Spiritual Viewpoints

by Rick Smith

Rick Smith

A Holy Hunger

By

The way some “saved” people live, it’s no wonder there are so many skeptics. Who can blame an honest seeker for coming up empty when the finders have nothing to show? Truthfully,  people don’t want to see our dusty truths ~ they want to see our God.

Jesus was asked “Where is your father?” and he replied “You do not know me or my Father…If you knew me, you would know my Father also” (John 8:19). If we haven’t found Jesus, we certainly haven’t found God. This is where the search party must begin!

I’m afraid we aren’t offering the bread of life because too many of us are starving for it ourselves. Comfortable church assemblies and Cocoa Puff sermons haven’t answered man’s deepest longing ~ the need for a Savior. The best song leader and the most convincing preacher cannot take the place of a crucified Christ. What lost person cares if we can eloquently articulate the principles of interpretation? Seekers want to see the Lord living in us.

Are we looking for organized religion or true spirituality? Many have plodded too long through a life of tradition and rules. We tell people the Old Testament Law was fulfilled, and then attempt to satisfy them with a New Testament Law. That isn’t what they want or need. They want God. They want a Savior. They need Jesus but we can’t show him, so we hand them a book.

The Bible is inspired and points us to heaven, but the emphasis should not be put on memorizing the genealogy, but rather, where the genealogy leads us. The preacher, Phillip, didn’t own a New Testament and was able to begin in Isaiah and tell the Ethiopian about Jesus (Acts 8). Too many of us start in Acts, walk right past Jesus, and plunge headlong into the baptistry. We have to ask ourselves, “Are we trying to convert sinners to a plan or to the man?” That begs the question, “To which have we been converted?”

Our church patter seems patented. We’ve got the “plan of salvation”, the “five steps”, the “five acts of worship” – but where is Jesus? We sound more like parrots and mockingbirds than Spirit-led men and women. We’ve got the “spin”, but we’re missing Him.

Ask yourself, “What is the Lord doing in my life?” Am I really one beggar telling other beggars where to find bread, or am I one of the starving who has never known Jesus? Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6). We need a Holy Hunger in order to be satisfied.
___________________________________________

Unlimited Permission To Copy.

GRACE TEACHES US

By

“But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving” (Ephesians 5:3-4). When reading these verses you can either throw your arms up in frustration ~ I can’t do that ~ or you can throw your arms up in praise ~ I’ve been called higher.

How do we overcome the temptations of impure thoughts and potty mouths when we are bombarded from every side? Parents must be selective with what their children watch on television or play on the laptop. Social media has become very unsocial when it comes to living a righteous life. Today children often know more about SpongeBob SquarePants than Jesus. So, what’s the answer to our spiritual dilemma?

The answer circles back to grace. The apostle Paul continues in Titus 2:11-14, “…and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope — the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.” For the grace of God that brings salvation…teaches us to say ‘No’. God’s grace teaches us to change the channel or turn the TV off when our house is being trashed with ungrace! We must not allow the world to be like a leech draining the goodness out of lives.

Grace isn’t limp, sterile, or timid. Rather, it teaches us strength, courage, and the will to do right. Because Jesus gave himself for us and redeemed us from all wickedness we may turn to him in times of temptation. “I can do everything through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13). When grace motivates us we will feel God calling us higher. Begin by recognizing the need in your home, for your sake, and the children.

Thank you Lord Jesus for your grace!

Re-Thinking

By

Jesus said, “You diligently study the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life” (John 5:39). That verse plagued me for years. It made me feel like the bull’s-eye in an archery contest. I’ve fluently debated the pros and cons on everything from church supported eleemosynary institutions to hand clapping during worship ~ but I didn’t know Jesus.

During years of re-thinking what is and isn’t important, I’ve concluded that lifting up Jesus is all important. I’ve quit exalting papers, preachers, and opinions. Now I exalt the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

I’ve tossed my old sermons in the trash. I no longer spend time underlining passages to prove points that prove little. Instead, I underline passages that help me praise God and win souls; “Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken” (Psalm 62:5-6).

Some of us have spent too much time boasting about what we thought we knew. During that time, those who were lost got little from us. While we thought we were standing for the faith, our faith was standing in the way. Our faith was in what we knew, not in whom.

It’s great when we discover what’s truly worth knowing. “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God – that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: ‘Let him who boasts boast in the Lord'” (I Corinthians 1:30-31).

What we have learned about many things is good, but there is only one great thing to know – “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead” (Philippians 3:10-11).

God alone is my rock and my salvation!

Inner Peace

By

Is a peaceful life something that eludes you? Are you out of tune with the work of the Holy Spirit in your life? Those two questions are connected.

As Paul contrasts the life controlled by the flesh and the life controlled by the Spirit, he shares an insight that allows us to understand why we’re searching for lost peace. Those who allow their fleshly desires to dominate/control their behavior will demonstrate sinful behavior and not find peace. Those who allow the Holy Spirit to control their behavior will produce things in line with the Spirit, including a peace only the Spirit can provide. Paul calls these things the “acts of the flesh” (Gal 5:19) and the “fruit of the Spirit” (Gal 5:22).

The third fruit that Paul lists is “peace.” This word in Greek is used 91 times in the New Testament and it can mean harmony or well being. The word peace in Hebrew and Greek are less about an absence of war and disruption as they are about an inner state of being. When the Holy Spirit dwells in you, the Spirit produces within the believer an inner harmony that will not be shaken by the things of the world. What is more, this inner harmony works as an inoculation against the acts of the flesh because the acts of the flesh are produced by and perpetuate inner conflict.

That means the peace the Holy Spirit brings is not based upon circumstance and feeling. God is constantly working to transform us by the Spirit. This transformation by the Spirit gives Christians a peace and consistency that is not shaken by externals.

Oddly enough, often our churches are not characterized by peace and I cannot help but think that also means that the members who gather are struggling to be in tune with this aspect of the Holy Spirit’s work in their life. This may also have something to do with a denial of the Spirit’s working in the life of the Christian. If we don’t believe the Spirit is at work in our lives then how would we expect to have produced in our lives those things the Spirit alone produces? I say that with one disclaimer and that is this…I don’t think the Spirit is fully limited in what the Spirit can do based upon our beliefs about what the Spirit is or isn’t doing. I refuse to put the Holy Spirit in a theological box.

We must get more in tune with the Spirit. When we do so we will find an inner peace like we have never had before because we are no longer resisting or ignoring the work of the Holy Spirit, rather we are working alongside or in accordance with what the Spirit is doing in our being. We will find that the acts of the flesh are no longer so appealing and that working in partnership with the Spirit is much more fulfilling. We will finally find the peace our soul so longingly desires.

Shout to the Lord

By

There’s an anecdote about a visitor at church one day. During the sermon he shouted, “Praise the Lord!” After his second “Praise the Lord”, a deacon came up to him and requested that he be quiet. He replied, “But, I’m just praising the Lord.” The deacon stated emphatically, “Well, you can’t do that here!” — Ouch.

Have you ever worshipped where you felt like you were part of a funeral rather than honoring the risen Christ? You tend to leave depressed rather than uplifted.

You have to admire Paul and Silas while imprisoned together. Instead of acting like they were in shackles (which they were), they joined hearts in prayer and praise. “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them” (Acts 16:25). Nobody said, “You can’t do that here”.

I understand there are times during public worship when quiet meditation is in order. Our behavior should always be appropriate for the moment. The question is — are there times for expressions of joy, or are have we become so formal that spontaneous “Amen’s” are frowned upon? Have you ever said, much less shouted, “Praise God”, “Hallelujah”, or “Glory” from a heart bursting with praise? “Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard” (Psalm 66:8).

Psalm 63:4 says, “I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.” Paul wrote the young preacher, Timothy, “I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing” (I Timothy 2:8).

Wouldn’t that put frosting on the cake if you raised your hands in praise or prayer next Sunday morning? Are you able to reach towards heaven asking God to wrap his loving arms around you? I can tell you when I did that without hesitation. Several years ago, while spending one month in the hospital following a stroke, I began having severe heart pains and extremely high blood pressure. The doctors worked feverishly to keep me alive. I asked the doctor to tell my wife and family that I love them. The next day I was in the Cardiac Care Unit alone in my bed with outstretched hands towards heaven. I was thanking God for life. I didn’t have to force my thanksgiving, I didn’t look around to see if someone was watching ~ I simply reached up towards heaven and said “Thank you, Lord.”

Let’s put this in perspective. There are appropriate and inappropriate times for expressions of joy. Praise can be a quiet prayer with the church or in your closet at home. But, it can also be more demonstrative. It can express a joy that cannot be hidden. I’m talking about times when it is appropriate. Ask yourself, “do I ever jubilantly praise God?”

The Psalmist said, “Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy” (Psalm 47:1). Just imagine clapping and shouting with cries of joy to the Lord.

Maybe now I’ve gone too far….

Draw Near To God

By

I recall in my early twenties people saying, “You’re really going to make a preacher when you get older.” Now that I’m in my 70’s they say, “I bet you were some preacher when you were younger.”

Have you failed to meet others’ expectations? Some folks are miserable because they’ve never felt good about themselves. They’ve always been second fiddle, last to be picked for the team, or fourth place in a three-person race. I was looking at my Florida Christian College yearbook yesterday and saw my picture with Edward Fudge and others. We were giving speeches to the student body in an election for Freshman Class President. I lost. (Edward won.)

In spite of my last place finishes, I’m not a loser! In fact, I’ve already won at life. I’m not a big shot. I’m just a little shot that kept on shooting. I never gave up on seeking the Lord. At my age, seventy-none-of-your-business, I’m still like a kid in a candy store when it comes to the Word of God. I want more! When it comes to my relationship with God, I want more. I just keep plugging away. “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14)

I’ve won the greatest prize any person could win. I can boldly step without fear into the presence of God. “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 10:19-23).

When everything’s said and done, when it’s all over, it’s not what you know, but who you know. Knowing Jesus will put you on the first team, heaven-bound, and in the best company ever. Jesus makes this possible. He makes it available for everyone who calls on His name and humbly submits to His Lordship.

By the way, if you’ve never become part of His family, He’s still knocking at the door of your heart. Open the door and let Him in!