why is it so hard to say yes or no?
what is the difficulty with simplicity?
is it so hard not to speak until one can act upon one's words, or not to promise until one can fulfill one's promises?
what if we only spoke what we knew, or testified to what we saw and heard, like the Lord Jesus? what if we spoke then acted, or promised then fulfilled, like God does?
would this not be a kind of power or perfection? imagine the impression left by one who does this. imagine a father who only speaks what he knows to his children, testifying only to what he personally saw and heard. this man would NEVER be wrong in matters of his experience, if he is honest. what if he always did what he said he would do, backing up all of his words with actions? this would be a powerful impression, an impersonation of Father God Himself.
words.
"To say the very thing you really mean, the whole of it, nothing more or less or other than what you really mean; that's the whole art and joy of words.
Never exaggerate. Never say more than you really mean.
The way for a person to develop a style is (a) to know exactly what he wants to say, and (b) to be sure he is saying exactly that."
Always try to use the language so as to make quite clear what you mean and make sure your sentence couldn’t mean anything else.
Always prefer the plain direct word to the long, vague one. Don’t implement promises, but keep them."
C.S. Lewis
beauty and authority are in these words, and in all words, when they are spoken with simpicity and honesty.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Sunday, January 2, 2011
The will of God in two words
Many who believe in the Lord Jesus seek "the will of God for their lives." They seek it in the context of their entire life, identity, and destiny.
If we focus on the first words of the Lord to his disciples, the words that made them his disciples, we see that this is unnecessary. For the will of Christ for our lives can be summed up in two words:
FOLLOW ME.
By following the Spirit of Christ on a moment by moment, day by day basis, he will make us "fisher's of men," meaning he will lead us and empower us to preach the gospel and make disciples. He will also, by His Spirit, conform us to his image.
Therefore, as Francis Chan, the author of the book "Crazy Love," said wisely, we should seek to follow the Spirit every day, verses seeking an outlined or detailed plan for our lives.
As Chan said, this doesn't mean that God doesn't give plans and destinies, but it does mean that he does not promise us this. However, he does promise that if we live in agreement with the Spirit, keeping in step with him moment by moment and day by day, we will bear the fruit of the Spirit, the godly character traits that come as a result of following the Spirit.
This fits what we see in scripture from beginning to end, and what happened when the Lord called his disciples. God put Adam in the garden, and Adam worked it. He brought the animals to Adam, then Adam named them. He brought the woman to Adam, and Adam named her.
God initiates, we respond.
God told Noah how to build the ark, and Noah followed his instructions.
He told Abraham to leave his home and go to a place THAT ABRAHAM WOULD BE SHOWN! Abraham did not know where he was going or why.
When the pillar of cloud, which was a manifestation of God's presence with Israel, remained, the Israelites remained. When the pillar moved, Israel moved. Whether the pillar remained where it was for days, weeks, months, or years, Israel moved when it moved.
The apostles simply followed the Lord Jesus.
We are to simply follow His Spirit.
But some of you say, "This is not so simple."
Go to my blog, i speak as an oracle of god.
If we focus on the first words of the Lord to his disciples, the words that made them his disciples, we see that this is unnecessary. For the will of Christ for our lives can be summed up in two words:
FOLLOW ME.
By following the Spirit of Christ on a moment by moment, day by day basis, he will make us "fisher's of men," meaning he will lead us and empower us to preach the gospel and make disciples. He will also, by His Spirit, conform us to his image.
Therefore, as Francis Chan, the author of the book "Crazy Love," said wisely, we should seek to follow the Spirit every day, verses seeking an outlined or detailed plan for our lives.
As Chan said, this doesn't mean that God doesn't give plans and destinies, but it does mean that he does not promise us this. However, he does promise that if we live in agreement with the Spirit, keeping in step with him moment by moment and day by day, we will bear the fruit of the Spirit, the godly character traits that come as a result of following the Spirit.
This fits what we see in scripture from beginning to end, and what happened when the Lord called his disciples. God put Adam in the garden, and Adam worked it. He brought the animals to Adam, then Adam named them. He brought the woman to Adam, and Adam named her.
God initiates, we respond.
God told Noah how to build the ark, and Noah followed his instructions.
He told Abraham to leave his home and go to a place THAT ABRAHAM WOULD BE SHOWN! Abraham did not know where he was going or why.
When the pillar of cloud, which was a manifestation of God's presence with Israel, remained, the Israelites remained. When the pillar moved, Israel moved. Whether the pillar remained where it was for days, weeks, months, or years, Israel moved when it moved.
The apostles simply followed the Lord Jesus.
We are to simply follow His Spirit.
But some of you say, "This is not so simple."
Go to my blog, i speak as an oracle of god.
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