Category: Level: Intermediate

suffering

Do You Want To Be One With Christ?

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Suffering makes us one with Christ. Since Jesus is our model suffering is not something that we avoid, instead, we choose to take up our cross. We embrace it because it is the path to oneness with Christ and a fruitful life. Oneness with Christ includes oneness with his life, and his life included suffering; thus, we cannot be one with him unless we suffer. This includes the psychological and spiritual suffering of dying to self. Paul said: “I want to know Christ–yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death” (Phil. 3:10, NIV). Notice that Paul wanted the good and the “bad” because both were part of knowing Christ better. He loved Christ and knew that in him “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:3, NIV) and that he was the source of Paul’s restoration Continue Reading →

wealth

Do You Have A Kingdom Attitude Toward Wealth?

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In the Old Testament God promised material prosperity to his faithful followers. He made Abraham wealthy with large flocks of livestock. Later, when God was bringing the Israelites to the promised land he promised prosperity if they followed the laws he had just given to them at Mt. Sinai. “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit” (Lev. 26:3-4, ESV). In the New Testament we find a new approach to material prosperity and possessions. In Matthew 6:19-34 Jesus teaches us how to relate to money and possessions: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth . . . but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven . . . for where your treasure is, there your heart Continue Reading →

humility

The Peril of Being Unbroken

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It has been observed that for most Christians they must reach a place in their life where their self-dependence is broken so that they abandon their attachment to pride and allow themselves to abide in humility before God. It might be through an external crisis or an internal crisis but we all must go through the process of experiencing the death of the illusion that we are living our Christian life well or that we are truly dependent on God. In other words, we must get to the end of ourselves. This lack of brokenness, or lack of pliability, manifests itself in many destructive ways in our relationships, some of the most obvious are drivenness, stubbornness, defensiveness, lack of empathy, lack of honest self-awareness, unwillingness to accept help, unwillingness to have vulnerabilities and lack of teachability. Even if we have been a believer for twenty years and are honored in Continue Reading →

honesty

When Being Honest Is Risky

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Scripture teaches that we are to “put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor” (Eph. 4:25, NIV). Honesty is a greater challenge when it comes to pointing out an uncomfortable truth that others are ignoring, which is important for moving to elder-level maturity. For example, if someone we are close to or have responsibility for is harming others or themselves with attitudes, words or actions then do we not have a duty before God to say something? “Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Prov. 27:6, ESV). Sometimes we need to speak up even when there is no intention to harm. For example, if our congregation or ministry is having a problem and no effective solutions are being implemented, then we need to speak the truth and point out the negligence. Groups tend to ignore uncomfortable root issues or adopt low-pain solutions that have little hope of success. Consistent Continue Reading →

mask

Unmask Your False Self

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Humans have a habit of creating a false self. We love to pretend that we don’t have the faults, weaknesses, and pain that we really have. In order to get others to value us we construct a false self that we think they will like. A false self can also stem from pride or the desire to control. Thus, even if you are overcoming shame and self-rejection you can still give in to the temptation of hosting a false self. A very common false self for those who have been believers for some time is a false self that appears more Christlike than they really are, usually created by them in order to gain honor from other Christians. This is a religious false self, and it can grow very secretly. We are naturally inclined to present ourselves as more whole than we really are, so we need to consciously resist Continue Reading →