Vision4Living

God is the perfect essence of love and the prefect expression of love.  Genuine love is only seen perfectly in the Godhead and to be known and understood must be viewed there.

But who are the objects of God’s love?  Can it be said that God loves everybody?  And, if so, in what sense is this so?  This is a big subject that I make to pretense of exhausting here.  But hopefully this article will give you food for thought and meditation and, if you are a believer, great reason to rejoice.

To begin, God has a general love for His creation.  This is at least alluded to in the passage referred to last time (1 John 4:9): “because God sent His only begotten Son into the world…”  Other passages in Scripture are more specific about this general love for His creation, a love that is often referred to or spoken in the same context as “common grace.”  Matthew 5:43-48 is perhaps the most clear passage regarding the subject.  In this passage, Christians are commanded to love their enemies and to do so because that is what their Heavenly Father does.  God blesses, in some sense, those who curse Him.  He does good to those who hate Him.  He causes His sun to rise on good and bad alike and sends rain on the righteous and unrighteous.  It is this kind of response to our enemies that shows we are true children of God.

Murders, rapists, and thieves all breathe God’s air, eat His food, drink His water, and enjoy many blessings from God that they never acknowledge.  The face that unconverted people do good things is a manifestation or evidence of God’s favor, His common grace, or common love for all people.  But is not evidence of His saving grace in their lives.

But more importantly, God has a special love for His children.  Though God has a general love for all, He does not love all persons in the same way.  His love for those who are in Christ is different and greater.  “He has sent His Son into the world that we might live through Him.”  “…He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”  God’s special love has been reserved and given to His very own children.

So only a believer can say in this sense; “I am loved.”  To be loved by God in this sense is a special manifestation of His grace.  The knowledge of His love is ministered by the Holy Spirit (4:13).  The assurance of this love builds faith, confidence, hope, as well as “boldness in the day of judgment” (4:17).  The love of God is not just a general good will toward them but is the love of a father for His children, the love of a shepherd for his sheep, the love of the Savior for His redeemed.  “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us…” (4:9a).  The believer is a special object of God’s special love (see also Matthew 7:7-11; Romans 5:1-5 & 8; Romans 8:14-17).

Because of His love,

Charles Cavanaugh

Love is one those terms that is used so frequently and in so many contexts that it can be difficult to discern it’s meaning. In English, we use the same word no matter what the object or intensity of our love: “I love chocolate; I love steak; I love the mountains; I love to read; or I love you sweetheart.” So when we talk about the love of God, and in particular, the love of God for us personally, we may import into what we say the various ideas conveyed in other contexts.  So it is important that we understand the love of God Biblically.

Love is not a quality that evolved out of some primordial soup. It is an eternal attribute of God. It has existed eternally as an attribute of Almighty God. So if we want to study love and see love for what it is, we must first see it in the Godhead, because God is the perfect essence of love. The Apostle John says so in 1John 4:7,8. He tells us that God is the source of true love (“love is from God”) and that God is love itself (v. 8). In fact this is so true that it is impossible to know true love, to understand its meaning, without having a personal knowledge and understanding of God: “God is love.”

Perhaps we have heard it said of someone; “That person is love personified.” And we know what they mean by that, but it cannot be strictly true. It can only really be said of One; and that is the God of Scripture. We must be quick and clear to say that love is certainly not all that God is, but it is definitely one thing that He is.

Love is more, however, than a static quality or even a sentimental emotion. God is not only the perfect essence of love. He is also the perfect expression of love. Not only do we see what love is in God, we also see what it is like in God. Perhaps the two are one and the same. For what would it matter that God is love if He did not give expression to it. God has “manifested” or “made known” His love. In particular, God has shown His love to His children. That love has been expressed in the person and work of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. We will look more carefully at God’s general love and His special love next time. But we can at least think on these aspects of love revealed in the Godhead. Love gives, forgives, forebears, has pity, sustains and cares for. Love is kind and patient and genuinely concerned for its object. And it is not subject to changing circumstances or emotions.

So when we think of the love of God, let’s consciously avoid importing much of the typical use of the idea. Let’s think Biblically and be guided by the person of God Himself, “for God is love”.

Charles Cavanaugh

Every year at this time millions of people flood the stores looking for new clothes.  They will go where they hardly ever or never go.  They will attend a church worship services.  But why bother?  What is so important about this day?  What makes it different from any other day; any other Sunday?

As you know, we call this day Easter.  I like to call it Resurrection Day; the day set aside to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. But what difference does the resurrection make?

Perhaps no event from history is as well attested as the resurrection of Christ.  Christianity stands on the issue.  Western Civilization has built its calendar on it.  Many have challenged its veracity, but none has disproved its reality.  The early disciples (over 500 at once) and the Apostles saw their risen Lord and willingly put their lives at risk for Him and His gospel.  Some saw His tomb; empty of all but the suffocating grave clothes He had left behind.  And the religious leaders could not suppress the fact nor the zeal and passion that grew from it.  Some of them even bowed the knee to the risen Lord as we see in the book of Acts.  The grave, the grave clothes, the changed disciples, the changed lives of former rejecters, and the eye witness accounts all point to a risen Christ.

The reality of Christ’s resurrection has been and is a source of peace to countless of His followers.  Those who know and follow Christ are not devotees of a dead or even martyred founder.  We know and are known by the living Lord Jesus Christ who foretold His crucifixion and promised His resurrection.

The earliest believers illustrate the change from doubt to fear and confidence and faith that comes with a personal knowledge of the risen Lord.  The account in John 20 rehearses the wailing of Mary upon her discovery that the body of the One who changed her life was missing.  The disciples were holed up in a closed room likely hoping to escape martyrdom themselves.  What was left for them now that Jesus was dead and buried?

But Mary’s sorrow was turned to joy and peace when she heard His voice and saw Him.  Peter and John hurried to the tomb when they were informed it was empty.  There the truth of the resurrection dawned on them.  As word spread, the excitement grew until Christ appeared to the Apostles (absent Thomas).  These usually bold, courageous men, frightened at the prospect of being arrested as Jesus’ accomplices, were suddenly visited by Christ.  Appearing out of “nowhere”, He pronounced His peace upon them.  His presence and words changed everything for them.  Worry, fear, confusion, and uncertainty were all eclipsed by the reality of their resurrected Lord.

Read the accounts of the four Gospels, and you will find Christ gave the a mission: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel…”  He gave them the means: “Then He breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’”  And He gave them a message.  They could assure all those who would come in faith to Christ of God’s forgiveness.  And they could assure all who reject Christ of judgment.

But the resurrection is not just something to ponder.  It is something to proclaim.  Thomas was absent when Christ first appeared to the Apostles, but it did not take them long to tell him.  Thomas would not be swayed.  He wanted proof – to see for himself.  So when Christ appeared the second time to the Apostles, it was under similar circumstances, with the doors shut.  Out of “nowhere” the Lord appeared.  This time He went directly to Thomas and with all his love and mercy shows him the wounds of the crucifixion.  Then He said to him, “Thomas, stop doubting and believe.”  And Thomas responded with that wonderful declaration, “My Lord and my God!”

What Thomas declared and proclaimed in that closed room he later helped proclaim throughout Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and every corner of the known world.  And that is what we who know Christ are to do.

Ultimately, the resurrection proves Jesus is who He said He was.  Romans 1:4 says, “He was declared to be the Son of God with power…by the resurrection from the dead.”  That resurrection power is owned by every believer and just as salvation comes by grace through faith, the resurrection life is lived by grace through faith.  “I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live.  Yet, not I, but Christ lives in me.  And the life that I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who lived me and gave Himself up for me.” (Gal. 2:20)  “Since you then were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sits at the right hand of God.  Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth.  For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” (Col. 3:1-3)  “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? How shall we who are dead to sin live any linger in it…we are buried with Him by baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”  (Rom. 6:1-4)

As you worship this “Resurrection Day”, ask the Lord to stamp these truths on your heart afresh and pray for the grace to daily live the resurrected life.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is about the righteousness of God.  Most of us are very familiar with Romans 1:16. “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes…”  But it is the next verse that is so telling and which states what I believe is the theme of Paul’s letter.  “For in it [the gospel] is the righteousness of God revealed…” (v. 17)  In the gospel, God displays His righteousness.  The better we understand the gospel, the more clearly we understand God’s righteousness (and vice versa), and the better we understand God’s righteousness, the more we appreciate the gospel.

The gospel is not, in the first place, about making people feel better about themselves, fixing their finances, making them better parents, or fixing their marriages.  These are often a result of gospel application, but they are not its primary purpose.  The gospel is about displaying before an unrighteous world the glory of the righteousness of God and drawing those with a hunger and thirst for righteousness to Him.  It is about man’s need for a righteousness greater than his own and other than his own.  In fact, man’s righteousness is not enough because he has none.  Men are sinners without distinction and without dispute (Romans 3:23).

It is in the gospel that the deepest and most important need of humans is met.  The righteousness man needs is offered and provided in the gospel.  What God demands (perfect righteousness) He provides in Christ and the gospel.

So verse 17 of Romans 1 sets the stage for a glorious dissertation on the need, the application, and the demonstration of God’s righteousness.  This is not theory but intensely practical.  “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed, from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith.”

That the generation to come might know Christ,

Charles Cavanaugh

As someone who has worked in the financial services industry, I am familiar with the concept of building personal wealth and the transfer of wealth from one generation to another.  As the first decade of the 2000s began there was virtually nothing but optimism about the financial future.  I heard in one meeting that we were about to witness the greatest transfer of wealth ever seen. The 80s and 90s had seen unprecedented financial growth.  It was certain that the 2000s would be a great financial decade.

But the 2000s did not unfold as predicted.  The market and IRAs went south.  There was 9/11 and the war on terror.  What most thought would be a financial boom was a boondoggle.   The great transfer of wealth became the great disappearance of wealth.  The truth of Proverbs 23:5 was vividly illustrated.  “… Riches make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle to heaven.”

Of course we know that it is unwise and even unbiblical to ignore the financial future.  We should make wise financial decisions for the present and the future.  But this is not where certainty and security lie.  There is only certainty and security in eternal things.  And the one thing that is certain and unchanging is the gospel.

The one thing we must not fail to pass on to our children and their children is the gospel.   As we learn to live the gospel, as we embrace and proclaim the gospel, as we passionately follow the Christ of the gospel, we leave a lasting legacy and an inheritance for the generations to come.  The gospel is not merely a free ticket to heaven; it’s about new life in Christ.  As I heard one man say, “We never move beyond the gospel, just deeper and deeper into it.”  The gospel is about the love of the holy God for sinners.  It is about redemption, forgiveness, grace, mercy, forbearance, justice, and righteousness.  It is about the reality of these things lived out in the lives of those who know the saving power of the gospel.  And it is ultimately about the glory of God in these things.

As you live these things before this generation, as you passionately embrace Crist and His gospel, you leave a lasting inheritance.  We cannot decide for the next generation, but we can model for the next generation a life transformed by the gospel.  “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.” (Proverbs 13:22)

What will we leave to the next generation?

That the generation to come might know Christ,
Charles Cavanaugh

The present political climate finds many bemoaning the fact that our generation is mortgaging our children’s future.  Trillions of dollars of debt and astronomical amounts of interest on that debt threaten to destroy the US economy and reduce a once great nation to rubble, leaving our descendants with far less than their forefathers had to enjoy.  These startling realities should motivate us to get involved, vote for change, and hold our elected officials accountable.

But while the future generations face these and more desperate problems, if things continue as they are, something far more alarming and significant may be in store for them.  The Christian church, especially the American Christian church, seems far more concerned about its children’s Social Security than its spiritual security.  What if we correct the course of our political and economic ship, elect a responsible and effective Chief Executive and fail to leave a godly heritage to our children?  What if we fail to do all we can to instill in them an eternal perspective, hunger and thirst for righteousness, and a passion for Christ and His gospel?  What if we restore the so-called American dream and fail to pass on a Biblical vision to the generation to come?  What if our children inherit our IRAs, property, and houses and do not inherit from us an unshakable faith in the Almighty God that will stand the test of time?

I realize that we cannot give our children, or any of our descendants, genuine saving faith in Christ or unshakable commitment to His truth.  But we can, by God’s grace, lay a foundation for them, model a commitment to them, and teach them with a genuine and fervent passion that communicates something of their eternal value.  As Paul invested his life in his son in the faith, Timothy, and passed on to him his gospel vision, may we do the same with the children the Lord has given us.  Let no cost deter us nor any burden hinder us from passing a vision for Christ and His kingdom to our children and the future generations.  May we walk in the integrity of gospel-centered lives and see the blessings of God on our descendants after us (Prov. 20:7).

That the generations to come might know Christ,

Charles Cavanaugh

“You have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.” (Psalm 61:5b)

What were your great grandparents like?  Were they poor or rich?  Hard working or lazy? Godly or ungodly? It is possible that you do not know and even passible that you do not care or have not given the matter much thought.  You may not even know much about your grandparents.  In our day, we are all about the present: present comfort; present convenience; present pleasures; present happiness.

Another, perhaps more intriguing question is: “What will our children and great grandchildren be like?”  Will they be thrifty and hard working?  Conservative or liberal?  Will they be God-fearing? We had no choice in the matter of our forefathers.  They are ours whether we like it or not.  But what about our descendants? Do we have anything to say about them? David said, “You have given the heritage of those who fear your name.” How did he receive such an inheritance? He received it because his forefathers lived with the next generation in view. David’s great grandfather was Boaz, his grandfather Obed, and his father Jesse. This short account admittedly creates unanswered questions, but it also does something else: It challenges us to leave a godly inheritance. It challenges us to live with the next generation in view. You may not have come from godly or Christian ancestors, but by God’s grace, you can be one. You can be the beginning of a godly heritage.

This blog will not always address the issue of trans-generational Christianity so directly.  But I trust it will be a challenge to live in such a way as to leave a godly heritage.

That the generation to come might know Christ,

Charles Cavanaugh

‘Behold Your God’

Hebrews 1

What comes to mind when you think of Christmas; presents, decorations, shopping, bustling, parties, family…? I think of these things. I enjoy the traditional elements of Christmas.

But these are (or should be) but the by-product of something much more thrilling, much more eternally significant. For those who know Christ, these are the expressions of an incomprehensible reality. Christmas is a man-made holiday with some pagan elements. But for believers, it is much more: the celebration of the incarnation. So come with me brother and sister in Christ, and “Behold Your God”.

That God would stoop to reveal Himself to man is incomprehensible. But the Old Testament is full of testimony of such communication. From Adam in Genesis through Malachi, God has spoken: through sacrifices, Noah’s Ark, the Passover, the mercy seat, and many prophets. But God’s ultimate communication of Himself is in a Son; His Son. What the Patriarchs anticipated, and the Prophets announced, was fulfilled in the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Old Testament saints were saved by faith in the coming Christ, a faith completed in Christ and New Testament believers (Heb. 11:39,40). Never let it be thought that Old Testament saints were saved any other way. They were saved by faith in Christ. The Old Covenant revelation was partial. The New Covenant revelation in Christ is perfect. God Himself has put His “Selah” on it. He has spoken in His Son, with Whom He is well pleased. Hebrews 1:2,3 expounds this great truth. (1.) Christ is the possessor of God’s creation (heir to all things). (2.) Christ is the projector of God’s glory (the brightness of God’s glory). (3.) Christ is the personification of God’s self (express image of His person). (4.) Christ is the power of God’s order (upholding all things by the world of His power). (5.) Christ is the purifier of God’s people (when He by Himself had purged our sins). This is the Christ of Christmas, the Babe in whom dwells all the fullness of God.

God is not only revealed in the Son. He is revered in the Son. Christmas, the incarnation, is about the manifestation and glorification of God in Christ. All the fullness of God dwells in Christ He is no “lesser” God or mere God-like man. He is God of very God and worthy to be worshiped.

He is worthy by His Divine relationship. “He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than (the angels).”They were created, but He is the Firstborn (v.6). Firstborn is a designation of rank and importance, Christ is the eternal “Firstborn” of the Father: the Son.

He is worthy by His Divine right. That was a term used by kings of old to assert their right to rule. They saw themselves as appointed by God to rule. But the Father Himself says of Christ: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever…” “Let all the angels of God worship Him (vv. 7&6).” Christ says of Himself; “…before Abraham was, I am (John 8:58).”

He is worthy by His Divine righteousness. God chose David to be king because he was a man after God’s own heart. David loved righteousness. But he sinned. But when God sent His son, He provided a righteous King; One who loves righteousness and is perfectly righteous. He was not only able not to sin, but more importantly and essentially, unable to sin. He is worthy of worship.

God is revealed in the person of Christ. God is revered in the person of Christ. And God remains in the person of Christ, for Christ is the co-eternal second person of the God-head (vv.10-13). Christ is the co-eternal Creator of all things, and the co-eternal conqueror of all things. The writer of Hebrews draws a stark contrast between the Creator and creation. There is no blurring of the lines, no room for pantheism. The creation is likened to a garment, subject to wear and decay. Christ the Creator is everlasting, unchanging, ageless. “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8).”

The eternal Creator is also the eternal Conqueror. No angel has ever been told by the Father; “sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies your footstool (1:13).” Christ is the ruler of heaven and earth. “He rules the world with truth and grace, and makes the nations prove the glories of His righteousness and wonders of His love. “Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days nor end of life…(Heb. 7:3).” The Christ of Christmas is the eternal God. “Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; Hail the incarnate Deity. Pleased as man with men to dwell; Jesus our Emmanuel.”

Perhaps no uninspired writer has expressed the glory of Christmas and the incarnation better than H.R. Bramley.

“A babe on the breast of a maiden He lies,

Yet sits with the Father on high in the skies,

Before Him their faces the seraphim hide,

While Joseph stands waiting, unscared by His side.”

“Oh wonder of wonders, which none can unfold!

The Ancient of Days is an hour or two old,

The Maker of all things is made of the earth,

Man is worshipped by angels, and God comes to birth.”

“The Word in the bliss of the Godhead remains,

Yet in flesh comes to suffer the keenest of pains,

He is that He was and forever shall be,

But becomes what He was not for you and for me. “

Merry Christmas,

Charles Cavanaugh

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”  Romans 12: 1-2 NKJV

Is this not the desire of every Christian who has given even a moment’s thought on how they should live in this world in light of the glorious Gospel?  Paul has spent time condemning every human under the Law of God so that every mouth may be stopped.  He has described God’s unfailing love for us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  He vividly describes the Christian’s struggle with remaining sin; however, even with the reality of the continuing struggle, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  Further still, our salvation is as secure as God is, for it is He who preserves.  He has humbled us by describing the mysteries of God’s electing purposes; it is not of him who wills nor of him who runs but of God who shows mercy.  It is only after staggering us with God’s overwhelming grace in His gospel through His Christ that Paul then tells us to do something – that is, live worthy of the calling that God has called us to, as seen in Chapter 12: 1-2.  Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul gives us much guidance in very few words on how to accomplish that very thing, do not be conformed to the world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

This exhortation seems easy enough, but the reality of roadblocks to our Christian walk is clear.  At their core though, most roadblocks are a result of our desire in our fallen nature to be autonomous.  Let’s give that statement, which is a mouthful, a few moments reflection.  First of all, the fact that there is such a thing as “human nature” is certainly not in vogue now.  Biblically, our nature goes to the very core of our existence.  We are the way we are because we are creatures created in the image of someone else.  God has instilled in us, in the very fabric of our being, certain characteristics that reflect our Creator.  For example, humans by nature are religious, worshipping creatures.  Even the most hardened atheist has things, ideas, beliefs, that they pursue with religious zeal – note the current crop of “New-Atheists” with their evangelistic zeal to convert people to their way of thinking.  We will worship something, even if it is the most irrational object or pursuit we can imagine.  But the point is that we worship because God created us as worshipping creatures.  It is in our very nature.  This has been challenged in the modern era by materialism and is codified in existential philosophy by Jean Paul Sarte by the phrase “existence precedes essence.”  This simply means that man is born with a clean slate into an absurd world and his environment and choices define who he is.  There are no pre-existing conditions within humans that give them a bent one way or the other.  If a man worships, it is because he has chosen to worship.

However, Biblically we see that man is created in the image of God and bears the mark of that image in himself by nature.  Adam and Eve walked with God in the cool of the evening and enjoyed an intimate and unhindered relationship with God.  The problem comes in the fall, when that image was ruined by sin.  Man became “dead in our trespasses and sins” and “by nature children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:1-3). Man’s total being fell, intellectually, morally, psychologically, physically and emotionally and his separation from God was complete.  Since man by fallen nature rejects God, he becomes a law unto himself – in a word, autonomous.  This is the definition of “everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25).

The solution to our separation from God is Jesus Christ alone.  And while our salvation that is found only in Christ does many wonderful and glorious things, we are not perfected in this life.  Christians personally experience this imperfection, as the Apostle Paul records his own experience in Romans 7. Its purpose is to keep us humble, clinging to the cross and grow in an ever increasing love for the Savior.  Yet Scripture demands that our lives should reflect something of the reality of God’s intervention in those lives because we are given Christ’s righteousness and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.  Therefore, Paul can exhort us to not be conformed to the world but be transformed by the renewing of our mind.  Our task is to flesh this out in our own lives and spheres of influence.  So we come to our question, how does one’s mind become renewed?  And how does the renewal transform us from conformity to the world?

It is interesting that Paul ties the manifestation of a changed life directly to the way we use our minds to think and reason.  So to begin this process of transformation, we must first acknowledge our natural desire toward autonomy and intentionally submit our minds and reason to the authoritative Word of God.  Simply put, the Revelation of God must inform our reason.  Our minds must be saturated by the Word of God so that we may reorient our minds from ourselves to Him.   Paul himself exhorts us in Colossians 3:16 to “Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord”.  All 176 verses of Psalm 119 are the Psalmists’ desire for God’s wisdom, knowledge and righteousness which only come through His Law.  And this is not isolated to a few verses of the Bible.  The entire book describes our need for God’s word to richly dwell and inform our minds, that we might think God’s thoughts after Him.  It is the Triune God that transforms.  It is His word that conforms us to Him and not the world.

It is this area, how we think, that we must reflect upon first if we are to not be conformed to the world but rather transformed with a renewed mind.  If we are honest with ourselves, we will find that our thinking usually goes in this order; first Modern, then Western, then American and then Biblically.  We really are products of our time and place.   I realize that at this point this is an unproven assertion that is just kind of hanging out there, however, if we give some thought to what or who influences us and to what end, the picture will become a little clearer.  Do we spend more time listening to our favorite radio talk show host than in the Word?  Do we read, understand and get more excited about constitutional republicanism or free market economics than we do learning about our Savior?  Do we have more interest in these modern ideologies than in people?  Are we caught up in some version of the “American Dream”, pursuing what we think is the good life?  Are we running from one self-help program to the next to improve our lives rather than meditating on what Christ has done for us?

One section of Scripture that God has put on my mind recently is Colossians 3: 12-15.

“Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.  But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.  And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.”

If you are like me at all, you see your need to improve in each of these characteristics.  You determine you need to be more kind, look for opportunities to display kindness, perform a few random acts of kindness and about a week later are more discouraged about your lack of kindness than ever before.   We then look for the “how to be more kind in 10 easy steps” program and try to implement it.  And again, after some period of time, our motivation wanes and we are back to our old routine, only this time loaded with more guilt because we see our lack of kindness and our inability to change ourselves.  What we overlook is the little phrase that Paul slips in: “as the elect of God.”  Do we take time to contemplate what Jesus had to do that we might be called the elect of God?  Do we think about His leaving His Father in Heaven, His Incarnation, His perfect life, His wrath bearing death on the cross, His taking the punishment that we deserve, His love for us?  Do we have any understanding of how sinful sin is and how gracious and merciful God is?  If you are looking for motivation to be more kind, humble, patient and all the others, look no farther than the cross.

The Gospel saves and sustains, it is all the people of God need to live righteous and godly lives faithful to their Redeemer.  Meditating on Christ and what He has done for you is the ingredient for the transformation of your mind and the breaking away from conformity to the world.  It is through the power of the Gospel that we are able to go into the world, using the gifts and influence that God has given us.  There is no easy formula for this.  We will all be given different gifts, different responsibilities and different spheres of influence.  We will face many situations that are not explicitly described in Scripture and will have to use our minds and reason to faithfully work the works that God has set before us.  But thanks be to God that He has not left us to ourselves, but has given us His Word that we might meditate upon His thoughts and principles.

Finally, as a Christian, it is easy to be conformed to the world.  It is easy to accept things as they are because it is just the way it is.  It is easy to absorb the world’s mindset about money, politics, entertainment, sports, lifestyle, or whatever the world has made an idol.  Conforming to the world makes getting through this world an easier task.  What is difficult is “above all these things put on love” because this means that you are going to start looking at people – the sinners you live, work and play with, the gross, rebellious God-haters, those that really don’t think they have done anything to offend a holy God – and love them.  This often means jumping into the septic tank where they live and getting that stink on you and sharing the love of God with them.  This is only possible if our minds have been renewed by the God that got into our septic tank and pulled us out.  Dwell upon His word and meditate upon His goodness to you, dear Christian.  This is truly mind transforming.

Mike Fendrich

Continued…

Leading from the position of being under authority can sound incongruous or unrealistic. After all, being under authority is about obeying and following, not leading. And while those of us under authority should obey and follow, our preconceptions about relationships, leadership, and how God works can blind us to the possibility of leading from there as well. Esther illustrates how wise subordination set us up, as it were, to have proper and effective influence, with those over us. And wisely using any favor we may gain with those over us makes our influence effective.

3. There is a third requirement for leading under authority illustrated by Esther. Let wicked people “hang” themselves. All of us have known the helplessness and frustration of seeing people with selfish motives, or people who seem to have it out for others work their way into favor with the boss.  How is it that those in authority fail to see the bad character of the unscrupulous, or overlook significant flaws that affect others (I suppose the answer to that question would be a good chapter for a book). Our tendency is to want to expose such persons and, if possible, have a hand in their demise. While there may be a time for testifying against such persons for the good of the whole group, as we will see later, ratting can often be counter productive.

In Esther chapter three we are introduced to Haman the Agagite. Haman was a shrewd and wicked man who was put in a powerful position by the king. He proved to be the epitome of pride, hatred, and bigotry. His anger over Mordecai’s refusal to bow before him was the impetus for a devious plan of genocide to destroy the entire Jewish nation.

We do not always get to see the wicked and unscrupulous come to justice in this life. Sometimes it seems they get away with their wickedness. And for a time it seemed that way with Haman. His favor with the king seemed secure, but it was to be relatively short-lived. His arrogance and blind self-centeredness was setting him up for a great fall, which we will see in our next point.

4. There is one more requirement for leading under authority illustrated by Esther (and by her cousin Mordecai). As one under authority, there will come those times when you must stand for what is right and leave the consequences with God. It was mentioned earlier that there is a proper time for passing on information about those who are undermining and destroying. It maybe also be difficult to know when to stand for what is right and speak out against what is wrong. It is important that the Christian develop a biblically sensitive conscience and prayerfully approach such challenges.

In Mordecai’s situation, it became obvious that silence and inaction were no longer good and moral options. The wholesale genocide of the Jewish people was evil an crying out for opposition. In Chapter 4, we see Mordecai’s open identification with his oppressed and persecuted people. His action did not go unnoticed.

But there was only so much Mordecai could do. He had put his neck on the proverbial chopping block, and as things stood it was likely to be chopped off. Herein is the significance of Esther’s involvement. Her early attempts were to comfort and quite Mordecai, apparently somewhat convinced that their hands were tied in the situation (4:11). After all, what could she do under the authority of a tyrant like Ahasueras?

However, Mordecai knew this was no time for reticence or inaction. The time had come for Esther to come to grips with her priorities. There are some things more important that security, safety, or even life itself.  And this was Mordecai’s challenge to her, and what Esther had to come see if she was going to lead under authority. Leadership and influence are often about timing and how one can be at bringing glory to God where he or she is. Mordecai’s question to Esther and the question we should consider is: “Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (4:14). God has put us where we are, at this time, for His purpose. The stakes may not seem as high as they were with Esther, but the challenge for you and me, if we are to lead under authority, is just as personally significant. This is no time for weak, reticent, security-seeking Christians. But for men, women, and young people who will stand for what is right and leave the consequences with God.

The rest of the Scriptural account though significant, is an addendum to the climatic turning point in chapter 4 v. 16. The nefarious Haman did hang himself. God changed the king’s heart. Mordecai was promoted to a position of prominence. And the Jewish people were saved from extermination. What would have happened if Esther had ignored Mordecai’s challenge? We are given a hint in chapter 4 v.13&14.  God can and will raise up those to use to accomplish his will and bring Him glory. He is not dependent on fickle humans. But if we fail to obey Him and stand for what is right, we will suffer the consequences and miss the God-given opportunity to be a part of what His is doing. Godly spiritual leadership is driven by a desire to do the will of God and to live to His glory. He has placed us where we are at the time in which we live. No matter what our position, leadership is not about us. It is about glorifying Him. Esther and Mordecai show us that the Godly spiritual leader stays focused on God and His glory and seizes the opportunity for Him. Wherever God has placed you, let this be a year of Godly influence and leadership, and make it your constant prayer that God will use you to exalt His Son.

Charles Cavanaugh