Filed under: Craig Parro, Ecclesiastes, Igniter Media, Jesus, Leadership Resources Int, Moraine Valley Church, Theology, Worship House Media | Tags: Craig Parro, Ecclesiastes, Igniter Meda, Leadership Resources Int, Moraine Valley Church, Theology, Worship House Media
Here’s a few thoughts I heard this morning that I think are really good. We were studying the truth that Jesus is King and what that means for us as Believers. Having an understanding of what it means to see Jesus as King can help us understand how we are to walk in the fear of the Lord, a major theme within the book of Ecclesiastes. The three statements below are thoughts that were shared by Rev. Craig Parro, President of Leadership Resources, Int. It was a good morning! I wonder what you think of these?
“Jesus is not safe. He’s good, but not safe.”
“We can not make Jesus into our own image.”
“Jesus makes a terrible enemy, but a loyal friend and refuge.”
Below is a link of a video that comes from Igniter Media on Jesus as King. Enjoy.
http://www.ignitermedia.com/mini-movies/4/Thats-My-King
Filed under: Moraine Valley Church, Theology, worship | Tags: Moraine Valley Church, Religion, Theology, worship
I’m doing a three week course here at church on some the basics of worship. This past week we looked at the relationship between True Religion and Biblical Worship. The concept came to me after reading the book of James and connecting his definition of religion with Isaiah’s words to Israel in Isaiah chapter 1. True Religion, as defined by James, is not the foundation by which we would call ourselves worshipers of God. True Religion is the mark of a true worshiper, and it’s an overflow of a true heart shaped and molded into a Biblical worshiper. If our church is a biblical worshiping church, then true religion will exist within our activities. Being religious is not a phrase we should be afraid to use in describing the Body of Christ. Unfortunately this word has carried far too many negative connotations for people and has distorted what God really had intended for His people in acting religious. Our religion was meant to be an overflow of our love for God, not a determinate as to whether or not our love exists. Our religion should never force our hearts to worship, but quite the opposite. Our hearts of worship should always be the source of our acts of religious service. Loving those around us, serving those who need help and giving to those in need are the by-products of a worshiper.
Filed under: ministry, Moraine Valley Church, Reynosa, Theology, worship | Tags: ministry, Reynosa, Theology, worship
Worship by Association. What a concept! This past week our family had the privilege of visiting some of the most amazing people located outside of Reynosa, Mexico. I have been challenged to see worship for God in a way I have not had much experience with. I have heard and read many times in Scripture about giving t0 the poor and helping the needy. But it was this week that God spoke to me very clearly about what it means to worship Him by association.
“Do not be proud, but be willing to association with people of low position.” Is is possible that I could give to the needy, help the poor, supply all the resources necessary to fulfill their need and yet still not have allowed my heart to worship God? I think this week the Lord spoke to me very clearly and said yes. Worshiping God by helping the poor is much more than fulfilling a need. This out-pour of worship to God must continue to the heart of seeing yourself like them, being with them, living like them, having a total identification with them.
We spoke with one our missionaries here in Reynosa and asked them very specifically: what is it that YOU need? Very clearly they said, “when you care for these people, you care for us.” I couldn’t believe my ears. The very thing that God has spoken to me a day prior I was hearing again, but this time in a different voice. I was seeing and hearing this very concept in action.
I was encouraged this week to read Isaiah 58, a passage that speaks about true fasting. Packaged inside this passage it says, “Is this not the kind of fasting I have chosen; to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter – when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not turn away from your own flesh and blood?”
My prayer is that as we look to become more Christ-centered worshipers, that will not only would have a sound that blesses God’s heart but that our lives would reflect the sound that He hears.
“Therefore, in view of God’s mercy offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, for this is your spiritual act of worship.”
I think I’ve raddled that verse off in my head a thousand times. Isn’t it amazing how a verse can sit with you for so long, and yet over time a new layer of understanding is revealed? The first section of this verse is the what: offer our bodies as a living sacrifice and it’s this second section about the how that I think is so important to understand.
Holy
Holy is a term that we throw around a lot, especially at church and yet sometimes we really lack a frame of reference for it. Maybe your thinking goes something like this…
…Holy…ok..what is holy?…um…God is holy, at least I know the Bible says He is…
…but I’m not sure exactly what that means… …the Bible says I am holy…not that’s odd thought…I am holy?
….hmmm… I’ve heard of Holy Communion, Holy Baptism, Holy Water… ok…I’m confused….
The Book of Romans, originally written in the Greek language, uses the term hagios (holy) to refer to purity or blamelessness. The same word is used in Ephesians 1:4 where Paul writes saying, “…He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy (hagios) and blameless before Him, in love…”
So how then do we offer our bodies in a holy way? Simply stated, its allowing God’s presence to work in us and through us. Matthew Henry, a well-known 18th century theologian said, “to be godly is to give ourselves to God.” We live holy lives by surrendering to God in all we do. This is more than prayer meeting or weekly church attendance. It is a daily commitment to setting aside your agendas for the agendas of God. Kenneth Wuest comments on the word Holy in his book Wuest Word Studies: “The worshiper of the God of the Bible partakes of the character of the God for whom he is set apart (31). Worshipers become set apart when they become Christians and then set apart their lives in worship to God with purity, without fault.
That says a lot to us when we consider how impure our lives can really become. If our hearts desire is to glorify the Lord, then we will seek to rid ourselves of all the impurities in life that will keep from honoring God. As it says in 1 Corinthians, “you were bought with a price, therefore honor God with your body.”
Pleasing
It is noteworthy to see the word pleasing next to the word holy in this context. These words carry much similarity in regards to what Paul is describing as a living sacrifice in the context of worship. The word pleasing here in Greek is euarestos, which means fully agreeable or well-pleasing. This is the same word used by Paul in Ephesians 5:8-10 when he says, “Live as children of light … and find out what pleases the Lord.” Not only should our living sacrifices be set apart and pure, but they should also be pleasing to God. I find this so important because the holiness of our lifestyle is pleasing to God and what is pleasing to Him is the fact that our lives are kept holy.
The So-What Part
So, in light what ever you’re doing today, is it being done with a pure heart? Check your motives for the words you choose and the things that you buy. Do you spend a lot time doing things that are impure or destructive? My point is that the living sacrifices must come with a heart of purity attached to it. I’m sure all of us one day will want to stand before the Lord and hear Him say well done, good and faithful servant! By God’s grace, let us be people who live pure and pleasing lives unto the Lord!
Ephesians 5:15 – “Be very careful then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”
In studying the story of the Exodus, I came across a profound theme. For a quite a long time, I thought of the Israelites and their departure from Pharaoh as means to release them from bondage. Of course I wasn’t wrong in thinking that, but in reading about the Exodus again, I come to the question of WHY! Sure, the Israelites needed to be released from bondage, but why?
Exodus 5:1 says this, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel says: ‘Let my people go, so that they may hold a festival to me in the desert.’” Later in Exodus 9:1, the LORD says, “Let my people go, so that they may worship me.” The theme continues in verses 9:13, 10:3, 10-8-9, and 10:24. God calls for a release from bondage simply for the purpose of worshiping Him! WHOA!
I remember the first time that I came across this phrase when I was reading my Bible. I must have been sometime early in college, but what I remember was the shock I had in trying to understand what in the world a “living” sacrifice really meant. Talk about using language that we rarely use! When was the last time you used “sacrifice” in a sentence!
And yet after my shock, this metaphor quickly became part of one of my favorite verses in Scripture. The verse is found in Romans 12 verse 1. It says, “Therefore, in view of God’s mercy, offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, for this is your spiritual act of worship.” What’s even more shocking with this metaphor is that it directly related to worship. What I’d like to do is offer a little personal take on this verse in two parts. Part one will deal directly with the living sacrifice and part two will deal more specifically with how it really looks and why it’s considered to be your act of worship.
In Proper View
Each time that we wake up, we’re offered a new start to the day. I’m not sure what you thought about when you woke up this angry thought about your alarm clock…I can relate! What Paul is writing here in this first part of verse 1 is that he wants us to make sure our sight is clearly set on God’s mercy. Much of our lives could be handled differently if God’s mercy was the lens by which you looked at your life circumstances. Mercy is a hard word to consider, because most of us forget how much mercy we’ve already been granted. Mercy is not getting what you deserve, and if you’re like me, I deserve much worse than what I’ve been given. Our lives can only amount of mercy that has been shown to us.
Living, NOT Dead
The big problem with a living sacrifice is the temptation for it to act as though it were dead. When I think of this metaphor, I think about how my life could be set up on an altar, completely consumed by the flame. In being on that altar, I am willing to subject my life to the process of being purified and consumed (1 Peter). But, then my good ole self-will comes into play, and I decide that I don’t need to be subjected to that
process anymore, so I jump off. I go from being a living sacrifice to becoming spiritually dead! Our stories of life are greatly dependent upon how much we are willing to give our lives to Jesus, and allow Him to refine us, even by fire, in order that He might be glorified. The more that I’m willing to consider how much mercy He has already shown me, the more trusting I am of putting my life in His hands. Certainly that consideration is something God is already working in me, and praise God for that! I trust that you too will choose to pursue living your lives in view of that great mercy, and allow your hearts to overflow with thanksgiving and praise.
