The Prime Mover

I benefited greatly from a message I heard last night on the value of a healthy mind.  The speaker defined the mind as the "prime mover" in our lives, like the engine of a train.  Pastor Steve Jones said, "The mind will always take us somewhere."  Our train of thought does not stop in the mind but greatly impacts our desires and actions.  Just like a moving engine pulls or pushes additional carriages in whatever direction it drives them, our bodies follow the leading of our minds.  If our minds are in the gutter, we will act out on our sinful impulses.  On the other hand when our minds esteem God and His Word we will walk in godliness.

Paul wrote in Philippians 4:6-8:  "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. ⁸ Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things."  Just like God gives us the ability to decide what we will eat and drink and how much, we are given the ability to choose to focus our thoughts on what is right.  When our train of thought is sinful it always leads to a destination of sinful conduct, by the power of Jesus Christ we can derail that train, taking those thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ.  But much of the time once the engine starts moving in a sinful direction we habitually stoke the engines red hot with worry, selfishness, and lust.

Pastor Steve provided a negative and positive example of how the mind impacted the behaviour of people in scripture.  David has a man after God's own heart but he was not immune to sinful thoughts in his mind that moved him to choose sinful conduct.  When David saw Bathsheba from his rooftop, his prime mover started pulling his train of thought in an adulterous direction:  he decided to inquire concerning her, decided to send messengers to bring her to the palace, and ultimately slept with her.  Sinful thoughts led to sinful actions.  The life of Daniel provides an example of how good thoughts kept him from sin.  He was offered the luxurious foods of the king, but Daniel had already purposed to not defile himself with the king's food.  In his mind he had already established what was right, that the king's food was not kosher, and because his mind was made up the power of temptation was disarmed.

Before our train of thought heads nowhere good, let us purpose to heed the exhortation of God's Word to cease from anxious thoughts and pray with thanksgiving, making our requests to God.  Our flesh is at the mercy of our feelings and circumstances, but when we are obedient to trust God and direct our focus on Him He will guard our minds and hearts through Jesus.  Praise the LORD He has provided no shortage of true, noble, just, pure, lovely, good, virtuous, and praiseworthy things to consider because He is all these things and more.  More than "bad thought avoidance" we are to head in the opposite direction by derailing anxious or sinful thoughts and by fixing our minds on God with thanksgiving and praise.

Hope In Jesus

It is ironic how men who have been created can presume to know better than God.  Having been given the ability to think and reason we can utilise this capacity to stand in judgment of the righteous Judge of all the earth.  When Jesus told Peter (who believed Jesus was the promised Messiah) He would be arrested, crucified, and rise on the third day Peter rebuked Him.  Had Jesus listened to Peter God's plan for eternal salvation of Jew and Gentile would have been undermined.  Praise God He is not a man that He should lie or change, and we benefit beyond measure when we humble ourselves before God as Sovereign.

After Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead, two disciples sadly departed from Jerusalem.  Though Jesus was alive and well they were disillusioned and shattered.  Jesus joined the despondent travellers and began a conversation with them about the reason behind their sadness.  They explained the things which occurred in Jerusalem in Luke 24:19-21:  "...The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, ²⁰ and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. ²¹ But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened."  These travellers were despondent because their expectations had been dashed, yet their ambitions were hopelessly short-sighted compared to what Jesus actually accomplished.

The questioning travellers on the road to Emmaus hoped or expected Jesus to redeem Israel, and perhaps they imagined it would be through military conquest.  But the Kingdom of God is infinitely greater than a geographic location or a particular group of people for a season:  Jesus had already paid the price to atone for the sins of the world and accomplish a miraculous victory and deliverance for all people who trust in Him.  These disciples were grieved by the very means God intended to save them.  How foolish their hopes were!  How arbitrary and short sighted!  They were robbed of the joy of the LORD and the expectation of salvation because their plans were not God's way.  Jesus proclaimed in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."  Jesus would redeem Israel and whosoever would trust in Him in His way and in His gracious time.

The next time your hopes are dashed and you are left wondering, expect God is working on something good beyond your wildest expectations.  The hope of these travellers was in the wrong thing:  they hoped for deliverance through Jesus rather than trusting in Jesus Himself come what may.  Their hopes were pinned on their circumstances changing but Jesus did more than they could have dreamed in redeeming condemned souls from hell and providing eternal life.  Three days had passed from the unspeakable tragedy of Christ's death, and Jesus graciously walked with them in spite of their confusion and doubts.  Isn't God good to do exceedingly beyond what we can ask or think?  Jesus Christ is more than we could ever hope for.

Contend Earnestly

"Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints."

Jude 1:3

Followers of Jesus Christ require the leading of the Holy Spirit to contend for the faith without being contentious.  We are, as much as depends upon us, to live peaceably with all in a world at war with God.  The Gospel is always going to be offensive to worldly wisdom, but the meekness, gentleness, and humility of Christ leads us walk in love towards those within and without the Body of Christ the church.

What Jude wrote to believers is very instructive, exhorting believers to contend earnestly for the faith.  It is telling he did not direct believers to contend with heretics or those who seek to turn people away from the truth--though at times it may be required.  In following verses Jude provided examples of ungodly conduct and apostasy we are equipped through scripture to discern.  But "destroying" people is not the target of any action we take because our aim is to positive, not negative:  we are to contend for the faith.  Our primary purpose in our response is to promote Jesus Christ by example and deed above denouncing false doctrine and those who teach them.  Arguments which rise up contrary to Christ should be cast down and unrepentant heretics and apostates cast out, but these conflicts are secondary in our intent to uphold the Gospel and the Word of God.

Paul informed believers their battle was not against flesh and blood but against principalities, powers, and rulers of darkness.  This spiritual battle is played out in the real world and involves other people, and this battle that is the LORD's has been declared a victory by Jesus Christ.  The exhortation of Jude is all believers are to "contend earnestly for the faith" which was delivered to us once for all.  The phrase "earnestly contend" comes from a Greek word that means to struggle for, the word from which the English word "agonise" is derived.  In a world darkened with sin to live for God will be a struggle yet can be accomplished by the grace of God in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Earnestly contending for the faith is more than debating doctrine but in living in the way which pleases God.

It is one thing to be able to recognise what is right and wrong but another thing altogether to walk accordingly.  Paul continued on the subject of why they ought to contend earnestly in Jude 1:4:  "For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ."  Paul then provided examples of the ungodly sort of men who had infiltrated the church who turned the grace of God into license to sin and denied Christ by their lives marked with unbelief, abuse of authority, sexual immorality, hate, greed, hypocrisy, complaining, and pride.  Our agonising is not primarily to ferret out these things from the lives of others but to take an honest look at ourselves, repent of our sins, and contend earnestly for the faith.

Those who have been born again by grace through faith in Jesus Christ have the Holy Spirit the infiltrators do not have.  A fig tree will produce figs, and a child of God will bear a growing resemblance to Jesus Christ in faith, love, and obedience to God.  If our lives resemble those negative examples Jude provided, we work to undermine the truth of the Gospel rather than adorning it.  Paul laboured with singular focus to this end as he wrote in Philippians 3:14, "I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."  Jesus and the Word of God has delivered to us doctrine that is pure and true, and Jesus set the bar infinitely high in living up to it.  As His faithful followers, we ought to contend earnestly for the faith.

Our Sabbath Rest

I was asked recently if I observe a "Sabbath."  My reply was in the affirmative, but a little explanation was required.  I do not observe a day according to the demands or confines of the Mosaic Law, but look to Jesus Christ who IS my Sabbath.  Colossians 2:16-17 says, "So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, ¹⁷ which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ."  As a follower of Jesus, my call is to look to Him and follow His lead, trusting the Holy Spirit to lead me into all truth according to God's promise.

Knowing the Sabbath observed by the Hebrews is a shadow of what Christ is the reality changes the way Christians view every day:  every day is fitting to be about our LORD's business, and our rest is found in Him.  Jesus did not call Gentiles to live as Jews or Jews to cast aside adherance to the Law because they could, but created a new creation of the two groups, the Church of which He is the Head.  The Pharisees watched Jesus like hawks, seeking any occasion by which to accuse Him.  On the Sabbath they were particularly vigilant because He spurned their extra-biblical traditions.  Though there was no prohibition to heal the sick on the Sabbath, they considered such a thing unlawful work.

Mark 3:1-5 reads, "And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand. ² So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. ³ And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward." ⁴ Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" But they kept silent. ⁵ And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other."  It is always lawful to do good and save life, and Jesus proved it with this restoration of the man with the withered hand.  Instead of defining our observation of the Sabbath by what we do not do, it is to be through looking to Jesus and walking by faith according to His leading.

Man was not created for the Sabbath, but this intermission and rest from labour was provided by God for the benefit of man.  God rested after the creation of the world not because He was tired but because He knew working man and beast would be.  He knew we needed reminders of who He is, His great power, and the gift of rest found only by His grace.  Jesus said in Matthew 11:29-30, "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. ³⁰ For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."