Retiring Power Walk
Hello faithful reader.
I’m entering a new season of life, work, and ministry. Because of this I am retiring my Power Walk blog. BUT where one door closes, God opens another.
I am starting another blog called: “Compelling Word” and I hope you’ll subscribe to it. Just follow this link: http://timfilkins.wordpress.com/ and click on “sign me up!”
To those who won’t be joining us, it has been a blessing. I pray God’s best for you.
To those who are coming along with me, the blessings are just beginning! I’ll see you at “Compelling Word.”
strength, Honor, and Courage in Christ,
Pastor Tim
Standing Against Temptation in 2011: Part-2
Where is God going to take me in 2011? Sometimes I think I’d love to know the future. I tell myself I could plan better and prepare better if I knew what was coming. The truth is I’m better off not knowing the future. God takes us down difficult paths in order to prove His sufficiency and to purify us. If I knew what was coming I’d almost certainly avoid those hard roads and dark valleys. We humans have two major drives. One is to pursue pleasure and the other is to avoid pain. Neither one of these human drives leads us along the difficult road of discipleship and trust in God.
God cannot be tempted with evil and He tempts no one with it (James 1:13), but the road we walk with Him is beset with temptations all sides. How do we walk in victory? We walk in victory by knowing, living, and often quoting God’s word. Jesus shows us how in Matthew, chapter 4.
Here is the second of three temptations we’re sure to face in 2011. I’ve gathered them from Matthew, chapter-4. I’ll share the third one in a future post:
2. Tempted to test God (Matthew 4:5-7)
The first temptation was to rely on our own power. The second will be to presume on God’s grace…to test God’s faithfulness.
There is nothing wrong with taking tremendous risks in Christ’s name and trusting God for divine protection. Moses did it with Pharaoh, Paul and Silas did it in prison, and Christians outside the U.S.A. do it every day when they risk life-and-limb to proclaim Christ in countries where persecution is real. God calls Christians to trust Him and He constantly calls us to stretch out of our comfort zones. So why did Jesus refuse to throw himself down from the pinnacle of the temple and trust the angels to keep Him from harm? Satan did quote Scripture when he tempted Christ, so what would have been wrong with Jesus jumping into the breach? Wouldn’t that have been an act of faith?
The difference between a leap of faith and a foolish risk is God’s call. I used to know a guy who refused to wear a seatbelt after he got saved. He told me that he was driving in faith and that God would protect him. I would just grunt, roll my eyes, and fasten my seatbelt when I rode with him. I wish I had known then what I know now so I could have given him a better argument (I lost track of him when the USMC sent us to different places. I don’t know if the seatbelt gambit ever came back to haunt him)
If God had spoken to my friend and told him not to wear a seatbelt, then it would have been a leap of faith. The only thing guiding my friend’s thinking, however, was an immature idea about living in faith. God tells us to obey the legal authorities and to be wise as serpents. He gives us wisdom so we can avoid unnecessary danger. He gives us the wisdom to put our seatbelts on. We ignore these actions at our own peril. My friend was testing God by making a foolish decision and then asking God to miraculously protect him from harm.
Jesus didn’t jump because God hadn’t told Him to take that risk. Jesus knew how to hear from God. That discipline–hearing from God and acting on His commands–will serve us well in 2011. God may call us to take tremendous risks, but He’ll also save us from needless peril.
Standing against temptation in 2011: Part-1
Where is God going to take me in 2011? Sometimes I think I’d love to know the future. I tell myself I could plan better and prepare better if I knew what was coming. The truth is I’m better off not knowing the future. God takes us down difficult paths in order to prove His sufficiency and to purify us. If I knew what was coming I’d almost certainly avoid those hard roads and dark valleys. We humans have two major drives. One is to pursue pleasure and the other is to avoid pain. Neither one of these human drives leads us along the difficult road of discipleship and trust in God.
God cannot be tempted with evil and He tempts no one with it (James 1:13), but the road we walk with Him is beset with temptations all sides. How do we walk in victory? We walk in victory by knowing, living, and often quoting God’s word. Jesus shows us how in Matthew, chapter 4.
Here are some temptations we’re sure to face in 2011. I’ve gathered them from Matthew, chapter-4. I’ll share the other two in future posts:
1. Tempted to rely on our own ability (Matthew 4:3-4)
Jesus had the authority and ability to turn those stones into bread, but He quoted Deuteronomy instead: “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
What would have been wrong with Jesus changing those stones to bread? After all, He had been fasting for 40-days. What could be the harm? The harm is that Jesus would have been obeying Satan’s command instead of God’s, His actions would not have been prompted by the Holy Spirit and done in faith, and He would have been relying on Himself instead of The Father. Satan is going to tempt us in these same areas.
I think of the “Word of Faith” teachers of our day who tell us we’re “little gods” who have the authority to speak our will into existence. They tell us to proclaim healing for our bodies and tell us to speak to our wallets and command them to get fat with cash in the name of Jesus. They tell us that a prayer for “Thy will to be done” is a faithless prayer that insults God and diminishes our Christian authority.
Jesus demonstrated the opposite is true. Jesus told His disciples that He always did His Father’s will and He prayed “not My will, but Yours.” (John 8:27-29 and Matthew 26:39).
The Enemy will tempt you and me to operate in our own strength this year, but God calls us to pray to Him and trust Him for our provision. He sent angels to minister to Jesus after the temptation was done. Expect no less from your Heavenly father when you stand strong against the temptation to trust in yourself completely. Pray hard, work hard, do what honors the Lord, and trust God for the outcome.
God’s Economy
Most kingdoms, countries, and/or governments have their own official currency…”coin of the realm,” if you will. The U.S. uses dollars, Japan uses yen, many European countries use the euro, etc. When we move from one country to another we must convert our foreign currency to local currency if we want to transact business or buy things.
What is the currency of God’s kingdom? Micah 6:6-8 got me thinking about the coin of God’s realm. God’s currency is unique. When we move into God’s kingdom through faith in Christ we have to convert our old, dead currency into His new, living currency. Many of us are not living the abundant life Christ wants for us because we’re operating on the old currency of works instead of the new currency of Grace.
No longer are we to do good works or participate in religion in order to appease an angry god or to bribe an aloof god in an effort to get him/her to bless us. The coin of God’s realm is His amazing grace through faith in Christ. Because of Jesus we live in victory and we exist in a state of grace. We aren’t trying to appease God, we’re striving to live in a manner worthy of the royal status He has conferred on us through faith in Christ. Motivations of guilt and shame have been replaced with a joyful desire to be like our Dad.
All our Lord requires is that we do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with Him (Micah 6:8). Let’s live and worship in joy!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
I want to wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving! Scripture has tons to say about the power of giving thanks. Being thankful means having an attitude of gratitude. Having such an attitude makes us happier people, but it also opens the window through which God’s pours His manifold blessings into our lives. Psalm 22:3 tells us that God is enthroned on the praises of His people…which means He inhabits our praise. Do you want to “feel” closer to God? If you do, then praising Him is the best way.
I have much to praise God for. Most of my praises focus on tangible things like my beautiful, wonderful, blessed family; my dear friends; my precious brothers and sisters in-Christ; the privilege of serving as pastor of LightHouse Fellowship; and the bountiful possessions God has given me. but I’m most thankful for the things I can’t see, but know are true. I’m most thankful for God’s promises.
Thank you, Lord for never forsaking me; thank you for saving me through faith in Jesus Christ instead of through my ability to be good; thank you that my eternal inheritance is sure and safe; thank you for true spiritual life and the assurance that I will be with you forever; thank you for saving my wife and children; thank you for being my fortress, my rock, and my salvation; thank you for indwelling me with your Spirit; thank you for the strength to endure; thank you that this momentary light affliction is nothing compared to the glory to be revealed to me; and thank you that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…
The list goes on-and-on forever, but words are never quite enough. Join me today in striving to thank God in the way he desires above all others. Let’s demonstrate our thankfulness by being living sacrifices on the altar or righteousness and loving Him with all of our hearts, minds, souls, and strength. Along the way, let us love our neighbor as ourselves.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Birthday to the USMC!
Semper Fidelis and Happy Birthday to my fellow Marines!
Shame Game
I’m preaching through a series of messages on spiritual warfare and this week’s message is about exposing Satan’s schemes. The Enemy’s schemes are easier to recognize, deal with, and sometimes avoid if we are familiar with them. One of Satan’s greatest weapons is shame. He uses the idea of shame to alienate unbelievers from the truth of the gospel and he uses shame to keep believers from proclaiming the Gospel.
Those who have not yet surrendered their lives to Christ hate the idea of shame, so Satan is able to blind them with it. That is why they don’t see their need for a savior. If they can’t see how sinful they are, then they can’t see why they need Jesus. Satan also often convinces unbelievers that Christians are trying to shame them. They see the gospel message as one of condemnation and judgment instead of seeing it for what it is…the only true message of freedom and hope. If the Enemy can convince them that all Christians are hypocrites trying to judge them, then he succeeds at keeping them from hearing the truth. Don’t get mad at those who reject Jesus. They are simply blinded by the Enemy. Keep sharing. Persistance, love, and endurance result in victory. That is why Satan uses shame against believers.
I know Satan wields shame against believers by telling them they are not forgiven, not worthy, and not loveable, but last week I saw another method to his attack that I had never recognized before. A friend of mine sent me a video called, “Letter from Hell.” It was created and shared with the best intentions and it was designed to motivate believers to share their faith, but I spotted the Enemy’s subtle deception as I watched.
The video relates the story of a believer who is driving in a car with a lost friend. They get into an accident and the lost kid dies and goes to hell. He sends his saved friend a letter from hell and the video depicts the content of that letter. “Why didn’t you tell me?!” the condemned friend asks over-and-over. “All the time we were together and you never told me about Jesus! Why didn’t you tell me about Jesus so I didn’t have to come to this place?!” The video concludes with the condemned boy screaming in agony and rage as he is thrown into the lake of fire and ends with his whisper, “Wish you were here!”
It was enough to make me share Jesus with the chair I was sitting on, but then I got to thinking about the nature of my Enemy.
Shame is never from God. Granted, conviction may feel like shame, but it isn’t the same thing. Conviction leads us to repentance, which leads us to forgiveness, which leads us to freedom, which leads us to joy. Shame leads us to fear, anxiety, depression, and guilt. The Enemy tried to use this video to shame Christians into rash action and a warped view of God’s sovereignty.
A Christian who feels shame about not sharing Jesus with everything that breathes begins to force evangelical encounters and stops waiting for the Holy Spirit’s guidance. He or she begins sharing Jesus out of guilt and fear, rather than love. Evangelism becomes a work of the flesh, rather than an outpouring of God’s Spirit. When shame motivates our evangelism we start to look and sound like attack dogs or salespeople working on commission. We scare the hell into people. They think following Jesus means having to be like us and we look like a bunch of rabid dogs spouting Jesus and scripture at them.
Also, a Christian who feels shame about not sharing Jesus with every person they meet begins to misunderstand God’s sovereignty. If I miss a chance, then God sends me another time or sends somebody else. There won’t be one person in hell who would have given their life to Christ under any circumstances…even if they had heard the gospel a million times. Nobody slips through God’s hands. That is how God’s love works. He doesn’t force anybody into a relationship with Jesus, we have to want it. A person’s salvation doesn’t depend on a Christians’s ability to share Jesus. A person’s salvation depends on the work of the Holy Spirit. Everybody who would call on Jesus for salvation will call on Jesus for salvation!
Let’s live our Christian lives in the contemplation of God’s grace, rather than in the shadow of the Enemy’s shame. Then we’ll walk in the Spirit, live in joy, and share Jesus when the Holy Spirit is opening doors.
Be Joyful in the Dark
I can understand why Christians sometimes feel frustrated and angry. People actually want to build a mosque a short distance from Ground Zero in New York City and there is not one constitutional provision to keep that from happening. In fact, our constitution paves the way for it. California is up to their same old tricks…overturning the people’s will and proposition 8. And now we hear that Rod Blagojevich was only found guilty on one of twenty-four counts. Only one juror couldn’t see her way to casting a guilty vote and she had contributed to his campaign in the past. It is enough to get a person flustered!
“Never blog angry” is a rule I try to live by, so I have been silent. Today God led me to a passage in my quiet time that puts it all in His perfect perspective. Both Psalm 112 and First Corinthians 1 had great things to say about how the righteous shall not be moved and that God has equipped us to endure graciously until He calls us home. But God doesn’t want us to wait in our driveway, gazing longingly at the eastern sky hoping to see Jesus riding in on His white horse. Nope, God calls us to actively demonstrate Christ’s love and power while we wait.
First Corinthians tells us God has blessed us through Christ with every spiritual gift we need and that we are enriched through Him in all speech and knowledge. Psalm 112 tells us that light dawns in the darkness for the righteous. Who are the righteous? Those who have thrown themselves on God’s mercy by placing their faith in Christ, that’s who. We claim Jesus’ righteousness, not our own.
Because I know everything belongs to God and nothing belongs to me, I am able to be generous, patient, kind, and confident during these crazy times. Things aren’t spinning out of control, they are happening just as God said they would. Things are going to progress from bad to worse until Jesus returns, but we can live joyful lives right in the midst of it because of Jesus.
“It is well with the man who conducts his affairs with justice. He isn’t afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting the Lord. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid. He has distributed freely. He has given to the poor…” and he will look with triumph upon Christ’s enemies. Psalm 112
It is always darkest before the dawn. Shine through me, Lord Jesus! Shine!
2 Live in Victory
I want to take this opportunity to thank everybody who subscribes to or regularly follows my Power Walk blog. Some of you simply read these entries as “notes” on Facebook and I want to thank you, too. I’m honored that you pay attention and I am amazed that God uses me to bless you through the words He lays on my heart. However, I want to invite you–faithful reader– to join me on another journey.
Full time ministry is my calling from God and the passion of my heart, but there are many who won’t listen, or stop listening, as soon as they realize I’m “Pastor Tim.” There are also those who find it difficult to see how biblical principles apply to “real life,” so they receive these truths more easily in their cultural/social context. It is for this reason that I have started another blog called, “2 Live in Victory.” I hope you’ll follow the link on my Power Walk blog site and subscribe to “2 Live in Victory.” On this blog I’ll share Godly principles, leadership principles, humor, insights, and life experience that may help you out, but will always take an optimistic look at life.
“2 Live” is a new blog, so there aren’t many posts yet, but give it a read. I have also started a Twitter account for each blog. I’ll be honored if you’ll follow along! The links are listed below. Let’s enjoy this journey together!
“Power Walk” Blog: http://timslogos.wordpress.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/TimFilkins
“2 Live…” Blog: http://2liveinvictory.wordpress.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/TFilkins
Get a Tune-Up
“You better change your tune, mister!” My parents said this to me; I swore I would never say it to my kids; and I just got done saying it to my son. You know the drill, right? The things proceeding from the child’s mouth are leading them down the path to discipline. “You better change your tune, mister!” is like a yellow warning sign along the highway…it warns of peril further down the road. Our children rarely pay heed to the warning, but we–as good parents who don’t want our children to experience chastening–must give it.
As usual, after I warn my kids about their behavior I do a mental inspection of my conduct. How does my tune sound to those around me? As a Christ follower I really need to guard my mouth. It isn’t just my reputation at stake…it is Christ’s. A Rabbi is often judged by His disciples’ actions. I want to make my Rabbi look good, but modifying behavior is not true transformation. Genuine renewal has to do with motivation, not conduct. Pure speech that flows from a regenerate heart is the sign of Christ’s presence. We can’t fake a renewed mind…the mind of Christ is a gift.
So, what should a believer sound like? Psalm 40:3 sums it up: “He put a new song in my mouth…” but what does that new song sound like? God speaks through King David the psalmist and lets us know (vv 3 and 9-10). The new song Christ gives us is one of praise to our God. The Christian sings to the congregation about God’s righteousness and deliverance. We tell each other about God’s salvation, steadfast love, and faithfulness. I am struck by the fact that if we are singing the Holy Spirit’s song there is no room for gossip, complaining, meanness or abuse.
If the words of our new song from Christ are salvation, praise, righteousness, and blessing, then the melody of our song is love (1 Corinthians 13). Sometimes God calls us to bless others with a rebuke or correction. These corrective, edifying words are part of our new song, too. Our Christian love is the melody that keeps others listening, even when the words are convicting.
Let’s pray for God to change our tune when we don’t sound very much like His children.
