ARE YOU A DISCIPLE OF JESUS?

Acts 9:26 (NKJV) And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple.

When Saul (later, Paul) first became a Christian, the Believers in Jerusalem could not believe it!  They were afraid of him.  After all, he was one of the chief persecutors of Christians in that area.  He had Stephen stoned.  He was, by admission, the chief of sinners.  But he was also, among the people of the land (not the Christians), considered to be one of the best Jews there were.  He was educated at the feet of the brightest - Gamaliel.  He led others in the fight against this new Christian movement.  He was one of the most zealous fighters for keeping the "traditional way of life" of all.  Who could believe that he had been converted into a Believer in Jesus Christ? 

What did it take for them to accept that he had become a disciple?

The answer to that question is the point of our Thot for today, and it lies in the word "disciple." 

What is a disciple? 
A disciple is a person who is under the tutelage and discipline of another.  The key word is "discipline."  It means learning to think, act, and value the way the teacher thinks, acts, and value what he values.  A disciple of Jesus was disciplined to bring his life under control of the Holy Spirit, and to reject the ways of the world as a governing power over one's life. 

Are you a disciple of Jesus? 
Disciples of Jesus don't just subscribe to a creed of ideas they like and agree with; they practice living the way Jesus lived.  That doesn't necessarily mean walking everywhere, dressing in ancient middle-eastern clothing, and the like.  It DOES mean learning to care for others, relate to the Father, and serve Jesus with a whole heart.  It means doing good for others rather than serving self.  It is a transformation of heart and mind that cannot help but change the way one acts and the things one does. 

If you are a disciple of Jesus, you will let the Bible be your guide, studying it to get to know it; you will spend time each day in prayer; you will love the church (Christ did, and teaches us He died for her, so we should love her as much); you will submit to the authorities in the church and out (unless any require you to go against God); you will care for others, even when that's hard to do.  These things are all actions that come from the heart, not the head, if you are a disciple.  If you are a disciple, you won't be able to keep from sharing your faith with others.  If you are a disciple of Jesus, you will not quit on Him; if you do, it will only be temporary - you won't help but come back to Him and His church and His way of life.

Are YOU a disciple of Jesus?

Is there enough in your life to convince others that you are a disciple of Jesus? 
Like Paul (Saul), at first, your life needs to change.  This takes time.  The moment you ask the Lord to be your Savior is a great moment.  But it's not the evidence people need.  God is convinced - He judges the heart.  But the rest of us cannot see the heart.  We can only see the outside.  We, the people (we, the church) need evidence that you've changed.  That evidence comes by a changed way of living and doing things.  Does that evidence show up in your life?  How? 

This is a great challenge for all who take it seriously.  Those to whom we profess to be a Christian will be looking for that evidence (the believing and the unbelieving alike). 

If you haven't had time to show it, do you have someone to vouch for you while you start to show it?  Is there someone who witnessed your conversion?  Your Baptism? 

We all make mistakes.  Being a disciple is not about getting it perfect.  It's about a life change.  Do you clearly want and do things more in line with the will of Jesus?  When you don't, are you saddened, humbled, and willing to make the changes needed?  Or do you quit.  For the disciple of Christ, quitting is not an option.  One cannot quit being what one is.  If you are now a child of God, you cannot quit being a child of God.  You have only one course of action - be a child of God!  That is what a disciple is.  He is not a student at a school that he can dis-enroll in.  He is a new creature - and he practices living a new way of life.

Be the disciple, Christian, that you are.  Don't live in such a way that others cannot tell that you are a Christian.  God may just do something through you that changes the world.  He did with Saul (Paul). 

And that's Just a Thot for today!


May you be blessed in your discipleship today!

What is the vine?

1/22/08

"Son of man, What is the vine tree more than any tree, or than a branch which is among the trees of the forest?" - Eze_15:2

Can I claim the fruit that is produced through me? If there be any patience, is it mine? Where did it come from? Is there any growth? Am I responsible for it? Have I any intellect? Ability? Knowledge? Understanding? Who gave it to me? What am I among all the people of God? Is my position of my doing? Is my service and station in life because of ME? Would not others do as well or better? Who chose me? Am I more fit for heaven than another? Do I face fewer temptations because of my own righteousness? Are my debts fewer and smaller than those of others? Is my sin of less consequence than the sins of others?

The vine is dependent upon the tree, as I am dependent upon the Lord. The vine grows as the tree grows, and the Lord provides all that is needed. Should the root be puffed up over the leaf? Without either, the tree dies. The fruit grows only as it is attached to the branch, and the branch attached to the tree. So I must be attached to Christ, immersed in His Spirit, living and feeding from Him. My own character will be fruitful and cleansed from sin. Death and decay await should I allow myself to be separated from the Lord.

I am humbled by this thought time and again. How dare I think, even for a moment, that it is my greatness that allows me the privilege of seeing souls saved, attendance at church rise, my leadership that people rally around. It is foolish to think such thoughts. These thoughts should be separated, and die. It is the glory of God, that I should be allowed to serve and be useful in such a position. Let God receive the credit for all fruit that grows in me, and let it be abundant - that whatever hinders it may be evidently removed. God is the great husbandman - and so I ask him to please prune my life that it may be as fruitful as He has made me to be.

Toddling to Eternity

Bible Reading: (Jude 1:24) Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy

How safe is the road to heaven, and yet how wrought with dangers it seems to be. The evils are there, combined to trip us up, snare us, wound us. Yet, in all, we will not be waylaid in our journey because our Guide and Savior is able to keep us from falling forever.

Our flesh works against us, and our enemies know that. The emotions are quick to flare, and our enemies know that. Our hope is that we will not walk in the flesh, but in the power of the Spirit. Learning to do so is like watching a toddler learn to walk. First the timid steps that successfully land him in the arms of a waiting Father are taken. Next, the bold steps across the great span of Living Room - taken without the careful watch of Mom or Dad. The trip, the fall, and the sore head are all part of the experience. Mom or Dad rushes to pick up the young one to comfort and encourage him to try some more. In his own strength, there is great stumbling, but no permanent damage. With the help of Mom or Dad, there is no falling and great learning. Too often, we stumble about learning spiritual things without the help of the Spirit - because we have not sought His help and leadership. The good news is that He is patient and watching, ensuring there is no permanent damage, able to keep us from falling and presenting us faultless before His presences in glory.

It is the road of bumps and bruises that often teach us the most about walking with the Lord. The safety is that the bumps and bruises cannot destroy - and that is the goal of the enemy. Safety in Christ means security from destruction, not bumps and bruises. How blessed we are to take our knocks with the knowledge that doom is never their end. We can realize that our knocks are for our betterment, and try again when we trip or stumble. In Christ's strength, and with His teaching, we will be presented without fault, and we will know real joy.

An Offering to God

Bible Reading: Song of Solomon 7:13 The mandrakes give a smell, and at our gates are all manner of pleasant fruits, new and old, which I have laid up for thee, O my beloved.

How very wonderful to offer all we are to our Savior! We came with only one thing in the beginning - our faith - and gave it to Him. We had nothing else worthy to give... indeed we had nothing else to give. As we grow in Christ, His spiritual fruit growing in us all the time, we offer it as "all manner of pleasant fruits" to Him who has caused them to grow in us in the first place. They are sweet smelling, and we lay them up for Him.

May He delight in their beauty, their plenty, and their taste. May His joy overflow with our faithful offering. May His faithfulness cause greater abundance in us, and our joy delight in Him all the more for His pure, compassionate, and delightful love. How He has lifted our bodies in sickness, our souls in distress, and our spirits in deep waters. His mercies are new every morning, and our song should sing His praises as full as a basket of Holy Fruit. Truly, this will delight both the Savior and Saved alike!

As we depart in prayer with this thought - may our lives be an offering of faith and praise to the Savior, and our ways reflect His perfect dependence upon the Father for guidance, glory, and grace. May we live a holy life as He did, lest we spoil the fruits of faith with disgrace. Yet, we rejoice that His grace will cover the failings of the imperfect by the blood of the perfect. He plants in our hearts the seeds of faith, and by His Spirit, grows them into the deeds of a mighty, holy God, fertilized and fed by the blood of the Savior and Son. We call Thee "Beloved" indeed!

Bro. Greg

Morning Devotions

Bible Reading: Hosea 14:8 Ephraim shall say, What have I to do any more with idols? I have heard him, and observed him: I am like a green fir tree. From me is thy fruit found.

I don't think that there is a soul alive who has not experienced the effect upon a broken and disconnected branch of a plant. The withering, browning, dying of that branch may not take place immediately, and with some assistance, it can be delayed; but it is inevitable, nonetheless. Our tables have fresh flowers on them. Graves are decorated temporarily with the fresh beauty cut from its life-source. Mothers are decorated with corsages of elegance each year. Yet, all these suffer the same fate as the grapevine that cannot bear fruit for its separation from the main vine.

The Christian should quickly recognize the import of these words and think to the illustration Christ made of the grapevine when the topic of fruit-bearing is mentioned. The connection is essential to life and fruit. The sap of the Holy Spirit is nourishing. The watering of the Word of God is key to growth, filling the believer with the life everlasting.

As today's verse reminds us, it is only from the Lord that any fruit of any value, of any godliness is found. Why are not more people godly people? This verse reveals a truth - we have made idols and so been separated from the vine by that sin. Our idols vary from self to money, to science and humanism. Our worldviews are no longer biblical. We forget to kneel before the throne of Grace, and instead work for the god of pleasure and comfort. Jesus said that whatever is good is from above, and any good we do MUST be led of God. Good is not defined by other men, but by the Lord Himself. Good deeds are deeds done of faith, in obedience to the Lord whose Spirit dwells within. Therefore, the lost are cut off, for they deny the leadership of Christ. The Christian who will not obey is no Christian, and begins to wither. If he would grow, he must repent of all that hinders the flow of the Spirit in his life.

Let me add one more thought to this idea. It is not my thought, but C. H. Spurgeon's. He mentions that God is a wise gardner, thinning out what is growth to add yet more productive growth. Some fruit, some branches, and some shoots need to be removed to promote great fruitfulness. Christian, you will be pruned by the Lord, so do not complain that it is wrong just because it hurts. Rejoice that the pain be for a season, but the result be for the glory of your Savior who will, through the pain, make you far more fruitful.

Bro. Greg