(no subject)
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28
I never really applied this verse to myself until recently. This is not only meant to benefit those who are being physically persecuted for Christ; rather, the truth can reach to any soul bound by the fear of man and free him, including me and you!
There is a healthy way to go about pleasing, giving to, or serving others. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. (1 Peter 4:10). There is a healthy way to seek approval from our elders and peers. But I believe the imbalance comes when me make serving others a higher priority than serving the King. When we strive to please them more than we strive to please Him. In other words, when we seek the approval of man over the approval of God.
Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Galatians 1:10
Whoever we strive to make most proud, in him we find our greatest worth. Our adoration turns to exaltation and praise, and our serving and giving turns to worship. We have been made to worship. It is only natural that we worship. To worship is to attribute worth. And we attribute most worth to the one person or thing that is of highest value to us. To him we attribute most worth, and in him we find our greatest worth. This is devastating to the soul who is degraded by the one to whom he attributes most worth, because if he is deemed worthless by his idol, he deems himself worthless. I know "idol" is a striking word to use, but I define an idol as any thing or person to whom we attribute more worth than God.
The truth is that we cannot serve two masters. We must serve man or God. If we serve one, we deny the other.
I believe pride is the root of idolatry, even if the idol is someone other than myself. Let me explain with a passage from Romans: For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. (Romans 1:21-23). When we attribute more worth to man than God, we have exchanged the glory of the immortal God for an image of mortal man in our hearts. This is man worshiping one like himself over God. He is worshiping his own weak, depraved, fallen image over the strong, perfect, holy, magnificent God. This act of pride is idolatry, and manifests itself in homosexuality in Romans. But depending on one's specific inclinations to sin it will manifest itself in a multitude of sins.
The one who attributes most worth to himself or to an image like himself probably does not understand the consequences of such a lifestyle, the greatest of which is hell. His highest treasure is man, and his heart is therefore bound by man. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:21). And when a heart and soul is put fully in man's hands, it will be beaten, whipped, and broken. These inevitable abuses by man leave a heart bound by chains of the fear of man. Man's hands become a prison for the heart. Though man truly has no power to enslave another's heart and soul, we enable him when we serve him as master, as lord. We willingly become his slave as we accept him as our master, as our god. Satan preys upon every heart, but the heart with foreign gods is most vulnerable to his hands because no god is powerful enough to keep a heart safe aside from Almighty God Himself. The heart's only refuge is Christ.
To summarize, we live for the approval of either man or God. Living for man's approval and attributing most worth to man enslaves us to the fear of man. This lifestyle leads to the destruction of the heart because it gives Satan a foothold of devastation through the hands of weak and fallen man. The only One capable of keeping a human heart safe and healthy is God.
Now let me apply this verse: Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28
In other words, do not be afraid of man; rather, be afraid of God who has the final say over your body, mind, heart, and soul for eternity. This holy Creator is our rightful God. He is the only One deserving and capable and worthy of such a place. Only when we are slaves to this perfect and loving Master is there true freedom. For the heart locked in the prison of the fear of man, there is hope for you! Beyond all of the confusion is truth. Beyond these walls there is freedom - I know, I have been there. From that prison floor to freedom in the Lord, so don't give up. Don't ever give up.
1. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator-who is forever praised. Amen. (Romans 1:25). If you have accepted that a created thing is more worthy of your service than the Creator, if you have lived as if someone other than God Himself is the greatest source of life, joy, and worth, acknowledge to Him that you have believed a lie.
2. If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9). You must reject the lie that Christ is insufficient for meeting your needs and believe the truth that Jesus is who He claimed to be. He is Lord. He is not just a good man. He is not just a counselor. He is not just a friend. He is to be the greatest treasure of your heart. In Him is your worth, your hope, your salvation. He is life and joy giving. He is the source of every good thing. And He is to be your one and only God!
3. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1). Let us never again live as if we are slaves to man. Let us never again make man our master, our god. Man can never meet your deepest needs or fill the emptiness. He will always fail you. At the core he is a failure. We all need to be saved. We can never save each other from eternal despair. Only Christ is our refuge. Only Christ will not fail us. Only Christ is dependable forever. Only Christ. Let us fix our eyes on Him alone, who has approved of us forever by His blood and in whom our eternal worth is found.
4. Praise God that though life sometimes feels like hell and torment, we can stand in the end and say to Satan, "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." (Genesis 50:20)
Rather than give up, give in to God. Let Him be your God. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still (Exodus 14:14).
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Proverbs 9:10). Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:32). So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (John 8:36).
Matthew 10:28
I never really applied this verse to myself until recently. This is not only meant to benefit those who are being physically persecuted for Christ; rather, the truth can reach to any soul bound by the fear of man and free him, including me and you!
There is a healthy way to go about pleasing, giving to, or serving others. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. (1 Peter 4:10). There is a healthy way to seek approval from our elders and peers. But I believe the imbalance comes when me make serving others a higher priority than serving the King. When we strive to please them more than we strive to please Him. In other words, when we seek the approval of man over the approval of God.
Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Galatians 1:10
Whoever we strive to make most proud, in him we find our greatest worth. Our adoration turns to exaltation and praise, and our serving and giving turns to worship. We have been made to worship. It is only natural that we worship. To worship is to attribute worth. And we attribute most worth to the one person or thing that is of highest value to us. To him we attribute most worth, and in him we find our greatest worth. This is devastating to the soul who is degraded by the one to whom he attributes most worth, because if he is deemed worthless by his idol, he deems himself worthless. I know "idol" is a striking word to use, but I define an idol as any thing or person to whom we attribute more worth than God.
The truth is that we cannot serve two masters. We must serve man or God. If we serve one, we deny the other.
I believe pride is the root of idolatry, even if the idol is someone other than myself. Let me explain with a passage from Romans: For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. (Romans 1:21-23). When we attribute more worth to man than God, we have exchanged the glory of the immortal God for an image of mortal man in our hearts. This is man worshiping one like himself over God. He is worshiping his own weak, depraved, fallen image over the strong, perfect, holy, magnificent God. This act of pride is idolatry, and manifests itself in homosexuality in Romans. But depending on one's specific inclinations to sin it will manifest itself in a multitude of sins.
The one who attributes most worth to himself or to an image like himself probably does not understand the consequences of such a lifestyle, the greatest of which is hell. His highest treasure is man, and his heart is therefore bound by man. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:21). And when a heart and soul is put fully in man's hands, it will be beaten, whipped, and broken. These inevitable abuses by man leave a heart bound by chains of the fear of man. Man's hands become a prison for the heart. Though man truly has no power to enslave another's heart and soul, we enable him when we serve him as master, as lord. We willingly become his slave as we accept him as our master, as our god. Satan preys upon every heart, but the heart with foreign gods is most vulnerable to his hands because no god is powerful enough to keep a heart safe aside from Almighty God Himself. The heart's only refuge is Christ.
To summarize, we live for the approval of either man or God. Living for man's approval and attributing most worth to man enslaves us to the fear of man. This lifestyle leads to the destruction of the heart because it gives Satan a foothold of devastation through the hands of weak and fallen man. The only One capable of keeping a human heart safe and healthy is God.
Now let me apply this verse: Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28
In other words, do not be afraid of man; rather, be afraid of God who has the final say over your body, mind, heart, and soul for eternity. This holy Creator is our rightful God. He is the only One deserving and capable and worthy of such a place. Only when we are slaves to this perfect and loving Master is there true freedom. For the heart locked in the prison of the fear of man, there is hope for you! Beyond all of the confusion is truth. Beyond these walls there is freedom - I know, I have been there. From that prison floor to freedom in the Lord, so don't give up. Don't ever give up.
1. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator-who is forever praised. Amen. (Romans 1:25). If you have accepted that a created thing is more worthy of your service than the Creator, if you have lived as if someone other than God Himself is the greatest source of life, joy, and worth, acknowledge to Him that you have believed a lie.
2. If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9). You must reject the lie that Christ is insufficient for meeting your needs and believe the truth that Jesus is who He claimed to be. He is Lord. He is not just a good man. He is not just a counselor. He is not just a friend. He is to be the greatest treasure of your heart. In Him is your worth, your hope, your salvation. He is life and joy giving. He is the source of every good thing. And He is to be your one and only God!
3. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1). Let us never again live as if we are slaves to man. Let us never again make man our master, our god. Man can never meet your deepest needs or fill the emptiness. He will always fail you. At the core he is a failure. We all need to be saved. We can never save each other from eternal despair. Only Christ is our refuge. Only Christ will not fail us. Only Christ is dependable forever. Only Christ. Let us fix our eyes on Him alone, who has approved of us forever by His blood and in whom our eternal worth is found.
4. Praise God that though life sometimes feels like hell and torment, we can stand in the end and say to Satan, "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." (Genesis 50:20)
Rather than give up, give in to God. Let Him be your God. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still (Exodus 14:14).
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Proverbs 9:10). Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:32). So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (John 8:36).