5 Steps You Can Take to Keep Your Heart

Colin Smith

Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. (Proverbs 4:23)

Every time you hear the story of a Christian whose life has gone into total moral collapse you can be sure of one thing: behind that story the person had a long history of not dealing with their own sin. Don’t let this be you. Instead, keep your heart with all vigilance!  

A wise Christian studies the Bible and his or her own heart. You have to become the expert on your own heart. No one is in a better position to do this than you.  

Here are five steps that are involved in guarding your heart with all vigilance. 

1. Watch  

Jesus said, “Watch and pray so that you do not enter into temptation” (Matthew 26:41). Paul said to Timothy, “Watch your life and your doctrine” (1 Timothy 4:16), and he said to the Ephesians elders, “Watch yourselves and the flock over which God has made you overseers” (Acts 20:28).

How are we to do this? Most of you will be familiar with the concept of a dashboard. Think about your car—as you drive along the road there is certain information that you need to have close at hand: What speed are you going? How much fuel do you have left in the tank? 

Then there is other information like the temperature of your engine, and the level of your oil. You don’t watch that constantly, but if the temperature of your engine rises you need to know. All of this information is displayed on a dashboard in front of you. 

What would a dashboard for your soul look like? There would be red lights and green lights. Red lights would be impulses in your soul that have the tendency to secret, perpetual, and alarming departure from God. 

Let me give you some examples of red lights that you might put on your dashboard: Fear, pride, greed, self-pity, resentment, cowardice, anger, hard thoughts about God, and coldness in worship—any sense of formality in worship, or any sense of going through the motions. 

I encourage you to get a pen and paper and write these things down. Begin making a list of things that belong on your dashboard. Do this because it will give you clarity. 

2. Investigate 

You were running well. Who hindered you? (Galatians 5:7)  

There was a time when you were making good progress in the Christian life. You had a heart for God. But that is no longer true of you. 

You found joy in Christ. Your love for the Savior burned brightly. You had greatpassion for the advance of the gospel: You made significant sacrifices. You faced difficulties with courage. And, you battled against deeply rooted sins in your life and you grew in holiness. 

What happened to you? What is in you that has got in the way of your continued progress? Who or what hindered you? 

This is a place to be ruthlessly honest with yourself. You say, “I’m not really sure.” Then ask God to show you your own heart, “Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts. And see if there be any grievous way in me” (Psalm 139:23-24). 

Talk it out with a Christian friend or with a pastor if you need to, but don’t settle without the answer. It’s too important. 

I fear that there are many Christians who study the Bible, but who hardly give their own hearts a second look, because they have never learned how to do this. 

3. Confess  

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) 

This is a marvelous promise, but we must take its condition seriously: “If we confess our sins…” In other words, if we see the red light, and then we bring it to God in confession and trust in the blood of Christ to cover it. What is the last sin you confessed? 

Confession must always be first to God, but it will help you if you are able to talk honestly with someone who knows you and cares about you. This has been such a help to me in my own life. 

Recently, I was in a conversation with a few of our lay leaders. I told them that I saw some things changing in my own heart, and that I didn’t like what I saw. I listed several things. One of them was that I am becoming less patient. That’s a red light. It needs to be addressed. 

I was talking with a friend the other week. He is in his early 70’s and he is experiencing another passage of life, in which he is moving away from some responsibilities that he had before. 

He said to me, “I can see the path to becoming a grumpy old man from here and I don’t want to go down it.” Do you see what he’s doing? He’s watching his heart. 

4. Commit 

For every red light on the dashboard, showing impulses that lead us away from the Lord, there is a green light that will be its opposite. Green lights are impulses in your soul that reflect what the Bible calls the “fruit of the Spirit” in your life. 

You can make a list straight from Galatians 5:22-23. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. This is not an exhaustive list. You could add others. Forgiveness would be one example. Courage would be another.

Identify the green lights that correspondence to your red lights and commit to pursuing them. 

“Lord, by your grace and through your power, I renounce this impatience. I want nothing more to do with it. Lord, help me now to grow in the patience that I seek. Guard my heart from this enemy within, and use the circumstances that have provoked this impulse to sin in my heart to become the occasion of new growth in likeness to Jesus, for your glory.” 

That’s how Christian growth happens. The very circumstances that provided the red light, are the very things that produces new growth. 

5. Trust  

The person who is far from God has no interest in looking into his own heart. But when God gives you a new heart, you have a new interest in keeping it, as he calls you to do. Examining your heart to discover the trends of sin in your own life is something that godly people do. 

But when godly people look into their own hearts, they find it very discouraging. We are amazed that after all God has done for us, after all we’ve experienced, there should still exist in our hearts this principle that tends towards a secret, perpetual, and alarming departure from God. 

So, looking at your own heart can easily lead to you feeling defeated. Robert Murray McCheyne had the answer for that: “For every look at self, take ten looks at Christ.”

As you look at your own heart, Christian, remember that by his blood he opened a fountain for cleansing. We need it every day of our lives. Let’s be done with this pious religion of moral superiority that so many have confused for Christian faith. 

We need the cleansing of the blood of Jesus. The sins that lurk in our hearts are not greater than the power of the blood of Christ to go on cleansing our lives. And he loves to do it. 

So, will you commit to keep your heart with all vigilance? 

Posted at: https://unlockingthebible.org/2019/02/five-steps-you-can-take-keep-your-heart/

Burn Your Boats: A Warning About FOMO

Article by Aimee Joseph

Columba was a sixth-century abbot who left his native Ireland with 12 men to bring the good news to the Picts, a pagan people in Scotland. The missionaries founded an abbey on Iona, which would become a vibrant center of literacy and faith for centuries to come.

But shortly after reaching Scotland in an animal-hide-wrapped wicker boat, Columba did something drastic. He knew he and his companions might be tempted to leave when life became uncomfortable or dangerous. And so, the story goes, Columba burned the boat.

After reading about this single-minded commitment, I’ve began noticing how, by contrast, I like to keep my options open, just in case.

One of the hallmarks of my generation is an aversion to commitment. We suffer perpetual FOMO (fear of missing out) and, more seriously, struggle to commit to a marriage or a career. In a world full of potential paths, we have a hard time picking one and remaining on it.

Let Me First Bury My Dad

But while the fear of commitment is trendy, it’s nothing new. Jesus himself engaged would-be disciples with similar struggles:

He said, “Follow me.” But [the man] said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” . . . Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” (Luke 9:59, 61).

While these requests may sound understandable, it’s helpful to know that the first man’s father may not have been dead—or even close to dead. In the culture of the day, “Let me bury my father” was often used in an idiomatic way to express, “Let me get my family and personal life in order.” Put in 21st-century terms, it might sound something like, “I’m interested in following Jesus more seriously, but first I want to find a spouse and get some traction in my career.”

One of the most common phrases I hear from would-be disciples on college campuses carries a hint of that first-century hesitation: “When I have children of my own, I’ll make Christianity a bigger part of my life.”

When called to Christ, we sometimes want to hedge our bets, to buy ourselves a little more time. But such responses—even when expressed warmly and kindly—reveal a heart not captured by the wonder that the God of the universe is personally inviting us to himself.

Don’t Look Back

Both men in Luke 9 have a desire to follow but a reluctance to commit. Jesus’s respective responses bear particular poignancy in our FOMO culture:

Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God. (Luke 9:60)

No one who puts his hands to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God. (Luke 9:62)

Jesus didn’t mince words, nor did he lessen the cost of discipleship. He didn’t lower the bar or paint a rosy picture of a life spent following and proclaiming him. He didn’t alter the truth to expand his audience or make a hard pill more palatable to swallow.

Jesus was in the business of full disclosure. But he also knew the sweetness and rewards of a life centered on him would far exceed the inconvenience and discomfort.

In essence, when we decide to follow Jesus, we must burn—and keep burning!—the boat. Tensions and temptations will meet us on this path. We’ll be tempted to look back, and turn back, to an easier way of life. But from the outset, Jesus summons us to commit to him.

Burn the Boats

Columba and his crew had to burn the vessels that might have tempted them to escape back to the familiarity of kin and country. Likewise, each new disciple of Christ has a boat (or fleet of boats) that might lead back to a life more lucrative, more culturally celebrated, or simply more comfortable.

For some, a former relationship that trumped Christ is the boat that beckons backward. For others, the approval of unbelieving family continually whispers, Don’t be a religious fanatic. Loosen your grip on Christ, just a bit. Often in our money-minded culture, the boats that demand burning would drift us back to a more padded retirement fund or some financial frivolity.

Whatever their shape or style, any boats that lead us away from following Christ must be burned as often as they’re built. While this sounds overwhelming and almost impossible, remember that the One who asks for a commitment to himself, his Word, and his ways has also fully committed himself to us.

Committed to Us

Before we were born, before time was wound, the Son of God was committed. He knew he would leave it all so we could have it all in him. Even now, he gives us his Spirit to work within us, coaching, convicting, and comforting.

When we have Christ, we have not missed out on anything. We have gained everything.

By his grace and his power, may we burn the boats that might take us back to a comfortable and cross-less life. May we fix our eyes on him who has gone before us (Heb. 12:1–2). And may we find courage in his constant commitment to us: “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20).

Related:

• Why Christmas Is the Antidote to FOMO (Sam Allberry)

Aimee Joseph works alongside her husband, G’Joe, who directs Campus Outreach San Diego. They love watching college students brought from lost to leaders through Christ in the church for the world. Parenting three little boys keeps her busy; writing on her blogand studying the Word keep her sane. She has a passion to see women trained to love God and his Word.

Posted at: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/burn-boats-warning-fomo/

The Thorn

The Thorn
by Martha Snell Nicholson

I stood a mendicant of God before His royal throne
And begged him for one priceless gift, which I could call my own.
I took the gift from out His hand, but as I would depart
I cried, “But Lord this is a thorn and it has pierced my heart.
This is a strange, a hurtful gift, which Thou hast given me.”
He said, “My child, I give good gifts and gave My best to thee.”
I took it home and though at first the cruel thorn hurt sore,
As long years passed I learned at last to love it more and more.
I learned He never gives a thorn without this added grace,
He takes the thorn to pin aside the veil which hides His face.

Whatever is False, Whatever is Dishonorable, Whatever is Unjust....

Article by Tim Challies

What makes holy people holy? What makes unholy people unholy? To a large degree it is what fills their minds and their hearts. This is why the battle for holiness is first a battle to flood your mind and heart with the right things, the best things, and why it’s equally a battle to avoid flooding your mind and heart with the wrong things, the worst things. So let me ask you, when it comes to what you see, what you watch, what you read, what you ponder, what you enjoy, what you find entertaining, what fills your mind and thrills your heart—what is your standard? What do you invite into your mind, your heart, your life? What do you deliberately keep out? What is your standard? Here are three options, each a variation of Philippians 4:8.

Finally, brothers, whatever is false, whatever is dishonorable, whatever is unjust, whatever is perverse, whatever is repulsive, whatever is unworthy, if there is any imperfection, if there is anything unworthy of honor, think about these things—give weight and value to them, and allow them to influence the way you live. They will. They must.

Finally, brothers, whatever is reasonably accurate, whatever isn’t too outrageous, whatever is minimally unjust, whatever isn’t wildly impure, whatever isn’t absolutely vile, whatever doesn’t make you too uncomfortable, if there is anything that isn’t too far gone, if there is anything that’s not completely without virtue, think on these things—fill your mind with them, let them go down deep within, and live accordingly.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things—think about them until they fill your mind and heart and rejoice as they then work themselves out in loving behavior toward both God and man.

I ask again, what’s your standard?

Recently, at the death of Alec Motyer, a number of people wrote remembrances of the man and a common thread was his holiness. Perhaps Motyer was deeply impacted by these verses as he wrote his excellent commentary on them. As he wrote that commentary he recorded this challenge:

We are to meditate on, to prize as valuable, and to be influenced by all that is true, all that merits serious thought and encourages serious-mindedness, all that accords with justice and moral purity, all that is fragrant and lovely, all that brings with it a good word, that speaks well, whatever has genuine worth of any sort and merits praise. It is the will of God that by giving attention to things of which he approves we should shape our minds to be like his: to those who do so, he pledges his guardian peace and his own presence as the God of peace. (The Message of Philippians)

Motyer was preceded into glory by Jerry Bridges, another man who was spoken of with respect and honor for his holiness, for his desire to please God in all he did and said. Here is what he wrote in his great work, The Pursuit of Holiness:

As Christians we are no longer to be conformed to the pattern of this world but we are to be renewed in our minds (Romans 12:1-2; Ephesians 4:23; 1 Peter 1:14). Holiness begins in our minds and works out to our actions. This being true, what we allow to enter our minds is critically important. The television programs we watch, the movies we may attend, the books and magazines we read, the music we listen to, and the conversations we have all affect our minds. We need to evaluate the effects of these avenues honestly, using Philippians 4:8 as a standard. Are the thoughts stimulated by these various avenues true? Are they pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy?

So I ask one more time: What’s your standard?

Let me give the final word to Charles Simeon: “Think of their nature, that you may be apprised of their extent: think of their obligation, that you may be aware of their importance: think of their difficulty, that you may obtain help from your God: think of their excellency, that you may be stirred up to abound in them: and think of their complicated effects on the world around you, that you may make your light to shine before men, and that others, beholding it, may glorify your Father that is in heaven.” Think on these things!

Posted at: https://www.challies.com/articles/whatever-is-false-whatever-is-dishonorable-whatever-is-unjust%E2%80%A6/

The Ultimate X-Ray

Article by Paul David Tripp

Have you ever had the painful experience of breaking a bone? Perhaps even more distressing is having to watch a young child break a bone.

As somewhat educated human beings, we’re able to understand why our bodies ache and what the doctors are trying to accomplish. Even if we don’t have a medical degree, we have a foundational awareness of the healing process.

For a young child, however, the physical pain might compound itself with the pain of confusion and unfamiliarity. “Why does my body feel this way? How long will this pain last? What is this machine they’re putting me through? Why are they putting a hard cast on my body?”

In the same way, many of us struggle with confusion and unfamiliarity when we experience spiritual pain. Regardless of age or length of time walking with the Lord, recognizing, accepting, and then rejoicing over uncomfortable, violent grace is unnatural.

What is uncomfortable, violent grace? David writes about it in Psalm 51:8 - “Let the bones that you have broken rejoice.” It’s a curious phrase. Crushed bones and rejoicing don’t seem to go together. We surely don’t celebrate when we break our bodies.

But David is using the agony of broken bones as a metaphor for the anguish of heart he feels when he sees his sin for what it is. That uncomfortable, violent pain is a good thing.

The physical ache of an actual broken bone is worth being thankful for because it’s a warning sign something is wrong in that arm or leg. In the same way, God’s loving hammer of conviction is meant to break your heart, and the pain of heart you feel is intended to alert you to the fact that something is spiritually wrong inside you. Like the warning signal of physical pain, the rescuing and restoring pain of convicting grace is a thing worth celebrating.

We all have a stubborn capacity to be comfortable with what God says is wrong, so God blesses us with uncomfortable, violent grace. Yes, he loves us enough to crush us, so that we would feel the pain of our sin and run to him for forgiveness and deliverance.

Just like young children need to be taught about the anatomy of their body, the role of a doctor, and the purpose of an X-ray when they have broken a bone, we would do well to remind ourselves of the theology of uncomfortable, violent grace.

Our relationship with the Lord is never anything other than a relationship of grace. It’s grace that brought us into his family, it’s grace that keeps us in it, and it’s grace that will continue us in it forever.

But the grace God lavishes is not always comfortable.

God’s grace isn’t always comfortable because he isn’t primarily working on our comfort; he’s working on our character. With loving violence, he will crush us because he loves us and is committed to our restoration, deliverance, and refinement.

That’s something worth celebrating.

God bless

Paul David Tripp

Reflection Questions

1. Are you allowing yourself to grow comfortable with something that God says is wrong? What justifications are you making in your heart or mind to permit yourself to be okay with that sin?
2. What evidence can you find - both in the Bible and from everyday life - to remind yourself that staying inside God’s wise boundaries is the safest place to be?
3. Is there a place in your life where you have been tempted to doubt God’s love because you are experiencing the pain of his rescuing and restoring grace? Why should you thank him for uncomfortable, violent grace?
4. How can you lovingly and graciously remind others of God’s uncomfortable, violent grace that rescues us from us?

Article posted at pauldavidtripp.com

7 Character Qualities of a Person Who Is Close to God

Article by Courtney Joseph

But being close to God is about more than just our morning devotions.

We can read and read and read but if we do not apply God’s Word – we will not feel close to God.

Disobedience is a barrier to closeness.

In Psalm 15, David asks – who can be close to the Lord?

O Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent?
    Who shall dwell on your holy hill?
(Psalm 15:1)

Then David answered his own question by listing the character qualities of those who have true fellowship with God.

Many call themselves a child of God but by the way they live their lives, they deny him.

These are the 7 Character Qualities of a Person Who Is Close to God:
(Based on Psalm 15)

1.) He walks blamelessly and does what is right. (v.2)

A person who is close to God tries to live a blameless life.  A blameless person is a person who is innocent of wrong doing and who seeks to do what is right in the eyes of everyone, including God.

2.) He speaks truth in his heart. (v.2)

A person who is close to God is sincere and true.  They can be trusted.  They are not a liar and if their heart was under a microscope, you would see that they are an honest person with integrity.

3.) He does not slander with his tongue. (v.3)

A person who is close to God does not tell stories about others that would make them look bad, even if they are true.  They know how to control their tongue.

4.) He does no evil to his neighbor or takes up a reproach against his friend.(v.3)

A person who is close to God is kind to all who are near and does not listen to bad talk about their friends.

5.) In his eyes a vile person is despised and instead he honors those who fear the Lord. (v.4)

A person who is close to God honors those with good character.  They avoid those who talk behind other people’s backs.  Instead, they seek out friendships with those who fear the Lord.

6.)  He swears to his own hurt and does not change. (v. 4)

A person who is close to God keeps their promises, even when it hurts them or would cause them to suffer a loss.  Their word is their bond and they do not change.

7.)  He does not put out his money at interest or take a bribe against the innocent. (v. 5)

A person close to God does not put their personal interest before others and does not allow money to sway the way they treat someone. They act justly no matter what.

Being Close to God is about more than our morning devotions.

It is also about obeying his Word and allowing God to transform us from the inside out.

How does life turn out for this type of person?  David writes:

“He who does these things shall never be moved.” (v.5)

They will never ever be moved!

This type of person is safe and secure through the storms of life.

They enjoy fellowship with God and are strong and stable.

They are forever safe and secure.

They are like the wise man who built his house on the rock.  When the rain and floods came, the house did not fall.

Matthew 7:24-25:

24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.

Are you close to God?

How would others answer this question about you?

As we see from Psalm 15, the depth of our relationship with God should be reflected by our kindness to others, the control of our tongue and our integrity.

Timothy Keller writes:

If we deceive, vilify, and flatter, if we make empty promises and overblown claims, we cannot expect God’s presence in our lives.  This standard not only challenges us but also reminds us we can go to God only through His grace.  No one but Jesus ever lived with perfect integrity but because He is our Savior, we can go in to God. (Hebrews 4:15,16)

Being close to the Lord is about so much more than our morning devotions.  These are qualities that God will create in us when we are close to Him.  We must apply what we learn in His Word and let God mold and shape our character.

The reward for our obedience and God’s grace – is great!  We get to be close to God Almighty – the Maker of the heavens and the earth!

Keep Walking with the King,

Article posted at:  https://womenlivingwell.org/2018/06/7-character-qualities-of-a-person-who-is-close-to-god/

Last Night, We Won

Article by Carl Laferton

The anthem was belted out. My heart beat fast. The adrenalin flowed in torrents. Ah, it’s the hope, the rising hope, the no man’s land of touching distance. And then it’s the ebbing, the dashing, the dying of the hope. And the sadness settles in. And then the “If only we’d…”, and then the strange sense of emptiness.

I really could care less about the football. And I think I really should care less about the football. (And the rugby, and the cricket, and the tennis.)

I’m a sports nut. I will happily read about sport, talk about sport, watch sport and shout at sport all day. There was a time when I hoped very much that my job would be to write about sport all day.

And there’s nothing wrong with any of that.

Until there is.

One thing that changed me

I remember years ago—back in 2013 at an Acts29 Europe conference—listening to the pastor Matt Chandler give a seminar. Honestly, I don’t remember the topic—I think it might’ve been something to do with longevity in ministry. Frankly, I don’t remember most of what he said.

But I do remember him saying one thing that changed me. And it was about sport. Matt was talking about how he had made a conscious decision not to actively support any sports team. Why? Because when he started to care about a team, he would always care too much. Their success would stir his affections more than anything else. Their failure would make him irritable like nothing else.

And that’s just not Christian, he said. Jesus Christ is the One whose cause should capture us. His victory is what should most excite us. The advance of his kingdom is what should most stir us.

Honestly, would I get more excited if someone were converted this summer, or if we won whatever major tournament is on?

His point was that anything that replaces Christ as the thing that most attracts our excitement, our devotion, our hopes and our dreams is an idol that needs to be rejected. Not cuddled. Not toyed with. Not excused because, you know, all the other guys at church do it…

And as he spoke, I realised he was speaking of me. That when we’re searching for an equaliser, it’s like my life and happiness depend on it. That I shout helpful and innovative advice like “Shoot!” from thousands of miles away as though this, right here, is life. That defeat makes me feel like the world is a worse place, and I have the right to be grumpy with those around me and one-eyed about the referee. That I excuse all this by making a joke of it.

And I thought: Honestly, would I get more excited if someone were converted this summer, or if we won whatever major tournament is on?

The answer wasn’t the one I think God would be pleased with, or that I should be pleased with. I was more gripped by the prospect of a gold trophy than a trophy of grace.

This matters more

Since then, I’ve tried to spot when I am enjoying sport as a good thing, given by the God who wants us to enjoy the world he’s made us to live in; and when I am straying towards idolising sport as a god thing, replacing my God in my affections, capturing my excitement, leaving me feeling empty if we lose. I’ve asked the Spirit to prod me when I am beginning to define myself more in terms of my country-tribe or team-tribe than in terms of Jesus’ tribe (he calls it the church).

Because that’s the moment when I’m loving the football (or rugby, or cricket, or tennis) too much. And I say to myself, ‘Carl, you are literally getting over-excited about whether a man can kick a small sphere between two posts and under a bar.’ And then I try to think about what else is happening today: that round the world, the good news about a man who won the greatest of victories in the most unlikely of venues is being shouted, spoken, whispered, read about, believed. Victory after victory is being won as His Spirit brings everlasting hope to those who were facing the defeat of death. And I am being invited to show in my life (including in how I watch sport) and say with my mouth that, yes, His triumph means more than my team’s.

Last night, we won. Because Jesus has won. And seriously—that matters more.

And sooner or later, my heart will race. The adrenalin will flow. The shouts will come. The hopes will rise, and never die. There will be no more sadness, no more disappointments, no more “If only we’d…”. And all I’ll know is soaring fullness and all-encompassing adoration as I join the crowds and belt out the anthem:

Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they were saying:

‘Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
    to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
    and honour and glory and praise!’ (Revelation 5 v 11-12)

I really can’t care too much about the Lord.

You?

Article posted at:  https://www.thegoodbook.co.uk/blog/interestingthoughts/2018/07/12/last-night-we-won/

When Sin Looks Delicious

Article by Tim Challies

Do you ever have those days where you just want to sin? Sin looks delicious while righteousness looks distasteful. Sin looks satisfying and holiness looks frustrating. You wake up in the morning with a desire to do what you know you should not desire to do. Your heart echoes with what God said to Cain: “Sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you.” And your desire is for it.

What do you do on a day like that?

Take the Blame

“Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death” (James 1:13-15). Sin takes advantage of your sinful desires by promising satisfaction in the expression and fulfillment of those desires. Take the blame for wanting to sin. You want to sin because you are a sinner!

Look for Satan

“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith…” (1 Peter 5:8-9). Satan knows you are prone to sin and knows you well enough to know your specific temptations to sin. In the days you are being tempted to sin, you may well be facing his attacks. When sin feels extrinsic, like it is coming from outside as much as inside, prepare yourself to resist the devil.

Talk to God

“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. … praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication” (Ephesians 6:11, 18a). When tempted to sin, you are told to put on the whole armor of God—the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and so on. Each of these pieces of armor is donned and deployed through prayer. You resist sin and withstand temptation through humbling yourself in prayer and by crying out to God for his strength.

Talk to Someone Else

“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working” (James 5:16). Tell your husband or wife, your colleague, your friend, your accountability partner. Confess your desire. Make it as simple as it really is: “I want to sin today. Sin looks desirable; holiness looks boring.” Ask for their prayer in the moment and ask them to talk to you later to ask if and how you withstood the temptation. Just as they can pray with you now to plead God’s help, they can pray with you later to rejoice in his deliverance.

Preach the Gospel

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Preach this great gospel truth to yourself. As a Christian, you have been purchased by Christ. You belong to him. You are his. You have been given everything you need to resist—the ability and the desire. You are a new creation and both can and should behave as such. Preach the gospel to yourself and remember whose you are.

Resist the Temptation

Resolve that you will not sin and then follow resolve with stubborn obedience.

“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (1 Corinthians 10:13). God promises that he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear, but that he will always provide a way of escape. He will provide a way, but you still need to take advantage of that way. Talk to God, ask him to make the way clear, and ask that he will give you grace to take it. Often resisting temptation is as simple as this: Don’t sin! Resolve that you will not sin and then follow resolve with stubborn obedience.

Rely on Patterns of Godliness

“Put to death therefore what is earthly in you … Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience … And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called…” (Colossians 3:5-15). The Christian life is a lifelong obedience of replacing ungodly patterns and habits with godly ones. We continually put off the old man and put on the new. When facing temptation you will be tempted to fall back into old tendencies and habits. Instead, reject the old patterns of ungodliness and rely upon and follow the patterns of godliness you have developed.

Give Thanks

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). If temptation is born out of sinful desire and false promises of satisfaction through what God forbids, the solution is to give thanks. Where temptation focuses on all you do not have, thanksgiving focuses on all you have graciously been given. When you are tempted to sin, thank God for his good gifts. When you have been delivered from the temptation to sin, give thanks for his enabling grace.

Article originally posted at: https://www.challies.com/christian-living/when-sin-looks-delicious/

God Will Give You More than You Can Handle

Article by Mitch Chase

Christians can make the strangest claims when comforting those who are suffering. What do you say to someone whose life is falling apart? If you have but few precious minutes with a person who’s lost a job, home, spouse, child, or all sense of purpose, what comfort do you give?

We might turn to conventional wisdom instead of Scripture and end up saying something like, “Don’t worry, this wouldn’t happen in your life if God didn’t think you could bear it.” The sufferer may object, head shaking and hands up. But you insist, “Look, seriously, the Bible promises God won’t ever give you more in life than you can handle.” There it is—conventional wisdom masquerading as biblical truth. You’ve promised what the Bible never does.

Temptations Versus Trials

In 1 Corinthians 10, the apostle Paul writes, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” His discussion is specific: he’s writing about “temptation,” a snare that breaks a sweat trying to drag us into sin. Using a predator metaphor, God warned Cain that “sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it” (Gen. 4:7). Sin stalks us, but God is faithful. Sin desires to overcome us, but there is a merciful way of escape. Sin sets the bait, but for the believer—praise God!—sin is not irresistible.

Now if people apply Paul’s words about temptation to general sufferings, you can see where the line “God will never give you more than you can handle” comes from. I don’t doubt the sincerity and good intentions of those who use this phrase, but sincerity isn’t enough. Even Job’s friends meant well.

The Twin Errors

There are at least two errors in the unbiblical notion of “God will never give you more than you can handle.” First, it plays on the cultural virtue of fairness. Second, it points the sufferer inward instead of Godward.

1. Trials that Are . . . Fair?

If you give your children boxes to load into the car, you make visual and weight assessments that factor in their ages and strength. You don’t overload their arms and watch them crash to the ground with stuff splayed everywhere. That would be unfair. The saying “God will never give you more than you can handle” strikes a tone of fairness we instinctually like. There’s something pleasing about the idea that the scales are in balance, that God has assessed what we can handle and permits trials accordingly.

But there is a glaring problem with the “fairness” that undergirds this conventional wisdom: God has been unfair already, because he has not dealt with us as our sins deserve. He has been longsuffering, forbearing, gracious, and abounding in love. The sun shines and rain falls even on the unjust (Matt. 5:45). God transcends the categories of fair and unfair to such a degree that we have no position to evaluate his actions or weigh his will. His ways aren’t subject to our culture’s standard of fairness.

2. The Power . . . Within?

Suffering doesn’t ask if you’re ready. It may come slowly or with a vengeance, but it doesn’t ask permission, and it doesn’t care about convenience. There’s never a good time for your life to be wrecked. But the saying “God will never give you more than you can handle” tells me I have what it takes. It tells me I can bear whatever comes my way. It tells me God permits trials according to my ability to endure. Think about what this conventional wisdom does: it points people inward.

Yet the Bible points us Godward. As the psalmist says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling” (Ps. 46:1–3). When our strength is failing under crushing burdens, the answer is not within. God gives power to the faint and increases the strength of the weak (Isa. 40:29). The power comes from him to those who wait on him.

Where Trials Direct Us

Trials come in all shapes and sizes, but they don’t come to show how much we can take or how we have it all together. Overwhelming suffering will come our way because we live in a broken world with broken people. And when it comes, let’s be clear ahead of time that we don’t have what it takes. God will give us more than we can handle—but not more than he can

The psalmist asks, “Where does my help come from?” (Ps. 121:1), and we must be able to answer like he did. We must know and believe, deep in our bones, that “My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth” (121:2). When trials come, trust that the Lord’s help will come. This news is helpful to sufferers since we’re saying something true about God instead of something false about ourselves.

Paul recalled a time when God gave him more than he could bear. In a letter to the Corinthians, he wrote, “For we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself” (2 Cor. 1:8). Paul and his associates had been in circumstances that transcended their strength to endure: “Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death” (1:9).

Then he provides a crucial insight into his despair. Why were he and his companions given more than they could handle? To “make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead” (2 Cor. 1:9). God will give you more than you can handle so that his great power might be displayed in your life. Indeed, a greater weight of glory is still to come: “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Cor. 4:17).

You might not consider overwhelming sufferings to be “light” and “momentary,” but think of your trials in terms of a trillion years from now. In the middle of affliction, sometimes the most difficult thing to hold onto is an eternal vision. Paul isn’t trying to minimize your affliction; he’s trying to maximize your perspective.

Suffering doesn’t get the last line in the script. In this life, God will give you more than you can handle, but the coming weight of glory will be greater than you can imagine.

Mitch Chase (PhD, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is the pastor at Kosmosdale Baptist Church and an adjunct professor at Boyce College in Louisville, Kentucky. He’s the author of Behold Our Sovereign God and The Gospel Is for Christians. He is married to Stacie, and they have four boys. You can follow him on Twitter.

Article originally posted at: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/god-will-give-you-more-than-you-can-handle/

When God Interrupts Your Plans

Article by Christina Fox

We were recently on a vacation when God interrupted my plans. My family and I had traveled hundreds of miles to stay at a hotel on the beach. I had made arrangements to spend one day visiting with friends. But then, in the middle of the night, the night before my scheduled day out, one of my kids woke up sick. I spent the whole next day stuck inside, staring out the hotel window at the long stretch of beach that was just outside of my reach.

An Interrupted Life

My life is filled with interruptions, inconveniences, frustrations, and unexpected events. Things break. Accidents happen. The phone rings just as I climb into bed. Traffic makes me late. Just when we don’t need another added expense, an appliance breaks. Unexpected illnesses change my carefully crafted plans. I could go on and on. You probably could too.

The problem is, I usually handle these interruptions to my life poorly. I react with frustration and anger. Like a young child, I want to stomp my feet and say, “It’s not fair!” I blame others for inconveniencing me. I’ll even throw my own pity parties.

“Small frustrations and interruptions give us opportunities to rely on God.”

Though these interruptions are unexpected and catch me off guard, they do not catch God off guard. They are not random, meaningless events. In fact, these interruptions are divinely placed in my path for a reason. God uses these interruptions to change me to be more like Christ.

Slow traffic, a sick child, or a costly home repair may not seem like important tools in our sanctification, but they are. We often overlook these interruptions and inconveniences and instead expect God to work in our lives through huge life-changing circumstances. But the reality is, we often won’t have major events in our life that cause us to trust God and obey him in some deeply profound way. We won’t be called to build an ark or take an only child up Mount Moriah. Rather, it’s in these small frustrations and interruptions, the little things in our life, where we are given opportunities to rely on God, to obey him, and to bring him glory.

Paul Tripp puts it like this:

You and I don’t live in a series of big, dramatic moments. We don’t careen from big decision to big decision. We all live in an endless series of little moments. The character of a life isn’t set in ten big moments. The character of a life is set in ten thousand little moments of everyday life. It’s the themes of struggles that emerge from those little moments that reveal what’s really going on in our hearts. (Whiter Than Snow, 21)

Interruptions of Grace

These ten thousand little moments come in the form of our children asking us to play a game with them when we are tied up with something else. They are moments like when we get stuck behind a school bus when we’re already late to an appointment, or when we have a flat tire on the way to work. They are in all those moments all throughout the day when things don’t go our way, our plans fail, and our life is interrupted.

It’s these moments where the rubber meets the road — where our faith is stretched and we look down to see whether we are standing on rock or sand. Do we really believe that God is in control of all the details of our life? Do we really believe that his grace is sufficient to get us through the day? Do we really believe that the gospel of Christ is powerful enough not only to save us for eternity, but also to sustain and strengthen us in the midst of life’s interruptions? Do we really believe that Christ is enough to satisfy all the deepest needs of our heart?

These interruptions are acts of God’s grace. They force us to work through these questions. They make us face our sin. They are God’s way of taking off our blinders and making us see that we need the gospel in every moment of the day. They are a light that shines on the darkest recesses of our heart, revealing the truth of what’s really there — the sins and idols that we’ve pushed off into the corner, thinking that if we can’t see them, they must not exist.

The Reminder We Need

These interruptions remind us that we don’t have life figured out and that we can’t do it on our own. They are like the Shepherd’s rod, pulling us back from our wandering ways, back to our Great Shepherd. We need these interruptions. Like nothing else, they push us to the cross of Christ where we must remember the gospel and receive his grace and forgiveness.

“Christ cares more about our transformation than about our daily comfort.”

It’s hard to see all the little frustrating events and interruptions in our day as divinely placed opportunities to grow in grace, but they are. And seeing them as such helps us take our eyes off ourselves and put them on Christ, who cares more about our transformation than about our daily comfort. Rather than giving us a life of ease, he interrupts our lives with grace and shows us what we need most of all: himself.

How about you? Is your life filled with interruptions? Do you see God’s hand at work in them?

Christina Fox (@christinarfox) writes for a number of Christian ministries and publications including True Woman, ERLC, and The Gospel Coalition. She is the author of Closer Than a Sister: How Union with Christ helps Friendships to Flourish. You can find her at www.christinafox.com and on Facebook.

Article originally posted at:  https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/when-god-interrupts-your-plans