Instructed Sinners: Psalm 25: 8-9

              Today's post focuses on a part of faith that can be hard to deal with: How do I approach God after sinning? The natural reaction of most of us, me included, has been to pull away from God and wait for the feelings of guilt and shame to subside before approaching God again. Other natural reactions include trying to do something to repay God for his "loss" and approaching him once we've paid "the bill", whether that be through prayer or confessing our sins several times. First of all, this thought is completely out of line with scripture. God is not damaged by our sin at all. Check out Job 35:6-8:

6 If you sin, how does that affect him?
    If your sins are many, what does that do to him?
7 If you are righteous, what do you give to him,
    or what does he receive from your hand?
8 Your wickedness affects only a man like yourself,
    and your righteousness only the sons of men.

          Next, then, is to receive a word of instruction from the Lord: We are to turn immediately to face him. Even if we sinned just a moment ago, there is no other response than to run straight into his arms. This response is validated in sections like Isaiah 55:7:

7 Let the wicked forsake his way
    and the evil man his thoughts.
Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him,
    and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

         But does this make any sense at all? Why would God accept us back without even the slightest slap on  the back of the head? God responds in the following verse:

 8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.

          God tells us that we will never be able to understand why we can run straight back to him. In other words, turning straight back to God probably won't make sense when you've just committed a sin, whether it be lust, lying, or (God-forbid) murder. There are consequences for our actions, of course, and the Bible talks plenty about our God of justice as well as the need to take accountability for our actions. However, this doesn't mean that God will reject us if we immediately turn back to him with a repentant heart. God will never reject that kind of spirit. Psalm 51:17 says:

17 The sacrifices of God are[a] a broken spirit;
    a broken and contrite heart,
    O God, you will not despise.

          John 6:37 says:

 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.

          Ezekiel 33:12 continues this theme and adds a note that good works will never be able to counteract God's judgement.

12 “Therefore, son of man, say to your countrymen, ‘The righteousness of the righteous man will not save him when he disobeys, and the wickedness of the wicked man will not cause him to fall when he turns from it. The righteous man, if he sins, will not be allowed to live because of his former righteousness.’

           This may seem funny to you, but from my experience, there is usually a "post-temptation" where Satan tempts you to focus on yourself after you sin. Many times, this might be Satan's goal in tempting you to sin in the first place since discouraging and distracting you from your ministry might slow down the work of the gospel or of edification in the lives of fellow believers. Resist the desire to focus on your sin nature, appease God, or immediately make a list of reforms to improve yourself, but rather focus on immediately running into the arms of God. After you have reengaged your relationship with God, you can address the sin issue and be empowered to confront it through God's love and grace. This brings me to the theme verse of this post: Psalm 25:8-9:

8 Good and upright is the Lord;    therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.9 He guides the humble in what is right    and teaches them his way.

            God teaches sinners about himself (we are all sinners, by the way). He guides the humble in his ways. If we train ourselves to react to our sin nature by running to God in humility, we will defeat Satan's plans to use the sin to focus on and drag ourselves through hurtful and wasteful systems that seek to appease God through good works. After you sin, all God wants is you. Nothing else will satisfy him. Admit that you sinned, repent, and turn to his face. This will actually help you to become Christ-like much quicker than any system that you could invent on your own, as attested to in Colossians 2:20-23:

20 Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: 21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? 22 These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. 23 Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.

          If there any special questions that you need to address about these issues, just let me know and I'll do my best to respond in a wise and discerning manner.
In Christ,
Simeon Snow

Using Worldly Wealth: Luke 16:9

         Today's entry is based on a parable that doesn't seem to get much attention, but can teach us some very practical lessons. This is the parable of the shrewd manager at the beginning of Luke 16. To start off with, the concluding thought in Luke 16:9 is

9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

            This verse tells us that we need to use our wealth to develop friendships. People respond well to gifts and kindness, so it is possible to open locked relational doors with our resources. The verse points out that this money will disappear anyway, so we might as well have something eternal in our possession once that money is gone. This is a great avenue for ministry that can be approached in several ways. For instance, one can host an international student, throw social parties, or take people out for a meal. These specific gifts not only give money to someone who needs it,  but each of these contexts involves face to face time that could lead to spiritual conversations. Here is the parable in its entirety:

1 Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’ 3 “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’
5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 “‘Eight hundred gallons[a] of olive oil,’ he replied.
“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.’
7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’
“‘A thousand bushels[b] of wheat,’ he replied.
“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’
8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

           You may have heard of "lobbying", otherwise known as "wining and dining", before. This happens when a company or other organization sends a representative to a political leader to treat them to dinner and give various gifts in order to win them over to the side of the company. Millions of dollars are spent every year in this pursuit, which goes to show that lobbying actually works. What the world understands about making friends is often overlooked by Christians who want to build relationships solely off of their charm and personality. Interestingly enough, however, Jesus tells us in this parable to use material means, in addition to our love and gentleness, to win people over. Some verses with a similar theme are 1 Peter 4:10:

10 Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.

         and Proverbs 19:6:

 6 Many curry favor with a ruler,
    and everyone is the friend of a man who gives gifts.

          Some other practical ideas for making friends with money include: buying attractive clothing (or otherwise improving one's appearance), decorating one's house so guests will come back again, starting up a common interest club, surprising someone with a special gift, or sponsoring a group trip or other vacation.
          A warning to this advice is to do all of these actions in the right heart. If we are building this influence for a reason other than loving God or loving people, we will become easily ensnared by the traps of the enemy, become manipulative, or start to build one's self esteem off of other's opinions. Also, it is important that your friendships don't become dependent on this wealth and end up becoming completely shallow and material. In spite of all this, there have been times where I had enough money to apply these concepts and found great success in starting and building friendships with these techniques. See what creative ideas you can come up with to garner friendships!
In Christ,
Simeon Snow

Word Harvest: Proverbs 12:14-16

          The book of Proverbs has many treasures and this particular passage has meant more and more to me as time has passed, so I want to briefly share my thoughts on it today. Proverbs 12:14-16 has three separate pieces of advice, but I wish to put the last two pieces of advice under the umbrella of the first one to give you my perspective. Here is Proverbs 12:14-16:

14 From the fruit of his lips a man is filled with good things
    as surely as the work of his hands rewards him.
15 The way of a fool seems right to him,
    but a wise man listens to advice.
16 A fool shows his annoyance at once,
    but a prudent man overlooks an insult.

           The first verse tells us that what our future looks like will be shaped by the words that we use today. They chart our course for the future and affect how our relationships form over time. James 3:3-5 expresses similar thoughts:

3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark

         This verse tells us that large parts of our lives and whole relationships can be directed by the tongue. The Proverbs passage goes so far as to say that we can bet on the fruit of our words as much as we are guaranteed our wages from our jobs. Going on, verse 15 says that only foolish people believe that they are right in every situation, but that wise people are open to being wrong and corrected. The response that we give with our words to criticism shapes our character. If we use sarcasm and defensive comments to deflect constructive criticism, we start cycles of destructive behavior that leave us stunted in our growth. Not only so, but someone who willingly takes advice is more likely to receive the same kind of advice in the future, which adds to a cycle of growth as honest relationships begin to flourish.
         Also, in verse 16, we can see that the same tongue can shape how we relate to those people who annoy or insult us. We are supposed to respond to this kind of person in love, like in Romans 12:17-21:

 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[d] says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”[e]
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

        If we don't clamp down our tongues to keep us from lashing out, we will lose the opportunity to live out this passage before we even have the time to remember it. This is the same thought that is behind James 1:19-20:

19 My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.

        If we allow our tongue to attack people, we will lose our ability to reconcile our enemies to both God and ourselves. Righteous wrath was never meant to be loosed in an uncontrolled way. This is shown to be in the character of God in Nahum 1:2-3a:

 2 The Lord is a jealous and avenging God;
    the Lord takes vengeance and is filled with wrath.
The Lord takes vengeance on his foes
    and maintains his wrath against his enemies.
3 The Lord is slow to anger and great in power;
    the Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished. 

        This blog post is but a short summary of the good and evil that can come from the tongue, but I think it suffices in showing how careful we should be in using our tongue to build up relationships as well as God's kingdom. While there are different times for loving, gentle language or righteous anger, the one consistent theme is thoughtfulness and discernment. Reflect on which response would draw the other person closer to God. For this reason, I close with Proverbs 26: 4-5:

4 Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
    or you will be like him yourself.
5 Answer a fool according to his folly,
    or he will be wise in his own eyes

From Favoritism to Flourishing- Part 9 of 9: Flourishing: Jeremiah 17:7-8

To end this series on going from Favoritism to Flourishing, we will discuss a verse that has been a strong center point for my life recently. It describes my focus now and lets me go through any season of my life with the right mindset. It is Jeremiah 17:7-8:

7 “But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
    whose confidence is in him.
8 He will be like a tree planted by the water
    that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
    its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
    and never fails to bear fruit.”

         The main idea of this entire series has been to stop judging people based on petty things such as their clothing, social quirks, and other minor details and start looking at them through God's eyes. But, in order to see and act through God's eyes, we need to spend time with Him and be transformed by His work in our lives. This is done through spiritual disciplines. Here, it says that a man is blessed if he trusts in the Lord and places his confidence in Him. This means that we need to stop looking to other people to see if we have enough value yet. We need to stop waiting for social cues to see what we should say or wear next to attract more attention or value. It means that we let God answer those questions for us.
          Here, we see that being a tree planted by the water is similar to this situation. A tree that is planted by the water does not need to wander around looking for food. It doesn't sway when seasons change. It is  nourished where it stands and, therefore, stands firm. It seems like such a small thing, but doing things with God, like Bible reading, scripture memory, praying, being thankful, and serving others are all parts of being this tree by the water. If you stand fast in these disciplines with the right heart, they will carry you through any and every season. This is the place where other people start looking at your life and wondering why you are so full of joy despite great loss or hardship. We, as Christians, can be more fulfilled without anything this world can offer us than any non-Christian (or Christian, for that matter) would be if they could possess everything this world has to offer. In fact, we are promised that we will receive everything we desire. Look to Psalm 37:4

4 Delight yourself in the Lord
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

          This is my life verse, the one I cling on to when it seems like all the odds are stacked against me. Misused by the Health and Wealth heresies, this verse does not mean that we get everything that non-Christians have been seeking with all of their power and strength. Instead, it means that, if we pursue God, He will give us everything that we need to be completely fulfilled and flourishing in every part of our life. This means that I, even as a homeless person or hopelessly sick patient, could be receiving all the desires of my heart. It means that the things that God values, such as people being evangelized, discipled, encouraged, edified, served, and healed, becomes my purpose and will start to see those desires fulfilled as I draw closer to God. See Galatians 6:9-10:

9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

          While we still enjoy the material blessings that God has given us (which, by the way, are part of the spiritual discipline of Thanksgiving), we learn to seek and value what God values. This new system gives us something truly worth our time, will pull us out of the endless cycle of ups and downs on the social ladder, and give ourselves true value that will last through every storm and trial.
          I have seen way too many Christians put things like romance, jobs, homes, families, health, or finances above what is truly valuable. I cry out to you: Wake up! See what you have been missing out on. You will wake up in twenty, thirty, or even fifty years trying to satisfy yourself with things that will just leave you empty and lost. This is shown in Jeremiah 2:11-13, where God is talking to the nation of Israel:

11 Has a nation ever changed its gods?
    (Yet they are not gods at all.)
But my people have exchanged their[d] Glory
    for worthless idols.
12 Be appalled at this, O heavens,
    and shudder with great horror,”
declares the Lord.
13 “My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken me,
    the spring of living water,
and have dug their own cisterns,
    broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

         Abandon your social idols and look to the Lord. Look at Matthew 13:44:

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

         It takes sacrifice to find what has value. You have to take a risk. You need to be willing for other people to look down on and gossip about you; you need to be willing to be lower on the totem pole in social interactions; it means that you will not always find the material blessings that you are looking for. But the price is worth it. It always has been. Always will be.