Teach Me!

"Show me Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths. ⁵ Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; on You I wait all the day."

Psalm 25:4-5

How great is our need as Christians to be taught by God!  Those who worshiped God in the writing of the book of Psalms highly emphasise their desperate need to be taught.  Like babies straight from the womb, as born-again children of God we do not have the natural capacity to know God's will or His ways.  We cannot do the simplest spiritual exercise without God's leading and empowerment.

There is a difference between "learning" and asking someone to "teach" you.  It is quite possible to learn on your own.  With our capacity for thought and observation of life, we can learn many sensible things.  We can learn from a book or a television program.  We can learn what to do, and what not to do by observing others.  But this is a far cry from being taught.  When we make a request for someone to teach us, it demonstrates humility and submission.  It is a claim of weakness and ignorance.  A teacher is a person to whom a man willingly hears and obeys, believing his teacher and trusting his judgments.  True disciples of Jesus Christ are not mere learners, but those who have asked Jesus to teach them and have chosen to heed His Word, instruction, and correction.

When I read this passage, I thought about how common it is for me and perhaps other Christians to pray for God's leading, guidance, help, empowerment, protection, and strength.  But how often do we pray for God to teach us?  God is willing and pleased to teach those who humble themselves before Him.  Let's make it a daily practice to ask God to teach us in all areas of our lives.  He is not like a counselor who gives advice we can take or leave.  May God open our eyes to see our great lack and to value His teaching above our own experience or what we perceive through our senses.  God will show us His ways and teach us His paths.  He will lead us in His truth and teach us - if we ask, we will receive!

Time Thieves

I heard pastor Levi Lusko say in a sermon:  "If the devil can't kill you, he will settle for your potential."  This is true.  Satan is not able to overpower God, nor is he able to destroy the souls of those purchased by Christ as His prized eternal possession.  Since the devil does not own us, God has set limits on what he can do.  But if we willingly yield to satanic suggestions - allowing him footholds in our lives through sin, disobedience, or distractions - we can become mired in sin and powerless to extricate ourselves.  It is not that we are without power through Christ, but we can be clueless of our true condition.  Coddled by a belief system, we can turn a blind eye to our lack of victory, power, and holiness.  We only admit being distracted when we realise we have embraced a substitute for what we truly ought to be doing.

As I preached last Sunday at Calvary Chapel Sydney on the second half of 1 Corinthians 7, the LORD gave me fresh insight on the power distractions can have in our lives.  The analogy He showed me was the picture of how I worked to distract my kids when they were little.  Mum needed a break, so I would spend an hour or two playing games, reading books, throwing and catching, or building with blocks.  My job was to keep the boys occupied with activities so Laura could have some much needed and deserved rest after a long day.  There were some days I had things I needed to accomplish, so turning on the TV helped me happily occupy my little couch potatoes.

It occurred to me that when a man is born again, Satan seeks to occupy our minds and turn our affections towards things of the world.  If he can no longer control us, the devil will settle for distracting us.  If the devil is successful in distracting us, he can accomplish more of his work!  A distracted person always fails to operate at full potential.  Distraction causes us to lose focus on the important matter at hand.  A distracted driver is a dangerous driver.  It is impossible for us to process too many things simultaneously.  If the TV, a book, or our phones have our attention, we will not listen well when someone is speaking to us.  The devil knows this too.  Therefore he labours to encumber and inundate us with distractions to keep us from the purpose God has for each one of us.  He cannot kill us, but if he can distract us he can prevent God using us for His glory.

Now I have heard people refer to common distractions - television, mobile phones, social media, the internet, career pursuits, sports - as "thieves" which rob us of time with God and rob Him of glory.  But I am convinced this is an incorrect view.  Inanimate objects, things, and activities do not possess the ability to steal anything.  No one blames a car for stealing itself, and the TV does not magically turn on without help.  Stealing only can occur by direct actions of a living person or being.  Jesus contrasted Himself with the devil in John 10:10:  "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."  Satan, being a living spirit, is capable of stealing things.  Unlike objects or activities, he has the ability to exercise his will to commit sin and steal.  So these distractions, these "time and affection thieves," as we might call them, have been conveniently used as a cover up for the real criminals:  you and me!

We are the thieves!  The issue is one of the heart.  God has richly given us everything for our enjoyment.  Our tendency is to become self-centred and self-absorbed with the gifts rather than delighting ourselves in the Giver.  Being distracted is a choice we make, which ultimately becomes a habit.  We then become complacent, having an uncritical satisfaction with ourselves concerning our lifestyle, ways of thinking, and actions.  When we allow ourselves to be undisciplined and distracted, we choose to rob God of His time and glory.  We likely do not frame it with malicious intent, but robbing God of His time is the end result.  Some people are very protective of their "time."  Us Christians who have been bought with a price have given God ownership of our lives.  Our souls have become God's possessions, our bodies are also God's, and "our" time left on the earth has become - you guessed it - God's time!  Satan delights to distract men to waste God's time and sap our potential God has graciously given.

Once we realise it is not the phone, nor the internet, our hobbies, or the TV that are thieves but we are actually to blame, the first steps can be taken back to God through confession and repentance.  As you seek the LORD in humility and submission, examine your use of time throughout the day.  Analyse when and how you become distracted.  But I caution you not to fall into the trap of simply eliminating things from your life without intentionally replacing them with spiritual disciplines.  Throwing out the TV doesn't begin to touch the areas in your heart which caused TV to distract you from God's purposes and directives.  Deleting that app will not change the way you think or renew you in the spirit of your mind.  That is why we ultimately fit another distraction into the empty slot.  We need to take to heart and put into practice Ephesians 4:22-24:  "That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, ²³ and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, ²⁴ and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness."

Our walk with Jesus is not aimless or random, but intentionally cooperating with God according to His Word and the leading of the Holy Spirit.  Satan is a thief, but he delights in others doing his dirty work:  who better than God's own children?  A distraction enjoyed becomes a temptation leading to bondage and separation from God.  If we are stealing time from God throughout the day, we will become increasingly distant from Him.  Distractions keep us from hearing the LORD or even noticing He has spoken.  We cannot blame the devil, anyone, or anything for our failings.  Let us own them, admit our guilt, and follow God's plan so we might know Christ and walk in the power of His resurrection!

Living in the Dark?

Both the houses we have rented in Australia have shared at least one thing in common:  the lighting has been ordinary.  For non-Aussies out there, "ordinary" means very poor!  There is not nearly enough lights for our liking, and the light fixtures are a hodgepodge of different styles and bases.  The renters before us in both homes used all kinds of different globes:  frosted, clear, and florescent.  Nearly half of the globes of both houses were spent when we moved in, and the others didn't last for long!  Some of the globes demanded too many watts, and others were so dim they were virtually worthless.  Over time we have achieved consistency with the lighting, though in most rooms the light is poor for reading.

Last night I noticed our bathroom was much more dim than usual.  The light fixture has three spots for globes, and one has been missing since we moved in.  The globe over the sink went out, which left the bathroom ridiculously dark.  So I went to the closet and grabbed a couple of compact florescent globes as replacements.  After installing the globes I was amazed with the difference.  It occurred to me that all along we had been living in darkness!  With two of the three lights working, it was not nearly as bright as when all three were operational.  For all that time we had been in relative darkness, and didn't even know it.

It made me think about the Bible - God's Word - that is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path (Ps. 119:105, Prov. 6:23).  After we are born again through repentance from sin and faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit takes up residence within us.  For the first time, we are able to see spiritually.  The reality is, however, even after we begin following Jesus we can remain in relative darkness.  We continue living in the same body with the same mind and in many ways is like taking over a house from a previous renter.  We are new renters, but in the same old house.  Christ is now our new owner, but the evidence of neglect and distance from God in daily living is still evident.  As we read the Word, illuminated by the Holy Spirit, light is shed upon our lives and we realise we have had light, but to a degree we have been living in the dark.  We begin to walk in the light when we confess we have erred, we agree with God concerning His correction, and take necessary steps to obey.

When the light shown brighter in my bathroom, it had an immediate effect of making me want to clean.  Increased illumination opened my eyes to neglected tasks I did not notice before.  As we walk with Jesus, embracing our own sanctification is part of our calling.  We cannot content ourselves in the old ways of thinking and living when the Light of the World has illuminated our hearts.  Ephesians 4:22-24 exhorts "...that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, ²³ and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, ²⁴ and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness."  What a difference light makes in a house, and how much more pronounced should the transformation be in a heart enlightened by Jesus!  I am convinced we must shine the light of God's Word upon our hearts, actions, and embrace obedience as led by the Spirit before we can shine extraordinarily in this world for Jesus.

God Hears and Yields

I have been blown away of late by this simple fact:  God listens to people.  The prayer of one person has changed the course of nations.  We may think because God is sovereign over all and already knows His complete, ultimate plan, everything is fairly set.  Though God does have a plan, many times we observe in scripture God in heaven listens and heeds the prayers of people who simply pray.  This really is an amazing thing, that lowly man can have an audience with God - and God listens to us when we speak to Him!

Think about the powerful and influential men and women in the world today.  No man easily gains a personal audience with them.  You might write a letter to a politician, but it may never even reach their desk.  They have layer upon layer of attendants and handlers to deal with the requests, calls, e-mails, and ideas of people.  Even if you were able have a phone conversation or a face-to-face meeting with a prime-minister or president of a company, it is utterly unlikely your suggestions would impact the plans which have already been set in motion!  The fact is, to offer suggestions to the Prime Minister on policies from the position of a "man on the street" cannot take into account all the politicking taking place behind closed doors.  We see only a fraction of the big picture.  Since this is the case, what wisdom or insights could a Prime Minister hope to gain from a United States transplant like me, who has only been in country for four years?  From his perspective, I can't see any upside for him agreeing to such a meeting!

If the divide between men can be great, how much more of a infinite chasm stretches between the Creator God and shortsighted man!  Yet God has granted all who trust in Him an audience in His throne room of grace to find mercy and help in time of need (Heb. 4:16).  He does not squeeze us into a 10 minute time slot because He is too busy or important to spare more time.  And wonder of wonders, we can directly impact His decisions.  Does this blow your mind?  Many times in scripture we see God make a statement, only to willingly adjust it according to a direct request from one of His servants.  God does not only hear prayers, but He answers them.  There are many recorded instances in scripture when God was willing to alter His "plan" because of supplications from His children.  It's true that sometimes says "No," but that does not change the fact He also says "Yes" to requests!  Here are several examples:

• God revealed to Abraham He was going to destroy Sodom and the surrounding cities due to their great wickedness.  The text says Abraham "drew near" and asked if God, being a righteous Judge, would destroy the righteous with the wicked.  Genesis 18:23-33 contains the dialogue of the interaction, and Abraham reasoned with the LORD.  Instead of a wholesale destruction, Abraham received God's promise Sodom would be spared completely if there were only 10 righteous people within the city.  God heeded the voice of Abraham.
• When the children of Israel worshiped the golden calf Aaron made during the absence of Moses as he met with God to receive the Law on Mt. Sinai, God told Moses He was going to destroy all the people of Israel and make of Moses a great nation instead.  Moses protested and pleaded with God on behalf of the people, and God listened.  Exodus 32:13-14 reads:  "Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, 'I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.'" ¹⁴ So the LORD relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people."
• Elijah was a man like the rest of us, but God shut the heavens at his earnest request.  It says in James 5:17-18:  "Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. ¹⁸ And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit."  When Elijah prayed for rain again, God heard and caused torrential rain to fall the same day.
• Nineveh was a city God sent Jonah the prophet to warn of impending destruction:  "Yet 40 days and Nineveh shall be overthrown!"  When the people heard of their imminent overthrow, from the least to the greatest they mourned, fasted, and wore sackcloth and ashes.  Though they were Gentiles, they believed God.  God responded and repented from the evil He was planned to bring upon them (Jonah 3:5-10).

God responds to more than mere words:  He is looking for faith demonstrated by works.  God invites whosoever will to repent of sin and come and reason with Him.  Would you refuse the opportunity to converse with your Maker?  Isaiah 1:16-20 says, "Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil, ¹⁷ learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow. ¹⁸ "Come now, and let us reason together," says the LORD, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool. ¹⁹ If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; ²⁰ but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword"; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."  God has spoken, and His Word shall come to pass.  However, this does not mean He will not heed the voice of those who cry out to Him in faith.  David the shepherd wrote in Psalm 34:6, "This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles."

We need not be rich or influential in this world to have an audience with God.  God has invited us to reason with Him, and it is not a token "meet and greet" with a handshake and signed photo:  by God's grace we have the freedom to converse with God, to praise and thank Him, and make our requests known to God.  Who knows?  In the meekness of His wisdom, God is willing to yield at the voice of a man.  This mind-blowing fact rejoices the heart!