Self-Taught

I taught for ten years at our local university. And if you’ve ever taught a class, you may agree that there is a need, or even a responsibility, to become an expert on your subject. You may have endeavored to have an elevated grasp on the material, even beyond what might be necessary, so that you can accurately and thoroughly teach what you’ve prepared. But what does in mean to be an “expert”? How much training does one have to have before they can be considered an authority on a subject? Does one have to earn a degree or certification to prove their expertise? I’m sure a degree helps, but I would suggest that anyone can become an expert on a topic by basically teaching themselves. This can be true for anything; from building your own recording studio, to discipling others in the way of the Lord. Apollos, a Jewish believer mentioned in the book of Acts, knew this to be true because it says in chapter 18, verses 24 and 25: 

“Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John.” 

Apollos may have been instructed by other theologians, or he may have only been instructed by the Holy Spirit. But I wanted to mention his story to highlight the truth that you don’t have to earn a doctorate in theology to teach others about the scriptures. You don’t have to be a pastor of a congregation to lead others to Christ. Just like you don’t have to be a master carpenter and electrician to build your own recording studio. I have a friend who taught himself how to build his recording studio by watching YouTube videos and volunteering as a sound technician at our church. He didn’t have a degree. He only had the drive. And that was enough to motivate him to become an expert in what it takes to build a studio. Now he records albums for music artists across the region. The same idea can be applied to the scriptures. I’m not suggesting that by watching YouTube videos someone can become an expert on the Bible. But you, and I, can study the scriptures and allow the Holy Spirit to teach us so that we can share what we’ve learned with others. I pray that God will give you, and me, the passion that Apollos had for the word of God. It says that he had a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures, and as a result, he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately. Let us do the same.

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I know of several individuals who have never taken a college course in Christianity, theology, or public speaking, yet they are teaching the scriptures with authority. And I know there are scores more around our country and the globe who are doing the same. This isn’t to say that there isn’t a place for institutional learning. As a matter of fact, that is a huge benefit. But God has called us all to make disciples. And to do that we need to understand his word; we need to be Holy Spirit taught so that like Apollos, we can teach about Jesus accurately. You don’t have to be a pastor to teach and disciple others. You can do it, and I can do it. I would encourage you to become a scholar of the Bible. I encourage you not only to read the Bible, but to study it. Allow the Holy Spirit to educate you and lead you in what to say as you share about him to others.

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God Is Love

I’m not entirely sure that we, as believers, can truly comprehend the love of God. He loved us even in our rebellion and rejection. He loved us even when we were metaphorically spitting on him and cursing him. He loves us so much that he sent his son to not only die for us, but to show us how to live. Even now he loves us with a jealous love. The Bible even describes God as love. But what does that mean? How can we wrap our minds around God’s love for us and his mandate for us to love one another? First John, chapter 4, verses 7 through 12 may help. It says: 

“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” 

So, God is love, love comes from God and if we love we know God. If you have been a believer for a while, you might be able to attest that the more we follow God by becoming less like ourselves and more like Jesus, the more we inevitably love our fellow man. Even still, godly love doesn’t come easy for some. At times, I’ll admit that it doesn’t come easy for me. But we can rest easy. We do not have to try to generate love. We don’t have to fake it or go through the motions. All we have to do is press into God. If we love him our love for others will follow. First John tells us that love comes from God. So if we try to manufacture it in our flesh, we are pulling from the wrong source.

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John reminds is that “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” That is what Jesus did for us. And in First John, we’re reminded that God is love, and our ability to love one another with godly love, comes from him. The kind of love that John is talking about is reflected in Paul’s words from First Corinthians, chapter 13, which says in part: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preserves.” This is the kind of love we are to show; the kind of godly love that reflects our creator. If any of the scripture that I shared today is new to you, I would encourage you to explore it in more detail and in its complete context. It is so important for us to understand love, because after all, God is love.

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Think About Such Things

You may have heard it said that, when it comes to our struggle with sin, the battlefield is in the mind. And for the most part, I would agree. That is why we are taught to fill our mind with things that are true and noble; things that are pure and right. When we do, and if we do it often, we’ll be able to train our mind to focus on what is helpful to our walk and beneficial to our spirit. Because what we put in our mind will ultimately filter into our heart. And the Bible tells us that whatever our heart is full of will ultimately come out in our words and deeds. Paul exhorts the Philippians with these words in Philippians, chapter 4, verse 8:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things.” 

Matthew 12:34 reminds us that the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. So, we know what will happen if we allow our mind to think on evil things, and allow our eyes and ears to let in what is evil. We know what happens if we surround ourselves with things that are sinful and friends that are spiritually rebellious and disobedient. It affects the way we think, which in turn affects our heart. And ultimately, our heart will reveal the evil in it through our words and deeds. If this is true, then wouldn’t it make sense that if we fill our mind with things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy, that it would filter into our hearts and would also reveal itself in our words and deeds? I would challenge you to consider how important it is for us to guard our minds and our hearts. That is why Proverbs 4:23 tells us to “guard our hearts because everything we do flows from it”. And one way to guard our heart is by constantly thinking on that which is good.

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What we allow into our thoughts matter, because over time, it can affect our heart which can ultimately affect our words and actions. Much like if we fill our bodies with junk food and harmful drugs we will be negatively affected physically, if we allow sinful and harmful thoughts into our minds, we will be negatively affected spiritually. That is why Paul exhorts the Philippians to think on heavenly things; things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy. And I’m sure if you give it a little thought, you’ll be able to come up with other good and holy things to add to the list. The goal is to guard our hearts by guarding our minds. If it is true that the battlefield is in the mind, we now have a plan that will help us prepare for every battle.

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From One Man

There is absolutely no place for racism within the body of Christ. Even new believers understand that the Bible, the Christian faith and the character of God are in direct conflict with the culture of racism. We were all made in God’s image. Jesus died for the entire world. And we are commanded to love our neighbor just as much as we love ourselves. In fact, in the parable of the “good Samaritan”, Jesus purposefully chose a Samaritan to challenge the Jews because Samaritans were thought of as “unclean”and “less than”. So in subtext of the parable, Jesus was saying that even a Samaritan can be a good neighbor. And in Acts, we learn that it doesn’t matter who you are, what skin color you have, or where you were born we all the same because all of us came from one man. It says in Acts, chapter 17, verse 26: 

“From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.” 

From this we learn that there is only one race; the human race. From one man God made every nation of men. So if you claim to be a believer I want to challenge you to examine your prejudice. Is there anyone you might consider “less than” because of their race, gender, sexual orientation, economic status, age, weight, education, or any other variable? Remember, we were all made in God’s image and Jesus died for everyone. And in Acts we are reminded that from one man God made every nation of men. If you think about it, being prejudice really doesn’t make any logical sense, because it is only by God’s hand that any of us were born where we were. We didn’t choose our parents, our skin color, or our neighborhood. God did. So I would encourage you to remember that we are all equal in God’s eyes. And if that is true, and we are to take on the likeness of Christ, then we should also agree with this concept as well.

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Some biases that were ingrained in us a child are difficult to change. You may have been taught that Ford makes better cars that Chevrolet. I may have been raised to believe that the Detroit Lions are better than the Chicago Bears. Though these biases are not harmful, there are some that are. Prejudice can not only hurt those who are being discriminated upon, it can also hurt those who are doing the discriminating. It can hurt our relationship with God, because it is a form of sin, and it could hurt our relationship with our fellow man of whom we are taught to love. So if you harbor any form of prejudice in your heart, I would encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to eradicate it. Allow him to show you where you pre-judge others. And remember, the Bible teaches us that we are all equal, God loves us all, and we all came from one man.

Return to Him

I’m not sure if we, as believers, can truly understand just how loving, forgiving and merciful our God is. For him, these attributes go far beyond what any human can muster, and I would argue even far beyond what we can comprehend. Like the story of the prodigal son, God is waiting with open arms for the sinner who is returning to him. He is able to wipe away all of our offenses and remember them no more. He is able to give us a clean slate no matter what we’ve done. I don’t know of any human that can claim to have a heart like that. When the Israelites began to chase after other gods, it was like a stab in the heart of the Lord. It was a betrayal similar to that of a wife committing adultery on her husband magnified by 10,000. Many of us would consider that an unforgivable sin. But God is forgiving. He said through the prophet Isaiah in chapter 44, verse 22:   

“I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like a morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.” 

And earlier in chapter 43, verse 25 it says:   

“I, even I, am he who blots out your transgression, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.” 

Our God is like no human. His love is great. He will forgive the most grievous of sins. The number one commandment given to Moses when he received the 10 Commandments was “you shall have no other gods before me.” Even Jesus said the greatest commandment is to “love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength”. Yet, the Israelites sinned knowing full well what they were doing. They broke the greatest commandment, and yet God was willing to forgive them; he was willing to sweep away all of their offenses like a cloud, like a morning mist. He told them to return to him for he has redeemed them. If he could forgive them for breaking the greatest of all commandments, then whatever you have done, he is willing to forgive you if you would only return to him.

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If you are away from God, I would implore you to return to him today. It doesn’t matter if you have been away from him for a few weeks or several years, his arms are open wide. Like he did for the Israelites of old, he will do for you. He will blots out your transgression, for his sake, and remembers your sins no more. How do I know? Because this is the character of God. We see his pattern of forgiveness strewn throughout the Bible. God is not like us. He is slow to anger and abounding in love. Return to him today. Allow him to swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like a morning mist. Return to him today, and he will forgive you.