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Tuesday, 28 July 2009
“Great is Thy mercy toward me: Thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.” – Psalm 86:13
If you needed something to motivate you today it can be found in the verse above. You are an object of divine mercy. Let’s remember what the Bible says about all of us, and let’s endeavor to keep it personal also; this is what the Bible says about you before God initiated interaction with you:
You were absolutely dead in your sins
You were alienated from God by wicked works (even you who were saved very early in life)
You had gone on your own way, indifferent and independent of God’s desire for you
You were defiled in your attitudes and actions
You were guilty of rebellion against the holiest Judge in existence
You trampled under your feet the blood of Jesus Christ
You were a child of Satan
You loved spiritual darkness
You hated God’s light
You were a condemning, hypocritical judge of others while blind to your own depravity
You trusted in your own righteousness which God declared was absolutely filthy
You rejected God’s ownership of you and determined to live your own life
You were condemned
You were living hellward
You truly enjoyed sin
You hurt people
You were a helpless prisoner to sin
You were one final breath away from eternal damnation
There’s an honest look in the mirror today. Yet while all of those things (and more which could be added) were your reality…God chose mercy to trump these things. One attribute of God’s character was engaged on your behalf and the equation was reversed. The enemy of God became a child of God. The prisoner of sin became the master over sin. The hellbound became the heavenly citizen. The rebel became the loyal servant. The hypocrite became the grace gusher. The one who hated the light of God now craves that light. When once the blood of Christ was trampled under your feet, now it has cleansed your heart and is loud upon your lips of testimony. Those who were the children of Satan now posses full spiritual authority over him and are no longer ignorant of his schemes against them. Having been one breath away from destruction you are now assured of the impossibility of ever seeing it.
Dear friend, you have been born from above! God has lifted you up out of the lowest grave. He is great and has been so great unto you – who deserved it least! Come and magnify the Lord with me today and place all your griefs and distractions in their respective places. Know that the favor of God rests upon those who will rest in Him. It is Jesus, dear friend! It is He who watched you in the night, who has determined your steps this day, who has prepared everything needed for your victory to be accomplished. It is Jesus who bears the marks of His commitment to you. It is Jesus who is shining and crowned upon His throne. He orchestrates the cosmos but cares enough of you to provide shoes for your feet. He hears the bird whistle to the sun, so rest assured that He has logged your prayers and His undeniably working His good on your behalf. It is Jesus – not some dismissive diplomat sipping morning tea. It is Jesus who agonized in the Garden that we could celebrate in glory! It is Jesus who bled on a tree that we might rule and reign with Him on a mountain! This is your King, dear one! This is your Master! He is the omnipotent Ruler of All who has stooped in grace to wipe your tears and infect you with His smile of confidence.
He does not quake this day. He is infinitely able. And He has said that He boundlessly loves YOU.
Friday, 24 July 2009
"Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord." – Exodus 14:13
How often this verse has been used to quiet a fretful heart. It is my opinion that standing still is one of the most difficult commands for believers to obey. I’ve found that, as God continues to place me in situations larger than my abilities, I struggle with being still and waiting for Him to act. Of course, this is an issue of my trust in Him because I’m much more comfortable being in gear – any gear – rather than idling in neutral. May I suggest some of the motions we make in lieu of being still?
Haste – we spring into action, presuming that we must take a few initial steps, after which God will reward us with His clarifying instructions. Time is of the essence, demands will not go away, God expects us to be proactive, people need us, life will not wait…so we begin to move. At times we do so under presumption rather than instruction. We leap. We grasp. We sprint. We should have been still and waited.
Despair – we are afraid to move so we fall down and weep. God’s not doing what we want Him to do. Doors aren’t opening. Problems aren’t subsiding. People aren’t helping. Standing still is impossible because the weight upon us is back-breaking so we choose instead to crumble. We erroneously think that this is the same thing as standing still because we aren’t asserting ourselves. Don’t be fooled – standing still will still involve standing.
Retreat – here is where we become active yet again, but this time we run away. We hunger for a safe place so we go backwards into a place we have previously mastered. We crave ease, a release of the pressures. We remember the leeks and garlic of past days where everything was familiar. We knew what to handle back then and how to handle it. Let us regress for the glory of the Lord (?) Let us play it safe and assume that the blessing that formerly found us back there awaits us again in the same way. Yesterday and yonder are easy because we’ve been there, done that. Unfortunately for us, God commanded a rest in stillness, not a reversal in cowardice.
These 3 alternatives to stillness can be gained immediately. You retain control. You make the decisions. You are in the captain’s seat. Standing Still? Another is in control. Another appoints your decisions. Another holds the reins. How does that suit our self-sufficient, positively proactive, confidently capable generation? I’ll tell you how it suits us…about as well as a command to hug a porcupine. It rather stings, does it not?
The God of all grace appoints stillness for His children who hunger for Christlikeness. It is this simple at times: God wants you still so He removes all your options. You move forward – futility. You fall down – He waits for you to stand again and choose to wait on Him. You retreat – He lets you go backwards where you discover there is nothing awaiting you there. When these options fail you end up right where you were: living today out as you stand still concerning tomorrow.
Psalm 25:4-5 – “Show me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on Thee do I wait all the day.”
Thursday, 23 July 2009
"Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord." – Exodus 14:13
How often this verse has been used to quiet a fretful heart. It is my opinion that standing still is one of the most difficult commands for believers to obey. I’ve found that, as God continues to place me in situations larger than my abilities, I struggle with being still and waiting for Him to act. Of course, this is an issue of my trust in Him because I’m much more comfortable being in gear – any gear – rather than idling in neutral. May I suggest some of the motions we make in lieu of being still?
Haste – we spring into action, presuming that we must take a few initial steps, after which God will reward us with His clarifying instructions. Time is of the essence, demands will not go away, God expects us to be proactive, people need us, life will not wait…so we begin to move. At times we do so under presumption rather than instruction. We leap. We grasp. We sprint. We should have been still and waited.
Despair – we are afraid to move so we fall down and weep. God’s not doing what we want Him to do. Doors aren’t opening. Problems aren’t subsiding. People aren’t helping. Standing still is impossible because the weight upon us is back-breaking so we choose instead to crumble. We erroneously think that this is the same thing as standing still because we aren’t asserting ourselves. Don’t be fooled – standing still will still involve standing.
Retreat – here is where we become active yet again, but this time we run away. We hunger for a safe place so we go backwards into a place we have previously mastered. We crave ease, a release of the pressures. We remember the leeks and garlic of past days where everything was familiar. We knew what to handle back then and how to handle it. Let us regress for the glory of the Lord (?) Let us play it safe and assume that the blessing that formerly found us back there awaits us again in the same way. Yesterday and yonder are easy because we’ve been there, done that. Unfortunately for us, God commanded a rest in stillness, not a reversal in cowardice.
These 3 alternatives to stillness can be gained immediately. You retain control. You make the decisions. You are in the captain’s seat. Standing Still? Another is in control. Another appoints your decisions. Another holds the reins. How does that suit our self-sufficient, positively proactive, confidently capable generation? I’ll tell you how it suits us…about as well as a command to hug a porcupine. It rather stings, does it not?
The God of all grace appoints stillness for His children who hunger for Christlikeness. It is this simple at times: God wants you still so He removes all your options. You move forward – futility. You fall down – He waits for you to stand again and choose to wait on Him. You retreat – He lets you go backwards where you discover there is nothing awaiting you there. When these options fail you end up right where you were: living today out as you stand still concerning tomorrow.
Psalm 25:4-5 – “Show me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on Thee do I wait all the day.”
Tuesday, 21 July 2009
“But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded." - 2 Chronicles 15:7 (ESV)
What if Jesus walked up to you today, took your face in His hands, looked you in the eye and, smiling, gently spoke the above words to you? Knowing you, understanding what He has placed in your heart, fully comprehending the challenges you face…the Son Of God confidently affirms that He will bless the life you have committed unto Him. What if?
Let’s move from the hypothetical to the actual. Is not the promise of God that He will do exactly this? Consider these inspired statements concerning God’s faithfulness to you today:
1 Thessalonians 5:24 – “Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.”
Numbers 23:19 – “God is not a man that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?”
Isaiah 14:24 – “The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand.”
2 Thessalonians 3:3 – “But the Lord is faithful, who shall establish you, and keep you from evil.”
1 Corinthians 1:9 – “God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.”
John 14:14 – “If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.”
Philippians 1:6 – “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
2 Thessalonians 1:11-12 – “Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power: That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
We are encouraged, not by our own ability, but by God’s faithfulness to Himself. If He has spoken to us, then it must come to pass. It must! We are never invited to prescribe to God how He fulfills His promises to us, but we are certainly entitled to believe that He, indeed, will do so! The verse from 2 Chronicles 15 at the top of the blog tells us 3 things: a positive command, a negative command, and a motivating statement.
Positive command – YOU- take courage! Here is a command telling us to become active in courage. We do so by focusing intently on the God of all might, the God of all faithfulness, the God of all grace. We immerse ourselves in God – His character, His word, and His reliability.
Negative command – Do not allow yourself to become weak. This speaks of neglect. Do not allow weakness to take root in your spirit. The question has been posed: The spirit of a man will sustain him in his weakness but, if his spirit is weak or wounded, what hope has he left {Prov. 18:14} ? When intrusive doubts and fears come to spend the night – evict them mercilessly! When despair and resentment seek to rent a room, let them know that faith and hope have moved in so there is no vacancy. The onus is upon us to not allow spiritual weakness to gain a foothold.
Motivating statement – Your work shall be rewarded! What great encouragement from an omniscient God. He sees what you are doing for Him. He understands your passion for Him and His mission. He notes the sacrifice, being mindful of your tears. He has blessed you with an inner burden which compels you to forsake all and follow Him. He is keenly aware of your desire to be proactive in claiming ground for His kingdom, while at the same time fearing that you may overstep bounds, and act in presumption which results in works energized by the flesh. No worries, dear friend! YOUR work WILL BE rewarded. You are not wishing to wear a shiny crown throughout eternity – your motives being set for the glory of One – the Lord Jesus Christ. Because of this one thing you can rest assured – He is blessing you in your work for Him today.
Sunday, 19 July 2009
"Teach me Thy way, O LORD; I will walk in Thy truth: unite my heart to fear Thy name." - Psalm 86:11
Learning, progressing, changing, reverencing. This verse is simple in its wording, yet profound in its instruction. David, the man who had a heart for God, the man who had severe bouts with his flesh, the man who was tenacious in his commitment, was casting up his hungering heart to the great Feeder of the soul. He was sensing yet again that holy inner ache which craved a filling. Living in the tension between what he was and what he was to be, David opens his heart and begs with expectancy the God who owned him. Teach me, God. Lead me, God. Unify my heart, God. Own me, God.
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Are you learning? In the midst of all you may be doing for God are you still able to view yourself as His pupil rather than His business partner? Do you still come silently, eagerly to Him and assume that He is eager to dispense to meet your lack of understanding? Many Christians graduate themselves and fail to understand that there has never been an earthly processional where we receive a degree which allows us to be exempt from further learning. He's taught you much, dear friend, but what is He teaching you today? David cried, Teach me Your way, Lord.
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Are you moving forward? The Christian who is not proactively moving forward is, at the very best, incrementally moving backward. You are not a stationary being. The world flees God. The flesh hides from Him like bugs beneath a rotted log. Man's best, when enthroned, makes for very poor ruling. What is today influencing your plans? How are you treating your enemy - in truth, as David prayed? Are you indeed walking with God? Many a believer has stopped in weariness or frustration, intending to keep an eye on God and what He is doing, only to find that they closed their spiritual eyes for a moment and found themselves at a such a distance that they had lost their bearings and God seemed so far away. David cried, I will walk in Your Truth, Lord.
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Are you singular? The strangest part of David's prayer is that which calls on God to unite David's heart. What wisdom! He understood that man's heart is unsound, fragmented, duplicitous, and deceptive. Paul told us of its extreme in Romans 7. Jesus warned us of this in Luke 11:34. David anticipated that his human heart, prone to wander, may very well lead him in the wrong direction. He did not boast of what he would do for God, but trembled at what he might do against God. He knew what was in him and He cried to the Conqueror of rebellion, Unite my heart, Lord.
And finally David prescribes his own medication when he seeks to fear God. We forget that we are commanded to fear God every day (Proverbs 23:17). We forget that this fear is the beginning of wisdom in one's life (Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 9:10). Proverbs 8:13 describes what living in the fear of the Lord looks like. Proverbs 16:6 teaches me that fearing God is an essential to my overcoming of sin. The fear of the Lord is present in scenes of glory at the end of the age (Revelation 19:5). In describing the depravity of man, Paul summarizes it all by declaring that there is no fear of God before their eyes (Romans 3:19). David intuited all of this through the Spirit and prays that his own heart may be changed by God to achieve the purpose of living in holy fear of an Almighty God.
I really don't need to apply this verse in this blog. I have no time today to apply it for your life. It will take everything available to me to ingest this verse for my own life. May God grant it to be the reality to any of His own who will pray it for themselves.
Thursday, 16 July 2009
Attached at the bottom of a recent email a friend of mine attached the following poem. I thought others might enjoy it.
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"The hungry sheep look up, and are not fed."
The hungry sheep, that crave the living Bread.
Grow few, and lean, and feeble as can be,
When fed not Gospel, but philosophy;
Not Love's eternal story, no, not this,
But apt allusion, keen analysis.
Discourse well framed -- forgot as soon as heard --
Man's thin dilution of the living Word.
O Preacher, leave the rhetorician's arts;
Preach Christ, the Food of hungry human hearts;
Hold fast to science, history, or creed,
But preach the Answer to our human need,
That in this place, at least, it may be said
No hungry sheep looks up and is not fed.
... Robert Hammond Adams
Tuesday, 14 July 2009
"The LORD your God in the midst of you is mighty..." - Zephaniah 3:17a
I almost forgot God this morning. My alarm went off at the appointed time and before I was able to seize upon thoughts of God I was, instead, seized by thoughts of trouble. It took twenty seconds to get into the bathroom, adjust my eyes to the light, and turn on the hot water. By that time I had been challenged with at least three major thorns in my life right now. Shampooed and shaven I spent 60 seconds fixing my remaining hair and got dressed for the day. In that duration of time the three thorns had become a full thicket. Set the security alarm, lock the door, enter my truck, and pray for family's safety in my absence as I do each morning...now I was already feeling a little overwhelmed. I had been awake for a total of about 18 minutes.
I almost forgot God this morning.
Coming into my office I immediately knew that everything else would have to wait. Before all my normal morning routine could commence, I needed to have a meeting. There was Someone I needed to get real with and open up to. My burden was too heavy and it was far too early for me to begin to try to handle things in my own strength.
"Good morning, Father. I need to talk. Father, more than that, I need to hear."
I don't know what time it was when I began and I never looked at the clock when I was done. What was spoken between us is reserved for us, so all I will say is that I came away remembering God and my outlook was different. God spoke and I heard. I spoke and God heard. My thorns provoked me less. My mind was now above with an exalted view on what I wrestled with below. God is not merely good...He is good to Jeff.
Friends, may I risk a little transparency on a blog that anyone might read? I want to tell you that I am not strong. Please don't quote me Scripture or my own sermons. I'm telling you that I really, really believe it: Jeff Lyle is not strong. However, I am victorious. I am blessed. I am an overcomer. I am strengthened (not the same as being strong, mind you). The reason that I experience all of these positive aspects is found in one declaration: I AM DEPENDENT.
God is mighty, says Zephaniah. God is present in the midst, he adds. And the mighty God who is in the midst is my God and your God. May your thorns create tears that you bring to Mighty God. May your weakness(es) cause you to lay with no fretting in the care of God In The Midst. May our struggles sap us entirely of the scourge of self-reliance. May we be so grateful to life's opposition (people, circumstances, and denials) that we can smile as we sense their approach, counting them as another opportunity to learn more of Mighty God In The Midst.
Thank you, Lord, for omniscient wisdom employed on behalf of Your own today. We love you unspeakably.
Friday, 10 July 2009
I'm preaching Psalm 85 this coming Sunday morning but there was just one thing that could not wait. Sensing a holy rumble that I'm aching for in my soul, thirsting for personal revival in my own relationship with Christ, I am reminded with plainness of speech why I ought to awake rejoicing today. Though simple, it is essential for us to retain if we wish to walk before our Lord in authentic joy and expectation.
Psalm 85:3 - "You have taken away all Your wrath: you have turned Yourself from the fierceness of your anger."
Don't ever forget what you deserve. You and I deserve what Jesus endured. We ourselves should have been the target of the most burning anger ever to be unleashed. Holy, hot, omnipotent wrath upon sin was the only thing in life we actually are entitled to. And, yet we missed it fully because it found Another. What unspeakable grace that Father and Son originated before time and matter that He would be the Lamb and that we would be the goats running free. And now the goats have been granted glory. The sinners have become sanctified. The rebels stand redeemed. Spurgeon said of God's turning from His wrath, "In mid volley He has restrained His thunder."
Please do not allow your heart to be merely comforted by this thought; tarry on it long enough to where it will own you - at least for this day. Filter all that may be wrong in your life through the lens of your undeserved justification. Do people owe you? Well, your greater debt is forgiven. Have they wronged you lately with words and blows? Your own venom landed on the Sinless One. Have they stolen what you possessed? A paltry crime compared to seizing upon a King's glory in your pride. Brethren, we have been justified! Our taint is no more! We have not risen to the level of being merely tolerated but, rather, we were objects of His loving pursuit. He caught you, Bless His Name! He cleansed you! He has created you, captivated you, consecrated you and commissioned you!
This 85th Psalm ends with these words: "...righteousness shall go before Him and shall set us in the way of His steps." And walking therein, we find what our heart truly needs. It is then that the needs become the desires. Now we cannot distinguish between the two.
Tuesday, 07 July 2009
There will be an awful worship service today in California. An arena will be filled, the rich and famous will be present, tickets have been sold...and then resold for a profit. They will be worshiping a dead man. Stranger still, they will be worshiping a dead man who may very well be in hell at this very moment. Forgive the direct pronouncement but there is nothing remotely approaching evidence that Michael Jackson was a disciple of Jesus Christ. Scripture teaches that those who do not have the Son do not have life. Mr. Jackson had fame beyond most. He once had money that had to be counted and tracked by those whom he hired. He had palatial estates and amusement parks. He had disciples of his own which spread across the globe. He had talent. Frankly, he had our curiosity. What does he have today? The sum total of his existence which will be his for eternity.
He left this world with a pocket full of air.
I'm often struck by the words of Jesus when He posited to us that there is no profit in gaining the entire world if, in the end, you forfeit your soul. You know, He really meant it when He established this truth. Jesus knows that the hearts of humans seek to procure. We love to get things. Once gotten, we love to hold those things. To get and to hold more things is the bottom line pursuit of the vast majority of the Western world. Things make us feel alive. We like our pockets full. Give us large reserves as cushions for haunted consciences which whisper that there's something more to life. Silence that intruding voice which gives us pause! Away with the notion that this world cannot satisfy us! Many spend their entire lives to be the exception to the unyielding rule that you cannot take a thing with you when your date with dust appears. In the end, it is a pocket full of air and nothing more.
Dear friend, are you as susceptible to this as most are? Simply because we do not enjoy extravagance does not eliminate the possibility that we share the spirit of those who do. Perhaps your pockets are not large...but are you seeking to fill them with air? At the close of Luke 14 Jesus makes a dogmatic declaration that He demands everything in my life to be for Him and unto Him. That's still in your Bible, I promise. He speaks of me carrying my cross and following Him. It takes both hands to carry my cross, leaving me without a free hand to stuff my pockets with air as I travel. Jesus meets my gaze and tells me that I must recognize His worth as being above that of Amy. He must come before my children. My possessions must be abandoned in my heart so that, if He deems it fitting, I can walk away from them without a tear. He then tells me that I also must die to my strongest love, my innate love, my fiercest love: I must love Him more than I love me.
Jeff, is that air in your pocket?
Our world is, indeed, a royal mess. But your life need not be. Look heavenward today and thank God with loud praise that you do not have struggle with the deceitfulness of riches. Thank Him that you do not have a gorgeous face and perfect body which demands your investment to maintain. Your house is unimpressive? Have you thanked God that this is so? Has it been so long since one patted your back and admired your abilities? How gracious of God to leave you to take your affirmation from Him alone! Misunderstood lately? Amazing comfort it is when He who loves you most understands you fully. What a secret prize you find in Him that none other can offer. How good your Master is to withhold from you what He has sovereignly allowed for others. Is not His precise care of you unique and sufficient? Thanks be unto God who has portioned unto me what is needed for His glory in my life. Thanks be to God who denies my satisfactions until they rest completely in Him. He has extracted my spiritual taste buds and replaced them with those that long only for His savor. The rest we have learned to spit out because it brings us no pleasure.
I am glad today that He has made me to be me. You may be a marvelous specimen but I have no desire to be you. To not be delighted in what He has done in allowing me to be is to enter into discontent. To be discontent is to sin against His wisdom. I do not wish to have what He has given another. I do not begrudge what He has withheld from me. I am short, pale, and balding. Great work - O my Creator! I come from a broken home and know the pain of abandonment - what wisdom You have employed, Thou Potter! I do not feel as sensitively as others - He has left me some thickness which helps me endure! I have no fame - perhaps I would have lived for it if He granted it. I am not wealthy, nor do I desire to be. I do not have a thousand friends, but I have more than I deserve. I may rejoice that I am an object of grace and that the blessings that attach themselves to this grace are also mine.
I have no need for pockets. All that I want and need surrounds me. My own pockets could never contain it. And by the way, I will be enjoying what I have for all of eternity. Thank you, Wise God.
"But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain..." 1 Corinthians 15:10(a)
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