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the bodyand the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” As we continually turned away from God and went after whatever we felt like we wanted, whatever our minds and bodies told us would be good, we were “being dead.” (Being dead, that’s how it comes across when you read it in the Greek.) Talk about your zombies! Before we came to the Lord, that’s basically what we were- the walking dead. Yep, Ephesians 2:1-3 paints a pretty bleak picture. Namely, you, me, and the rest of the world, without Jesus, are a people controlled by our passions, influenced by spiritual power which is opposed to God, and by our very nature, separated from God and destined for wrath. Pardon my English, but that aint cool. If we stopped at verse 3, it would seem that there is little hope for any of us. However, verse 4 begins with what are two of my favorite words: BUT GOD!

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ…” Oh, I wish we could grasp the reality of what is being said here. Because God loved us so much, because he is so full of mercy, he has not left us in our hopeless state, but has given us life in Jesus. Like I said, generally for dead people, it’s over. BUT GOD! For the one who has tried and tried to beat his addiction, and failed every time, it’s over. BUT GOD! For the one who has three children by three different men, who has been told she is no good and undesirable, it’s over. BUT GOD! For the murderer, thief, sexually immoral, and all who have been rejected and cast aside, it’s over. BUT GOD! They may have written you off. You may have written you off. It doesn’t matter. I’ve got two words for you: BUT GOD!!

Maybe you have gone so far that you don’t see how it can be made right. Could be you can’t even stand the sound of your own voice, and even you don’t believe a word you say. Perhaps everything they say about you is true, and if you were honest; you’d have to admit that they don’t even know the half of it. Maybe, like me, you are guilty of sins that would freak people out if they ever knew it all. Dead, naturally disobedient, controlled by the devil, living for my passions and lust, just like everyone else, and destined for wrath- BUT GOD!!

Come now, let us settle the matter,
says the Lord.
Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.

Kind Intentions

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

We’re all familiar with the old saying, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” Well, I don’t know about all of that, but I do know that the road to eternal life is paved with kind intentions- God’s kind intentions. Yep, Ephesians 1:5 tells us, “He [God the Father] predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will…”(NASB) I really don’t want to get into that tired old debate about the sovereignty of God vs man’s freewill, but rather the significance of the fact that in Christ, God had kind intentions towards us before the world was ever created.

a fathers loveI love the way the NLT renders Ephesians 1:3-8 “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.”

I think if the only portion of the Bible you had were these few verses, you’d have enough to ponder for the rest of your life. I mean really, let’s break it down.

1) We’ve been blessed with every spiritual blessing that God has to bestow

2) As we stand under the scrutiny of God’s holy gaze we are holy and without fault

3) God planned all of this in advance

4) God has adopted us

5) God wanted to do this and it brought him pleasure

6) We are free and forgiven through Jesus’ blood

7) God has showered his kindness, wisdom, and understanding on us

8) All of this is brought about, contained, and maintained in Jesus

Man, talk about kind intentions! Can I get a witness?

And as if all of that were not enough, allow me to refer you to verse 19 & 20 of the same chapter. “I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.” The same power God used when he raised Jesus from the dead is the same power he exerts in your life. Say what? That’s right; the awesome resurrection power of God is at work in you my friend. That is, if you are in Christ. And if you’re not, the Holy Spirit can baptize you into him today. You can come and receive from the kind intention of God right now, and be filled with his precious Spirit who is the guarantee  that God will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people.

Before there were stars, before the sun and moon were created, when the foundations of the earth had not yet been laid, God had kind intentions towards you, in Jesus. Only one question remains.What are your intentions towards him?

Body Life

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

“He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.” (Ephesians 4:16)

Sometimes I wonder how it can be that even though I have been invited into this relationship with the living God, there are times when I feel so distant from the Lord. There are times when it is so hard to pray, so difficult to go into the prayer closet and seek His face. I mean really, here I am, involved with God almighty, and all I can muster up is a few measly moments of communion with him. He who deserves my every thought, my undivided attention, my absolute loyalty and devotion, so often finds me distracted and frigid. Dear Lord, how can I minister to others when it’s me who stands in need?

I think something we often forget is that fact that we so desperately need each other. I’ll even go so far as to say that you can’t truly grow and mature properly in Christ without consistent fellowship with the saints. As I sat in church this morning, after leading the congregation in worship with my fellow worship leaders, listening to my pastor preach; I was reminded of the reality of the fact that “…As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.” Just being with my brothers and sisters this morning brought refreshing to my soul, and strengthened my heart. Another verse that comes to mind is Colossians 3:16 where Paul said, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” Oh, make no mistake my friend, we are inextricably bound together.

For too long, we here in the West have turned inward and made the Christian walk a solo affair in which the body of Christ is just a fact of life we acknowledge as true, but impacts us  hardly at all. Let me just come on out and say it, “You wont make it alone” Yes, each of us are called as individuals who are to have that one on one relationship with Jesus. But while we are indeed called as individuals, we live as a body. We are not like a body, or similar to a body, but rather we are the body of Christ, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. Listen preachers, pastors, teachers, whatever; you need the body just like everyone else-perhaps more. Just because someone is called as the “professional, full-time minister” does not make them exempt from the ups and downs of the Christian walk. We all get tired, we all struggle, and the Body is that which the Lord has created to strengthen us and build us up in love. It’s sad, but for many, pride gets in the way and we put up walls keeping out the very ones who are to be our help. “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down that wall!”

Are you tired? Has your heart gotten a little cold? Pastor, are trying your best to hide the fact that you’re struggling? We don’t have to play games with each other. Each of us was saved by grace, through the faith that we received as a gift from God. What reason do we have to be proud? I brought nothing to the table, and if He didn’t keep me I’d surely fall away. The thing is, it is His people that He so often uses that helps keep us together. If you’re in need of a nice cool refreshing drink of living water, it may very well be in fellowship with your brothers and sisters that you’ll find it.

(The Parenthesis) Living in the Spaces In Between

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

We read His-tory from the Old Testament on through the New Testament, and for so many of us, we don’t even think about that huge 400 year gap between the testaments. I mean really, there’s a huge space, a parenthesis if you will, between the Old and New testaments. Alexander the Great had come along, the Maccabean revolt, and so much more occurred in that space. When we open the New Testament, there are Pharisees, Sadducees, Zealots, and many other groups that did not exist at all back in the Old Testament. They had sprung up in the “parenthesis,” complete with Messianic expectations that Jesus just didn’t quite meet. Hmm… the parenthesis.

Now in English grammar, a parenthesis is where you put thoughts or information that is not necessarily relevant to a complete understanding of the idea presented in the sentence or paragraph. In other words, if you didn’t have what’s in the parenthesis, you’d still be able to make sense of what’s being said. The parenthesis is not vital so to speak. But I want to suggest that in the dealings of God, it is those spaces in between, the parenthesis of life, which are vitally important to the way in which we think about God, as well as our becoming who God wants us to be. As strange as it may seem, I think the religious/political climate of Jesus’ day in many ways mirrors our own time. And if we aren’t careful, as the Church occupying the space between Christ’s first and second coming, we could end up like the first century Jews.  We could wind up being religious people, going through the motions, who really have no idea of who God is at all. And it all stems from what goes on in the parenthesis. Let’s look at some of groups that came on the scene in the 400 year parenthesis in Israel’s history, and see if we can learn some things from them.

We are all familiar with the Pharisees. They were one of the most (if not the most) influential groups present at the time of Christ. They had developed what was called the Oral Interpretation of the Law of Moses which sought to elaborate on the various nuances of the law. (It would all be later compiled as the Mishna.) Remember when Jesus healed the man at the pool of Bethesda on the Sabbath? Well, the reason they got so upset about that was that in their eyes He had broken the Sabbath. Jesus had instructed a man to carry his bed on the day when no work was to be done. Carrying the bed was work. And the time Jesus healed the blind man on the Sabbath, using His spit to make mud? Making the mud was considered work. They had actually begun to view their interpretations of scripture as holy as scripture itself, and this caused them (the majority of them) to reject Jesus. They had missed the point! They kept all the rules. They even added some, but in doing so had become hypocrites who, for the sake of their own traditions, made it hard for people to come to God. And if we as the church don’t have a righteousness that surpasses that of the Pharisees of Jesus day, as we occupy this space in between the first and second coming of Jesus, we could become hypocrites who reject what God is doing merely for the sake of our own traditions.

Now while we give the Pharisees a really hard time, in my opinion, it was actually the Sadducees who were the real bad guys. (One interesting note is that unlike the Pharisees, you never find it recorded in the NT that any Sadducee ever became a believer.) They were more or less the aristocracy. They were in charge of the temple, the priesthood, and oh yeah- buddy buddy with Rome. See, they had to have at least a decent working relationship with the local “Roman Civic Society” in order to keep things kosher. Be cool with Rome, and things could continue on as is. They rejected the Pharisaical oral tradition, as well as the resurrection from the dead and angels. In the parenthesis, they had developed a love for power and position, and were willing to kill to preserve it. “‘What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation’.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, ‘You know nothing at all. Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.’” (John 11:47b-50) They decided (along with the Pharisees) to kill Jesus and Lazarus too. Remember, Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead and he was living proof that directly contradicted their religious beliefs, not to mention that an “out of control Jesus threatened all that they had come to love so much. The presence of True “supernatural” reality could undermine the prestige, position and power they had come to love in the parenthesis. We as the church of Jesus, in this time, must be willing to relinquish the control we so desperately want to maintain, and allow God’s Spirit to move as He so desires, even if it means the loss of our “respectability” and position. Ah, the parenthesis can be so dangerous.

(This post has gotten rather lengthy. To be continued…)

Ziklag

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

“And David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.” (I Samuel 30:6)

David knew that God had promised that one day he would be king, but now, on the run from King Saul; he and his men were living like bandits. They had left their town of Ziklag, and had gone to try and join the Philistine army (go figure) in battle. When the Philistines refused them, they made their way home only to find that the Amalekites had raided them and taken away everyone in town. Their wives and kids had all been taken captive, and the people considered killing David. You have to admit, that would be enough to at least bum you out a little. “But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.”

People may not be thinking about stoning you right now, but you may be going through something that has you demoralized and ready to give up. Perhaps you had been cruising along, enjoying victory after victory in Jesus, when BAM!! You wake up to find your whole world has changed. Or maybe, it’s just a series of things that has you bewildered, unsure of what to do or where to go, and you’ve gotten really depressed. I know I’ve been there, and I still go there too. I think there’s something we can learn from David. “But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.”

I don’t think David got all psyched up doing some kind of positive confession mumbo-jumbo, telling himself that he was the head and not the tail, blessed and highly favored, above and not beneath  or anything like that. Notice, the Bible says he strengthened himself in the Lord. David didn’t try to pump himself up by telling himself how awesome he was, I believe that he began to recall how awesome God is. I think David remembered the faithfulness that God had shown him throughout his life. He recalled the victories and the hardships of the past, remembering that his faithful Shepherd had not once abandoned him, even in the valley of the shadow of death. Perhaps he even pulled out his “guitar” and worshiped the Lord, singing of His beauty and steadfast love. And as David waited before God, and allowed the Spirit of God to restore him and cause his faith to rise; he was strengthened in the Lord. He was able to believe that God was still with him, and able to deliver him out of his trouble. And that same God is able to deliver you my friend! In times of trial, the enemy wants you to give up or find consolation in a bottle or drugs or whatever, but your strength lies in the Lord my dear brother and sister. No matter what loss you have suffered, no matter how dark it is around you right now, no matter if those closest to you have begun to doubt you; God will give you strength.

In I Samuel 30, David strengthened himself in the Lord (v6), and then inquired of God as to how he should respond to the situation (vv7-9). The Lord did not disappoint! David and his men were able to rescue their families and return home safely. Don’t give up or give in my friend. Instead go, strengthen yourself in the Lord. I know it’s hard, but get up right now and go pray! Go and seek the face of God, for you are dear to Him.

Imago Dei

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

In Exodus 20, Moses commanded the people that they were not to “make an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea.” The people were to know that there is nothing that they could create that would adequately reflect who God is. God is holy, all together different from anything or any one in all creation. The second commandment explicitly forbade man from trying to make an image of God. But did you know that God himself did make something that would reflect his image? Yep, he created it from the dust of the earth, breathed the breath of life into it, made it a living soul, put it in a garden, and called it Man. Have you ever really taken the time to consider what God meant when he said, “Let Us create man in Our own image.”?

Most of the time, when you talk with folks about being created in the image of God, it always comes down to, “Well, we are spirit, soul, and body, and that’s kind of how God is a Trinity.” Well, I think that’s a good start, a legitimate point, and we’re headed in the right direction, but I believe there is a lot more to it than that. Let’s dig a little deeper. Who is God? What is his essence, his nature? I think we need to look into this in order to understand just how we were created in his image.

First, I have to say that the words I am going to use to try and explain my point will fall way short. Honestly, how do you describe the holy indescribable? But, words are all we have, so here goes. The One God is Triune. He is Father, Son, and Spirit. He exists as three “Persons,” while at the same time; He is One. Within the Trinity there is love and communion, worship if you will. Theologians call this Perichoresis, complete and perfect unity without absorption. This is the perfect, holy God. And we are created to reflect this perichoretic image! Although, man is not God, and never will be God (this is a shock to some of us I’m sure), we are created to exist in a similar form of perichoresis through our union with Jesus. This is what Dr. Jim Gifford refers to as perichoretic salvation. Yes sir, a kind of mutual indwelling without absorption, thereby reflecting the image of God. I believe that’s what being created in the image of God means. In some wonderful, mysterious way; we partake in the eternal Trinitarian life of God. Hallelujah!!

Consider the words Jesus prayed in John 17: “[I ask] that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us…I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one.” We, as believers, are in God and he is in us. There is so much more to being a Christian than talking about sin all of the time. Yes, we know that prior to being born again; we are dead in our sins and separated from God. We must repent and turn from our sin. But when will we understand that salvation is about more than sin and death? Your sin has been dealt with on the cross; it’s time to get busy living my friend! “[O]r have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.”(Romans 6) We have new “perichoretic” lives that partake of the life of God, and reflect the very image of He who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

“We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us. We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.” (I John 1)

Jesus came not only to die for our sins, but to extend to us the very life of God whereby we may have fellowship with him, the kind of fellowship that has eternally existed in the Triune God. You have been invited to experience this life. You were created to reflect this glorious image.

 

 

 

Wax on Wax off

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

Maybe I’m a little touched as they say, but riding down I-85 this afternoon, I began to see similarities between the relationship of Mr. Miyagi and Daniel-Son in the “Karate Kid,” and the way God’s Spirit works in the life of the believer as He conforms him to the image of Christ.

Remember how Daniel came to Mr. Miyagi? He came as a broken, bullied kid, believing that Mr. Miyagi would show him the secrets of martial arts. Daniel was thrilled to have this wonderful teacher, this savior who would show him how to defend himself. It seemed like Daniel figured that it wouldn’t take long and he’d be a master. He had preconceived ideas as to what the teacher student relationship looked like, and the methods the teacher should use to bring him along. Not so fast Daniel –Son!

The so-called lessons begin and Mr. Miyagi makes Daniel wash and wax his cars, paint his fence, and “sand the floor!” Daniel was a good kid, he did as he was told, but after a while; it all seemed like such a waste of time. He had been promised that he would be taught karate, that he would become a fighter, not be some old man’s personal slave.

 Mr. Miyagi: “You in karate training.”
Daniel: “I’m what? I’m being your [expletive] slave is what I’m being, man. Now, we made a deal here.”
Mr. Miyagi: “So.”
Daniel: “So, so, you’re supposed to teach and I’m supposed to learn, remember? For four days I’ve been bustin’ my [expletive] and haven’t learned a [expletive] thing!”
Mr. Miyagi: “You learn plenty.”
Daniel: “I learn plenty! I learned how to sand your decks maybe. I learned how to wash a car, paint your house, and paint your fence. I’ve learned plenty. Right.”
Mr. Miyagi: “Not everything is as it seems.”

Daniel couldn’t see that Mr. Miyagi was indeed keeping his end of the bargain. He had no idea what was being done to him, how he was being changed. So often, we respond to the Spirit’s teaching the way Daniel responded to Mr. Miyagi.

We come to the Lord, and we have all these preconceived, Westernized, Hollywood ideas about the Christian walk. We figure it won’t take long and we will have arrived.  When we encounter the valleys, the hard times, and suffering, we look to the Lord and say, “You promised to teach me!  You said I’d be like you; now all I’m doing is sanding Your floors and waxing Your cars! Why are you allowing this to happen to me?” Like Daniel-Son, we don’t comprehend what is being done in and to us. We balk at the hardship, not understanding that it is the trials themselves that are producing in us an “eternal weight of glory!” God’s Spirit is at work in us, transforming us into the image of the Son. He knows that the way to do this involves our sanding some floors, painting some fences, and waxing some cars. “I promise teach karate. That’s my pact. You promise learn. I say, you do. No question. That your pact.”

In the end, Daniel-Son did become that great fighter. (He also got a really cool vintage car as a gift from Mr. Miyagi.) What lies in store for you is beyond comparison:

“There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls.” (I Peter 1:6-9)

 

Work It

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

Any one that knows me or has heard my testimony knows that I’m all about grace and mercy. I will never understand why a holy God would extend to me this awesome love. I know that it is by his grace, through the faith that he gives us as a gift, that we have been and are being saved. However, we have to understand that being in relationship with God also involves (I’m gonna say it) WORKS.

Check out what the Apostle James has to say:  “You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?  Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: ‘Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.’ He was even called the friend of God. So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone. Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road. Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.”

This portion of scripture troubles a lot of people as they see it in opposition to being saved by grace through faith. I believe that in this passage James is showing us what real faith looks like. True saving faith involves more than just an acknowledgement of the gospel’s claims concerning Jesus. Even the foulest demon of hell believes that Jesus is the Son of God. What a travesty it is that America is filled with folks who believe that they are in Christ because they were sprinkled as babies or 20 years ago walked some aisle and shook a preachers hand and said, “I believe.”  Their relationship with sin has never changed, they look and act no different from the world, and yet they believe that all is well. We have done a great injustice for which we will be held accountable if we do not seek to correct this faulty understanding of saving faith. Faith that is real is faith in action. When you truly believe, there will be corresponding works that attest to the validity of your faith. Authentic belief (faith) is always accompanied by a tangible response (works).

James points out the fact that Abraham’s faith was proven to be real by the things he did. He did not merely profess belief in God; he obeyed him by not withholding Isaac. Rahab the prostitute demonstrated her belief in God by her actions. The truth is that we can say anything, but who we are is ultimately revealed by what we do. If a man tells his wife that he loves her, but doesn’t speak to her, hold her, kiss her, protect her, or in any way demonstrate his professed love; would she be inclined to believe that his love for her is real? Even so, if we say we have faith in God, but live the same way we did before we came to faith, if we never speak to him, serve him, or in any way demonstrate the faith we say we have; is there any reason to believe we truly have faith?

We are saved by God’s grace, apart from anything we could ever do. Our salvation is a result of a loving God extending faith, grace, and mercy to us in Jesus. We can’t do anything to deserve God’s grace and the faith we have is given to us by God. But James reminds us that the one who possesses the real deal will be one whose life demonstrates its reality by the things he does.