Coffee With The Lord

I read the following wonderful words in the Bible this morning!  Frankly, they describe an antidote and healing salve to the poison and painful condition that exists in our world and country at the present time!  Read it all – relish the descriptive word pictures! … It describes a leader that our world desperately needs (in fact a Savior we all need)!  But It also describes a wonderful idyllic state of affairs that can only be realized when He is fully in control!

“There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.  And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.  And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.  Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

“The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.  The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.  The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den.  They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:1–9 ESV)

Oh, I know there is a theological debate over whether this passage describes a temporary (but very long) future state of affairs during a period referred to as “the Millennium” (i.e. 1000 years) – or whether it is a description of the eternal bliss finally realized in what we call “Heaven!”  Ultimately, WHO CARES (I have my opinion – but my heart longs for the reality these words describe either way)!  The heart’s cry of all devoted followers of Jesus cry, “Even so come quickly Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20) 

“The law of diminishing returns” – It argues that there are some things that negatively respond to investment… the more you invest in time, effort and money in those things, the less that is received in return. …Not a law you want to participate in and expect “return on investment!

”This “law” works in Spiritual things as well… I read about it this morning during my time of “coffee with the Lord” in Romans 6:15-23. It’s frankly a “scary” law and leads to greater and greater degrees of bondage. It works like this… the more you yield to what your “flesh” (the natural self under the control of sin) wants to do, the greater the degree of bondage and slavery to sin. It is counterproductive – It promises freedom, but delivers bondage!

But there is another “law” that works for devoted, obedient followers of Jesus… I call it the “law of increasing devotion.” It works this way… the more you respond positively and act upon the Holy Spirit’s promptings to please God (i.e. the Holy Spirit’s “nudge”), the greater the grace of God you experience, and your devotion for Christ increases!” Your “return on investment” is positive – it leads to greater and greater Spiritual victory!

Here it is in the words of Apostle Paul…

“Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience which leads to righteousness… Having been set free from sin, you have become slaves of righteousness! … Just as you once presented your members [the parts of your body] as slaves to impurity and too lawlessness, leading to more lawlessness, so not present you members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification… Now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (From Romans 6:15-23 ESV)

Listen, I’ve tried both laws and they work – one is negative, the other is positive! I can tell what law I want working day by day – hour by hour – in my life! I want it to be the “law of increasing devotion!” I want nothing to do with the “law of diminishing returns!” Every “nudge” of the Holy Spirit that prompts me to do what pleases God is an opportunity for greater and greater victory and devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ and abounding grace!

I’ve had a stream of people over the years who stopped by my office, or others who simply visited with me somewhere, or some, who during a prayertime at church, confided about their journey with Jesus. Everyone of them wanted to experience victory in their Christian life and overcome the challenges to that they were facing.

Gaining and sustaining Spiritual victory over sin is a big issue for Christians! How can it be experienced? Especially when we have to live every day of our lives in this old world and struggle with temptation, self, and sin…The passage I read today from the Epistles in the Necessary Food Bible reading plan is such an important one in this regard… Romans 6:1-14!3

Apostolic Principles for Spiritual Victory

1.Appropriate the Spiritual reality your BAPTISM illustrates! (Romans 6:1-10)

It’s more than just water that matters here! The reality of it is that we are “baptized INTO CHRIST!” (6:3-4) His death is somehow our death to self and sin! His burial is somehow the burial of our old way of life! His resurrection, and the power of the Holy Spirit, that brought it about is the dynamic that can transform our lives! Can you imagine standing at your own grave? (Guilty of terrible sin, sentenced, death, buried… then a miraculous resurrection to live a new life!)

2. CONSIDER (“reckon” or calculate) these realities as true in your life! (Romans 6:11-12)

The tense of the Greek verb here is such that the force of the verb used in verse 11 is “be continually considering yourself dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (i.e. consider your baptism a spiritual reality in your life every day)!

3. Then OFFER YOURSELF TO GOD, as one who has been brought from death to life! (Romans 6:13)

Be presenting/offering yourself to God this way every day! Don’t let sin reign in your life! You don’t have to do what your passions tell you (or beg you) to do! Back to the Spiritual reality your baptism illustrates! Present yourself to God as one who has been brought from death to life and your body (yes, the parts of your body) as instruments to produce righteousness!” (6:12-13, 17-19)!

And the result? Apostle Paul’s declared, inspired by the Holy Spirit… “Sin will NOT have dominion over you!” You’ll be living by God’s enabling grace, not simply trying to keep a list of rules in your own human effort! (6:14)