Excellence

Colossians 3:23

 

" Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something

done for the Lord and not for men."

 

 

As believers in Christ there is no room in our lives for mediocrity. We are called to be more than average in everything that we do. This doesn't mean that we will be the best at every task; but our attitudes, work ethic, and commitment levels will be much higher than that of those around us. Why? Because the motivation behind everything that we do, is to please our Father in Heaven.

 

Reflecting on the verse about, it starts with the all encompassing word "Whatever." That means everything that we do in our daily lives: homework, emails, relationships, work, school, chores, phone calls, parenting, dating, games, etc. More than just accomplishing these tasks, we are to go about them with an enthusiastic mindset. Everyone has heard the old phrase "Attitude is Everything," according to this verse this is true. Most people have no difficulties being enthusiastic about the exciting things in life or when the stakes are high. However, the medial tasks are where we struggle to bring the same vigor and passion. We drop our standards from EXCELLENCE to Mediocrity.

 

But as believers, we are to be different. In everything that we do we are to do it enthusiastically because we are not merely doing it for ourselves, boss, authority figure, etc., but for the Lord. It is an understanding that he has put us in each situation to be a witness for Him. That in everything that we do in word or in deed, we do it for the Glory of God (Col. 3:23). In short, we are to be EXCELLENT.

 

The next time you think about just getting by, I pray that you understand that everything that you do is a reflection of the one that you serve. As followers of Christ, we are to be an example to others on a daily basis. I would interject that it goes much further than our morals, words, or devotion. People can see how much we Love the Lord by our actions and how we go about completing our daily tasks. My hope is that we do everything "enthusiastically as something done for the Lord." That we are EXCELLENT in EVERYTHING that we do.

 

 



The Urgency of the Gospel

First Video Blog

Contradictions....

If asked if your life was a contradiction, most people would be highly offended. This is because we feel that we are better than we really are. We do not want to look at our flaws, we only want to focus and acknowledge the things that we do well. Few look in the mirror to see who and what they really are, and those that do many times just look and choose to ignore what they see. This latter has been true of my life. I have looked in that mirror and have ignored what I have seen, a contradiction. A contradiction that is at the core of what I believe and who I say that I am. I say that I have given my life to Christ, that I am completely His, that I will go wherever he takes me, and do whatever he asks me to do. The mirror shows something different. It shows a man holding onto His will, ignoring the task at hand, disobediently following Christ hoping that what His Word says is not true. Believing that it was written for just a few fanatics but definitely not for me, wrong.

 

Matthew 4: 21-22

"Going on from there, He saw two other brothers,

James son of Zebedee, and his brother John.

They were in a boat with Zebedee their father, mending

their nets, and He called them. Immediately they left the boat and

their father and follow Him."

 

The earliest disciples gave up everything that they had and knew to follow the Lord Jesus. All that these men knew was fishing, when Jesus came and asked them to follow Him there were working on their tackle. Guess what they did? They left it all behind to follow the Lord Jesus. These guys had no clue what they were getting into, no clue as to where they were going, or what they would be doing. The one thing that they did have was faith. What does this mean for us? I want you to think about what you have left behind to follow Jesus. The same thing that Jesus asks of the disciples here is what he asks of us. Have we truly let go of the things that He has individually asks us to let go of? Look at Matthew 19:16-22. God asks this rich guys to sell his riches and come and follow the Lord, to which this guy walks away saddened because he loved these riches more than anything. It was these same riches that kept this guy from having a meaningful relationship with the Lord Jesus that would have saved his life. Are there things, possessions, attitudes that God has asked to get rid of in order to come and follow Him?

 

You see, God does not want people to half-heartedly serve Him. He wants people who are all in for Him, people who forsake it all for Himself and His Gospel. Look at Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord! will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven." Everyone can say Lord, Lord and move on but this is not what the Lord demands. He demands that we do His will which can be found in Matthew 28:19-20 and Acts 1:8. His will is that we take Him and His Gospel and tell others. It is not a suggestion or something that we should try to do occasionally. It is to be what drives us, should be what we are about, it should be what we do. The disciples left all that they had and knew to do this. Paul, the same way. Show me an example in the Bible of a person who half-heartedly served and was accepted by the Lord, I have not seen an example yet.

 

Luke 9:61-62 "Another also said, I will follow You, Lord, but first let me go and say good-bye to those at my house. But Jesus said to him, no one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." He demands it all, he becomes our priority. You know think about what the disciple and Jesus did, they went around teaching and preaching the Gospel everywhere. Yet, they were never without the things that they needed. They always had a place to stay, food to eat, and people to witness too. Jesus feed five-thousand people with a few pieces of fish and bread. Really puts validity to Matthew 6:33. When you really get down to the nuts and bolts of it all, Jesus is simply asking us to do exactly what he did. He gave everything for us in order that we would give it all right back to Him. If Jesus had just half-heartedly lived life and not went to the cross what would have happened to you and me? If he had decided to sin instead of remain pure what would have happened? I do not think that is something that we want to think about. Instead he remained pure and holy and took on the cross for you and for me 2 Corinthians 5:21 "He became who knew no sin so that we might become His righteousness." He did it for you and me, and all He asks that we accept Him as our savior and live our lives as a living sacrifice for Him. To be people that are transformed by Him and His love. To be people who care more about the dying world around us than ourselves. To take His Gospel and change lives for Him. People that Give Him Glory in everything that we do. Do we?

 

That's the contradiction that I am speaking of. Are you and me living in such a way? Speaking for myself the answer is no. Consider the following facts. There are seven Billion people alive on planet earth today, and only two billion of these people profess Christianity. This means that about 70% of the earths population is without Christ Jesus in their heart, Hell-Bound. When was the last time you shared your faith? When was the last time that you told someone about Christ? Approximately 30,000+ children die each day from starvation and preventable disease. While they are starving we are looking for the next thing to waste our money on. Live lives full of gluttony. 30,000 children die each day, let that sink in. What are we doing? Just sitting around ignoring this fact, or being proactive? There are about 3 million homeless people living in our nation today. What are we doing for these people? Are we feeding, housing, and clothing these people or simply driving by? These are just a few examples of things that we should and are called to do and are not. The challenge for myself and maybe yourself is to quit ignoring what I know the Word of God says. The literally become His hands and feet by living a life that is completely abandoned to the cause of the Gospel. To let go of the temporary and start focusing on the eternal. To let go of myself and hold onto God. To take up my cross and truly start following the Lord Jesus....

 

 Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord! will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven."

 



The Great Commission

Matthew 28: 18-20

“All Authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.

Go, therefore, and make disciple of all nations, baptizing them in the name

Of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe

Everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always,

to the end of the age.

 The Great Commission was the last and arguably the most important words that Jesus spoke to His disciples before ascending into Heaven. He basically said look fellas; I have been with you and you with Me. You know what I am about, you have seen what I have done, and you know that I save. So go and tell the world about Me. Teach them, disciple them, baptize them just like I did to you. And know that you’re not doing this alone; I will be with you every step of the way. Not only was Jesus speaking these words to His disciples, He was speaking them to us if we believe and follow Him.

“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” That’s the first line of the great commission. What does that mean? Well by dying on the cross Jesus reigned victorious over death. What is the significance of this? 1 Corinthians 15: 54-57 “Death has been swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your victory? O Death, where is your sting? Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the Victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Death has no authority over the life of the believer because it is not the end. Because Christ reigned victorious over death Satan and the ending of our Earthly vessel is not our hope. Jesus is. He has been given all Authority in heaven because in John 5:22 “The Father, in fact judges no one but has given all judgment over to the son…” Jesus has the final say in Heaven. He will be the one who judges. This is a great comfort to the believer because despite all circumstances and dangers this world throws at us, we have Jesus. The Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End, Savior and King on our side. He is for us, He loves us, He saved us, and is with and waiting for us as we speak. Nothing will ever be able to separate us from Him and his love (Romans 8:38-39).

The rest of the commission is summed up with one simple word, Go. Jesus did not say wait until you feel comfortable. He did not say wait four years and then Go. He simply said Go. Bing defines the word Go as “to move toward a person or place with the intention of doing something specific.” And that is exactly what Jesus commanded these guys to do. The place, “all nations,” all nations is where you are now, where you will be in five years. Its Adamsville and Africa, Clarksville and Cambodia, America and Asia. He does confine the area we are to take the Gospel, he says all nations. And he gets specific with what we are to do, he specifically says “make disciple of all nations, baptizing them in the name Of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you.” Jesus says just tell them about Me. Teach them about Me, bring Me into their lives in the same way that I came into your lives and allow Me to change them. You know the beauty of Jesus’s ministry was that spent so much time in the disciples life doing the same things that He commissioned them and us to do. And that was to make disciples. Jesus took 12 ordinary men and totally changed and transformed their lives, and all He asks us to do is be the vessels that allow Him to do that now. Because the Bible says in Romans 10:14 “…And how can they believe without hearing about Him?...” We are to be the vessel that brings the Good News of the Gospel and Jesus to these ears.

Jesus ends this commission in a way that should encourage us. He you are not alone while you do this, I am right by your side. “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Although hardships, persecution, heartache, and pain may come your way because of Me, I am right beside you. I am here with you. How do you think Paul found joy in Prison? It was not because he loved jail, but it was because He knew he had Jesus. Or what of Peter and John when they were told they could not Preach the gospel anymore, did the stop? No, they continued on because they knew that had Jesus, and he meant more to them than anything the rules of that time could do. He is right beside us every step of the way, Do we embrace that?

We live in a society today in which the words of the Bible are sometimes looked upon as a book of great suggestions or recommendations. But friends nothing could be further from the truth. I believe that it is time for us to wake up and see exactly what they Bible has to say, and more than that DO IT. We have all heard of the Great Commission if you have been around the Church for any amount of time. But do we live it, are we totally abandoned to its cause? If we are great let’s keep it up. But if not what does that say about us? Forgive me for my bluntness but I believe that it says we have no respect or fear for the One who has all of eternity in His hands. It says we are more important that He is. But the good news is, it’s not too late. Ask for forgiveness and move on. And “Go, therefore, and make disciple of all nations, baptizing them in the name Of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you.”

 Ezekiel 3:18

"When I say to the wicked, 'You will surely die,' and you do not warn him or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way that he may live, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.”

Lean On Me...

Many times in life we find ourselves in situations where we simply just do not understand why things are happening. Why do people die? Why did I lose my job? Why did I have this car wreck today? Why me? I feel that in every situation all things work together for those who love God. It’s Biblical (Romans 8:28). I also believe that if God is on our side and that He has things willed for us, and we believe them that nothing can ever stop or stand against us. All we have to do is lean on God and His understanding to bring us through these times and situations. Look up unto Him for His will and direction and will for our lives.

Proverbs 3:5-6

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

and lean not on your own understanding;

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”

What does trusting in the Lord with all of our hearts look like? It looks like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego getting thrown into the fiery furnace for refusing to bow down. Daniel refusing to pray and being thrown into the lion’s den. David walking out to face Goliath. All of these people trusted that God would be with them, that He had their best interest in mind. They took a step of faith, and despite unthinkable odds each came out alright. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego walked out of the fiery pit alive. Daniel was not harmed at all by the lions. And David killed a giant with a single stone. They each took a leap of faith, completely trusted in God and His understanding of things.

When someone tells us that we should not lean on our own understanding we look at them like they are crazy. However, I believe that God knows best. Why should we not lean on our own understandings? Because we only look at the temporary, we cannot see the future, and many times do not remember the past. But God does. He was, and is, and forever will be. He knows the plans that he has for us (Jeremiah 29:11). He understands everything that he has for us and we should trust in that. He did not create us to fail, to be miserable, and to do nothing. He created us to lean on Him and His understanding so that He can guide us through everything, the good and the bad. 

For God to guide us we have to allow ourselves to be guided. “In all your ways acknowledge Him…” Not in some of your ways, or most of your ways but in all of your ways. Many times I believe that we all choose to keep part of our lives to ourselves instead of fully submitting completely to God. In these times we wonder why things are going bad. We lose sight of the big picture of God and who He is. The Bible states many times that we are to look up  and focus on God. In the Sermon on the Mount is says to “Seek first the kingdom of God…” Do we really seek first the kingdom of God? I believe that if we really did things would be completely different. I believe that we would be so heavenly minded that the world would see Jesus for who he really is. We no longer will be hypocrites walking around without feelings of guilt and self-worthlessness. We will walk around displaying the love of the Savior who gave His life to save us from our sins. And when the world sees that…. Look out.

You know when we acknowledge God with our whole lives, “He directs our paths.” He does not say your own your own Josh, do it yourself. He says follow me, do as I do, let my Holy Spirit guide you. When we fully submit to God, things become clear to us. When doubt and chaos arise our faith prevails. We stay on the narrow path of faith instead of looming through the wide gate of sin. We allow God our Shepherd king to herd us to where He would have us to be… His Will. 

God does not want us to wander through life wondering what in the world are we doing. He wants to reveal himself to us. He wants us to go through life with a purpose. That purpose is to give Him honor and glory in all that we do. It is to seek him with all of our hearts (Jeremiah 29:13). It is to tell others about Him. It is to go into all of the world teaching others about Christ and baptizing them in His name (Matthew 28: 19-20). Are you willing to lean on Him?

The Lord Is...

It's been an extremely long time since I last sat down and wrote on this page. A lot has happened between that time and now. Football season is in its fourth week. We actually play our first home game tomorrow against UTM. I turned 21 on my last birthday (No, I didn't have a drink). And just a lot has gone on in my heart spiritually, a few valleys and a real high peak. All I can say is that it really feels good to be inspired to write on this blog again, and I hope that God blesses you the same way that He blesses me through this blog.

 

Psalms 23:1

"The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want."

 

One of the most quoted verses in the entire Bible is Psalms 23:1. However, I feel that it is also one of the most misunderstood verses in the Bible at the same time. We simply glance over this verse and look deeper into the meaning of the rest of the popular Psalm. I want us to look and examine the wonderful truth and blessings that it has for us today.

 

The Lord is... a simple statement that packs a big punch... The Lord is, what does that mean? Exactly what it says, the Lord is, just like me and you are here now. He is existent, alive, moving, breathing, saving, working, blessing, amongst a lot of other stuff. Some says that's not so, He was alive many years ago when He walked the earth and was crucified and all of that but not now. Still others say He will be in the future when we are all in Heaven but definitely not now while I am here living my life. I'm here to tell you that the Lord not only was and will be, but HE IS. In Revelation 4:8 the Word states "...Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God Almighty,Who was and is and yet to come." Clearly showing not only was God, and God will be, but that God is.

 

For the believer there is no greater promise than the next part of this verse, "The Lord is my shepherd..." This means that if you have a relationship with the Lord, he looks out for you. He is your guide, He helps fight off the devil, He protects you from the enemy, His Blood covers all of your sins. John 10:11 "I am the good shepherd. The Good shepherd gives His life for the sheep." John 10:27-30 "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and my Father are one." There is no benefit like having the Lord as your shepherd. However, the Lord can only be your shepherd if you ask and allow Him to be your shepherd. You have to completely surrender to His leadership and His direction. You cannot do your own thing. He cannot and will not be your shepherd if you do not let him.

 

Finally, when the Lord is you shepherd, you shall not want. Why is that? Because The Lord is all that you need. He supplies you with grace, peace, joy, and most importantly life. John 14:6 "I am the way, the truth, and the life..." As a believer you should want nothing more than you do Jesus, and as a result you have all you want. Our lives should be seeking God in such a way that He takes all of our hearts. In Jeremiah 29:13 the Word says " And you will seek Me and find Me, when your search for Me with all of your heart." Not with part of your heart, of 99.99999% of your heart, but with all of your hear.

 

You know Adrian Rogers once told a story of a little girl who misquoted Psalms 23:1. She said "The Lord is My shepherd, I've got all I want." As Adrian did, I believe that this girl got the point of this verse. When we truly have to Lord and allow Him to be our shepherd we truly have everything that we have ever wanted. Is the Lord your shepherd?