Coffee With The Lord

There are two groups of people we admire, respect and honor: A person of conviction and the person who authentically and humbly acknowledges what that do not (and cannot) know. I read about the latter person this morning during “coffee with the Lord”…

“As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything!”

How the life of a brand new baby begins in the womb is beyond me! Oh I can explain the biological process… what I don’t understand is the genius of the creation of life itself – mere tissue, bone, muscle and then LIFE! I admit it… it’s a mystery – a miracle – it’s beyond me! And the second thing mentioned is in the same category… “and in the same way you do not know the work of God who makes everything!” There’s a word to describe that one… “ineffable” – beyond description or understanding. I mean figure this one out… “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible” – the entire universe “ex nihilo” (out of nothing)! (Hebrews 11:3 ESV)!

The second thing that is very attractive to us though, is the person with convictions! And on that score I’ve got some! It would take a while to name them all, but for me they’re anchored in the teaching of the Bible…

On one of them, I’m with the ancient patriarch Job… “I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another!” (Job 19:25-27)

Here’s another one I believe… I believe “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, the He was raise on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.” And I believe that belief results in God forgiving my sin and granting me salvation! (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)

So here’s the deal… There are many things I don’t know and cannot comprehend! But there are some things I do know by faith – and I do believe with conviction! And it is those things that have transformed my life and made it worth living!

I was reminded this morning of how privileged I am to be a “child of God” through “new birth!” (John 3:3-8) If you’ve been “born again” in a very real way you have been given new “spiritual DNA” (I don’t know how else to put it) – You have new desires, aspirations, inclination and character! Whereas pleasing self was central to you in the past, and serving Satan and doing evil was natural, now you desire to do what pleases God!

Here’s how the passage I read this morning put it…

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God! … And so we are! … Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is! And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” (1 John 3:1–3 ESV)

Privileged indeed! But it also comes with some responsibilities – some natural Spiritual expectations! Here’s what the very next verses say…

“You know that he appeared in order to take away sins! And in him there is no sin! No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him… Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil! No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.” (1 John 3:5–9 ESV)

So if you claim to be “a child of God” and are still practicing sin… Stop it! Don’t keep on sinning! … You don’t have to! Live out your new “Spiritual DNA!”

Listen, I want to live up to my position and privilege in Christ! Through the power and presence of the Holy Spirit within me, I can!A

I found myself overhearing a conversation the other day among several Christians that was deeply troubling. They were simply talking about life … their friends, family, activities, pursuits, joys, aspirations and challenges… just talking about daily life. What was so troubling, you ask? The sum total of their conversation boiled down to how they were going to decorate or remodel their home, the possessions they wanted, the neat restaurant they wanted to try, the latest show or sitcom they’d seen, the new car they craved, and “one-upsmanship” with one another on what their kids (and spouse) were accomplishing. Oh, and then there was all the political stuff and social banter as well. What troubled me? I NEVER HEARD ANYTHING ABOUT THE LORD AND GODLY VALUES!

Oh, and something else troubled me… I was convicted that I’d participated in conversations just like that!!

I read something in the Bible about all of that this morning during “Coffee with the Lord” that caught my attention and challenged me…

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever!” (1 John 2:15–17 ESV)

Want to know what I wrote in the margin of my Bible after I read that this morning? Here it is… “LeRoy, get and keep your priorities right!” Then I turned it into a prayer of repentance and commitment… “Lord help me…”