Are You Ready?

To make ready a people prepared for the Lord – Luke 1:17

    This man named John was sent by God to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. The mission did not start in the hearts of the people; even John did not initiate the mission. The mission was initiated by God. God is the original Missionary, if you will, which suggests that every mission of ours is really a submission to the higher mission of God. God has a mission and his mission is about establishing a people. John had a mission put in his heart by God; to prepare a people for the Lord. It is interesting to note that while God certainly loves individuals, He wants a people, a group, a family, a nation, an assembly of people. Your personal, individual life is important but it is always in relationship to others that God calls us. God has always wanted a people for Himself. He loves people. He created people. He wants to use people and entrust people. He wants to live amongst a people and fellowship with them.

    The word ‘people’ in the Greek is the word ‘laos’ from which we get our term ‘laity’. God never has been a God of class distinction; he does not see what we call the clergy and the laity, he is simply looking for a people. He is not looking, necessarily, for a preacher, or a minister, He is looking for ordinary, believing people. ‘I sought for a man’. Our hearts are not naturally prepared or inclined to do the will of God or even to recognize God when he arrives in our lives. If we are not made ready and prepared we will not receive Him when he comes. Jesus came to His own people and His own received Him not. Jesus lamented the fact that even Jerusalem did not know or recognize the time of her visitation. They were not ready.

    It is of supreme importance that we be prepared. Most people understand what it means to prepare and the necessity of it. When we are planning a vacation, we prepare by saving money and booking it on the calendar. When we are expecting a child, we prepare by designating a room as a nursery and furnishing it accordingly. When we are having friends over for dinner we prepare by purchasing the ingredients and cooking a meal. When we get up in the morning to exercise we prepare by warming up and stretching our muscles. When we want to plant a garden we prepare the soil by turning the ground and moistening the soil. Everything in life needs preparation. If we do not prepare we will inevitably forget something or we will not have adequate provision or we may even hurt ourselves. In like manner, our hearts need preparation. We need to be ready when the Lord chooses to move into our lives and circumstances. There are strategic times and opportunities when God is pursuing us and inviting us to a closer walk with Him. Isaiah encourages us to ‘Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near’.

   Yes, Lord, prepare my heart to be responsive to your presence, to fellowship and commune with you. Prepare me in connection with those whom I will need in order to fulfill your will in my life. Prepare me to obey your voice and to be a part of the fulfillment of your plan.

The Character of a Leader

Titus 1:8 - But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate

    The kind of man that Titus was encouraged to keep alert for was someone who had notable but, very often, overlooked virtues. Sadly, it seems that, when we look for leaders, we look for the high-powered, executive type, or a charming and sophisticated diplomat, or maybe we think we need the dominant, task-oriented person. But when God looks for leaders, he looks for an entirely different set of qualifications. Like the time when he saw the heart of a king within a shepherd-boy named David, God pursues men who, frequently, have unassuming credentials.

    Why would God stress the fact that a leader must be a lover of hospitality? I believe it is because the church is first and foremost all about relationships. We are the body of Christ, undeniably and organically linked together. Paul writes in another place that when one member of the body suffers then all of the members suffer with it. We are a spiritual body, therefore we affect and influence each other in ways which we may not be aware of. If I am committed to the church, then I am committed to people. People are what we, as churches, exist for. We want to reach, interact and share life together with the precious people of our communities. One who is a lover of hospitality is one who takes pleasure in opening up the home to include people of every walk of life. Our homes and our churches need to be places that are fond of guests and welcoming to strangers. That element is a good starting place for reaching others and for providing a safe haven from the storms of this life. If the leaders of a church have this trait then our churches will be known for their warmth and friendliness. In the day we live in where most of us have retreated into the privacy and comfort of our homes, a revival of hospitality is desperately needed.

    A.W. Tozer once wrote that, ‘The bias of nature is toward the wilderness, never toward the fruitful field’. In other words, in this fallen world, fruitfulness is not automatic. If we want something good to be produced in our gardens or in our churches, we must cultivate it. Everything in nature tends toward the wilderness, if you do not believe that, then, simply neglect your flower beds for a season. Good leaders are those who intentionally love and promote good things, and they provide a healthy and safe environment so that people can flourish and become all that God desires for them.

    In an age of lightness, looseness and laziness, to meet people who are sensible and serious about their life and calling, is like a breath of fresh air. While all godly leaders value what it means to have a sense of humor, they also understand that there is a sobriety about life that cannot be trivialized through constant joking. There are those who laugh and joke and flit and flirt their way through life, never amounting to much. As stewards of the house we must realize the urgency of opportunities that are presented to us. People come into our lives and they go out of our lives and we may never have another occasion to share the true meaning of our life with them. Years ago I read a statement that a Christian man had on the back of his business card, it said, ‘If you meet me and forget me, you have lost nothing, but if you meet Jesus and forget Jesus, you have lost everything’. As men of God, let us stand up tall, square our shoulders and walk forward, leading God’s family with dignity and gravity.

    The world we live in has become increasingly jaded and unjust and alarmingly partial and unfair, so, the church needs to stand out in striking contrast. Our leaders must be fair, unprejudiced and righteous before God. A person cannot be biased and still remain principle-centered and fair. To be an elder in the house necessitates impartiality, objectivity and open-mindedness. Like a judge entering the courtroom, we must approach all decisions without a predisposition and all individuals without respect of persons. If we are indeed men of justice and righteousness, then we will treat all people with kindness and due regard.

    Holiness is a word that conjures up all kinds of images; the angry and judgmental preacher in the old Western movies, young ladies who are told to wear long skirts and have plain hairstyles, and others, who do not drink coffee, go to the movie theatre and certainly never seem to smile. What does it mean to be holy? While holiness will definitely affect and alter our lifestyle, it is more of an attitude than an action. To be holy is to be set apart for a particular purpose or use. My life is not my own, I am bought with a price and I belong to another. Because my life is sacred, then, as a leader, I am more precise and intentional about my choices and how I spend my time. Jesus once instructed his disciples, ‘don’t give that which is holy to the dogs’, implying that holy things are sacred and have a value that many, in this world, will never understand or appreciate.

    When steel is tempered, it is strengthened through an intense process of heat that causes it to be less brittle and more pliable. God’s men are tempered through a similar process with the equivalent result. Strength through flexibility is a desired attribute in any leader. When a man is temperate, he responds to difficult situations and challenging people with calmness and balance. Knee-jerk reactions and outbursts of hot tempers have no place in the overseer’s life. Jesus demonstrated this kind of self-control perfectly, as he stood uncompromisingly before Pilate and didn’t allow himself to say a single word; there was no hint of self-defense and no desire for vengeance.

    May these godly qualities be infused into our lives as men, for we are husbands, we are fathers, we are pioneers of faith and we are beacons of light in a dark world. Arise and Shine!

    

The Qualities of a Leader

For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God, not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre - Titus 1:7

    Paul uses the word elder and the word bishop interchangeably. It has been suggested that the first term; elder, has to do with the character of the man; dignified, stately and mature. The second term; bishop, which would be better translated overseer, and has to do with the role of the man; alert, watchful and observant. This leader is described as a steward of God, thus informing us that not only are we responsible for the people in the house; we are ultimately answerable to the owner of the house. We are stewards, we are not owners.

Observe the qualities that the stewards of the house must guard against; not self-willed, not soon angry, not given to wine, not a striker and not greedy of money.

    Self-will heads the list of dangerous traits in a leader. If a man must have his own way and if he is driven to fulfill his own pleasure, the church will always be at risk of being destroyed. A self-focused man becomes the source of all other fallen tendencies. Self-will is really the root of all sin as demonstrated by Adam in the Garden of Eden; he chose his own way over God’s way. Millennia later, in another garden, the Last Adam aligned his will with God’s will and thus restored the long-broken relationship between God and man. As long as we are self-willed we will be continually frustrated and soon we will be governed by anger. Anger is one of those qualities that reveal how disappointed and upset we are with ourselves. It is usually not about what the other person has done but about our own internal conflicts and disillusionment; we are not happy with who we are and where we are at in life. It has been said that most men correct in their children what they are not happy about in themselves.

    By using the phrase, not given to wine, Paul seems to be speaking of an addictive tendency in certain people. There are people who can have a glass of wine and not be given to it, and there are people who would never touch a drop but are ruled by it. Legalism is corrosive to relationships, and just as destructive as a lack of restraint. We cannot be the kind of people that are always looking for a way to escape the pressures of life in order to find a place of peace. There are those restless and agitated souls that never are content with where they are; they are always looking for something else.

    When a person resorts to physical violence and aggression it is a clear indication of a lack of trust in God; this person literally takes matters into their own hands, they are not seeking God for answers. Many men grow up attempting to solve all their problems through physical force. Punch first, think later seems to be their motto, and even after advancing in years and realizing that this only makes things worse, they may still have the attitude and predisposition of a striker. One who is quick to lift his hand against another is either full of fear or pride, or more likely, both.

     Ending the list of what a steward or elder must not be is the phrase; not greedy of money, or as another version says, not desiring profit for himself. In our day and in our culture much of a man’s success is measured in terms of how much money he has. Money is used across the world and is a necessary element in order to transact any business. It is not in any way wrong to have money. Quite the opposite actually, it is wrong for money to have you. Paul said elsewhere that the love of money is the root of all evil, and one can commit that sin without even having a dime. It is not about what we have or do not have; it is about our heart. As a leader, especially, we must not be those whose motives are for personal gain or benefit.

    My pastor counselled me, when we took over the leadership of a struggling church, to remove all of the potential faults in the infrastructure of the church. If we continue to build on a known fault-line then we shouldn’t be surprised when there is eventual disaster. Foundations are designed to uphold, remain steady and not shift under the weight and pressure of the structure. Titus was wisely instructed to avoid placing the weight of responsibility on the faulty foundations and character flaws of certain type of men. Negative traits in people, having become firmly established, are harder to deal with than cultivating positive traits in those who do not have them; it is easier to plant than it is to uproot.

You Might be Married, but Are You a Husband?

If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.

    It is interesting to note that the first characteristic of a potential elder was that he needed to be blameless. To be blameless does not mean that elders are to be flawless. We are blameless not because we never make a mistake but when we do make mistakes we have the honesty and humility to confront our errors and acknowledge our wrongs; not pointing the finger and blaming others. Blameless is a word which includes the attitude of a man, not simply his actions. It is the posture of a man who walks in humility and integrity, keeping short accounts with others. If I have done something wrong and do not confess it, I can be blamed, but if I confess and accept responsibility for the sin, I cannot be blamed for it. There is an example in the book of Galatians that bears this out. Paul says that when he came to Jerusalem he withstood Peter to his face for he was to be blamed. Apparently, Peter was acting in a hypocritical way and Paul called him out for it. If Peter had already dealt with it previously, he could not be blamed. Blame is the word which denotes responsibility. When I take the blame for something, I assume responsibility for it and bear the brunt of any consequences or repercussions. A blameless man, then, is not a perfect man but one who accepts responsibility for his actions and does not blame others or pass the buck, so to speak. One excellent minister to men said it this way, ‘Maturity does not come with age; it comes with the acceptance of responsibility. That is why some men are mature at seventeen and others are immature at seventy’.

    Isn’t it instructive that the very first quality that Titus is encouraged to look for in an elder is this quality of responsibility? Leadership is first and foremost a position of responsibility. Paul immediately connects the responsibility of leadership to the home and the priority of family life. The elder is to be the husband of one wife. To get married is a relatively easy thing to do, to be a husband is not. The word husband is not, necessarily, a noun but a verb; it describes the role that a married man assumes. He is the husband to his wife. There are several possibilities when searching for the root of this English word husband. Some have suggested two possibilities for its origin; house-bound or house-bond, and others have said it comes from house-band. All three suggestions and perspectives are interesting and informative.

    At a time in history when men did as they pleased and roamed as they willed, the term house-bound takes on special meaning. A husband would no longer do as he saw fit or leave as he so decided but he would now be house-bound. He would stay near his new home and take responsibility for its safety and the family’s provision. The wanderer has now put down roots; he has become a husband, bound to the house by a powerful commitment and, consequently, he will no longer act independently at his own whim, or with only his own welfare in mind.

    In a culture when women and children had no one to speak for them or no one to ensure their safety, the expression house-bond is descriptive and illustrates another aspect of the role the married man would take. He would become the bond or the guarantee that his wife and children would be defended and protected. His word was his bond. He gave his word in a vow before God and witnesses so now all those that belong to the house are assured of security.

    In the social order of Titus’ day, the family life had no priority and there was no binding strength to hold people together, the designation house-band gives us further insight into the crucial function of a husband. He would be the band of strength wrapped around hearth and home, thus fulfilling a dual task; warding off dangerous elements from the outside and simultaneously protecting the precious treasure within.

    In a world that did not value the sacredness of monogamy, not only should the elder be a husband, but he would also have a loyalty and commitment to his one and only wife. To qualify as one of God’s leaders, the ability to vow and keep oneself, for one woman alone, would be of utmost significance.

    When looking for men to fulfill positions of leadership in the church, we are to look for those who have the spirit of a husband; one who has put down roots, a man of integrity, a protector of the vulnerable and a loyal, one-woman sort of man.

The Tide is Turning

Philippians 1:19 - For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ

    Paul is the supreme example of a confident believer. Upon becoming a Christian, his new life immediately became a white water ride of conflict and trouble, hence we have Paul writing this letter from a prison cell. Yet, in spite of the trouble, he is confident that God is with him and that nothing has taken God by surprise; he is right in the center of His will. ‘I know’, Paul says, ‘that this will turn’. He doesn’t use unclear language such as I hope this will turn, or it could possibly turn. No! He says, ‘I know’. ‘I am not upset. I know that God is working behind the scenes, he is influencing and coordinating circumstances and my life is in his hands. My life is not in the hands of my enemies or that of my guards; my life is in the Father’s hand and no man can pluck me out. It might look like I am a prisoner of Rome but in reality I am a prisoner of Jesus Christ, captivated by him. I am in the hands of God, being protected and directed accordingly’.

    Every circumstance that we find ourselves in, no matter how long it has persisted, is still temporary. It will change. Something will shift. It will turn around. Nothing this side of Heaven will last forever. The tides turn. The seasons turn. The weather turns. Even the Earth itself turns. Paul adds the power of his faith in God to that knowledge and confidently rests, knowing that this story is not over yet. ‘This shall turn’. What shall turn? This; this situation; this circumstance; this happening; this occurrence; this challenge; this tragedy; this; this shall turn.

    Salvation and deliverance is always the will of God. Jesus came to save us and that is not a one-time deal, no, he saves us daily. He saves us from sin. He saves us from harm. He saves us from our enemies. He saves us from deception. He saves us from ourselves. He doesn’t necessarily save us from trouble but he saves us out of trouble. The Psalmist tells us that, ‘Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers him out of them all’. Everything that we need is answered by the all-encompassing salvation of God. Paul knew the Lord so well that he did not question why he was in prison. He knew that God has ways of working out his will in our lives and he knew that he was there for a reason. The Gospel was actually being proclaimed even more because of Paul’s imprisonment. Some of the brothers had taken courage by Paul’s stand and were becoming bold and speaking the Word without fear. The whole Roman prison was being influenced for good by Paul’s presence there. God is in the salvation business because he is in the people business.

    There was another reason that Paul was so confident; he knew that others were praying for him. Oh,  how that knowledge can bolster our faith and keep us brimming with hope during the difficult times. This will turn around through your prayer. Paul recognized that he wasn’t in this alone but that there was a body of believers praying on his behalf. The word that is used for prayer in this verse is the word that means petition. It is legal terminology. We can petition the court of Heaven and argue, like a lawyer, on behalf of others. The church at Philippi was petitioning God for Paul. Someone has once said that argumentative prayer is the best kind of prayer. We argue our case before God; we present the facts and the logic and the reason for our petition. The story has been told about the lady whose child was about to be sold into slavery and she prayed in this argumentative way; ‘Lord, if you were in trouble like I am in trouble and I could help you like you could help me, I would do it’. The story as it is told, tells us that after that prayer, someone stepped forward and purchased the child and returned her to the praying mother. This kind of bold praying seems to be a lost art to the modern church, however, a closer look at scripture will reveal its abundant basis. Abraham prayed this way as he negotiated God down to at least ten righteous people in Sodom. Moses prayed this way as he stood in the gap, reasoning with God on behalf of the children of Israel. The Canaanite woman prayed this way when she found some logic to answer the words of Jesus, and used his very words to win her case for her daughter. The Centurion prayed this way when he equated his military authority and chain of command to the authority of God’s kingdom, thus, logic, reasoning and argument won the answer. All of us likewise must learn to pray this way, presenting our case before God, reminding him of his promises.

  Be encouraged, friends, the situation that you are in will turn around for your good. It is the will of God for you to experience his salvation in all of its fullness. God is for you, who can be against you? He is actively working on your behalf and others are fervently praying on your behalf. Get ready, do not despair. This will turn!

Your Chains are Being Broken

Proverbs 5:22 - His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be held with the cords of his sins.

    The world we live in does not like to even acknowledge that sin exists. Many laugh and mock at the idea of sin but, if all of us were honest; we would admit there is an unseen and undetected power that drives men to commit horrendous acts against one another. We can say that we don’t believe in poison but we will die if we ingest it, regardless of our beliefs. In the final analysis men will suffer the consequences of continuing in their sin. Responsibility rests with the individual to choose the wisdom of God in avoiding certain evils. In this very pointed chapter of Proverbs we have frank and straight forward instruction and warning to shun sexual sin of every form. The strange woman has boldly come into our homes through the television and the computer screen, and we are the ones who have opened the door. We are the consumer, we are the reason that pornography and all sexually explicit material sells. We are the purchasers of sin.

     Iniquity is the power that holds men and keeps men shackled within a prison of addiction and weakness. Why does man do the things that he does? How can man treat his fellow man with such lack of respect and value? Iniquity is the power within our fallen natures that clearly exhibits that something has gone terribly wrong. It is the propensity and the tendency to crave what we do not have. It shows itself in the fact that we are attracted to things that will eventually destroy us. Someone has written that habits are first threads then cables; easily broken at first and almost impossible to break later. We form the habit and then the habit forms us. Sin is a powerful and compelling force that always will entice men of all ages and all cultures. Sin reaches to the highest levels and echelons of our society and it dives down into the lowest and darkest sectors of our culture; it is no respecter of persons; sin hates all men equally. Satan is the archenemy of God and the nemesis of mankind. He despises man; he deviously delights in the destruction of everything that is good and fair and kind. 

    Eventually if a sin is persisted in, the cords of that sin will hold the man captive. It will control the man and keep him in a cursed state, continually wrapped up, entangled and confined to a very tiny space, when all the while it is the will of God for that man to be blessed and free and ever-expanding in prosperity and influence. Sin, especially sexual sin, keeps men from becoming all that God intended for us. It restrains mature character and the full expression of the image of God. It diminishes true manhood. It promises much but delivers little. It is deceptive by nature and destructive in result. We need a Saviour; one who will free us from all iniquity and, thank God, Jesus has done it! The power of sin has been neutralized. The shackles of sin have been broken. The prison doors are open. Captive humanity is now free to go. Why do we continue to stay inside?

God's Power Train

Act 1:8 - But you shall receive power, after that the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

   These are some of the last words that Jesus spoke to his disciples before his ascension into heaven. This portion of scripture is part of what we call ‘The Great Commission’. After his resurrection Jesus had periodically appeared to the disciples and spoke to them. He even ate with them to prove that he was indeed physically resurrected. They were still not fully aware of what the plan of God was or what he was requiring of them and so they asked if this was the time that he would restore the kingdom to Israel. Jesus responded by saying that there were things that they did not need to know. Isn’t it interesting that those men are just like us? We are curious and we want to know all kinds of things but God wants us to focus on his specific instructions for us. We are to focus on his plan and destiny for our lives. There are many things that must be left with the Father; they are not for us to know, particularly, right now. Trust the Father, he knows best.

   Instead of looking for more knowledge or mere information, we are to receive power from God. This commission to go into the entire world and preach the gospel would be utterly impossible if it were not for the fact that the Holy Spirit has come to rest upon us and give us power. What is this power for? I believe it is, primarily, power to accomplish the Great Commission. It is a compelling and motivating power. It is power to be a witness. It is power to stand boldly and proclaim the resurrection, like the apostles did, to the very ones who crucified Jesus. It is power to overcome while facing violent opposition and intense persecution. It is power to speak the wisdom of God to the people of this world. It is power to pray, to sing, to rejoice and to love. It is power to lead others and to establish and build local churches, which should eventually become reproductive centers of power themselves. Thank God for this power! We have not just been commissioned and given the burden of responsibility but we have also been empowered to do the will of God. We are not alone. He is with us by the personal presence and power of the Holy Spirit.

   Have you and I received this power? If it has been received, are we utilizing it, have we applied it? Have we forgotten that we have this power? Have we been attempting to live this life by our own power? To receive means to deliberately take and grab hold of something. There is a giving of the power and there must also be a reception of the power. If you offer me something, I must reach out and take it from you for there to be an actual transaction. God is offering us power and there definitely is no power shortage with him. If there is no transfer or flow of power, then there must be something short-circuiting or hindering it on our part. Once I have received this power from God then I must also believe that I now have it; I am not powerless. I have something very real and even tangible from God that can be employed and applied to produce a result.

   Underneath that English word power is the Greek word from which we get our word dynamic. So, we have received dynamic power which is power that carries capability to produce change. It is dynamic power versus static power; it is not power for accumulation but, power for distribution; it is not power for storing but, power for pouring. God desires to pour out his power through us as we continue to proclaim the Gospel. Paul says elsewhere that the Gospel is the power of God which results in salvation. Power is meant to produce. We have power in our homes to heat the house, to cook meals and to light up the dark rooms. Power is not for status, it is for purpose. We have in our vehicles what is called the power train which generates power, via the engine, and delivers it to the surface of the road, via the transmission, drive shaft and wheels. In other words if we did not have a way for the power of the engine to be transferred to the wheels, we would not create any forward motion or progress; we would simply make a lot of noise burning fuel; that may explain a few of our church services. The mechanism that God uses to distribute his power to people is other people like you and me. We become conduits of power when we preach and pray and love and serve each other. God has given us his power which is to be delivered to the needs of this world, thus making an actual, practical and effective change and result; and that is where the rubber meets the road!

Ingredients Needed in the Quest for Wisdom

Proverbs 2:1-5 - My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou cry after knowledge, and lift up thy voice for understanding; If thou seek her as silver, and search for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.

    Proverbs is the Book of Wisdom; it contains practical and down-to-earth counsel for life’s issues and challenges. So many people of our day feel like the world owes them something, they somehow have acquired a sense of entitlement. This portion of scripture knocks the basis for that thinking right out from under them. While it is true that babies are born into this world and should be given certain rights and privileges, such as food and clothing and loving care, it is also true that those very same babies must grow up to become contributors and innovative helpers, not just recipients of the benefits of being born in a free country.

    Receive my words - My son, are you listening to your father? Your father is one who has lived ahead of you and who has faced many things that you will indeed one day face yourself. Are you wise enough to understand that there is an opportunity for you to benefit from your father’s experience and wisdom? The heart of any true father is to impart to his son what he needs, to give him skills that will help him navigate through life with his own family someday. I am a father but are you a son? Can you receive my words? Are you open to learn from me? If you will receive and welcome my words, those very words will open up to you new and innovative ways of thinking about old and persistent problems.

    Hide my commands - My son, you must position yourself to receive my words and also to hide my commandments within you. Do not be afraid of commands. Commands come from a higher authority and are not to be debated; they are to be obeyed. The commands of a father are given with the children in mind. They are not given in order to benefit the father but, they are the guardians of the children. Our only protection is obedience. Hide my commands, do not boast of your obedience but simply obey quietly and hide this between you and your father.

    Incline your ear - What are your inclinations? Which way do you lean in your views of life? If we are inclined towards wisdom, half the battle is already won. If something leans a certain way, then a little push in the same direction and momentum and gravity take over. We must incline our ears toward wisdom, that is, we must have an attitude that is ready to hear regardless of what it may require of us. Is my ear ready to hear what it needs to hear in order for true and lasting change to come? That is a big problem. We say that we want to change but then we resist the words and the counsel that we are given because it requires too much, so we think. If we hear things that we think are too hard then we are not inclining our ears to wisdom. Just do your part first; incline your ear and lean towards wisdom and let God embrace you and take care of the results.

   Apply your heart - We live in a world of information without application. We seem to think that if we have read the book or taken the course then we know what we are talking about, however, that is definitely not the case. Who really knows their subject; the man who takes the course for several years or the man who has been applying his energy and time to work in the same field of expertise? One has head knowledge and the other has life knowledge. One has an untested concept and the other has proven experience. I am in no way undermining the value of education and going to school to learn, I am simply saying that the time comes when we must apply in the boardroom what we have learned in the classroom. The goal is not to be a professional student but to be a productive servant. When I was a young man in high school, many times the comment would be on the report card, ‘He has the intellect, but he just does not apply himself’. When we apply for a job, we put ourselves out there for consideration. We don’t just sit back and wait for the phone call, we go out and apply; we tell others that we are interested and available.

    Cry after knowledge - What kind of cry resides within us? Do we have an intense longing for true knowledge? This cry within is a necessary element in wisdom, because if you are given wisdom but do not have a heart cry and desire to use it correctly, you will not value what you have been given. Hunger is an intense motivator. We will do all kinds of radical and extreme things in order to eat and survive. We are to have a similar type of  hunger that will drive us in a quest for spiritual sustenance. Is there a heart-cry for knowledge? Knowledge is necessary for a blessed life. We sometimes say, ‘What you don’t know won’t hurt you’, but the reality is that what we do not know may indeed be hurting us terribly. God said, ‘My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge’. If I have no knowledge that the bridge is out on the road ahead, I may be destroyed because of that lack of knowledge; knowledge would have saved my life.

    Lift up your voice - The ability to speak is a God-given blessing. We celebrate the day that the baby speaks its first words. If that child never learns to speak then we know that something is terribly wrong. Our voice is the expression of our unique identity. There is no other voice identical to yours or mine. Lift up your voice, God says. You have a voice. You have a vote, if you will. You have a say in what happens to you. You have a valid perspective; voice it. There is something very powerful about the way God has made us; we are created in his image and he is a speaking spirit, a communicating voice, an articulate person. You are in charge of your voice, lift it up, put some power beneath it and release your voice. Speak to God honestly and unreservedly, speak to each other openly and with humility and watch how you will grow in identity and security.

   Seek her - We are created to seek. Seek and you shall find is how Jesus said it to us. God wants us to seek and to pursue him. We are to seek for wisdom and understanding like we would seek for silver or today’s currency; money. Many of us poke fun at those who chase the ‘almighty dollar’ but if we were honest we might have to agree that we have done the same. Much of our life is taken up with our jobs and ‘making a living’. Money occupies a great deal of our thoughts and energies. What if we turned that around so that we sought God and his wisdom like we seek financial gain and security? We don’t really need money, we need wisdom. If we have wisdom and apply wisdom, our money problems disappear. It very often takes time but wisdom definitely answers the money problem. Seek her diligently and desire her intensely.

    Search for her - Man is an explorer by nature; he must continue to discover new worlds. This innate quest to pioneer, survey and map out unoccupied territories motivates men to not settle for the status quo. If only we could focus those exploratory skills on acquiring the wisdom of God. We are told to search for her as for hidden treasure. If we knew that there was treasure of great worth buried in our back yards, we would dig up every inch until we uncovered it. That is the type of desire and effort that is needed to obtain God’s wisdom. Search for her and do not stop until you unearth that buried treasure of wisdom and knowledge. God does indeed hide his wisdom but, it is not hidden from you, it is hidden for you.

    This chapter in Proverbs starts out with a condition; if you will do these things, and it ends with a result; then you will understand and find what you are seeking. Every parent knows these words; if…then…if you finish your meal then you can have dessert, if you clean your room then you can watch a show, if you do your homework then you will pass the test, if…then. To listen to some psychologists today you would think it was abuse to ask anyone to do something before being rewarded. In the home, in the classroom and at the workplace we have fallen prey to the bankrupt philosophies of  the world. This world has taught young people to feel entitled; that they deserve the best that our country offers without any effort on their part. Just listen to the irrational rants of some people; my parents owe me, my boss owes me, my government owes me, my church owes me and on and on it goes ad infinitum, ad nauseam. These philosophies and ideologies are producing a culture of infantile people who never will accept responsibility for anything, thus locking themselves in a never-ending spiral of diminishment and defeat.

   Thank God, we can break free from all that nonsense! God, through his Word, gives us actual and practical wisdom; skill and expertise to plan, build, develop and mature. Exciting opportunities await those who recognize their worth and realize their place in the plan of God. In the words of a wise man named Arthur S. Ward, “…If you are wise, you will forget yourself into greatness. Forget your rights, but remember your responsibilities. Forget your inconveniences, but remember your blessings. Forget your own accomplishments, but remember your debts to others. Forget your privileges, but remember your obligations. Follow the examples of Florence Nightingale, of Albert Schweitzer, of Abraham Lincoln, of Tom Dooley, and forget yourself into greatness…”

There Will Always be Another King

Acts 7:18 - Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph.

    There will always be another king. One of the tendencies of humanity is that we cannot seem to see very far in front of us and we are also inclined to forget what has happened behind us on the road of history. The stark reality is that we are on this earth for a short season and inevitably succession will come. Nothing in this life lasts forever. Every championship team knows that it is one thing to obtain the status of champions and a whole other thing to maintain it. Just because you won last season does not mean it will happen automatically again this season. The hunger of the challenging team will drive them on in a relentless pursuit of the title. There will always be another king. Successful companies understand that they may be at the top of their industry one year but that is no guarantee that they will repeat their performance again and they may even find themselves struggling the following year. Competition is fierce in the modern business world and new and improved products are being launched every minute. There will always be another king.

    The verse we are looking at is describing the experience of the children of Israel in Egypt. God gave Joseph favour and wisdom with Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he was promoted into high levels of influence and responsibility. Both the Egyptians and the Israelites enjoyed a season of prosperity and blessing under this king because of his honourable relationship with Joseph. But another king arose who did not know Joseph. That king apparently, did not value the history that Egypt had with Joseph and the Israelites. He did not acknowledge the fact that there were others who had helped him get to this place of power. He did not know Joseph. There is a popular phrase that says ‘It’s not what you know but who you know that counts’, and we sometimes laugh at that idea, but the truth is, entrance into heaven isn’t based on what you know but on who you know. Who you know is all important and has eternal ramifications. Who you know, who you honour, who you acknowledge and who you associate with, will determine your destiny. Sadly, this new king did not know Joseph.

    Another king arose. This other king had a different spirit than the previous one had. He didn’t have a reverence for God and for his people. He did not have a compassionate heart but obviously had a self-serving motive. He was a king of another type than his predecessor. Arrogant pride is persistent; it lurks in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to destroy each one of us. Prideful conceit is the ever-constant enemy of mankind and it is cunningly deceptive by nature. We are deceived when we forget or don’t even acknowledge that many people have sacrificed their lives, their time, their money, their energy; all for someone else’s benefit; all for my benefit. I live in a city which has roads and power and a water system; all of which I enjoy the use of but actually did not contribute to any of it. It was all built before I was born and I must look back to appreciate what others have done for me. I may be sitting in a beautiful church auditorium with my family, enjoying and benefiting from the numerous ministries of the church, and never whispering even one prayer of gratitude for all those who sacrificed to build it. We don’t want to be like this other king, who chose to ignore the hard work done by his forbearers long before he rose to power.

    Someone has once commented that there are, in the scripture, more commands to remember than any other command. Scripture exhorts us, again and again, to not forget but, to remember. Remember those who have spoken to you the word of God, remember those who are in prison, remember that it is the Lord God who gives you the power to get wealth, remember Lot’s wife, remember that you were once a slave, remember your history, remember God’s faithfulness. Another king will always arise but, will he remember? More importantly, will we remember?