Romans 12:3 NLT “Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: DON’T THINK YOU ARE BETTER THAN YOU REALLY ARE. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.”

Proverbs 8:13 HCSB “To fear the Lord is to hate evil. I HATE ARROGANT PRIDE, evil conduct, and perverse speech.”

When we look at ourselves what do we see? A really strong Christian? One who really knows the Bible well? Or do we see a powerful prayer warrior? Do we see the world’s greatest charitable giver? Even if these things are true we only have them because of God’s power; His grace and mercy. So how can any of us boast?

If we really examine ourselves honestly don’t we see someone who needs more patience? Do we not see someone who gets too angry sometimes? Don’t we see someone who needs to be more loving? Don’t we see someone who is way too judgmental at times? Don’t we see someone who needs to be more merciful? Do we see someone who needs to tell the truth more often? Do we see someone who needs to be more giving? Do we see someone who needs to get better control over our lusts? Do we see a person who should spend more time in prayer? More time studying God’s word? More time sharing the gospel message with others? If what we see when we look in the mirror is a good person we have missed the boat. Jesus explains it this way:

Luke 18:9-14 ESV “He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.””

Notice the guy who knew he had issues, who knew he was a sinner simply pleaded with God for mercy and was declared righteous or justified. The other guy had a good track record of works but a bad attitude. The tax collector’s track record wasn’t good at all but his repentant attitude was. So when we look at ourselves honestly which one of these guys do we look like? Do we think we have it all together like the Pharisee and put others down? Or do we see our own shortcomings realizing we’re no better than anybody else and beg God for His mercy? It’s easy to fall into the trap of pride like the Pharisee especially when you’ve kicked some bad habit, or you never had the addictions or bad habits others have.

PAUL THE LEAST OF ALL THE APOSTLES

One thing I find interesting about Paul the apostle is how he viewed himself. Even though he knew that Jesus had already forgiven him for his sins he still saw himself as least of all the apostles:

1 Corinthians 15:9 NLT “For I AM THE LEAST OF ALL THE APOSTLES. In fact, I’M NOT EVEN WORTHY TO BE CALLED AN APOSTLE after the way I persecuted God’s church.”

Paul kept it real. He knew he didn’t deserve his privileged office as an apostle. He knew that it was ONLY BY GOD’S GRACE that he did anything in the Lord:

1 Corinthians 15:10-11 ESV “But BY THE GRACE OF GOD I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though IT WAS NOT I, BUT THE GRACE OF GOD that is with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.”

Paul wasn’t in competition with the other apostles. He credited God’s grace for his fruitful ministry. Do we have the same humble view of whatever we do in the Lord? Or do we think we deserve to be ministers of God because of what theologian schools we went to, (Acts 4:13) what pastor we studied under, (1 Corinthians 1:11-13) or how well we think we know the scriptures? (1 Corinthians 8:1-3 1 Corinthians 13:1-10)

When we look at ourselves what do we see, honestly? Hopefully we see a wretched human being in need of God’s grace and mercy. Hopefully we see someone who needs to repent. Hopefully when we look in the mirror all we see is people who need to be more like Jesus Christ.

John 14:6 ESV “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

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1 Corinthians 10:32 KJV “Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God.”

Let’s look at a scenario: we will call our brother, “Brother Witness.” Why? Because our brother will give a witness for Jesus in a heartbeat. He has no problem talking to people about God. He witnesses at the grocery store, at the laundromat, on the bus, at work, etcetera. Brother Witness will pull out his gadget with his Bibles downloaded on it and have a Bible study anytime anywhere, and that’s a good thing. But brother Witness is still growing in his faith as we shall see.

In the past brother Witness would do something that puzzled people. Right after or while sharing the gospel with folks brother Witness would light up a cigarette. This shocked and upset some folks because all their lives they were taught that smoking is how you defile your temple. Some folks simply concluded, “He’s just another hypocrite.”☹️ This habit brother Witness had was ruining his witness for Jesus Christ and he didn’t even know it (at first). Instead of helping folks he was hurting them.

Brother Witness honestly wasn’t aware of what his smoking habit was doing to people. But then the Holy Spirit started working on him. The Holy Spirit began to convict our brother and show him the serious consequences of stumbling others. Brother Witness tried to defend his right to smoke at first even using scripture to do so like the passages mentioned below:

Matthew 15:11 ESV “It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.”

Mark 7:14-23 ESV “And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

Jesus said, ‘It’s not what goes into your mouth that makes you unclean but what comes out of it,’ right? Brother Witness took this to mean that smoking wasn’t bad and he had the right to smoke, he had the right to kill himself slowly. But brother Witness hadn’t yet learned and accepted other passages of scripture that state ANYTHING WE DO that causes offence or another brother to stumble into sin means we are not acting out of love. In fact we are sinning against Christ Himslef!

1 Corinthians 8:9-13 NIV “Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak. [10] For if someone with a weak conscience sees you, with all your knowledge, eating in an idol’s temple, won’t that person be emboldened to eat what is sacrificed to idols? [11] So this weak brother or sister, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. [12] When you sin against them in this way and wound their weak conscience, YOU SIN AGAINST CHRIST. [13] Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall.”

The Holy Spirit kept on convicting our brother with more stern warnings. Then one day the Spirit asked him, “Do you love your pleasure more than you love the people you witness to?” “Do you love your pleasure more than you love me?” This broke brother Witness down. He fell on his knees and his face and started crying like a baby, sobbing, runny nose and all. He begged God to help him stop smoking not only cigarettes but weed too. Our brother knew he couldn’t stop on his own. He had tried but failed. He was also crying to God because he now knew the severe consequences of stumbling others, whether Jews, Gentiles, or the church of God.

Something different happened that day with our brother because lo and behold he actually did receive the power from God to kick both of his habits! What happened so differently that day? Our brother stopped making excuses, confessed his sin (Proverbs 28:13 1John 1:9), truly cried out to God for help (Psalm 86:5), and repented. Now our brother can be an effective minister for Christ; not causing offence, not causing others to stumble.

Causing offence to others and leading them into sin by our conduct is serious business to God. May we prayerfully and diligently seek the help needed to repent from all dead works. (Ephesians 5:11) My life is better since I confronted my sin and called it what it is: “SIN!” That’s right, the writer of this article WAS brother Witness.

Matthew 13:40-42 KJV “As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. [41] The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom ALL THINGS THAT OFFEND, and them which do iniquity; [42] And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”

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1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”

Fear has to do with punishment or judgment. Can you imagine the fear that gripped Adam and Eve after they sinned? (Genesis 3:1-19) This was a feeling they had never experienced before. It had to be horrible knowing that you blew it in such a big way. Then having to live out the remainder of your life with that knowledge while growing old, getting sick, etcetera, and eventually dying.😥

Fear is not our friend. It’s as if fear mocks us after we’ve done wrong and horrifies us.👹 On the other hand Love is our friend.😊 Perfect love drives out all fear. Love is treating God and others as we would want to be treated. Love always does what is right. Hence there is no fear in love, and because no laws are broken there is no terror of judgment or punishment. Instead love upholds God’s law:

Matthew 22:36-40 NIV “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ON THESE TWO COMMANDMENTS DEPEND ALL THE LAW and the Prophets.”

The person who lives by the 1st and 2nd greatest commandment you just read will not live in fear. Yet because none of us are without sin fear creeps up on all of us sometimes. We all fall short of God’s law. (Romans 3:23-24) But those who love God will always repent.

Wonna live life without fear relatively speaking? The remedy is to live a life of godly love.😊 Learn what it means to love God’s way. Devote yourself to loving God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. And love your neighbor as yourself. As our love grows so will our knowledge, insight, wisdom, courage, and every other good quality. Love is God and God is love. (1 John 4:8) Love is the most powerful thing in all the universe!😃 Love destroys fear!

Philippians‬ ‭1:9-11‬ ‭KJV “And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.”‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

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2 Thessalonians‬ ‭3:10‬ ‭ASV‬‬ “For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, If any will not work, neither let him eat.”‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

God takes laziness seriously. So should we:

2 Thessalonians 3:11-15 KJV “For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly, WORKING NOT AT ALL, but are BUSYBODIES. [12] Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread. [13] But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing. [14] And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, NOTE THAT MAN, and HAVE NO COMPANY WITH HIM, that he may be ashamed. [15] Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.”

Wow; we are told not to even associate with lazy people who refuse to work so that they will feel ashamed. Yet we’re not to regard them as an enemy but warn them as we would a fellow believer. (Galatians 6:1-2) So is laziness a sin? You bet it is.

Laziness is frowned on throughout God’s word. Here are a few passages:

1 Timothy 5:8 KJV “But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”

Proverbs 10:4 ESV “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.”

Proverbs 12:24 NLT “Work hard and become a leader; be lazy and become a slave.”

Proverbs 20:4 KJV “The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing.”

Proverbs 6:6 NIV “Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!”

As you can see nothing good comes from being lazy. Let’s hate this sin for what it is. And if anything causes us to be lazy like over eating, or heavy drinking, etcetera, how can these be any good?🤔 Think about it: Jesus says you can tell if something or someone is good or bad by the fruit it bears. (Luke 6:43-45)

Is there anything in your life that causes laziness? Confess it to God, ask for His forgiveness, and repent. The Lord is always ready to forgive. (1John 1:7-10) What use to make me lazy was smoking weed. That’s right, for years after becoming a Christian I struggled with smoking marijuana. One of the things that finally helped me stop was the Holy Spirit convicted me of how lazy I would get after smoking weed. Laziness is sin y’all. So anything that causes it can’t be good either. Once I admitted to God I had a problem and I needed His help He helped me repent. (Proverbs 28:13) And why was I smoking weed? To forget about life’s problems. I hadn’t yet learned how to do that through prayer, fellowship with other believers, and study of God’s word. This is the only real way to deal with the troubles of this life. If we come to Jesus with our problems He promises:

Matthew 11:28-30 RSV “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Let us avoid laziness and anything that causes it:

Luke 21:34 GNT “Be careful not to let yourselves become occupied with too much feasting and drinking and with the worries of this life, or that Day may suddenly catch you.”

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Psalm 37:4 NIV “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Does God give people the desires of their hearts? He certainly does. Though they may not come exactly when we want them to. But when it does it is like a tree of life. (Proverbs 13:12) God wants us to rejoice in Him. He desires that we enjoy life even now in this wicked world:

Ecclesiastes 3:11-13 NLT “Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. [12] So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. [13] And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.”

Those who love God will experience pleasures in His presence forever! David wrote about God:

Psalm 16:11 NIV “You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”

What a time that will be, when we experience nothing but joy in the presence of Almighty God FOREVER!!!

Again, we can have joy right now because joy is part of the fruit of God’s Holy Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23) Did you know that for the believer the joy of the Lord is our strength? That’s what it says at Nehemiah 8:10. If we can find reasons to be thankful and rejoice when things are going bad we will definitely be glad when they are going well. A merry heart has a continual feast:

Proverbs 15:15 KJV “All the days of the afflicted are evil: but he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast.”

Don’t let no one or no thing steal your joy. Rejoice in the Lord always, when times are good and when they are bad. The only way we can do this is to have a healthy relationship with God. We must study His word (Isaiah 26:3), fellowship with other believers when we can (Psalm 133:1-3), and pray to God regularly (Romans 12:12). This will give us the right outlook and a merry heart. And God will give you the desires of your heart.

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Psalm 86:5-9 NLT “O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help. [6] Listen closely to my prayer, O LORD; hear my urgent cry. [7] I will call to you whenever I’m in trouble, and you will answer me. [8] No pagan god is like you, O Lord. None can do what you do! [9] All the nations you made will come and bow before you, Lord; they will praise your holy name.”

Yes, every human being will one day know and praise God!😊 This is not just a figment of the imagination this is God’s plan:

Habakkuk 2:14 KJV “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.”

Before that happens we face real struggles in this life. When you read Psalm 86:5-9 it appears that David celebrates God’s readiness to forgive, His unfailing love, and the fact that He hears our prayers. He acknowledges that no pagan god can do what our God does. The gods pagans worship can’t even be compared with our God. They are actually demons who want to be worshipped:

1 Corinthians 10:20 GNT “No! What I am saying is that what is sacrificed on pagan altars is offered to demons, not to God. And I do not want you to be partners with demons.”

These false gods are snares to those who worship them. They have no saving power!

Almighty God; OUR GOD, on the other hand is good, full of love and mercy, and is always ready to forgive. How often we should be praying to Him!🙏

David was a praying man, a humble man, a man who knew how to repent and praise God. No wonder he was a man after God’s own heart. (Acts 13:22) I don’t know about you but I want God to view me the same way He viewed David.😊 If you want the same it behooves us to do the things David did: have a good healthy relationship with the Lord, always thanking Him and talking to Him in prayer, and praising His Holy name. We must also be repentant when we see our sins just as David was. And be careful to obey the Lord’s word. Our God hears us when we do this!😊 We can talk to Him about anything. We can call on Him when trouble strikes. The Lord will calm our fears! Who else can we call on like our God? No one else!

Psalm 56:3 NIV “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.”😁

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Job 5:18 NLT “For though he wounds, he also bandages. He strikes, but his hands also heal.”

Our God is not the great genie in the sky who gives us everything we want. The Lord sometimes wounds us, yet He bandages up our wounds. He strikes us, and with the same hands He heals us. Why does God do this? Let’s listen to Paul’s description of what he called his, “thorn in the flesh,” to get some insight:

2 Corinthians 12:7‭-‬10 CEV “Of course, I am now referring to the wonderful things I saw. One of Satan’s angels was sent to make me suffer terribly, so that I would not feel too proud. Three times I begged the Lord to make this suffering go away. But he replied, “My gift of undeserved grace is all you need. MY POWER IS STRONGEST WHEN YOU ARE WEAK.” So if Christ keeps giving me his power, I will gladly brag about how weak I am. Yes, I am glad to be WEAK or INSULTED or MISTREATED or to have TROUBLES and SUFFERINGS, if it is FOR CHRIST. Because WHEN I AM WEAK, I AM STRONG.”😊‬‬

The apostle Paul said that an angel of Satan was sent to make him suffer terribly!😳 When Paul begged the Lord three time to make it go away the Lord responded, “My gift of undeserved grace is all you need. MY POWER IS STRONGEST WHEN YOU ARE WEAK.” No, the Lord did not grant Paul’s wish by removing his terrible suffering. Instead He explained to Paul that this painful trial was actually helping him. God was using Paul’s trial to keep him humble; to keep him from becoming puffed up with pride. No, Paul wasn’t going through what he was going through because he had bad luck, or because he was just a messed up human being. God allowed an evil spirit to torment him to keep him from the sin of pride. Do you have a thorn in the flesh? Can we accept the fact that God is not partial, and could allow the same thing that happened to Paul to happen to us (if necessary) to keep us from the sin of pride?🤔

WE ARE GOD’S CHILDREN

1 John 5:19 ESV “We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.”

Hebrews 12:5-11 NLT “And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the LORD’s discipline, and DON’T GIVE UP WHEN HE CORRECTS YOU. [6] For the LORD disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.” [7] As you endure this divine discipline, remember that GOD IS TREATING YOU AS HIS OWN CHILDREN.😊 Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? [8] If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. [9] Since we respected our earthly fathers who disciplined us, shouldn’t we submit even more to the discipline of the Father of our spirits, and live forever? [10] For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But GOD’S DISCIPLINE IS ALWAYS GOOD FOR US, so that we might share in his holiness. [11] No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening-it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.”😊

BROKEN LEGS

I’ve heard stories about a shepherd’s love for wandering sheep. The shepherd would sometimes break the legs of his sheep so that it could not wander, then bandage up it’s wounds. To some this may sound like animal cruelty. But if the shepherd does not do this the wandering sheep would eventually stray away and be eaten by a lion or a wolf. Which would you prefer, to have broken legs, or be eaten by a lion or a wolf?🤔 When we discern why God allows pain and suffering even, “thorns in the flesh,” like Paul’s to befall His children we come to realize His great love for us, and the truth of the next passage:

Romans 8:28 KJV “And we know that ALL THINGS work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”

Sometimes we don’t know why certain trials are happening. Just know and trust God; that He makes, “ALL THINGS,” work for our good! Even the stuff that feels bad! Though He strikes us He also heals our wounds. This is done so that we may partake in His holiness for all eternity.😊

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Matthew 24:10-12 NIV “At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, THE LOVE OF MOST WILL GROW COLD.”

If you’re a Christian you’re in a fight: the tug of war between the flesh and the Spirit. The flesh tells us to hate and the Spirit tells us to love. When people turn away from the faith, when hatred comes our way, when betrayal comes, when false prophets prowl, how should we respond? The same way Jesus responded when all these evils confronted Him:😊

Luke 22:47‭-‬53 RSV “While he was still speaking, there came a crowd, and the man called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He drew near to Jesus to kiss him; but Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Son of man with a kiss?” And when those who were about him saw what would follow, they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” And one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. But Jesus said, “No more of this!” And HE TOUCHED HIS EAR AND HEALED HIM. Then Jesus said to the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders, who had come out against him, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs? When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.”‬‬

After He was arrested, whipped and tortured, and tortured some more being hung on a cross, this is what Jesus prayed for His persecutors:

Luke 23:34 NIV “Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”😳

Anyone who cannot see that Jesus was not an ordinary human being doesn’t want to see it. Jesus loves humanity just that much; to pray for their forgiveness even while they were killing Him! Boy, I must confess I need to be more like God!😪 Anyone who calls God mean doesn’t know what they are talking about. The next passage is what Jesus taught. And He also walked the walk:

Matthew 5:43-48 NIV “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ [44] But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, [45] that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. [46] If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? [47] And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? [48] Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Nope, I didn’t say learning to love like Jesus loves would be easy. But think about it, what worth while is?🤔 Jesus will help us if we do not give up.

1 John 4:8 GNT “Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.”😊

I encourage you to pray, “God, fill me with your love.” Pray this type of prayer often, and meditate on God’s amazing love as you study His word. Let us seek to imitate Him in all of our dealings with people. He will continue to teach us how to love. Living the life of love is the only option for us. Love is God’s greatest commandment. (Matthew 22:36-40) Loving the way God loves pleases Him and brings glory to His name. It leads to eternal life not only for us but for others also. (1 Peter 4:8)😊

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